Amy Plum's Blog, page 40
August 5, 2011
Amy Plum's Daily Devoirs: The Name Dev
Find out the first and middle names of your grandmother and her mother. Say each of their names without thinking of the woman, and choose one adjective and noun that comes to mind for each. Then say each of their names while thinking about them and choose another two words.
What's a Dev? Find out here!
August 4, 2011
Amy Plum's Daily Devoirs: The Love Dev
Tell someone that you love them. (Someone you love, of course!) How do they respond first? With voice, touch, or facial expression? If on the phone, does their voice change after you tell them? How? Take their reaction to heart, cherish it, and then run quickly to write it down.
What's a Dev? Find out here!
Amy Plum's Daily Devoirs (A Project in Creativity)
What's a Devoir, you ask? Any French kid would tell you it means "homework," although the literal meaning is "duty". But don't let that scare you. These Daily Devoirs are anything but work. Think of them as candy for your brain.
How to do your Daily Devoir:
Read the Dev. Think about it if it's a concept, and do it if it's a task. Write the result down on a piece of paper, and put it in your appointed Dev Diary, Dev Drawer, Dev Box…wherever you want to keep your Devs. And if you feel like it, post the answer as a comment here, to the Daily Dev on my FB page or on Twitter with the hashtag #dailydev.
Why do the Daily Devoir?
IF YOU ARE AN ASPIRING WRITER: Devs are to get you into the zone, if only for a minute out of your busy day. They are to give your brain a mini-break from what it normally thinks about and take it in another direction. And then, the day you sit down in front of your notebook or computer screen and are in need of inspiration, you can go to your Dev Box, take out your slips of paper, and find a wealth of random ideas and words that might just be that imaginative spark you need.
IF YOU ARE NOT A WRITER: Devs are like yoga for your gray matter. They are the creative break in your perhaps not-so-creative day. The connection with your imagination that you might not access often in your regular routine. Do them and be refreshed and stimulated. And, if you're feeling brave, share them with the rest of us!
What's the reason for the Daily Devoir?
I wanted to find a new way to help young aspiring writers who ask me for advice. And once I began writing the Devoirs, I realized that anyone might have fun doing them. So young or old, writer or non-writer, everyone is welcome to join in!
PAST DEVS
August 4 The Love Dev
July 31 The Cloud Dev
The Love of Your Life
A couple of people recently asked me the same question, so I thought I would bring it up here on the blog. The question:
Does Vincent love Kate more than Hélène?
My response: WOW! Good question!!!
And my answer would have to be: I believe you can have more than one love in your life. But no two loves are the same.
When Vincent loved Hélène he was very young, inexperienced and hadn't seen much of life. He had only met a few other women in his small Brittany town. It was an innocent but true love with a childhood friend.
By the time he finds Kate, he's had decades of experience. He's known some joy and a lot of tragedy. He's met thousands of people. And yet, Kate is the only one he falls in love with. And it's an all-consuming desperate love because he now knows how rare it is.
So I would have to say: Kate and Hélène are two different loves for Vincent, but neither takes anything away from the other.
Now…tell me what you think. Is it possible to have more than one true love in a lifetime?
August 2, 2011
End of YA Scavenger Hunt
That was more than a little bit incredible. 24 hours of complete madness while you all perused 23 YA authors' websites, read our bonus material, and entered our contests. I, along with the rest of the authors, were TOTALLY BLOWN AWAY by your enthusiasm!
For those who entered my DIE FOR ME Prize Pack giveaway, there were 195 of you. And the winner is:
Shannon Condie
Congratulations, Shannon. And for the rest of you THANK YOU for participating. I hold contests pretty regularly both on this blog, on my Twitter feed ( @iHeartRevenants) and on my FB Fanpage : http://www.facebook.com/amyplumfanpage . So if you didn't win this time, be sure to follow me on those two sites and you will have the change to win again!
As for the GRAND PRIZE, go to Colleen Houck's site – she will be announcing the winner.
And again – THANK YOU EVERYONE!!! What a wild, crazy, fun ride this has been!
July 31, 2011
Welcome to the YA Scavenger Hunt (ENDED!)
You've made it! Welcome to the super-exclusive and exciting YA Scavenger Hunt. On this hunt you will be able to gain access to exclusive bonus material, sign up for giveaways, and get an all-access pass to top secret insider information. This fabulous sneak peek into what's coming up in YA literature is for one day only! [THE SCAVENGER HUNT IS OVER, BUT I'M LEAVING BETH REVIS'S INFORMATION FOR YOU TO ENJOY!]
THIS STOP'S GUEST AUTHOR
I am SO HONORED to introduce my guest author today…Beth Revis!
Hi guys! *waves hello ecstatically* I'm thrilled to be here today–and just as thrilled that you found me through the scavenger hunt organized by the lovely Colleen!
In case you don't know me, my name is Beth Revis, and I'm the author of ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, a YA science fiction novel. The short synopsis of the book is: it's a murder mystery….in SPACE. Basically, it's my excuse to kill off a bunch of people in a spaceship, which I consider all good fun.
The first book came out this January, and in it, a young girl who's been cryogenically frozen for an interstellar space mission. When she's woken up fifty years too early, she has to figure out who unplugged her…before he unplugs and kills her parents.
The second book is called A MILLION SUNS, and it'll be out in January 2012. I can't tell you too much about it yet but this: at least two things you think are true in the first book are actually lies.
So, over on my blog today, I announced a pretty big contest–there are a ton of prizes, including the very first ARC giveaway for A MILLION SUNS.
Get the <a href="http://www.widgetbox.com/widget/a-mil... Million Suns</a> widget and many other <a href="http://www.widgetbox.com/"&a... free widgets</a> at <a href="http://www.widgetbox.com"&am...! Not seeing a widget? (<a href="http://docs.widgetbox.com/using-widge... info</a>)
THANK YOU BETH! For those of you who haven't yet read Beth's book, you really should. Trust me – I read it last week and I really enjoyed it!!
Welcome to the YA Scavenger Hunt
You've made it! Welcome to the super-exclusive and exciting YA Scavenger Hunt. On this hunt you will be able to gain access to exclusive bonus material, sign up for giveaways, and get an all-access pass to top secret insider information. This fabulous sneak peek into what's coming up in YA literature is for one day only!
THE PUZZLE
Copy and paste the puzzle below onto a document or blank email page and fill it out as you proceed through the Scavenger Hunt. Search for keywords, one on each website that will be highlighted in RED, and insert them into the puzzle then fill out the Google form here to have a chance at winning the Grand Prize. This fantastic GRAND PRIZE will include signed editions of books, signed bookmarks, jewelry, and many more exclusive gifts with at least one from EVERY AUTHOR!
To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit this filled-in puzzle before midnight on August 1st Pacific Time. All the keywords must be in the correct place.
Below the puzzle, you will find this stop's SURPRISE GUEST AUTHOR and her bonus material. And then below that, you will find a link to the next stop on the Scavenger Hunt. Good luck, intrepid hunters!
SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE:
Welcome fans of young adult literature! Don't forget to _______ up in time to join our special event! In ____________ you roll the dice and, like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get. Our scavenger hunt is very similar. Surprises wait around every corner. Turn one page and you're chasing a _________ through a _________ _____________. Turn another and you are being _________ by a _______ which leaves your heart ________. YA ________s are full of ___________ heroes who must ___________ themselves for the greater good. Some of the characters travel through ______ or have a _________ __________. If there is one thing YA has taught us, it's that if you leave your ___________ keep an eye out for a patrolling ________. They're very dangerous. Maybe not so frightening as a ____________, but still you should be careful. Also beware lest you become __________ by vampires. ______________ one is a different story. Just remember that bite has ___________ ramifications and that afterwards the sun can ______ you unless you get bitten by a glittering type. Whether you like dark, paranormal, romance, fantasy, ___________, Sci-Fi, or a combination of those, we've got something for you. We think that each fan is a __________ and we love you all!
THIS STOP'S GUEST AUTHOR
I am SO HONORED to introduce my guest author today…Beth Revis!
Hi guys! *waves hello ecstatically* I'm thrilled to be here today–and just as thrilled that you found me through the scavenger hunt organized by the lovely Colleen!
In case you don't know me, my name is Beth Revis, and I'm the author of ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, a YA science fiction novel. The short synopsis of the book is: it's a murder mystery….in SPACE. Basically, it's my excuse to kill off a bunch of people in a spaceship, which I consider all good fun.
The first book came out this January, and in it, a young girl who's been cryogenically frozen for an interstellar space mission. When she's woken up fifty years too early, she has to figure out who unplugged her…before he unplugs and kills her parents.
The second book is called A MILLION SUNS, and it'll be out in January 2012. I can't tell you too much about it yet but this: at least two things you think are true in the first book are actually lies.
So, over on my blog today, I announced a pretty big contest–there are a ton of prizes, including the very first ARC giveaway for A MILLION SUNS.
One of the prizes is a little unique: five winners will get a SECRET prize. I didn't tell anyone what that prize was–other than this: the prize is a clue about the plot of A MILLION SUNS.
But…I'm going to tell YOU what the clue is. Or, rather, show it to you.
That's right! The prize is a sterling silver charm that depicts a lotus flower. Lotus flowers are often highly symbolic images of peace or enlightenment, especially in Eastern cultures. Lotuses are water flowers, and are beautiful and fragrant.
And they are a hint about one of the lies that Godspeed hides.
Is this hint symbolic? Maybe. Literal? Maybe. Something else entirely? Probably. But I'm not going to tell you! If you head back to my blog today, you can enter to win this charm–along with a handwritten note giving you a little more details about the clue, as well as some other fun goodies–and you might just win the grand prize of an ARC of A MILLION SUNS, a beautiful charm bracelet, and more!
And since I'm in the giving mood today, leave a comment on the blog post before midnight, Eastern Standard Time (make sure you include your email address so I can contact you) and I'll get a signed swag pack in the mail to one lucky winner!
Get the <a href="http://www.widgetbox.com/widget/a-mil... Million Suns</a> widget and many other <a href="http://www.widgetbox.com/"&a... free widgets</a> at <a href="http://www.widgetbox.com"&am...! Not seeing a widget? (<a href="http://docs.widgetbox.com/using-widge... info</a>)
THANK YOU BETH! For those of you who haven't yet read Beth's book, you really should. Trust me – I read it last week and I really enjoyed it!! And now on to:
THE DIE FOR ME GIVEAWAY
Sending in the puzzle earns you a chance at the Grand Prize. But you can also have a separate chance to win…the DIE FOR ME Prize Pack! Find out how by clicking here.
THE NEXT STOP
Ready to go to the next stop on the YA Scavenger Hunt – click here for LANI WOODLAND!!!
DIE FOR ME YA Scavenger Hunt Prize Pack
As a part of the YA Scavenger Hunt, I am holding my own prize pack giveaway (open internationally). To participate in the Hunt click here after 12 midnight Pacific time on August 1 and follow the instructions.
The DIE FOR ME Scavenger Hunt prize pack includes:
1. a signed DIE FOR ME bookmark
2. an Eiffel Tower + heart cell phone charm (might not look EXACTLY like this, since I'm going to buy it in Paris tomorrow, but I promise it will be pretty!)
And 3. the never-used cover for the original American hardback (showing Kate-in-a-Boat). This is a collector's item – only a few exist. And I only have 2 left (one is for me!).
For a chance to win, you need to find my bonus material in the Scavenger Hunt (again – available here after 12 midnight Pacific time) by following the "Next Stop" links at the end of everyone's post until you land on the author who is hosting me.
After reading my bonus material, email me at amy AT amyplumbooks dot com with the subject link "YA Scavenger Hunt". In the body of the email, tell me who Kate never wanted to be. From those who answer correctly, I will randomly draw a winner! Deadline is 12 midnight Pacific time on August 2.
Thank you all for participating! And if you don't already own a copy of DIE FOR ME (or just wanted to order one for your favorite reading buddy) I would be overjoyed if you bought one. In fact, let me know if you do, and I will do an on-the-spot happy dance. Hope to see you soon in Kate and Vincent's Paris!
Amy Plum's Daily Devoirs: The Cloud Dev
Go outside. Look at the clouds until you find one that looks like something recognizable. Write it down. If no clouds, write "The sky is the color of…" and add a word or phrase.
What's a Dev? Find out here!
July 20, 2011
Campaigning for Votes
Our favorite revenant artist, Jules, has reached the second round of YA Sisterhood's YA Crush Tourney, and for the next 24 hours will be up against Jace of Cassie Clare's Mortal Instruments. (A worthy foe!)
I have promised Jules's supporters another teaser from UNTIL I DIE if he wins. Click here to vote for him!
