The time it was all bookish mail -- 4

It's time for another episode of Look What I Got in the Mail!

Do we all know my undying love and devotion for Tamara Ireland Stone? Yes, I drove up to San Francisco for the Time Between Us launch party. Annnnd since then, I've been simultaneously pushing Time Between Us on every single person I know and fangirling all over Tamara as much as I could without getting a restraining order.

Flash forward a bit.  Tamara had a giveaway for an Italian copy with a super hot cover.  That super hot cover had a shirtless version of my boyfriend, Bennett.  So, it goes without saying that I entered the contest.  Alas, I didn't win. 

A week or so after the giveaway was over, Tamara DM'd me and asked for my mailing address, that she had a present for me.  I had no idea what it was. When I got this, my head almost exploded...

Perhaps you've seen Elizabeth Richards talking about her love of owls.  I sent her a package of owl post-it notes.  Then I found some owl bookmarks.  Before I sent the bookmarks, I asked Elizabeth if I could include my copy of Phoenix to have signed.  And she's so amazing, she agreed! Check out my owl!!

It's unfortunate that I haven't met Elizabeth yet, but Penguin better will send her to SoCal eventually.

After reading Spies & Prejudice, I emailed Talia Vance and asked for an interview. After flailing about like a lunatic, of course. Not only did Talia take the time to answer my fangirling questions, she donated a giveaway copy for the giveaway. AND a personalized copy for me! 

I will have to meet her eventually because I need to get it in writing that Tanner is mine.  Never fear, I have a saved tweet.  Don't be thinking that he's up for grabs, he is most definitely not.

You might remember that I tried seeing Gennifer Albin at Festival of Books this year, but it didn't happen due to a scheduling mishap.  I was absolutely bummed out that we had already left the parking structure when Gennifer tweeted me back and said she'd be happy to meet up somewhere. 

Thankfully, Gennifer was joining part of the Pitch Dark Days tour and Jenn was going to one of the stops.  She offered to take my books with her, so I sent them off.

 

When I saw that Neil Gaiman was touring, I tried to get tickets to see him.  Unfortunately, I heard about it too late and tickets were already sold out.  Thankfully, the awesome staff at Changing Hands bookstore had a mail order option.  I am beyond thrilled to add Neil to my collection.

Who is a spoiled brat?!? It's meeeeeeee!!

What books have you gotten lately?

The time it was about Ash & Natalie

I got my hands on an arc of  Black City and instantly fell in love with the story and the charactes [Ash? *swoooon*].  Thankfully, I was able to get my hands on an arc of Phoenix as well. After begging asking Elizabeth for ownership of Ash [which I share with Fiona Paul], I also asked her for an interview and she was more than willing!

But before we get to the Q&A, let's look at Phoenix.



Weeks after his crucifixion and rebirth as Phoenix, Ash Fisher believes his troubles are far behind him. He and Natalie are engaged and life seems good. But his happiness is short-lived when he receives a threatening visit from Purian Rose, who gives Ash an ultimatum: vote in favor of Rose’s Law permanently relegating Darklings to the wrong side of the wall or Natalie will be killed.

The decision seems obvious to Ash; he must save Natalie. But when Ash learns about The Tenth, a new and deadly concentration camp where the Darklings would be sent, the choice doesn’t seem so simple. Unable to ignore his conscience, Ash votes against Rose’s Law, signing Natalie’s death warrant and putting a troubled nation back into the throes of bloody battle.

Sounds good, right?

1. Where did you get the idea for Black City?

 

It all began with Ash. His character came to me one night, while I was watching a movie. I was fascinated by the idea of a drug-dealing, supernatural boy who gets a heartbeat when he meets his true love, so when the movie finished I grabbed my laptop and wrote the first scene. The idea of the Boundary Wall, which is very important to the story and world of Black City, came to me a little later. I started writing the book around the time of the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall coming down, and I kept thinking: what would it be like to live in a city divided, with all your family on one side and you on the other? Then, wouldn’t it be worse if the side you were stuck on happened to be with the very people who wanted to kill you? That where the idea of the wall came into place, and everything came together after that.

2. You have a lot of elements in your story: vampires, war, religious cult-like people, a disease and just general unease among the townspeople. Did you plan on all of it or did it come while building the world?
 

It came together organically while building the world. There are a lot of elements, but I’ve always preferred stories with plenty of things going on, as they keep me guessing! I never know what to expect. I like to be surprised. Also, although there is a paranormal aspect to the book, I think putting it in a dystopian setting and addressing issues that are relevant in today’s society, as well as from our recent history, grounds the characters / story in reality more, and makes the Darklings more relatable.

3. You write in Ash and Natalie's POV. Which one is easier?

 

Ash’s POV was easier to write in Black City, because his character came to me fully formed before I started writing the story, while Natalie took longer to work out. She slowly revealed herself to me (not in the sex way. Get your mind out of the gutter, Stacee ;-p). However, I found Natalie very easy to write in the subsequent two books. I really love her. She grows up a lot in the series.    

4. The endings in both Black City and Phoenix were [in my opinion] shocking. Without spoiling anything, did you plan those sorts of endings or did it just happen?

 

I planned them. I'm a bit of a pantser when it comes to plotting books (shh, don't tell my editor), but I always know the ending. I like to shock readers, but not just that, I like to surprise my characters and keep them on their toes. I don't ever want then to feel safe. Anything can happen to them at any moment. They always look at me with a wary eye, especially if I'm in a bad mood.

 

5. Will there be kissing in book 3?
 

Oh yes! There will be lots of kissing in book 3!

Speed [ish] Round:

1. What's your go to guilty pleasure thing to eat?

 

I love Belgium Buns, particularly the super naughty kind with whipped cream and lemon curd in them. Om noms. They’re really tasty and also make me giggle, because they look like boobies.

2. What are you reading right now?

 

I’m reading Shades of Earth by Beth Revis, the last book in the Across the Universe trilogy. It’s awesome. I’m a huge fan of Beth and the series.

3. Who are your favorite swoony boys?

Oooh, at the moment it would be Four (Divergent), Elder (Across the Universe) and Falco (Venom). So, so dreamy.

4. Are there any authors that you fangirl over?

Definitely! JK Rowling, Suzanne Collins, Veronica Roth, Beth Revis, Stephen Fry, Anthony Horowitz, and Marissa Meyer.

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Huge thanks to Elizabeth for taking the time [and giving me Ash!!].

Find her on her blog, Facebook and Twitter accounts. And go add all of the books on GoodReads!!

Now.  To celebrate the book birthday of Phoenix, I'm giving away a hardcover copy of Black City and some signed bookmarks!

Rules for the giveaway are listed under the "terms and conditions" on the Rafflecopter widget.

**Good Luck!!**

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The time it was all bookish mail -- 2

Book mail is the best mail and this post is all about signed things I've recently received!

When the Breathless Reads tour was announced, I knew I would be ordering books for the authors who were on the east coast.  I had been talking with Fiona Paul and Elizabeth Richards a lot on Twitter and those conversations led to what could be the greatest inscriptions I've ever gotten.

With Fiona, we talked about our mutual love of The Crow.  We may or may not have quoted lines to each other a few times.  When it came to my order of Venom, she told me that if her signing line was slow, she would fill her time with writing quotes from The Crow all over my book.  I said I was expecting it. 

With Elizabeth, I had just finished Phoenix and in my flails, I may have begged asked for Ash. Fiona jumped into the conversation by saying that we had to share him, and I could only have him a few days a week.

And when I opened my books, I almost died...

 

At the same signing, I was able to get Shades of Earth by Beth Revis. I met Beth last year on the Breathless Reads tour and while I'm bummed I didn't get to see her, I'm happy to complete the signed series. And I can't wait to see how this trilogy ends!!

Kimbery Derting and Lisa Schroeder did a signing at Powell's in Oregon and thankfully, Jennifer was willing to get some things signed for me. I am super excited to see what happens in The Essence and I'm thrilled to have another author to cross off the list of the Dear Bully contributors. 

  

When the Dark Days tour was broken into two different legs, Jennifer and I split them up so we could have signed copies from all of the authors.

Jennifer got me things from Lauren Oliver, Dan Wells and Claudia Grey...

  

And then at another event, Jennifer also got me a copy of Scarlet by Marissa Meyer.

Who's a spoiled brat? Oh yah.  It's me!

The time I was a host

So, I feel like we all know by now how I love Fiona Paul, yes? Well, did you know Fiona's name isn't really Fiona, but it's Paula? Once upon a time, the lovely and talented Paula asked to borrow my blog for a blog hop she had been tagged in.  And of course I said yes....

Check out the interview questions below and all of the information about Paula's awesome contemporary YA books that are coming out!!

Without further ado, heeeeeeeeere's Paula!!

 

The Next Big Thing Blog Hop

 

The Next Big Thing blog hop is a chance for authors around the world to tell you what they’re working on. The author answers ten questions about their next book, and tags the person who first tagged them, plus two other authors.

I was tagged by the lovely Kristi Helvig. Read about her Next BigThing here.

Some of you guys know me as my historical YA pen name, but I’m working on getting the word out about my contemporary YA books written under my real name—Paula Stokes. So far, the lovely people at HarperTeen have bought a contemporary romance and a dark and twisty psychological thriller. Since my new blog is still under construction, I asked my awesome twitter-friend Stacee-e-e-e if I could take over her blog for just one day.

Here’s me wrestling a fake crocodile:

 

 Here’s me petting a real tiger:

 

As you can see, my life has been pretty fun so far.  And the fact that I'm here telling you about my 4th novel? Yeah, that's the stuff dreams are made of.

1. What is the title of your work in progress?

The Art of Lainey. Check it out on Goodreads.

2.Where did the idea come from for the book?

Heh. This is super-lame, but I’m going to tell you the truth. A couple years ago, while I was seeing this awesome guy, I had to have bilateral foot surgery. I didn’t expect him to come over and help me do laundry or anything, but I was kind of hoping he might at least want to watch a movie or two while I was trapped alone in my apartment for five weeks. Mysteriously, he vanished and wouldn’t even return my texts. Depressed from being stuck inside and feeling like complete crap, I, of course, decided I must have done something wrong. Cue a mad google search about how to win back the affection of that guy who left. I didn’t find any answers, but I did find about a million other people who were just as hurt and confused as I was. Add in a copy of The Art of War and the ambience of my favorite coffee shop and you’ve got the setting, characters, and conflict.

3. What genre does your book fall under?

Young adult romantic comedy

4.Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Dude. Don’t laugh at me. Here’s what I recently realized—all of my male love interests turn into Taylor Lautner. Taylor with a mohawk.Taylor with a surfboard. Taylor with a glass eye and a couple of guns strapped to his body. I never even knew I liked him, but I guess I do. Saoirse Ronan would be great choice to play Lainey.

5. What is a one-sentence synopsis of the book?

A popular girl gets strategic to win back her boyfriend, but ends up winning a whole lot more.

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

My book is represented by my fabulous agent Jennifer Laughran, from the fabulous Andrea Brown Literary Agency. It will be published by HarperTeen in 2014.

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

About 3 months, and then another 3 months to revise.

8. What other books would you compare this story to in your genre?

I know it’s probably dangerous to compare my book to something as successful as Lola and the Boy Next Door, but I’m going to do it anyway, and here’s why: My agent read my MS and immediately compared it to Anna and the French Kiss. I hadn’t read any Steph Perkins and avoided doing so until after I turned in revisions and we went out on submission. Then I read Anna and Lola back-to-back and had a panic attack because there were so many similarities in voice, tone, and character. There was no way I was going to alter my voice, because, dude, I wrote 3 historicals in a ‘foreign’ voice and now I just gotta be me. But I did make revisions to plot and character elements because I didn’t want to feel like I had psychically plagiarized Steph Perkins.The collective unconscious…it’s a real thing.

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?

This question is best answered by the book’s dedication: To the city that raised me, the music that saved me, and the ones who got away.

10.What else about the book might pique the reader's interest?

The book is set in a fictional suburb of St. Louis, yet multiple people have described the various settings as jaw-dropping. Yeah, we got game here, but a lot of people don’t realize it. Also, unlike the standard YA novel, Lainey has 2 parents who are married and both actually doing parent-type things. They were inspired by the parents from the movie Easy A and I really think they add to the story. I dunno guys, I just love this book. It doesn’t have five shocking twists and a bunch of death-defying action scenes, but it’s fun and has heart.It also has a guy that manages to be cool and desirable without acting like a douchebag.# Win. All my crit partners fell in love with him. If only he were real.

Speaking of crit partners, I’m tagging my beta friend Elizabeth Richards  and my new twitter friend Christianna Marks so look for their Next Big Thing post in the next week.

In the meantime, follow me on twitter @pstokesbooks and check me out as part of the YA Valentines.

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Now you see how awesome she is regardless if she's Fiona or Paula, right?  Make sure to pick up Venom if you haven't already... Oh, and FYI: Belladonna is just as fantastic.