Announcing my new YA novel!

I've been working on my next YA book -- very eerie and Gothic, sort of a spin-off like Splintered, but not Wonderland related -- and have been itching to tell everyone about it (waiting for the green light from my publisher).

Today they're letting me announce it!

Here's the official blurb from GoodReads (click here to add to your GR shelf):

Click image to enlarge

Yay! The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux is one of my favorite stories of all time. I'm close to the halfway mark in my spin-off, and am having more fun in this lush, dark world than should be legal. ;D

So that you can share in the fun with me, I wanted to show you a peek. Since I'm a very visual writer, I like to look at my characters as their stories unfold, so I pin images to inspire me.

Even animals, if they play big enough roles, get posted on the board. Although with the Splintered Series, I didn’t have that luxury, since the creatures were born solely of my imagination, and I'm no artist. ;)

With that said, check out my pinterest board for the cast of RoseBlood, complete with a scowling Cornish Rex cat and a red swan.


Soon, I'll do another post and share more insights into the premise and introduce you to some of the characters. So keep checking back!

Cover and Title Reveal for Post-Ensnared Novella

Just found out I'll be revealing my post-Ensnared novella's cover + title LIVE at the North Texas Teen Book Festival this weekend in Irving, TX! 

I'll also be giving away some goodies to readers there in celebration (extra incentive for anyone who can attend.)

Schedule deets are here. 

But if you can't go, don't despair! I'll have that giveaway I've been promising when I get back and I'll be sure to include some novella-related goodies as prizes!

Craving more Wonderland madness?

Yep, Alyssa's wearing her party hat. Here's why:

A lot of readers have been asking if Ensnared is really the end of the Splintered Series, and there's even been a rumor circulating that there might one day be a follow-up novella in the works (I should know...I'm the one who started it. Hehe).

Now finally I get to let you know officially! 

There IS a post-Ensnared novella on the horizon! Not sure when it will hit shelves yet, but I'm almost done writing it and have been having so much fun revisiting this world/characters! ❤

There are a few more details here. And I'll be back in March with a title and the cover reveal, along with a giveaway to celebrate. (◕‿◕)

Hope to see you then!

The Splintered Series Final Chapter and An Exciting Announcement...

At last, Ensnared is out in the world! I hope you're either reading/have read/will be reading it soon because in a few weeks I'll be writing up a blog post about why it ended like it did. 

Everyone has their opinions whether the ending was amazing or terrible, fair or unfair, or "real-life enough" (that one is baffling; this isn't contemporary fiction, it's fantasy and Wonderland ... of course magic was going to play a pivotal role in the ending since I wrote it organically and stayed true to my enchanted story-world). @.@

But only the author has insight into how the story played out across the page while writing it, how the character arcs and canon figured in, and why certain plot choices were made. Each one had a reason, and you deserve to know them since you've been faithful and have followed the series to its end. :)

<Slightly Spoilery...highlight to read> I'll also be including excerpts from all the books and the novella that alluded to this ending, contradicting any suggestions that I was derivative or mimicked the ending of any other recently closed books series. Unless I'm psychic (I wish!), I had no idea, over a year and a half ago, how any other authors were going to end their books these past few months. ;)

So be watching for that one! 

If you've already read Ensnared or haven't read it and would like to take part in a read along, I'll be doing a live skype show in February to discuss the book. The hosts have arranged a readalong (check out the hashtag #NetherlingsRead on twitter), and there are prizes up for grabs. 


Hope you can join us!

Also, I have another announcement that I'm dying to make, but I have to wait for the green light from my publisher. When it's time to tell everyone, I'll go big and have a fun giveaway, too! The prizes will include some signed Ensnared hardbacks/ Unhinged paperbacks, and Alice goodies.

Right now, I'm in the midst of some looming writing deadlines + book launch activities and am trying to stay focused, so I'll be pretty quiet until then. 

Be back soon! 

My first foreign book cover!!!

~Click picture to view enlarged image~

Es muy bonito!

 

The Spanish version of Splintered (aka: Susurros) launches with Oz Editorial on April 2, 2013, which is just a few days away! YAY!

As soon as I get some complimentary author copies, I'll have a giveaway. So if you know anyone who reads Spanish who might like this book, please let them know it's coming!

Also, thanks to my good pal Kaylie Austen and her Spanish prowess, I now know Susurros means whispers, mutters, or rustlings, which fits perfectly with the storyline considering the whispering bugs and flowers that Alyssa hears due to her Alice Liddell lineage. :) Curiouser and curiouser...

On a final note, I'll be posting the winners of my Unhinged giveaway on April 1st, so anyone who's entered be sure to stop by and see if you're a winner.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

• Add Susurros on GoodReads

Book Deal! Overwhelmed, Ever-grateful, Blessed, and...

I feel like Charlotte's been spinning lovely webs around my Splintered manuscript to make it more attractive to those who can give it a home, and I'm as grateful as that little pig who grew up big yet never became bacon on someone's breakfast plate.

After seven years of querying and writing books (follow this link for a detailed look at my timeline), I finally got my YES! Last week, Agent Goddess and I were in the midst of a best bids auction, in which the interested publishers threw their "highest we can go" offers into the hat. I ended up having a few phone calls so I could get a feel for personalities and editing ideas. Now the decision has been made and I finally get to share it. :)

Splintered has a FANTASTIC place to call home: Abram's Amulet imprint. SQUEEEE!! I'm following in some very big footsteps: Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Shine, just to name a couple. The publisher offered a two-book deal, so I get to hang my hat there for awhile, and I couldn't be more thrilled!

For the record, it took revising my MS one final time before I tasted success. It made all the difference, because that's when things started rolling. 

I'm grateful to my wonderful agent Jenny and my new editor Maggie (who is a DELIGHT!), for loving my story and believing in it. And I'm blessed to have had each and every one of you rooting for me along the way. Lastly, I'm overwhelmed and humbled by this feeling of complete and utter happiness.

What I want more than anything now, is for all of you to experience this, too. So DON'T give up. No matter what.

I'm ashamed to say I almost did a few times. Several of you know this because you were my lifelines. (HUGE THANKS and cyber hugs for that, I would never have buoyed without you).

But then the sun slipped out from the clouds and illuminated that sparkling silver web ... you know, the one that said "she might not look like much yet, but give her a chance. She could grow up to be some pig ... er, writer ... one day."  

So THANK YOU for that chance, Amulet. I'll do my very best to earn it.

Splintered is due out in hardback, Spring of 2013. The PublishersMarketplace announcement will be posted next month. I'll display it here once it's up. (I've always dreamt of getting to do that.) *happy sigh* I'm planning a series of detailed posts about being on the submission trail along with stats and will start them up when the book comes out, to help promote its debut.

There are a few more things I'd like to share pertaining to some foreign interest, but I'm keeping them on the DL just a bit longer.  Gotta give you some kind of reason to keep visiting me here. ;)

By the way, you guys are the best support group on the WORLD WIDE NET. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Special thanks to my beta readers and crit gals, #goatposse, fellow bloggers, tweeps, and a hearty shout out to the QTers out there. That's where I got my start, too. I'm sorry I haven't been in the threads for a while, but things got crazy for a bit. Still, my heart smiles each time I think of you, and I have the highest expectations for you all! I know I'll be seeing spectacular news from you VERY soon. <3

Oh, and one last thing...