Friday, December 21, 2012

Happy Holidays!

800px-Christmas_tree_bauble

It's Winter break here at ADR3NALIN3. During our holiday hiatus, we'll be spending time with our families and friends, and celebrating all the traditions that make this time of year wonderful. We sincerely thank you for visiting our blog and becoming part of our online family. We wish you a truly awesome Holiday Season and a great 2013. From Dan, Ilsa, Carol, Jamie, Anita, Jennifer, Maureen, P J (Trish), Amanda, Michelle, and Jordan to all our friends and visitors, Seasons Greeting from ADR3NALIN3.

See you back here on Monday, January 7.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Seven Things...

Due to the time of year, and the fact that my brain is in an eggnog / shopping induced frenzy (not to mention that I'm crazy at work on a virtual tour and a book deadline), I decided to do a quick post on seven facts about me (literary-themed, of course). 
 
Here goes:

1. When I first started writing and found my first crit group, I was told my voice was similar to Charlotte Bronte's. At that point, I had never read anything by her. I know. SAD. But after that, I read Jane Eyre and was hooked for life.


2. As indicated above, Jane Eyre was the first classic novel (not counting "To Kill a Mockingbird") I ever read by choice. This doesn't include the classical play I had to read during school: Romeo and Juliet. Since then I've read: Pride and Prejudice, Bram Stoker's Dracula, The Phantom of the Opera, Lord of the Rings, and Wuthering Heights. Still on my read shelf waiting to be cracked open: Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Gone With the Wind,  and my Bible-sized compilation of the Bronte sisters novels including Vilette, The Professor, and Shirley.

3. Before I started writing short stories or novels, I wrote poetry...scads of it. I've written over 200 poems to date. Not the prosaic modern poetry. The eighteenth century style lyrical word scheming which tells a story that rhymes and has a rhythm. The
Goblin Market by Chritina Rosetti is a good example of what I'm referring to. I'm convinced that it's this love of writing poetry that shaped my voice and now contributes to the lyrical feel of my prose (most especially in my historical novels).

 

4. In high school, I used to write "books" (random chapters, really, nothing more) about teenage girls and their horses and stashed the pages in shoe boxes beneath my bed. They were lost in the shuffle when I moved out for college, and to this day, I have no idea where they went. For any enemies I might have out there, should you ever find these pages, they'd be great black mail fodder.

 

5. When I'm really into a book I like to take it in my purse so I can read at stop lights, children's appointments, or any interval of time where I can squeeze in a few words.


6. I can read only one book at a time. I also often like to read books written along the same subject or timeline of my current WIP. It keeps me in the right mind set, so it's easier to bounce from reading to writing.

7. In the past, I could whip out a 120K MS in six months--that included time for research and outlining the plot and characters. Things have changed now, since I'm also doing promotional events along with my writing.



That's it! Hope you all have a safe, blessed, and happy holiday.

Eat, drink, and be merry; but above all else, love and be loved. :-)

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Check out a great auction for a great cause


My apologies for the delay in posting today, but I've been super busy running the Words for Hope auction to benefit the families of Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, CT. Several auctions have already ended, but there are several more still going strong, with some amazing items up for bid, so please come on over and check it out and donate some money to the people left to deal with the horrors they endured on Friday.



Monday, December 17, 2012

Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men

 By Dan Haring

This will be my last post of the year. I was planning on doing a sort of year-in-review, but then the tragedy happened last Friday, and it made everything else irrelevant.

How could it not?

As a parent of small children, two of which are in school, I can't think of anything more sobering or terrifying than what happened in Newtown, CT. 

I live in Danbury, CT. From my doorstep to Sandy Hook Elementary it's only 15.6 miles. To say this tragedy was too close for comfort is the understatement of the year.

I don't mention this to bring attention to myself. I don't personally know any of the victims, and thankfully, my children were never in harm's way. I bring it up because this is the closest I've ever been to anything like this. And as I sat at work last Friday, reading all the reports coming out, the only thing I could think of was going home and being with my family.

I needed to hug my kids, to kiss them and see their smiles. Not for their sake, but for mine. Just as I didn't really know what joy was until I had kids, I've never known anything remotely close to the fear I have of losing them.

And thankfully I've never had to feel the unbearable pain of losing them.

When I got home from work my kids were asleep. As I do every night, I checked on them and made sure they were snug under their blankets.

My heart broke knowing that there were twenty sets of parents who should have been doing the same thing, but who were instead staring at empty beds.

In the following days we've heard stories about hero teachers and students who saved lives on Friday, some of them giving their own to do so. It's good. We need those stories. We need reason to hope.

Especially at this time of year, especially with an event so unbelievably awful, we need something to believe in. I hope more stories come and I hope as those children are laid to rest, their parents and families will find peace and comfort.

I hope the holiday season is a good one for you. I hope the coming year has more love and happiness than this one had. I hope for more peace on Earth, and for more good will to all mankind.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Friday, December 14, 2012

When the good old days are anything but.

by Michelle Gagnon


Jimmy Savile
I hadn't been paying much attention to the Jimmy Savile pedophile scandal--after all, living on this side of the pond, I had no idea who he was. It was just another of those stories that popped up on Twitter occasionally--I was vaguely aware that a deceased former BBC star had been accused of child abuse, years after the incidents took place. But that was about all I knew.

Until one afternoon, I followed a link and read an interview with an alleged former victim. While discussing the abuse she suffered, the woman said, "You have to understand, this happened in the 80s. It was a different time."

A small part of me instantly bridled at that--after all, I came of age in the 80s, and it was hardly the horse and buggy era. We were well aware that the world wasn't always a safe place for children. When Adam Walsh was murdered, the entire nation was riveted- and I received a stern lecture from my parents on stranger danger. When a flasher propositioned two girls at my bus stop, the entire East Greenwich police department staked it out for over a week.

But then I remembered my 8th grade English teacher, Mr. X. I won't use his real name, because although he's most likely retired by now, he's probably still alive and well. Mr. X was one of the more popular teachers in school- he was charismatic and funny.

And, in retrospect, clearly a pedophile.

His M.O. involved choosing one boy in class--my year, it was a sweet kid named Chris. Chris was one of the only kids I knew at the time whose parents were divorced--in Rhode Island, that was still a rarity. Chris lived with his mother, who just happened to be in a community drama group with Mr. X.

It started with Mr. X making inappropriate remarks about Chris's mother--discussing how sexy she'd looked at rehearsal the night before, or how he couldn't wait to "stick his tongue down her throat" onstage. We all found this hilarious, to our great discredit. (Chris, although those comments clearly made him uncomfortable, always did his best to laugh along with the rest of the class).

This behavior escalated. Poor Chris would be openly mocked in front of the class. Mr. X would challenge his manhood, usually by mimicking him in a squeaky voice. And if Chris protested, he would take him over his knee and spank him, or make him sit on his lap. And this all transpired in full view of twenty-nine other kids, in the middle of what was supposed to be a safe environment for us- school.

Looking back, I'm utterly mortified that none of us found this behavior odd. We all thought of it as a delightful, entertaining part of Mr. X's teaching style. And I doubt that Chris ever told his mother what was going on--we were at that age where when your parents asked how school was, you said, "fine," and went to your room.

Last year, I discovered that a fellow crime writer had grown up in my hometown and attended the same school- including Mr. X's class, a decade after me. And apparently, ten years later, Mr. X was still up to his old tricks: honing in on one boy and treating him in an entirely inappropriate manner.

As more stories emerge from the Savile scandal, not to mention the horror stories about Jerry Sandusky and the Penn State football program, I'm forced to acknowledge that the 1980s weren't the enlightened era I thought they were. The awareness of what constitutes sexual abuse was far less clear back then than it is today. I like to think that my daughter will never have to experience anything akin to what Chris suffered in Mr. X's class- but that if she ever did something like that, she'd know to speak up about it.





Monday, December 10, 2012

People Like Us

A couple years ago, some writer-friends and I were having this discussion about Obama and that brouhaha about Reverend Jeremiah Wright's remarks about Jews and the like with another, much more seasoned pro writer-friend.  I don't even remember what the specific comments were, but I do recall my pro-friend turning to me and saying something like, "Listen, white girl, you just don't know."  Now, I didn't take offense or anything because my friend's comment wasn't meant as a slap.  My friend was making a point that I, as a white girl (even a Jewish white girl, at whom some of these remarks were broadly directed), couldn't really grasp the cultural milieu in which the comments were made.

I believe my friend--to a point.  It's true that this friend is much more knowledgeable about black history; in fact, this friend wrote a very fine mystery series that featured a black protagonist.  While the specifics of the series aren't important, this is: at the time these books were out and about in the world, my friend wasn't touring or publicizing them much for a very simply reason.

My friend is white.  And of the opposite sex from the protag.

Talk about irony and (a bit of) reverse discrimination.

Why am I not more specific here?  Honestly, I'm not trying to be a tease, but my point isn't to out my friend.  But I was reminded of this incident after reading the New York Times piece earlier this week all about young Latino readers and educators' fears that these younger kids might not be as drawn into reading because there's a dearth of Latino protagonists for them to identify with. Read the comments, and you'll find both an even split and a wide array of responses.  Some people think this is a big deal; others don't.

Now I'll be really honest here: by and large, my feeling is that this is another of those New York Times hand-wringing non-issues.  You could say that I think it's not, because as a white girl, I was in the majority back in the day and so always felt that I was being represented in one way or another in whatever I read--but you would be wrong.  There really weren't that many female protagonists out there for me to identify with.  In fact, in a large proportion of both classical and contemporary lit, the protags were/are white males--and I can guarantee you that the overwhelming majority weren't Jewish.

You want to read about diversity?  Pick up any good sf with alien species as the primary protags--I remember one book that featured these funky insect-like creatures--and then tell me that I couldn't possibly have enjoyed that because, oh, the protagonists don't look like me.  Back when I was a kid, there wasn't anyone out there in either literature or film for me to take as a role model--and so what?  I've never looked to books for role models, nor do I, as a writer, think about providing a role model for my readers.  That's way too preachy for me.  Conversely, I don't remember a single book that was just so influential I carried it around like a talisman or modeled my life after it.  I wanted role models? They were called parents and teachers and other significant adults.  ((I mean, my God, my mom was working outside the house, doing science stuff and going for a PhD in an era when women just didn't do that.  And who were her role models?  Her father was a sponge diver and then worked in a rubber factory; her mother was a housewife.  Neither went to college; I doubt my grandmother made it out of high school; they lived in a crummy section of Akron.  But they all worked hard.)  Similarly, none of my role models lived in books.

I'll be honest (again): whenever I was handed the rare book with a Jewish protag (always male, as far as I can recall), I remember cringing.  Reading stories about people I knew--folks I saw every bloody day--didn't interest me in the slightest.  Revisiting certain events in my cultural past--say, the Holocaust--was and remains a busman's holiday.  Then as now, I look to books to tell me a good story.

I may be really off-base here; maybe I just don't get it.  But when I'm immersed in a story, I couldn't care less what the characters look like, or about ethnicity.  (Oh all right, yes: if this is a romance that keeps mentioning that the girl is a size 2 and wears strappy sandals without breaking an ankle . . . yeah, okay, I may not want to step on the scale for a couple days, but I don't stop reading on that basis.)  When the story revolves around the character's difference--Invisible Man and Native Son spring to mind--then, yes, of course this becomes an issue, because the difference is the story.  But that difference doesn't keep me from being able to either get into the story or feel along/identify with the characters either.

The magical thing about becoming lost in a book is that you also lose sight of who you are along the way.  It's really quite an interesting phenomenon, if you stop to think about it.  You can both read yourself into a character and stand alongside at the same time.  You get wrapped up in the adventure at the same moment that you may be thinking, Oh no, don't do it!  You can get mad at a character for being so stupid and still get a vicarious thrill with that first kiss.  All of that speaks to the skill of the story-teller and--to my mind--has virtually nothing to do with what the characters look like, or whether they're like me.  (I mean, guys, think about it: are we really saying that kids can't possibly identify with Wilbur because he's a pig, and they're not?  That I can't read about or enjoy or even identify with characters like Fiver and Bigwig in Watership Down . . . because I'm not a male rabbit?  Get real.)  Picking up a book is a way to get away from me now, just as it was a means to take me on an adventure and out of myself back then.  The business of a book is not to instruct.

Which brings me back to my very talented pro-friend, who could fashion a thoroughly wonderful series about a character of a different gender, culture, and ethnicity, not because my friend was the same but because that writer was (and is) empathetic, passionate . . . and a damned good writer.  

Now that's what I call a role model.





Friday, December 7, 2012

CONTEST for In the Arms of Stone Angels AUDIO!

by Jordan Dane
@JordanDane


InTheArmsOfStoneAngels_audio


I recently published a post on how I self-published the audio rights to my debut Young Adult book – In the Arms of Stone Angels – through ACX/Audible. The link to that post is HERE. The process has been effortless and actually fun. Picking out the narrator and being in charge of cover art and other production decisions expanded my industry knowledge too. I highly recommend the experience.

 
The award-winning narrator and voice actor, Michelle Ann Dunphy, is amazing and really brings to life my character, Brenna Nash. Whether you’ve read the book or not, hearing what Michelle brings to this project makes this audio book very special. I hope you will try it or donate a copy to your local library for others to enjoy. Croco Designs, the talented Frauke Spanuth, did the cover art.

 
I am announcing a Goodreads contest to giveaway this audio book. The contest will start in December 2012. Good luck!

Thursday, December 6, 2012

What is your Ithaca?

I was introduced to the poem Ithaca at the Red Dirt Book Festival in Oklahoma a few years ago. I was sitting at a signing table, and the man next to me (a fellow author) struck up conversation. When I mentioned I wrote books with mythology in them, he told me about a poem. I didn't think much about it at the time. In fact, I wasn't really sure what he was talking about.

A poem about Ithaca? Just another story of Odysseus?

I wasn't really sure what was to be gained. But when I got back home, I received a nice email along with a link to said poem. And I've loved the poem so much that I now have it printed and hanging above my desk in my office.

It's by poet Constantine P. Cavafy, and seeing as how he is long since dead, I am safe in placing it below.

When you set sail for Ithaca,
wish for the road to be long,
full of adventures, full of knowledge.
The Lestrygonians and the Cyclopes,
an angry Poseidon — do not fear.
You will never find such on your path,
if your thoughts remain lofty, and your spirit
and body are touched by a fine emotion.
The Lestrygonians and the Cyclopes,
a savage Poseidon you will not encounter,
if you do not carry them within your spirit,
if your spirit does not place them before you.
Wish for the road to be long.
Many the summer mornings to be when
with what pleasure, what joy
you will enter ports seen for the first time.
Stop at Phoenician markets,
and purchase the fine goods,
nacre and coral, amber and ebony,
and exquisite perfumes of all sorts,
the most delicate fragrances you can find.
To many Egyptian cities you must go,
to learn and learn from the cultivated.
Always keep Ithaca in your mind.
To arrive there is your final destination.
But do not hurry the voyage at all.
It is better for it to last many years,
and when old to rest in the island,
rich with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaca to offer you wealth.
Ithaca has given you the beautiful journey.
Without her you would not have set out on the road.
Nothing more does she have to give you.
And if you find her poor, Ithaca has not deceived you.
Wise as you have become, with so much experience,
you must already have understood what Ithaca means.

There are tons of translations of this poem (seeing as how it was originally written in Greek). Translations aside, here is what the poem means to me. Here's what I need to remind myself of constantly.

Goals are great and all, but it's not about the destination. It's all about the journey.

Things like getting a book published take a long time. The journey to get a book published can take forever. It's filled with things like first drafts, revisions, edit letters, and queries. There are submissions and marketing plans and interview and copyedits. There are agents and editors and librarians and booksellers. And finally, just maybe if you've worked and worked and worked, the publication goal that you've been seeking for so long will finally come to pass. Your destination will be reached. But with all the time it took to get there, it's important above all else to enjoy the journey.

Buddha* says it well. "It is better to travel well than to arrive."

How is your journey to Ithaca going?


*Or maybe this is a fake Buddha quote. One cannot be sure.

*****



P. J. Hoover is the author of the upcoming dystopia/mythology YA book, SOLSTICE (Tor Teen, June 2013), the upcoming Egyptian mythology MG book, TUT (Tor Children's, Winter 2014), and the middle-grade SFF series, THE FORGOTTEN WORLDS BOOKS (CBAY, 2008-2010). You can read more about her and her books on P. J.'s website or blog.

Wednesday, December 5, 2012



Believe It or Not

The suspension of disbelief . I’ve been wrestling with idea lately because the manuscript I’m working on now, asks readers to follow my characters into a future Seattle with flying insect cameras, underground labyrinths and strange uses for nano technology. How much is too much?
As usual I resort to a discussion with Sci/Fi guy and Screenwriter over food. We decide, over plates of Pad Thai, that there are three types of improbable events on the SOD (Suspension of Disbelief) scale…1) the extraordinary situation.  Sci/Fi guy “An example of that is in the last Star Wars prequel when they had a 3-minute fight scene on a rock floating in molten lava.” 2)  The contrived invention: time machine, reverse polarity generator, time warp DeLorean and 3) fortuitous luck, deus ex machina, the unsolvable solved by a contrived intervention: the sun hits the rock and reveals the keyhole, crack, entry point.

Any of those three improbabilities have the potential to knock the reader right out of the book. So how do we keep our readers engaged in the midst of the fantastic? I’ve always believed that if you create a compelling character and a voice that readers love, they will follow that character anywhere, a dystopian future or the lion’s den. But you also need to ground that voice in the familiar.
And Sci/Fi guy and Screenwriter both agree. This is an amazing event. I pause with a forkful of noodles to savor the moment. Then Screenwriter shares what he found on Michael Hauge’s website below: 

Your audience is eager to embrace fantastic, faraway worlds, bigger than life characters and startling events, but only if your characters react to them the way people in the real world would.You can throw an everyday hero into an extraordinary situation, but she must then overcome whatever conflicts she faces in ways that an everyday person could. And if she has to call on some added talent to save the day, you must reveal that talent (or ally or weapon or knowledge or magic wand) early in the story, long before it’s needed. You can even give your hero super powers, but we have to see how she got them, and they must be limited in some way to make her vulnerable.” http://www.storymastery.com/
The key is remembering that readers want to be taken on a journey, and we are the guides to there and back again.  This seems like a good time to break for black rice pudding.

Monday, December 3, 2012

When writing feels like a chore...


If you happen to be a writer, then you have undoubtedly heard that not writing at least something on a daily basis means you're not doing it right. Right? Yeah, I've heard that, too. And lemme tell ya, a while ago, that bugged me to no end. If there were days I just wasn't feeling it, I would stress out over it, to the point that I'd be sitting at my computer practically pulling my hair out until words fell from my fingertips. And, oh, about 100% of the time, I would be tossing those words out the next time real inspiration hit me. Raise your hand if you've been there.

Now, the key phrase to take away from the above paragraph is this: "a while ago." Meaning: It doesn't bother me anymore.

I've come to learn during this entire "becoming a published author" process that what works for one doesn't work for all. Ask any author that, they'll agree. That's why there's no secret formula to writing a book/getting published/hitting the NYT bestseller list/getting your novel made into a movie. The art of writing is as diverse as the world itself. It comes in countless shapes, sizes, colors. And each person who ventures down the road to publication takes different stops or detours than the author in front of and behind them. They hit different potholes and speed bumps, get sidetracked by a roadside fruit stand while another author skips fresh produce and flies ahead. But in the end, they all end up in the same place (albeit at varying levels of "place," but "place" nonetheless). 

This is perhaps the absolute hardest thing to learn when it comes to the craft of writing: No one's path is the same. And the second hardest (or first, to some) thing to learn? That fact is perfectly okay.

So, when you're just not feeling the writing bug one day, and would rather veg out in front of the TV or spend your free time digging in a garden or hanging with friends, don't stress out over it. Don't let it get you down. Let the writing go for that day and enjoy some down time (just as every other person with a job does, right?). Let your brain rest and reset. Have a little fun.


Believe me when I say it's not gonna kill you.

My Stupid Book

By Dan Haring

Writing a book is a little bit like having a child.

I can't really comment on whether or not it's like actually giving birth, since I'm not equipped to make that comparison. And as hard as writing a book is, after watching my wife go through four pregnancies and c-sections, I'd say writing a book is, in fact, very tame. (p.s. My wife is amazing)

But, being a father, I think I'm qualified to make the case of books as children. You spend hours agonizing over decisions and choices and tiny little things that might have huge repercussions. You stay up late with them, you clean up their messes, you strive to make them the best they can be.

Sometimes they reward you for it and you experience emotional highs like never before.

Sometimes they throw up on you at two in the morning.

But at the end of the day, they're your creation, and you love them.

Your parents and family and friends will adore them too. They'll see past whatever flaws they might have and praise the good. At least they should. You need to have that support system, both as a parent and an author. But then things get trickier, because at some point, you send them out into the world, hoping that you've prepared them as well as you can for what's to come.

And here's the hard part. Your kids and your book are going to be judged.

They're going to be judged on how well they perform, how well they can exist in the outside world, and so on and so forth. And those judgements are going to be a reflection of you, of your skills, of your abilities, of how well you did your job.

I've heard authors say they never read reviews. While it might be noble to refrain from reading them, it's not really for me. When a movie I've worked on comes out, I religiously check Rotten Tomatoes to find out what people think. I don't read all the reviews, but enough to get an idea of what worked and what didn't. The same with my book.

Criticism is good, to a certain degree. Not only does it keep you humble and grounded, it can help reveal problems with what you've created that can be avoided in the future. No one has ever written a perfect book, or raised a perfect child, and having the flaws pointed out can help in your next endeavor.

When my book came out, the reviews were generally pretty good. Like I said, family and friends were very supportive. And people I didn't even know seemed to respond well to it also.

Then one day, I got my first one star review on Goodreads. Since it's short, I'll quote it here:

"Probably the stupidest book I have ever read. Just stupid."

I went through a lot of different emotions when I got that review. I was mad, annoyed, frustrated, hurt, and many other adjectives. I considered responding to the review, then figured it would be a bad idea. After I'd cooled off a bit, I decided to just write a short note saying something along the lines of "Thanks for reading. Sorry you didn't enjoy it." But when I clicked to make a comment, Goodreads showed this warning:

"Goodreads has found that it is not in an author's best interest to engage with someone over a negative review. Please think twice before commenting on this review."

Fair enough. I decided to simply hit the "like" button on the review and leave it at that.

As time has passed and I've thought about it more, I'm glad I didn't say anything to the reviewer. I'm also glad I "liked" the review. For those reasons listed above, I'm actually thankful for the criticism. Not only does it compel me to work harder on my next book, it serves as a reminder that not everyone is going to love my work, no matter how good I think it is. And really, that's fine. It's just a book, and I'm glad the person took the time to read it.

That's all we as authors and parents can really ask for. Give our creations a chance. Let them show you what they can do. Hopefully you'll find something of redeeming value in them. If not, we'll simply move on. No harm, no foul.

But fair warning:  If you ever call my kid stupid I might punch you in the face :)

Saturday, December 1, 2012

YA Scavenger Hunt!


Hi folks! In my new role as a YA author, I'm participating in a very cool online scavenger hunt today. The winners receive a whole stack of free books--and as an added incentive for participating, I'm posting a deleted scene from my novel DON'T TURN AROUND on the page where I'm being hosted! (This was the only scene in the book told from the POV of an adult, which apparently is a YA no-no. But this scene gives insight into what really happened to a fan favorite character in the book, Cody).
It's a lot of fun, so dive in if you have the time and inclination...
Welcome to YA Scavenger Hunt! This tri-annual event was first organized by author Colleen Houck as a way to give readers a chance to gain access to exclusive bonus material from their favorite authors...and a chance to win some awesome prizes! At this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each author, you also get a clue for the hunt. Add up the clues, and you can enter for our prize--one lucky winner will receive one signed book from each author on the hunt in my team! But play fast: this contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online for 72 hours!

Go to the YA Scavenger Hunt page to find out all about the hunt. There are TWO contests going on simultaneously, and you can enter one or all! I am a part of the RED TEAM--but there is also a blue team for a chance to win a whole different set of twenty-five signed books!

If you'd like to find out more about the hunt, see links to all the authors participating, and see the full list of prizes up for grabs, go to the YA Scavenger Hunt homepage.

SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE

Directions: Below, you'll notice that I've listed my favorite number. Collect the favorite numbers of all the authors on the red team, and then add them up (don't worry, you can use a calculator!). 

Entry Form: Once you've added up all the numbers, make sure you fill out the form here to officially qualify for the grand prize. Only entries that have the correct number will qualify.

Rules: Open internationally, anyone below the age of 18 should have a parent or guardian's permission to enter. To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit the completed entry form by DEC 2nd, at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct number or without contact information will not be considered.

SCAVENGER HUNT POST
Today, I am hosting Ednah Walters on my website for the YA Scavenger Hunt! 

She's the author of The Guardian Legacy series, and her latest novel is BETRAYED:


Lil isn't just an average teenager. She's one of the Nephilim--the descendants of humans and angels--which gives her some serious psi skills and a mission for redemption. Just when Lil thinks she's found a balance between her normal life with human friends and her training to become a Guardian, someone starts to manipulate the people she loves... and won't stop until she's been lured to the dark side.

Ednah's Bio:
I grew up reading Nancy Drew and Hardy boys mysteries and fell in love with books. I've written picture books (unpublished), contemporary and romantic suspense (under the pen name E. B. Walters), and finally YA fantasy under Ednah Walters. AWAKENED (2010) is the prequel to the YA series about the Nephilim, The Guardian Legacy series. BETRAYED(book # 1) is now available wherever books are sold, HUNTED (book # 2) will be released in April 2013. I'm working on FORGOTTEN, the next book in the series. My adult contemporary, the Fitzgerald books, includes SLOW BURN, MINE UNTIL DAWN, KISS ME CRAZY, DANGEROUS LOVE and FOREVER HERS. When I'm not writing, I do things with my family, five children and my darling husband of 20 years. I live in a picturesque valley in northern Utah, the setting for my YA series.

Find out more information about Ednah and her awesome books by checking out the author website or find out more about BETRAYED here!

And don't forget to enter the contest for a chance to win a ton of signed books by me, hosted author's name, and more! To enter, you need to know that my favorite number is 6. Add up all the favorite numbers of the authors on the blue team and you'll have all the secret code to enter for the grand prize!


CONTINUE THE HUNT

To keep going on your quest for the hunt, you need to check out the next author, VICTORIA SCHWAB!

PS...I'll also be giving away EXCLUSIVE add on content--sections of DON'T TURN AROUND that were deleted from the completed manuscript! So be sure to check it out on Myra Mcentire's blog!