YA Scavenger Hunt – Fall 2015!

Welcome to YA Scavenger Hunt! This bi-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! On this Fall 2015 hunt, you will get access to exclusive content from160 authors divided into eight teams of 20.I am on TEAM TEAL, and if you visit all 20 authors on my team and add up our clues, you can enter for our prize–one lucky winner will receiveone signed book from each author on my team!Many of us, including me, are offering additional prizes as well.But play fast: this contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online for 72 hours!

 

Go to the YA Scavenger Huntsiteto find out all about the hunt,including the listsof participating authors, the prize lists, and more!

About Shari’s latest book, Stellow Project:

As her exclusive content Shari offers a sneak peek ather paranormal work-in-progress called Indigo. So without further ado . . .

Ellie ran her fingers through her blue streaks. Theyd faded to an aquatic shade of turquoise, which she kinda liked. Too bad shed have to change them now. Maybe red. She hadnt done red in a while. The sun shifted outside her room sending a beam of light directly onto her scalp. It was like a spotlight, taunting her.

Oh God, Ellie thought. No. No!

She leaned into the mirror to look closer. There was no mistaking them. More grey roots, this time in a clump, right above her right ear. Ellie could feel her throat beginning to close. She gagged, trying to push away the Im going to cry feeling.

As if having grey hair wasnt bad enough. But new roots, in a clump that was a sign.

The doctors told her she was crazy, but she knew they were wrong. Okay, maybe she was a little crazy, but she was right about this. All these brilliant medical experts were so quick to diagnose her with all sorts of syndromes and ailments, but when she pointed out the obvious – that the grey always came a day or two before – they snorted, as if her powers of perception and deduction were so comical and naive they werent even worth considering.

Ellie tried to regulate her breathing. I have a few days, she thought. Maybe three, maybe four. Ill be prepared this time. Itll be different. She hoped she was right.

She was wrong last time.

And the time before.

Ellie glanced at the clock and then back at the grey. She couldnt go out like this. Blue was better than grey. Red was better than grey. Better to be different by choice than by bad luck.

Ellie grabbed her already open Head Goop and smeared gobs into her hair, creating clumps. There was an art to creating hair that looked perfectly messy. Between the sheen of the pomade and careful planning. Maybe no one would notice.

Ellie shook her head from side to side, the clumps holding together like long potato roots. She pulled her Doc Martin boots over her green and white striped knee socks, stood up and adjusted her fringed jean shorts. Her outfit looked frickin awesome. Like a punk meets My Little Pony or something. She was lucky her parents didn’t care about things like clothes and hair. Her mom believed in self expression, at least that’s what she’d said. She never said anything about any of Ellie’s outfits, but sometimes she could swear she could see the corners of her mom’s mouth turn up, just a bit, as if amused, by Ellie’s choices. Some kids might have thought she was super lucky, but she knew better. Ellie’s parents didn’t care about outfits because they had bigger things to worry about: a daughter who heard voices, a daughter convinced she was possessed, a daughter with one foot into a psych ward – for an extended stay.

She grinned just a little as she grabbed her backpack, thinking about the looks on her parents faces when theyd see her get-up. The minute shed walk out the door, her mother would scream,James, did you see what she wore today?

And then she felt it. The roll of her belly. Queasiness. God no. She grabbed onto the back of her desk chair. Please no. It was too soon.

She should have had at least a day. Maybe two. Thats how these attacks always went. First the grey appeared. It started at her roots, and it spread, slowly from tip to end. It usually took at least two days to cover the whole piece. The attacks came only after the hair was full grey. Ellie leaned into her mirror. The grey was still at the roots. It couldn’t be an attack. It was too fast. She couldnt have another today. Hell, she couldnt have another one ever. It was like this force crawled into her and turned the volume up on every single organ and sense in her body. In the beginning, the attacks were mild: she could feel every woven thread in the fabric of her clothing. She could smell every single ingredient in her face soap. She could hear the expanding and contracting of her lungs, like some tiny, relentless whistle inside of her. But that was then. Now, the attacks were incapacitating. She threw up, she blacked out, she heard voices. Voices that seemed to come from places and things that werent supposed to speak.

Ellie stood tall and tried to breathe slowly through her nostrils. No, it wasnt an attack. The grey was still at the roots. It was her pomade. The smell was too strong. She knew it when she bought it, but shed let vanity trump logic. Smells were dangerous. She should wash her hair. If she washed the Pomade out, got rid of the smell. Shed be okay.

Ellie glanced at the clock. 7:45. She was meeting KP at the corner. Shed be late. Again. She had a history test this morning, too. Shit, no time for a shower. She had back-to-back classes today, and it would be impossible to get to the school gym showers. She would have to wash the smell out in a bathroom sink at school. It would all be okay.

The smell of eggs and oatmeal filled the staircase as she made her way down. These smells didn’t turn her stomach. These smells enveloped her up in a cozy blanket. She wished she could go into the kitchen, wrap herself in the safety of her mother and breakfast. But she couldn’t. Her mother would take one look at her and know something was wrong. If she saw the way Ellie was rubbing her temples with her palms . Theyd made a deal. And Ellie knew she had to keep it.

Hand clenched on the railing.

Ellie, breakfast is ready! Her mom called from the kitchen.

Sorry Mom, Ellie tried to keep her voice even. Her mother could not know. No way. Shed promised. She swore. No More.

Im totally late. History test this morning. KP and I are studying on the way

But Ellie her mother began.

Ellie knew what shed say. The doctors said a full breakfast would help: that protein would keep her brain clear. What about your vitamins?

A loud beat shuddered through Ellies ears. Her heart beat at volume 20. What if is wasnt the pomade?

Ellie closed the front door before her mother could even see her. The skin on her legs was beginning to crawl: prickling and scratching from the seams of her socks.

An attack was beginning, and Ellie had no choice but to stop it.

Don’t forget to enter the contest for a chance to win 20signed books by the authors on TEAM TEAL! To enter, you need to know that my favorite number isFIVE (5).Add up all the favorite numbers of the authors on TEAM TEALand you’ll have the secret code to enter for the grand prize!

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I am officially a published author

I began novel writing many, many years ago.

After toying with a story idea for years, in 2004 I went to graduate school (for an MA) and again in 2010 (for an MFA) to find some guidance. ThereI completed not one, but two, manuscripts. My third manuscript, In A World Just Right, I began writing in the fall of 2011 and finished in January of 2012. More than three years later–April 28, 2015–In A World Just Rightis now a book that anyone in the world may (hopefully) enjoy.

To mark the occasion, I will share a little something from my workspace.

Here is a picture of my favorite items on my desk:

(I will note that just outside the frame are about 100 post-its and index cards of varying colors reminding me to do stuff. I have spared you the clutter so you may focus on what’s important!)

Note the piece of paper lying underneath all my lovely objects? Here is a close-up of the words on it:

I can’t remember now where I got this info. It’s been so long. The words are a bit difficult to make out in the photo, so I copy them here:

*–The first Harry Potter book is reported to have been rejected by 14 publishers.

*–Stephen King’s Carrie had been rejected more than 30 times before being picked up for publication.

*–Richard Bach’s Johnathan Livingston Seagull received more than 140 rejections.

*–After 743 rejection slips, British authorJohn Creasey went on to have 564 mystery novels published!

*–Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time received over 30 rejections. It took 10 years to get pubished, and then went on to win a Newbery Award.

*–Dr. Seuss’s first book was rejected 29 times before being picked up by publishers.

I have looked that this piece of paper every day for more years than I can keep track of. It has served as both an inspiration and a reminder of my goal.

On this important day in my life, I am going to read it one last timethenput it away in my keepsake bin. It’s not that I don’t need inspiration anymore, but today, for me, marks the end of one phase of a journey.

Thank you to all who have helped me get here!

YA Scavenger Hunt!

Welcome to YA Scavenger Hunt! This bi-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 receiveone signed book from each author on the hunt on 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 Huntpage to find out all about the hunt. There are EIGHTcontests going on simultaneously, and you can enter one or all! I am a part of the GREENTEAM–but there is also a blue team, a pinkteam, a gold team, a redteam, an orangeteam, a teal team, and a purpleteam for a chance to win a whole different set of 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 page.

To add to the celebration, I’m giving away a signed ARC of my forthcoming YA novel, In A World Just Right. You can enter for the ARC below. Make sure as you continue to blog hop that you’re on the lookout for other individual author prizes being offered in addition to the YASH grand prizes!

SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE

Directions: Below, you’ll need to find where I’ve written myfavorite number. Collect the favorite numbers of all the authors on the green team, and then add them up.

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 April 5th, at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct number or without contact information will not be considered.

Tweet #YASH

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Meet Jake Smith

I’ve met a lot of people on this publishing road, and Jake Smith is one of the classiest. His novel, Wish, was released in May ofthis year from Tyndale House Publishers, and it tugs just as many heartstrings as you would think from this description:

James McConnells one wish is that his nine-year-old son will finally be healthy enough to play a game of catch. Then he and his wife, Emily, receive news theyve dreaded: Aarons cancer has relapsed. As the family steels themselves for a draining treatment regimen in yet another hospital, Aaron receives the gift of a lifetimea personal visit from one of his favorite professional baseball playersand the chance to make a bold request, his wish: to see his dad play in one major leaguegame. A former college standout, James fears he doesnt have the talent it takes, even for one game, and that hell miss what could be Aarons precious last weeks. Yet how can he refuse his dying sons wish? Poignant and triumphant, Wish is the story of a fathers love, a familys perseverance, and the miracles that can happen when you believe in the impossible.

Because I love this book so much, I asked Jake if he’d answer a few questions, and he obliged:

Talk a bit about the genesis of Wish.

The image for Wish a young father, standing alone in the middle of a Major League Baseball field, under the lights, the crowd going crazy, and hes wondering how in the world he got there came out of necessity. Id just tallied my hundred-and-something rejection for a YA science fiction novel I was querying, when I said out loud, All right, I get it Im not supposed to work on this one. So what else should I write about? That image flashed in my head.

At about the same time, we were watching a Detroit Tigers baseball game, and one of our favorite players hit a home run; and as hes rounding the bases, the announcers begin talking about a little boy that player had visited in the hospital earlier in the day. Thats when the idea of this unbelieveable experience this father has, of playing in one MLB game, comes about because of a wish from his ill son.

What kind of research did you do in order to write Wish?

Im a baseball nut to begin with, playing a lot in high school and helping as an assistant coach at my alma mater a handful of years ago. I talked with some former Major Leaguers (including the player who hit that home run I mentioned before), and had another former player and current ESPN baseball analyst, Doug Glanville, review the manuscript. On the medical side, I had several chats with pediatric oncologists, hospital administrators, and families who have fought childhood leukemia with their children, all so very powerful. Tours of a couple of childrens hospitals and the behind the scenes of Comerica Park (home of the Detroit Tigers) and another Minor League Baseball park provided a dose of realism that proved invaluable.

You’ve been described as a man who writes “fiction with a mission.” What does that mean? What is the “mission” for Wish?

Wish is more than just a story. As soon as I thought of the ill child, I thought, Well, if this works, we could use it to do some good. Which is exactly what weve been able to do, donating a large chunk of proceeds to childrens hospitals around Michigan, and inspiring people to join the bone marrow registry at www.BeTheMatch.org. My kids are, thankfully, healthy, so I feel Ive been called to use whatever gifts I might have telling a story to do as much good as possible. Its been one of the most unbelievable experiences of my life to receive letters from readers who tell me that as soon as they finished reading Wish, they signed up on the registry. The only thing that could eclipse that is if someone actually matched a person in need and went on to save their life. Ive been on the registry for nearly 15 years, and Ive never been called to donate; what a wonderful feeling that must be!

Describe your path to publication. What has been your greatest challenge? Greatest triumph?

Wish tallied 55 rejections before finding an agent and to do that, it took a friend-of-a-friend referral to an agent, an agent whose call I screened when he called the house that night! (Its true; I thought he was a telemarketer.) From three years of writing letters and receiving Sorry, not for us letters, to a whirlwind 24 hours, and I had an agent. After two lengthy revisions, it went out to publishers, and we received an offer. It was a little more than three months from signing with my agent to receiving an offer from Tyndale House Publishers.

Greatest challenge: the second revision, in which I had to try to fix my bad writing habit of using too many passive words (in the end, I feel it made me a better writer).

Greatest triumph(s): opening the box of hardcovers and seeing my name, writing donation checks to hospitals, and getting that first letter saying that someone signed up on the bone marrow registry because of Wish.

What are some books that have had an influence on you? or What are some of your favorite books/authors?

I wish I could give you the name of an obscure writer so that people would run to the bookstore to search for it, but in truth, The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings probably had the biggest influence on me for one reason: they sparked my imagination. Ive always felt that imagination is one of the most important thing youngsters especially teenagers can develop, because imagination leads to ambition, which leads to perseverance. Thats why Im so thrilled about the amazing world of Young Adult literature these days so many fabulous stories and storytellers (like you!) for kids to absolutely lose themselves in.

Authors Dan Walsh, Jason F. Wright, and Kevin Milne (all in my genre of inspiring, family- and faith-based fiction; and all gracious enough to provide cover blurbs for Wish) have been great sources of inspiration. And Im a fan of Doug Stanton as well, and his ability to treat a non-fiction event (war stories) with a novel-esque style. The way he applies his research is incredible.

What advice would you give to other writers?

Develop a process for editing. Its tough to like your story during the editing phase, but if you compartmentalize your editing take different aspects of the story in different phases the process can go a little smoother. I do a chapter edit as soon as Im done writing a chapter; then when the manuscript is done, I do a content edit; a mechanical edit (grammar, punctuation, etc.); a bad-writing habit edit (see above); an out loud edit (reading the book out loud, great for identifying run-on sentences, missing or repetitive or improper words, and for dialogue); and then one more story edit.

What ritual/charm/beverage do you require in order to sit down and write?

I have a fountain pen my dad gave me as a college graduation present, saying, From one writer to another. (Hes a well-known outdoor book and magazine author and editor.) I confess that I never really felt like I could call myself a writer until I sold a piece of my fiction. I used that pen to sign the publishing contract for Wish. So I sort of hold that pen and say a prayer for an open mind and a vivid imagination. And I listen to a lot of movie soundtracks.

You are working on a new novel project now. Can you tell us a little about it?

Its another fiction with a mission book, this one revolving around high school basketball, dogs, and the military. Some of my research has been pretty emotional so far. Im only a few chapters into it, and its a bit more difficult to write. With Wish, I didnt have any expectations or timelines; now, I feel all of these things looking over my shoulder!

Thank you, Jake! I loved Wish and look forward to reading your next book!

Jake Smith is an author and magazine editor who lives in Traverse City, Michigan, with his wife, Vickie, their three children, and a Labrador retriever. A former assistant high school baseball coach and All-State shortstop, Jake now spends his time on the field helping coach his kids youth baseball teams.Wish is Jakes debut novel, and he hopes it will help support childrens hospitals, patient and family foundations, and participation in the National Marrow Donor Program.

Find Jake on his website, Facebook, Twitter.

Find Wishon Amazon.

The 777 Meme

Ive been tagged by Albert Wendland for the 777 meme!

The rules:
Go to the 7^th line of the 7^th page of your work in progress.
Post the first full 7 lines.
Then tag 7 friends.

My work in progress is my second title contracted with Simon and Schuster Books For Young Readers. I wasabsent the day tagline-writing genes werehanded out, so thinkgenerous thoughts when you read the below. Here is my stab at a one-sentence summary of the plot:

Six former playmates, now grown apart as seniors in high school, discover that the chest of jewelrythey found and kept secret as children is an infamous collection with a profound purpose, andwearing the jewelry has comeat a price for each of them.

Myfirst complete novel draft came in 50,000 words too large, so Im not sure if there will be six or four main characters in the next draft. Such is the revision process!

Anyway, one of the characters, call him Brett, is struggling with abuse at home. His own Consequences have grown less scary as hes grown larger than his mother, but he watches helplessly as his sweet, six-year-old brother endures some of the same things he once did. Bretts particular upbringing has left him with some confused ideas about the nature of his power with respect to women/girls.

This passage is part of his introduction in chapter one. To all the line-counters out there: yes, I cheated, and this is more than seven. You can stop reading after seven if you like!

Hed never set out to be a bad boy. Somehow it just happened.

He and Julie had fallen behind on the getting drunk part of the night, and Julie was racing to catch back up with the group. Festivities moved on from I Never when Jade and Oscar finally came downstairs and suggested a dice game. Julie swallowed half a can each time it was her turn.

Hey, Brett whispered. He turned his face to her ear so no one but Julie would be able to hear him. Slow down, there, chugger. You okay?

Yeah. She nodded and forced out a grin. It was the Im not alright but Im trying to pretend I am face. He hated that face. It meant she was going to cry later. It meant he was a jerk.

Well, he was, wasnt he? Hed asked her to go down the hall, even though she was the one whod said yes. Hed kissed her first, but shed kissed back. Hed taken the lead from there, and shed followed right back. Theyd both had some beer, but like some girls did when they wanted to fool around, and wanted their forwardness blamed on the alcohol, shed been pretending to be more drunk than she possibly could have been. Hadnt she?

Hadnt she?

(And, yes, Brett’s piece from the collection is a ring based off the one you seeabove.)

So there you have it. Next up are seven wonderful writers Ive had the pleasure of working with:

Chandler Baker

Virginia Boecker

Sally Bosco

Lee Kelly

Anne Lutz

Cindy L. Rodriguez

Kim Savage