A New Chapter

 A new chapter has begun for this writer. This summer I started Seton Hill University's Writing Popular Fiction MFA program, and I've already made friends, met mentors & REAL witches! 

Yeah, this is definitely where I parked my car. It just took me a long time to find my keys. 

Now I'm off to write about witches, murder, curses & star-crossed Sapphic lovers. 

xo

B

Booktober Author Events

Booktober has arrived! Which means I'm getting ready for the following:

1) Exclusively reading horror novels the entire month (sorry The Fever. You'll have to wait till November Wyclef-style).
2) Eating my weight in fun size Twix.
3) Watching Hocus Pocus on ABC Family approximately 37 times.
4) Transforming into my true form a.k.a. Maleficent on the 31st (pictures to follow).
5) Not one, not two, but THREE upcoming author events!!!

That's right, kiddies. I will be attending three crazy exciting multi-YA author events this month!

Check out where I'll be on the list below. I can't wait to meet all of you and sign your copies of My Last Kiss...and show off my obligatory spooky manicures.

OCTOBER EVENTS

Books by the Banks

When
Saturday, October 11, 2014
10:00am - 4:00pm
Where
Duke Energy Convention Center 
525 Elm Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 
Details
Click here for more info and a list of all the authors attending this massive event!

Con-troll, YA! (Young Adult Lit Conference)

When
Saturday, October 18, 2014
10:30am - 2:00pm  
Where Adrian Public Library
143 E. Maumee St.
Adrian, MI 49221  
Details
Visit Con-Troll, YA's Tumblr for details on this FREE event!

YA Author Panel & Signing

When
Saturday, October 25, 2014
7:00pm
Where

Barnes & Noble

2800 S. Rochester Rd. 

Rochester Hills, MI 48307

Details  
Seven local Michigan authors will be signings their newest books, and discussing Teen topics and books at the Barnes & Noble on Rochester Road in Michigan.

Andrea Hannah - Of Scars and Stardust
Bethany Neal - My Last Kiss
Rebekah Purdy - The Winter People
Kate Bassett - Words and Their Meanings
David James - Between the Stars and Sky
M.G. Buehrlen - The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare
Carrie Harris - Demon Derby

This will be a perfect event for teens and adults alike, though the event itself will be geared for the teen audience with writerly questions about the writing process and books. If you're a teacher, bring your class!

B*

Guest Post on Jessica Brody's Unremembered Monday

We all have days we wish we could erase from our memories, right? Well, the fabulous Jessica Brody (author of Unremembered trilogy) has made a hobby out of collecting these cringe-worthy moments from other authors and posting them on her blog. And today is my turn.

Click here to see what I would choose to unremember if I could. (Get how that plays off Jessica's book title? She's so clever!)

Also fresh today, be sure to check out my interview at YA Series Insiders. I talk spin-off stories and Sour Patch Kids, naturally.
B*

Happy Book-o-ween!

October is by far and wide the best month of the year. Think about it, the weather is cooling down just enough that you can finally wear those cute boots you bought last year on end-of-season clearance, the trees turn beautiful colors, there's an earthy breeze in the air, and at the end of the month you get to dress up as the thing you wish you could be all year long but know people would judge you for. 'Cause let's face it, wearing a tiara and prom dress covered in [fake] blood to Target would not go over well. Re: image below.
 

(While this ”Prom Night” look was a hit at the party I attended last year, not so much at McD's drive-in.)

So, in honor of the best--and most fabulously haunted--month of the year, I've hunted down a spooktastic to-reads list to help everyone celebrate Book-o-ween.

1. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson - Monsters and ghouls not your thing? Spend All Hallows' Eve with a "normal" family that will creep you out so bad you'll be begging for a pack of werewolves to take you away.
2. The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin (Disclaimer: If you haven't read the first book in this trilogy, you'll have some creeptastic back reading to do.) An unreliable narrator. A hot boy with an accent. Psych wards. What's not to love?
3. Cryer’s Cross by Lisa McMann - This Slim Jim reads like a literary The Blair Witch Project. It's a slow burn, but the fire is blood-red hot in the end.
4. Warm Bodies by Issac Marion - If you saw this movie, forget everything you think you know. This book blew my brain right out of my head...in a good way.
5. Wicked Girls by Stephanie Hemphill - The only thing more wicked than a witch are a group of attention-starved girls in colonial Salem.
Bonus picture book pick: Zombelina by Kristyn Crow - Arabesques are a piece of cake when your leg comes off!

Happy reading...if you dare!
B*