Cindy C. Bennett's Blog, page 37

Cover Reveal: Forever Fredless by Suzy Turner

Cover Reveal:
Forever Fredless by Suzy Turner
Kate Robinson has spent the past two decades yearning to find her soul mate, the boy she found and then lost during a family holiday. Shortly after her twenty-eighth birthday, however, she inherits a fortune from an old family friend and becomes something of an overnight celebrity. Can her new-found fame lead her to him after all this time?
Forever Fredless will be available from online bookstores from October 2013.
For more details about Suzy and her books, visit: http://suzyturner.comhttp://suzyturner.blogspot.comhttp://facebook.com/suzyturnerbookshttp://twitter.com/@suzy_turnerhttp://pinterest.com/suzyturnerbooks

Indie Author Spotlight: Toni's Journey

The YA Indie Authors are starting a new monthly series, Toni's Big Six Journey. It one where a starting-out and talented new author, Toni Lombardo, will share her trials and tribulations as she makes her way to the Big Six. She'll talk about pitches, writing, conferences, social media, and/or anything else she sees and does on this journey. Toni is

LIGHT 'EM UP
I guess I should start off with saying who I am:  My name is Toni Lombardo.  I am a writer.  I am going the traditional route (ya know, “The BIG six”, I want to be affiliated with Penguin/Random House, but for right now, I am in the transition state.)The transition state.  I am working with a great guy named David Henry Sterry (The Book Doctor).  I met him and his wife Arielle Eckstut in the beginning of October 2011.  I went to a book convention and met them and hit it off.  Since then I have been working with him on my book.  I sent a copy of my book and he said it wasn’t ready yet, then I edited it a little and he said that it wasn’t ready for the world.  He asked what I was doing in writing now and told him all the stuff I am working on.  I told him that I felt like my writing had improved since I was sixteen when I first finished the original copy I sent him (started it when I was fifteen).  He told me it was FANTASTIC for a sixteen year old writer but not ready for publishing. Now, before I get to the good part here is the great thing about David, he is wonderful and gets writers because he is a writer.  He started to say something, “Have you considered…” and paused.  When he hesitated I said “rewriting it?”  He said yes.  The thing I loved about the hesitation it showed that he didn’t want to crush my dreams.  I mean really how if I went the traditional, traditional route, you know…edit sent to query, would that have ended up?  I would have gotten rejection after rejection and never have known why…I mean ask any author there are millions of horror stories.  I had one friend who burned her only manuscript because of an agent.  This guy David approached the topic carefully and caringly.  He told me what needed work; he didn’t shoot me down and crush my dreams and tell me I was untalented (or true story talked to an agent she said no.  Then told someone she didn’t like me or my book.)The rewrite turned out to be the best thing that could happen.  The book is part 1 in a 5 book series and I have written through the halfway mark in the third novel.   In doing that my book changed so much.  Not enough for a reader to pick up on, but enough for me the author to cringe over.Like I said I was fifteen when I started the novel and there were things I was afraid to write.  I was afraid what people would think of me, what judgments would be made. Some people told me I was a bad ‘Christian’ because of the content of my book.  Now, hold up right there—advice—NEVER, NEVER let anyone get away with saying that!  You’re writing doesn’t make you more or less of whatever religion you choose.  You’re writing doesn’t make you a good or bad believer of your faith.  Back to what I was saying, I was afraid to write certain scenes.  But as I got older and my characters aged the book had to mature.  I had to write those scenes, and you know what they turned out great.  So in the rewrite I was able to have the foundation down of the book, but the knowledge of what my characters decided to do in their lives and the maturity to write the scenes in ways that would create tight bonds between every word, sentence, and book.  I think every writer should have at least the second book in the series written before trying to publish the first.  Because no matter how hard you try to stay to your plot your characters will make their own decisions and mess everything up, but that is the beauty of writing. The rewrite has revealed to me so many things that were just cringe worthy, where if that book was published I would have gone into hiding and never write anything ever again, not a grocery list, not a birthday card.  Yeah, that is how bad the first go around was.  It is truly embarrassing.  I had and have supportive friends who loved the first edition, because they didn’t see my full potential, but David did.  And now when they read what I am doing now they kind of laugh that they thought the first edition was good, (they aren’t being mean, it was that bad, like really) and tell me how much I have improved. I keep getting off topic.  In rewriting you will find ways to make your book better in ways you couldn’t have imagine for 5 reasons: 1- you have matured in life and writing, 2-your life experiences have influenced you and made you better, 3- your characters have aged in the books, 4-your story is becoming more complex and real and lastly the most important, 5-you know your characters better!Knowing your characters, loving, hating, crying for/with your characters is what makes your book great, because if you don’t do all that, then there is a possibility that your readers won’t either.  Your characters have to be real, and I don’t mean realistic, they have to be real to you before they can be real to others.  Because when they are real to other people—that is when you have truly have succeeded.  Having a best seller is great, having a movie made is great, being in demand is great, but the true test of success is what I said above, when your fictional character takes on a life for a person who doesn’t know you, just bought your book, your reader then you have succeeded.  It doesn’t matter if you sell one or countless books; true, true success is when your characters become real to someone else.  I know I said that what three, four times, but it is important.  And my next post will talk about the importance of connecting with characters. Toni's Motivating Quote: We write for ourselves.
Toni's Listening to: Fall out Boy, My Songs Know What You Did in The Dark (Light Em Up)

Friday Five

Welcome to this week’s Friday Five. If you haven’t been here before, this is nothing more than my random rambling about something that interests me, with a list of five, in no particular order. This week’s list is Five Book Series I Could Read Over and Over: Part 2. Hope you enjoy!
Five Book Series I Could Read Over and Over (Part II: Indie Published)
Last week I gave my five favorite book series I could read over and over, with only traditionally published (Big Six) books. You can read that list here. This week I’m giving you my indie list (small press or self-published). As always these are in no particular order.

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The Port Fare Series by Sherry Gammon: The first two books of this series are out, with the third on the way. And (woo-hoo) the first book, Unlovable, starring Seth and Maggie, is being made into a movie! I read the first book long before I met the author, Sherry Gammon, and we've since become great friends, which is really kinda cool. I’m a bit partial to the second book, Unbelievable, because it stars my book-crush Cole. I fell in love with him in the first book and so was thrilled to have his story told. Next up: Booker’s story!

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The Seers Trilogy by Heather Frost: I’m ashamed to admit that I owned the first book for quite some time before I actually read it. But then again, that was to my benefit because by the time I did read it, I had the second two available to me (helps to know the author!) and so was able to read through all of them at once. Because once you read the first one, you’ll immediately want to dig into the other two. Heather weaves a great story, and boy does that chick know how to write a kiss!

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Fractured Light Series by Rachel McClellan: Another book series I’ve only read once, but they’ve stuck with me and I want to read them again. The story is well written, with characters you can’t forget about, a strong female lead, and swoon-worthy hunks. In a rare thing, I actually like the second book better than the first. That almost never happens with me, but Llona’s story really takes a bounding leap in the second book. And (spoiler) we get a second hunk to confuse us about who to root for.

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The Dissidence Series by Jamie Canosa: Only 2 of the 3 books in this series have been released, but I love them so much that I’ve read Dissidence (the first book) probably three times, which is a lot for someone who rarely gets a chance to read. I’ve only read the second book once, but that’s because it hasn’t been out for too long. I absolutely adore Kaleigh and her utter sarcasm at every turn. Even her mushy moments are given humor with her way of wording things. I’m just seriously in love with this book series (and, just FYI, Jamie’s short called Our Own Worst Enemies is probably my all-time fave vampire tale).
[image error] The Miss Mary Pennynickle Series by James DeSalvo: I was almost afraid to list this one because it’s going to utterly expose my completely warped sense of humor, but these books make me laugh so much that I decided I had to share. James has written a seriously morbid series of short stories and poems that are what you might eternally scar your kids for life.

I created the Friday Five graphic from an original image copyrighted by: marincas_andrei / 123RF Stock Photo

Pretty Darn Funny - The Pinterest Plot

The second post for my Pretty Darn Funny video blog tour today is on "The Pinterest Plot". You can watch it below.

   
My thoughts: This one was pretty darn hilarious because seriously, who among us hasn't tried one (or sixteen) of the "easy" things we find on Pinterest, and then feel like epic failures when it doesn't even vaguely resemble the picture? Created by Martha Stewart and mothers-in-law indeed. Plus, the mom with the baby blues, who has the exact same affect during the blues and when she's happy made me laugh.
You can watch last week's videos and read my thoughts on them here.

Sugar Coated Blog Tour

Sugar Coated blurb:An unhealthy addiction to sugar cubes, a deep-seated fear of water, and universal luxury—these are the simple things that make up 18-year-old Brynn's Utopian existence. Why, then, is her perfect life also plagued with unanswered questions?

Like every other resident of the planet Halcyon, Brynn's home provides everything she needs, money is unheard of, and life is perfect. But unlike the rest of Seaside's residents, Brynn has questions. Why can't people leave the city? Why does the ocean fill everyone with terror? Who are the Workers? Not only is Brynn curious where others are compliant, but she suffers from chronic nightmares of an angelic woman torturing her for information she doesn’t possess. But these are more than just figments of her imagination; they're memories of things that never happened.

When Brynn meets Jonah, a brilliant, library-dwelling boy who shares her questions and her curiosity, they formulate a plan to find answers. Somewhere, the perfect veneer of Halcyon's instant gratification hides a city that only Brynn knows about—a city she and Jonah are determined to find. But will finding the city give them answers, or simply uncover the horrific truth behind the perfection?

My Review:
I’m a fan of Shannen Crane Camp, so when I read the blurb for this book I was pretty excited that it’s both a book in a genre I love and written by an author I love. It didn’t disappoint.Sugar Coatedis the story of Brynn, addicted to sugar cubes, living a life where everything is handed to you simply for the asking. (I really want her house!) However, unlike her complacent friends who don’t question their existence, Brynn is very curious. She’s been looking for the unknown city of Aywon since she was a girl and heard about if from one of the “Angels”, who are about the creepiest characters I’ve read in a while. Everyone thinks she’s crazy, though, for believing it even exists.Everyone except Jonah, the boy she meets at the library where he spends his days also looking for answers. He’s willing to help Brynn on her quest for the truth in spite of her friends’ objections, including that of the cute Ty, who, without giving anything away, does something for Brynn that seriously most guys would never do. I’m a bit of a Ty fan. <3
Shannen has written an exciting first book in a trilogy that follows Brynn as she seeks answers—and finds some things that would make even the bravest soul shudder. She’s curious, courageous, and also a bit of a sugar junkie. I really love her character, and the story. I can hardly wait for the sequel! So hurry up and write, Shannen.  :o)
Sugar Coated Excerpt:                Blinding white lights flashed into life, revealing a room less cavernous and imposing than she had expected. Instead, the room with the white walls, ceilings, and floor was quite small; small enough for her to run from one end to the other without ever breaking a sweat. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust and once they did, she still couldn’t be sure of what she was seeing. There seemed to be a complete lack of color in this small room, as if it had been drained right before her arrival and was shining more brightly because of its recent purge.                 Brynn blinked her eyes a few more times, trying to clear the spots that sprang into existence when the less-than-subtle lights had ignited. Now that she had a proper hold on her surroundings, she could see the impossibility of the room. There were no windows. There were no doors. There was no way in or out. So how had she gotten there?                “We apologize for any inconvenience your death may cause you at this time,” said a smooth, soothing female voice over what Brynn could only describe as a loudspeaker. If the woman’s voice hadn’t been so calm and collected, it may have taken her less time to understand exactly what she was saying before the sickly sweet smell of sugar hit her nose; like cookies right out of the oven.                This wasn’t just a room. It was a death chamber.                “We appreciate your cooperation and would like to take this opportunity to remind you that the best thing to do in this situation is enjoy this smell, generated for your pleasure,” the voice told her, never losing that deep, rich timbre.                 Brynn thought that if she hadn’t been in an obviously dire situation, she would have loved nothing more than to listen to the beautiful voice and smell the sweet sugar all day long. But as it turned out, there wasn’t much time left in her day right at that moment.                 Listening to the woman’s instructions against her better judgment, Brynn took one deep breath, enjoying the smell of the unnaturally rich sugar before her cheek made contact with the hard white floor with a sickening thud. Author bio: Shannen Crane Camp was born and raised in Southern California, where she developed a love of reading, writing, and anything having to do with film. After high school, she moved to Utah to attend Brigham Young University, where she received a degree in Media Arts and found herself a husband in fellow California native Josh Camp. The two now live in either California or Utah... they still can't decide.
Shannen loves to hear from readers, so feel free to contact her at Shannencbooks@hotmail.com or visit her website for more information: http://shannencbooks.blogspot.com Blog Stops:August 24th: Elizabeth Anne Lance (http://madameelizabethsmusings.blogsp... 25th: Kayla’s Reads and Reviews (http://kaylasreadsandreviews.blogspot... 26th: Young Adult and Teen Readers (http://yesterdayandtomorrowsreads.blo... 27th: Cindy Bennett  (http://cindybennett.blogspot.com/)August 28th: I Read Indie (http://twimom101bookblog.blogspot.com... 29th: YA Book Addict (http://youngadultbookaddict.blogspot.... 30th: Kathryn Cooper  (http://cleanteenfiction.blogspot.com/)                  August 31st: Jolene Perry (http://www.jolenesbeenwriting.blogspo...) a Rafflecopter giveaway

Books to Movies Giveaway Hop

This is an awesome giveaway for me, as a lover of both books and movies. Sometimes they get it right when they make a book into a movie (Hunger Games) and sometimes they completely screw it up (Twilight). Then there's the rare occasion when the movie is actually better than the book. That's why for this giveaway I'm giving one lucky winner a copy of one of my favorite movies, which was based on a book, in which I love the movie more than the book. That movie is Stardust, based on the book by Neil Gaiman. If you haven't seen this movie, it's truly amazing.



The transformation of Tristan (Charlie Cox) from average, overeager dude into swoon-worthy heartthrob is so fantastic that I had to look it up and see if it was the same actor playing both parts. Add to that the perfectly devious Septimus (Mark Strong) and the witchiest of witches Lamia (Michelle Pfeifer) and you can't go wrong.
Then they added an unbelievable supporting cast with Humphrey (Henry Cavill - yes, that Henry Cavill who you won't recognize at all), King (Peter O'Toole), fallen star - literally - Yvaine (Claire Danes), Una (Kate Magowen), Young Dunstan (Ben Barnes), Ditchwater Sal (the hilarious Melanie Hill), snotty Victoria (Sienna Miller), Primus (Jason Fleming), and Secundus (played with perfect humor and a smashed face by Rupert Everett). The rest of the brothers, all ghosts, are so great I almost wish they'd had bigger parts. But maybe it was perfect having them in there for the amount of time they were - you know, sometimes less is more. Oh, and how can I forget Billy (Mark Williams). Make sure you watch every move, every twitch, every facial expression and foot movement made during his short screen time.
Also, don't miss the exchange between Captain Shakespeare (played with utter abandon by Robert DeNiro) and Ferdy (the uber-funny Ricky Gervais). I seriously don't know how they got through the scene without cracking up. Fifty takes, maybe?
Romance trumps all in the movie (which makes it one of my faves of all time), plus humor, thrills and chills. I've watched this movie more times than I can count, and now that I'm writing this post, I think I'll go watch it again!
Beneath the video you can sign up to win on Rafflecopter, where you can choose whether you want the book, DVD, or Blu-Ray. Then jump beneath that to find the list of other blogs on the hop for the chance to win more prizes! Good luck, everyone.

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Children's Writers Blog Hop

Thanks to Stacy Lynn Carroll for asking me to be apart of this awesome blog tour! By following the links, it’s a great way to discover new authors for children and young adults. Feel free to browse and get to know them. As part of the tour, Stacy asked me to answer these four questions.1.  What are you working on right now?I'm working on a contemporary YA called The End of Feeling about Benjamin, who doesn't feel anything anymore since being abandoned by his mother, and  Charlie, who has her own secrets to protect. Can she break through Benjamin's icy heart? I'm also writing a short story for a Christmas-themed book. My story is as-yet untitled, but it's about a South Pole elf who is banished to the North Pole when her shameful secret is discovered. There, she's teamed up with a gorgeous but angry elf named Seb.Sherry Gammon and I are also working together on a step-by-step guide for authors who'd like to self-publish. It will include screen shots so if you're computer illiterate, you can still follow it and succeed. 
2.  How does it differ from other works in its genre?The End of Feeling is different in that it's really Benjamin's story, and that he's managed to created a life that's a mirage. His reality is much darker than anyone can guess because he hides so well behind his popular, A-student, captain of the football team persona.My elf story is different in that it's an elf story (think Legolas, not short, cutsey elves). My heroine has a secret that already had her banned from the South Pole to the North Pole though everyone perceives that as a good thing. And Seb, my hero, is angry because he hordes a secret of his own.3.  Why do you write what you do?I fell in love with young adult book a few years ago as my daughters came into the age to be reading them. I read them as well because I wanted to know what they were reading, and it was like a light bulb exploded over my head! I knew then my long search for genre to write was over, and the rest is history.4.  How does your writing process work?I'm pretty unstructured. I have an idea for a story, some idea of the conflict, maybe a vague idea of where it will all end, and I just start writing. Most of the time my story ends up in places I never imagined it would go, and my characters constantly surprise me with what the say and do.Now look for these authors next week: Monday, August 26 as they continue the blog tour and answer the same questions. Enjoy!

Friday Five

Welcome to this week’s Friday Five. If you haven’t been here before, this is nothing more than my random rambling about something that interests me, with a list of five, in no particular order. This week’s list is Five Book Series I Could Read Over and Over. Hope you enjoy!
Five Book Series I Could Read Over and Over (Part I: Traditionally Published)
I wanted to talk about my favorite series of books, but realized 5 just wasn’t a high enough number. Therefore I decided to go with two different lists: one of traditionally published (Big Six) and one of indie authors (small press or self-published). This week I’ll give you the traditionally published list, and next week the indie list, so be sure to come back next Friday!
The Maximum Ride Series by James Patterson: This YA series by Patterson about a group of kids who have wings due to some genetic engineering is really fascinating. The “flock” of kids are led by Max, a girl with sarcasm to spare, and Fang, the hottie that really belongs with Max. The characters are well fleshed out, the storyline frustrating (which is good, means good suspense), and completely intriguing. Love this series of books.
[image error] The Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon: The first book in the series is the best, which isn’t a good thing for an ongoing series, but luckily the following books are still good enough to keep your interest. The second book is probably my least favorite because there’s just waaay too much boring history and not enough Jamie. Overall, though, a really good series. If nothing else, read the first book, which is one of the most amazing books ever written.
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The Twilight Series by Stephenie Meyer: Make fun if you want, I don’t care. I happen to think these four books are good, interesting, fast reads. There are a lot of haters out there, but for every one of those haters there must be like ten lovers if the numbers of book and movie ticket sales are any indication. Bella is a fairly boring heroine, I admit, but Edward and the rest of the Cullen clan make up for it. So yes, these are books I’ll read again.



The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins: Love these books so much I was seriously worried they’d screw up the movie (much as they did with Twilight). I was beyond pleased when I discovered they’d actually done the book justice. These books are panned a lot for being too violent, but I’d like to remind people that not only are they fiction, they’re set in a pretty unrealistic setting, so I don’t think we have to worry about actual Hunger Games happening anytime soon.


The Odd Thomas Series by Dean Koontz: This series is a bit of a departure for Koontz from his usual horror—not to say these aren’t creepy books. I mean, Odd Thomas (the MC’s name) can see dead people, both good and evil, and has a creepy/sweet love story with a particular dead waitress. You can’t help but love Odd, and wish he would just stay out of danger rather than feeling his gifts require him to help the living by getting mixed up with the dead.


I created the Friday Five graphic from an original image copyrighted by: marincas_andrei / 123RF Stock Photo

Utah Book Month: Michelle D. Argyle

In honor of Utah Book Month, I'm spotlighting Utah author Michelle D. Argyle, who writes YA and NA. She was kind enough to offer us her top 10 bits of advice for writers. Without further ado, here's Michelle:

TOP 10 PIECES OF WRITING ADVICE FROM AUTHOR MICHELLE D. ARGYLE
1. Read as much as you can. I used to have to fight for ideas until I began reading a novel every weekend. Taking off two days out of every week just to read has been a lifesaver for my sanity, my writing, and for finding new ideas to work with. I believe reading is the lifeblood of writing. You don't have to read a novel a weekend, of course, but I highly recommend trying to make as much time for reading as you do for writing.
2. Produce quantity. I'm a firm believer that the more you write, the better you will get. Quantity produces quality. Do not be afraid to write eight novels before you publish one novel. Do not be afraid to write crap in order to get better. It's probably not a great idea to spend all your precious time on one magnificent masterpiece, because more than likely, it's not a masterpiece if it's the only thing you've written.
3. Do not be afraid to delete. I wish I’d realized sooner how possible it is to delete sentences, paragraphs, pages, chapters, the entire book, and just rewrite stuff without fear. I would have saved myself a lot of time – all those months, even years in some instances, stewing about whether or not a specific scene or word or way I wrote the book was worth keeping. If you end up rewriting it the same way, it’s meant to stay.
4. Learn to ignore. All feedback is opinions and subjective viewpoints. Learn to ignore what doesn't work for you. I used to think I had to consider and at least try all the feedback I received. Luckily, that is not the case anymore, and that has sped up my process. I’ve also learned how to ignore a lot of online distractions. This has not been easy.
5. Trust yourself. Nobody can do what you’re doing as well as you do it. Nobody. Trusting yourself, closing your eyes to the naysayers (that includes statistics), and just being you and doing what you love is the most important thing. Ever. Period. Just keep writing and trust yourself to do it.
6. You do not have to be inspired to write great things. You do have to work hard. Showing up is the most important thing.
7. Try not to hoard. Annie Dillard said it best: "Do not hoard what seems good for a later place ... Something more will arise for later. Something better."
8. If possible, spill the beans. Beware of building suspense by hiding information from your readers and revealing it at the last second. This can be a cheap form of tension. Stop. Ask yourself if revealing that huge secret might create an even richer, more organic form of tension.
9. Abandon perfection. There is no such thing as a perfect novel. Perfect to one reader, perhaps, but not to everyone. Accept that your storytelling is beautifully flawed and filled with your own rich, human imperfection.
10. Rules? What rules? Creative writing is called creative writing for a reason. The only rules you should be keeping outside of readable grammar are the ones you've discovered work for you and your writing. Of course, that can only come with lots of reading and writing. See beginning of this list.

AUTHOR BIO
Michelle lives and writes in Utah, surrounded by the Rocky Mountains. She adores cheese, chocolate, sushi, and lots of ethnic food, and loves to read and write books in the time she grabs between her sword-wielding husband and energetic daughter. She believes a simple life is the best life. Michelle writes contemporary Young Adult and New Adult fiction (and other genres when she feels like it). To date, she has had four novels published.


LINKS
Author Website  Facebook    Twitter     Mailing List

Pretty Darn Funny

Pretty Darn Funny has asked me to be part of the season 2 blog tour of their videos. Each week I'll post their latest videos, as well as my thoughts about the videos. You can check them out below.

Mom Footloose Parody



My thoughts: It was kinda funny though not super funny in the beginning, until it gets to the part where she's parodying Kevin Bacon's famous warehouse dance. I found that part quite funny.
Movie Cheating


My thoughts: This was pretty funny. I knew there were hobos hiding behind my seats at the theater. The spray on the popcorn: genius. Her nachos that threaten to flow over at any minute: funny. I was definitely more amused by this video than the first.