My book is here!!

It is hard to believe... but nearly two years after I signed the publishing contract... and nearly four years after I completed the first draft... and after more than two decades of dreaming about this moment... my debut novel is out in the world today!!

THE BEST WEEK THAT NEVER HAPPENED is a love story set in Hawaii, with a dash of mystery and magic, about living each day to the fullest. It is available as a print book, an ebook, and an audiobook -- wherever books are sold!

Amazon / IndieBound / Barnes & Noble / Target / Books-A-Million / Book Depository



ABOUT THE BOOK:

“This debut novel is captivating and moving. A dazzling, emotional story of love, loss, and living in the moment.”—Kirkus Reviews

After her parents’ bitter divorce, family vacations to the Big Island in Hawaii ceased. But across the miles, eighteen-year-old Tegan Rossi remains connected to local Kai Kapule, her best friend from childhood. Now, Tegan finds herself alone and confused about how she got to the Big Island. With no wallet, no cell phone, purse, or plane ticket, Tegan struggles to piece together what happened. She must have come to surprise-visit Kai. Right?

As the teens grow even closer, Tegan pushes aside her worries and gets swept away in the vacation of her dreams. But each morning, Tegan startles awake from nightmares that become more difficult to ignore. Something is eerily amiss. Why is there a strange gap in her memory? Why can’t she reach her parents or friends from home? And what’s with the mysterious hourglass tattoo over her heart? Kai promises to help Tegan figure out what is going on. But the answers they find only lead to more questions. As the week unfolds, Tegan will experience the magic of first love, the hope of second chances, and the bittersweet joy and grief of being human.



Due to COVID-19, I unfortunately had to postpone all my bookstore events... but the silver lining is that I am doing a virtual book launch that anyone can attend from the comfort of their homes around the world!

On Sunday, April 26th at 2pm PST I will go live on Facebook and YouTube!

For the livestream, I will have a book talk, reading, and Q&A that will be led by the young adult authors Tobie Easton & Jennieke Cohen.

Prizes will also be given out! There will be small prizes for those who participate in a trivia game that will be run in the comments (themed bookmark, postcard, and temporary tattoos!) There will also be some bigger prizes!

Please add the event to your calendar and invite anyone who might be interested!



There is even a book trailer! Special thanks to Demi Bernice Eslit & Bryan Murphy for their help with production.



It's also been really fun to connect with book bloggers and websites who have been kind enough to help spread the word about my book! Here is a sampling:

• Cover reveal & excerpt of The Best Week That Never Happened on The Nerd Daily
• Exclusive excerpt of The Best Week That Never Happened on Hypable
• Guest post on School Library Journal’s Teen Librarian Toolbox: Writing Our Way Through Grief
• Guest post on Novel Novice: The Day I Finished My Novel
• Interview with The YA Sh3lf
• Interview with The Indie View
• Interview on Mark Gottlieb Talks Books
• Interview with The Writer Librarian

This has truly been one of the best days of my life!! My heart is so full. I feel so supported and loved-- and in this time of social distancing, I feel connected to all of you! Thank you for your support of me and my dreams!

Guest Post by Lauren Bailey

Something Borrowed:
A Few Words on Originality in Creative Writing

by Lauren Bailey

Even the Bible, written over 2,000 years ago, proclaims it: there is nothing new under the sun. As writers one of the greatest challenges we face is the fear that we are unoriginal. A library that contained all the projects abandoned when its author feels derivative of another work would be the largest on Earth, larger even than the historical library at Alexandria.

The fear is not an irrational one, especially when critics praise new literature for its novelty — and given that post-modern literature tends to become stylistically inventive and at times even obscure, there seems to be a lot of pressure to bring constant innovation not only to the content but also to the form of literature.

Still, too many new authors are too easily discouraged by this originality "requirement," which is mostly imaginary and almost always misinterpreted.

Granted, writing any work of literature, be it poetry, short stories, novels, biographies, or anything in between, does demand some degree of creativity — you can't write anything if you don't have an idea. But the "requirement" ends there, at least in terms of sweeping innovation.

If you have an idea, you are already innovated enough to be original.

Anything you write will ultimately be influenced by other sources you've encountered throughout your life. It's inescapable. But that doesn't make your work unoriginal. And that's what authors need to remember at all times.

How many romance or fantasy novels do you think have been published? More than you could keep in your house, or even all the houses on your block, probably. Wuthering Heights was a romance novel, among many others dating even farther back in time. Yet new romance novels are written and published every day.

Are each of these works totally inspired and absolutely new? Absolutely not.

Take a more "sophisticated" example: Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections. Stripped of characterization and specific plot lines, The Corrections is a coming-of-age novel about families in the era of technology. Family plots and coming-of-age stories are as numerous as the stars.
The fact that someone else in history had written a story about families didn't stop Franzen, though, and critics are still praising it as one of the major works of American fiction in the last decade.

What distinguishes Franzen's novel from any other coming-of-age story? The answer is simple: Franzen. Ultimately the difference comes from the fact that Franzen and no one else wrote The Corrections. Only he could bring his particular insights, turns of phrase, dialects, plot twists, characters to the book in the way he did.

You aren't Jonathan Franzen, but when you write, you bring your own set of experiences to the table and tell stories differently than anyone else. Give the same writing prompt to 20 people and all of them will write a different story.

So the next time you are worried about your story being unoriginal or derivative, try to subdue the voice in your head that's saying that, and just write the story. You'll never know if it is original or not if you don't write it.

Bio: This guest post is contributed by Lauren Bailey, who regularly writes for accredited online colleges. She welcomes your comments via email: blauren99 @gmail.com.

Publication Opportunity: YA Anthology Looking for Historical Romances!

I received this Call for Submissions and wanted to pass it along in case any of you are interested in submitting... looks like a neat project!

FROM PUGALICIOUS PRESS:

We are looking for YA short stories to include in our first ebook anthology, titled Timeless!

If your short story is between 3000 and 7500 words and fits into the genre of YA historical romance with some twists, we want to read it. The story can include steampunk, fantasy, or adventure, as long as it includes some historical elements then we are interested in reading it.

• Submit the whole manuscript as a Word .doc file (no .docx) by March 30, 2012, with the subject heading: submission–YA anthology.

• Please include a bio, publishing credits if any, and a synopsis.

• Email: pugaliciouspress(at)gmail.com (replace (at) with @ in sending email)

• Website is http://pugaliciouspress.com/submissions/
  

Interview with Jennifer Probst

Yesterday, we featured an interview with young author Taylor Probst. Today, in Part 2 of our feature, we talk with Taylor's aunt Jennifer, who is a successful romance author. Welcome, Jennifer!

What would you like readers to know about you as an introduction?

I have always known I wanted to be a writer, and started spinning high school romance tales when I was a pre-teen. My journey has been filled with hard work, rejections, and seeing my dreams of being published come true. Along the way, I had my own happily-ever-after when I met my husband and had two beautiful boys. Now, the writing is a bit harder to accomplish, my life is chaotic, and my house is never clean, but it's so worth it!

You have been writing since you were a kid and have had much success as a writer yourself. How does it feel to now see your niece Taylor blossom as a writer?

Watching my niece create a story and see it develop into print is an amazing experience. She is like my daughter, and I am so proud of what she has accomplished. She's learned a lot about working hard and not giving up on what she wants. Watching someone you love grow into a beautiful young woman is a humbling experience.

How did you first get started writing?

I knew my whole life. When I was in sixth grade, we had to complete a career report and I did mine on being a writer. I wrote teen romances and read them to my friends, and passed them around school. It was only a matter of time before I began seriously submitting to publishers and honing my craft.

What is your writing process like? Do you write on a computer? In a spiral notebook?

I am only comfortable writing on the computer because I type an insane amount of words per minute, and my fingers can't keep up with my brain if I'm writing longhand. I don't have a set writing schedule -- with a hectic household I write any time I can squeeze in a moment.

I'm assuming that helping Taylor write and publish Buffy and The Carrot was a much different experience than when you write your novels. Can you talk about this a bit?

Absolutely. I have been published in the romance market and am comfortable with the environment. I never ventured into the children's market but after my boys were born, I thought I would try if I found a great story. Once Taylor told me the story of Buffy, I knew it was special. We sat together one morning in the diner over breakfast and we wrote out the story longhand on the back of a placemat -- she had only the verbal version at the time. Then we agreed we would try to get it published. She was involved in every step of the way: editing, deciding on illustrations and what she imagined Buffy looking like, the cover, etc.

Again, writing a book and publishing one is a very different experience. I sent out a few queries for the book but received rejections. I then contacted Strategic Publishing about their program and found it a perfect fit. They accepted the book and we all agreed to publish the book in a more non-traditional way. Then we needed an illustrator and my best friend's husband is a fantastic artist. He agreed to do the illustrations so I feel like the book is almost a family event.

What have you learned or been reminded of about writing from Taylor? 

The story is the most important. Tell a great story and the possiblities are endless. Marketing and agents and sales are important but she reminded me to go back to basics.

How do you get ideas for what you write?

Everywhere. I have a long commute to work so I do a lot of daydreaming. As a writer, I believe ideas lurk in every corner of the world -- it is our job to unearth them. Every conversation or encounter is the idea for a story. You just need to find the one that is interesting enough for you at the time. That will change as life progresses.

What is your biggest advice for young people reaching for their dreams?

Believe in yourself. If you have a dream, work hard and go after it. There will be a million people ready to tell you to give up -- rejection is everywhere. Dig deep and believe you can do it and the possibilities are endless. People used to pat my head and call my writing a "nice little hobby." I received tons of rejections but I dug deep and kept trying. Eventually, I found an editor who loved my voice. It's a long journey and it's hard, but if you do the work and don't give up, I believe you will get there.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Competition is fierce and the market changes on a dime. Write what you want. Write your dream -- the book you believe in and has to be written. If you can't sell it, write another one. I had to write five full length novels before I got published. It's the journey that is everything -- not the goal. Sure, it's wonderful being published but it's not the end of your career -- only the beginning.

Young adults need to be encouraged to love books and write what they want. We need to encourage them every step of the way.

Dallas, on a side note, you are an inspiration to many people out there and I really aprpeciate being able to be on your blog.

Happy writing, everyone!


Contact Jennifer:

• Website: http://www.jenniferprobst.com

• Blog: http://jenniferprobst.wordpress.com

• Order Buffy and the Carrot: http://www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/BuffyAndTheCarrot.html