“Surround yourself with people who know more than you and soak up knowledge like a sponge!” P.K. Witte

Happy Thanksgiving to Everyone Crashing the Gate!

Greetings Gate Crashers! Come on in. You know how it works. Every month I invite authors to stop on by, crash the gate and leave a little something behind. Usually, it’s a bit of wonderful writerly advice to share with other folks learning how to thrive in the kidlit industry. This month is a little bit different.

Because it’s Thanksgiving, I’ve invited authors to share what they’re thankful for. And Wow, lots of fantastic writers stopped by full of writerly thoughts!

Fun, funny, poignant, perfect!

Spend some time learning what these authors are thankful for. You’ll have a cornucopia (okay I couldn’t help being a little bit corny) full of fun learning more about them.  Keep on scrolling, leave no author unvisited There’s only one Thanksgiving and we’re celebrating it together. One BIG happy family!

Click on the pics for excellent writerly links.

Chris Howard

ROOTLESS

November 1st was the official release day of my debut novel ROOTLESS (Scholastic Press). I’m so grateful for the opportunity to share this story with the world, and am thankful beyond words to the beautiful people who’ve inspired and supported me along the way… family, friends, artists and teachers… THANK YOU for joining me on this adventure, and for all your help and love along the way!

(To Gate Crashers) I LOVE that you are helping spread some GRATITUDE around, because too often it’s all too lacking! (Thank you very much, Chris!)

Kimberley Griffiths Little

THE HEALING SPELL, CIRCLE OF SECRETS,
WHEN THE BUTTERFLIES CAME

“Right now I’m especially thankful for my wonderful editors at both Scholastic and Harpercollins. My family has been in a heart-wrenching crisis as my baby brother is dying from brain cancer and my editors as well as my agent have sent me many loving and supportive emails and phone calls and have rearranged deadlines and book schedules for me. It’s easy to think of the publishing world as a “hurry-up” business and mostly worried about the bottom line and their bestsellers, but both my editors have been incredibly generous and told me that family is the most important thing right now and that I need to take care of myself. They’ve told me that the books can wait and all will be well. That’s given me such peace of mind and room to breathe and do my best work.”

Nicole McInnes

BRIANNA ON THE BRINK

During this season of giving thanks, I am incredibly grateful for all the people who have supported my writing over the years. The list includes my parents, my editor and publishing team, teachers from grade school through graduate school, my students over the years, the writing community at large and authors of the amazing books that first made me start dreaming of writing my own novels some day.

I heart your Gate Crashers features, Pam! (Thanks bunches, Nicole!)

                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Jay Kristoff

STORMDANCER

Book bloggers. Which totally sounds like I’m butt-kissery, I know. But the enthusiasm and energy and commitment of those guys is totally mind-blowing. They’re absolutely awesome, and I’m not sure we (authors) say thank you enough. (Not butt-kissery at all!)

Ink & Angst’s very own…

Elle Cosimano
NEARLY GONE

I’m thankful for veteran authors who share their time and experience with new and debut authors. I am continually amazed, and made grateful by, the openness and generosity within the YA community. My special thanks go out to Ellen Hopkins and Holly Black for the gift of their mentorship and guidance this year. To the Apocalypsies who reach back and offer advice and support to the Lucky 13s. And most of all, to my brilliant and talented crit partner, Megan Miranda, for taking me underwing (and occasionally absorbing my crazy). I am so, so lucky.

Rachele Alpine

CANARY

Coffee…endless supplies of coffee…it’s what keeps me writing!

Okay, okay, in actuality, while coffee is great, I’m especially thankful that I’m surrounded by such a supportive group of people who encourage me to write and understand my love of writing. My husband and family always make sure I have time to write, the school where I work at allows me to participate in opportunities that will improve my writing, and my students are excited about my book. I’m also thankful for such a great online community of bloggers, writers, and readers. When you have so many people cheering you on, you can’t help but feel inspired!

                                                                                                                                                                                                              Gina Damico

CROAK, SCORCH

What I’m thankful for: my bigass dry erase board. I bought it while working on my third book this summer, in order to help out with plotting and brainstorming, and it has been a godsend. Doodles, arrows, flow charts – this puppy does it all. And when you invariably write something absolutely ridiculous that might get you committed to a mental institution under any other circumstance, you can just wipe it away! Evidence destroyed!

And Pam, thanks for all your promoting prowess! (Any time, Gina!)

 

Cynthia Leitich Smith 

TANTALIZE, BLESSED, DIABOLICAL, ETERNAL

I’m most thankful that I get to belong in this magical, inspiring, stressful, changing, intellectual, fun world of books for young readers, that I get to skip among its stars and learn on bended knee from both its newest voices and living legends.

Thanks for this opportunity! (You bet, Cynthia!)

K.M. Weiland

BEHOLD THE DAWN, DREAMLANDER,A MAN CALLED OUTLAW, OUTLINING YOUR NOVEL

This year, I have found myself thinking over and over again how blessed I have been by the kindness, generosity, and enthusiasm of fellow authors. The online writing community, in particular, overwhelms me with their general wonderfulness. I am extraordinarily thankful for those among my writer acquaintances who selflessly make time to help me (and others) with critiquing, proofreading, networking, and just general opiniating and supporting.

Polly Holyoke

THE NEPTUNE PROJECT

I’m so grateful to be under contract to two fabulous publishers for the Neptune series. These books are SO much fun to write because they contain plenty of action and I get to do cool research every day on all kinds of fascinating sea topics. I had a real dry spell before the sale to Hyperion, so first and foremost I appreciate being employed! The basic premise of these books contains a strong environment message. I’m also grateful that I may have a chance to reach kids around the world and let them know that they should care about our climate and our seas before it’s too late.

Liz Fichera

HOOKED

I am most thankful for my parents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Linda Boyden

GIVEAWAYS

As a Native American writer, I am most thankful for being alive at a time when my work can be published by mainstream publishers. Books written and/or illustrated by Native people diminish the hurtful stereotypes of Native Americans that still lurk in many places. Our books give non-Indian children a true picture of our country’s Native people; they empower Indian children of all tribal nations, but most of all they help all children realize how similar they are.

Kit Grindstaff

THE FLAME IN THE MIST

For one, people like you who make our road to publication so much more fun and easy! Thank you so much. (It’s always a pleasure!)

So many people have helped shape my book, and me as writer. Having a pool of mutually supportive author Peeps that I can dip into and give back to, and the social media that makes so much of it possible, is invaluable in navigating the hurdles, pitfalls and joys leading up to that ever-closer Publication Date. I’m grateful for them all, and don’t know what I’d do without them. But there is one, overriding person without whom all of it would still be a seemingly out-of-reach dream, and that’s the Delacorte editor who believed in my book. Her thorough insights and questions have made it sooo much better, plus she’s given me the opportunity of a lifetime. I am So. Very. Grateful.

 

Claire M. Caterer

THE KEY & THE FLAME

This year I’m incredibly thankful that I was able to complete the sequel to THE KEY& THE FLAME (working title: THE WAND & THE SEA). I had no idea how much stress I would feel trying to write the second book in about a third of the time I took to write the first book. In the spring I broke out in stress hives; in the summer I sweated through every page; in the fall I cut my behemoth down to size. And it’s finally just about ready to go to my editor, for publication in summer 2014!

Cynthia Grady

I LAY MY STITCHES DOWN

I am eternally thankful for my writing buddies who give time, support, tissues, and car rides at a moment’s notice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Helen Williams

DELROY AND THE MAROG PRINCESS

I have so many things to be thankful for. I have a loving and supportive husband and family, and enjoy good health. I live in the beautiful, inspirational country of Jamaica with a tropical climate, white sand beaches and warm seas. I have the glorious freedom of retirement in which to follow my passion of writing for children. Modern technology allows me to make new friends and keep up with old ones; research the world without leaving my house; and write and rewrite with ease, unlike the days when I wrote by hand and typed on a manual typewriter. I give thanks for my online critique group, Pam and Melanie, without whose help I would not have been published. Their remarkable insights and creative suggestions have helped me to grow as a writer. Right now I’m thankful for having been spared the wrath of Hurricane Sandy.

Tiffany T. Schmidt

SEND ME A SIGN

I am so thankful for the support of the book blogger community. I’ve been so thrilled and frequently moved to tears of gratitude by the way book bloggers have embraced Send Me a Sign and reached out to tell other readers about the book. I’ve also been so touched by the number of readers who have shared their own cancer experiences with me and told me that they felt comfort or a connection when reading Send Me a Sign. I cannot even begin to express how much this has meant to me, how much I appreciate them, and how they’ve all become a part of my dream-come-true.

 

Lydia Kang

CONTROL

I am most thankful for the internet. I know, it’s a horrible time suck, yada yada yada. But without the internet, I would have never met the amazing bloggers and forums that taught me so much about fiction writing. I would have never met my crit partners, or some of the friends who have my back, in good times and bad.

Ginjer Clarke

GROSS OUT

As a writer, I am most thankful for the opportunities I get to connect with readers in schools and the enthusiastic feedback I get from them in person and in writing. Seeing that so many students love to read and write and love learning about science is encouraging, gratifying, and humbling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

K.M. Walton

EMPTY, CRACKED

I am most thankful for the unending love and support of my family and friends. When those who you love and respect, love and respect you back, it kind of gives you superpowers and makes you believe that anything is possible.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Miriam Forster

CITY OF A THOUSAND DOLLS

I think this year I’m most thankful for other people’s stories. It’s very tempting as a debut author to get so focused on your book, your edits, your promotion, that you lose sight of what you loved about storytelling in the first place. Anytime I can read a great book by someone else, or listen to someone tell me a funny story, that grounds me. It widens my world back up and helps keep me sane. 

 

 

 

 

K.A. (Kelly) Barson

45 POUNDS (MORE OR LESS)

What I’m most thankful for: Spanx. Seriously, though, I know it sounds trite, but I’m thankful for my family and friends. Through all the ups and downs–triumphs and rejections–that writing brings, they support me. Come to think of it, Spanx does, too, only in a different way. Family, friends, and Spanx–I need all three to keep it together.

Mindy McGinnis

NOT A DROP TO DRINK

As a writer I want to say that I’m super thankful for my CP’s (critique partners). They are professional, thorough, inspiring – and not afraid to tell me when I fail at something… (RC Lewis can tell you all about my comma issues).

Pamela K. Witte

Head

Gate Crasher

                                   

And for me, I’m thankful for the opportunity to promote writers, for the friendships I have made, and the lessons I’ve learned from each and every Gate Crasher over the past year. I’m thankful for the gift of storytelling, my love of writing, the joy of reading, my passion for adventure and life. Most of all I’m thankful for my family and my critique partners, who never, ever give up on me or allow me to give up on my dreams!

And there you have it. Pretty wonderful, isn’t it?

Almost as good as sitting down at the same giant table and sharing Thanksgiving wishes all around.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Getting Real With Real Authors

If it isn’t personal, what the heck is it?

Author Interviews That Rock!

Jay Kristoff

STORMDANCER

HERE’S THE BLURB!

A DYING LAND
The Shima Imperium verges on the brink of environmental collapse; an island nation once rich in tradition and myth, now decimated by clockwork industrialization and the machine-worshipers of the Lotus Guild. The skies are red as blood, the land is choked with toxic pollution, and the great spirit animals that once roamed its wilds have departed forever.

AN IMPOSSIBLE QUEST 
The hunters of Shima’s imperial court are charged by their Shōgun to capture a thunder tiger – a legendary creature, half-eagle, half-tiger. But any fool knows the beasts have been extinct for more than a century, and the price of failing the Shōgun is death.

A HIDDEN GIFT 
Yukiko is a child of the Fox clan, possessed of a talent that if discovered, would see her executed by the Lotus Guild. Accompanying her father on the Shōgun’s hunt, she finds herself stranded: a young woman alone in Shima’s last wilderness, with only a furious, crippled thunder tiger for company. Even though she can hear his thoughts, even though she saved his life, all she knows for certain is he’d rather see her dead than help her.

But together, the pair will form an indomitable friendship, and rise to challenge the might of an empire.

And We’re Off!

Just to get us started, how old are you?

Old enough to know better. Young enough to do it anyway.

What inspired you to write STORMDANCER?

A dream. Which is a really lame answer and helps no-one. So feel free to make up a better one and insert it here as my answer. If you can somehow work in me and a jet pack, that’d be aces.(Dreams are the stuff books are made of. Keep on rocking!)

Do you have a special affinity for the environment?

Affinity? Hells no. One look at the ashen ruins of my garden will quash that rumor. But do I care about the impact our species is having on the world – most definitely. I’m sort of amazed more people aren’t paying attention.

Why Steampunk?

I love the aesthetic. I love the collision of sci-fi and fantasy. I love that it’s still relatively uncovered ground – there’s been a lot of a Steampunk of one particular flavor (Victorian English), but the idea of historical settings and anachronistic technology hasn’t really be played out yet in many other ways or places. It feels like a riff that hasn’t been played to death yet.

What made you want to write in the first place?

I think it’s probably something you’re born with? The need to create, in one way or another, has been with me since I was a kid. Art, music, writing, they’re all sourced from the same seed. The desire to actually write books probably grew in me when I was writing for a living (I worked in advertising for a little over ten years). Problem with writing for a living is that you very quickly stop wanting to write for fun, because writing is your job, something you need to do on command. Once I quit the advertising gig, I decided to try and write something for myself, rather than using my words to sell toilet paper or whatever.

Five years later, here we are!

What keeps you writing?

I can’t imagine what I ever did before. It’s the best job in world, seriously. Seeing your book on a bookstore shelf and knowing “I did that”, making something out of nothing, just pulling worlds and stories out of your head and watching them take shape on the page and have people all over the world read them – it’s just the weirdest, coolest feeling in the world.

What is the best piece of writing advice you were ever given?

Never finish a writing session by finishing a scene. Make yourself stop before you want to, even if you’re on a roll. That way, when you start again the next day, you’ll be rearing to go, instead of sitting there staring at the Cursor of Doom wondering “WTF happens next?”

How do you discipline yourself to keep at the writing?

I’ve never really had to force myself to sit down a write (yet) – it’s just something I want to do. I tell people that “writing is really hard fun”, because honestly, it can’t be described as work. It’s hard, heartbreaking, frustrating, depressing, all those things. But it’s not work.

Digging ditches is work. Collecting other people’s trash is work. Telling stories? Building worlds? That’s fun. It’s just really frackin’ hard fun, sometimes.

What is the most important thing for a writer to remember?

I probably shouldn’t presume to tell anyone else what’s important. Although breathing is pretty vital, in the grand scheme of things. (Damn straight!)

Do you belong to any cool writerly groups on or off line?

No, all the groups I’m in are completely uncool. (And if you believe that I’ll throw the Golden Gate in free…)

Just for kicks… What are some of your favorite TV shows, movies?

TV: The Wire, Breaking Bad, The Shield, Game of Thrones, Archer, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, Carnivale, Deadwood, Rome (anything HBO is usually good)

Movies: The Life Aquatic, Alien, Bladerunner, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Usual Suspects, Seven, Brotherhood of the Wolf, The Matrix, The Proposition, The Blues Brothers, Fellowship of the Ring, zzzz, I have a million.

As a kid what was your favorite book?

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. (Excellent )

Last movie you saw at the theater?

Lawless (written by Nick Cave, directed by John Hillcoat). It was good, although not as good as The Proposition (another film those two guys did together which is amaaaaazing).

What is your favorite board game?

Battlestar Galactica. Yeah, I know,. Nerd alert.

How do you get into your characters heads?

I think getting into a character’s head is kinda like getting to know someone in real life. The more time you spend in each other’s company, the more you’re going to learn.

So I write. Lots.

Do you listen to music while you write? If so what gets you motivated?

I listen to music beforehand, but very rarely during. I find it too hard to concentrate. I’m one of those annoying writers who needs complete and utter silence to write, which means my wife gets exiled to the other end of the house and my dog gets yelled at a lot.

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Rock star. Or maybe the Silver Surfer.

If your protagonist could give one piece of advice to your readers what would it be?

Open your eyes. Open your mind. Then close the fingers on your hand. (Beautiful.)

Any closing words of wisdom for other author-wannabees out there?

Having other people believe in you is nice, but optional. Believing in yourself is mandatory. (Wonderful!)

And there you have it! Personal and Real with Jay Kristoff!

Please show your writerly love and leave a comment for Jay (or Gate Crashers)

“Surround yourself with people who know more than you and soak up knowledge like a sponge!” P.K. Witte

“Surround yourself with people who know more than you and soak up knowledge like a sponge!” P.K. Witte

Welcome to, The Dreaded Elevator Pitch Part Two! 

Do you really want to avoid the elevator pitch? No Way!

 

Developing your elevator pitch, one-liner or opening sentences of your query is often tough, a bugger, a brain teaser extraordinaire. Sometimes it’s totally complicated or even just plain Hell! Most writers dread the process of encapsulating their entire WIP into a simple statement. All those beautiful words condensed into a tiny pitch, ugh! But, we’ve all had to do it. Yes, it’s stressful. Sure, we fear the worst. But, come on? We’re writers, isn’t that we do best? We live to suck our readers in and hold their attention for better or worse (hopefully better)!                            

If you dread the elevator pitch, don’t worry. If it gives you cold shivers just thinking about it, have faith, you’re in the same boat with a lot of your friends!

When I went asking writers in the know if they’d share their pitches and their feelings with Gate Crashers the response was amazing! Tons of wonderful writerly folk jumped aboard. So dig in. Enjoy. Learn. And know that you are NOT alone!

The elevator pitch is a short summary used to quickly and simply define a product (your book).

The Elevator Pitch Otherwise Known as the One-liner or the Opening of Your Query!

Click the pics for awesome writerly links!

Elsie Chapman

DUALED

“When space and resources are limited and everyone has a genetic Alt, only one is permitted to survive. For fifteen year old West Grayer to face hers, she must find strength in her skills as an assassin…even as she’s made vulnerable by a love she can’t refuse.” 

 About the pitch:

 I never did have to officially “elevator pitch” DUALED, but I think it’s a great idea to have a pitch worked out in your head for when it might be needed. I can’t be the only writer who freezes when it comes to actually talking about their book to someone else, no matter how easily words tend to come on paper. A good pitch is so hard to nail down—you want to entice without giving too much away; to have that what they call that “hook” to make it impossible to not want more. When you’re only given a sentence or two with which to work, it really forces you to strip your book down to its main themes, its core and heart. The truly important stuff.

 

Polly Holyoke

THE NEPTUNE PROJECT

 

 

 

 

 

 

I started out writing romance novels and went to a bunch of RWA conferences. There we often had to pitch our books in group sessions with editors. I remember I spent hours writing my first perfectly-worded pitch. Then I spent hours more practicing it in front of a mirror, and then when my big moment came, I completely MASSACRED the sentence I had labored over! The follow-up pitch likewise came out all garbled, and I sat there with my face BURNING while everyone else pitched their books with total poise. The good news is, at the end of the session, the editor requested that we all send our projects to her, and I learned afterwards, that’s pretty much what they always do at group pitch sessions!

For the children’s book I recently sold to Disney/Hyperion, the perfect pitch line just came to me out of the blue. “When the sea has become mankind’s last hope, a group of teens struggles to survive beneath the waves.” I think a great pitch needs to sum up the essence of your story, but it also needs to convey what’s DIFFERENT and unique. That is what is going to pique an editor’s interest. There are a gazillion different coming of age stories out there, but not so many set in the sea.

My only regret is I never got to use this great pitch line for THE NEPTUNE PROJECT at a conference because Douglas Stewart at Sterling Lord Literistic offered to represent it, and he promptly sold it two weeks later. So now I use it as my tag line beneath my email signature instead!

April Genevieve Tucholke

BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA

 

I never actually pitched my book at a conference, etc, but here’s what it might have looked like:

BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA is a voice-driven literary horror, part Stephen King, part THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE. An eccentric, lonely bookworm named Violet lives with her twin brother in a rotting mansion on the sea. When a new boy comes to town and rents her guesthouse, she finds herself drawn to him, despite his lying, despite his mysterious past, despite all the eerie, horrifying things that begin happening around her.

Jenn R. Johansson

INSOMNIA

“Parker spends every night trapped in the dreams of the last person he made eye contact with, and it’s killing him…until he meets Mia. Finding ways to make eye contact every night isn’t easy and when Mia starts receiving threatening emails, her dreams transform into scenes of a horror movie, with Parker cast as the villain. He must discover who is truly tormenting her, and clear his name, before the real stalker makes good on his threats to end her dreams forever.”

I had a few versions of this. As you can see, mine is more than one line, but I use the first line if I only have enough time for one. I think between my one line pitch and full query, I must have 6 different lengths that I use depending on the situation, but this one is the most common. It gives a full idea of the plot without wasting any words or details and I can say the whole thing in about 20 seconds…can you tell I’ve practiced this in the real world? This length is actually perfect for an elevator ride. Anyway, I think having different pitches for different occasions is a great way to stay prepared for when people ask the inevitable (and often terrifying) question, “What is your book about?”

 

Erin Jade Lange

BUTTER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By the time I needed an elevator pitch, I had already sold a book. But I was attending my first conference and wanted to tell people about my work. I couldn’t figure out how to do it in one line, so I came up with a whole paragraph and just settled for saying it as fast as I could to make it go by quickly.

 I do not recommend this method. It was a rushed pitch, and listeners probably missed most of it. If I had taken more time to think about it, I would have come up with something like this:

An obese teenager’s plan to eat himself to death live on the internet makes him surprisingly popular – so popular he no longer wants to go through with it. But will the people who love his website love him without it?

 

Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen

PIRATE PRINCESS

 

There are two things you need to do to create a great elevator pitch: keep it simple and play coy. For my newest picture book, PIRATE PRINCESS, I used that formula — successfully, since the book has been on the shelves since May. Here’s the pitch: Princess Bea is not the kind of princess you’d expect — her dreams are of pirate ships, not pretty crowns. Can she earn a spot on Captain Jack’s crew — or will she walk the plank? In 34 words, this pitch tells you who my main character is (Princess Bea), how she is different (wants to be a pirate), who she’ll have to contend with to reach her goal (Captain Jack), and even hints at a bit of danger (walking the plank) — but you still have to read the book to know for sure how it will work out!

Ryan Graudin

ALL THAT GLOWS

Oh the elevator pitch. I actually never had to use an elevator pitch, since I never attended conferences and therefore never (knowingly) shared an elevator with an agent or editor. I found my agent through a full length query! I did, however, become very adept at describing my book in two sentences to the many, many people who ask the inevitable question, “What is your book about?”

ALL THAT GLOWS is about a Faery who’s forced to guard the partying Prince of England and accidentally falls in love with him. There are also assassins and paparazzi.

Of course, this isn’t the whole of the book. But it’s enough to get you salivating (hopefully!).

 

There you have it! The word on elevator pitches from seven amazing authors! And you know what? Although everyone has different experiences and different methods of dealing with the dreaded pitch, everyone shares similar emotions. As writer’s we’re all in the same boat, dreaming of the day our ship will come in. While we’re waiting, isn’t it wonderful to share experiences and learn from one another? That’s what Crashing the Gate is all about!

Don’t let those crazy elevator pitches get you down! No matter how attractive they may seem, avoid the stairs. Take the express route instead!

 

 

“Surround yourself with people who know more than you and soak up knowledge like a sponge!” P.K. Witte

There’s no better way to celebrate the end of summer than with an awesome GATE CRASHERS’ AUTHOR APPRECIATION SIGNED BOOK & SWAG GIVEAWAY!

Get your entry in by September 25th!

Gate Crashers is all about writing great books, bringing people together, learning from reading and reading to learn. I’ve been super lucky, finding loads of wonderful folks willing to share their wisdom and help us do just that.  But it’s not just great writers, editors, illustrators and agents who’ve made Crashing the Gate so much fun, it’s all you guys— each and every person who has ever stopped by Ink & Angst, taken the time to read Gate Crashers, left a comment and joined in!

So as a thank you to EVERYONE (readers and writers alike) I’m doing something a little different.

I put all the folks who’ve helped me out this year into my thinking cap (not literally of course, they’d never all fit, so I used scraps of paper instead) and drew seven names (because that’s my lucky number).

This month instead of sharing wisdom, Gate Crashers is featuring books by those seven authors and giving stuff away! Signed books and awesome swag!

How do you win?

Just leave a comment and I’ll drop it into the Thinking Cap! For every ten that go in two will come out winners! The more comments, the more giveaways!

And here we go!

(Book blurbs borrowed from Goodreads) Click the pics for awesome author links!

Gina Damico

Croak

Gina Damico

Published March 20th 2012 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Fed up with her wild behavior, sixteen-year-old Lex’s parents ship her off to upstate New York to live with her Uncle Mort for the summer, hoping that a few months of dirty farm work will whip her back into shape. But Uncle Mort’s true occupation is much dirtier than shoveling manure. He’s a Grim Reaper. And he’s going to teach Lex the family business. She quickly assimilates into the peculiar world of Croak, a town populated by reapers who deliver souls from this life to the next. But Lex can’t stop her desire for justice–or is it vengeance?–whenever she encounters a murder victim, craving to stop the attackers before they can strike again. Will she ditch Croak and go rogue with her reaper skills?

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkIivAxaW3w

Kimberley Griffiths Little

 

The Healing Spell

Kimberley Griffiths Little

Published July 1st 2010 by Scholastic Press

Twelve-year-old Livie is living with a secret and it’s crushing her. She knows she is responsible for her mother’s coma, but she can’t tell anyone. It’s up to her to find a way to wake her momma up.

Stuck in the middle of three sisters, hiding a forbidden pet alligator, and afraid to disappoint her daddy, whom she loves more than anyone else, Livie struggles to find her place within her own family as she learns about the powers of faith and redemption. Livie’s powerful, emotional, and sometimes humorous story will stay with readers long after the last line is read.

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5k4VaODgUuA

Circle of Secrets

Kimberley Griffiths Little

Published October 1st 2011 by Scholastic Press

After her mother walked out on Shelby Jayne and her dad, Shelby thought she’d never speak to her mamma again. But with her dad leaving the country for work, it turns out she doesn’t have a choice: Shelby has to move back into her mamma’s house, deep in the heart of the Louisiana bayou.

Her new classmates tease and torment her, so Shelby’s relieved to finally find a friend in Gwen, a mysterious girl who lives alone on the bayou. But Shelby can’t help wondering if Gwen has something to do with the puzzling messages she finds hidden in the blue bottle tree behind her house. The only person who might be able to explain is her mamma — but Shelby’s not ready to ask. Not yet. It may take a brush with something from the beyond to help Shelby see that the power to put her own ghosts to rest is within her reach.

Kimberley Griffiths Little’s haunting and powerful tale brings one girl’s attempt to grapple with family, friendship, and forgiveness to beautiful, vivid life.

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiTQhFXi0uo

Elisa Ludwig

Pretty Crooked

Elisa Ludwig

Published March 13th 2012 by Katherine Tegen Books

Willa’s secret plan seems all too simple: take from the rich kids at Valley Prep and give to the poor ones.

Yet Willa’s turn as Robin Hood at her ultra-exclusive high school is anything but. Bilking her “friends”-known to everyone as the Glitterati-without them suspecting a thing, is far from easy. Learning how to pick pockets and break into lockers is as difficult as she’d thought it’d be. Delivering care packages to the scholarship girls, who are ostracized just for being from the “wrong” side of town, is way more fun than she’d expected.

The complication Willa didn’t expect, though, is Aidan Murphy, Valley Prep’s most notorious (and gorgeous) ace-degenerate. His mere existence is distracting Willa from what matters most to her-evening the social playing field between the have and have-nots. There’s no time for crushes and flirting with boys, especially conceited and obnoxious trust-funders like Aidan.

But when the cops start investigating the string of burglaries at Valley Prep and the Glitterati begin to seek revenge, could he wind up being the person that Willa trusts most?

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGm3W8AOX_Q

Hilary Weisman Graham

Reunited

Hilary Weisman Graham

Published June 12th 2012 by Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers

1 Concert
2000 Miles
3 Ex-Best Friends

Alice, Summer, and Tiernan are ex-best friends.

Back in middle school, the three girls were inseparable. They were also the number one fans of the rock band Level3.

But when the band broke up, so did their friendship. Summer ran with the popular crowd, Tiernan was a rebellious wild-child, and Alice spent high school with her nose buried in books.

Now, just as the girls are about to graduate, Level3 announces a one-time-only reunion show.

Even though the concert’s 2000 miles away, Alice buys three tickets on impulse. And as it turns out, Summer and Tiernan have their own reasons for wanting to get out of town. Good thing Alice’s graduation gift (a pea-green 1976 VW camper van known as the Pea Pod) is just the vehicle to get them there.

But on the long drive cross-country, the girls hit more than a few bumps in the road. Will their friendship get an encore or is the show really over?

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFVAQVr-HuY

Megan Mirada

Fracture

Megan Mirada

Published January 17th 2012 by Walker Childrens

Eleven minutes passed before Delaney Maxwell was pulled from the icy waters of a Maine lake by her best friend Decker Phillips. By then her heart had stopped beating. Her brain had stopped working. She was dead. And yet she somehow defied medical precedent to come back seemingly fine. Everyone wants Delaney to be all right, but she knows she’s far from normal. Pulled by strange sensations she can’t control or explain, Delaney finds herself drawn to the dying. Is her altered brain now predicting death, or causing it?

Then Delaney meets Troy Varga, who recently emerged from a coma with similar abilities. At first she’s reassured to find someone who understands the strangeness of her new existence, but Delaney soon discovers that Troy’s motives aren’t quite what she thought. Is their gift a miracle, a freak of nature-or something much more frightening?

For fans of best-sellers like Before I Fall and If I Stay, this is a fascinating and heart-rending story about love and friendship and the fine line between life and death.

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fd5rUSMoYdI

Cynthia Leitich Smith

Tantalize

Cynthia Leitich Smith

Published February 13th 2007 by Candlewick Press

Are you predator or prey?

CLASSIFIED ADS: RESTAURANTS
SANGUINI’S: A VERY RARE RESTAURANT IS HIRING A CHEF DE CUISINE. DINNERS ONLY.
APPLY IN PERSON BETWEEN 2:00 AND 4:00 PM.

Quincie Morris has never felt more alone. Her parents are dead, and her hybrid-werewolf first love is threatening to embark on a rite of passage that will separate them forever. Then, as she and her uncle are about to unveil their hot vampire-themed restaurant, a brutal murder leaves them scrambling for a chef. Can Quincie transform their new hire into a culinary Dark Lord before opening night? Can he wow the crowd in his fake fangs, cheap cape, and red contact lenses — or is there more to this earnest face than meets the eye? As human and preternatural forces clash, a deadly love triangle forms, and the line between predator and prey begins to blur. Who’s playing whom? And how long can Quincie play along before she loses everything? TANTALIZE marks Cynthia Leitich Smith’s delicious debut as a preeminent author of dark fantasy.

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=subaxSxSFXc

 

Eternal

Cynthia Leitich Smith

Published February 10th 2009 by Candlewick Press

With diabolical wit, the author of TANATALIZE revisits a deliciously dark world where vampires vie with angels — and girls just want to have fangs.

At last, Miranda is the life of the party: all she had to do was die. Elevated and adopted by none other than the reigning King of the Mantle of Dracul, Miranda goes from high-school theater wannabe to glamorous royal fiend overnight. Meanwhile, her reckless and adoring guardian angel, Zachary, demoted to human guise as the princess’s personal assistant, has his work cut out for him trying to save his girl’s soul and plan the Master’s fast-approaching Death Day gala. In alternating points of view, Miranda and Zachary navigate a cut-throat eternal aristocracy as they play out a dangerous and darkly hilarious love story for the ages.

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaBIoUEMWrg

 

Blessed

Cynthia Leitich Smith

Published January 25th 2011 by Candlewick Press

With a wink and a nod to Bram Stoker, New York Times best-selling author Cynthia Leitich Smith unites the casts of Tantalize and Eternal in a delicious dark fantasy her fans will devour.

Quincie P. Morris, teen restaurateuse and neophyte vampire, is in the fight of her life — or undeath. Even as she adjusts to her new appetites, she must clear her best friend and true love. With a wink and a nod to Bram Stoker, New York Times best-selling author Cynthia Leitich Smith unites the casts of Tantalize and Eternal in a delicious dark fantasy her fans will devour.

Quincie P. Morris, teen restaurateuse and neophyte vampire, is in the fight of her life — or undeath. Even as she adjusts to her new appetites, she must clear her best friend and true love, the hybrid werewolf Kieren, of murder charges; thwart the apocalyptic ambitions of Bradley Sanguini, the seductive vampire-chef who “blessed” her; and keep her dead parents’ restaurant up and running. She hires a more homespun chef and adds the preternaturally beautiful Zachary to her wait staff. But with hundreds of new vampires on the rise and Bradley off assuming the powers of Dracula Prime, Zachary soon reveals his true nature — and a flaming sword — and they hit the road to staunch the bloodshed before it’s too late. Even if they save the world, will there be time left to salvage Quincie’s soul?

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pieAazPg_b0

 

Diabolical

Cynthia Leitich Smith

Published January 24th 2012 by Candlewick

Prepare for a hell of a ride as Cynthia Leitich Smith calls on characters from her previous novels – and conjures up new ones – for a climactic showdown.

When “slipped” angel Zachary and his werewolf pal, Kieren, arrive under suspicious circumstances to a mysterious New England boarding school, they quickly find themselves in a hellish lockdown with an intriguing assortment of secretive, hand-picked students. Plagued by demon dogs, hallucinatory wall décor, a sadistic instructor, and a legendary fire-breathing monster, will they somehow manage to escape? Or will the devil have his due? Best-selling author Cynthia Leitich Smith unites heroes from the previous three novels in the Tantalize Series – including Zachary’s girl, Miranda, and Kieren’s love, Quincie – along with a fascinating cast of all-new characters for a suspenseful, action-packed clash between the forces of heaven and hell

 

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fj0sK2ml17Y

Billy Elm 

Delroy in the Marog Kingdom

Billy Elm aka Helen Williams

Macmillan Caribbean March 2, 2009

If you look into River Mumma s eyes, something terrible going happen to you! Too late, Delroy remembers his mother s warning. Is drowning his fate or is something worse in store? Becoming a marog is only the beginning. The king of these unusual frogs has chosen Delroy to succeed him, but first he must retrieve the king s magical stone from a venomous snake. Slogging through underground caves and tunnels, faced with insurmountable obstacles, Delroy is tempted to give up and wonders whether he will ever return to his former life.

Watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EttD1ywqDbw

 

Now you’ve seen them, the seven authors from my Thinking Cap! Leave a comment for a chance to win their signed books and swag!

Giveaway ends Sepetember 25th!

 

If you’re a published author, illustrator, editor or agent and you’d like to join the Gate Crashing club and be featured this fall, leave a comment that says so! I’ll get back to you lickety-split.

Happy Writing!

Happy Reading!

Tidbits on writing Sizzle, Steam and the Kiss!

Everyone wants to know… Tidbits on writing— Sizzle, Steam and the Kiss so Gate Crashers asked the pros about the Killer Kiss, Overcoming Self-consciousness when writing Hot and Best Book Kiss Ever!

February is the month of love. Winged cupids send love-laced arrows practically dripping chocolaty sweetness zipping through the air. Lovers embrace. Lips connect. Hands search. Bodies meld and hearts melt.

Crazy thing about love is it’s often hard to write. I’ve heard it from many Young Adult authors. It’s hard to know just how far/where to take our characters when they’re falling in love.

We sit at the computer and blush. We get up, sit down. Think, ponder, write, revise, bite our nails, and call our friends. We Google, tweet, Facebook… We do all kinds of things to learn and reassure ourselves that romance and sex are okay.

But wouldn’t we all like a few bits of advice from the pros?

As a tribute to lovers on Valentine’s Day a few Romance writers (the real, real deal) have agreed to share some thoughts with us! Enjoy, think, blush, ponder and learn. Then write that steamy scene and have fun!

 Click the pics for Romance Author’s links!

Lynette Hall Hampton aka Agnes Alexander

Tips for Writing The Killer Kiss

For writing the ‘killer kiss’ the first thing I have to do is know my characters and know them well. I want to know what they feel. What they think. What they would do in any situation. When they finally come to the point of that passionate and world changing kiss, I want my readers to experience their feelings for each other and to sigh with relief because they’ve finally let themselves feel the love and desire they have for each other.

When I write my contemporary romance novels, mysteries and romantic suspense as Lynette Hall Hampton, my kisses and other signs of love and/or passion between a couple usually end at the bedroom and the door closes to my readers before things get into the act of heavy petting or love making. I normally let them use their imaginations about what goes on.

 Things change some when I write my historical western romances as Agnes Alexander. I do let the reader come inside the bedroom, camp site or wherever the couple first gets together. But I do have the rule that the couple must be totally in love or at least think they are before a sex act occurs.

 Overcoming Self-Consciousness When Writing Hot

 When I began writing romance novels I picked up an old writing book at a used bookstore. I remember a paragraph I read in it. Though I can’t quote it word for word, it was something like this: Forget that Mom and Aunt Tilley is going to read your book. Write it the way it needs to be written. If it calls for cursing – put it in. If it calls for sex – put it in. When you finish, think to yourself, Mom and Aunt Tilley may be shocked, but the book needs it and I’m putting it in. Besides Mom had three kids, including me, and Aunt Tilley had four. Not a one of those kids got here by immaculate conception.

When I write something steamy, I always recall these words.

 Best book kiss you ever read and who wrote it?

 Many books I’ve read have had beautifully written kissing scenes and it would be impossible to choose only one. I hope I’ve gathered from all of these a sense of what a beautifully written love scene is. I’ll leave it to my readers to say whether I accomplished this or not.

 Ashlyn Macnamara

Tips for Writing The Killer Kiss

Focus on your characters: what about character A makes him or her want to kiss character B? What is unique about the situation? Pull up some of those details and use them. Don’t be afraid to get specific. Don’t forget to focus on your characters’ emotions in particular. This may be a personal preference, but for me, the heat lies in the emotions. I’ve read many a kissing scene that was just as hot as something more explicit due to the author’s focus on emotion.

Overcoming Self-Consciousness When Writing Hot

The first time I ever sat down with the intent of writing an explicit love scene, I waited until I was all alone in the house and let ‘er rip. I didn’t worry about anything but getting the scene down. I recall laughing maniacally and giving myself permission to use all the purple prose I wanted. If I didn’t like the result, I told myself, I didn’t have to let anyone see it.

Give it a try. I’ve found that it gets easier with practice. Practice definitely helps you get over the self-consciousness. And if that doesn’t help, there’s always booze.

Best book kiss you ever read and who wrote it?

I hesitate to name one particular scene and say it’s the best ever. I have read a lot of hot kissing scenes. That said, the first kissing scene in Tessa Dare’s One Dance with a Duke is right up there. And it’s not even in the kissing. It’s in the build-up. Dare takes her time to set the scene, build up tension and then infuse some more. It’s mostly hot, hot, hot, because the hero refuses to kiss the heroine with his gloves on. The tension all happens while he’s removing those gloves and it’s exquisite.

Dixie Land

Tips for Writing The Killer Kiss

I really hadn’t thought much about the technique for writing a killer kiss until this topic was presented to me as a question to be answered. When I’m writing an intimate scene with my characters, the kiss evolves as their attraction and passions heighten. My characters are usually just discovering they are falling in love but sometimes, they’re already in love or are married. I always put myself into the lives of the characters I write about. I grow to care about them thus understand them so well that I know how much they care about one another and I feel the kisses they exchange as much as they do and my goal is for my readers to feel it as well. By the time the novel is completed, we’ve become such good friends that I miss them and our daily contact.

The following is an excerpt between an unmarried couple. Alex is a CIA agent on a mission and Angelina, is a younger woman, and the daughter of the man he was sent to gather information on. She isn’t aware of that. Before he leaves on a very dangerous mission, she comes to his bedroom late at night and slips into his bed.

Circle of Secrets:  Alex buried his face in her long silky hair…They kissed one another slowly, tenderly exploring one another’s bodies. Her hand brushed the scar on his chest. She kissed it then rested her cheek against the old battle scar as a mother would for a child, willing the injury away. Her whispers of love heightened his arousal and touched something deep within him. Ever so tenderly his hands and mouth played her body, wanting only to bring her pleasure, delighting in her response to him.  (this is the kiss part)

Here is an excerpt between a married couple, Ross and Maggie.

Return to Serenity:  Ross looked down at her. “We’ve had so much to deal with recently, let’s put it all to rest for a little while. Let’s be selfish. Let’s think only of us tonight, Maggie. Just you and me and no one else.”

He pulled her into an embrace and kissed her with such intensity that she fell against him. He eased her onto the soft green grass at the water’s edge. His lips never left hers as he lowered himself over her. “You’re the world to me, Maggie…my everything, he whispered, his voice husky with passion.  Tenderly, his hand found her thigh beneath her denim skirt and caressed it, slowly moving upward. The sun had set, Dusk enveloped them. The Carolina moon glowed dimly through tissue paper clouds.   (I stopped here with the kiss)

Overcoming Self-Consciousness When Writing Hot

For me when I write them in the context of genuine caring, I don’t feel uncomfortable.

Best book kiss you ever read and who wrote it?

On the best kiss I’ve ever read…it wasn’t in a novel. It was in a love letter that my now husband wrote to me when he was missing me before we were married. He was in college at Dartmouth in New Hampshire, and I was studying to become a nurse in Illinois. It was the best! (I’m not sharing!)