Showing posts with label Young Adult. Show all posts

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THE REALITY MASTER (Vol.1) - A Surprise in Class - by @PMPillon #YA #SciFi #BookClub

Posted on Friday, July 4, 2014

A SURPRISE IN CLASS

 Joey kept the stone in his book bag, and now that he had it he was blasé about it, feeling none of the consternation that had preceded its acquisition; he didn’t get around to examining it and was starting to forget that he had it until several days later when he found himself in another spelling bee. Mr. Sheridan provided the words to spell and again Joey was one of just two students left in the competition when Mr. Sheridan again pronounced a word that made no sense to him, so he was forced to just guess, but guessed wrong. The other student spelled it correctly, and just like in the previous occasion, when Joey heard the word the second time he realized what it was and that he knew how to spell it. 

 He liked Mr. Sheridan, but this was the second time that his imperfect pronunciation caused Joey to lose a spelling bee. It was a déjà vu all over again that he sure didn’t need. Because this time the winner was headed for the all-school bee, Joey was incredulous and more frustrated than ever; he wanted to scream and tear his hair out. It seemed like nothing could go right for him, but just then, he heard a buzzing in his book bag. This surprised him because he was sure he had left his cell phone at home. He put his left hand into the bag and felt the stone vibrating like a cell phone. He feared it might have hatched into something dangerous, so he let it go immediately, then shone his pen light at it to see if it had changed in some way, but it looked the same as when he found it. He pushed it over with a pencil and saw that it was the same all the way around, so he finally it out with his right hand and was astonished to see on its face a detailed scene depiction on a split screen in full color. Then a larger screen appeared, hovering in front of him, showing on its left side himself, misspelling the word. On the right side, he was both hearing and spelling it correctly. Joey could differentiate the voices simultaneously on both sides of the split screen. He gawked at this impossible scene, and eventually a question mark appeared straddling both sides, signaling that Joey was to choose between the two outcomes.

 Joey sat and stared at this, speechless, in shock, as unable to react as he was when Frank’s rock came tumbling down the path straight at his head. At that very moment, a totally unexpected thought occurred to Joey: My mission starts now. This was too much for him. Not knowing what else to do, he shoved the stone back into his bag without responding to its apparent offer. When he looked up from the bag he expected to see the bewildered or even horrified faces of other students all staring at him, but instead he saw that the larger screen had disappeared and everyone, including teacher and students, was frozen in place, unmoving – like inanimate objects. Then they suddenly started to move again, but were seemingly unaware of what happened and were just sitting placidly, focused on the teacher. Only Frank, sitting right next to Joey, was staring at him – everyone else was clearly oblivious to this astounding event – and he whispered, “Jesus, Joey, you look spooked. Did you see a ghost, or what?”


His celestial companion was waiting for him
Precariously climbing a sea-side cliff near Big Sur, ten-year-old Joey Blake was as yet unaware that near his grasp was an object, so odd, mysterious and alien to earth that it would change his life forever and the lives of countless others in the next few astonishing days. Reaching up as far as he could for a handhold it was just there; it had subconsciously lured him, occupied his mind, and made him find it. It was like he was meant to see and discover this object of unimaginable power … the power to change reality.
Time travel and more

This young adult series of sci-fi fantasy novels begins with The Reality Master and continues through four other exciting and amazing stories about time travel and mysterious alien devices. Joey and the reader will face dangerous shadowy criminal organizations, agents of the NSA, bizarre travelers from other times and even renegade California bikers and scar-faced walking dead.
- Vol 1 The Reality Master
- Vol 2 Threat To The World
- Vol 3 Travel Beyond
- Vol 4 Missions Through Time
- Vol 5 The Return Home
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre – Science fiction, Fantasy, Young adult
Rating – G
More details about the author
Connect with PM Pillon on Facebook & Twitter

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#Excerpt from Rising Tide:Dark Innocence by Claudette Melanson @Bella623 #Paranormal #YA

Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2014

Later that night I stood in front of the mirror, fresh out of the shower, blow drying my hair.  I looked a bit closer, trying to see  something there that would possibly cause, perfect Katie Parker to wish she had my hair.  And cause her brother to take special note of it.  I realized, stunned for a moment, that it was different, somehow.  I’d always thought of my hair as ordinary.  It was a dark, unusual kind of brown, but I’d always been disappointed with its flat, lackluster look and straight texture.
Tonight, even under the subdued lighting in our bathroom, my hair shone with a new light.  I blinked and looked back, picking up a strand for close examination.  I turned the dryer off and ran my hand down the lock, amazed at how it felt glossy.  Dark highlights played across the surface as I twisted my head under the scant light.  And there just seemed to be more of it, as well.  I ran both hands up through, along the sides of my head.  It was so thick, thick and silky soft, like never before.  Or had I just never noticed?  Did Katie’s unexpected comment somehow wake me up to see things I’d never seen in myself before?  Impossible.  I didn’t remember my hair ever being like this, and even twisted to the side to get a glimpse of it falling toward my waist in waves more like my mother’s hair.
Smiling, I shrugged and turned the dryer back on, the logical part of my brain chalking the whole thing up to Caelyn purchasing some expensive, salon-brand shampoo that I hadn’t noticed in the shower.  Satisfied with my theory, I didn’t dare pull the shower curtain back to check.
CHOSEN AS ONE OF 400 FOR THE SECOND ROUND OF THE AMAZON BREAKTHROUGH NOVEL AWARD FOR 2014!!!
ARE YOU A FAN OF VAMPIRE ROMANCE?
Rising Tide will sink it’s teeth into you, keeping you awake into the wee hours of the night
Maura’s life just can’t get any worse…or can it?
Isolated and sheltered by her lonely mother, Maura’s never been the best at making friends. Unusually pale with a disease-like aversion to the sun, she seems to drive her classmates away, but why?
Even her own father deserted her, and her mother, before Maura was born. Bizarre physical changes her mother seems hell bent on ignoring, drive Maura to fear for her own life. And her luck just seems to get worse.
Life is about to become even more bewildering when her mother’s abrupt…and unexplained…decision to move a country away sets off a chain of events that will change Maura forever. A cruel prank turned deadly, the discovery of love and friendship….and its loss, as well as a web of her own mother’s lies, become obstacles in Maura’s desperate search for a truth she was never prepared to uncover.
Featured on one of the most popular health blogs on the internet as a giveaway!
Be sure to check out the blog on Maria Mind Body Health to win a free copy today! Go to Mariamindbodyhealth.com and check out the blog Chicken “Wild Rice” Soup for your chance to win!
Offered as a giveaway on Goodreads!
Head over to Goodreads for a chance to score a free copy today!
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Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre – YA Paranormal Romance
Rating – PG
More details about the author
Connect with Claudette Melanson on Facebook & Twitter

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@JR_Tague on 5 Things She Had Known Before Her First Book #YA #BookMarketing #PubTip

Posted on Friday, April 25, 2014

1) You always re-write the beginning pages.
Before I even had a plot for Leveling Up, I wrote the first two pages. They were basically Max introducing himself and telling the reader what he was about. When I finally had a story to go with those pages, I got a lot of positive feedback on them.
Then I went to a writer’s conference and learned in one of my first workshops that the first pages always get scrapped or re-written. I thought I’d be the exception. I’m a painfully slow, careful writer, which certainly has its drawbacks. But the positive of that is that I usually have a lot less editing to do later.
When I finished my first draft, I hired a developmental editor to help me get my story in shape for querying. And guess where we focused the majority of our efforts? ON THE OPENING. It was hard to admit that I wasn’t special. But it made sense. When you write the first few pages of your novel, you’re just starting to feel out your characters and settings. You’re just finding the story’s narrative voice. That makes those pages very important. And very special. But, as my editor pointed out, they were just for me. Once I had my narrator’s voice, I had it. I could use it to craft an opening that set up the proper expectations for the novel, and the work would be stronger for it.
2) Writing the middle is the hardest part and you’ll feel like giving up.
I was at about 30k words when I ran out of outline for my first novel. I knew from the beginning that Leveling Up was going to be a series, so I’d envisioned the first book as an introduction to my character and the issues he’d be struggling with throughout the series. Thing is, that’s not enough plot for an entire novel—even a shorter YA novel. I only had half a book and felt completely lost and discouraged. It was such a relief later when I learned that it’s a common problem amongst writers. Middles are just hard. But once you get past them, it gets easier again.
3) Trust your characters
I tend to spend a lot of time thinking about my characters and getting a vague, misty idea of what their stories are, before I ever start writing. So by the time I’m into the plot, I expect to have a good idea of who they are and what they’re all about. But often they surprise me. They want to do things I don’t expect from them. They have reactions and emotions I didn’t think they would. It almost feels like a betrayal at first. But I think it’s actually a great sign. It means they’re realistic.
4) Nobody wants to hear about your book while you’re writing it. But everyone wants to hear about how it’s doing once you’ve published it.
Hearing about another person’s work in progress, unless you’re an extremely good friend (which I’m fortunate enough to have), is super painful. Maybe not as bad as listening to someone’s weird-ass dream, but similar. Even once we’ve completed a draft, it’s difficult for most of us to come up with tag lines and an “elevator pitch” (one-sentence summation of the book). When we’re in the middle of a novel, it’s very hard to narrow it down. We’re too embroiled in the intricacies of the plot. Therefore I don’t blame anyone for not wanting to hear me yammer on about it.
It’s just that for me, that’s the exciting part—getting the story down. But once it’s published, it’s a real thing to other people. They are excited for you, and proud, and happy, and so supportive. And that’s when they want to know how it’s doing. Are sales good? Is feedback positive? What are you doing to promote it? Those are all extremely valid questions and they are coming from a good place. Buuuuut, I always want to answer that the book is done. I finished it years ago, in fact. I still love it and care about it and yes, of course I am trying to make sure it does well. But my head’s already in book two.
5) That it’s like having homework. Forever.
Writing isn’t a hobby; it’s a job. It was easier to lie about that when I was writing my first novel. Because any aspirations I had for it were kept secret, even from myself, for a long time. It was just something I was kind of working on, and I’d just see how it went.
But once I got serious about it, once I started thinking about the sequels and signing book deals, and coming up with other, unrelated series to write as well, that’s when I knew it had me. I was committed. There wouldn’t be just this one trilogy, there’d be other stories. There’d be other multi-book sagas to write. And before I knew it, it wasn’t a choice anymore. The stories had found me and I had to write them.


Max McKay gets a second chance at life when, after a bizarre accident on his sixteenth birthday, he is reanimated as a new breed of thinking, feeling zombie. To secure a spot for his eternal soul, Max must use his video game prowess as well as the guidance of Steve the Death God to make friends and grow up. As if all that weren’t hard enough, Max discovers that he’s not the only zombie in town. As he enlists the help of his new friends, Adam and Penny, to solve the mystery of their un-dead classmate, Max discovers that he must level up his life experience in order to survive the trials and terrors of the upcoming zombie apocalypse. And, even worse, high school.
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre – YA
Rating – PG
More details about the author
Connect with J R Tague on Facebook & Twitter

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Josh VanBrakle Says Read Your Writing Aloud #WriteTip #AmWriting #Fantasy

Posted on Saturday, April 19, 2014

Make Your Editing Sing: Read Your Writing Aloud

You’ve spent weeks, months, maybe even years drafting your novel. That’s great! You’ve overcome one of the biggest hurdles to publishing – getting your thoughts on paper. Now you’re faced with an even more immense task. You have to turn those raw thoughts into a cohesive narrative, a strong story that propels readers from one sentence to another with such force that they can’t stop. It’s time to edit.

If you’re like a lot of writers, the very idea of editing makes you cringe. You put your thoughts down the first time. Why go back and mess with that artistic expression? Like it or not, though, writing is about communicating, and odds are, your first draft won’t communicate your ideas as well as it could. Good authors follow the mantra of William Zinsser, one of America’s preeminent writing instructors: rewriting is the essence of writing.

But how do you do that? Part of it, of course, is knowing the rules of grammar and applying them to your manuscript. Search out those incorrect “theirs” and misplaced commas.

Those rules, however, are only part of the task. Correct grammar is vital, but it won’t make your book a page-turner. For that, you need flow. You need to turn your writing into music.
Don’t worry; you don’t have to become a composer to write a novel. Still, it helps to think of your writing like a piece of music. Music has a rhythm, a cadence that draws in the listener and propels them through the piece. Good conversation also has this quality. If you want readers to keep reading, your writing needs it too.

When we pick up a piece of writing, even if we read silently, we still “hear” the words in our head. If you want to know how readers will hear your writing, read your work aloud.

Reading aloud during editing gains you some key advantages over reading silently. First, reading aloud forces you to slow down, so you’re better able to spot misspelled words and other typos. Second, you’ll be able to see if the pauses you’ve built in through punctuation make sense. Third, and most important, if your writing has any awkward sentences or poor transitions, you’ll pick up on them. They’ll sound wrong, like a missing note in a symphony.

Don’t just whisper your words either. Say them like you were talking to someone on the other side of the room. If you’re embarrassed that others might hear you, go to a room by yourself and shut the door, or read at night when everyone’s asleep. Whatever you have to do, find a way to hear your words, and then edit them relentlessly. You’ll know you’re done when you forget that the writing is yours and when, like your readers, you’re swept along on the music of your words.

The Wings of Dragons

From fantasy author Josh VanBrakle comes an epic new trilogy of friendship, betrayal, and explosive magic. Lefthanded teenager Iren Saitosan must uncover a forgotten history, confront monsters inspired by Japanese mythology, and master a serpentine dragon imprisoned inside a katana to stop a revenge one thousand years in the making.

Lodian culture declares lefthanded people dangerous and devil-spawned, and for Iren, the kingdom's only known Left, that's meant a life of social isolation. To pass the time and get a little attention, he plays pranks on the residents of Haldessa Castle. It's harmless fun, until one of his stunts nearly kills Lodia's charismatic heir to the throne. Now to avoid execution for his crime, Iren must join a covert team and assassinate a bandit lord. It's a suicide mission, and Iren's chances aren't helped when he learns that his new katana contains a dragon's spirit, one with a magic so powerful it can sink continents and transform Iren into a raging beast.

Adding to his problems, someone on Iren's team is plotting treason. When a former ally launches a brutal plan to avenge the Lefts, Iren finds himself trapped between competing loyalties. He needs to figure out who - and how - to trust, and the fates of two nations depend on his choice.

"A fast-paced adventure...led by a compelling cast of characters. Josh VanBrakle keeps the mysteries going." - ForeWord Reviews

Buy @ Amazon & Smashwords
Genre – YA epic fantasy
Rating – PG-13
More details about the author
Connect with Josh VanBrakle on Twitter

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Eileen Makysm on Writing & Family Life #Paranormal #NALit #AmReading

Posted on Tuesday, April 8, 2014


How do you write – laptop, pen, paper, in bed, at a desk?
I write on a laptop predominantly, although I also occasionally write in my journal (a spiral bound notebook).  My laptop is a relatively tiny Asus (my second…I loved my first so much that when it gave up the ghost I bought another one) that I can easily carry in my shoulder bag, because I prefer not to write at home!  Currently my favorite writing spot is Tuscaloosa’s sole Starbucks.  They know me here, and sometimes have my usual (grande iced coffee, breve with hazelnut) ready when I get to the register!
Where do you get support from? Do you have friends in the industry?
My friend and mentor Paul McComas has been my biggest supporter.  He’s been a writer for a long time (and manages to make a living off of his writing and teaching!) so he has a lot of contacts and time tested advice.  When I have a question concerning pretty much anything writing, publishing or marketing related, he’s who I turn to.
How much sleep do you need to be your best?
At least nine hours. I can function on less, but not much, and not for long.  My college days of running on three hours of sleep a night are long gone.
Is there anyone you’d like to acknowledge and thank for their support?
My husband, who has been steadfastly supportive of my work and has endured a lot of the drawbacks of living with a mercurial writer!  Paul McComas, my teacher, mentor and friend.  And all the writers along the way who have  read and critiqued my work and shared their work as well.
Every writer has their own idea of what a successful career in writing is, what does success in writing look like to you?
Success is continuing to work on and improve my craft, and sharing my work with others.  Of course, having a best seller and making a lot of money would be nice, too!
It is vital to get exposure and target the right readers for your writing, tell us about your marketing campaign?
We are primarily reaching out to YA fans who love a streak of horror in their paranormal.
Tell us about your new book? What’s it about and why did you write it?
Haunted is about three college friends -Steven, Tara, and Paul -  who have the ultimate extracurricular activity: chasing ghosts.  While investigating a haunted house, they’re confronted by a ghost that nobody expected, someone connected to Tara’s past, and find themselves in grave danger.
Haunted started off as a project for the 2006 National Novel Writing Month, which is a yearly event where writers of all ages and all levels of experience sign up to write a 50k word novel in the month of November.  I had participated before, but 2006 was the first year I reached the finish line!  I came up with Steven, Tara and Paul first, three bright and ambitious college students with a passion for the paranormal, and started writing, following where they led me.
When you are not writing, how do you like to relax?
I do lots of things!  I love to listen to music (I have eclectic tastes: Nick Cave, The Fantasticks, Tim Fite, Chopin…), play guitar, solve sudoku puzzles, knit…
Do you have any tips on how writers can relax?
Do something to quiet your brain!  Listen to music, do something manual and repetitive like knitting, or take a walk.

Tara Martin – exceptionally accomplished neurobiology major with a troubled past. Steven Trent – confident political science major with an irresistible attraction to Tara. Paul Stratton – history major who is able to hear spirits. Together, they make up the Society for Paranormal Researchers at their prestigious New England University. When they’re not in class or writing papers, the three friends are chasing their passion….ghosts.
When the group learns of a local retired couple trying to sell a house they claim is haunted, they decide to investigate. As the clues unfold, a familiar spirit interrupts their investigation and Tara finds her life in danger. Can her friends save her before it’s too late?
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre – YA paranormal, NA paranormal
Rating – PG-13
More details about the author
Connect with Eileen Maksym on Facebook & Twitter

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#Excerpt from Doubt (Among Us Trilogy) by Anne-Rae Vasquez @write2film #AmReading

Posted on Thursday, January 23, 2014

Excerpt:

COINCIDENCE? HARRY’S MOTHER always told him that there were no such things as coincidences. Only fools believed in that garbage.
This may explain her erratic behavior when his father, Aaron Doub, a respected quantum physicist, collapsed in front of them. A simple, impromptu, after-work dinner party, which his mother Bina was hosting at their home, had turned into an unforgettable nightmare.
His father’s last words were, “We have the theoretical and experimental capabilities to build a time machine to the future. We have also discovered a scientifically feasible way to go back into the past...”
He remembered how his father’s marble brown eyes bulged out of their sockets; his mouth opened as if to finish the sentence. Then, in slow motion, Aaron fell forward, his face landing into the pile of whipped mashed potatoes on his plate in front of him. The glaring bald spot, which Aaron meticulously polished and combed over every morning, was all that Harry could see from his end of the table.
What would Dad do if he had built his time machine earlier? Would he be here right now?
Harry glanced over his shoulder wondering if there was the slightest possibility that an ‘Aaron Doub from the past’ was standing in the shadows, observing the circus freak show unfolding at this particular point in time.
His father’s colleague, Dr. Saeed Nariman, also a quantum physicist, lifted his father’s head from the plate while another guest helped wipe the mashed potatoes from his father’s face. They both lifted his father and placed him on the floor. In a daze, Harry stood up and walked towards his father’s inert body.
His mother was on the other side, waving her arms in the air, and wailing at the top of her lungs, “They killed him! They killed him!” she cried.
Who killed him? Harry thought.
Thankfully, a wife of one of his father’s colleagues came and guided his mother away. Harry stood motionless, watching in awe as Dr. Saeed placed his mouth on his father’s lips. Aaron’s chest rose up and down with every breath Dr. Saeed blew into his mouth.
Dr. Saeed glanced up at Harry and glared at him, saying, “Don’t just stand there, Harry! Call 9-1-1!”
DoubtAmongUs

Do you love shows like J.J. Abrams' Fringe and read books like Cassandra Clare's City of Bones?
"Doubt" mashes fringe science, corporate espionage and paranormal encounters to catapult you into an out-of-this-world experience.
At 21 years old, Harry and Cristal are fresh out of university with their PhD's. Labeled all their lives as being 'weird' and 'geeky', they find true friendships with other outcasts by playing online virtual reality games.
Harry Doubt, a genius programmer and creator of the popular online game 'Truth Seekers', has a personal mission of his own; to find his mother who went mysteriously missing while volunteering on a peacekeeping mission in Palestine. His gaming friends and followers inadvertently join in helping him find her; believing that they are on missions to find out what has happened to their own missing loved ones. During Harry's missions, Cristal and the team of 'Truth Seekers' stumble upon things that make them doubt the reality of their own lives. As they get closer to the truth, they realize that there are spiritual forces among them both good and evil, but in learning this, they activate a chain of events that start the beginning of the 'end of the world' as they know it.
Doubt is Book 1 of the Among Us Trilogy. Among Us is a book series which delves into the world of the supernatural and how it intersects with the everyday lives of seemingly ordinary young people as catastrophic events on earth lead to the end of times. Among Us weaves the theme of a young man and woman, who while not fully understanding their 'abilities', are drawn together in their desire to find out the truth about the world they live in which is similar to themes used in J.J. Abrams' TV shows Fringe and Lost.

What readers have to say...
As a big fan of the show Fringe, this book appealed to me tremendously. The writing was well done, and the way the "supernatural" forces were introduced was great.
A good, clean read for any age.
It was an excellent story that I'm sure both adult and teen urban fantasy fans will enjoy.
You don't have to be a gamer or know one to identify with the characters. They're very well developed and definitely feel like people. I would definitely recommend it to a friend and I'm really looking forward to the second book.
...the novel is written in such a languid style, it moves on effortlessly and absorbs the reader into the story completely. Although the story itself revolves around the online gaming industry, one does not have to have an in depth knowledge as it is ably explained and discussed within the plot line. OMGosh! I just finished reading "Doubt" INCREDIBLE! I couldn't put it down.
˃˃˃ >>> Depth and Substance mashed up with Fringe Science. Will entertain young and old alike.
This book is intended for mature young adults and new adults. Ages 16 to 45 +

˃˃˃ >>Inspired by real Truth Seekers Aaron Swartz and Harry Fear

The main character Harry Doubt was inspired by Aaron Swartz, internet prodigy and activist, co-founder of the Creative Commons and Reddit, and Harry Fear, journalist, documentary filmmaker and activist whose coverage of the conflict in the Middle East was seen on UStream by millions of viewers.

Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - Young Adult, Paranormal, Science Fiction, Thriller
Rating – G
More details about the author
Connect with Anne-Rae Vasquez on Facebook & Twitter
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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#MustRead #YA Steps Into Darkness (A Shakertown Adventure) by Ben Woodard @benswoodard

Posted on Saturday, January 18, 2014

StepIntoDarkness

Explosions, sabotage, caves, deadly warnings and a dangerous red-haired man.

Imagine The Hardy Boys meet Tom Sawyer. Add a layer of teen angst and excitement plus a mysterious group trying to stop a new dam while stirring up racial tensions.
That’s STEPS INTO DARKNESS, the next book in the Shakertown Adventure Series by Ben Woodard.

Fourteen-year-old Tom Wallace again makes plans to escape the small town in the 1923 Kentucky countryside. The town that won’t let him forget his past, when a horrific event changes his mind. He teams with his cousin Will and young FBI agent Rick Sweeney to try to solve a perplexing mystery. Attempts on the boys’ lives and a bewildering list of suspects keep them on edge and confused. An old man gives them a clue that leads to a false accusation and embarrassment until they discover the real villain, and then wish they hadn’t.

STEPS INTO DARKNESS is a fun, page-turning thriller with a hint of romance that delivers adventure and mystery while exploring the fears of a teen living with a frightful memory.

Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - YA/Mystery
Rating – PG – 13
More details about the author
Connect with Ben Woodard on Facebook and Twitter