C.J. Redwine's Blog, page 4

Winners!

Before I list the names of those who won the drawings for the prizes offered in last Friday's Skip a Starbucks Day adoption fundraiser, I have to take a moment to extend a huge, heartfelt THANK YOU to everyone who donated to Isabella's adoption fund, who donated prizes for the giveaway, and who tirelessly promoted the fundraiser. Many of you are strangers to me, and the beauty of your incredible generosity has blessed our family in ways I can't even put into words. We prayed that we might at least raise 5k of the 15k needed. Instead, we raised every penny we needed and had enough left over to give a donation to The Moses Basket for another adoptive family to use. We are so grateful to God and to all of you who opened up your hearts to our little girl. As soon as China gives us permission to travel (we expect to go sometime this summer), we will announce that here and post from China as well so that you can share in the homecoming.

Now, on to the winners! I used Google docs, which gave me a spread sheet and assigned everyone a number. Then I used random.org to pick the winners.

 If you won a prize, yay! I will be emailing the donor your info. Prizes should go out this week and next depending on the donor's schedule. (Some authors are currently on tour.) Thanks again for making Friday and Saturday such an incredible story of love and generosity for my daughter.

PRIZE:                                                                                             WINNER:

Level One:

FAKING NORMAL by Courtney C. Stevens                                               Heidi Zweifel
Handmade mitts by Jodi Meadows                                                               Doricela Millan-Sotelo
57 LIVES OF ALEX WAYFARE by MG Buehrlen + YABC tote                 Heather Gonyo
KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES by Shannon Messenger                           Miranda Wyattmills
LET THE SKY FALL by Shannon Messenger                                              Charissa Weaks
Handmade knitted cap by Heather Lindahl                                                     Jessie Patterson
INDELIBLE by Dawn Metcalf                                                                        Melissa Findley
UNNATURALIST & THE TINKER KING by Tiffany Trent                          Stephanie Carson
RENEGADE & REVELATIONS by J.A. Souders                                          Missy Holmes
GRAVE DANGER by Rachel Grant + t shirt                                                   Yara Reca-Vargas
REBOOT + advance copy of REBEL by Amy Tintera                                      Kay Hudson
REBOOT + advance copy of REBEL by Amy Tintera                                      Jennifer Weiser
REBEL BELLE by Rachel Hawkins + poster                                                    Katherine Coates
IF YOU FIND ME by Emily Murdoch                                                              Erica Haglund
ASK ME by Kimberly Pauley                                                                           Ashley Am
THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE by Rae Ann Parker                                             Janine Hays
OF POSEIDON by Anna Banks                                                                       Brianna Shrum
HEMLOCK by Kathleen Peacock                                                                    Jason Nelson
HEMLOCK by Kathleen Peacock                                                                    Melissa Brooks
UNINVITED by Sophie Jordan                                                                        Brittany Moore
FIRELIGHT by Sophie Jordan                                                                          Anne Brown
MOONLIT by Jadie Jones                                                                                Stephanie Pajonas
EYES LIKE STARS by Lisa Mantchev                                                             Dextra Hoffman
THIS SIDE OF SALVATION by Jeri Smith-Ready                                          Victoria Scott
SUBLIME by Christina Lauren                                                                          Jasmine Stairs
TOUCHING THE SURFACE by Kimberly Sabatini                                         Vicki Bechet
STARTERS by Lissa Price                                                                                Megan Trotter
MY BLUE IS HAPPY by Jessica Young                                                           Adrienne Rosado
CHARMED VENGEANCE by Suzanne Lazear                                                Ashley Hufford
THE CAVENDISH HOME FOR BOYS AND GIRLS by Claire Legrand        Rachel Baker
THREE by Kristen Simmons                                                                              Pauline & Eliana Campos
MY LIFE NEXT DOOR by Huntley Fitzpatrick                                                Melissa Maggi
BRIGHT BEFORE SUNRISE by Tiffany Schmidt                                             Casey Chwiecko
STORYBOUND & STORY'S END by Marissa Burt                                        Jamie Wilson
THE DARK LIGHT by Sara Walsh                                                                   Paola Benavides
BORN WICKED by Jessica Spotswood                                                           Bridget Howard
THE PRINCESS IN THE OPAL MASK by Jenny Lundquist                           Teal Haviland


Level Two:

Grab Bag of YA books donated by Kristin Rens                                                Michelle Kellogg
Grab Bag of middle grade books donated by Kristin Rens                                  Sophie Riggsby
Grab bag of assorted books donated by Holly Root                                           Amber Lough
GIRL OF FIRE & THORNS trilogy by Rae Carson                                          Daisy Richeson
ACROSS THE UNIVERSE trilogy by Beth Revis                                             Sara Spock
EVIDENCE series by Rachel Grant                                                                   Shannon Mizikoski
SAMANTHA OWENS series by J.T. Ellison                                                    Kailey Jerome
ANGEL EYES trilogy by Shannon Dittemore                                                     Keli Gwyn
BLOOD OF EDEN trilogy by Julie Kagawa + dragon figurine                           Jennifer Souther
Box of recent YA releases donated by Wendy Darling                                       Lora Beth Johnson

Full manuscript critique by literary agent Pam Van Hycklama Vlieg                     Cate Hart


Level Three:

Diamond & tanzanite jewelry set donated by Heather Lindahl                             Mindy Ruiz
Jewell handbag donated by Amy Rosa                                                               Stephanie Scott
Set of Harlequin Presents + 2 hot military romances by Lynn Raye Harris           Laura Kramarsky
IRON FEY boxed set by Julie Kagawa                                                             Kelly Wood
$50 Barnes & Noble gift card donated by Jenny Lundquist                                Amy Olsen

Congratulations to the winners! If the prize donors have any questions or need more information, they will get in touch with you.

Thank you again to all who came together to help us bring Isabella home. You will forever be in our hearts.

Skip a Starbucks Day Adoption Fundraiser

Our Story:
In November of 2010, my husband Clint and I were in China finalizing the adoption of our first daughter and preparing to bring her home. During the two and a half weeks that we were in China, we both came to the realization that we had to go back. We knew there was one more little girl waiting somewhere in China who belonged in our family. We also knew that this time around, we wanted to adopt a child with some medical needs. 
We turned in our dossier to China in the beginning of February 2014, and we figured, based on the average wait time for special needs families, that we had about an 8 month wait to get our referral. (A child’s picture and file matched to a family.) But there are two ways to be matched to a child through the special needs program. One is to wait for China to get to your file, translate it, and then search for a child who matches your medical checklist (the list of things we’ve said we’d accept). The other is to be matched to one of the Special Focus kids whose files are sent to our agency each month. Special Focus children are those who are considered hard to place with a family. They have multiple medical conditions, and many families sign on for only one need.
Clint and I early on felt that we needed to be open to multiple needs. I kept seeing us with a girl who had a cleft palate and a heart murmur. Clint kept seeing us with a girl who had minor hearing loss and a missing or extra limb. 
Two weeks after our dossier arrived in China, our agency called us with a Special Focus child to consider. Her file arrived to us on her second birthday. She had cleft palate, congenital heart disease, minor hearing issues, and an extra thumb.
In other words, she is everything Clint and I kept seeing for our daughter. *cue the moment we started weeping*



Isabella Grace was abandoned beneath a highway overpass when she was four months old. She had severe pneumonia, along with her heart disease and cleft palate, which were both causing her medical difficulty. That says to me that her parents loved her, and they tried for four months to care for her in secret, either to avoid paying the second child penalty fee, which is prohibitive for poorer families, or because they couldn’t afford her medical care, and when they realized she was going to die without care, they put her where she would be quickly found. Highways in China, especially in cities, are much different than ours. They are choked with pedestrians and bicyclists. She was sure to be found quickly.
She is a strong, brave little girl. A month after she was found, she had heart surgery to repair four different defects in her heart. She was in and out of the ICU for recurring pneumonia during her first year. In her second year, she had two surgeries to repair her lip and palate and to remove her extra thumb. At two years old, she’s still tiny (wearing 9 month clothing size), she’s not walking on her own yet, and she doesn’t have many words yet. Her delayed development is a result, I feel certain, of her constant surgeries and hospital stays.
The orphanage reports that Isabella is quiet, shy, and loves to smile and grab onto the nannies and play with them. We can’t wait to bring her home! 
This is where you come in. We need to raise Isabella’s orphanage fee of 5k and the 10k we need to travel to China and to stay there for the two and a half weeks it takes to finalize her adoption. The concept of Skip a Starbucks Day is simple: skip an indulgence or two and donate the money toward Isabella's adoption fund instead. You can see our goal and how close we are to meeting it on the sidebar of this page. 
I know you'd donate even without me offering you something tangible in return, but to make this even more fun, a bunch of my friends have donated some really amazing prizes! (listed below) To enter, simply donate and then fill out the form at the bottom of this page.*
Thank you so much for helping us bring our sweet daughter home. Your generosity in early donations have already raised almost 3k toward our goal (as of the writing of this post). That is incredible! Isabella will know the story of how a community of people came together to bring her home to her forever family. 
To donate, please use the Paypal button on the sidebar --->

Anything donated above our 15k need will be given to The Moses Basket, a non-profit organization that supports adoptive families through grants, resources, and support.
Don't forget to enter the prize giveaway by using the form below! I will use random.org to choose a winner for each prize from those who qualify. The prize giveaway is open until 9 a.m. CST Monday, March 31st.
And again, THANK YOU.
*Tennessee law requires me to offer these prizes with no purchase required, so if you decide to enter the giveaway without donating toward Isabella's adoption fund, you can legally do so. 

Prize Level One - Minimum Donation of $5*
*1 signed copy of FAKING NORMAL by Courtney C. Stevens
*1 pair of fingerless knitted mitts donated by Jodi Meadows
*1 signed copy of THE 57 LIVES OF ALEX WAYFARE by M.G. Buehrlen and a YABC tote bag
*1 signed copy of KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES by Shannon Messenger
*1 signed copy of LET THE SKY FALL by Shannon Messenger
*1 knitted cap donated by Heather Lindahl
*1 signed copy of INDELIBLE by Dawn Metcalf
*1 signed copy of THE UNNATURALISTS & 1 signed copy of THE TINKER KING by Tiffany Trent
*1 signed copy of RENEGADE and 1 signed copy of REVELATIONS by J.A. Souders
*1 signed copy of GRAVE DANGER by Rachel Grant plus t-shirt
*1 signed copy of REBOOT plus an advance copy of REBEL by Amy Tintera (2 of these sets up for grabs)
*1 signed copy of REBEL BELLE by Rachel Hawkins plus poster
*1 signed copy of IF YOU FIND ME by Emily Murdoch
*1 signed copy of ASK ME by Kimberly Pauley
*1 signed copy of THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE by Rae Ann Parker
*1 signed copy of OF POSEIDON by Anna Banks, donated by Fallon Vaughn
*1 signed copy of HEMLOCK by Kathleen Peacock (2 of these available)
*1 signed copy of UNINVITED by Sophie Jordan
*1 signed copy of FIRELIGHT by Sophie Jordan
*1 signed copy of MOONLIT by Jadie Jones
*1 signed copy of EYES LIKE STARS by Lisa Mantchev

*1 signed copy of THIS SIDE OF SALVATION by Jeri Smith-Ready

*1 signed advanced review copy of SUBLIME by Christina Lauren
*Tennessee law requires me to offer these prizes with no purchase required, so if you decide to enter the giveaway without donating toward Isabella's adoption fund, you can legally do so. 

Prize Level Two - Minimum Donation of $10*
Donors at this level qualify to have their names (or the name of  your choice) written on the back of a puzzle piece. We will be making a puzzle out of a picture of Isabella and using a two-sided frame so that she can see the legacy of love that brought her home. Donors also qualify for Prize Level One.
*Grab bag of YA books donated by Kristin Rens at Harper Collins
*Grab bag of Middle Grade books donated by Kristin Rens at Harper Collins
*Grab bag of assorted books donated by Holly Root
*1 signed GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS trilogy by Rae Carson
*1 signed ACROSS THE UNIVERSE trilogy by Beth Revis plus swag
*1 signed set of Rachel Grant's EVIDENCE trilogy
*1 signed set of SAMANTHA OWENS novels by J.T. Ellison
*1 full manuscript critique from literary agent Pam Van Hylckama Vlieg (There is a question on the entry form to indicate if you are interested in this prize. She has a two month turn around for the critique.)
*1 signed ANGEL EYES trilogy by Shannon Dittemore plus bookmarks
*1 signed set of BLOOD OF EDEN trilogy by Julie Kagawa plus dragon figurine

*A box of YA new releases plus swag donated by Wendy Darling
*Tennessee law requires me to offer these prizes with no purchase required, so if you decide to enter the giveaway without donating toward Isabella's adoption fund, you can legally do so. 

Prize Level Three - Minimum Donation of $25*
Donors at this level qualify for both Prize Level One and Two as well.

*1 diamond and tanzanite necklace and earring set
*1 Jewell handbag donated by Amy Rosa
*10 Harlequin novels plus 2 hot military romances by Lynn Raye Harris
*1 signed box set of THE IRON FEY series by Julie Kagawa
*Tennessee law requires me to offer these prizes with no purchase required, so if you decide to enter the giveaway without donating toward Isabella's adoption fund, you can legally do so. 

ENTRY FORM
Loading...

Take a Workshop & Maybe Win a Book

There are exciting developments in our current adoption process (Yay!) that I can't detail just yet but will be able to discuss online soon. In the meantime, we are suddenly in the position of needing to quickly raise an orphanage fee and some travel money.

Which means I'd love to really bump up the registration numbers in my upcoming workshops. And what better way to do that than to do a fun giveaway?

GIVEAWAY DETAILS*From today until Monday, March 3 I will put everyone who registers for one of my workshops into a drawing to win your choice of a signed copy of Defiance, Deception, or a Deliverance ARC.

* There will be THREE winners.

*You will get an entry for each workshop you register for. Already registered? Tell a friend!

*If you refer a friend (have them use your name in the Notes to Seller section of the Paypal registration form.), you will get an extra entry!

Why should you take a workshop from me? 

*Because I have eighteen years of teaching experience, the last five of which have been devoted to teaching query writing, synopsis writing, book promotion, and the craft of writing a novel that sells.

*Because I keep my workshops as affordable as possible.

*Because my content is applicable to brand new writers as well as to those who've been doing this for years.

*Because I travel to present workshops at conferences and writing seminars, but in my online workshops I'm able to give you one-on-one assistance.

*Because if you've been on the fence about taking a workshop, now you get the satisfaction of knowing your fee helped bring my daughter home.

*Because if you're stuck, I can help you.

*Because my workshops help my writers get results.

I'm offering my popular Query Writing 101 workshop (including an in-depth critique), my How to Write a Killer Synopsis, and my intense Writer's Boot Camp. For workshop descriptions, pricing, and registration please visit this site.

Anyone who registers or refers a friend between now and 8 pm CST March 3rd will go into the drawing. The drawing is open internationally. Workshops must be taken during the specified time period.

Thank you in advance for helping me publicize this and for registering, if you choose to do so. You rock!

Writing Update - February 2014

Wow, it's been a really long time since I wrote one of these! Most of that can be chalked up to mental exhaustion. Writing a trilogy (especially one set in a post-apocalyptic fantasy world where the plot refuses to happen for less than 120k words) is an excellent recipe for creative fatigue. I'm not sure I'm completely recovered yet, and a lot of that has to do with how much rewriting I did for both DECEPTION and DELIVERANCE.

Sometimes when I tell people I rewrote DECEPTION five and a half times in six months and that I rewrote Logan's half of DELIVERANCE three times, they look at me with something like shock and dismay. I think there's an assumption that if you're good enough to be published then you're good enough to churn out near perfect drafts the first or second time around. This is not the case. Not for me and not for any of my published friends. Rewriting is a necessary part of my craft. If drafting is me pulling all the ingredients out of the pantry and laying them all over the kitchen counter, then rewriting is refining the measurements, figuring out in which order the ingredients need to be used, and doing a few taste tests with my editor before figuring out exactly what seasoning I'm still missing.

All the rewriting, the touring, the personal upheaval in my non-publishing life ... all of that combined to make me feel like I was scraping the nearly-bare walls of my creative well at the end of working on DELIVERANCE, but I'm really proud of the book. I'm excited to put it in my readers' hands. I think I did Logan and Rachel justice. I think I did the Commander, Quinn, Willow, Frankie, Ian, and others justice too. I hope my faithful readers feel satisfied and well-filled once they finish reading.

And yes, I've heard your requests for a sneak peek at DELIVERANCE, and that is coming soon-ish. Those of you who subscribe to my newsletter have already read chapter one ... :)

So now that I've put the trilogy to bed, it's time to update you on the other projects I'm currently working on. Here's what is currently in the works:

1. OUTCAST: I'm finishing edits on Quinn's prequel story this week. I love this small glimpse into Quinn and Willow's world before everything they knew fell apart.

2. Mystery Project #1 (aka TSQ): I'm in the midst of drafting a dark, epic fantasy adventure complete with a wicked queen, a thief of a princess adept at parkour, a courageous guardsman with an agenda that could be his death sentence, and a prince trapped by a contract that will destroy him even while it saves the country he loves. This project is YA.

3. Mystery Project #2 (aka CS. Also aka Something Hinky on the Mountain, but my agent won't let me keep that title.): I'm working on revising an adult urban fantasy series that will actually be aged down to new adult (college age). Think Supernatural meets I Love Lucy set in a small mountain town in eastern Tennessee.

I have a couple of other projects that are in various stages of development but aren't ready to be drafted yet. It's always fun to be building playlists, working on synopses, and letting characters play around in my head without the commitment of needing to turn it into a full blown story yet.

Which project are you most looking forward to reading?

Ira Glass's Advice

If you're new to creating, or if you've been at it for a while and you're discouraged, take two minutes to watch this. It might be exactly what you need.

Spring Online Writing Workshop Schedule

I'm excited to offer three of my most popular workshops this spring!

*Query Writing 101: Everything you need to know to write a stellar query letter and find the right literary agent for you. Includes one in-depth critique of your query.

*How to Write a Killer Synopsis: Dread synopsis writing? Not anymore. Learn the basics, what to include and what to leave out, how to format, and how to make your synopsis sound too interesting to resist.

*Writer's Boot Camp: A two week intensive course designed to immerse you in the craft of writing a compelling story. Includes lessons on pacing, subplots, backstory, plot structure, how to escalate conflict, and how to write a rough draft in seven weeks.

Go to my workshop site for info and pricing. All writers are welcome, regardless of genre, age, or where you are in your publishing journey!

Cover Reveal: The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare

Cover Reveal Celebration + Giveaway: The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare by MG Buehrlen

It’s time to PAR-TAY!
Today we’re celebrating the cover reveal for THE 57 LIVES OF ALEX WAYFARE by MG Buehrlen with a giveaway! I've been bffs with MG for years, and I read this book before it was finished and LOVED it with a passion that even eclipses my love of Sherlock and Benedict Cumberbatch. I'm so proud of MG and of this book, and I love the cover! It perfectly captures the dark, twisty plot. Ready to see what this book is all about? Let's do this!

BONUS POINTS: Mention you saw the cover on my blog (when you fill out the giveaway form below) and you can earn extra entries!

Ready to see the cover? Here it is!
 
The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfareby MG Buehrlen
US Release Date: March 4, 2014
UK Release Date: March 6, 2014
Publisher: Strange Chemistry / Distributed by Random House
ISBN: 9781908844934

About the BookOne girl. Fifty-seven lives. Endless ways to die.For as long as 17-year-old Alex Wayfare can remember, she has had visions of the past. Visions that make her feel like she’s really on a ship bound for America, living in Jamestown during the Starving Time, or riding the original Ferris wheel at the World’s Fair.But these brushes with history pull her from her daily life without warning, sometimes leaving her with strange lasting effects and wounds she can’t explain. Trying to excuse away the aftereffects has booked her more time in the principal’s office than in any of her classes and a permanent place at the bottom of the social hierarchy. Alex is desperate to find out what her visions mean and get rid of them.It isn’t until she meets Porter, a stranger who knows more than should be possible about her, that she learns the truth: Her visions aren’t really visions. Alex is a Descender – capable of traveling back in time by accessing Limbo, the space between Life and Afterlife. Alex is one soul with fifty-six past lives, fifty-six histories.Fifty-six lifetimes to explore: the prospect is irresistible to Alex, especially when the same mysterious boy with soulful blue eyes keeps showing up in each of them. But the more she descends, the more it becomes apparent that someone doesn’t want Alex to travel again. Ever.And will stop at nothing to make this life her last.
Pre-order The Fifty-Seven Lives of Alex Wayfare now!
Barnes & Noble|Books-a-Million|Amazon|Indiebound|The Book Depository

About the AuthorWhen she’s not writing, M.G. moonlights as a web designer and social media/creative director. She’s the current web ninja lurking behind the hugely popular website YABooksCentral.com, a social network for YA (and kids!) book lovers.

These are the places you’ll find M.G. hiding: in her creaky old house nestled in Michigan pines, sipping coffee on her porch, cooking over campfires, and dipping her toes in creeks. Say hello to M.G. on Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr.


Giveaway Details
One winner from each participating blog (10 total) will receive signed bookmarks and stickers.
One grand prize winner will receive a copy of the book (once available) as well as the Mega 57 LIVES Character Prize Pack (each item pertaining to a significant character in the book):
- A pair of black Wayfarer glasses, like Alex wears- A pack of chocolate pudding cups, courtesy of Jensen- Vintage piano sheet music for the song Star Dust, the song Nick plays for Alex- An orange Baltimore Orioles cap, like Porter wears- A pair of engraved Polygon game piece stones (You’ll have to read the book to find out how these come into play!)- A YABooksCentral.com tote bag- Signed bookmarks and stickers
This giveaway is open internationally. Winners will be chosen and notified by email within 30 days of the giveaway end date.
To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Extra entries can be earned by following the bloggers involved in the Cover Reveal Celebration.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Exciting DEFIANCE News!

I'm super excited to announce that Harper Impulse will be publishing an e-novella in the DEFIANCE world in Spring/Summer 2014! I've been hoping I could tell this story since I sold the trilogy, and I'm thrilled to have the opportunity. And I think those of you who have read DECEPTION are going to be really excited for this story, too. ;D Quinn has earned a special place in my readers' hearts! Ready for a story from Quinn's point of view?

Here you go!


A thrilling, dangerous adventure, this prequel novella to C.J. Redwine’s Defiance and Deception features Quinn, a popular character from the series.
Quinn Runningbrook knows a hundred ways to kill a man and make it hurt. He can track, ambush, and torture his prey with terrifying skill—just like his father taught him. But every kill consumes another piece of him, and Quinn longs to stop, to save himself and his sister Willow from becoming like his father—a man who kills for entertainment.
But when Quinn refuses to torture a group of trespassers caught too close to the Tree Village where his family lives, and instead kills them quickly, he disobeys a direct order from his father . . . and Willow is forced to do it instead. Suddenly, Quinn isn’t the favored apprentice to the family business of “protecting” the Tree Village anymore. Willow is.
When Jared Adams—a courier from the nearby city-state of Baalboden—is caught traveling too close to their borders, Willow is ordered to torture him for information. But Quinn knows that Jared doesn’t deserve torture or death. And he realizes he has to take action…or the fate chosen for Willow and himself by their father will remain carved in stone.

Of course, an announcement like this wouldn't be complete without a fun giveaway, right? So, I'm offering a free e-copy of OUTCAST to one of my readers as soon as the novella becomes available. To enter, just use the Rafflecopter form below. Good luck and happy reading!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

YA Scavenger Hunt

Welcome to YA Scavenger Hunt! This tri-annual event was first organized by author Colleen Houck as a way to give readers a chance to gain access to exclusive bonus material from their favorite authors...and a chance to win some awesome prizes! At this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each author, you also get a clue for the hunt. Add up the clues, and you can enter for our prize--one lucky winner will receive one signed book from each author on the hunt in my team! But play fast: this contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online for 72 hours!

Go to the YA Scavenger Huntpage to find out all about the hunt. There are THREE contests going on simultaneously, and you can enter one or all! I am a part of the Red Team--but there is also a blue team and a gold team for a chance to win a whole different set of signed books!

If you'd like to find out more about the hunt, see links to all the authors participating, and see the full list of prizes up for grabs, go to the YA Scavenger Hunt homepage.
SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE
Directions: Below, you'll notice that I've listed my favorite number. Collect the favorite numbers of all the authors on the red team, and then add them up (don't worry, you can use a calculator!). 
Entry Form: Once you've added up all the numbers, make sure you fill out the form here to officially qualify for the grand prize. Only entries that have the correct number will qualify.
Rules: Open internationally, anyone below the age of 18 should have a parent or guardian's permission to enter. To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit the completed entry form by Sunday, October 6th, at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct number or without contact information will not be considered.
SCAVENGER HUNT POST


Today, I am hosting Tara Hudson on my website for the YA Scavenger Hunt! 
Born and raised in Oklahoma, Tara Hudson graduated with a degree in law, mostly because she believed all the horror stories about English majors and their careers in the food-service industry. Luckily, she soon remembered how much she loved telling ghost stories, particularly to her girlfriends who liked visiting abandoned cemeteries as much as she did. Tara currently lives in Oklahoma with her husband, son, and a menagerie of ill-behaved pets.
Find out more information by checking out the author website or find more about the author's book here! 
EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

A stalker ghost, misguided Seers, and spellbinding wraiths—Amelia Ashley has faced them all. Now her greatest hope is to spend the rest of her afterlife with her living boyfriend, Joshua. But the demonic forces return to give her an ultimatum: turn herself over to the darkness or watch them murder one living person per week until she does.

Amelia fears she might really be doomed, until the forces of light give her another option. She can join them in their quest to gather souls, with a catch: Once she joins them, she can never see Joshua again.

Faced with impossible choices, Amelia decides to take her afterlife into her own hands—and fight back. 

ELEGY
CHAPTER ONE

Death, demons, deranged Seers – nothing I’d previously experienced terrified me as much as what I was about to do. 
If I can even gather up enough courage to actually do this.
Steeling myself, I balled my right hand into a fist and lifted it. For a few seconds, I kept my fist suspended, letting it hover less than an inch away from my target. Then, with a frustrated groan, I dropped my hand back to my side.
My task was easy enough: all I had to do was make a fist, rap my knuckles against wood, and repeat if necessary. So why couldn’t I do it? 
Why couldn’t I bring myself to do something as simple as knock on an ordinary front door?
I started pacing again, my boot heels thunking across the floorboards of the front porch. The sound of them spooked me a little. Even after spending a few months as one of the Risen – actually, the only Risen ghost left in this world, as far as I could tell – I still hadn’t quite made peace with the echo of my own footsteps.
I cast a glance over my shoulder, toward the road. About fifty feet back along the curb, Joshua Mayhew leaned against the hood of his truck. He caught me staring and gave me an encouraging smile. I tried to return it, without much success.
This little project wasn’t originally his idea: it was mine. But once Joshua and I had discussed the possibility, he’d latched onto it until I finally ended up here, pacing like a crazy person. 
As usual, Joshua thought this would end well. But I didn’t. I just couldn’t imagine a scenario in which the woman on whose door I was about to knock would react positively when she saw me.
And her reaction did matter, more than almost anything in the world. Still, the reason I stood on this porch today – the real reason – wasn’t because she needed to see me; it was because I needed to see her.
I flashed Joshua another tight smile and turned back to the door. I could do this. I could do this. I lifted my hand again, ready to knock for real this time.
But I never got the chance.
Before my knuckles could make contact with the door, it swung inward. Open. 
The first time Joshua and I visited this place, it had swung open on its own. But this time, someone had pulled the door open. Probably because she’d finally decided to do something about the person thunking around uninvited on her front porch.
Her hand held the edge of the door, fingers gripped against the splintery, paint-peeling wood. On her ring finger, I could just make out the glint of a simple wedding band.
She still wears it.
Before I had time to process that thought, before I even had time to see her face, I felt a familiar current pass over my skin. It happened quickly – started and stopped in less than two seconds – but I immediately knew what it meant. I’d made myself invisible, intentionally vanished from the view of anyone living, including Joshua. Including the woman standing in front of me. 
 It was a cowardly move on my part: I’d finally worked up the nerve to knock, and now she couldn’t even see me.
She frowned, squinting into the shadows of the porch and out at the daylight beyond it. Seeing the lines on her face, the streak of gray at her temples, I sucked in a tight breath and released it in one, foolish word.
“Mom?”
The woman at the door immediately jerked back like she’d been slapped. Her eyes widened, but she continued to stare out at the porch without actually seeing me. 
She’d heard me, though.
For a while, we both stood motionless: my mother with her fingers clawed into the door; me with my fake heartbeat hammering in my chest. Although I knew it wasn’t possible, it seemed as though her brown eyes were boring into mine. Begging me to tell her why she’d just heard the voice of her long-dead daughter.
I gulped once, as quietly as possible, and leaned forward a fraction of an inch. As if in response, my mother leaned backward. 
I thought she was trying to escape something that she couldn’t – didn’t want to – understand. But instead, another face appeared next to hers in the doorway, probably summoned by my mother’s strange silence.
This new face belonged to a woman, much younger than my mother but somewhat older than me. When she peered out the doorway, the corners of her blues eyes wrinkled faintly. I froze in place, but her gaze moved smoothly across the porch, not even hesitating on the spot where I stood. As though I wasn’t even there.
The woman took a step forward – maybe for a closer look at the empty porch – and I got a better view of her. She was striking, with her high cheek bones and impeccable platinum blond ponytail. Pretty and polished, like piece of fine glass. 
I knew I’d never seen her – not as a visitor to the Mayhew’s house or a teacher at Wilburton High; not even as someone I’d passed on the streets of New Orleans this winter. But something about this woman was strangely familiar. 
Before I had a chance to place her, she straightened the hem of her tailored blazer and turned to my mother with a worried frown.
“Liz? Everything okay?”
My mother’s frown deepened, just for a moment, before she met her guest’s gaze. “Everything’s fine,” she said, giving the blond woman a faint smile. “I thought I heard something out here. I guess not.”
The blonde returned the smile but it wavered on the edges, as though she thought her host might be a little unstable. It wasn’t a mean look, necessarily – just a cautious one.
“The coffee, Liz,” she prompted gently. “It’s getting cold.”
My mother nodded, looking embarrassed. “Of course. Sorry.” 
She hadn’t removed her hand from the edge of the door, and now she began to push it shut as she and the blonde woman stepped back into the house. In the seconds before the door closed completely, I caught a final glimpse of the younger woman’s face. For just a second her blue eyes seemed to lock onto mine, and I felt that strange, dizzying sense of familiarity again. 
The feeling only intensified when I heard the last bit of my mother’s voice before the door shut.
“Sorry again, Serena. Must have been the wind.”
Don't forget to enter the contest for a chance to win a ton of signed books by me, Tara, and more! To enter, you need to know that my favorite number is five . Add up all the favorite numbers of the authors on the red team and you'll have all the secret code to enter for the grand prize!

CONTINUE THE HUNT
To keep going on your quest for the hunt, you need to check out the next author! 

A Bad Culinary Decision

A few days ago, on a whim, I bought a bag of Lay's Potato Chips in their new Chicken and Waffles flavor. I figured my kids (who love both chicken and waffles) would enjoy it, and I was curious to see how Lay's managed to deliver this flavor via a potato chip.

Worst.

Decision.

Ever.

The taste can't decide if its chicken, waffles, or some terrible hybrid of the two that ends up just tasting like syrup-drenched roadkill. And the aftertaste? Holy Noxious Swill, Batman! Soooo bad. And it just does NOT fade.

Even my boys, who will eat anything and who regularly come up with concoctions no sane person would eat (Chocolate sauce and gummy bears in a rootbeer float, for example. Or pouring the ramen seasoning packet over the UNCOOKED noodles and munching on it for hours.) wouldn't eat more than one chip.


Basically, eating a single Lay's Chicken and Waffles potato chip looks like this: