CREED ARCs Have Arrived!

I have waited nearly 18 months to see this book in print.  It's only an ARC (actual release date is November 8th, 2014) but I am squealing with excitement nonetheless.  I plan going to hang on to it for a few days, stare and pet it for hours on end, *my precious* then off it goes on an ARC tour.
  

Who Wants to Play Some Cards?

CREED Swag is finally rolling in, and I can't wait to package it up and send it out!

My Totally Twisted Secret Project

With the release date of CREED rapidly approaching, Lindsay and I have been fielding questions about what our co-authored voice sounds like,  how psychologically twisted our collective mind is, and do I need to read all of your co-authored pieces with the lights on?

Rather than simply answer those questions, we thought we’d take it one step further and actually show you! We toyed with writing a prequel-type novella to set the stage for CREED, but you know us…why write a novella to CREED when you can give them an entirely different book to enjoy!

After much discussion with our agents and an enthusiastic ‘go for it’ from our publisher, we have decided to utilize Wattpad to give the world a sneak peek at what they can expect from our co-authored voice. So here it is, a new, psychologically twisted, co-authored YA Thriller.

 “The darkness would've scared me years ago, but not anymore. If you couldn't see it,

 then you didn't know it was there to be afraid of.”

~Jake Holloway, SILO

About SILO: 

A year after a solar storm plunges the world into total darkness, seventeen-year-old Jake Holloway finds himself holed-up in an abandoned, cold-war missile silo with two of his high school friends, Keith Pressman and Evan Jensen. Stranded with nothing more than the clothes on their backs, they are fighting for survival against a society that has turned on itself. 

When their desperation for food and additional supplies reaches an unbearable level, they are forced to go topside. They plan to slip into the surrounding silos undetected, taking only what they need. But their moral code of not taking from the living comes crashing down when they find the unthinkable—a girl, Meredith, bloodied and bruised, huddled into the corner and refusing to speak or move.  

Haunted by her broken frame and vacant eyes, Jake can’t stomach leaving her behind to fend for herself.  Foregoing the supplies they originally came her, Jake brings her home, promising her safety. But it isn't long before Meredith’s presence triggers a series of unexplainable attacks which turn their underground haven into nothing more than a steel trap. Soon, protecting Meredith becomes a deadly game of cat and mouse…one in which not everyone will survive.  

Starting today, we will be sharing a chapter a week of our co-authored book, SILO, on Wattpad for the world to enjoy, hate, question our sanity, run screaming from… The last chapter of the book will drop the week of November 8^th, the same week CREED releases!

So, go forth and be appropriately frightened as you realize just what our twisted minds of capable of.  Spread the word, leave a comment on Wattpad or simply enjoy the book in the dark confines of your own home. And remember to follow the book on Wattpad, so you can be notified when new content goes up!

Link to SILO on Wattpad: http://www.wattpad.com/54090436-silo

Meet The Person I Trust To Tell Me My Writing Sucks!

I have put down 62,000 craptastic words on paper. The plot is...how shall we say this...fluid, the ending needs to be tightened, and the concept may not even be workable. Do I scrap the whole book? Do I melt down in an I-will-never-write-a-book-as-good-as-my-first-one fit? Do I call my agent and beg her to talk me off the ledge? Nope. I do what I always do; I fire my rather disobedient WIP off to a few talented authors friends who have stuck by me since day one!

My Critique Partners are my first line of defense, an invaluable resource who make me push harder and dig deeper then I ever thought possible. They question my mc's motivations, point out subtle inconsistencies, and have the guts to tell me when something plain old sucks. I am a better writer...a better person because of them.

And I can't wait to introduce to the this one. She holds the unlucky title of being the only one of my CP's to have read everything, EVERYTHING, I have ever written!  

World...meet Mary Waibel

Thanks so much for letting me visit today and talk about Critique Partners.

Trisha and I met on-line several years ago when I was looking for feedback on a short story I'd written for a contest. Since then, she's read everything I've written, and her advice has been invaluable to my growth as a writer.

When we first began exchanging work, Trisha's writing was at a higher level than mine. As I read her pieces, it seemed to me I was learning more about writing than I was giving her feedback. And it was then I realized being a critique partner is a two way street. You're imparting your knowledge and world view on the work you read, and at the same time learning your partner's knowledge and world view. And the results can be magical.

I always say Critique Partners are worth their weight in gold, and I believe it. Every time I exchange work, I learn something new (usually a new vice I've picked up to replace my obsession with the word that :-) ). From over used words, to varying sentence structure, or character development, every partner has their own wealth of knowledge to bring to the table. Even a new writer.

  

Yes, just because you're new to the world of writing doesn't mean you can't critique for a more experienced writer. In fact, I think everyone should have at least one partner who writes at a higher level, just to make you work harder to get to the next stage of your writing.

Many people believe writing to be solitary, but with Critique Partners, it doesn't have to be. So, how do you get these wonderful gems? Join on-line writing groups. Join a local writer's group. Search on your favorite social media sites. As I mentioned above, if you're a new writer, try to find another person who's been writing a little longer than you to exchange work with so you can help your craft grow. If your an experienced writer, consider working with a newbie to share the things you've learned along the way. It's a wonderful way to repay the generosity of those who took us under their wings.

Cover by CK Volnek

 The Mystery Prince, a novella

Buy Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KU6TSY8

Book Blurb:

Tristan enjoys being in the shadows as Prince Rand's bodyguard. Similar in looks, the two often exchanged places in their youth, but he never expected the king to order him to impersonate the heir to the throne in order to win the hand of a princess.

Princess Zoe needs to find a husband. After a year of searching with no success, her father insists on hosting a masquerade ball for the eligible princes of the nine kingdoms. Not one prince piques her interest, until she meets the mysterious stranger who won't tell her his name.

When Tristan meets Zoe he finds the girl of his dreams. The only problem? She's a princess and he's impersonating a prince―a crime punishable by imprisonment and floggings. Unable to tell Zoe his real name, he gives her a special navigation device. One that leads to the owner's true love. Will this magic device lead Zoe to Tristan, or will her true love forever remain a mystery prince?

Author Bio:

Mary lives with her husband, son and two cats. When she isn't twisting fairytales, she enjoys reading, playing games, watching hockey, and camping. Her Princess of Valendria series (Quest of the Hart, Charmed Memories, Different Kind of Knight) are available from MuseItUp Publishing and other major retailers.  Her novella, The Mystery Prince, is available at Amazon. Her Faery Marked (book 1 in the Faery Series) will be available from BookFishBooks this summer.

You can find Mary Waibel at:

http://marywaibel.blogspot.com

https://www.facebook.com/authormarywaibel

THE GOAL

"The goal is not to get published but to stay published!"

I have no idea which of my talented author friend's said that to me, but it has been my creed for the last year. No matter what I was writing, which marketing plan I was hashing out, or which the thousand WIP ideas I was toying with writing, that one phrase has been my guiding point.

These past twelve months, I have gone through content edits, line edits, first pass pages. I have spoken at the NESCBWI conference, ordered SWAG, and had the required everybody-is-going-to-hate-this author meltdown. But none of those things made me feel like I was a REAL author as much as seeing my solo YA Contemporary, THE SECRETS WE KEEP, go up on Goodreads. Something about having it listed there means I am a half-step closer to reaching that goal of staying published.

I can't wait to share the cover with you all.  It is beautiful. and poetic, and locked away in my publishers vault until they give me the okay to share it with the world! In the meantime, I have attached the Goodreads link below (just in case any of you want to add it to your TBR pile) as well as a quick blurb about the book. And here's to reaching all of our writerly goals no matter what they may be!

Goodreads Link:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18309670-the-secrets-we-keep

Book Blurb:  Seventeen-year-old Ella Lawton spent her entire life living in the shadows of her identical twin sister's popularity, but she never dreamed of having Maddy’s life; never wanted it. In fact, she’s spent the last three years trying to separate herself from the group at school Maddy has chosen, preferring the quiet, safe confines of her sketchbook and the company of her best friend, Josh, to the constant battle for attention and popularity that has defined her sister’s life.

When a heated argument and a tragic accident leaves her sister dead, Ella wakes up in the hospital surrounded by friends and loved ones who believe she is Maddy. She is overwhelmed by their joy when they realize she will live - a joy Ella is sure she would not see if they knew the truth, that it is Ella who survived, not her lovable, popular sister. After what she has done, she cannot bring herself to cause even more heartache and in that moment she makes the gut wrenching decision to assume her sister’s life. Navigating her sister’s popularity and boyfriend are hard enough, but Ella soon realizes that Maddy’s life is full of secrets that have kept her popularity intact while slowly destroying her from the inside out. Caught in a web of lies and with no escape in sight, Ella is faced with two options - confess her deception and risk the hatred and betrayal of those around her, or give up all of her own dreams and continue down the destructive path her sister's life has mapped out for her.

CREED Makes Its NetGalley Debut!

CREED went up on NetGalley Monday and word has it approval request and downloads have begun...which means reviews will shortly be coming in.  I have vowed to myself never to look at the reviews, good or bad, for the sake of retaining my sanity.  But lets be honest, I'll be lucky if I last a week without taking a peek at Goodreads.

I have pasted the Netgalley link below for those of you hoping to get your hands on a e-Arc and quick blurb about the book...just so you know what you are getting into :)

My only advice...read it with the lights on!

Quick Blurb:

Three went in. Three came out. None even a shadow of who they once were.

When their car breaks down, Dee, her boyfriend Luke, and his brother Mike walk through a winter storm to take refuge in a nearby town called Purity Springs. When they arrive, the emergency sirens are blaring and the small farming town seems abandoned. With no other shelter, they spend the night in an empty house.

But they soon discover that not everything in Purity Springs is as it seems. When the town's inhabitants suddenly appear the next morning, Dee, Luke, and Mike find themselves at the mercy of the charismatic leader, Elijah Hawkins, who plans to make Dee his new wife. Elijah's son, Joseph, offers to help them escape . . . but the price of his help may be more than Dee and her friends can bear.

NetGalley e-ARC link:       https://www.netgalley.com/catalog/show/id/48548

TERRIFYINGLY TRUE AUTHOR FACT #2

Another weekend has come and gone, and I woke up this morning to find my co-authored, Psychological Horror, CREED, has been put up on NetGalley. Which in turn, brings me to Debut Author Realization #2:

Sending your e-arc out into the word is more terrifying then giving birth. Why? Because after nine months of careful preparation and hours of agony, you have this cute, lovable little person everybody will adore. I mean, it's bad form to call a baby ugly in public, right? But your Book...well let's just say not everybody will adore your carefully planned prose. Some will downright hate it, and they will be ohh so happy to tell you! In public!

Think skin, folks.  My advice...armadillo-like thick skin and blinders!