Wise Words

“Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future and renders the present inaccessible.”

     ~Maya Angelou

May your poetic words be a source of wisdom for generations to come. #RIPMayaAngelou 

DEBUT AUTHOR REALIZATIONS

My YA Contemporary, THE SECRETS WE KEEP, hits shelves in eleven months and two days -- April 28th, 2015 from FSG/ Macmillan. Like most pre-published authors, I had a lot of misconceptions about how this whole process worked.  In an attempt to demystify the post-sale pre-publication period, every Monday of my debut year, I will post one Debut Author Realization. As I stare at what are my second-read through of First Pass Pages, I thought I would share this bit of information:

Debut Author Realization #1 

The amount of work that goes into a manuscript AFTER is is sold and BEFORE it is published is astounding. Revisions, content edits, copy edits, first pass pages. Makes writing the original ms seem like the easy part.

IT'S TIME! CREED: THE FOLLOWING GROUP SITE IS LIVE!

Are you counting down the days until CREED's release on November 8? Maybe your book club is planning to read it or you're a member of a teen advisory board at your local library? Or perhaps you're participating in the 2014 Author debut Challenge. If your answer to any of these things is yes, you are the perfect fit for the Creed street team! 

THE FOLLOWING is now looking for members to help us spread the word about Creed next Fall. Members will receive periodic teasers, special street team only Creed swag, and inside scoop on new, exciting bookish developments! 

Oh, I almost forgot . . . join us soon and you'll be entered into a contest to have a future character named after you!

If I join THE FOLLOWING, what will I be doing?  Great question! You'll be working side-by-side with me promote Creed in your town. Reading the book before it releases, writing an honest review, dropping off bookmarks and/or postcards in your local library, recommending it to your friends, receiving oodles of free CREED swag in the mail etc. These are all great examples of how one person can make a big difference. Remember, word of mouth works!

How do I join? Simple! Just head to the Facebook page dedicated to CREED: THE FOLLOWING and click join. 

Ally Malinenko's THIS IS SARAH

Today, Ally Malinenko stops by to reveal the cover for her YA novel: THIS IS SARAH.

About the author:

Ally Malinenko is the author of the poetry collection, The Wanting Bone (Six Gallery Press), and the children’s novel Lizzy Speare and the Cursed Tomb (Antenna Books). This Is Sarah is her first YA book. Ally lives in Brooklyn with her husband and a very ridiculous tabby cat. She blogs at allymalinenko.com and you can follow her on twitter at @allymalinenko. 

About the book:

When Colin Leventhal leaned out his bedroom window on the night of May 12th and said goodbye to his girlfriend, he never expected it would be forever. But when Sarah Evans goes missing that night, Colin's world unravels as he is transformed from the boyfriend next door to the main police suspect. Then one year later, at her memorial service, Colin makes a phone call that could change everything. Is it possible that Sarah is still alive? And if so, what is Colin willing to do to bring her back?And as Colin struggles with this possibility, across the street, Sarah’s little sister Claire learns how to navigate the strange new landscape that is life without her sister. Even as her parent’s fall apart, Claire is determined to keep on going. Even if it kills her.

THIS IS SARAH is a meditation on loss, love, and what it means to say goodbye.

NOW FOR THE BIG REVEAL............................

Cover design by Anita B. Carroll at Race-Point.com

IMPERVIOUS

I am so excited to be a part of the blog tour for Heather Letto's IMPERVIOUS. In celebration of her debut release, Heather has a special giveaway running. Be sure to check out the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!

Book Blurb:

The residents of Impervious are the remnant—survivors of the War of Annihilation. And though the city is chockfull of pleasures to tantalize and entertain, a beast lurks in its corners haunting the residents with its presence. The Beast—a mysterious and terminal illness―has killed off most of Generations One, Two and Three. And as Gen-Four prepares to take the stage a provocative, yet questionable, new method to avoid an untimely death becomes a cultural rage. 

But Fran is counter-cultural. And living off the grid in true rebel fashion, her life is far from opulent. Scurrying through dark tunnels, searching for hot meals and ditching the holographic security team encompass most of her day. However, she views it as a healthy trade-off. Unaccountability means The Council can’t steal her sliver of hope―a belief that she’ll see The Epoch arrive before the beast can pull her into its fetid embrace.

After losing her mother and then her Rebel mentor, however, she grasps painfully onto the splintered sliver, until a new hope is born. First through Pete. And then through a miraculous discovery.

But the question still haunts her…

Can she outrun The Beast?

About Heather Letto:

Heather considers herself but a worker in the field with a desire to share truth through the art of good story. In real life, she’s the proud mother of two grown sons and lives part-time in Northern Illinois with her husband, but scurries off to warmer climates when the mercury takes a dive on the thermometer. As well as The Ascension Series, Heather contributes to WHOAwomen magazine, The Fit Christian, Tween Girls and God, Devotion Magazine as well as Swagga for Christ Ministry.

Impervious is available in 

e-book and paperback at:

AMAZON

Barnes and Noble

a Rafflecopter giveaway