HAPPY RELEASE DAY, FERAL!

Jake and I are thrilled to wish FERAL (one of this week's PW Book Picks) a happy book birthday!

We also want to take the time to thank everyone celebrating with us: the blurbers and reviewers, the blog tour hosts, librarians, and booksellers who have shared their excitement and helped spread word of the book leading up to the release. 

Thank you!

To show my appreciation, I'm giving away a signed copy of FERAL.  The giveaway runs until September 2.  Good luck!



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HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY - THE A-WORD

I'm delighted to spread the word: fellow YA Outside the Lines blogger Joy Preble is celebrating the release of her latest book, THE A-WORD!

THE A-WORD

Joy Preble

Soho Press

Jenna Samuels and her guardian angel brother battle heavenly head-honchos and earthbound bullies in this Texas-set hilarious follow up to The Sweet Dead Life. 

It's been almost a year since Jenna Samuel’s stoner brother, Casey, bit the dust and returned as her guardian angel. A year since Casey and his “angel boss,” Amber Velasco, saved Jenna’s life and helped her foil the bad guys—more or less. A year in which Jenna has solved the true mystery of the universe: how to get one Ryan Sloboda to ask her out.

Jenna’s feeling mighty cheery about life and love. But Casey, whose doomed relationship with Lanie Phelps (who has no idea her boyfriend is, well, dead) isn’t doing much to distract him, has his own big question: Why is he still hanging around?

Bo Shivers, a heavenly head honcho Jenna and Casey didn't even know existed, might have the answer.  Bo knows something big is coming. Something that might just change everything for Jenna Samuels, who once again finds herself up to her non-winged shoulders in heavenly secrets of global proportions—just as she’s finally found the perfect Homecoming Dance dress.

Praise for The A-Word: A Sweet Dead Life Novel

“Light, snarky, and heartfelt... The A-Word rolls along cheerfully through Halloween pranks, high school football, investigative reporting, angel-powered action, and a very realistic amount of aimless driving around.”

—School Library Journal

“Sassy, smart-mouthed, cowboy-boot fan Jenna Samuels is back once again, fighting evildoers with the aid of her angelic cohorts..... has many of the elements that made its predecessor, [The Sweet Dead Life], so much fun.”

—Kirkus Reviews

“The earthbound angels are as authentic as the down-to-earth people in The A-Word, but where the book really spreads its wings is in the interaction between the two. Resourceful teens and heavenly beings team up to get to the roots of a very modern mystery, and the big questions of the universe share space with first dates and football games. The result: a smart, original (and slightly celestial) mystery with a distinctly Texan flavor.”

—Michael Northrop, author of Trapped and Surrounded by Sharks

"Joy Preble gives it all! Humor, wit, emotion, and romance! Fabulous fun!"

—New York Times bestselling author Sophie Jordan

“Romance, sassy humor, and a pain-in-the-rear brother … Who knew having a guardian angel could be so hard and so much fun to read?”

—New York Times Bestselling Author C.C. Hunter

The book is officially in the world today.  Grab your copy!

PLAYING HURT - NEARLY ONE YEAR OLD!

It's beyond hard to believe, but it's true: this March, PLAYING HURT will be a year old! Get ready to celebrate with me by snagging yourself a copy, if you haven't already done so.

If you've been a bit reluctant to read PLAYING HURT, perhaps because you're not usually a romance reader, this vlog is for you! (Or, if you've got a reading pal who's been reluctant for the same reason, pass them the link to this post!) Thanks to some lyrical writing and heavy subplots, PLAYING HURT is, as I explain here, more than just a simple summer love story:




For those of you with e-copies: get your books signed through Kindlegraph!

And be sure to check out my latest interview with the incredible Catherine Ryan Hyde for a chance to win a PLAYING HURT swag pack!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PLAYING HURT!

It’s here, it’s here, it’s here! PLAYING HURT’s official birthday!

To celebrate, I’m hopping all over the web today. You can check out the story of my path to publication and tips for children’s writers at One Writer’s Journey. Or, if you’re itching for some swag, you can enter to win a PLAYING HURT button (and a personalized note from the author) at Adventures in Children’s Publishing.

…And: be sure to check out the excerpt of PLAYING HURT, which has just gone live at the Flux website!

I also had to share this, in my post at YA Outside the Lines: the moment my author copies arrived! (Excitement ran amok…)

GUEST POST, INTERVIEW, REVIEW (ON THE EVE OF A BIRTHDAY)

I've got another book birthday coming up...tomorrow, in fact! Yep, March 8, PLAYING HURT will be officially "born."

Of course, this means that I spent the weekend sending out 200 mailers (and more emails), while organizing distribution of author copies of PLAYING HURT, putting together posts for my own PLAYING HURT Blog Tour, and juggling revisions of a yet-to-be-acquired novel.

I’m telling you, in all seriousness, anyone who thinks writing is a leisurely occupation is (as we say here in the Ozarks), a stark-raving idgit.

…But you know who makes it all worth it? You guys. My incredible bloggers. I just want to give you all enormous bear hugs.

…Speaking of: A guest post went live today at Reclusive Bibliophile, in which I comment on how hard it is to write a publishable novel before you’ve gone through the development process yourself.

Flux, my publisher, also put up a hot-off-my-computer interview.

And—just so my first baby doesn’t get too jealous of all the attention my newborn is soaking up, a review of A BLUE SO DARK can be found at The Serpentine Library.

...See you guys tomorrow: On PLAYING HURT's birthday!

PROUD MAMA—AN AUTHOR NOW

Yep, here we are: me and my first “child” on the day of her “birth” (release). Happiness abounds…

Check out the interview—and giveaway!—at AuthorsNow!