Jennifer A. Nielsen's Blog, page 9
December 15, 2020
On the Fourth Day of Christmas…
On the fourth day of Christmas,
This author offered me
Four Christmas wishes,
Three Rescues,
Two Free Zoom Visits, and
A title for book five series…
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Okay, I gotta be honest. Your responses on the Zoom visits blew me away. It would be impossible to choose from among them based on those answers, so the winners had to be chosen at random, and they are:
Louise E and Stephanie E
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Today’s gift is holiday wishes from some of the Ascendance characters. Or at least, wishes in the best way they can manage them.
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Come back tomorrow for the fifth day of Christmas. It’s a big one!
December 14, 2020
The Third Day of Christmas
On the twelfth day of Christmas,
This author offered me
Three Rescues,
Two Free Zoom Visits, and
A title for book five series…
Today, I am giving away three Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) of my next historical novel, RESCUE.
Here is the Goodreads summary:
Six hundred and fifty-seven days ago, Meg Kenyon’s father left their home in France to fight for the Allies in World War II, and that was the last time Meg saw him. Recently, she heard he was being held prisoner by the Nazis, a terrible sentence from which Meg fears he’ll never return. All she has left of him are the codes he placed in a jar for her to decipher, an affectionate game the two of them shared. But the codes are running low, and soon there’ll be nothing left of Papa for Meg to hold on to at all.
Suddenly, an impossible chance to save her father falls into Meg’s lap. After following a trail of blood in the snow, Meggie finds an injured British spy hiding in her grandmother’s barn. Captain Stewart tells her that a family of German refugees must be guided across Nazi-occupied France to neutral Spain, whereupon one of them has promised to free Meg’s father. Captain Stewart was meant to take that family on their journey, but too injured to complete the task himself, he offers it to Meg, along with a final code from Papa to help complete the mission — perhaps the most important, and most difficult, riddle she’s received yet.
As the Nazis flood Meg’s village in fierce pursuit, she accepts the duty and begins the trek across France. Leading strangers through treacherous territory, Meg faces danger and uncertainty at every turn, all the while struggling to crack her father’s code. The message, as she unravels it, reveals secrets costly enough to risk the mission and even her own life. Can Meg solve the puzzle, rescue the family, and save her father?
How To Enter:
In the comments below, tell me a favorite quote of yours from any of my other historicals to date (A NIGHT DIVIDED, RESISTANCE, WORDS ON FIRE).
And with apologies, this round is for those with a U.S. address only.
I will announce the winners on the fifth day of Christmas (Wednesday, Dec 16).
Check in tomorrow for the fourth day of Christmas… (you’ll love it!)
December 13, 2020
Second Day of Christmas…
On the twelfth day of Christmas,
This author offered me
Two Free Zoom Visits, and
A title for book five series…
Yes, two Free Zoom Visits!
Who might want to win this?
If you are a teacher or librarian who tried to book a free visit with me last October, but my schedule was full, enter below!
If you lead a book club and want to read or have read one of my books, enter below!
If you are a student and want to give a unique gift to your teacher or librarian, enter below!
If you have a superfan in your home and want to give them a chance to chat with me live, enter below!
If you are an aspiring writer and want to pick my brain for a half hour or so, enter below!
If you stumbled onto this website by accident and have no real interest in books, don’t enter below. I mean seriously, what would we talk about?
How To Enter:
Leave a comment below telling me how you’d like to use this Zoom visit if you win. That’s it, really.
I will announce the winners on the fourth day of Christmas (Tuesday, Dec 15).
Check in tomorrow for the third day of Christmas… (because it’s going to be awesome!)
December 12, 2020
First Day of Christmas
On the twelfth day of Christmas,
This author offered me
A title for book five series…
Many have asked.
Some have cleverly figured it out through your secret online sources (Goodreads).
A few are still waiting.
But be warned…
There are three ways to interpret this title.
Is it literal? (In THE RUNAWAY KING, he…well he runs away)
Or symbolic? (THE SHADOW THRONE was an allusion to outside powers attempting to take control of Carthya)
Or misleading? (In THE CAPTIVE KINGDOM, it might not be the kingdom you think)Whichever it is, we know that there must be consequences for what happens at the end of THE CAPTIVE KINGDOM. And I can promise you this, our young king will feel those consequences dearly in…
THE SHATTERED CASTLE
Coming Fall 2021
Check in tomorrow for the second day of Christmas…
December 11, 2020
Starting Tomorrow…
See you tomorrow!
November 15, 2020
Status Update in Stats
I know, I’ve been missing from the blog. I thought it might be helpful to explain why, using a few numbers.
COOL NEWS (3)
Here it is!
WORDS ON FIRE was named to the Texas Bluebonnet List for 2021-22. This list of 20 titles was narrowed down from 813 nominees, and is considered one of the most prestigious book lists in the country. The other titles on this list are so extraordinary, it’s a great honor for me to have a book included there.
RESCUE, my historical to be released in March, has been named a Junior Library Guild pick for their upcoming season. This list has a reputation for selecting very high quality books, so I couldn’t be more thrilled about this.
And…in my last post, I told you about the Author Extravaganza that I was participating in as one way of helping my local indie bookstore, The King’s English. I haven’t yet heard back on the number of books sold yesterday, but I can report that the proceeds from the auction, with donations from nearly 50 authors, raised over $4000 for the store. To those who participated, either online or in the auction, THANK YOU!
WRITING STATUS (3)
The final draft of Ascendance #5 has been turned in and will be released next fall. It will pick up some time after the end of THE CAPTIVE KINGDOM, and I think it’s going to be epic!
I’m still working on the World War 1 novel. Rewriting, rewriting, rewriting.
For those who know about BLACK INK, the first draft is done, but I can’t get into the rewrites for it until I finish the World War 1 novel. So that will begin early in the new year.
WRITING REQUESTS
Manuscript Reviews (3)
Interviews (6)
Goodreads Questions (12+)
Requests to Send Something (16)
Fan Emails (49)
Comments to Approve on Blog (13)
Instagram Messages (9)
Facebook Messages (4)
Videos to Film (3)
Pending Zoom Visits this month (4)
Contest Stories to Judge (10)
On their own, none of them are very big, but they do take time, so as always, if you’re in one of those numbers above, please be patient with me. I will get to you. The good news is, I can cross creating this blog post off my list, so now on to item #2!
November 8, 2020
Authors Extravaganza
Yes, I KNOW I’ve been absent from this blog for like, a month or more. Sorry. It’s been a crazy few weeks. But I do have some fun updates. Today is update #1.
AUTHOR EXTRAVAGANZA
You know I’ve posted a lot lately about supporting The King’s English Bookshop, my local indie, which is fighting to stay open after more than 40 years in business. Well there is something AMAZING coming up!
This Saturday, November 14th, 48 authors, illustrators, and publishing professionals will gather together for a fabulous online extravaganza. And the best part is that all of it is FREE!
Looks at some of these amazing people who will be joining us!
Christian McKay Heidicker
Shannon Hale
Brandon Mull
Matt de la Peña
Ally CondieWe highly encourage advance registration to get the meeting link because when it is full, it is full. You can tune in all day or just for a single panel.
There is also an amazing auction you will want to check out. Bidding will be done throughout the day over Instagram on November 14th. Personally, I’ll be giving away a signed advance copy of RESCUE, a signed advance copy of BOOK 5 of THE ASCENDANCE SERIES (when it is available), and a critique of the first thirty pages of a manuscript.
AND a 30-page critique!
You can register, view the items available for auction (coming soon), and view the day’s schedule at the link: HERE
October 6, 2020
THE CAPTIVE KINGDOM is Here!
I feel like we’ve been talking about this book FOREVER! But it’s finally here, and I hope you will love it!
If you ordered from The King’s English, I will be going there later this week to sign all copies. If you wanted it signed with your name but forgot to put that in the order, please call them to correct that or send me an email from my CONTACT page with the name you want signed into the book.
If you ordered elsewhere and want swag, I will send whatever extra I have out to you. Send me an email with your name and address from the link above.
Either way, thank you. Thank you for supporting this book and the series, for your love of these characters and enthusiasm for their story to continue.
I turned in edits for book 5 yesterday and I hope I will be able to announce the title soon.
If you have not picked up a copy of THE CAPTIVE KINGDOM, please consider doing so, or requesting a copy from your local library. Or please recommend the series to a friend. All of these are enormous helps.
And finally, if you have not seen the 360 Trailer for the series, check it out HERE!
If you still want to order a book, here are some quick links you can use!
October 1, 2020
Are you Ready for Tonight?
The link to register is HERE.
It will ask for your email, which is only used so that we know who is attending. The event is free and on (Edit) CROWDCAST, and there is a high probability that it will be sorta fun.
This is the plan:
At 5:30 MT / 7:30 ET, I will release the new series book trailer. (It will appear at the top of this blog and on all my social media.) It’ll be different from any other trailer though. You’ll enjoy it best with headphones but they’re not mandatory, and be prepared to look around…
The party begins at 6 pm MT / 8 pm ET. I’ll tell a couple of stories, talk about my current projects, but I want most of the time to be used for your questions, so get `em ready! Prizes will go to those who ask the questions, and these are great prizes. Winners will be able to choose from:
An advanced reader’s copy of RESCUE, my historical to be released this March.
A signed, first edition of THE SCORCH TRIALS, from the Maze Runner series by James Dashner.
A signed, first edition of THE FIFTH WAVE, by Rick Yancy.
A signed, first edition of DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: THE LONG HAUL by Jeff Kinney.
A signed, first edition of TURTLES ALL THE WAY DOWN by John Green.
A signed copy of AMULET by Kazu Kibuishi.
A signed, first edition of THE GENTLEMAN’S GUIDE TO VICE AND VIRTUE by MacKenzie Lee.
A signed, first edition of THE TRIALS OF APOLLO by Rick Riordan.
A $20 gift card to The King’s English Bookstore.
An advanced copy of book 5 of the Ascendance series, when it is available.
To order any of my books from our hosts this evening, The King’s English Bookshop, click HERE. Please remember in the final box where it says “Order Comments,” to put in your name, if you want it signed to you.
If you have already ordered and forgot to put in your name, send me an email so that I can be sure to still get it signed properly.
I will see you all online tonight!
p.s. I know I’ve been slacking on a few posts, some unanswered questions, and at least one prize award. I will get to it all soon, I promise!
September 29, 2020
Trivia Tuesday 5
Can you identify who or what Sage is insulting?
1. To whom does Sage say, “I never denied being a fool. That’s the difference between us.”
2. Who is this insult for? “You dog-breath, rotted corpse of a king.”
3. Which country does Sage say has a tendency for the women to sprout warts from their faces?
4. To whom does Sage say, “You’re very ugly. Have mercy on your children. Even the princess’s beauty won’t compensate for you.”
5. Who does Sage suggest looks more like a gravedigger than a teacher?
6. Which country does Sage describe as fighting “like bedridden grandmothers, only with longer needles?”
7. Who does Sage imply smells worse than the backside of a horse?
8. Who does Sage describe as being unable to love anything but their own reflections?
9. Who does Sage describe a cruel sort of devil who takes his capture as a personal badge of honor?
10. Which character does Jaron describe as having a poisonous tongue?
And the answers to last week’s trivia questions…
In which book do we get the story of:
1. Merrick Kippenger (THE SHADOW THRONE)
2. Master Graves (THE FALSE PRINCE)
3. Lump (THE CAPTIVE KINGDOM)
4. Westler (THE CAPTIVE KINGDOM)
5. Master Westlebrook (THE RUNAWAY KING)
6. Mavis Tock (THE SHADOW THRONE)
7. Mistress Havala (THE FALSE PRINCE)
8. Teagut (THE CAPTIVE KINGDOM)
9. Serena (THE RUNAWAY KING)
10. Lord Beckett (THE FALSE PRINCE)
