The Ash-Born Boy (and other amazing things!)

Hi guys, I hope you're having a lovely week! <3


A while ago, I had a giveaway for a wonderful book--THE NEAR WITCH by Victoria Schwab. When I read it, I fell in love with the the words and the story; I had to share it with others. The way V weaves the words together is amazing. It's completely easy to fall into her story.


Well, today is May 15th, which equals a super important day in THE NEAR WITCH history!

Have a look....

Since it's May 15th, not only does THE NEAR WITCH by Victoria Schwab come out in paperback TODAY, but, to celebrate its release, "The Ash-Born Boy" is finally up over at Disney*Hyperion's website!

What IS "The Ash-Born Boy"?

It's a free story Victoria wrote as a thank-you to her fans, and she wrote it to answer ONE question: "Who was Cole before he came to Near?"

Now, if you've already read THE NEAR WITCH, "The Ash-Born Boy" is guaranteed to change the way you see Cole.

And if you haven't read THE NEAR WITCH yet, don't worry, "The Ash-Born Boy" won't spoil anything!

So basically, either way, you should go read Cole's story ;)

I had the opportunity to read it earlier, and it is haunting and beautiful--you really need to check it out. Another link drop in case you missed it.

But what if I want to read THE NEAR WITCH first?

  

Don't worry! Cole's story will stay up on Disney*Hyperion's website, and if it ever comes down, Victoria will carve out a space for it on her own site. It will always be available somewhere, and it will always be free.

And!

Cole's story isn't the only goodie to go along with the paperback release. In the back of the paperback itself, you'll find the first chapter of Victoria's new book, THE ARCHIVED, which doesn't come out until January!


Help Victoria celebrate today by taking a look at "The Ash-Born Boy," and don't forget to buy/order/pick up your own paperback copy of THE NEAR WITCH :)

<3

LeakyCon and the Stories We'll Have

 Earlier in the year, I escaped. I ran away. The weight of the world absolutely crushed me, and all of the things that happened--good and bad--in 2011 came falling down around me like a blanket of snow. I was smothered.

I wasn't the greatest person to be around. I was a bitch (...not like I haven't been one in the past... sorry guys), and I would go to work and come home and go to work and come home and then just lie in my bed and stare at the ceiling wondering why I felt so restless.

So I pulled the trigger. With some inspiring talks with a couple of co-workers (one who is about to go off on his own adventures), I booked tickets to Costa Rica. Within three weeks, I was there, it was amazing--pressed the good ole reset button.

When I returned, everything was still upside down. Still dealing with my father's death, still reeling from the strange behavior I fell into for the holidays and new year... there was a lot of rebuilding to do. I jumped back into work, enrolled in online classes, and promptly made a billion projects for myself.

One of the things I imagined would've gone away after I traveled was the urge to travel more. I thought the wanderlust would disappear. A good friend sort of laughed at me and said, "It doesn't work that way."

I was finding this out.

Imagining new destinations, I was already planning my next trip in my head. I'd traveled to Costa Rica, now I could go anywhere. I could take that Alaskan Cruise I wanted. Or I could go to Greece! Greece!

The ideas piled up but that urgency from earlier was gone, so I just let them all simmer on a pot.

A close, best friend of mine--one of two amazing people who suffer through my writing--tackled me online one day. "LeakyCON," she said. "LEAKY. CON. JULI. WE HAVE TO GO. WOULDN'T IT BE FUN?!" (I'm not sure if she actually wrote in capslock, but that's how I FELT like she would've said it to me.)

Having met through a mutual love for Harry Potter, I knew that those two strange words were the key to one of the biggest Harry Potter conventions ever. And I had wanted a chance to--yeah okay, insert your giggles here--wear my Slytherin robes again. It was a dream though. Spend that money on airfare, hotel, and the convention in CHICAGO just to hang out with a bunch of Harry Potter nerds?

Yeah, I really, really wanted to.

But I couldn't justify it. I had just gone to Costa Rica...

... time passed. Slowly. Or too fast. Or where it feels slowly but then you look back and say, "What the shit, time, where did you go?"

And I finally made a decision. BAM. Convention tickets bought. BAM. Airplane tickets bought.

BAM.


Hello, Chicago!

I'm heading to Chicago in August to partake in LeakyCon, but also the LeakyCon Lit portion of the convention. Guys... guys... these people!

So.

It's been kind of a crazy year.

And I don't anticipate it getting any less crazy,

But I'm finally learning to embrace it and realize that these days, weeks, months, years are the moments we crave for the stories we'll one day tell.


<3

What adventures are you having/planning?

Peek: Donut Apocalypse

Hi everyone!

My co-workers and I have been talking about donuts for weeks, and I've just had this massive craving for them... so I finally gave in a couple weeks ago and, well, took pictures of the madness. I'm presenting to you the first of my 'Peek' series where I upload a bunch of pictures--usually food related--to satisfy my own photography craving. Enjoy! <3



 

Random Monday: Libraries, Otters, Agents & GIVEAWAY

 Random Mondays

Libraries, otters, agents, I give you books.

 

Copyright Simon Brown

Libraries

I always fall in love with photos of libraries and piles of books. I've posted my own little reading nook before, but what I really would love to have is a room full of books--my own library complete with a hidden door. Preferably leading to another room with more books.

I find a lot of my favorite images on tumblr, but I recently happened upon a pintrest board that had a lot.

Enjoy the library porn, folks:


http://pinterest.com/sansita/my-future-private-library/

See handholding in action

Otters

My friend, Toby, loves otters, and recently I've been
happening upon the cutest images and videos of them.
I kind of want some tiny ones. <3

 I GIVE YOU BOOKS.

Yesterday, I posted a blog to giveaway a copy of Across the Universe and A Million Suns by Beth Revis! Go there! Leave a comment! Go FORTH AND WIN!

Monday informative link:

The Criterion for Evaluating an Agent by Kristin Nelson

Happy Monday everyone! <3 Have a great week!

Across the Universe Book Giveaway!

Across the Universe Book Giveaway!

Friends! It is that time again! That time when I give away delightful books that I've read and loved this year.  Earlier, I gave away copies of Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone to two lucky, lovely people. What's up for grabs now?

Wait.

Why are there two book covers if I'm giving away a single book?

BECAUSE I'M GIVING AWAY TWO BOOKS TO ONE LUCKY PERSON!

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

AND 

A Million Suns by Beth Revis

 These are the first two books in the trilogy, and I'm offering the hardcover for both! 

Admittedly, I'm super lucky I held off on reading the first one, because the second one came out nearly right after I finished reading (it was a good thing because I was hooked.)

I'm absolutely dying for the last (Shades of Earth) which isn't released until January 2013. Woe.

Enter to win by leaving a comment! You can tell me how much you'd love to have these books! You can tell me what you had for dinner! You can leave me a recipe for for favorite cookie.

Just leave a comment.

Giveaway closes on May 25th @ 11:59pm Eastern Time!

... and GO!

Table flipping (and thank you)

Happy Friday, everyone!


I had originally planned a post on LeakyCon, but instead, I'm going to say "Happy Friday" to you all.

Have you ever had one of those weeks, you know, the ones where you're running a marathon to finish everything? And you're doing well! I mean, you're tired... but you're making it? And then you get to the last leg (which happens to be downhill), and you trip and just roll down to the finish line?

No? Well. Ffff.

 That was this week! Amazingly productive, amazingly tiring, and then rolling down the hill through prickly weeds at the end.

That's where the table flip comes in. What is a table flip, you ask. It's exactly what it sounds like.

Know Your Meme: Flipping Tables

 

Thank you, Alan Rickman, for this glorious table flip.

I'll let the next series of images speak for themselves.

And so. Friday. Yes. Wonderful, glorious Friday. It's been a great day, despite all the table flipping moments, and I just wanted to let you all know how grateful I am that you read this, and I hope you all have an amazing weekend! This blog goes back to its regular programming on Monday with the 'Random Monday' blog. <3


Also, if you want to help me flip tables, I created an Amazon wishlist with commentary on each table. People who have seen the Hunger Games movies will be amused ;) http://www.amazon.com/registry/wishlist/1BG15BM68BRHG/ref=cm_wl_rlist_go_o



Please excuse me while I put the table back.

┬─┬ノ( º _ ºノ)

Random Mondays: Eggs & Bacon, Squid & Critiques

Random Mondays <3

1st edition: Eggs & Bacon, Squid & Critiques.

Happy Monday, friends! 

I hope you have an amazing Monday and a wonderful week! This is the first of many Random Monday posts where I collect some things I've liked to share with you all! It could be anything--a touch of silly, a touch of fun, delicious food, or writing advice.

 Bacon & Eggs

My hands are always cold. I have numerous pairs of gloves, but it's hard to type unless they are fingerless gloves or just generic handwarmers. I have a few sets, but this is my newest! Bacon & Eggs! You can grab your own here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/TwinkieChan 

The Dainty Squid

A friend of mine was looking at hair color and happened upon this amazing blogger, Kaylah, of The Dainty Squid. 

She's all about really neat, eclectic fashion, fun things like nail art and always has some sort of beautiful hair color. If you want a pop of something happy in your day, take a peek at her blog--you're sure to find something interesting. 

Visit the Dainty Squid: http://daintysquid.blogspot.com/

Crits for Water

There's a lot going on at Crits for Water in an effort to raise money for charity: water. It's been amazing to watch the outpouring of support from the donators but also the agents, editors, and authors who are donating their time to make auctions worthwhile for writers (aside from the knowledge that they are contributing towards something huge).

The current auction is from Suzie Townsend:  http://critsforwater.katbrauer.com/2012/04/23/auction-critique-of-a-full-ms-by-agent-suzie-townsend/

A FULL manuscript critique AND a 30 minute follow-up phone call! Crazy! If you have the money to donate to this charity, jump on in to help out and maybe have the opportunity to hand your manuscript over and get great feedback!

That's it for Random Mondays! Have a good one <3 :)