Find the Lie (I Dare You)

We have a winner--and another chance to play and win!

Writerly Wednesdays here are dedicated to writers and readers. If you've published anything for Young Adults with a fantastic twist (fantasy in all varieties, paranormal, speculative fiction, horror, sci-fi, dystopian, cheese, etc.), shoot me an email (crystal AT crystal-collier DOT com). I'll be shouting about awesome books, sharing new covers, or participating in book releases every week--and I'd love to share yours. Spots are filling up quick, so schedule a date now. 

Before the fun, let's announce the winner for last week. G.R. Holton shared with us Dragon's Bow and offered a signed book of the winner's choice off his website. He told us two truths and one lie about himself, and those who guessed correctly were entered into a random drawing to win. The options were:

1. G.R. used to deliver balloons as Big Bird and Mickey Mouse.

2. G.R. owns two iguanas name Ziggy and Stardust.

3. Two of G.R.'s children have birthdays one day apart.

And, the lie is: 

#2. G.R. does not own a pair of well-named iguanas. 

Nicely played, G.R.! Way to go those of you who guessed right! You are officially human lie detectors. And the winner is: 

...DRUM ROLL...

Connie Keller! 

I guess that whole "Tennessee" thing was meant to be. Congrats Connie!

Today's amazing feature is:

She's the reason the devil never sleeps.

A year after her parents’ death, seventeen-year-old, Meadow Parker is close to having a grave of her own.

Beyond her shrink’s false diagnosis of PTSD, there’s no medical reason for her failing health. Only she knows the cause. But if Meadow told the truth—told them what comes for her at night—they’d lock her in a padded cell.

Seeking an end to her torment, Meadow agrees to visit the supernatural landmark her parents were obsessed with—the river that fuels her fears. On arrival, she's charged with an ancient power, and her destiny as the long awaited Keeper is sealed. Now the countdown to save the world and the battle for her soul begins.

Now shall we meet the author?

When Celeste Holloway isn’t writing, she might be found snuggled up, kid on one side, cat on the other, trying to read a book. She’s a non-recovering perfume addict living a small town life in Arkansas, but dreams of world travel. If she ever gets rich and famous, her first stop is Rome. A former hairstylist, she recently tossed her scissors to embark on a career as a fulltime writer. If you’d like to learn more about Celeste, visit her blog, Words Done Write or send her a friend request on Facebook. 

She is addicted to Philadelphia Cream Cheese, and can be found hiding behind her fridge, indugling when she should be cooking dinner. 

You can find her amazing book HERE. (And you should, you really should.)

And now for the fun! *rubbing hands*

Celeste 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 Sebastian Falls. How cool is that? You have until Tuesday, August 13th at 1 p.m. to guess--and be sure to come back for the answer on August 14th!

TRUTH OR LIE

1. Celeste is an avid fisher and hunter.

2. She grew up playing in the graveyard next door.

3. Celeste is scared of crows. 

Okay human lie detectors, which is it? 

(Oh, and check out Mary Waibel's cover reveal from yesterday! Talk about stellar.)

New Orleans, and the "Great Camera Theft"

Who out there has visited New Orleans?

I LOVE historic cities. I could sit in one, people watch and imagine for months with nothing else to do. So, as we planned to head across country to visit family (Florida to Utah), we decided to make it a road trip and take a special stop each day. The first evening landed us in New Orleans.

Wow. Talk about beautiful. Our hotel room was in the historic French Quarter, and the floorboards were uneven beneath carpet, the doorways arched, and the elevator just large enough for my 5 person family to squeeze in. B-E-A-U-tiful. I was a snap-happy tourist, documenting every little detail--from the windows in our hotel room (the kids loved sitting on the carpet in front of them and watching the pedestrians below,) to the street performers and the historic chapel. Contrast that with the cross dresser I met, and even the devil on the corner of Bourbon street--literally--tail, horns, full length red suit. (The kids stayed in the hotel for that little exploration.)

My oldest is taking creative photography, so about the time we stopped to get world-famous biegnets (they can't top the ones at Grand Lux Cafe), I turned the camera over to him. He pretty much ran the batteries dry, and then the fatal moment we asked him to carry home our leftovers... He still swears someone lifted the camera off his shoulder. I think he left it on a bench and walked away. It's not until we got to the hotel he said anything, and by then, the camera was long gone. *sigh*

So no, these are not my pictures, but I did take some almost exactly the same, and what a fun visit! I could postulate for the next month about what became of our camera, and what a great story that would make.

Interesting discovery: They literally wash the streets of New Orleans with soap and water every morning. Yup. Giant trucks come down the streets to clean them between 6 and 8 a.m. (I don't think the 5 second rule applies to dropped food there.)

Decision: It was an interesting stop, but I'm SURE glad I don't live in a city where they feel obligated to scrub the road every morning.

Have you visited New Orleans? What's the most interesting/inspiring place you've ever been?

(P.S. Come back Wednesday for a chance to exercise your human-lie-detector skills and win a book, and next week for Roswell, New Mexico and the Alien invasion!) 

Be a Winner: Let Me Promote your Book

Image courtesy of  Jen Chan

We have a winner!!!

I LOVE bragging about friends books. Writerly Wednesdays here are dedicated to writers and readers. If you've published anything for Young Adults with a fantastic twist (fantasy in all varieties, paranormal, specultative ficiton, horror, sci-fi, dystopian, cheese, etc.), shoot me an email (crystal AT crystal-collier DOT com). I'll be shouting about an awesome books, sharing new covers, or participating in book releases every week--and I'd love to share yours. Spots are filling up quick, so schedule date now. 

Readers, pop back in for the chance to win stuff and learn about awesome reads.

This last Wednesday we played the truth or lie game about Catherine Stine, author of Ruby's Fire. (Check the book out--it's awesome!) Catherine told us two truths and one lie about herself, and those who guess correctly were entered into a random drawing for a free copy of her book. The options were:

1. Catherine sat next to Tom Petty on a first class plane ride to LA.

2. Her son's band played All Along the Watchtower with Eddie Vedder.

3. Buddy Guy invited her to a private bash.

We had some amazing guesses, and people who tore apart the facts, analyzing them. (We love you deep thinkers!) I wish we could smother all of you in cheese for participating, and we (both Catherine and I) had so much fun with this. 

So, the answer is: 

....DRUM ROLL...

#1. Catherine did not actually sit next to Tom Petty on a first class plane ride to LA. 

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

....DRUM ROLL...

Marcy! 

Congrats! Friends, I look forward to chatting at you all after my road trip. Writerly Wednesdays will continue on July 24th. Be sure to stop in then for another AWESOME book and chance to win. 

And now, out of curiosity, what is your favorite, secondary, and tertiary reading genres?