Vote for Alivia in the YATR New Author of 2012 Poll!

The end of the year is only a few days away, you know what that means, right? 

Voting for all those awesome 2012 reads and their authors! 

So guess who may have been nominated for New Author of 2012? (/cough hack not subtle at all) 

Young Adult and Teen Readers have a whole bunch of polls going on for today, but the best one (in my opinion) is New Author of 2012! And since I started my career as a published author in January of 2012, I'm in. Holy crap, that feels like forever ago. 

Ahhh, getting off track. 

The polls for various nominations are running until tomorrow, but if you have a moment, click the link below and vote for Alivia Anders for YATR's New Author of 2012! 

Click here to go vote!

Thank you! <3 

Best of the Best! 2012's Top Reads

2013 is inching upon us! Which means two things:

1- Mayan's were wrong, we so didn't die. Well played Mayans, well played. (I'm seriously going to beat this Mayan-apocalypse-failure joke into the ground, I'm so sorry guys)
2- Time to share my favorite and top reads for 2012! (This is where the real fun begins, you know, sharing is caring and all that jazz)

I will admit, picking a top book for the following categories was hard, like, really freaking impossible hard. There are so many books this year I didn't get to read, so I couldn't count them, and there were quite a few blunders I read this year that took away time from the good books I could have been reading. Stab me with a sword and watch me bleed, why don't'cha. Sigh. But, I did manage to narrow it down from the small pile I did read (and silently promise myself to read more next year or the Book Gods will smite me with page paper cuts, ouch) and share them with all of you lovely peeps. 

Ready? It's time to share my favorites of 2012! 

TOP 2 INDIE BOOKS OF 2012

This was particularly difficult, and I'm still feeling the gut twist over this. I only read a few indie books this year, way less than I should have (bad Livi!) so it almost feels unfair to choose. Especially when I've heard so much positive response to Melissa Andrea's FLUTTER and Tabatha Vargo's WICKED FATE. They're definitely on my immediate to-read lists as soon as I get an inch of free time. 

But out of the few that I did manage to read, here's my top two. 

NUMBER ONE 

Burning Bridges

I haven't exactly been shy in expressing my love for the two main characters of this exceptional YA Dystopian-Romance novel, Echo and Ayden. So it should be no surprise that, when I thought of what my favorite Indie book would be, BURNING BRIDGES immediately came to mind. You can read my review of this spectacular novel here on Goodreads, but trust me when I say you're better off just grabbing the book and diving headfirst into the story. 

NUMBER TWO 

Dazzle

This was definitely another easy favorite of mine. While I didn't sink into the book as easily as I have with others, something kept pulling me back to it, be it the mystery surrounding one key character, or the romance that brewed on the surface between two others. And that ending? Now I NEED the second book! 

And now, moving onto the next major category! Picking two indie books was nearly impossible, but I had to select two traditionally published books for my favorites of the year, too. Umm, if picking indie books for the year was hard, this one had me FREAKING OUT. I almost wished there had been a ninja in the dark corner of my room to take me out so I didn't have to pick! 

TOP 2 TRAD BOOKS OF 2012

My brain is still trying to go over how I managed to select only two out of this mosh-pit of insanity. There were simply too many books this year, WAY too many. There was THE EVOLUTION OF MARA DYER by Michelle Hodkin, INCARNATE by Jodi Meadows, CLOCKWORK PRINCE by Cassandra Clare, I could list books all day. But just like I mentioned above, I ran into a few books this year I'd rather not remember, nor do I care to. Some flopped so hard in my brain, I had to take a few days to get over them, and it cut into the time I could have been slugging away at all these other awesome reads just waiting for me. 

But, if I had to pick only two books, I did my best to pick two that have impacted me both emotionally and mentally. 

NUMBER ONE

Throne of Glass

Oh my gosh, where do I even start with this one? Just thinking about it brings a huge wave of varied emotions. THRONE OF GLASS was one of those books I really dug into during Hurricane Sandy's nightmare, and it was probably the perfect book for the event. Dragging me from our powerless house to a castle of glass coupled with a mix of love, lust, determination, and mystery, I still feel intensely powerful about this book. THRONE OF GLASS gave me a broken heroine, twisted by the salt mines and captivity, and let her blaze to life with the touch of a guard and the prince. The turn of each page brought a new shade to each character, expertly navigating emotions and cultivating them just right so your heart pounded when Celaena's did, felt the rush of excitement when she did, it all blended together perfectly. 

But by far the moment that has kept with me from this book rests in the final battle within its pages. Celaena is losing, terribly losing after being drugged by the competition, and for a moment, it all seems lost. The connection she makes in her rawest moment of weakness with a specific person reduced me to tears, and I nearly shook trying to turn the page. It's rare that I find myself choking on emotion with books, but when I do, I know it will be a favorite and a MUST RE-READ of mine forever. 

NUMBER TWO

Divergent

Holy crap. There are no words for how I feel for Divergent, except... Divergent. The love that builds in a pulse-pounding reality, the struggle on the main character's shoulders, and the well balanced secondary characters left me in pure awe and literally unable to sit this book down from the moment I picked it up. I hadn't even realized how deeply I had sunk into the world of Veronica Roth's until my Dad woke up at 4AM, only to come and find me sitting on the kitchen floor, head in the book. 

And don't even get me started on Four... just... oh Tobias, my heart! (/swoon indeed!)

Now we move onto the smaller, single categories. Equally as hard to pick, but still each deserving of their titles. 

TOP FANTASY READ of 2012

Dragons, sylph, and reincarnated lives? Oh, so much love.

TOP DYSTOPIAN READ of 2012

This was a total no-brainer. Divergent was good, but best Dystopain HAD to go to BURNING BRIDGES by Nadège Richards!

TOP PARANORMAL READ of 2012

You want freaky? How about dead animals, mental hospitals, and back-from-the-dead people? 

TOP ROMANCE READ of 2012

Three words: Jem and Tessa. That love scene had me swooning so hard I nearly fell off my bed reading it... so scandalous, so delicious, I WANT MORE! 

TOP COUPLE of 2012

Tobias and Tris; Four and Six!

TOP BFF's of 2012

Celaena and Chaol! (Yes, I know you really can't count them as a 'bff' pair, but since they're not technically together in ToG...FRIENDS THEY SHALL BE!)

And finally, what I would consider to be the biggest award for the year, my top YA Read of 2012!

TOP YA READ OF 2012

A HUGE congrats to Michelle Hodkin for THE EVOLUTION OF MARA DYER! 

While BURNING BRIDGES stole my dystopian virginity, DAZZLE sparked a mystery lover within me, THRONE OF GLASS captured my fantasy realm, DIVERGENT showed me strength from the inside out, and each other top book of the year sparkled a little more into my life, none of them could hold a candle to the wild, dramatic, intoxicating power of EVOLUTION. 

It's no secret I'm a HUGE Michelle Hodkin fan. I'd follow her like a groupie if it was legal. I'd love to pick her brain on a rainy day in a musty bookshop, letting her chat about her process and where all the darkness that swallows each page of her novels comes from. From the minute I latched onto her debut novel, THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER, I was horribly, impossibly hooked. All I could think about is Noah, Noah, Mara, and yeah, Noah. The way Hodkin writes her stories, leaving you to question the words on each and every page as real or false, imagination or reality, it's scary. It's hauntingly dark and gorgeous. And most of all, it's my favorite YA read of the year. 

Alright, so that's it for me! What about you? Any special books this year that you'd call your top read, or maybe you have a top for a couple genres like I did? Share in the comments! 

Upcoming Releases 2013

Holy crap, can you believe we only have a few more days in 2012? Take that, Mayans! 

Aside from my goofy outburst above, I figured I'd post a little update on some upcoming release dates! This is all a little rough, so things might flux around their releases, but my goal is to do my best and stick as close to specific release dates as possible. 

Here's what we've got coming up for all of 2013! 

The Illumine Series: Volume I - Combo paperback of Illumine and Obumbrate (February 2013) 

Ethereal - Novella of Rinae and Tegen from the Illumine Series pre-Riven (March/April 2013) 

Swimming Songbird - Anthology published through Red Alice Press (May 2013)

Unwanted - Stand-alone New Adult dystopian (July 30th, 2013)

Hallowed - Anthology published through Red Alice Press (October 2013)

An Ice Princess Heart, An Ice Princess Kiss, An Ice Princess Symphony, An Ice Princess Dream - Black Symphony Saga novellas pre-Shard of Ice (Fall 2013/Summer 2014) 

Untitiled - the final book to the Illumine Series, name TBR (December 2014) 

I know it doesn't look like much, but there's a lot of work in that tiny little sheet. And that doesn't include all the drafts I'll be finishing between these, drafts that'll turn into books for 2014 and beyond. I'll be lucky if I see the sun at all this summer. -sniffle-

SACRIFICE OF INNOCENCE Cover Reveal!

(Hey all, sorry I'm a tad late on a few posts! Blogger decided it liked my Belated NaNo Wrap-Up, Riven Tour Thank You, and this post. I've been so steamed over it, I didn't want to touch my blog for a few days. But, eh, life goes on, and I still want to show all of you the awesome authors I'm thankful to know, plus I think I'm just going to type all my posts in Word before posting them. Problem solved.)

Today I have a gorgeous cover up for you all to see! A patient friend of mine, Allison Cosgrove, made me feel honored enough to include me in her cover reveal extravaganza. And I know I'm jealous- the layout is gorgeous and eye-catching in a unique way.

Here's the blurb to SACRIFICE OF INNOCENCE, by Allison Cosgrove:

A cult had been killing children for its rituals, and only one cop knows who they are. Detective Stan Brookshire knows, but his past keeps people from believing him. Can he rise above the stigma that shrouds his past, and stop a cult from taking yet another innocent children from her mother's arms, before it's too late? 

And now, THE COVER!

See what I mean about unique? Most covers have people on them, or blood all over the cover, maybe even a child in the case of a story involving kids. The lone candle on the top, like a tiny flame, just says volumes all on its own. This would DEFINITELY be a cover I'd pick up and check out on a bookshelf.

Even better, I've got a piece of the story for you to read! Get ready to click to add to those Goodreads lists, guys and gals.

Prologue

The man in the corner listened in the darkness, the wind whistling through the crack in the window frame, billowing his hair around him. The child in the room with him was invisible in the darkness. Even the power of the sun, let alone the light from the full moon, could not dampen the gloom hidden behind the boarded windows.

Hearing a sound, the man stiffened. It was the child; the sweet, young child.

"Very soon, my precious, very soon," Joseph whispered, his breath coming in short gasps. Excitement filled his belly; time was drawing closer for the boy.

Footsteps in the hallway caused the boy to whimper in fear, lighting the man's loins on fire. Desperately wanting the forbidden, to touch and play with the boy, he tried to force the urge back down. He wasn't allowed that pleasure, yet. The priests would come soon and the boy would have to be pure. The man's needs would have to wait. The boy would have to wait.

Dreaming of the day he would finally be able to have his way with the boy, the man fixed the delicious whimpers in his memory. The boy would no longer be able to cry and plea.

It was coming soon. So close now.

On the other side of the room, he heard the ominous creak of the door opening. Blinding light silhouetted a figure dressed in long robes.

He hurried over and retrieved his boy-child, his breath coming in gasps so ragged that he thought his lungs would cease to function.

A whimper was all that escaped the gag when the boy tried to scream. Cringing at the man's touch, he fought against the bonds, causing the man's groin to harden once more.

The man smiled. He tightened his grip upon the boy as he tried to wiggle free. The door stood open, waiting for him and the boy.

Suddenly, the door swung closed behind him, plunging the room into darkness once again. 

add Sacrifice of Innocence to your Goodreads list 


About the author, Allison Cosgrove!

Allison Cosgrove was born and raised in a suburb of Toronto, Ontario. A married mother of three daughters, she works in accounting by day and creates her own worlds by night. She enjoys spending time with her husband and daughters hiking in the woods or sitting by the fire reading a good book. She has had the love of reading and writing detective mysteries from the age of twelve but it has only been since the birth of her youngest that she has gotten serious about crafting some of her own works for others to enjoy. She credits her family and friends with being the driving force that has given her the strength to breathe life into her books. 

Keep up with Allison and all her projects!

TWITTER @alleycat34

BOOKS FB PAGE:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sacrifice-of-Innocence/189484287742684

MY AUTHOR PAGE:

http://www.facebook.com/AllisonMCosgrove

BLOG: www.stanbrookshire.com

RIVEN Is Here!

Yes, I am afraid I cannot tell a lie. #RIVENDAY has been ENGAGED! 

(You know, that means it's out and all. Huzzah!)

Both buttons will take you to their respective spots to grab an ebook copy of this delicious read. 

Oh, and the awesome part. 

For the release day, and ONLY THE RELEASE DAY (DECEMBER 7TH, 2012), Riven will be priced at $0.99

After that, it will return to normal pricing.

What does this mean, you ask? Grab that sucker today, don't wait, and show a little love for #RIVENDAY! 

Hold onto your hats, all you Kayden fans. 

Try not to cry too much, all you Ari fans. 

And Essallie fans? Just pray she makes it through this book alive. 

DIGITUS 233 Cover Reveal!

Hey all! Guess what I'm up to today? (You know, between the RIVEN Tour madness and all.) 

It's another cover reveal! This time I'm partaking in the reveal of DIGITUS 233 by K.D. Emerson! Let's show K.D. some love! <3

 

Digitus 233

Digitus, the world’s dominant corporation, has studied human nature for centuries. They are experts who expand on a human’s natural gifts and talents to create supreme world leaders in all major areas of science, art, religion, and leadership. A select few are handpicked each year to join the elite.

This year, as a final test of induction into the world’s most powerful super structure, five teens are dropped from a specially designed LearJet and land on a barren arctic island. They are forced to come together in an effort to survive and escape. Unfortunately, escape is short lived when a Russian ballistic submarine rescues them and a computer malfunction threatens an all-out nuclear attack on North America. Time is running out and the sub’s programmer cannot stop the computer failure. It is up to the teens to convince the Russians they should be allowed to give it a try.

Tick tock.

Author Bio:

  K.D. Emerson was born (or is that hatched) several years ago. We won’t go into how long it has been because she has this fantasy that she is still a teenager off to conquer the world. Her first novel was written in pencil, stapled together and placed in the school library. At age 6, she didn’t have a clue an author needed a publisher. She has a passion for the written word and assisting other writers in becoming the best they can be. She also loves to promote others and cheer them on to victory. Follow her on twitter @MstrKoda or you can find her at www.masterkoda.com and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/kimmutch.emerson 

RIVEN Official Blog Tour Kick-Off!

Are you ready for two weeks of sneak peeks, prizes, interviews, and more? Well, you should be! The madness of the RIVEN tour has officially begun!

Over the next two weeks, I'll be popping by each stop on the list below, answering questions, offering pieces of RIVEN that might drive you borderline insane, and a rafflecopter giveaway filled with all kinds of signed goodies (signed? yeah, you read that right) ranging from bookplates for your copies, bookmarks, and who knows what else I may toss in at the last minute.

Tour list and links!

NOVEMBER 26TH - Book Excerpt via Reading A Little Bit Of Everything

NOVEMBER 27TH - Guest Post via Reading Away The Days!

NOVEMBER 28TH - Guest Post on being an Indie Author via Stan Brookshire AND Interview via We Do Write

NOVEMBER 29TH - Character Interview via Reading Under the Stars

NOVEMBER 30TH - Post via BelleBooks

DECEMBER 1ST - Book Reviews via Book Briefs

DECEMBER 2ND - Review of ILLUMINE via Roland Capablo

DECEMBER 3RD - Review of either ILLUMINE or OBUMBRATE via Just Me, Myself and I 

DECEMBER 4TH - Character Casting, Possible Review of ILLUMINE and OBUMBRATE via Michelle's Paranormal Vault Of Books

DECEMBER 5TH - Character Interviews with Essallie & Kayden via Hopelessly Devoted Bilbliophile AND Guest Post via Frankie Rose, Author of SOVEREIGN HOPE

DECEMBER 6TH - Post via Mademoiselle Le Sphinx

DECEMBER 7TH - RIVEN Release Day Party via Facebook + Twitter 

DECEMBER 8TH - Post via Uniquely Moi Books

DECEMBER 9TH - Guest Post on Writing Process + Reviews of ILLUMINE and OBUMBRATE via My Guilty Obsession

Speaking of last minute, I'll let you in on an early secret. You're really, truly, DEFINITELY going to want to join the RIVEN Release Day Party Page on Facebook. Why? Well, not only will you get a daily post of where in the tour I'll be each day, but when RIVEN releases on December 7th, I'll be giving away a KINDLE. (Yes, your eyes are reading that right, I promise!) It's only being given away on that page on December 7th, so if you're looking for that glorious e-reader, this is your chance. (hint hint, wink nudge.)

But if a Kindle isn't your fancy, and you're really looking for those other goodies, then you'll want to be eyeballing the rafflecopter below. But really, who isn't into Kindles at this point? 

And with that, I say, let the tour BEGIN! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

ETERNAL HOPE Blog Tour Stop + Excerpt!

Hey all!

Guess who's the next tour stop for Frankie Rose's ETERNAL HOPE tour? (Cough hint, me!) Frankie and I met through Facebook a little while ago, but I had been creeping on her debut novel, SOVEREIGN HOPE, long before I had the guts to talk to her. That cover was gorgeous, the reviews have glowed for her, and she's done it again with her sequel, ETERNAL HOPE. I'm itching to get my hands on both (hint hint Mom, Christmas list wish!) but for now, I've made due with waiting for December 25th, and this ridiculously awesome teaser for ETERNAL HOPE below.

Don't forget to hit the rest of the stops on the tour!

Excerpt from ETERNAL HOPE, the sequel to SOVEREIGN HOPE.

Grab the full book here!

Unbelievable. Totally unbelievable. He was a nightmare. Farley charged over to the view of the city below, surging and throbbing to a rhythm that could only be heard on the other side of the glass. The metropolis, like any other night, was a living, breathing, ugly, beautiful thing. “Coward,” she whispered.

Daniel’s reflection approached her quietly from behind, his face serious and sharp. He wound his arms around her waist and rested his chin gently on her shoulder. “I am a coward. But only when it comes to you.”

“Well, don’t be. The thought of you with someone else makes me feel physically sick but I’m not a child. I’m not stupid. You’re ancient. Of course there have been people before me, Cassie included.” Farley re-focused her eyes, not wanting to look at the intense expression on his face; instead, she concentrated on the dark outlines of the high rises, lit sporadically against the darkness. Daniel’s arms fell slack from around her, and his hands came to rest on her hips.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” he murmured, pressing his face into her hair. He hooked his thumbs under her shirt and rubbed them in slow circles over the base of her spine. She shivered, fighting with herself. It was hard to be angry when he was so close, when the smell of him flooded her senses.

“Then tell me,” she demanded, placing her hands behind her over his. His thumbs stopped working over her skin.

“There was someone. Once,” he whispered.

Farley narrowed her eyes, intending to zero in on the Daniel in the glass again. Before she could see what his face was doing, though- whether he looked awkward or uncomfortable- she caught sight of her own reflection. Backlit from the room behind, she looked pallid and washed out. Her clenched jaw made her look tired and hard. Suddenly she wished she hadn’t pushed it. There was no way she wanted to hear about this. “Stop. Don’t. It…it doesn’t matter.”

“No.” He shook his head, softly brushing her hair back over her shoulder to expose her bare neck. “It doesn’t matter. This matters.” He leaned forward and slowly lowered his lips to her skin, his eyes still locked on hers in the glass. The heat from his kiss was explosive, wracking through her body. She twisted in his arms, turning to face him. He rolled with it, slouching down to continue kissing her neck, gently grazing his teeth across her skin in a way that made her legs go weak. It felt like he was holding her up, his hands rough against her back, her hips, her thighs. He shoved her against the glass, hard, and she slapped her palms against the cold surface, momentarily scared. The whole world was at her back. It felt like with one heady heartbeat they would topple back into it, lost in the dizzying sensation of the fall and the kiss and the way everything felt like it had stopped moving.

Daniel brought his hands up to cradle her face, kissing her like didn’t need oxygen to breathe, couldn’t bear the space between them. A low crackle ripped through the air, and Farley felt the sweet burn of his light biting at the skin on her neck. Her whole body tremored involuntarily. She gasped, low and shocked. Daniel sucked in a deep breath and jumped back, clenching his fists by his sides. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

Farley slid down the glass as her knees buckled. Her breathing matched his, ragged and uneven. “What?”

He raked his hands back through his hair in a motion that gave away his frustration, and shot her a pained look. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t do that. It’s… it’s kinda weird.”

She looked up at him in a daze, feeling slightly flushed and embarrassed. There was no way her cheeks weren’t fuchsia right now. “It’s not kinda weird,” she said in a breathy voice that barely sounded like her own. “It’s kinda hot.”

THE FORGOTTEN PRINCESS Cover Reveal!

Guess who's got another wickedly awesome cover to show off for another wicked author? 

Hint; ME. 

Ready for the synopsis for THE FORGOTTEN PRINCESS? 

Synopsis: 

Amaya is a seventeen-year-old girl, who is anything but normal. Her father abandoned her as an infant, leaving her to be raised by a verbally abusive mother, who--by the way is never sober. Leaving her to defend herself, Causing Amaya to become a social outcast. One night while walking home from a party, Amaya was struck by a car while crossing the street, leaving her in a coma. When she wakes in the hospital a few days later, she is visited by a very strange-but-handsome man. When left alone he starts telling Amaya her life is more than what it seems. There is a Prophecy telling of a forgotten princess who will save his clan, the Suisuni Indians. Eli, the strange yet very sexy man, is suppose to be Amaya's soul mate; the one who she is to marry. With nothing else to lose Amaya sets out on a journey with Eli, a journey of unanswered questions; a journey to find her absent father. Along the way Eli teachs Amaya who she is, and introduces her to a world of magic and myths. Will Amaya be able to handle all the pressure everyone set on her shoulders? Will she be able to forgive the father who left her? Most importantly will she be able to live up to the prophecy of the forgotten princess? The Prophecy: On a day in September, our world will be gone forever, Unless we can find, The one person lost in time, A Princess who he shall bear, With traits from her mother; fair, A moment lost in time, That we must diligently find, born to another, A warrior like no other, He shall be the lost princesses fate, Side by side they fight, True soul mates, Trained to love and protect, Her warrior is the key to her merriment, Love is the truth, Death is the way, Together they fight, Together they slay, Two souls one destiny, Together and only together, Will they bring peace and harmony. And now, the cover!  I love it, love love love. It's so soft, and gentle to look at compared to all the hardcore black-on-black, damn-or-be-damned books you see as of late. Love!  About the Author:  Stina is the mother of three energetic boys (Daniel Jr. age 8, Zion age 6, Ezra age 1) they are her everything, the Princes' of her heart. She has been with her husband Daniel for 11 yrs., and still going strong. The only other thing in her life she loves with a passion is writing, well and reading. She started writing poems and short stories, her short stories geting negative attention from teachers, thinking Stina was demented. Writing has always came easy to Stina because her imagination always runs wild. This is going to be Stina Second book she has wrote, but The Forgotten Princess is going to be the first one released.

#NaNoWriMo Wrap-Up, Week #2

It's that time! Let's run head-first into the wrap up on NaNoWriMo, Week #2!

I'm so sorry this post is late! I've had this sucker all planned out and ready to post, but my back somehow managed to spontaneously go all mashed potatoes on me (I don't know how) and basically left me on the couch immobile for the last two days, save for food and aspirin. Hopefully you are all having better luck with bodily issues, and writing.

Alright, let's rock!

My Progress:

NaNo has always been one of those things that was slow for me. I'm not a fast writer, not unless a deadline is staring me so hard in the face that I snap and go full on pantser mode. But that doesn't mean I haven't been writing, or rather plotting and scribbling on random pieces of paper. Black Crowns is still doing well, I can feel it developing slowly, like carving a heart into a tree; it doesn't happen overnight, as much as I wish it would. 

Still, my word count is in the toilet. 

Once more, I have it all updated on my user here, and you can add me to your buddy lists, or ask me to do vise versa, etc. So long as I keep the heating pads and aspirin rolling in, I can semi-type. 

So currently, for today's total based on the NaNo chart, par is 23,333 words. I'm clocked in at 4,034. To make par as of today, I'd need to crush my keyboard, grab the Dragon program, and talk out 19,300 words. As for my grand total, here's my bar!

8.07%

4034 / 50000 words

Let's just say, it's been a rough week.
Wrap-Up Posts & Articles!:

Since we're into the second week, the articles for NaNo carry the same, generalized message: get over the hump, shake your plot for new ends, hit that middle and DON'T STOP. This is the time where many of us run out of steam; we hit that 5-10k block and cry out, "I'm all out of juice!" or worse, we hit that glorious halfway mark and hate ALL OF IT, and want to start over. For the love of coffee and tea, DON'T. Just keep going. You can cut all you want later, just keep going for two more weeks. 14 days. 

Impatient Optimists has a post on why you should be in NaNo, and how some can influence droves of not only people, but kids, to write. 

James Scott Bell sports a post on five tips to give you a jolt on your NaNo Novel. (Obviously, I need this.)

Chelsea Mueller talks on setting up fights in writing, and what hits your character might be willing to take in the name of winning.

And lastly, Chloe Neill, New York Times Bestseller of the CHICAGOLAND VAMPIRES has a post on NaNo essentials! Small, cute goodies like pens and colorful notebooks really can rock your brain on and into something you didn't originally think about writing. 

(Example? I picked up a notebook from Claire's on sale, it was one of those SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN notebooks with a felt heart on the front and gorgeous swirls. That sucker has opened my brain somedays easier than my Word documents do.) 


And now, for the wrap-up, my favorite NaNoWriMo related tweet for the week! No joke, I saw this tweet a little bit ago, and my jaw dropped. Finish those novels, NaNoers!