Amy Durham's Blog: Amy Durham, page 21

Books & Coffee! A GIVEAWAY!

Do you love a good cup of coffee?  Do you love a good book?  And do you love FREE stuff?
Well then, you're in luck! Next week, you'll have theopportunity to win a pound of terrific coffee, roasted right here in myhometown by Harden Coffee Family Artisan Roasterie, as well as a SIGNED copy ofmy book, ONCE AGAIN!
Each day next week I'll feature a character from the book inan interview, along with pictures and other interesting tidbits of informationthat will help bring the characters to life!  
Here's the schedule:
Mon., Feb. 27 – Layla Bradford, heroine and narrator
Tues., Feb. 28 – Lucas Ellis, hero/love interest
Wed., Feb. 29 – Gwen Ellis, Lucas's mother and all-aroundeccentric
Thurs, Mar. 1 – Jessie Spencer, science-nerd and Layla'sgood friend
Fri., Mar. 2 – Joint interview with Layla and Lucas

So, how can you win? Starting TODAY, with THIS BLOG POST, foreach comment left here on this blog, your name is entered into the drawing onetime. Also, foreach tweet or email that helps spread the word about my blog and this giveaway,your name will be entered into the drawing one time. Be sure to leave your email address on your blog comment.  If you tweet about myblog, be sure to include me in the tweet - @Amy_Durham – so I'll see it. If youemail to help spread the word, be sure to copy the email to me, too – amybdurham@gmail.com – so I know to putyour name in the hat again.
The more you comment and the more you help spread the word,the better your chances of winning! If you know young readers… oryoung-at-heart readers… who enjoy YA paranormal romance, be sure to let themknow that not only is there a book that might be a perfect fit for them, butthey have a chance to win a FREE copy, as well as a pound of fantastic coffee! (Open to US residents)
The winner will be announced here on this blog on Monday, March 5.
I hope to see lots and lots of you here during this blogseries giveaway! Let's have a lively conversation and discussion aboutcharacters, stories, and all things books!
Happy Reading and writing everyone!

Writing Space - Guest Blogging with Suzanne Lilly

Today I'm excited to be blogging at the cyber-home of author Suzanne Lilly.  Suzanne has a great series about "writing spaces", and I'm honored to be a part of that series.  Every author has their own special place or places that promote creativity, and today I've shared mine with Suzanne.

I hope you'll come by and check it out... as well as taking a look at Suzanne's totally awesome blog!

Happy Reading and Writing!

Sample at Smashwords!

Smashwords is a tremendous place for authors and readers!

If you're a digital reader and you've never visited Smashwords, you should.  Readers are able to download books in various formats for every major eReading device, as well as in formats readable on personal computers.  In addition, titles that are included in the "Smashwords Premium Catalog" have been vetted and found to have clean and precise formatting, making for a much more enjoyable reading experience.

As an author, I'm granted a level of control at Smashwords that I don't get at other retailers.  For example, I can decide how much of my book can be "sampled" by potential readers before they purchase.

So... for a limited time, you can "sample" 40% of once again for FREE, before you purchase the book! With a deal like that, why not give Smashwords a try?  If you're interested, follow the link below:

ONCE AGAIN on Smashwords

Happy Reading and Writing!

Six Sentence Sunday: Layla's Dream

Welcome back for another Six Sentence Sunday!  Thanks in advance for the encouraging comments! I look forward to hopping around to your blogs, as well!  Again, I'm posting from my YA paranormal romance, ONCE AGAIN, which is now available in eBook format.



In today's snippet, we get a glimpse into Layla's dream... the one that first begins to reveal bits of her past-life. Earlier in the day she found herself inexplicably drawn to an old house-turned-antique-store in town, and when the little house makes an appearance in her dream that night, she's shocked by what she sees.






As if looking through the lensof a digital camera, I zoomed in on the woman standing in the door. I took noteof her plain dress, the dingy white apron covering her bodice and skirt. Shelooked like she could've stepped right out of an episode of "Little House onthe Prairie".
Andthen I saw her face. My breath caught in my chest, and my eyes widened in shock.
Myown face stared back at me, with a smile so huge I wondered why her face didn'tcrack. 






Be sure to visit the official Six Sentence Sunday site and find lots of other talented authors.  You can also follow along on Twitter with #sixsunday!
And don't forget, ONCE AGAIN is available now for download at Amazon, B&N, iBooks, and Smashwords. Print version is coming THIS WEEK!

What's In a Name? Guest-Blogging!

Today, I'm thrilled to be guest-posting at the cyber-home of YA author, Tess Grant.  Today we're talking about naming characters and the thought process that goes into assigning a moniker to those people running around in our heads.

Come join us!

Listening to Their Voices: What's Really in Their Hearts

My blog was silent all last week. I wear three main hats…parent, writer, and music teacher… and last week I wore my parent hat and myteacher hat pretty much exclusively. It happens that way sometimes. 
But it's interesting how sometimes those three hats"intersect" in unexpected ways.
Last week was the annual KY Music Educators Conference, andin conjunction with that, several ensembles of All-State musicians cometogether to practice and present performances. One of my high school studentswas selected for the Sr. High All-State Chorus, and my oldest son was selectedfor the Jr. High All-State Chorus. So, in addition to attending the teachers'conference, I was also the parent and teacher of an all-state singer.  (Pausing here for proud moment!)
At my son's Jr. High All-State concert, the group of 200+singers performed the world premier of "Listen to My Voice", by Amir Zaheri.  Mr. Zaheri was the pianist accompanyingthe choir (as he'd been the year before), and this piece of music had beencommissioned by the KY Music Educators Association especially for the Jr. HighAll-State Choir that my son was a member of. 
It was at my son's concert where my three "hats"intersected. There I was, sitting in the Kentucky Center for the Arts, enjoyingthe marvelous performance of my son's All-State Choir, when they began "Listento My Voice".  The pianointroduction was beautiful… sweetly haunting.  And then came the lyrics.  I won't print them here word-for-word, because I'd neverwant to infringe on Mr. Zaheri's copyright, but I can paraphrase the message ofthe song.  "Love me… accept me…value me… don't you know that's what I need from you?"  I was moved to tears.
As a parent of a teenager, I know that's what he most wantsfrom the people in his life, whether it be family, friends, or teachers.  As a teacher, I know that despite thefact that teens act otherwise, they really DO want to please you and have yourapproval, and not having it affects them deeply.  And as a YA writer, it's something I strive to portray in mystories.  Even the mostwell-adjusted teen from the most normal, loving family struggles with theseissues.  They all experience thosefeelings of being unloved, unaccepted, and undervalued. It's one of the thingsI most want to address in my books.
And at that concert, while my son and the rest of the choirsang "Listen to My Voice", those feelings were expressed so beautifully through the mediumof music. The beauty of Mr. Zaheri's melody… the poetry of his lyrics… broughtto life the very heart of young people. The message wasn't lost on them. And it wasn't lost on me.
Sometimes my three hats seem to be so far apart.  Thank you Amir Zaheri for showing methey overlap… in a big way.

Music expresses that which cannot be saidand on which it is impossible to be silent.~ Victor Hugo

Six Sentence Sunday: Layla's New Friend

It's that time again... Six Sentence Sunday!

Thanks in advance for the encouraging comments! I look forward to hopping around to your blogs, as well!

Last week, we saw Lucas and Layla's first touch, and the way she was affected by simply shaking his hand.  Today, we're taking a look at the next chapter, in which Layla and her new friend Jessie are having a conversation about Luke. Layla doesn't want to seem too interested, but she's having a tough time with that!  The following is the exchange between Layla and Jessie, when Layla nonchalantly asks how old Lucas is.


"He's a senior." The warning bell rang and the lobby began to empty, as Jessie and I headed into the classroom to take our seats.  "And I heard he's single again."


I should not be interested in this. Yet, I couldn't stop the next question from leaving my mouth.  "Again?"


Be sure to visit the official Six Sentence Sunday site and find lots of other talented authors.  You can also follow along on Twitter with #sixsunday!

And don't forget, ONCE AGAIN is available now for download at Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords. Print version is coming soon!

A Tour of Sky Cove

My YA Paranormal, ONCE AGAIN, is set in the fictional town of Sky Cove, a coastal town in Maine. In my mind, Sky Cove is a vivid, alive place, so for today's blog, I thought it might be fun to take you on a "tour" of the town, and show you how it "looks" to me!


The picture to the right is actually Camden, Maine, an actual city in Maine that I reference several times in the book.  I love the colors on the buildings, and the beautiful view of the harbor in the background.  In my mind, downtown Sky Cove looks much the same!











This is a shot of the Atlantic Ocean from the coast of Maine. I love the rocky shoreline, and the way the water fades into the sky at the horizon.  I pictured the beach just this way when writing Layla and Luke's scenes at the ocean.











Layla lives in a neighborhood within the town limits of  Sky Cove.  I described her house as a square, two-story brick house, similar to the one in this photo. When I look at this house, I imagine the scenes between her and Luke that take place both at the front door and in the driveway.





 Luke's house is outside of town, on White Bridge Rd. If you've read the book you already know that his mother, Gwen, is a colorful character, and one of her most prominent attributes is that of a "nurturer".  It makes sense that her home would appear well taken care of and nurtured! This yellow cottage is just how I imagined Luke's home!






And finally, Emerson House. Imagine the little house in the picture to the right restored somewhat, with a fresh coat of white paint and a bit of landscaping.  Emerson House of Antiques is central to the plot of ONCE AGAIN, and in my mind it looks much this way... a simple, white house that was once home to a happy young family and now is a place to showcase items that have been seasoned by the passage of time.





I hope you enjoyed this "tour" through Sky Cove, Maine!  If you haven't read the book yet, perhaps the visuals here will peak your interest!

Happy reading and writing!

Insecurity as Inspiration? Yes!

Recently I did a guest-interview on a fellow author's blog. One of the questions I answered was about where my inspiration for ONCE AGAIN came from. As I thought about how to answer that question, I decided it might be worthy of an entire blog post here at my cyber-home.

So... here goes!

As most of you know, I write YA fiction.  I also read it.  I love being able to revisit the excitement (and, yes, sometimes the heartbreak) of my youth... and also being able to talk to my students or my teenage son about a book we've all read.  When I was plotting ONCE AGAIN, there was no particular person or event that sparked the inspiration.  The "core" of the story came from my own memories of being sixteen.

ONCE AGAIN is a YA paranormal romance. There is a reincarnation mystery, complete with an evil-doer and a jealous ex-girlfriend. But the most basic element of the story is the young heroine's belief in love.

As I thought back to my teenage years, it occurred to me what a hopeless romantic I was. Truthfully, I've never really gotten over that! But I remember being fifteen, sixteen, seventeen years old and spending long hours thinking about my future-husband and how marvelous our love would be. Even though I had no idea who he was, I just knew he was out there waiting for me!  I realize how sappy and girlie that sounds, but let's remember, I was a teenage girl at the time! And so is Layla, the heroine of ONCE AGAIN.

(By the way... I did find my true love and get my happy ending, so all the mushy romanticism of my youth paid off!)

But the course of true love doesn't normally run smooth, so Layla's journey isn't easy.  There are many things standing in the way of the happiness she wants to find with Lucas.  Of course, there's the danger surrounding the mystery and drama of their reincarnation, but there's also her own insecurities and hang-ups to overcome. Layla's like most teenage girls... a bit insecure and a hopeless romantic... trying desperately to find herself and her path on the confusing roads of adolescence. 

Even though there's a fantastical element to the story, my hope is that it speaks to the people who read it... young kids who are at the same point in their lives, or young-at-hearts like me who remember those feelings from our own teenage years.

Adolescence is hard... but it's not impossible!

Happy reading and writing!

Guest Blogging: Stephanie Campbell

One more guest blog this week!  Still celebrating the release of my Young Adult paranormal novel, ONCE AGAIN, today I'm hanging out with author Stephanie Campbell.  Come by and say hi!

ONCE AGAIN is available in eBook at Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords (links to the right).  Print version will be available soon!

Happy reading and writing!