Ginger Scott's Blog, page 5

You And Everything After (AKA Ty and Cass) Countdown to Cover Reveal! Bloggers - let me know if you want in on the cover reveal!

The cover for You And Everything After is ready, and I'm officially counting down! Cover reveal is Oct. 22, and the book is scheduled to release Dec. 5. If you're a blogger and you'd like to help spread the Falling Series Book 2 excitement, I'd love for you to join my cover reveal. You can sign up here: http://www.wordsmithpublicity.com/2014/09/cover-reveal-you-and-everything-after.html.

I am humbled beyond words at the response to This Is Falling and cannot wait to share Cass and Ty's story with you. In the meantime, I'll share the synopsis below and promise more posts soon. Thank you all so very much.

YOU AND EVERYTHING AFTER

I’m that teenaged girl who has MS. You haven’t met me, but you’ve seen me around. You probably know my sister. We’re twins, and she’s the pretty one. Maybe you’ve heard about my reputation, how much I like to hook up at parties—how easy it is to get me in bed, get what you want, and forget about me after.

Forget what you think you know. I’m leaving that girl behind.

College is all about new beginnings. So from now on—I’m just Cass. And the rest…it isn’t written yet. And no one else gets to write my story for me.

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“Tyson Preeter doesn’t do can’t.”

That’s exactly what I want people to think when they see me. I am strong, invincible, confident, intelligent—arrogant. I’m the man who always finds a way around, over and through—until there’s nothing left. Since losing my ability to walk six years ago, I’ve relearned life. I don’t need sympathy. I don’t want charity. And I don’t do love.

It’s better this way, saves my disappointments for me, and me alone, and it saves my strength for everything I want.

But Cass Owens is about to wreck everything. She’s about to steal all of my strength away from me, because she needs it more. She’s about to break all of my rules, and break down all of my walls. She’s about to own me…completely.

And I’m about to let her.

This Is Me…Holding My Breath

When I was a freshman in high school, I had a boyfriend. I know, I know…that's a really bland statement, but hang with me here. Now, where was I? Oh yes, the boyfriend. Nice guy, grew up to be a great human being. Anyhow, this post isn't really about the boyfriend.

My boyfriend had a best friend, and this best friend had a girlfriend, too. She and I…we did not run in the same circles. Not that we were enemies or anything. Our paths just didn't really cross. I was the band, sports, get good grades sort. She was more in the "I get invited to the parties with the cool older kids" crowd. Quite frankly, we didn't know much of each other at all.

Anyhow, one day during lunch, my boyfriend told me that he was mad at her. I asked him why, and he said that he didn't like what she said about me.

My stomach hurt hearing this, but I kept the calm exterior on my face and asked what she said.

"She said you were boring," he said.

Boring. Huh. Truthfully, it could have been a lot worse. But boring. Boring. I ruminated on this for a while, not quite sure how I felt about it.

My boyfriend went on, saying that she said she didn't understand why he liked me, because I was "boring, and didn't really have anything special."

Yeah, okay. That next part stung. Humor, my defense mechanism, even as a young teen, kicked in. I told him I would get right on sky diving and feeling G-force in an F-16 from Luke Air Force Base. He laughed and walked me to class.

I'm fairly positive that this "boring" thing left his mind the second fifth period began. And I'm pretty sure that the idea of me being boring was gone from the mind of the girl who said those words about me moments after she uttered them. They were speed bumps for them, filler for their day, so absolutely inconsequential that I can almost guarantee if I were to bring it up at a reunion (oh god, believe me, I won't), they would look at me like I'm nuts.

But for me…for me, this little speed bump left a mark. I don't think about it often, and sometimes years go by without even recalling this little adolescent blip on my lifeline. But it's there, and I can close my eyes and hear the conversation so vividly that I could convince myself I were actually in that moment. A girl, who I didn't even really know, called me boring--and I know there are a lot worse things people can call me--but damn did this little nothing ever make me feel bad.

Why am I thinking about this? Well, there are probably a few reasons. Firstly, I have seen a lot of bullying lately--the cyber kind and beyond--and it just gives me a funny taste. I wish like hell I were bigger, braver, stronger (basically, I want to be a Kanye song), so I could insert myself and hold up a hand to make it stop. It's something I'm working on. But until then, maybe just heed my little plea that we all try to be nicer to one another, or at least demonstrate respect.

And then there's that other thing that has my head spinning. This Is Falling comes out in hours…literally hours. And like my four previous releases, I am so anxious, excited and…did I mention anxious? I think I could throw up. But release day always makes me sit on the edge of my seat because my god…you amazing readers. You have no idea how overjoyed and happy you make me, to know that my stories have a home in your hands, on your kindles, in your nooks. And there probably is a little piece of me (okay, there is definitely a piece of me) that sort of grins at the girl who once labeled me so easily, and it's because of you.

Writing stories like these, this is all I ever wanted out of life. And you will never know how grateful I am that you make it possible. And yeah, that 14-year-old is probably still buried inside of me, also wanting to be liked. But she sure as hell doesn't think she's boring. So thank you for that gift. And truly, I hope you enjoy Falling. I put my heart and soul into it and will promise you to always give nothing less.

Two Exciting Things…

First, THIS IS FALLING is now available for pre-order on Amazon - click here!

Second, chapter 2 is now live on my website - along with chapter 1 in case you missed it. You can read it now at littlemisswrite.com/chapter.

Two weeks until release day!

THIS IS FALLING - First Chapter Posted On My Website!

THIS IS FALLING is almost here! I think this is a story that those of you who read Waiting on the Sidelines are really going to enjoy. It falls somewhere in between. It's that first year of college, where everything is new and different and scary and wonderful all at the same time. THIS IS FALLING captures that; at least, I hope it does. And then it takes another step, adding the layers of life, love, fear and heartbreak into the mix. I'm tremendously excited for everyone to read it, and hope you will enjoy this first little taste.

I've posted the first chapter on my website here: www.littlemisswrite.com/chapter/. In the first chapter, you get to meet Rowe. But Nate, he's coming. In fact, I'll let you meet him next week…when I post chapter 2!

Thank you all for being such amazing readers. I will do my damnedest to deliver stories you deserve.

All my best,
Ginger

THIS IS FALLING cover reveal time!

Before I get right to the thing you're really waiting for… ;-) I just need to thank you all for how you've opened your hearts to How We Deal With Gravity. This book was special to me, and I am so humbled that it has been embraced by the autism community. Getting those key moments just right was important to me, and I hope I did your stories justice.

Okay, now onto the real reason I'm awake at midnight writing a blog post…This Is Falling cover reveal time!

The countdown is officially on for August 29th! I think Waiting fans are really going to like Rowe and Nate's story in This Is Falling. Sports, college, lots of super swoon:-) Watch for teasers! In the meantime, here's the synopsis:

First, I had to remember how to breathe. Then, I had to learn how to survive. Two years, three months and sixteen days had passed since I was the Rowe Stanton from before, since tragedy stole my youth and my heart went along with it.

When I left for college, I put a thousand miles between my future and my past. I’d made a choice—I was going to cross back to the other side, to live with the living. I just didn’t know how.

And then I met Nate Preeter.

An All-American baseball player, Nate wasn’t supposed to notice a ghost-of-a-girl like me. But he did. He shouldn’t want to know my name. But he did. And when he learned my secret and saw the scars it left behind, he was supposed to run. But he didn’t.

My heart was dead, and I was never supposed to belong to anyone. But Nate Preeter had me feeling, and he made me want to be his. He showed me everything I was missing.

And then he showed me how to fall.

How We Deal With Gravity Is Here!

How We Deal With Gravity is live! Thank you to every single one of you who have loved and pushed this book to this very exciting starting line. This story is precious to me, and I truly hope it is one you all will enjoy. My first week of royalties are benefiting the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center. I've posted a few times why this place means so much to me, so I won't make you read that again -- though feel free to visit a post or two ago if you would like to learn more. Instead I will just hold my breath and push the baby out of the nest--How We Deal With Gravity is now yours. I hope you love it as much as I do.

All my best,
Ginger


Buy link for Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/How-Deal-Gravit...

How We Deal With Gravity - Prologue and First Chapter Posted!

I know I’m starting to sound like a broken record, but this book has my heart and soul. I’m on pins and needles for release day. So, sharing this is just as much for me as it is for you! I hope you enjoy the prologue and first chapter–enough to want to read the entire book when it comes out July 8! And remember, the first week of royalties go to the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center.

Check it out now on my site at www.littlemisswrite.com.

How We Deal With Gravity First Week to Benefit Autism

First Week's Royalties to Benefit Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center

I first came to truly know autism as a journalist. It started with a thread of an idea I had years ago—I wanted to write a true depiction of life with autism for the magazine I was working for, and I was starting with very little. I had heard of autism, knew some children who were affected by it and had this basic periphery knowledge to build on. So I called an organization based in Phoenix (SARRC) that I had run across while researching—and then it began.

You don’t just walk into SARRC and walk away unaffected. You’re changed—for the better. I talked with doctors, with families, with volunteers, with therapists and spent a great amount of time with the organization's founder and her family. And I learned what life with autism was really about. I also learned what things like hope, courage, heartbreak, fear and resolve really look like.

Since that first story, I’ve come to love SARRC and every single person connected with it. I volunteer as a writer whenever I can. I’ve had family diagnosed as well as the children of several friends. I do my best to educate others and inspire people to consider giving SARRC their attention, and that brings me to the present and this crazy little idea I had.

How We Deal With Gravity will be available as an e-book on Amazon, BarnesandNoble.com, Kobo and iBooks beginning July 8, 2014, and I am donating the first week of royalties to SARRC. It’s a small start, and I hope to be able to give more in the future, because this place…it has my whole entire heart.

I'll be sharing, posting, tweeting, etc. as we count down to that first week, so please consider following me on twitter @TheGingerScott or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GingerScottAuthor. And thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for reading my words.

How We Deal With Gravity Countdown and Book Trailer

Just a quick post to share the book trailer with you! Check it out on my YouTube Channel here.

Arcs are going out this week and the release is set for early July! Can't wait to share more!

Update! Release date is July 8!

How We Deal With Gravity Cover Reveal

Trouble loading cover image? Go to my site - littlemisswrite.com.

There are warriors in this world—people who are a hell of a lot stronger than I am. And this book is about them.

I was a teenager the first time I heard the word autism. Rainman—that’s what I thought it was all about. Yes, a great movie, but really a fairly simplified portrayal of autism. I’m embarrassed that I once summed up a diagnosis as serious as autism based on a Dustin Hoffman movie. But I didn’t really know any better—and there are a lot of people like me out there.

Autism stuck with me, and when I was in my early 20s and working for a magazine, I decided I wanted to write a feature story on what it was really like to be a family affected by it. I made some calls and connected with Denise Resnik, an amazing woman who lives in Arizona. She helped found what started as a small resource center in Phoenix that was helping diagnosed families. She did it because her son had been diagnosed, and when she went through it, she didn’t know where to turn. The answers were all vague and hidden under research and medical jargon. And the more Denise unraveled for her family, the more she wanted to help those in the same circumstances, so they wouldn’t have to work so hard just to find answers.

I spent a lot of time with Denise and her family, and my perspective of all that autism is—and isn’t—changed. My small feature for the magazine turned into an eight-page in-depth look at autism and the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center (SARRC). It traveled from reader to reader, one of those stories people ripped from the magazine glue and mailed to a friend. It turned into more phone calls to the center, and in some cases, donations to the cause. Something I wrote educated and incited action. It’s my favorite thing I’ve ever written, and it was an anchor for a lifelong passion for shedding light on autism.

What is autism? Here’s the clinical definition: Autism is a complex neurobiological disorder associated with impairments in socialization, verbal and nonverbal communication, restricted play and interests, and repetitive motor movements. The disorder affects each individual differently, and there is a wide range of functioning associated with the disorder.

But here’s what autism is as I see it: It’s a cage that traps the mind, and it traps every person’s mind a little differently. For some, it means they aren’t able to communicate how they feel, what they need or what they want. For others, they aren’t able to distinguish certain emotions—they don’t know how to show happiness or sadness and they don’t understand those cues from others. Some people affected by autism can’t speak, and for others, it’s mostly a social block, one that makes it more than challenging to make friends.

Since I wrote that first story, I have had family personally diagnosed and several friends whose families are affected by the autism spectrum. And Denise, the woman I met at the very beginning, went on to lead a charge, creating an organization that has since become a national leader in the fight to find autism therapies, factors and, with hope, one day a cure.

So, that’s a lot of intro material, I know…but I wanted to give you a little background on why this book is so important to me. I have interviewed dozens of families over the years in my volunteer work for SARRC. (I write the cover stories for their magazine.) I have cried with parents as they’ve shared their journeys with me. And there’s this one common thread that I’ve noticed in every interview I’ve had—the parent never puts themselves first. And I started to think about those parents I’ve met who are fighting this battle alone. And then…of course…the romance author in me started to think about their chance to find love.

Ideas like this tend to hit me while I’m running on the treadmill. I always do plotting and character development while I run. It’s my way of not paying attention to how much longer I have to make my legs move. A few months ago, I had the above stream of thoughts, and I actually forced myself to stop running early and ran to my locker to jot down everything I was thinking (I’m pretty sure I looked like a crazy person). The result was How We Deal With Gravity.

Gravity is a love story—first and foremost. But, it’s also so much more. It’s about falling in love through a second chance and finding the courage to take it. It’s also about putting yourself first, when every instinct in your body is to put yourself last. It’s about loving a soul mate and loving a child and finding a way to make those two coexist. And it’s about ignorance and acceptance.

The story is told from two points of view: Avery Abbot, a single mom of a child with autism, and Mason Street, the failed musician back in town for a fresh start. They have history—for Avery it’s a painful history, and for Mason their past is just part of his youth, a blip in a long line of blips. The story centers on how people change over time, and how those major moments in life can reshape who we are. For Avery, being a mother has meant being a fighter, and for Mason, being a failure has meant having to take a hard look at who he really is. As the two reconnect, those purposes start to shift, and a unique and powerful love starts to grow.

My debut, Waiting on the Sidelines, will probably always hold that special pedestal place in my heart. But this book is right next to it. How We Deal With Gravity is honest and real and beautiful and brutal all at once—at least, I hope that’s how it’s perceived. And I cannot wait to get it in everyone’s hands.

How We Deal With Gravity is scheduled for release this summer. In the meantime, if you would like to learn more about autism, I invite you to visit SARRC online at autismcenter.org .