GCC Presents Kelly Parra and SOMETHING WICKED!

SOMETHING WICKED: Young Adult Short Stories

Published by Buzz Books USA | October 2012

"Mesmerizing and eerie. Tales to keep you reading late into the dark night."

- Tara Hudson, author of HEREAFTER and ARISE

Sometimes, they aren't costumes.

They’re baaaack.

More nightmares brought to you by the authors of the young adult anthology Prom Dates to Die For...

Beware the Midnight Troll on your late-night stroll by Mari Hestekin. Swim at your own risk Under Loch and Cay by Jenny Peterson. A curse of spiders on campus means Arach War by Lena Brown. Through a Glass Darkly one could lose a soul by Heather Dearly. Supernatural Hunters turn to the sea in Mermania by Kelly Parra. Social media goes to the ghouls in Spectral Media by Aaron Smith.

Don’t miss this paranormal fun for tween, teens and adults!

Kelly Parra’s short story “Mermania” continues Teen Supernatural Hunters Jaz and Blake’s paranormal adventures. The duo debuted in “Darkness Becomes Him” in the young adult anthology PROM DATES TO DIE FOR as they battled a soul hungry dark angel. In SOMETHING WICKED a merman entrances Jaz and it’s up to her and Blake to rush against time before Jaz grows her own tail by the full moon!

Something Wicked facebook: http://www.facebook.com/somethingwickedbook

Interview With Kelly:

1. Thanks so much for visiting today, Kelly! Can you tell me about your book in seven words or less?

 Kelly: Hi Denise, thanks for having me on your blog! Okay, here I go:

Teen supernatural hunters battle the mythical mermaid.

2. Other than your main character, who's a favorite character of yours in your story and why?

 Kelly: His name is Oz. He’s a warlock who took in orphans Jaz and Blake to train them. He’s rather old and unorganized yet cares deeply for his kids. I can't help but like him!

3. What's one piece of writing advice you would give to aspiring authors?

 Kelly: Don’t take the publishing business personally. I learned that the hard way. Editors and agents have to think business first over personal relationships with the author. Even if you are great person what they really want is a great book with great sales. Your great personality will just be a plus!

4. What did you write when you were a teen? Did you journal? Write poetry? Write overly literary or emotional stories? Or avoid writing altogether?

 Kelly: I wrote very bad short stories in grade school and angst-filled poetry in high school, and tried journalism, which was tough!

5. What's the last book you read that you really loved?

 Kelly: Hmm, last book that I finished and loved was part of Rachel Caine’s Morganville series, LAST BREATH. Plenty of suspense!=

 Thanks for visiting, Kelly, and congratulations on your new release!

Author Bio:

 Kelly Parra’s earliest stories were told with paintbrushes, but upon discovering the drama and forbidden love of romance and suspense novels, those paintbrushes were replaced with a keyboard. Now a multi-published author in young adult and romance fiction, she has created memorable characters such as a graffiti artist in Graffiti Girl, a psychic teen in Invisible Touch, and a tough undercover narc in her novel for adults, Criminal Instinct. A two-time RITA finalist, she divides her time between her novels, short fiction, and the adventures of motherhood, where she juggles her home life with two children, a tattooed husband, a sweet poodle, and a rowdy pit bull. Visit her website www.KellyParra.com.

Twitter: http://twitter.com/kparra

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorkellyparra

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Kelly-Parra/e/B001JRXHUI/

Friday Four. Kind of.

Real quick, and I'm posting a little early, because I'm running around crazily trying to get ready to go away for the weekend.

Anyone else going to the Surrey International Writers Conference? I'll be there with bells on, and I'd love to meet you if you're there too. Please say hi and introduce yourself by your blogger name or twitter handle or however I might know you. If you read my blog, we must have a drink or a coffee or a lunch together!

This last few weeks has been a whirlwind of activity. With a last bout of sunshine, I ended up quickly painting my garage doors (which needed it in the worst way) and breaking them in the process. Oops.

I've also been busy homeschooling, getting ready for NaNo, and also getting my son ready to do NaNo. Any other NaNo-ers out there?

I should hopefully be back with notes from the conference, but you can always watch me on Twitter, as I'll be sure to tweet using the tag #SIWC2012.

And finally, while I'm away this weekend, this is what will be happening at my house:

Yes, we're attempting to toilet train our little kitty, Indy. This is the state our toilet is in today, the first day, so I admit, I'm kinda glad to be gone for the next few messy days. To my husband, I say, "LOLOLOLOL!" (Thankfully he does not read my blog.)

It's rainy here, so I'll be glad to be inside a conference room this weekend. How about you? Any big plans getting crazy Halloween costumes ready or anything? (I'm still deciding on mine).

Happy weekend, everyone!

November Event!

I'm so excited about this upcoming November 3rd event with some of my favorite authors!

If you're from the Vancouver / North Vancouver area, I hope to see you there! It promises to be a great time.

GCC Presents @Mindi_Scott and LIVE THROUGH THIS!

I'm thrilled to welcome another Girlfriend from the Girlfriends Cyber Circuit. It's no secret that I think Mindi Scott is an amazing writer, and I highly recommend her latest book, LIVE THROUGH THIS. But let me tell you a little more about it...

 

About the book:

From the outside, Coley Sterling’s life seems pretty normal . . . whatever that means. It’s not perfect—her best friend is seriously mad at her and her dance team captains keep giving her a hard time—but Coley’s adorable, sweet crush Reece helps distract her. Plus, she has a great family to fall back on—with a mom and stepdad who would stop at nothing to keep her siblings and her happy.

But Coley has a lot of secrets. She won’t admit—not even to herself—that her almost-perfect life is her own carefully-crafted façade. That for years she’s been burying the shame and guilt over a relationship that crossed the line. Now that Coley has the chance at her first real boyfriend, a decade’s worth of lies are on the verge of unraveling.

In this unforgettable powerhouse of a novel, Mindi Scott offers an absorbing, layered glimpse into the life of an everygirl living a nightmare that no one would suspect.

And I'm not the only one who loves this novel. Here's what others have to say...

 

★ “What makes this more than another ‘problem’ novel is the author’s steadfast refusal to deal in stereotypes and easy answers. –Kirkus Reviews, Starred Reviewd

“Harrowing, sad, funny, and romantic. I couldn’t put it down.” –Stephanie Perkins, author of Anna and the French Kiss

 “Intensely emotional and beautifully crafted, I savored every word.” –Amanda Grace, author of In Too Deep

“An honest and realistic portrayal of what it is to live with secrets and shame.” –Jo Knowles, author of Lessons From a Dead Girl

Mindi also stopped by for a short interview...

Welcome, Mindi! Can you tell me about your book in seven words or less?

The story of a girl who can’t tell the truth. (I tried hard to do it in seven or less, but it didn’t work out!)

Other than your main character, who's a favorite character of yours in your novel and why?

I really love the love interest, Reece. He’s kind of insecure and dorky, but he’s such a good person with the best of intentions. He’s a combination of the boyfriend I had when I was fifteen, my husband, an acquaintance, and fiction. Mostly fiction, of course.

What's one piece of writing advice you would give to aspiring authors?
Read! Especially book in the genre you’re writing! When I used to take writing classes, it was always so easy to spot the non-readers in the group.

What did you write when you were a teen? Did you journal? Write poetry? Write overly literary or emotional stories? Or avoid writing altogether?
I wrote stories for writing classes, but the writing I enjoyed most was my journals. I now have lots of entries that I’ve typed up from those journals on my website: http://mindiscott.com/index.php/read-my-old-diaries/

What's the last book you read that you really loved?
Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King

About the author:

Mindi Scott is the author of Live Through This and Freefall. She lives near Seattle, Washington, with her drummer husband. Please visit her online at mindiscott.com.

I encourage you to pick up a copy of this great book! Here's where you can find it: Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, IndieBound, iTunes, The Book Depository, or Amazon

Congratulations, Mindi! 

 

I'll leave you with the wonderful trailer Mindi has put together for LIVE THROUGH THIS...

 

 

 

NEVER ENOUGH in the News!

I've had some wonderful news lately on Never Enough, and just wanted to share a few things...

First, Never Enough was chosen as Fresh Fiction's Fresh Pick - an honor awarded by reviewers. You can't submit for this, but when your book is chosen, they promote it to their 200,000-plus followers and subscribers! Click below to see more.


October 4, 2012   

And if that's not enough, Never Enough also received a wonderful review from Fresh Fiction this week. Click the link to see the whole thing, but here's one of my favorite lines...

"NEVER ENOUGH is the story of a teenager and the secret life she lives right in front of her own family and friends. Deeply moving, thought provoking, and heart wrenching, I felt Claire's pain and hoped somehow she would overcome her problems."

 

And yet MORE good news! CM Magazine, or the Canadian Review of Materials, also gave Never Enough a glowing review this week. Again, the link is where you'll find the full review, (plus they've included an excerpt that I haven't yet seen anywhere else online) but here's a favorite tidbit of mine...

"Jaden has written a second young adult novel which is truly remarkable and which will have immense appeal, especially for female readers. Loann, the main character, is believable, funny, and honest...Never Enough is poignant and will captivate readers from beginning to end."

 And...since the best things always come in three's here's one more wonderful review excerpt...this one from The Bulletin...

 

"With well-developed complications and the convincing realism of daily life...this novel ably leads readers through a rocky terrain of contemporary teen problems."

I'm humbled and thrilled by all of these out-of-the-blue blessings!

LAUNCH DAY!!!

Here's a riddle. See if you can figure it out...

It's something for any fiction writers who write about any kind of loss (and doesn't EVERY character undergo losses of some kind?)

It's also great  for anyone who's facing personal grief and wants to better understand the grieving process.

It's a resource to keep on your shelf or e-reader and go back to, hopefully again and again.

It'll cost you the price of one latte. Could you live without one latte this week (and do you even know how many calories are in those things???)

Any guesses?

It's my new book, WRITING WITH A HEAVY HEART: Using Grief and Loss to Stretch Your Fiction and it's officially out today!Please tell your friends and help spread the word!

Here's a little bit more about the book:

In her first non-fiction mini-book, Denise Jaden explores the stages and outlets of grief and how to implement them into your fiction to create more interesting characters and a more engaging plot. Some topics of this book include: grieving before the loss, spiritual matters, and how grief affects different ages, personality types and gender.

Advance Praise for WRITING WITH A HEAVY HEART:

 "Jaden's Writing With A Heavy Heart is a must-have for any writer's craft shelf. The combination of clear guidance and practical exercises allow writers to take their manuscripts to a deeper level."
- Eileen Cook Author of Unraveling Isobel and The Almost Truth

"Writing With A Heavy Heart absolutely nails the grieving process. I love the exercises included, because, to me, they make the whole thing a tangible help in applying it to a work in progress."
- Janet Gurtler, author of If I Tell and Who I Kissed

"Writing With A Heavy Heart has a lot of really good insights on grief and suggestions on how to incorporate them to fiction."
- Lee Strauss, author of The Perception Series

"Jaden's Writing with a Heavy Heart helped me add layers to my characters who experience loss. The tools provided in this piece make it practical in my writing projects."
- Cindy Callaghan, author of Just Add Magic and Purses, Palaces and Photographic Proof

 
If you'd like some bookmarks to help spread the word, send me your mailing address at d(at)denisejaden(dot)com with "bookmarks" in the subject line, and I'll be happy to send some your way.

Your next question may be (or at least I hope it is!): Where can I get my hands on a copy?

The paperback version is available at Create Space.
And also through Amazon. (The price is the same on both at $6.99)

The e-book is available for $2.99 at:
Amazon
Smashwords
Kobo
Diesel
Sony

And it will be coming soon to Barnes & Noble and iTunes (but you can pick up a copy that will work on pretty much any electronic reading device through Smashwords.)

Note: It is a workbook, including exercises, but all versions include a link where you can print the exercises for your own use, so don't let that deter you from the electronic version, if that is your preference.

Also, if you order a paperback and would like it signed, drop me a note and I can send you a signed bookplate for your copy.

I hope you'll help me spread the word, and if you purchase a copy, I hope it is revelatory to your writing or to your life. If you get something out of it, I'd love to hear about it!

Thanks so much for celebrating with me. Virtual champagne for everyone!!!