An Interview with Author Lindsay Paige

Today Lindsay Paige has asked me to be a part of  her fantastic blog tour to promote her new book, Whatever it Takes, the third book in the Bold as Love series. 

Whatever it Takes:

Their first year of college isn’t what they expected. Emily is still struggling with the loss of her baby, while Jake seems to have no trouble with it at all. Emily is so conflicted about how to deal with the miscarriage. On top of that, she’s having nightmares.

Can Jake help his Sweetness? Will she allow him? Their relationship is suffering and Jake is determined to do whatever Emily asks of him. But when Emily makes a suggestion that she feels will help with her grief, could it tear the couple apart forever?

Whatever it takes is scheduled to be released June 13, 2012.  Add it to your Goodreads list today!
 

About Lindsay Paige:

Lindsay Paige is a young adult romance author from North Carolina. Most of what Lindsay writes are her daydreams in lavish details. (Please excuse that fact when you read one of her future works about a girl who sleeps around.;)) When not writing, she is working to complete her final year of high school.

Lindsay loves to read, listen to music, watch and play tennis, along with watching her favorite hockey team, the Pittsburgh Penguins. Lindsay is a big fan of Sidney Crosby (87) and buys Penguins merchandise whenever she can.

Lindsay loves to be around her family and best friends. One summer after viewing a video of Nicholas Sparks' house, Lindsay's mother made the comment that she should write a bestselling novel since she "reads so much", that way they could have a beautiful house as well. Lindsay took her comment to heart. She began working on Sweetness. A year later, the novel was complete.

Many of the aspects of the characters in Sweetness were inspired by Lindsay's own struggles, such as a recovering alcoholic father and the anxiety Emily suffers because of her past.

The Interview: 

Did you always dream of becoming an author? 
Not at all. It never even crossed my mind. I'd write a little here and there, but that was it. I have my anxiety to think for being an author. Last year was extremely hard for me and writing because an escape after a daydream that wouldn't go away. I needed to daydream in order to fall asleep instead of focusing on my anxiety and the Bold As Love series is a result of that.

How you find time to write and also enjoy your last year of high school?
I'm homebound, which is like homeschool except all my work comes through my school. Therefore, I don't really enjoy high school because I'm not there. I absolutely do not have a problem with that either. With working and doing schoolwork, writing usually comes during the wee hours of the night before I fall asleep.

Do you plan to attend college after high school? And if so, what will be your major?
I do plan on going to college after high school. I'm going to go to a community college for my first two years so I don't overwhelm myself with anxiety. Then I plan to transfer to UNC Chapel Hill to major in creative writing.

What have you found to be your biggest challenge with being such a young author? 
Believing in my work is the biggest challenge. Thankfully, I have some awesome fans who are always there for support during those rough patches.

What inspired you to write the Bold as Love series? 
As I said, it was a daydream that wouldn't stop playing in my head.

Was there a person in real life that inspired each of the characters? 
There are bits and pieces of old crushes in Jake. Part of Jake's feelings for his father comes from myself. Part of Emily's personality comes myself as well.

What are your favorite authors/books? 
Jessica Park (Flat-Out Love), Jodi Picoult, Nicholas Sparks, Erica O'Rourke (Torn Trilogy), Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguie's Wicked series, and so much more. You can see all my favorite books at this link: http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/2323502-lindsay-paige?format=html&shelf=favorites
 

Links:

Buy Sweetness (Bolds as Love #1) on Amazon
Buy I'm Yours (Bold as Love #2)  on Amazon
Visit Lindsay Paige's website
Like Lindsay Paige on Facebook

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Winners (yep, as in more than one!)

I know I said I was only going to give away one Kindle book of On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves, but this book is just so good that I have to spread the love to more than one. 

That's right, I decided to give away TWO Kindle books of On the Island.  YAY!!

And because I am terrible at trying to choose, I let Random.org choose the winners for me.

And they are...

Lindsey (comment #3)
Esther (comment #9)

Emails have been sent with you gift books ladies.  Hope you enjoy!

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Exciting News...and a Giveaway!

I know that I have mentioned the book On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves on here before, but I have to gush a little bit more about this book because Tracey just announced some rather HUGE news today.

If you don't remember my gushing about this book, I gave a short review of it in my favorite books of 2011 post and also my post about my author friends rising to high places.  Be sure to check them out.

Okay, so what is this so-called awesome news? Well, On the Island has been optioned for a feature film by MGM. *Squeeeeeaaaaaallllll*

Can you imagine seeing TJ on the big screen?  Well, now we will be able to!  Hmmmm....I wonder who they will choose to play TJ and Anna....

*silence*

*silence*

Oh oops, sorry!  I guess I got lost in a daydream there. 

GIVEAWAY:
To honor this momentous occasion, I would like to gift a Kindle copy of On the Island to one lucky person. 

Just leave me a comment below (be sure to leave your email address so I can send your book should you win) and I will choose one winner by 8:00 pm Central time on Sunday 5/6/12.

If you don't want to wait to see if you've won, that's okay.  You can purchase your own Kindle copy HERE.

Congrats Tracey!!   This is soooooo exciting!

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Cover Reveal: Unchained by J. Lynn

I am happy to take part in the cover reveal for UNCHAINED, book one in the new NEPHILIM RISING adult series from J. Lynn.

Between the pissed off creatures that want demon-hunter Lily Marks dead and the fallen angel who just...wants her, Lily is about ready to trade in forever for a comfy job in a cubicle farm.

The fact that she and Julian are civil to one another is enough to have her thrown out of the Sanctuary, but she can't shake her not-so-angelic stalker or how he brings her dangerously close to ecstasy.

Her forbidden relationship with Julian provides the perfect fuel for suspicion when a traitor is discovered to be working within the Sanctuary. Lily quickly finds herself hunted by well, everyone.

Her only hope is to discover the real traitor before she loses everything--and she'll need Julian's help. That is, if Julian is really there to help her...and not destroy her.

Yeah, being a Nephilim isn't everything it's cracked up to be. 

UNCHAINED will be available in mass trade size wherever books are sold on October 16, 2012 and you can pre-order your copies at Amazon, B&N, Book Depository, and BAM. 

Want a taste of J. Lynn’s adult work and can’t wait till October? You can purchase her contemporary romance, Tempting the Best Man, which is available on B&N and Amazon. Please note that this is an adult romance, which does contain scenes that could be perceived as naughty, naughty and you should be an adult if reading!

Or you can always check out her Young Adult series, The Covenant (Half-Blood) and Lux Series (Obsidian) under the name Jennifer L. Armentrout.

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That Boy by Jillian Dodd

Title:  That Boy

Author: Jillian Dodd

My Rating: 5 Stars

Purchase for Amazon Kindle

 

 

Summary (from Amazon.com):

You know, being friends with two cute boys does have its benefits.

There's Danny. Danny is a golden boy in every way. He has dreamy blue eyes and blonde hair that always looks perfect, even when it’s windblown or been stuck under a football helmet. He’s the boy every girl crushes on. The boy I get into trouble with, the boy I fight with, the hot quarterback no girl can resist, not even me. Being with Danny is like being on an adventure. He has a bright, contagious smile and abs to die for. He’s pretty much irresistible.

Equally crush worthy is Phillip. Adorable, sweet Phillip, who I have known since birth.  Phillip has dark hair, a perfect smile, brown eyes, and the sexiest voice I have ever heard. He’s the boy I talk to every night before I go to sleep. The boy who rescues me, the boy who can read my mind, the boy who is always there for me, the boy who tries to keep me out of trouble, the boy who irritatingly keeps getting hotter, and whose strong arms always seem to find their way around me.  And when he gives me that grin, I can never say no.

One boy will give me my very first kiss.
One boy will teach me to make out.
One boy will take me to prom.
And finally, one boy will ask me to marry him.
They will both be my best friends.
But only one of them will be the boy I fall in love with.
Only one of them is That Boy.

My Review:

Never judge a book by the cover.  That statement applies in full force with this book.  I probably would never have picked it up had it not been recommended to me by fellow readers. But I do have to say, that after reading the book and seeing the little doodles throughout, the cover is fitting.  I loved the doodles by the way, especially the "chicken shittedness" one!

I loved the voice in this book.  It was not perfect, choppy at times...well, maybe choppy isn't the right word.  No it was more like getting sidetracked and going off on a tangent, sort of how your brain works as thoughts run through your head...sort of like I am right now.  Anyway,getting back on track, it was like we were right inside JJ's head, hearing her thoughts as she had them.  Again, I loved it because I was able to relate since it was almost like reading my own thoughts.

JJ is a riot, with 2 male best friends, both of whom are hot - gosh I'm jealous!  She had me laughing throughout the book and then there are times when it was like BAM, and I find myself bawling my eyes out.  WTF!  How does she do that?  But in the end, there was a happy ending and that made me happy.

Wow, I don't know if any of that made any sense, I think my mind is still mush from staying up too late reading.  In summary a perfect, non stressful love triangle + hot guys + laughter + crying + staying up late to read and being a walking zombie the next day = this book earning 5 stars from me.  Can't wait to read That Wedding!

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Man Abs, CJ West, and Free books...Oh My!

Man Abs, CJ West, Free books, $500 Amazon gift card...do I have you curious yet?  Well, keep reading then!

My friend, Author Jillian Dodd, recently met author CJ West. Aside from writing great books, she couldn’t help but notice that he was pretty darn cute. (Check out the picture, I would have to agree with her.) So she politely inquired about the possibility of him appearing on one of her MANday blog posts. (Actually, I beleive her exact words were "Do you have good abs?") After a little help from some of her female author friends, they convinced him (okay, bribed him) into agreeing.

So here’s the deal:

If we can get 5,000 people to comment on his website, he will be featured on MANday! In case you have never seen a MANday post, feast your eyes on this and this. (Be sure to wipe the drool from your face and keyboard and come right back here!!)

First, we need to get those 5,000 comments, so head on over to CJ's blog and leave a comment of encouragement letting him know that we do indeed want to see those abs.  (I hear he is doing some heavy duty workouts to prepare.)  If we reach our goal, not only will he pose for MANday, but one lucky winner will get a $500 Amazon gift card.

Click here to go leave your comment

(But again, come right back because there are more prizes!)

Second, to thank you for helping, one person from my blog will get a prize package of 11 free ebooks by both CJ West and Jillian Dodd, as well as some of their friends. The books included are:

1. That Boy  by Jillian Dodd
2. That Wedding by Jillian Dodd
3. The End of Marking Time by CJ West
4. Sin And Vengeance by CJ West
5. Drawing Free by Elena Aitken
6. Devil Unknown a novella by Steena Holmes
7. Elemental Magic by Angela Wallace
8. Again by Diana Murdock
9. Telesa by Lani Wendt Young
10. Exiled by MR Merrick
11. The Bridge Club by Patricia Sands

You can enter to win that package by following the prompts below.  The more you do, the more chances you have at winning!

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An interview with Colleen Hoover

If you are connected to me in anyway socially, whether it be Facebook, Twitter, my blog, or even in real life  you probably know that I have been obsessed lately over the Slammed series by Colleen Hoover.  I have been recommending these books to everyone and anyone that will listen.

These books are the hot diggity! 
Off the Richter! 
The best thing since indoor plumbing!

As one of my friends stated in her review, "Slammed is one of those books that screws it up for ALL of the other books you read after it. Everything else seems to pale in comparison and your left wanting, needing, desiring something more and more and more. You keep picking up a new book here and there in the hopes that it will ignite your heart in the same way and it just doesn't."

But behind every great book is a great author and great describes Colleen Hoover to a T.  Not only is she a fantastic writer (a.k.a. the creator of swoon worthy Will Cooper) but she is super nice and super funny.

But I am a curious (nosey) person and I wanted to know more.  I went and did some Colleen Hoover research...ehem...stalking and found out that, although she loves to write, it is not her profession.  (At least not yet.  I predict that she will have so much success that she will be able to quit her job and write full time.)  She is married and has three boys...God help her having to live with all that testosterone!  She loves the Avett Brothers and Diet Pepsi, despises Nickelback, and it is rumored that she is a retired ninja.

But online stalking can only get me so far and I wanted to know the story behind Slammed and what inspired her to write such an addicting piece of literary art.  So I politely asked if I could interview her for my blog and she said yes!  *fist pump*  It probably has to do with that fact that she is just so darn nice but I kinda wonder if she secretly hopes I stop stalking her after this.  Sorry Colleen - you can't get rid of me that easily!

Me: What inspired you to write Slammed?
Colleen: It was a culmination of things, really.  It was December when I got the idea for it.  My 8 year old was in a community theater play and I would sit in the auditorium for a few hours each night, so I would read on my Kindle.  I was searching for a book one evening and wanted to read something about slam poetry.  I've always loved to watch slam poetry on YouTube, so I thought it would be cool to read about a character that slammed.  I couldn't find one.  I started thinking of ways I could incorporate it into a book and started making character notes that night.  I practically didn't stop writing until it was done.  I wrote all day every day (and night) for a month solid.

Me: What is your favorite part of Slammed?
Colleen: My favorite part of the book is probably the scene where Lake is avoiding talking to her mother and she's at Will's house cleaning. I love it when Will tries to calm her down and throws her in the shower.

Me: What was the hardest part to write? 
Collen: On an emotional aspect, I don't think any of it was hard to write.  I'm not a very emotional person, which may be why I was able to write an emotional book.  As far as the actual writing, I loved every second of it and never thought of it as 'hard' or 'work.'  It was a blast!

Me: How did you name your characters?
Colleen: Hmmm.  Layken would have been my daughter's name had I not had three boys. LOL.  Eddie was my fathers name.  I always thought Eddie would have been a cute name for a girl, but again I had all boys so I never got to use it.  Kel is actually a play on one of my own children's names, "Cale."  I was writing in Caulder's character and opened up a baby book, pointed to the page and it landed on Caulder.  I thought it was fitting, so I used it.  I've always loved the name "Will" so that was a given for him.  Gavin was actually the name of a young man who was in the community theater with my son.  He was sitting next to me when I was writing in his character, so I used his name.  Gavin's brother who was also in the play, Reece, got a name in Point of Retreat.  Their mother picks awesome names for her kids.  I should let her name all the characters in my next novel! ;)

Me: Was there a person in real life that inspired each of the characters?
Colleen: No, not really.  I didn't have anyone in mind while writing their characters.  Well...Kel is pretty much a spitting image of my son, "Cale."  Definitely marches to the beat of his own drum, but in the best way!  I actually got the idea for the snowman scene because my boys did that last winter!

Me: What are your favorite authors/books?
Colleen: Honestly, I don't read a whole lot at all.  In fact, until this month I've never even read a romance novel! lol.  I've got a few books going right now that people have been raving about.  I just finished Liz Reinhardt's "Double Clutch" and I've got Stephanie Campbell's "Grounding Quin" on my tbr pile.  Also on my tbr pile are Tammara Webber's "Between the lines" series and Laura Rede's "Darkride."   Unfortunately, my tbr pile just keeps getting bigger.  I'm trying to focus on my third book right now, so it's taking up all my free time.

Me: What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview? How would you answer that question?
Collen: I'd love to be asked this question. "Do you have anything to say to the readers?"

I would answer:

I...Freaking...Love...You!!!  I love the time you take to create such beautiful reviews.  I love the emails and Facebook messages explaining what the books mean to you.  I LOVE the reviews that were fashioned into slam poems themselves.  I love the way you spread the word about the books.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart!  I...freaking...love...you!!!



See, I told you she was nice!  Thanks Colleen for taking the time to answer my questions.

But this leaves me with one question.  My 10 yr old son loves Nickelback but there are lots of people, Colleen included, that don't like them.  I want to know where you stand.  Leave me a note in the comments and let me know if you are Yay or Nay for Nickelback.  Explanations are not necessary but if you care to share, I would be curious as to your reasons.

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