LET THE PITCH WARS BEGIN

Let me take a moment to tell you how freakishly excited I am to be a Pitch War mentor this year. The manuscripts, the authors, the agents...just WOW!  Mentor bios and the list of participating agents are being posted today. The rules, the regulations, the how-to's of the submission -- all those goodies can be found on Brenda Drakes blog www.brenda-drake.com 

Now comes the hard part, trying to convince a pool of crazy talented writers that I'm the mentor you want.

Who the heck am I

I have a canned bio. It is pretty and formal and makes me look all official. It's on my website should you have ions of time to waste, but here is the real me. 

I live on Cape Cod, land of sun and perpetual traffic. I hate sand, I'm easily irritated by tourists, and I have no tolerance for supermarket parking lots. I am a mom with an insanely organized carpool schedule, a wife to a husband with mad grilling skills, and the proud owner of one rather undisciplined black lab named Orphie. Ohh...and I make the most amazing chocolate cookie dough brownies. And yes, I do send them out to my CP's.

I am a member of the SCBWI, the YA Scream Queens, the Cape Cod Children's Writers and the Horror Writers Association. I am represented by the amazing Kevan Lyon at Marsal Lyon Literary. My YA contemporary, SECRETS SISTERS KEEP, is coming Winter of 2015 from FSG/ Macmillan and my YA Psychological Horror, CREED (co-authored), hits shelves Fall of 2014 from FLUX. My co-authored Sci-fi (we shall call it UNTITLED SHINY WIP) is coming Fall of 2015 from FLUX

You can find me here twitter, here facebook, and here Goodreads. 

What I would love to see

YA Contemporary  Think PAPER TOWNS or LIKE MANDARIN.  Give me a literary feel, beautiful prose, and characters that will stay with me for years to come. Don't tiptoe around difficult topics, dive in and tear it open. Life and emotions are messy. Own them and let me feel them as I read. Issues, edge, language, sex...not a problem.

YA Psychological Horror  There is nothing more frightening than the evil that lurks inside a chosen few. The sociopath who thinks he's sane. The delusional man who subscribes to his own truths. The tormented soul who embraces the darkness raging in his mind. No paranormal or half-dressed girl running away form a chain-saw wielding maniac for this horror fanatic. Bring me straight psychological horror with a heavy dose of "oh crap...that really could happen!"

YA Thriller  I am walking a fine line here between my taste in psychological horror and psychological thriller. Give me a fast-paced, character driven manuscript where the stakes are high and the voice is authentic, and I will fall in love every time. Give me tension and suspense and a cast of characters I neither hate nor trust.  Startle me, confuse me, let me second guess my own intuition. I want to dig for clues, get angry that I didn't see that twist coming, and curse myself for naively "believing" that seemingly honest character.

YA Historical Fiction  Think FEVER 1793 or REVOLUTION. Beautiful writing that captures the depth of the time period. Make me live, breathe, and long to have lived centuries ago when life was harder and the problems were equally as complex. 

YA Sci-fi  Keep it based in reality and set on this planet and I am game. Toss me into another galaxy with flying machines and mutating aliens and I'm lost every time.  Remember, I am a contemporary girl at heart :)

NA  Get prepared to roll your eyes because I am sure you have heard this a gazillion times.  Love it, adore it, can't get enough of it, just make sure is more plot than sex.  Language, edge, sex...none of it is a problem for me, just keep it in context.

That's me and my tastes in a nutshell.  But more importantly...

Here is what I can do for you

I love to edit. I have an unnatural attraction to line edits and have been know to track a CP down on email or messenger just to tell them what part of their manuscript I absolutely adore.

In a world where we are often told no, I think it is as important to point out what does work in a. By highlighting those scenes/ chapters/ beautifully written phrases, the writer knows what to expand on and what to give the reader more of.

I am a proud member of the BREE HIVE which means when I am not writing or attempting to corral three kids and a dog, I am reading manuscripts for Bree Ogden at D4EO Literary. I see a lot of amazing stuff, and I am continually in aw of your talent!

And lastly....yes brownies will be involved :)

I can't wait to see your manuscripts, and HAPPY WRITING! 

Secret Letter: S

THE PROPHECY, by Erin Albert

THE PROPHECY...What's it all about?

Growing up on a small farm in the kingdom of Vanguard, seventeen-year-old Layla Givens lives a deceptively tranquil existence. But her carefully constructed life quickly falls apart when she’s abducted by a religious zealot who proclaims her The Fulfillment of an ancient peace prophecy and whisks her away to marry her greatest enemy.

Wilhelm, Prince of the Ethereals, is reluctant to meet his new bride. He's grown up believing Vanguards are evil, an enemy to fight and fear...not love. Can he set aside his prejudices and work alongside Layla to bring lasting peace after centuries of war?

Nash, a loner who has never fit in, carries a huge secret, one big enough to destroy both kingdoms. When he accidently meets Layla, he’s no longer content to live in the shadows, but he must resist his growing attraction—for her safety and for the longevity of the two kingdoms.

When Nash's secret is revealed, a firestorm sweeps through both realms, with Layla at the center. Now she must choose between duty and desire while the fate of two nations hangs in the balance.

About the Author

Erin Albert is an author and fitness trainer.  Since she picked up Morris the Moose Goes to School at age four, she has been infatuated with the written word.  She went on to work as a grammar and writing tutor in college and is still teased by her family and friends for being a member of the "Grammar Police."  In her free time, Erin enjoys acting, running, kickboxing, and, of course, reading and writing. 

Where to find Erin

Twitter:  

Facebook 

Website

Goodreads

Preorder THE PROPHECY

OLIVIA TWISTED by Vivi Barnes

I rarely post book reviews, not because I don't enjoy reading,rather because, as an author, I understand how personal our stories are to us. And with so many amazing YA books out there, I don't want to favor one author, one book, over another.  That said, I going to make an exception...because this book is truly extraordinary.

Title: OLIVIA TWISTED
Author: Vivi Barnes
Genre: YA Sci-fi (with romantic elements)
Publisher: Entangled Teen

OLIVIA TWISTED is a contemporary remake of the Charles Dickens classic, OLIVER TWIST.  An orphan bounced from foster home to foster home, Olivia has done her best to put her often turbulent past behind her, successfully flying under the radar until her computer skills draw the interest of the mysterious and delicious Z. She appears hardened and walled off at times, but given her past and the tension between Olivia and her new foster mom, it's understandable and well played. She is an intelligent, strong heroine who makes horribly wrong and completely believable decisions for a girl in her situation.

Z...now him I loved.  Sure he is mysterious and hot with a inflated sense of self-importance, but that is part of what drew me to him.  In a genre filled with "white nights," It was nice to see a protagonist that didn't fit that mold. He's someone I constantly wavered between wanting to smack and kiss, and his unpredictable nature  kept me intrigued.

In the end, this isn't a story about Olivia finding her way in a world that has abandoned her, or Z twisting her for his own game. It's a love story about two young kids, both with a talent for technology, finding their own sense of peace and self-worth with each other.

Where to Purchase OLIVIA TWISTED by Vivi Barnes

Amazon

B&N

Goodreads

About the amazing Vivi Barnes:

Originally from East Texas, Vivi now lives in the magic and sunshine of Orlando, Florida with her very understanding husband, three kids, and a shockingly peaceful beagle. He Ya debut, OLIVIA TWISTED, released November 5, 2013 from Entangled Teen.


www.vivibarnes.com
www.oliviatwisted.com
www.facebook.com/vivibarnes.author

The Painful Art of Crafting Queries

My memories of crafting my first queries are unpleasant at best. Trying to decipher which plot points were necessary while infusing emotion and a sense of urgency into 250 short words often had me slamming my laptop closed and cursing writing altogether. Practice, the critiques of a few seasoned writers, and a large dose of self-confidence was what if finally took for me to craft one worthy of a request. That was over five years ago, and I still find myself cringing at the the thought of ever having to write one again. That said, in the spirit of giving back, I'm over at Brenda Drake's blog today doing query critiques. I don't pretend to be an expert, and God knows it took me months before I could even grasp the concept of a first-line hook, but hopefully what I've said has been helpful.

Men, Mistresses, and the Birth of Horror

Today I am over at YA Scream Queens talking about the Summer of 1816 and how one rainy evening around the fire spawned the cornerstones of modern day horror.  Come learn how this tangled web of men and mistresses rose to a challenge laid down by Lord Byron to create the world's finest horror novel.