Happy New Year

I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday. I have. I'm exhausted now. From being with family, eating gobs of food with family, running around the park with the kids just about every day, going to the museum, eating more hand-dipped chocolates (my mother-in-law's specialty--a blessing and a curse!), watching football, eating more treats, and just having a good time, I'm tired to the bones.

And now I get to make new goals for the year. I need to go running more. My hips and rear demand it. I want to be a better wife and mother. And I want to write. Golly, do I want to write. I'm going to finish Bound (I'll be finishing up the current draft within the next week. Then we'll see where I stand on it.) I need to write and finish The Reaping. And I have ideas tossing around in my head for a fun, decidedly paranormal series that I've got the itch for. It'll be a good year.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I have been totally slacking off on the writing. I think it's been about a week since I've opened the file on my computer. Seriously. I haven't gone that long without writing in a long time.

Last week was crazy, of course. Cookies to make, presents to wrap, presents to buy (frantically, I might add--shopping is pure insanity this time of year), Christmas cards to address. You know. The things that signal that Christmas is right around the corner. I love all of it. But I didn't get any writing done.

Now I'm listening to popcorn pop, my husband and bro-in-law are watching football, I'm hanging out with my sisses-in-law and mom-in-law, and I'm having a great time just enjoying the magic of the season. And I'm still not writing.

But you know, that's okay. This time is supposed to be enjoyed. I can always write tomorrow. Though I really am starting to get the itch...

Blogging Blahs

So I've been feeling just a little "eh" about my blog lately. I realize the last few posts have just been redirects to other blogs I've been featured on. And I'd like to thank those fabulous bloggers for not only getting the word out about my books, but also giving me a few posts in the process.

I was thinking today about why in the world I've had zero inspiration for what to blog about, and you know what? I think I figured it out. It's because I'm completely immersed in Bound right now.

I got my edits back a few weeks ago, and I've been working hard to get them done. But for me, rewrites require a lot more brain power than writing the first draft. I know I've talking about rewrites before, but I'll say it again, they're a doozy. But don't mistake me, I'm not complaining, and I'm having a lot of fun tightening up certain aspects of the story and expounding on others. Just generally figuring out what works and what doesn't, you know?

And it's mentally exhausting. After working on them for an hour or two, I find myself going (with my eyes slightly glazed over), "What in the world am I going to write about now?" And the blog slides quickly away to the back-burner. Where it, you know, gets burned because you forget about whatever is cooking on the stove behind the great big stock pot.

So how's this for a blog post? A sampling of the bad metaphors I create after I've been devoting my intellect and creativity to rewriting. But can I say one more thing? I love Bound. Truly. I love the story and I love the characters, and I'm definitely not sick of it yet. Which is always a good sign.

Indie Frenzy

Ashley at The Bookish Brunette runs a great feature called Indie Frenzy, where she spotlights different indie authors. You'll find amazing new reads and authors to follow.

She featured The Burn today, and asked me what my inspiration for the story was. Some of you probably know that The Burn was inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's A Little Mermaid. But you should click your way over to her blog to find out why that's waaay different from the Disney version, and how I fit a story about a fish into a post-Apocalyptic dystopian novel.

She also has a giveaway up for an ebook, so be sure to enter! The giveaway closes on December 20.

15 Things You May Not Have Known

If you've never been to the Literary Junkie book blog, you should click on over there and peruse a bit. Lots of fun YA book stuff going on. Sonny is a great blogger, and she's just a lot of fun in general. She posted an interview with me and a giveaway for three ebooks of The Burn. So if you'd like a chance to win my book, head on over there. The giveaway runs until December 24.

The interview is 15 Things to Know about Me. Some things you may not have known:

• I'm a twin, and no, we can't feel each other's pain
• I'm a stay-at-home mom, and writing helps me stay sane
• I'm a runner. And I don't listen to music while I run, I listen to audiobooks. If you listen to music while you work out, you should try audiobooks. I'm telling you, it's a lifesaver

If you want to find out more, check out the rest of the interview.

More Content

I've added some exciting new content to my blog. Well, I think it's exciting new content, because it's stuff I've written. And stuff that more and more people are reading. Hooray for new readers! (And thank you. Seriously. You guys rock.) So what is the new content you ask?

Sample chapters. (Told you it was nifty!)

If you go to that spiffy Books page, you'll find links called "Read the first chapter." And guess where they take you? To a page where you can read the first chapter of the book! How about that! So if you'd like a quick-'n'-easy sample (you know, instead of having to go to a retail site), just click the link and enjoy. And then go to the retail site and purchase the book :)

Remember, my books are only 99 cents for the holidays!

A giveaway and an interview

Phenomenal book blog I Am a Reader, Not a Writer has a giveaway for a paperback copy of The Burn and three ebooks! Contest ends Dec 30. There's also an interview if you are just dying to know things like what superpower I wish I had and if I'm any good at spouting a Haiku off the top of my head. Stop on by to enter.

YA love

So I've loved to read YA fiction for as long as I can remember. Well, once I got past picture books and easy readers and middle grade stuff. Once I hit the YA shelves as a tween, I never looked back. I'd be hard-pressed to name ten adult books I've read. Okay, maybe that's an exaggeration. There was all of that literature (those italics are there to indicate that this was said with a snooty voice) I read in high school and college. And they're classics. They're amazing books. I do feel like they have rightly earned their places, and there is still amazing writing being done in the area of literature.

But YA fiction just grabs me.

I mean honestly, will I ever do a reread on Madame Bovary or Anna Karenina or Don Quijote again? No. Resounding no. And they were incredible books that touched me.

So what is it about YA fiction that I love? I was pondering this as I was looking through some friends' reviews on goodreads that were firmly in the adult literature category. And I came up with a short (but sweet) list. I realize that there are some huge generalizations here, but it's usually true. The list:

1. First love. There's nothing like the anxious, nerve-wracking, self-deprecating, fluttery feeling of the first time you liked someone. No, not just liked someone. Like liked someone. You know what I mean. And YA fiction is full of the stuff.
2. The creativity. It seems like just about anything goes in YA fiction. Wizards and witches fighting a wizard-gone-bad and who shall-not-be-named? Check. An International Paranormal Control Agency because paranormals are running amok? Check. Kids who have to fight to the death just because their power-hungry government says so? Check. Not to mention the mermaids, trolls, vampires, werewolves, and then the amazing more real-life situations added to books.
3. The conflicts. This is part of #2. Because of the range of topics, there are crazy, fun conflicts. There are plenty of the teenage-angsty kind of conflicts, but how about teen angst combined with a dystopian society that chooses everything for you? It's just delicious!
4. Fun. Sure, there are some YA books that are just heavy. But even serious YA books are more fun (to me, at least) than serious adult books. Something in the writing style, or something in the characters, or something in the plot that just leaves me more entertained than their "grown-up" counterparts.

Would I ever want to relive my teenage years? Not a chance! Too much braces, bad hair, awkward situations, and social craziness. But do I love reading it? Yes. Now excuse me while I go read about a girl who is in love with a fallen angel, has broken up with him, is seeing hallucinations of her dead father, and is feeling the teen-angst to the extreme.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

The ebook versions of The Burn and Dragon Sister are 99 cents during the months of December and January!

Amazon and Smashwords already have this happy holidays price, and other ebook retailers will have this price in a little while.