Guess the Lie, Win a Book

It's Writerly Wednesday! Yay!

And now, it's time to announce the winner of last week's game. Last week Carrie Butler shared two truths and one lie about herself and those who guessed the lie correctly were entered into a random drawing for a copy of her new release, Courage. 

The options were:

1. Over 50 exotic animals (lions, tigers, bears etc.) were once set loose on Carrie's hometown.
2. Her level 80 thief on Guild Wars 2 was named after a Firefly character.
3. To win a bet, she once hugged a stranger for thirty-seven minutes.

And the lie is: 

#3. She says hugging for her=epic fail. Want to read about the crazy crazy loosed on her hometown? Check it out HERE. And I, for one, am SUPER intrigued by anything related to Firefly. (BEST TV SERIES OF ALL TIME.) Ahem, so check it out... 

Way to guess those of you who got it right! You are officially human lie detectors. And the winner is: 

...DRUM ROLL...

Rachel Schieffelbein!!

Congrats, Rachel!

And now for this week's special feature...

When school let out for the summer of her last year in middle school, fourteen year old Janet Marley had no idea that her life was about to change forever. She was ready to run away. Her mother died when she was seven and she had raised herself because her father, Judge Jonathan Marley, was still grieving. As she set out that night, strange things were happening in the sleepy town of Willow Brook, Maine. It was undergoing a transformation; buildings were fading, the landscape was different, and she was feeling a tug towards the woods. Janet is catapulted into the seventeenth century and comes face to face with the ghost of one of her ancestors who was hung at the age of six, accused of being a witch during the Salem witch trials. Janet learns that if she doesn't remain in the past, she will not have a future.

You can pick up a copy HERE.

Ready to meet the author?

Willow Brook is Sherry Auger’s debut novel.  She has had short stories, fiction and non-fiction, published online and in children’s magazines.  Using her degrees in Biology and Chemistry she co-authored science workbooks for children who are home-schooled. She is a member of SCBWI, Society of Children Book Writers and Illustrators, Maine Writers and Publishers, and several online writers’ groups. Sherry lives in a small town in Maine with her husband, Richard. Her mother, and a spoiled Maine Coon cat came to live with them a few years ago. She has two grown children with children of their own.

You can find her munching string cheese pretty much anywhere...minus the bathroom.

Sherry gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. Can you figure out the lie? Those who do will go into my magic hat for a chance to win one paper copy or one eBook of Willow Brook. Eek! How cool is that? She's also offering 5 bookmarks to people who guess right, so get your guesses in now! That's right: 7 prizes and 7 chances to win! You have until Tuesday, November 5th at 1 p.m. to guess--and be sure to come back for the answer on November 6th and to view the winners.

TRUTH OR LIE

1. Every book Sherry reads, she reads on her kindle.
2. She wrote Willow Brook in 30 days and took 3 years to edit it.
3. She researched a topic for a year before starting her WIP adult novel. 

Okay human lie detectors, which is the lie? 

It's time for Writerly Wednesday! Yay!

Writerly Wednesdays here are dedicated to readers and writers. If you've published anything for Young Adults, check out the tab up there.

And now, it's time to announce the winner of last week's game. Last week The Prosers shared two truths and one lie about the process of writing their collaborative book. Those who guessed the lie correctly were entered into a random drawing for a copy Alchemy. 

The options were:

1. These three authors have written over 8000 facebook messages to each other about this book.
2. They mailed the original chapters to each other the old-fashioned way--via snail mail.
3. The school originally had a different name of a real institution for rich, troubled youth, a name they totally fell in love with--but had to change so they wouldn't get sued.

And the lie is: 

#2, they did mail the chapters to each other for a while, but eventually that became way too difficult, and they switched to doing it the regular way--via the computer.

Way to guess those of you who got it right! You are officially human lie detectors. And the winner is: 

...DRUM ROLL...

Milo James Fowler!!

Congrats, Milo!

And now for this week's special feature...

Rena Collins never thought she’d long for the past—back when affection from Wallace, her freakishly strong boyfriend, was the most dangerous aspect of her life. But now that the human-altering organization known as ERA has gone on the offensive, nothing is safe. Her bloodline is exposed, her relationships torn apart, and just when it seems like things can’t get any worse, ERA ups the ante. To save mankind from forced evolution, Rena will have to mend her broken ties and form a resistance... hand-in-hand with the one she hurt most.

This book was released LAST WEEK, and I for one can't wait to read it. Carrie is a fabulous author!

So who wants to meet her?

Carrie Butler daydreamed her way through college—until they thrust a marketing degree into her hands, slapped a summa cum laude seal on the corner, and booted her out into a less-than-stellar job market. Instead of panicking at the prospect of unemployment, she used her Midwestern logic to steer into the skid and point her life in the direction she really wanted to go: writing out those daydreams.

Her passion for New Adult fiction led her to co-found NA Alley—a widely recognized informational hub for the category. She is the author of STRENGTH (Mark of Nexus #1) and COURAGE (Mark of Nexus #2).

Carrie gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. Can you figure out the lie? Those who do will go into my magic hat for a chance to win an ecopy of COURAGE. Eek! How cool is that? You have until Tuesday, October 22nd at 1 p.m. to guess--and be sure to come back for the answer on October 23rd and to view the winner!

TRUTH OR LIE

1. Over 50 exotic animals (lions, tigers, bears etc.) were once set loose on Carrie's hometown.
2. Her level 80 thief on Guild Wars 2 was named after a Firefly character.
3. To win a bet, she once hugged a stranger for thirty-seven minutes. 

Okay human lie detectors, which is the lie? 

AND today you have one more chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

It Takes Courage

...to be different. (And I'm not talking about something like, "Dude, bet you've never seen this before. Check it out, toenail ring!") I'm talking a lifestyle or set of morals that the world may label as "lame", or "outdated". Who are they to judge? And while we're talking about this mysterious "they", who is that anyway?

One of my favorite WIP's (Work In Progress) is about a teen who's grown up in the "projects", or slums of New York City. While living in the city, I was astonished by the culture of government dependence and generational poverty. It was almost impossible for these people to see beyond their Section 8 housing and Foodstamps, to realize there was a better world out there--one where they didn't have to live in cockroach infested/frequently-flooding apartments, one where they could obtain gainful employment, one where the value of life wasn't dictated by power companies who would turn off your power in the middle of a heatwave, but by your own determination to excel. The problem was, most people got stuck in the city because it was too expensive to get out. My heart ached for them. Didn't they understand there was a better world out there?

There were, however, a handful of individuals who caught a glimpse. These were the hope of the future, the ones who would break the cycle of poverty against formidable odds, the ones who would become something.

My main character, Alaska (aka Ally), is one such individual who has lived through the grime. She's a fighter whose sights are set on a better life--not just for herself, but for her mom and little brother. She lives a strict moral code that her friends don't understand, one she created because of the people around her--to avoid some of the pitfalls they succumbed to, things that would keep her from her ultimate goal. She's different, weird, and sticks out. I adore Ally because of her courage. She's my hero.

For years we've been home schooling. Some people understand our reasons, but others turn their noses up and scoff. How dare we flout societal expectation and do our own thing? Don't we realize we're handicapping our children by keeping them out of the "cookie-cutter" school system? Don't we realize how socially damaged our kids will be from learning in a loving environment with educators who's most important goal is their success? Don't we know that sheltering our children from damaging influences will ultimately make for morally-different and confident people? Don't we know that no kid should be mature enough or educated well enough to graduate High School by the age of 14? I mean, how dare we!

My point is this:

People will tell you your work isn't good enough. They'll say you're going about it the wrong way. They'll insist that you have to follow a formula and do things by a predetermined method. If you don't do things their way, they'll tell you you're strange, or stupid, or wrong. The truth is, as long as you get the result you want, does it matter how you got there?

Courage, friends. Don't be discouraged by the voices out there. Do your best, and don't be afraid to go against the "norm".