Leigh Talbert Moore's Blog, page 4

Keep the Love Going

Valentine's weekend was cold and snowy here... actually, so was yesterday. I'm starting to think JRM secretly moved me to Siberia instead of the Midwest... (Midwest Siberia?)

So let's keep things WARM with some of the love-teasers I was posting on my Facebook page this weekend...

Note: If you're not following me on Facebook, go Here (link): https://www.facebook.com/LeighTalbertMoore, and keep up with all my book news!

~Let's start with the Dragonfly series~
I love this series so much--these were the first books I ever, ever wrote, and I was (and still am) so enchanted by this family saga set on the Alabama coast...

Dragonfly (#1) is currently FREE everywhere!

Get your copy today! (Did I mention it's free...)  

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Smashwords | Kobo
The Valentine's teaser I did for this one is sort of an anti-Valentine, since it's from Anna to Jack...

On Amazon

Following Dragonfly in the lineup is Undertow, and again, this is more of an anti-Valentine... but in a different way.

While Anna is trying to get over Jack, Bill can't seem to get over Lexy~

On Amazon
Undertow is one of my favorite books. The story is hard and terrible and tragic, and I hate what happens to these characters and their choices.

But I took a chance both in the structure and in the storyline, and I think it came out amazing.


Back to Anna & Julian's love story, we'll finish off today with Watercolor .

This is a true Valentine, because these two have a love that can last. If they let it...

On Amazon
So those are my first book Valentines.

I hope you all had a loving weekend, and if it's cold where you are, snuggle up!

Have a super week, reader-friends~

Dragonfly is #FREE! And that's about it...

It's an age-old marketing trick...  the FREE SAMPLE, and I'm giving it a try, reader-friends!

Actually, I got the idea from my most brilliant indie author-friend Susan Kaye Quinn (link), who put her book Open Minds permanently Free a while back. (Get your copy!)

Susan is really an irreplacable resource for indie authors.

I highly recommend following her blog (link) and getting her book  Indie Author Survival Guide  (link) if you're considering going indie.

So Happy Valentine's Day!

Run grab your FREE copy of my steamy beach romance Today~


Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo | Smashwords

Here's to free samples and to finding new readers! If you would (and many of you already have), please help me spread the word! Thank you so much!!!

I'm heading back into the writing cave to keep working on Mosaic . Wish me luck.
Here's hoping you're all doing FAB. Stay cool~ 

Meet Me in Person! #WIN Free Books! Join Indie ReCon!

Happy Monday, reader-friends!

I'm peeking out of my writing cave with TONS of fun stuff to tell you about (in spite of that silly Groundhog... or the Super Bowl, if you're a Broncos fan)...

First, anybody in or near Louisville, KY?

Want to meet me  or many other Amazing independent authors (including new author-friends Kate Roth, Aleatha Romig, etc.)?

Check this out:

Visit the Website for More Info!!!
The Louisville Author Event is FREE!

I'll have books on hand for you to buy and have signed, or you can buy your own to bring with you! Let me know if you're coming, and I'll look out for you~

NOTE: Remember if you buy the paperback copy of The Truth About Faking or Dragonfly from Amazon, you can get the ebook FREE through the Kindle Matchbook Program! (ALL of my books are in this program--the others you can get for 99 cents if you buy the paperback!)

* * *
Need Another way to WIN Free Books?

Want a signed set of the Dragonfly series?
How about a Kindle cover signed by several popular authors?

A great blogger friend of mine, Kimberly Faye , is celebrating her birthday with a mega Giveaway .

Go here to enter and WIN! (link)
* * *
Some of you know I'm part of the blog YA Confidential (link) .

Every Monday, we have a "From the Vault" post, and every month , we choose one lucky commenter to WIN a free book of his or her choice!

Head on over and see what you think--today we're talking about "Under the Radar YA."

Comment and join the FUN!
And remember to check back next Monday when we'll be talking about favorite book couples, and comment again~

* * *
Attention Independent Authors!!!
(and/or Aspiring Independent Authors!)

Indie ReCon is an annual event put on by my group of writing friends The Indelibles (link) .

It's a fantastic FREE online conference where many well-known and successful indie authors share their experiences and insight.

Here's the scoop from my great writer-friend Ali Cross:

If you receive The Indelibles newsletter, then you already know what I'm about to tell you. (*Hint* It's an awesome idea to subscribe to our newsletter!)

In four weeks, at exactly this time (12:00 p.m. EST) we will have the privilege of hanging out with Barry Eisler and JA Konrath. These two giants of indie publishing will be here, chatting with us , with YOU , for two whole hours.

I'm not even joking.

So come on, get excited! And mark your calendars! Because IndieReCon 2014 is going to rock your socks off.

In the meantime, help us spread the word for maximum awesomeness! Hugs and kisses to everyone who posts our button on their site!


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I'm headed back into the writing cave now, reader friends. I'll be back soon with Mosaic !

Stay warm, and keep in touch~

Friend News & Fun Stuff (you can #WIN!)

Superfun announcements today!

First off, my good writer-friend Elle/Lee Strauss's book Sun & Moon (link) is LIVE!

It's a really great New Adult/Contemporary love story. I read an early draft of it, and fell in love . It's very clean--no coarse language or sex.

Sun & Moon is about a girl living in Germany, who is a struggling musician. She falls on hard times, is robbed, and is forced to make a tough decision until she meets a really great guy who helps her out. The only problem is he's hiding some issues himself...

Elle is a fantastic storyteller, and I recommend checking this one out!

Here's the scoop and your chance to WIN!

If you’re a fan of the movie Inside Llewyn Davis or ABC television’s Nashville, the Minstrel Series is for you!

The Minstrel Series is a collection of contemporary romance novels set in the singer/songwriter world. The books are companion novels, with shared settings and characters, but each are complete standalone stories with a HEA (happily ever after) and no cliffhangers!

She has a past. He has a secret.

Katja Stoltz is a risk-taking singer-songwriter hoping to make it in the indie music scene in Dresden, Germany. Micah Sturm's a brooding uptown banker on a quest.

Driven to the streets, Katja is picked up by Micah - but he doesn't want what she thinks he does.

There’s an undeniable attraction between them, a gravitational pull they both struggle to resist. Katja knows she mustn’t fall in love with this handsome enigma. There’s something dark lurking beneath the surface. He could be dangerous.

And even if her life isn’t on the line, her heart most definitely is. *not erotica - no explicit sex or coarse language
Get your copy today!

 Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes
Here's how you can #WIN!!!

Enter to win a $50 Amazon gift card, MP3s of all four songs featured on Sun & Moon, and a 12-month calendar from Dresden, Germany, featuring many of the settings found in Sun & Moon.
Dresden, Germany

Click here to enter (link)!

* * *
Free Books! Free Books!!!

We're still snowed in where I live and dealing with sub-zero temperatures and two-hour school delays...

But I'm doing my best to get back into my Mosaic notes. It's been a while since I looked at all of these, but I am so excited about the direction of this final installment of the Dragonfly series.

So what's all this about Free Books???

If you purchase the print copy of The Truth About Faking or Dragonfly  on Amazon, you can get the Kindle version for FREE! It's true!

So you can get a copy for you (or a friend) and keep a copy... or gift it... or have both versions... or whatever you want!

ALL of my books are in the Kindle Matchbook Program--the others are buy the print version on Amazon, get the Kindle version for only  99 cents!

Here's the link to my Amazon Author page (link) , where you can find a list of all my books in their different formats.

Thanks for being so awesome, reader-friends! Stay warm, and have a great week~

I Had a Publishing Dream...

Happy Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., day! He had a dream-- I wrote a post about it here (link)!

Today, I'm thinking about something that was on my mind last week, but "life and being a mom" kind of knocked me off my schedule.

So you're getting it now. Ready?

In 2009, I had a dream of being a traditionally published author, having my books on bookstore shelves, being reviewed in Entertainment Weekly, maybe having a movie or a TV series made from one of them...

In 2011, when many of my closest, most trusted author-friends were jumping ship and heading into the world of independent publishing, I landed an agent for my book Rouge (link).

Eventually that agent secured me a basic contract with a Big Six publisher (there were still six in 2011).

Sometimes I wish I'd been brave enough to walk away from that situation in 2011, but it took me until 2012 to see what was happening in traditional publishing and to understand that if I wasn't getting a SUPERSTAR contract, I needed to high-tail it out of there. Fast.

I've been an independent/self-published author since September 2012, and my first book The Truth About Faking (link) has sold almost 50,000 copies worldwide.

That sounds like a lot. That is a lot! But I actually have independent-author friends who sell that much in a month. Some sell twice that much in a month.

So I'm kind of a mid-list independent author.

What's the point?

Two weeks ago I was flipping through my Entertainment Weekly for the week ending Jan. 16, 2014. Usually I skip over the "Books" section, but on this day I stopped to check out the Fiction Top 10 list.

Ready for the names?

#1-John Grisham
#2-James Patterson
#3-Tom Clancy
#4-Stephen King
#5-Mitch Albom
#6-Janet Evanovich....

Are you seeing my point now?

I have no intention of going on a rant about traditional publishing, But Gah! They really make it difficult sometimes. John Grisham? Tom Clancy???

As a former editor and a college grad with a Master's in mass communication, who started out focused on book publishing, I understand the business of making money.

But jeez louise, could that list demonstrate any more clearly how nothing has changed?

I have a second-degree author-friend (a friend of a friend), and a few weeks ago, she was brave enough to write a blog post about how less than broke she is as a mid-list selling author with a Big Five publisher.

She's pretty well-known. You would know her name if I put it here. But I won't. Why?

Because in less than one hour after she posted, it went viral. And in less than fifteen minutes of me reading it, it was GONE.

I don't know if her publisher muzzled her or her agent... or if she really did decide (as she said) it probably was tacky to put actual numbers online for the world to see.

You know what I think is tacky? The continued treatment of new authors with interesting stories to tell, new voices, as less than second-class citizens in favor of the same old boring lineup of guaranteed freight movers.

A few of my indie-author friends are discouraged about how hard it is to rise above the noise right now.

Some of them are returning to the traditional merry-go-round because they're tired, and it's not so easy to throw a title up there and make a million dollars any more. (Not that this little black duck ever did.) The word is out!

But this Entertainment Weekly list only demonstrated to me what I felt in my gut: Going back is just setting yourself up for the same old treatment.

Yes, I understand your exhaustion and frustration, author-friends. I feel it, too.

But rather than whopping myself over the head anymore for not being daredevil enough to jump into the indie pool when the rest of you did, I'm going to be thankful right now.

I'm thankful I got that first book deal with the Big Six publisher. Why? Because it was the same deal my second-degree friend got, and I heard in her post the heartbreak and the loss I'd be feeling over being overlooked and earning less than a paperboy for my work. I have children to feed and send to college, too.

Self-publishing is hard work.

Yes, it is. But guess what else it is? It's freedom.

I can give away copies of my books--as many as I like!--and I can decide what comes next. I often chat with my reader-friends about what they like, and if I want to promote one of my titles, I can hold a contest and/or modify my prices and/or change my covers...

You know what else?

Do self-publishing well enough, and contrary to what they were all telling us in 2011, you will end up right there beside the John Grishams, etc.--if that's what you choose to do.

Self-publishing doesn't close any doors. It only opens a whole world of new ones.

Have a super week, reader friends! Fight the power--read a new author for a change. *wink* 

So You Want the Truth? Can You Handle It?

Streamline...
Write more...
Get more out there...
Market more... 
Market smarter...
Indie's saturated, go back to traditional...
No, join an author group...
Author groups don't market enough...
Author groups shouldn't market...
What should author groups do?

...Hang on... where is everybody???

It's a new year, reader-friends! 

I bet all you guys are making plans, setting reading goals, maybe exercising more, possibly making resolutions...

Behind this little indie-writer's scenes, a lot of talk is going on about how publishing is changing (again!), author support groups, what we should be doing heading into the new year.

Personally, I've also been looking at what's coming next, what's working and what isn't. Many of you have asked about Mosaic , and Yes! That is up next on the agenda!

Once we get un -snowed-in and the little ladies back in school. Snow Day #2 starts tomorrow~

In other news, would you LOOK at this blog? What a mess. *smh*

That's another thing everybody's talking about--Author Websites and Branding. (They've actually been talking about that one a while... I'm still talking.)

When I started this blog in Feb. 2010, it looked almost exactly how it looks now. Okay, my photos have changed.

I started out looking like this:

2009-2011
Then I looked like this:

LTM avatar
Now you see me as I am up there. (I actually look like all of these pictures... Just depends on if my hair's straight.)

I was also very much a traditionalist.  I was querying agents, working, and waiting... waiting... waiting... write while you wait... quietly go insane...

Until I started this blog.

And lo and behold, this amazing tribe of writer-friends formed!

We would send each other little "awards"--which were actually networking-style greeting cards. You'd get one and then you'd pass it along and tag each other and tag the person who sent it to you... and the tribe grew.

It was how we met new friends before Facebook took over.

All those little awards still line this blog as you can see... (that's what you did when you got one--put them in the sidebar.)

Then some of us started getting deals. I can't remember who hit it big first. Maybe it was Sarah Fine , maybe it was Elana Johnson , maybe it was Lydia Kang ...

Somebody can remind me.

The awards started moving to separate pages under tabs on the different blogs. The different blogs started looking more professional. The ones who'd gotten those big deals started getting too busy to blog... They had to write, y'all!

Totally understandable.

Then the revolution started. Jolene went indie... Susan went indie... Elle went indie... RaShelle blew up the indie scene with Blood & Snow ...

I started editing for hire and when I did, I really saw how many of our friends had left the traditional game--AND how successful they were on their own.

Some days I still feel like a Major Dummy for waiting so long to join them, but I'm catching up. The only thing I haven't done is changed this blog.

It's hard because when I come here, I'm reminded of all those days we bonded over how hard this business is. How much those rejection letters hurt. How close we were to giving up. How we didn't think we could keep going any more. How we weren't even sure if we even had what it took to be a published author any more. How we wondered why we even started doing this to begin with...

This page has so much history.

I have an "official" web page that's pretty professional-looking--- leightmoore.com .

Go there if you want to see me all spit and polished and looking like a Real Author.

But if you want the True Story, if you want to see behind the curtain, the journey, well, you've come to the right place.

Maybe one day I'll sit down and clean this blog up a bit. Make it look like a True Author Website...

*shrugs* I don't know.

Maybe instead, I'll pull down one of those awards and try circulating it again. See if anybody's still out there. If anybody else misses those old days.

Have a great week, reader-friends! Stay warm! I'll be heading back into the cave soon~ 

Break Interrupted! #WIN $100 and Two BIG Announcements!

Yes, reader-friends, I'm supposed to be breaking until next Monday...

But I'm back early because I have to share some BIG NEWS with you all!

First, check out this TWO WEEK STEAL of a DEAL!!!
Amazon | Barnes & Noble
That's right! FOR TWO WEEKS ONLY the Indelibles has put together an incredible set of fifteen complete best-selling novels by Indelibles authors including Addison Moore, Susan Kaye Quinn, RaShelle Workman, Chanda Hahn, Magan Vernon, Laura Pauling, Elle Strauss, LM Preston, yours truly, and more!

As if the deal couldn't get any better, this limited-edition is at an even-more amazing price:

only $1.99! on Amazon
99 cents on Barnes & Noble 
The deal is only good until January 14, so get your copy TODAY! 
The set has something to delight every reader -- paranormal romance, futuristic sci-fi, historical, time travel, and contemporary.

15 Winter Reads includes:

The Iron Butterfly  by Chanda Hahn: Escaping an experimental prison, Thalia tries to hide her past and her gifts, from her friends. But her past isn't always easy to escape, especially when it hunts you down.


Tremble  (Celestra Series) by Addison Moore: Sixteen year-old, Skyla Messenger is a dead girl walking. When her newly remarried mother moves the family to Paragon Island, to a house that is rumored to be haunted, Skyla finds refuge in Logan Oliver, a boy who shares her unique ability to read minds.

Exiled  by RaShelle Workman: Venus wakes to find herself no longer on her home planet of Kelari, but on Earth with a week to get back or she'll die.

Dragonfly  by Leigh Talbert Moore: Gossip Girl meets VC Andrews in this contemporary family saga. Love, lies, and betrayal become the new normal when Anna enters the world of Jack and Lucy Kyser.

Open Minds and Closed Hearts by Susan Kaye Quinn: When everyone reads minds, a secret is a dangerous thing to keep.

Untraceable  by S.R. Johannes: When Grace's forest ranger dad disappears on patrol, she fights town authorities, tribal officials, & nature to prove he's alive. Torn between a new hot boy and cute ex, she heads into the wilderness to find her dad. Soon, she is caught in a web of conspiracy, deception, and murder.


How to Date an Alien and How to Break Up With an Alien by Magan Vernon: Alex Bianchi takes an internship at an alien operations center to pad her college applications but doesn't plan on falling in love with one of its residents. But as Alex's senior year progresses, everything changes and she can't figure out if it is interstellar or if it is just time to break up with an alien.


Flutter of Luv  by L.M. Preston: Dawn, the neighborhood tomboy, is happy to be her best friend's shadow. Acceptance comes from playing football after school with the guys on the block while hiding safely behind her glasses, braces, and boyish ways. But Tony moves in, becomes the star Running Back on her school's football team, and changes her world and her view of herself forever.

Watched  by Cindy M. Hogan: It takes more than a school trip to change Christy's life. It takes murder.

Clockwise and Clockwiser by Elle Strauss: A follow up to Clockwise, Casey and Nate travel back in time and race against the clock to rescue Casey's rebellious brother Tim from frontline battle in America's civil war.

Glimpse (Zellie Wells #1) and Glimmer (Zellie Wells #2) by Stacey Wallace Benefiel: While working together to figure out what their shared vision means, Zellie discovers that Benjamin is a worthy friend and mentor. If only he could keep his hands off of her - if only she wanted him to...
 
A Spy Like Me  by Laura Pauling: After dodging bullets on a first date, Savvy must decide how far she'll go to protect the ones she loves.

Grasping At Eternity  by Karen Amanda Hooper: An eternal soul mate, a supernatural family who has known her for centuries, and lifetimes of erased memories: this is Maryah Woodsen's life. She just doesn't know it yet.

Lacrimosa  by Christine Fonseca: In the world of angels and demons, one thing is clear - some sacrifices should never be made. Even for love.

The Secret of Spruce Knoll  by Heather McCorkle: The town of Spruce Knoll hides many secrets--and many dangers, among them are that the untimely death of Eren's parents was no accident and that she is far more than she realizes.

Get 15 Winter Reads by 15 Bestselling Authors Now to January 11!
Amazon |  Barnes and Noble
**But what about that $100, you say? 
First, one last, quick Announcement...

My great friend and critique partner Kate Roth has a new book out, Natural Harmony!

Check out this HOT photo-teaser...

GET ME: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Paperback
I had the privilege of reading Natural Harmony before it was released, and it is FAB!!!

It's a romance set at a record label, so it's got fun stuff about the music industry and falling in love and finding out who you really are...

It's a total FIVE STAR book.
Get me!!!
Get it TODAY!

And Kate's hosting a #GIVEAWAY! Where you can #WIN a signed copy of Natural Harmony plus all sorts of SWAG!

Click here to enter!
* * *
And now for the INSANE $100 Giveaway...

Here's the Rafflecopter so you can enter to #WIN... and yes, it's a longie~

a Rafflecopter giveaway


SHEW! Reader-friends, I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted--LOL! Have a Super remainder of the holiday! Happy 2014!!!

Merry Christmas! Go to Greece! #WIN stuff! And a mini-break~

It's the most wonderful time of the year, reader-friends!

Merry Christmas!!! I hope all of you are getting ready for the holidays. My little brood and I certainly are... see how excited we've gotten --->

Since the girls will be off until after the new year, I've got a few announcements, and then I'll be calling it a Blog Break until 2014!

Here we go:

#1-Fabulous writer-friend Jessica Bell is organizing her amazing Homeric Writer Retreat again in Ithaca, Greece!

I swear, this is a dream getaway. Writing, talking shop, and meeting with literary agents! Please go here for all the details (link)!

#2-Amazing writer-friend Susan Kaye Quinn is still hosting a Fab Giveaway for the release of her new BollyPunk novel Third Daughter (link)! Go here to enter (link)!

#3-ALL of my books are in the Kindle Matchbook program (link)! This means if you buy the print version of any of my books on Amazon, you can get the ebook for Free or 99 cents! Check it out (link)!

#4-You still have time to WIN a SIGNED SET of the Dragonfly series! Go here to enter (link).

That's all I can think of... LOL!

I'll still be updating my Author Facebook Page (link) through the holidays. Please follow along and keep in touch!

I hope you all have a fantastic holiday season, my friends. Thinking of you all and sending warmest wishes and ((huge hugs))~

Steampunk goes Bollywood! And TWO ways to #WIN!!!

Only Susan K. Quinn could think up a steampunk novel set in India that has a Bollywood vibe.

It's called "Bollypunk," and it looks and sounds fantastic (much like Bollywood!)

Of course my long-time writer-friend and critique partner is on top of it. Finger. On. The. Pulse. And I'm super-THRILLED to be helping with the launch. Personally, I can't wait to get my greedy little hands on it.

At the bottom is how you can #WIN! 
Here's the scoop: GET ME!
Third Daughter  (The Dharian Affairs Trilogy #1) by Susan Kaye Quinn
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Steampunk
The Third Daughter of the Queen wants her birthday to arrive so she’ll be free to marry for love, but rumors of a new flying weapon may force her to accept a barbarian prince’s proposal for a peace-brokering marriage. Desperate to marry the charming courtesan she loves, Aniri agrees to the prince’s proposal as a subterfuge in order to spy on him, find the weapon, and hopefully avoid both war and an arranged marriage to a man she does not love.
Third Daughter  is the first book in The Dharian Affairs Trilogy (Third Daughter, Second Daughter, First Daughter). This steampunk-goes-to-Bollywood (Bollypunk!) romance takes place in an east-indian-flavored alternate world filled with skyships, saber duels, and lots of royal intrigue. And, of course, kissing.

Goodreads | Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  iTunes | K obo
**Enter to #WIN: --20x “Third Daughter” mini M&M packs  (US only)
--A steampunk key necklace (INTL)
--"Third Daughter" East-Indian style bridal jewelry (INT)

Photos are on the Rafflecopter (link)--Click here to enter!

And there's a superfun "Launch Party" happening on Facebook--Go here to check it out (link)~


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But wait! I said there were TWO ways to #WIN! 


Enter to #WIN! The second is a 12 Days of Christmas-themed giveaway I'm participating in with the girls over at Indie Ignite (link)!

EVERY DAY You can WIN a signed book! 

My day is Day 7--win a signed set of the Dragonfly series!!!

Go here to enter (link)!

I'll also be posting on the Indie Ignite blog (link) next Thursday about something Christmas-ey.

In the meantime, have a SUPER weekend, reader-friends! Stay warm~

New Adult, Schmoo Adult

I almost titled this, "Why Categories are for Dummies." But that seemed a bit contrived...

Two important things you should know about me before reading this post:

#1-I used to be a high school English teacher, and
#2-I used to manage a book store.

Both of those jobs I only held for one year in my 20s, but I learned a lot about books and why we need fancy labels for them that seldom fit properly.

NA? YA? Who knows. Over the weekend, I had a brief, unplanned mini-chat with writer-friend L.M. Augustine (link) , who writes really funny romantic comedies. I'm sure you've heard of Two Roads (link).

(Aside, if you haven't, get it-- Two Roads is FAB.)

He asked me if it would be okay to include one of my books in a list of "New Adult Books with Nice Guy Heroes and Little or No Sex."

[**Free Tip, writer friends: If a writer-friend ever approaches you about promoting your books for free, the answer is always YES. And always, always follow up with a big THANK YOU.**]

Back to categories. The question became, "Which book?"

New Adult was such a charged category this time last year. Was it "sexed up YA"? Was it a genre dealing with the college years (which were pretty much unexplored at that time in commercial fiction)?
Get me; I am FAB!
Writer-friend Tammara Webber caused a commotion July 2012 with her self-published blockbuster Easy, which focused on a (gasp!) college romance and made the case for the latter definition.

But what about self-published sensations Hopeless by Colleen Hoover or Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay?

Both of them feature main characters who are seniors in high school, but were classified "New Adult."

Personally, I considered them YA in which the characters are dealing with heavy subjects not usually addressed in YA... But hang on just one minute. Is that true?

In my experience (see way up there ^ ^ ^), the most successful YA books often deal with heavy subjects. Anything John Green? Or the Hunger Games? (Actually, I think THG is now being targeted at middle school kids.)

Last week, I was part of a round-table discussion with my buds at  YA Confidential (link) on literary vs. commercial fiction and how do we distinguish?

Someone tossed out the idea that "literary" is more character-driven and "commercial" is more plot-driven.

And then we tried to apply that rule, and we all started arguing about how it doesn't work in reality, and then we drifted to male vs. female writers, and then we got into "gratuitous diversity," and then I started rapping.

It was a productive round-table! (My good buddy Matt MacNish is a member, so yanno. I love those guys.)

What's it all about, Alfie? I don't know.

But L.M. Augustine is compiling a great List of "New Adult books with Nice Guy Heroes and Little to No Sex."

We decided The Truth About Letting Go should be a part of the list. It's pretty sexy, it has characters who are both in high school and college, and it deals with heavy subject matter...

New Adult? Get me & decide. It also has the truest nice-guy hero I think I've ever written in Jordan.

LM also asked "where have you been?" Well, I'm in the cave working on a Top Sekrit Project, reader-friends. I hope one day to share it with you.

In the meantime, here are some Fun Reminders:

- Dragonfly is only 99 cents now! Get started on this fun series that's either New Adult or mature YA... I don't know. (The series grows up with the characters.)

- I have a SWAG STORE! If you want merch or posters or postcards or iPhone cases featuring the covers of any of my books, Go Here (link).

Have a super week, reader-friends! It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Paperbacks make great gifts. (wink wink, nudge nudge)

((Hugs)) to all of you! Enjoy your books, regardless of category~