News & A Celebration!

You've probably heard what happened mid-last week. But if you didn't...

I released my debut YA romantic comedy THE TRUTH ABOUT FAKING!

Y'all this has all come together so fast, my hair's still upside my head. Today, I'm being hilariously interviewed on hacky-sack buddy Janet's blog (link). Stop by and win a free copy of my book!

Also I have shout-outs from my lovely CP and Thursday twin Hart (link) my lovely non-twin Kari (link), the scientifically lovely Mary (link), talented (also lovely) Jolene (link), AND my sneaky (and lovely) CP Carolyn (link)! Please visit.

And Thank you! To Laura, Katie, Elle, and all who've posted reviews and shout-outs already.

I tell you, this has been the most exciting, nerve-wracking publishing stunt I've pulled yet, and I can't wait to see what happens next. I'll keep you posted.

In the meantime, if you're looking for my book, it's everywhere. Print will soon be available as well. I'm on Goodreads (link), and links for purchase are here:

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Smashwords

Now for the Celebration! (*throws confetti*)

One of my sweetest, longtime bloggy friends Sheri Larsen (link) just signed with Literary Agent Paula Munier of Talcott Notch Literary! 

And because our literary community is so freaking fabulous and generous, she's having a Bigger-Than-A-Shopping-Mall GIVEAWAY!! 

The giveaway is open until September 27th. WINNERS will be announced on September 28th. (Entrants may win more than one prize!)

Click HERE to enter, and Thank you so much for celebrating with us!

List of Rocking Participants: Lenny Lee, Colene Murphy, LM Preston, Darby Karchut, Joanne Brothwell, Patti Larsen, Christine Fonseca,Catherine Stine, Jessica Bell, Kelly Hashway, Leigh Moore, Christine Danek, Alex Cavanaugh, Katie Mills, Matthew MacNish, Beverly McClure,Marcy Hatch, Jennifer Million, Nicole Zoltack, Christina Lee, Kris Yankee, JL Spelbring, Sharon Mayhew, Candice Granger, Dianne Salerni, Lisa & Laura Roecker, Elana Johnson, Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi, Susan Kaye Quinn, Lydia Kang, Julie Musil, Natalie Agurrie, Talli Roland,Medeia Sharif, Kelly Polark, Angela Brown, Sarah Fine, Stina Lindenblatt, Lynda Young, Susan Fields, PK Hrezo, Shannon O'Donnell, Shelli Johannes-Wells, Theresa Brown Milstein.

Congratulations, Sheri!!! So excited for you, and I can't wait to see your books on the shelf!

There's so much awesomeness going on right now. Have a great week, reader- and writer-friends! <3

CLOCKWISE Book Review & Author Interview

I "met" author Elle Strauss about a year ago... I don't even remember how, but I started following her blog (link) because she always posted amazing video interviews or speeches by authors I liked.

I've used them as the basis for my own posts in the past--remember "Restless Anchovies" (link)?

Strauss

Anyway, I could tell Elle was smart and a good writer doing what she could to learn from other famous writers--mutual interests, right? Right.

Well, I was shocked when she told me she decided to self-publish her debut novel CLOCKWISE. She had an agent, and it was one I'd conversed with on two of my own MSs. I didn't know what to say.

Except that I'd help her get the word out. She sent me an ARC (advance review copy) to do a review. I also interviewed Elle, asking her about CLOCKWISE and self-publishing. Her answers follow my review. (Enter to win free books at the very end.)

Here's my review:

CLOCKWISE is billed as "time-travel-YA-chicklit," which piqued my interest right away. I really dig chicklit, and mixing it with time-travel sounded too unexpected.

But I wouldn't necessarily classify Elle's book as "chicklit." Don't get me wrong, it's very funny at times, and the main character Casey has a real problem: she time-travels uncontrollably, and it gets worse when she's stressed out.

She also carries people back in time with her if they're touching her skin when it happens--just ask her best friend Lucinda, who is also hilarious and determined that she and Casey are going to get dates to "THE Prom" by going to every HS dance that year.

Casey is opposed to this plan for one major reason: the last thing she needs is to get stressed out while dancing with a boy, much less the cutest boy in school, Nate, on whom she has an enormous crush...

Yep, that's exactly what happens. Nate asks her to dance and zhoop! they go back in time. (Read the teaser-excerpt of that scene on Elle's blog here, link. It's short and fun and will give you a feel for Elle's style.)

So she takes the cutest boy back in time... and here's the part where it stops being chicklit. (I know--unexpected again!) Casey time-travels back to the same place every trip, and it's a scary, volatile part of American history.

She goes back to Boston, at the start of the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln's just been elected President, boys are getting drafted into the Union Army, runaway slaves are being kidnapped and sent back south because of the Fugitive Slave Act.

Women have practically no rights, and a wealthy Bostonian sets his sites on the mysterious Miss Casey Donovon, who keeps disappearing and reappearing...

Source

Once Nate gets over his initial shock at what's happened (he thinks it's a prank at first), he wants to get involved, to help their new friend, a fugitive slave named Samuel.

Casey's more worried because she never knows when she'll travel back to modern times again, and if she isn't touching Nate when it happens, he could get left there. Waiting for her to come back again, whenever...

I'm going to stop because I don't want to spoil the story, but I'll tell you what I told Elle: I'll bet money this is the best self-published debut novel on the market.

I'm not kidding. And at $2.99 for Kindle (link) or £2.17 on Amazon.co.uk, you've got to get it. The ending is moving and sweet... Kudos to my friend, and I wish her the best with this new venture.

Now for our interview!

LTM: I loved the theme of time travel, and the way you linked it to possibly being hereditary. Have you always been interested in time travel? Was there a book, movie, TV show, or real-life event that sparked your idea for CLOCKWISE?

Elle Strauss: I’m not sure what sparked the interest in time travel—maybe it felt like a puzzle, and I like puzzles. My first time-travel effort had some merit, but not anywhere close to publishable. I did learn a lot from that first effort, though.

(Almost) All of the historical events take place in the same time in Boston during the very beginning of the Civil War. What made you choose that time? Is it your favorite time period in American history?

ES: I’d recently moved back to western Canada after spending a year in Boston. I was fascinated with the history there, the Freedom Trail, the 300-year-old pub, the cradle of America. When I decided to write another time travel book, I knew it was going to have to be set there. Having my protagonist, Casey, loop back to the dawn of the Civil War just made sense then.

To me, time travel is a very intimidating device. How did you prepare for it? Did you already have your where and when plotted out or did you pants it?

ES: Oh, I totally pants-ed it, which I’ll never do again. This novel was actually really hard to write, as I actually had two stories that needed to have a complete arc, and that overlapped into one complete story. I went grey trying to figure this one out. I’m part-way finished with a companion, and I’m definitely planning the structure ahead of time.

Is CLOCKWISE the novel that landed you your agent? How long did your query journey take? Care to share your experience?

ES: It feels so long ago now, I have to think. I queried more than one book, but this is the one that got me representation. I think I had it out for half a year or more. She was a new agent “hungry for clients,” which always helps I think, plus at the time, she only took snail mail. I was willing to do the extra work to get it to her, but I knew many people wouldn’t be. So that helped to get me to the top of the pile. I’m really grateful she fell in love with Casey’s story.

Your agent shopped CLOCKWISE, and then you decided to self-publish. Was she supportive of this decision? At what point did you decide to go it alone and why?

ES: Here’s where I tell you I’ve had two agents. My first agent shopped CLOCKWISE, but the general feeling at the time was that time-travel YA wouldn’t sell (it wasn’t trending). When she left the agency, I was picked up by her colleague. By then, time travel was trending, but the general feel was that editors wanted edgier time travel. At that point I decided it might be worth giving it a go on my own, and my agent agreed.

What did you do to prepare for self-publishing? Any tips for others considering this step?

ES: Oh, gosh. I’d been reading up on it for a while, there are a lot of great bloggers who focus almost 100 percent on this, including The Passive Voice (link) and also a lot of books. I’d spent time following other authors who had self-published to see how they approached it. I suppose it would take a full blog post (or more) to answer this question fully.

What's next for Elle Strauss? Any other books in the pipeline? Traditional or self-publishing? And if traditional, what are your thoughts on doing both?

ES: Yes, there are more books! My next book is going to be completely opposite in feel, a darker drama about a boy who grows up in Hitler Youth, tentatively called PLAYING WITH MATCHES. After that, look for another light and fun romance set in the Merfolk world called SEAWEED. I will indie-publish both of these, with a CLOCKWISE companion to follow.  As for both, that can work for some authors.

Thanks for having me, Leigh!

(Note: I've actually read/edited PLAYING WITH MATCHES for Elle, and I can tell you, I wept. It is fantastic.)

Elle's also hosting a great Contest! to help launch CLOCKWISE. You can win five books, so jump over to her site and read about it (link).

Now go buy Elle's book, reader- and writer-friends (link), and spend the week-end tripping through time.

Til Monday~ <3

If I Could Be Anybody Else...

In honor of the release of our good bloggy friend Talli's brand new book, Watching Willow Watts (link), we've all been asked to write about who we'd like to be and why. Other than ourselves, of course.

I confess. This was hard for me! I'm too analytical. I know everybody's got their own set of problems, even if it looks like they've got it made in the shade.

We all have our unique challenges and insecurities to round out the good things in our lives, so it's best to be thankful for who we are, enjoy our blessings, and learn from our hard times.

But that's boring! And I like games, so I sat down and thought about it.

Who would I want to be... Who looked like they'd done the most interesting stuff, who had the coolest setup, who I'd like to emulate... hmm...

It was a tie.

My first choice: Frank Lloyd Wright. Remember my post about starting my very first novel? Back in 2009, when I decided I was also possessed by the spirit of FLW in the creepy Indian artifact museum during the freak hailstorm in Sedona, Az.? (link)

Me as FLW

In follow-ups, I told someone I thought it was so cool that FLW was able to live his life doing what he loved, that he got recognition in his lifetime, and that he was able to do it until he died at 91 (at his drafting table, sketching). And his creations still live on, admired and preserved...

Yep, that's what I want.

My second choice: Rosalind Russell. (The actress for you youngsters.)

I was about nine when my grandmother introduced me to the fabulous world of classic movies. She rented The Big Sleep for me, and we watched together. I was instantly hooked, and I spent the next 31 years watching, rewatching, and loving old movies.

Me as RR (that's JRM as Carey Grant)

Of all the actresses, Rosalind Russell is my favorite. At least onscreen. She was tough and sassy. She was hilarious and full of heart. Think about it. From her early films The Women to His Girl Friday, to musicals Auntie Mame and Gypsy, all the way to The Trouble With Angels. She was just fantastic.

She created unforgettable characters, worked with amazing people, and she always looked like she was having a blast doing it.

That's the other thing I want.

So there you have it. And now you all need to get Talli's new book! Take it from me, I read (and reviewed!) Talli's first book, The Hating Game (link), so I can only imagine this one's even more fun. It sure looks that way.

Here's the link to the ebook version of W3 on Amazon (link). The paperback's coming in November, but you Kindle kids, at $2.99, there's no excuse not to grab it and spend the weekend happily reading.

Have a great week-end, reader- and writer-friends! Til Monday~ <3

So Tell Me About Your Book...

It's Friday! To make up for yesterday, I'll give you two of my favorite redneck jokes:

#1-You might be a redneck if...

You've been married three times and you still have the same in-laws.


OK, one more...

#2-You might be a redneck if...

You lit a match in the bathroom and your house exploded right off its wheels.

BAH!

* * *

OK. I'm getting lots of VERY nice feedback re: this here blog via Facebook, email, etc. Thank You, All! I aim to entertain! And please feel free to leave those comments here. I really do think I fixed whatever was causing the problem before.

Now everyone's asking, What's all this about a book? What's the story?

Well, I'm still looking for an agent, so I'm loath to put too much out there. That's probably not the right approach. Maybe I should put it all out there. I don't know. I'm so new at this...

Sorry, The Book. Well... OK. Here's the plot in a nutshell (deep breath):

Heading into junior year, 16 year-old Anna is expecting the worst. Her best friend has just moved, and she's left with kids who only care about trucks, football and fishing.

Enter sophisticated, wealthy twins—beautiful Lucy with a troubled past, and striking, aloof Jack. They're transfer students from an exclusive private school on ritzy Ono Island, and as Anna gets to know them, she finds a friend in Lucy and what might be first love with Jack.

But all isn't right at their home. Lucy engages in self-destructive behavior, and Jack is sullen and withdrawn. Their mother is dead, and their father is strangely detached.

When Anna's pal Julian, a promising young art student, begins making romantic overtures, she finds herself unexpectedly drawn to him.

Then, during the course of a student internship at her local paper, Anna discovers the twin's father's long-guarded secret. He insists she must keep quiet. But his secret involves Julian, and Anna is determined the truth must come out.

* * *

So ring-a-ding-ding, that's the plot in a nutshell--75,000-words of commercial YA fiction.
 
I already told you it's not Cormack McCarthy, but it IS suspenseful and romantic, and test readers have been V. positive.

The unique part is that I incorporated lots of fun Baldwin County elements in the setting--the local art scene, local places, and even some local folklore. I tried to capture the great art community we have here, and I really think readers will get a sense of life in this area. In a good way!
 
The character development's solid, it's funny at times, and it's fast-paced. Being an admitted book-putter-downer (and never picker upper again-er), I tried to avoid all the things that make me stop reading. I think it works.
 
So, yay! Anybody know a good literary agent?