Christmas for Authors Treasure Hunt

It is very fun to be involved with such an awesome event. Jodie and Derinda are amazing women and I want to take a moment to thank them publicly for all they do for the writing community. We love you ladies. Keep up the amazing work!!

If you'd like to know more about this super cool event, you can check out the Christmas For Authors Facebook Page.

Okay - so for this game you need to find my hidden word in the text below, which you then add to the rafflecopter giveaway. This hunt is so worth taking the time to participate in. The prize is AMAZING!!

To find my word, you just need to extract the bolded letters from the text and make them into the word.

In honour of the Betwixt blog tour, which starts today, I have chosen an excerpt from the book.

"I stand in frozen shock as I listen to the door click closed behind them.

Breathing in through my nose, I approach the door with shaky steps. My arm is quivering as I reach for the door handle.

My fingers pass through the metal.

"No."

It feels weird. Like, beyond weird. Not hard like metal should be... or cold, it's just... nothing. I feel nothing.

A sharp pain shoots through my brain and I let out a cry. I clutch my head and drop to the floor, squeezing my eyes shut. The corridor begins to spin. I open my eyes as the walls rush towards me. My lungs fill with a scream of terror before everything goes black."

All you have to do to enter is type the word into the Rafflecopter below.

Please Note: Seeing as though the magnitude of this prize is HUGE, we are making it so only people dedicated enough to play along every day will have a chance to win. Only complete entries will be accepted. By complete, we mean that each day will need to be completed with the correct word from each link. Partial entries will not be accepted. I am sure authors would love a 'like' to their page for their effort while you are visiting. Good luck and thank you for playing!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Little Help Required

Being an author is hard work, whether you are traditionally published or flying indie style, it takes energy and perseverance to get your work out there. Rather than blasting everyone with sale-sy tweets and Facebook comments, I really prefer for readers to hear about my work from other people. For some reason it seems to have more impact, don't you think?

That's why it's awesome if you can ask your fellow writers, bloggers and friends for a little help.

But how much help should you be asking for?

Knowing that everyone seems ridiculously busy, I tend to stick to small requests that will only take about 2 minutes of their time, like...

- voting for my books on Goodreads lists
- liking and tagging my books on Amazon
- sharing a Facebook post
- retweeting an important tweet for me

... stuff like that.

I've been trying to get Betwixt off the ground and have been e-mailing and messaging people with little requests for help and the other day, I suddenly felt really bad. Was I asking too much? Would I be putting people off by constantly requesting their help?

I guess it all comes down to this... I will never ask anyone to do something for me that I wouldn't be willing to do for them.

Sometimes it takes courage to ask, but I am always pleasantly surprised by how willing people are to help out.

What do you think about asking for help?
When does it become too much?

2012 - Things I'm Grateful For

YA writers and bloggers unite each week to share their thoughts on what it's like going indie in today's publishing world.

Yay for Thanksgiving!! We don't celebrate it in NZ, but it's always so well advertised that we all know about it... and it always gets me thinking.

At Indie Carnival we thought this would be a great chance to mentions some of the highlights from our year and the things we are grateful for.

I have a wonderful life and find myself with a million things to be thankful for, so I'll just stick with the writing related ones in this post.

2012 has been an amazing year for me. I have released three books - Pure Blood (#3 Time Spirit Trilogy), Forbidden Territory (#1 Mica and Lexy Series) and Betwixt.

I am so grateful for...

- every person who has purchased these books. You guys are helping me write my next book... and my next... and my next.

- everyone who took the time to review the book or tell me what they thought about it. I so appreciate all your support, enthusiasm and honesty.

- the marketing & writing lessons I've learned throughout the year. I have come so far and learned so much. I know I have a long way to go still, but I'm definitely a better writer than I was last year. Long may I be able to say that :-)

- the fun I've had putting these books together. I love writing. I just love it!!

 - Brenda Howson, the co-author of Forbidden Territory and the YAlicious blog. Also my graphic designer. I love you, chick :-)

- ZealousDesign, the website that distributes my books for me in New Zealand.

- the schools I've been invited to visit and the awesome kids I've met. Some of them even wanted my signature. How cool is that?!

- librarians!!! I have met so many of you this year and I think you are all wonderful. Your passion for reading and sharing books with the younger generations is awesome. I have so appreciated your support and enthusiasm.

- the amazing people I've met and connected with through Twitter and Facebook. There are so many cool writers and bloggers out there who love to support indies. I have enjoyed building friendships with you and helping to support your careers as well. The writing world rocks!! Squee!

- Inklings - my writing group that I can go to about anything and they always understand. I love you girls.

- Indies Unlimited - another amazing group that has given me so many opportunities this year. I have learned so much from all of you and I love being a part of this awesome team.

- YA Indie Carnival. You guys are an amazing bunch of writers and I am so honoured to be associated with you. Tina & Laura - I have to give you special mention. You have done the most amazing job with this group and I so appreciate your time and effort.

- the coming year. I have four books planned for 2013, plus the launch of my own website. Excitement!!! There is so much to look forward to and on the days I feel low, I just need to think of all the things I mentioned above and all the cool things that await me in the future and I can do nothing but smile.

If you'd like to find out what the other carnival goers are grateful for, you can follow the link below.

And you can also check out the YA Author Club for the latest updates and news on what we're all up to.

1.	Laura A. H. Elliott	2.	Bryna Butler, author Midnight Guardian series
3.	T. R. Graves, Author of The Warrior Series	4.	Suzy Turner, author of The Raven Saga
5.	Rachel Coles, author of Into The Ruins, geek mom blog	6.	K. C. Blake, author of Vampires Rule and Crushed
7.	Gwenn Wright, author of Filter	8.	Liz Long | Just another writer on the loose.
9.	Ella James	10.	Maureen Murrish
11.	YA Sci Fi Author's Ramblings	12.	A Little Bit of R&R
13.	Melissa Pearl	14.	Terah Edun - YA Fantasy

NB: We are taking next week off, so there will be no Friday post from me on the 30th :-)

Recommended Reading For Writers

In October, I ran an Author-fest. It was so fantastic having such great authors visit my YAlicious blog for a small interview. It was awesome to get to know their work a little better and the history behind some of their stories. One of the most interesting questions for me was...

 If you could recommend any book to aspiring writers, what would it be and why?

There were some fantastic suggestions, so I thought I'd compile the answers into a list for you.
If you'd like to add any others into the comments section, please feel free.

So - in no particular order....

On Writing by Stephen King. He talks about writing with the passion of the story—getting caught up in the story without worrying about perfection or errors. I think a lot of beginning writers get so caught up in their mistakes that they become stymied. My favorite quote about first drafts is “A first draft is a celebration of everything that can go wrong on a page.”

The Writer's Guide to Character Traits by Linda N. Edelstein, PH.D. It's an absolute goldmine for character development, and helps to really make your characters three-dimensional, real people.

And Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder. It's a book about plotting out screenplays but it 

DEFINITELY applies to novel writing. BIG TIME.

Manuscript Makeover by Elizabeth Lyon is hands-down the most comprehensive, helpful book on revision. Lyon covers not only copyediting issues, but also voice, theme and symbolism, pacing and characterization.

And here's one from me...

Writing Great Books For Young Adults by Regina Brooks. This book is full of helpful suggestions and things to consider when writing for a YA audience. I took screeds of notes that I refer to all the time.

I hope you manage to get your hands on some of these books. I know I will be working through the ones I haven't read yet.

Do you have any books you'd like to add to the mix? What's your recommended reading for writers?

Creating a Love Triangle

YA writers and bloggers unite each week to share their thoughts on what it's like going indie in today's publishing world.

Today we are discussing the love triangle.

Now - I've never been a huge fan. I'm such a romantic and I like the idea of soul mates, but the truth is, it is actually possible to love two people and the complications that arise from a love triangle can be fascinating.

I think a love triangle needs to be well thought out. You want the reader to be struggling themselves over who should end up together. This is a great way to build tension and keep the reader anxious to finish the book.

Like I said, I'm not an expert on this, as I've never really tackled a love triangle before, however I am going to be in my next trilogy. It's been really interesting exploring the relationships. I know who should end up together, but will my readers agree? I need to make sure I present the story to them in a way that will keep them guessing, but not disappoint them. Tricky!!! But totally fun at the same time :-)

I think it's important to keep characters' motivations real. The love triangle in Twilight never worked for me. If Bella was as in love with Edward as she claimed then it felt wrong that she would even consider Jacob... ever! I did love those books, but I never bought into the whole love triangle. It felt out of character for Bella. 

When creating a love triangle I think you need to ask the following questions... Why does this love triangle exist? Is it appropriate to the story? Does it align with the characters' personalities and values?

Once you have the answers you are on your way to creating a love triangle that is realistic and hopefully entertaining.

What do you think is necessary for creating a good love triangle?

If you'd like to find out what the other carnival peeps think about love triangles, please follow the links below.


And you can also check out the YA Author Club for the latest updates and news on what we're all up to.

1.	Laura A. H. Elliott	2.	Bryna Butler, author Midnight Guardian series
3.	T. R. Graves, Author of The Warrior Series	4.	Suzy Turner, author of The Raven Saga
5.	Rachel Coles, author of Into The Ruins, geek mom blog	6.	K. C. Blake, author of Vampires Rule and Crushed
7.	Gwenn Wright, author of Filter	8.	Liz Long | Just another writer on the loose.
9.	Ella James	10.	Maureen Murrish
11.	YA Sci Fi Author's Ramblings	12.	A Little Bit of R&R
13.	Melissa Pearl	14.	Terah Edun - YA Fantasy

Good Stuff To Know

For those of you who missed it, I have started up a monthly post including all the awesome links and articles I've read throughout the month. October's was full of some goodies if you'd like to check it out here.

I have SO many this month, that I may save up some for December... although I'm sure I'll have a ton more by then too. People are full of such fantastic information and I love being able to share it around.

So, in no particular order, I came across:

- The 30 Day Platform Challenge by Robert Lee Brewer. This is a challenge that will help you build your platform by performing one quick, simple task each day. I am working my through it... not in 30 Days, but I try to do 2 or 3 a week. Some of the things I already have set up, but I'm learning new tricks along the way. I'm finding it really helpful.

- 77 Ways to Find New Readers by Laura Pepper Wu. I bought the e-book and it took me about an hour to get through. It is jam packed full of awesome ideas on expanding your audience. Most of the tasks are very easy to implement and will definitely open doors to new readers along the way. I highly recommend this book.

- Here's another little article I found on Duolit. Again, quick and easy to implement - 31 Book Marketing Ideas You Can Use Today.

- YA Author, Elana Johnson, has started a blog post series on how to write a trilogy. Here is the first part for you - Writing A Trilogy, Part One: Book One.

- I found a great little blog post on The Masquerade Crew - How To Become A Multi-Talented Writer, which I thought had some excellent advice.

I'll stick with those for November. I don't want to overload people with too much information :-)
I am planning another post soon with a list of recommended reading on how to write well. Having run the Author-fest last month on the YAlicious blog, I now have a very long list of great books that people might want to check out.

Keep your eyes peeled for that post later this month :-)

Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope you find these articles and tips as helpful as I did.

YA Indie Carnival - Romances Worth Voting For

YA writers and bloggers unite each week to share their thoughts on what it's like going indie in today's publishing world.
This week is all about the vote - I wonder why :-) So the carni's are choosing things worth voting for in the YA world.

There were so many things to choose from and it took me a while to decide, but being the romantic sap that I am, I've decided to talk about romances worth voting for.

To me, a good romance in a book is the icing on the cake. I love reading a great love story... especially about teenagers. So here are my nominees for great romances in YA.

Brittany and Alex - in Perfect Chemistry. I loved their story so much and thought they were the best couple. When they finally got together, I'm sure I actually cheered aloud. Their first kiss was toe curling. I loved the whole book. It really was perfect :-)

Helen and Lucas - in Starcrossed. As painful as their romance was, it was also captivating. I'd never wanted a couple to get together more. Their passion was so intense. It was fantastic.

Bella and Edward - in the Twilight Series. Of course I have to mention these guys. Their romance has become totally legendary! I did really like it though. They were SO in love and it was a fun romance to read.

So those are my votes. How about you? Are their any romances you have read and adored?

If you'd like to find out what the other carnival goers are voting for, you can check the links below.

And you can also check out the YA Author Club for the latest updates and news on what we're all up to.

1.	Laura A. H. Elliott	2.	Bryna Butler, author Midnight Guardian series
3.	T. R. Graves, Author of The Warrior Series	4.	Suzy Turner, author of The Raven Saga
5.	Rachel Coles, author of Into The Ruins, geek mom blog	6.	K. C. Blake, author of Vampires Rule and Crushed
7.	Gwenn Wright, author of Filter	8.	Liz Long | Just another writer on the loose.
9.	Ella James	10.	Maureen Murrish
11.	YA Sci Fi Author's Ramblings	12.	A Little Bit of R&R
13.	Melissa Pearl	14.	Terah Edun - YA Fantasy