Rhiannon Paille - YA Fantasy Author

Review: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

2012-02-29T12:46:00.000-06:00

Title: My Sister's Keeper Author: Jodi Picoult ISBN: 0743454537 Publication: February 1st, 2005 by Washington Square Press Received: Bought at an Airport Kiosk Links: Goodreads Rating: 4 out of 5 Short Blurb: Written with grace, wisdom, and sensitivity, this novel is about a teen who was conceived as a bone marrow match for her sister Kate, and what happens when she begins to question who she

Review: Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

2012-02-28T10:50:00.001-06:00

Title: Grave Mercy Author: Robin LaFevers ISBN: 054762834X Publication: April 3rd 2012 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Received: Received from Netgalley Links: Goodreads Rating: 3 out of 5 The Tagline: Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf? My Thoughts: Do you want the good news or the bad news? The good news is, I got an e-mail about this book yesterday and for the first time ever was able

Review: The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

2012-02-27T12:18:00.001-06:00

Title: The Fault In Our Stars Author: John Green ISBN: 0525478817 Publication: January 10th, 2012 by Dutton Juvenile Received: Bought at Superstore Links: Goodreads Rating: 5 out of 5 Short Blurb: Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 12, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs... for now. My Thoughts: Why is it that books I bought at a

Review: Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick

2012-02-25T21:49:00.000-06:00

Title: Silence Author: Becca Fitzpatrick ISBN: Publication: October 4th, 2011 by Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Received: Bought at Chapters Links: Goodreads Rating: 4 out of 5 Short Blurb: Armed with nothing but their absolute faith in each other, Patch and Nora enter a desperate fight to stop a villain who holds the power to shatter everything they've worked for--and their love--

REVIEW: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

2012-02-25T15:41:00.000-06:00

Title: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer Author: Michelle Hodkin ISBN: 1442421762 Publication: September 27th, 2011 Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing Received: Bought at Chapters Links: Goodreads Rating: 3 out of 5 Short Blurb: Seventeen-year-old Mara cannot remember the accident that took the lives of three of her friends. My Thoughts: I had heard a lot of really good things about this

YA Paranormal Activity Giveaway Hop:

2012-02-24T00:00:00.004-06:00

Welcome to my stop on the hop! Up For Grabs:ANY YA Paranormal Title How it Works:The book must be a YA book with Paranormal elementsThe book must be listed on www.bookdepository.comIt must not be more than $20.00Book Depository must ship to your countryI will pre order if the book isn't available yet. Some Great Ideas:Shine by Jeri Smith-ReadyCity of Lost Souls by Cassandra ClareSilence by

Review: Tempest by Julie Cross

2012-02-22T16:35:00.001-06:00

Title: Tempest Author: Julie Cross ISBN: 0312568894 Publication: January 17th, 2012 by St. Martin's Griffin Received: Bought at Chapters Links: Goodreads Rating: 4 out of 5 Short Blurb: The year is 2009. Nineteen-year-old Jackson Meyer is a normal guy… he’s in college, has a girlfriend… and he can travel back through time. My Thoughts: Kudos to Julie Cross for writing a YA book that doesn't

Tour Report #3: Your book is like cheesecake . . .

2012-02-18T01:19:00.001-06:00

I'm not really in the mood to tell you about my excursion to Vancouver so instead here are some random pictures from the Vancouver portion of the trip, and a bunch of quotes from people we met along the way. "That book sounds so horrible, I'm so starstuck! You're like the coolest person I've met." "Can I get a hug? And a picture?" "Can I get three copies?" "Deadly, this is deadly, hope it

Tour Report #2: Hipsters, Kevin and Target Audiences

2012-02-16T14:53:00.000-06:00

Hey Everyone! I'm in Vancouver now and the only thing Sam had to say about it is that it's slanted and wet. I care to agree, our flight last night got in around 11:30pm and then we waited for luggage. I started explaining my book to her scene by scene and um, she couldn't stop laughing. We were the only ones laughing. Everyone else was stoically waiting for their bags. They came at midnight,

Tour Report #1: Deadly, Avoidance and Accidental Fangirls

2012-02-13T13:05:00.000-06:00

Hello from Edmonton! I had this idea that I would blog everyday on the book tour, and well what you plan is never what happens right? On Friday I planned to drive all night and my van, nicknamed "Serena" for various reasons (Gossip Girl and Sailor Moon) decided it didn't have enough gas to get us to Regina. The gas stations also decided to close at midnight. So we ended up in Broadview, at a

New Features on YAFantasyAuthor.com

2012-02-09T16:42:00.002-06:00

Hey everyone! I've been doing the brainstorming thing, mostly trying to figure out what I could potentially do on my blog other than reviews, giveaways and articles about writing. So here's what I've come up with. Tarot 101 - Weekly meme featuring a single tarot card, photo and description. Over the course of many weeks, I'll discuss the major arcana, the minor arcana, the court cards, common

Review: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

2012-02-08T16:13:00.000-06:00

Title: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight Author: Jennifer E. Smith ISBN: 0316122386 Publication: January 12th 2012 by Poppy Received: Bought on Kindle Links: Goodreads Rating: 3 out of 5 Short Blurb: Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything? My Thoughts: I'm really not sure where to put this book. I bought it because of the fantastic reviews I had seen

New Layout and Website

2012-02-07T22:56:00.002-06:00

Really short one so you can take a bit to look around the new layout and location of my blog. It's pretty isn't it? And it's now being hosted at www.yafantasyauthor.com. Thanks again to Rachel for all her awesome design work. Namaste,Rhi

#TopTenTuesday: 10 Things The Hunger Games Taught Me

2012-02-07T06:00:00.000-06:00

Morning! At the end of January I was part of a cover contest on Shannon Mayer's blog. I didn't win :( But my new friend, Guy Harrison DID win and since meeting him I've found that he's fantastic! I'm really looking forward to the release of his book Agents of Change, coming February 13th, yep next Monday! Watch out for it because I'm sure it's good! That being said, Guy wanted to take over my

#MentionMonday How Indie is too Indie?

2012-02-06T06:00:00.002-06:00

I made a book blogger directory, and that's what got me asking this question. After reading approximately 434 review policies from 434 book bloggers, I have to know, how Indie is too Indie? Most of the review policies clearly state that they do not take self published books. That's fine, I'm not entirely self published, but here's my story. Back in 2010 I self published my first book,

Debut Author Spotlight w/ Rhi Paille

2012-02-05T12:01:00.004-06:00

If I haven't talked about this yet, here's the deal. I'm leaving on Friday on a cross Canada tour to promote Flame of Surrender. I'll be appearing at six of the big giant Chapters / Indigo stores, showing off the trailer, reading excerpts from the first two books, revealing the cover of Flame of Justice (I have a 24 x 36 of it), revealing the trailer of Flame of Justice, and signing books,

Review: Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

2012-02-04T11:57:00.000-06:00

The Blurb: For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her...until Patch comes along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment, but after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure whom to trust.

Review: The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa

2012-02-02T15:01:00.000-06:00

The Blurb: Ash, former prince of the Winter Court, gave up everything. His title, his home, even his vow of loyalty. All for a girl… and all for nothing. Unless he can earn a soul. To cold, emotionless faery prince Ash, love was a weakness for mortals and fools. His own love had died a horrible death, killing any gentler feelings the Winter prince might have had. Or so he thought. Then

#MentionMonday "I wrote a book! How do I get people to read it?"

2012-01-30T00:58:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago I wrote my road to publication post, which included all the happy possibilities and such. During that post someone suggested I write down my formula for promoting a book. At first I was wary because while I've tried a lot of things I'm really not sure that any of them worked, but here's what I did anyway. #10 I wrote a book blog It doesn't hurt to have friends that read books

IMM: This might call for a read-a-thon!

2012-01-28T22:27:00.000-06:00

Really looking forward to digging in! Namaste,Rhi

Utopia Dystopia

2012-01-28T00:24:00.001-06:00

U·to·pi·a [yoo-toh-pee-uh] noun 1.an imaginary island described in Sir Thomas More's Utopia (1516) as enjoying perfection in law, politics, etc. 2. an ideal place or state. 3.any visionary system of political or social perfection. Dys·to·pi·a [dis-toh-pee-uh] noun a society characterized by human misery, as squalor, oppression, disease, and overcrowding. Hunger Games is by far one of

10 Writing Rules I'm breaking . . .

2012-01-26T18:17:00.000-06:00

Afternoon! So Charlie Jane Anders posted an awesome article this morning over here on io9 called 10 Wiritng Rules we wish more sci-fi / fantasy authors would break. This is in response to the article, and while I didn't break ALL the rules on her list, I'll show you where my broken rules match up to the ones she wishes more of us would break. #1 No third-person omniscent #1 No third-person

Review: A Million Suns by Beth Revis

2012-01-25T18:58:00.001-06:00

The Blurb: Godspeed was fueled by lies. Now it is ruled by chaos. It's been three months since Amy was unplugged. The life she always knew is over. And everywhere she looks, she sees the walls of the spaceship Godspeed. But there may just be hope: Elder has assumed leadership of the ship. He's finally free to enact his vision - no more Phydus, no more lies. But when Elder discovers shocking

#TopTenTuesday Books I'd like to see on the big screen

2012-01-24T13:16:00.000-06:00

Last night I went to see Beauty and the Beast 3D. I've never seen the show in theaters because I was too young when it came out and then when I was old enough it was on VHS. I feel so old saying VHS, but there it is. Beauty and the Beast is by far my favorite Disney movie and favorite Disney Princess. While seeing the opening credits roll across the screen, you know, the Disney symbol, and all

#MentionMonday Frak, Frex and Effing all the way

2012-01-23T14:30:00.000-06:00

I'm not a fan of profanities. I don't think YA books need profanities, unless it's that kind of YA book. I get it if the main character is a borderline drug addict that sleeps around and comes from a broken home. Contemporary stories like that have an added amount of profane language to them to make them real. Without it, they seem . . . sketchy. Science Fiction, Fantasy, and even your run of

REVIEW: The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa

2012-01-18T16:31:00.000-06:00

The Blurb: My name is Meghan Chase. I thought it was over. That my time with the fey, the impossible choices I had to make, the sacrifices of those I loved, was behind me. But a storm is approaching, an army of Iron fey that will drag me back, kicking and screaming. Drag me away from the banished prince who's sworn to stand by my side. Drag me into the core of conflict so powerful, I'm not sure

#MentionMonday The Story v.s. The Writing

2012-01-16T08:59:00.001-06:00

Let the debate begin. When I was traipsing through the uncharted territory of publishing, I came to understand that there are two things that make a book amazing. Type #1 - People who can write beautifully, but don't have a story to tell. Type #2 - People who can't write beautifully, but have a story to tell. Arguably there is a third type, people who have a story to tell and can write

Mythology Explained: Manawydan Son of Llyr

2012-01-12T16:53:00.001-06:00

Welcome to a third week of Mythology Explained! If you're new to this, basically I take Celtic, Welsh, and Norse myths and explain the stories to you. I've been looking at the Mabinogian the past two weeks and so I'm continuing where I left off with the story of Manawyden Son of Llyr. The Mabinogian Manawyden Son of Llyr Part One: The Mound Strikes Again After Manawydan, Pryderi and the

Review: The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa

2012-01-11T16:37:00.000-06:00

The Blurb: Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fit in anywhere. Deserted by the Winter prince she thought loved her, she is prisoner to the Winter faery queen. As war looms between Summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron fey—ironbound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. But no one believes her. Worse, Meghan's own fey

#TopTenTuesday 10 things I don't hate about Justin Bieber

2012-01-10T06:00:00.000-06:00

I think I'm a true belieber. And so here are 10 things I don't hate about Justin Bieber. #10 - His Dad is from Winnipeg. Like any true Winnipegger, anyone that has any connection to my hometown is good in my books. #9 - He's a kid with a ton of attention. That could go wrong, but from what I've heard on the radio, he keeps in regular contact with his friends and stays grounded. #8 - Usher.

#MentionMonday "I wrote a book! Now what?"

2012-01-09T06:00:00.000-06:00

This weekend I spent some time over at Flipped Pages Book Exchange in Winnipeg. It's a quaint little bookstore in the north end of the city. While hanging out for the afternoon I got to meet a few people including a young 13 year old and her mom. They came in asking me a slew of questions about publishing. You see, this 13 year old girl has written a YA book that's 110,000 words! I thought that

Review: The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

2012-01-08T21:02:00.000-06:00

The Blurb: Meghan Chase has a secret destiny; one she could never have imagined. Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school or at home. When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that

Mythology Explained: Branwen Daughter of Llyr

2012-01-05T18:05:00.001-06:00

Good afternoon! Apologies on the late post, work has been kicking my butt all week and I have an author signing on Saturday afternoon so my dedication to blogging has been somewhat slack this week. If you're tuning in for the first time, Mythology Explained is a hair brained experiment in explanations meant to turn your world upside down in the hopes that you understand Celtic myth. It's not

City of Lost Souls Cover Reveal + Prologue Teaser

2012-01-04T13:26:00.000-06:00

My thoughts: WOW. I'm just as excited as the next person about the 5th book in the Mortal Instruments series, but after seeing this cover, I'm now counting down the days to May. *wanders off to find a countdown widget* Oh! and because I'm sneaky, here's the prologue excerpt City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare Prologue Simon stood and stared numbly at the front door of his house. He'd

Review: Before & Masquerade by Cambria Hebert

2012-01-04T10:56:00.001-06:00

Before Blurb: What if your life was charmed and everything in it was perfect… Before. This is the story of my past. Of what things were like for me when everything was normal. Of what every teenager’s life is like. Clothes. Parties. Boys and summer vacation. What’s so wrong with that? I liked it. I was happy. Until things changed. I changed. Masquerade Blurb: Before. Everything was so

#MentionMonday What happens when it sticks?

2012-01-02T13:32:00.000-06:00

I glanced at my schedule this morning and thought well then, I'm busy. You don't think about it when you're not busy. When you're not busy you're like, throw stuff on the wall and hope something sticks. What happens then when it sticks? You find yourself in that precarious position where you're busy and you can barely breathe there's so much to do. In case you're just coming to my blog and

Mythology Explained: Pwyll Prince of Dyfed

2011-12-29T01:32:00.000-06:00

Greetings! They say that you should try new things, and this is something I thought might be fun and educational for my readers. I'm a bit of a celtic myth junkie, as in, I've actually read the Mabinogian, the Poetic Edda and other collaborative works on Celtic, and Norse myth. I was so much of a junkie that I actually looked up my ancestry and traced my lineage back to Thorstein the Red. He

Spellbound by Cara Lynn Shultz

2011-12-28T16:27:00.000-06:00

The Blurb: What’s a girl to do when meeting The One means she’s cursed to die a horrible death? Life hasn’t been easy on sixteen-year-old Emma Conner, so a new start in New York may be just the change she needs. But the posh Upper East Side prep school she has to attend? Not so much. Friendly faces are few and far between, except for one that she’s irresistibly drawn to—Brendan Salinger, the

#TopTenTuesday The Best Books of 2011

2011-12-27T05:00:00.003-06:00

In my humble opinion, not that what I think matters, but meh, you're here, you may as well gawk at the list right? #10 - Madly & Wolfhardt by M. Leighton Beautiful writing, hot romance, mermaids, and the big bad wolf. I really don't need to tell you why I loved this book so much. It's an Indie Read, one that you should pick up now. Why? Because of Jackson and Madly of course! Okay, Jersey

Boxing Day: The Canadian version of Black Friday

2011-12-25T22:29:00.000-06:00

Which totally explains why I'm avoiding the malls, the grocery store, and anywhere that involves parking and using my debit card. Canadians get weird on Boxing Day. And yes, everything is really cheap but it usually lasts an entire week. No, you can't actually return anything on Boxing Day. I know, it sounds silly, Boxing Day was created because it's the day you take back all the presents you

Review: Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

2011-12-19T22:05:00.000-06:00

The Blurb: In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa's powers for

What do you want to be remembered for?

2011-12-19T12:34:00.001-06:00

*insert answer here*

Follow Friday: Book hoarding and Clueless Dads

2011-12-15T23:52:00.000-06:00

Good evening! Q: When you’ve read a book, what do you do with it? (Keep it, give it away, donate it, sell it, swap it..?) I'm known to keep the books I really like. I can't fathom the idea of giving away a book I loved. I usually give away books that I didn't enjoy because I feel that every book deserves a second chance and if I can't love a book I'd rather give to someone else who could

New Year's Eve Giveaway! ($50.00 Amazon GC, Books, Posters, Bookmarks)

2011-12-13T06:00:00.006-06:00

It feels like it's been forever since I had a giveaway and so I decided to throw in EVERYTHING I had for this one! I also thought it would be a great way to celebrate the new year! Happy New Year's Eve everyone! So, in the spirit of New Year's, when you leave me a comment, please answer this question: What is your New Year's Resolution for 2012? That's it! I'll be nice and post mine first so

5 reasons I'm NOT your average psychic

2011-12-12T14:19:00.000-06:00

Morning! I haven't posted anything about my day job in a really really long time and so since my publisher/editor asked me about this the other day I thought I'd clarify a few things about my work. 1) I don't read tarot cards, oracle cards, bones, stones, crystal balls (but I do own one), or use any other forms of divination. Divination is a broad term used for tools like the Tarot. They are

Review: X-Men Origins: Rogue oops, I mean Shatter Me, Tahereh Mafi

2011-12-11T22:14:00.001-06:00

The Blurb: The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are

I'm a bestseller, I'm a bestseller, I'm a . . .

2011-12-10T22:39:00.003-06:00

Bestseller. I think you got the point the first two times I said it and frankly I'm still having a tough time believing it, but then I go back to amazon and I look at the freaking page and I do a little dance in my head and I think: HOLY BLEEP HOW DOES THAT HAPPEN? When I'm not looking apparently. When I'm least expecting it apparently. When I've completely ignored that book for months

Review: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

2011-12-10T15:58:00.000-06:00

The Blurb: It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die. At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them. Puck Connolly is

Fable the Immortal: A dystopian superhero story

2011-12-08T13:41:00.001-06:00

The Blurb: The war between Good and Evil has raged since before Time began. Now the battle continues with the Ultimate Good versus the Ultimate Evil. Metahumans vs the Undead Metahuman: one of the human species endowed with one or more powers beyond that of mortal men; a person who uses those abilities to serve either themselves or society. Typically branded by a codename and colorful costume

Vanity, Sex, Attitude, Action and Love?

2011-12-07T15:27:00.000-06:00

Is it just me or do most characters in YA books not fall in love anymore? I don't mean the cheesy or infatuated, #omghessohoticandie kind of love, but the real love, the true love? I'm just missing it lately. I've read a lot of YA books and most of them involve the same thing. Hot guy that's completely untouchable, girl who thinks she's not the popular girl, and bam, they fall into this

Monday comes with road trips

2011-12-05T12:43:00.000-06:00

I'm trying to distract myself by using my hands to do something else other than flail. You see, today I get to drive down to Fargo to see my critique partner Natasha M Heck for good food, desserts and book talk. I'm super excited for the chance to get out of my house, away from my computer, and onto the open road. I'm kind of a road trip junkie, what with my track record and all. Rhi's Road

All the awkward set backs and weirdness

2011-12-02T23:45:00.000-06:00

Yeah this is all the stuff that's happened to me in November since my book officially hit the shelves. The First Indigo Fiasco I decided it would be fun to walk into an Indigo to see if even though my book wasn't on the shelf, if it could be ordered from their handy dandy computer. Lo and behold my surprise when I walked over to the kiosk and typed in the name of my book and it popped up on

Follow Friday: In which I talk about stuff I don't like.

2011-12-01T22:24:00.000-06:00

Q: What is your biggest pet peeve when it comes to books? Maybe you don’t like love triangles or thin plots? Tell us about it! You know what? I'm an author but I'm not going to go into all the details regarding the writing aspects that make me want to bash my head against a wall. Why? Because if I did I'd be a big hypocrite because no doubt my writing is like nails on a chalkboard to some

How far would you go? (Book Trailer Unveiling)

2011-12-01T14:22:00.001-06:00

And the Bloopers

Twilight gives you seizures

2011-11-27T19:36:00.000-06:00

And now for the most amusing part of the day: 'Breaking Dawn' Seizures: 'Twilight' Movies Inducing Illness, Say Reports "The number one movie in America is allegedly giving some viewers seizures. "Breaking Dawn, Part 1," the first part of the "Twilight Saga" finale, contains a graphic birthing scene involving star Kristen Stewart and the violent delivery of her child. ABC reports that the

IMM: I couldn't resist the bookstore

2011-11-27T12:36:00.000-06:00

Good afternoon everyone! So last week I was across the city at Kildonan Place Shopping Mall with my husband who was clothes shopping. I was admittedly not shopping this time, but then wandered into the Coles and began searching for books on my TBR list. I found the following two books which I'm uber excited to start reading. Blurb: Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than

Where to promote (and NOT promote) your books

2011-11-26T14:10:00.000-06:00

Shameless self promotion is a tricky thing. On the one hand, you need to go out there and do your best to tell people that your book exists. You have to tell them it's good enough for them to spend an afternoon with, and then you have to hope they spend an afternoon with it and tell their friends all about it who will in turn tell their friends and so on and so forth. You can only put your book

Follow Friday, The Turkey Edition

2011-11-24T21:51:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone! So I'm back on track for Follow Friday and ready to rock it! Q: It’s Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. so we want to know what you are Thankful for – blogging related of course! Who has helped you out along the way? What books are you thankful for reading?I'm really happy that I got into book blogging in the first place. The first person who helped me out a lot was Theresa @ Fade

#FoS is going to be an audiobook . . .

2011-11-23T23:20:00.000-06:00

I always knew I wanted it to be an audiobook, solely for the purpose of pronouncing names of people and places, and also for the too busy to read crowd and the non reading crowd. Last Weds, Sam, Ayla, Chris and I got together to do the voice overs for the trailer which I'm sorry isn't done yet, but I'm crossing my fingers for December. Anyway, after a night that should go down in history as

Review: You Against Me by Jenny Downham

2011-11-21T12:25:00.000-06:00

The blurb: If someone hurts your sister and you're any kind of man, you seek revenge, right? If your brother's been accused of a terrible crime and you're the main witness, then you banish all doubt and defend him. Isn't that what families do? When Mikey's sister claims a boy assaulted her at a party, his world of work and girls begins to fall apart. When Ellie's brother is charged with the

The difference between the first draft and the published version

2011-11-19T22:55:00.000-06:00

I thought this would be something interesting to look at because we all go through quite the journey when writing a book and one of the biggest things that we shape is our manuscripts. Jane Kurtz said it best when she compared manuscripts to illustrations. When an artist has to do revisions to an image, the new image they create often looks completely different from the original image. She

Bad karaoke, Soul Collecting and Musical Hats . . .

2011-11-15T14:14:00.001-06:00

Remember when I said I'd introduce you to the crazy awesome people who helped me make the book trailer? This is us at the pub the other night. Enjoy our randomness! The part about the hats . . . The part about collecting souls . . . Namaste,Rhi

The big show v.s. tell conundrum

2011-11-11T18:58:00.000-06:00

Editors want you to show. Readers want you to tell. And authors are stuck somewhere in the middle of this tug of war. Some of the things I learned while writing fiction was that a book is made real when the author shows what's going on instead of telling the readers what's going on. There have been a million examples of this so let me try my hand at one! Tell: "Joe went to the store and bought

Top 10 Reasons why Writers don't Read as much as Readers do

2011-11-08T14:20:00.001-06:00

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. When I was aspiring, I devoured books, often 10-13 per month. Now that November has come and my book is on the shelves, I've barely read at all. I finished The Night Circus in October, but because of Comic Con, I couldn't finish anything else. I do plan on changing this in the future because I have about ten books I do intend on reading plus a ton for

Monday came with bookmarks

2011-11-07T22:11:00.000-06:00

And the first snowfall of the year. Yesterday I kidnapped Sam and took her to Angel's house in Winkler. We had somewhere in the ball park of nine thousand seven hundred and some odd bookmarks with us. You know, ten thousand originally less the ones I gave away at comic con and the ones I lost in that horrible boxing fiasco. (Genius that I am, I pushed a box on top of an open box of bookmarks.

The interview with spoilers, and the tour!

2011-11-01T20:00:00.000-05:00

Good evening! If you're looking for the other post, I'm sorry, I deleted it so I could add more oomph to this post. C4 is over but I'm still on tour! Today I survived the Fairytale Nerd and tomorrow there's more shenanigans going around the blogosphere. Here's where I'm going! November 1st - JoAnne @ The Fairytale Nerd 2nd- Marissa @ Novels on the Run 3rd -

C4 - Central Canada Comic Con - Wow, but not hot like wow

2011-10-31T21:35:00.004-05:00

Hey everyone! I'm back from the land of no internet and I have goodies to tell you about my journeys to the place where no man has been before, Comic Con in Winnipeg with Shatner! That's right, I sort of got to meet him. By sort of I mean someone wanted me to do something admin like and he happened to be sitting at the table next to me signing autographs and talking to people. My weekend

The book trailer of pure awesomeness

2011-10-26T22:20:00.000-05:00

Mind you, this is a rough cut as we still need to do voice overs. Isn't it awesome already though? I'm going away now for comic con I promise. :)

C4 Central Canada Comic Con - before the madness begins

2011-10-26T15:07:00.000-05:00

Because my vlogging skills are nil, this is a post! You may not know this, but Central Canada Comic Con is the second largest comic con in Canada. I was a Head Coordinator from 2006 - 2010 and this year I'm a guest! It's weird because everyone already knows who I am! (I'm like a celebrity) I'm debuting Flame of Surrender, The Ferryman and the Flame #1. I've got 100 of the books with an

IMM: Scorpio Races, Silence, Becoming,

2011-10-22T19:58:00.000-05:00

Things I got this week . . .

My Passion Play: Amy and Elder (Across the Universe by Beth Revis)

2011-10-20T14:32:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite literary couples actually, even though the romance isn't the focal point of the story. Amy has been frozen via cryogenics and is on a 300 year trip to another planet. During a security breech, Amy is woken up early. It was fun to see how culture had changed and how the people managed to live in the bubble, not privy to the outside world. I also found Elder's fascination

REVIEWS: Unveiled, Spellbound, Meant to be, I loved you first

2011-10-19T09:34:00.000-05:00

Morning! The Blurb: Amongst the wasteland lies the gleaming city of Karm. A Camelot-esque utopia built from the ashes of a dying world. Seventeen-year-old Fallon is no daughter of Karm. She's its assassin. Raised by a secret society of rebels, she's bent on bringing down the king's sham of an existence. But her first mark, one of the king's top knights of the Force, makes her question

Teaser Tuesday: More #FoS Flame of Surrender

2011-10-18T09:13:00.001-05:00

I'm trying out the blogger app for IPhone so I apologize about how this post looks. I'm such a geek, but I love it when a post is properly formatted. So anyway, the book is already out, not everywhere but it will be soon. #FoS Teaser: "I'm here for another reason," she said. Krishani waited, staring at her like a forlorn animal. "I'm sorry I disturbed you." And in case you missed it

Flame of Surrender Book Release Party

2011-10-16T23:38:00.029-05:00

The Journey to Avristar You didn't know what to expect when you stepped onto the boat and traveled into the mists, but when you landed on the island of Avristar, you forgot about the Lands of Men you came from. You found the rolling fields of Orlondir and saw the bonfire in the distance. You quickened your pace, cresting hills with agility you never knew you had. You stopped short, taking gulps

I am not a pretty girl . . .

2011-10-16T17:04:00.000-05:00

That is not what I do. Last night was reminiscent of my teenage years when I'd borrow the archaic cameras from the photography lab, head out to Osborne Village or Assiniboine Park to take pics with my friends. I always liked the photos you don't expect to see and for me, I liked the process of developing the pictures in the dark room, chemicals, and plastic clips on clothes lines. I loved

My Passion Play: Celia and Marco (The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

2011-10-13T15:36:00.000-05:00

Things going on involving me: There's a BIG pre release party happening on Monday! Check back here for an Alternate Ending of #FoS! Plus, The Bookish Brunette is showcasing the Hot Like Wow Tower Scene from #FoS, and Death, Books and Tea is featuring the Crazy Disturbing Torture Scene from #FoS. My crit partner Natasha over at The Heroine's Domain is also doing a teaser from #FoS, so plenty of

Review: Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind

2011-10-11T19:53:00.000-05:00

The Blurb: In the aftermath of the brutal murder of his father, a mysterious woman, Kahlan Amnell, appears in Richard Cypher's forest sanctuary seeking help . . . and more. His world, his very beliefs, are shattered when ancient debts come due with thundering violence. In a dark age it takes courage to live, and more than mere courage to challenge those who hold dominion, Richard and Kahlan must

Death and Stirfry

2011-10-10T21:17:00.001-05:00

I didn’t understand death until Stirfry died. Stirfry was my husband’s Persian Himalayan. He had taken her in when she was a week old. He was on a plane home the day she died, trapped at the Denver airport for an insanely long layover. I was at home with the kids. There are no words to describe what happened. I let Stirfry outside the way I did everyday and sat down at the computer to write.

Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

2011-10-09T14:32:00.000-05:00

The Blurb: "Opens at Nightfall; Closes at Dawn." The Le Cirque des Rêves is a circus unlike any other, just as this magical debut novel is equally unique. At the center of The Night Circus spectacle are two specially gifted young magicians, Celia and Marco, pitted against each other in professional competition, drawn towards one another in love. Erin Morgenstern's literary fantasy has already

Review: Eclipse and Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

2011-10-08T15:38:00.000-05:00

Good afternoon, Not to bore you with all the details but there are a lot of books on my list to review and so I'm going to be taking the books in chunks this time, grouping series that I've read entirely and reviewing them in one post. Since I've covered the first two books in the Twilight series, this review will focus on the last two books, obviously. The Blurb: Readers captivated by

I'm NOT with the "Big 6" but you'd never know it . . .

2011-10-07T19:33:00.000-05:00

Because I'm quite the illusionist. Coscom Entertainment, my publisher, is a small press out of Winnipeg, MB. Coincidentally, I live there too, and coincidentally, I've known the owner for the past five years. It's not necessarily cheating so much as it's having friends in strategic places. I did try to go the traditional route, I didn't want to call up my friend and be like, "Hey publish my

Follow Friday: The part where I jump into a book . . .

2011-10-06T21:22:00.002-05:00

And become an illusionist! Q. If you could pick one character in a book, movie or television show to swap places with, who would it be? I would be Celia Bowen from The Night Circus and be able to turn my jacket into a Raven with the flick of my wrist! Go participate in the Follow Friday fun!

My Passion Play: Arwen and Aragorn, Lord of the Rings

2011-10-06T13:51:00.001-05:00

Things going on in the bloggy world involving me this week include: This giveaway on Goodreads. I've got 3 more ARCs left for Flame of Surrender so if you want a copy, you can win one! .goodreadsGiveawayWidget { color: #555; font-family: georgia, serif; font-weight: normal; text-align: left; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; background: white; } .goodreadsGiveawayWidget img {

Teaser Tuesday: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

2011-10-04T17:32:00.001-05:00

Good afternoon! So I love this book so much. The Night Circus by Eric Morgenstern. This is my Teaser Tuesday! "But before she can vocalize her surprise, his lips close over hers and she is lost in wordless bliss. Marco kisses her as though they are the only two people in the world. The air swirls in a tempest around them, blowing open the glass doors to the garden with a tangle of billowing

Nothing takes the heat out of a dirty sexy scene . . .

2011-10-02T18:23:00.000-05:00

More than this: [<-- not the word you're looking for] Flame of Surrender should be available for presale on October 14th. No I'm not telling you which word I flubbed up. #authorfail And what authors say about deadlines is true. For instance, I was only given four days after receiving the last of the edits to get it back to the editor. You're probably thinking, 'Why are you blogging instead

You have to buy the book, you don't have to read it

2011-09-29T16:50:00.001-05:00

I support Indie Authors. All it takes is a dollar or three dollars or something to help them out. The more books they sell, the more likely they are to write more books. The more likely that one of those books will be my favorite book. So far I don't have any Indie favorites, the ones I've picked up have been average at best, but I still buy them, why? Because I support Indie Authors. I don't

My Passion Play: Lochan and Maya (Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma)

2011-09-29T09:18:00.000-05:00

Things going on in the bloggy world today involving me: I'm being featured as the Blogger behind the Book at GReads! today. There's a very candid picture of me and my daughter and my current favorite book over there. I'm telling the truth about ghosts over at Stephanie's blog, Curling Up By The Fire. You should check it out! Okay and now for the meme! Join the party! If you want to play

Monday Madness: "I like having sex with my boots on too."

2011-09-26T14:46:00.000-05:00

There will never be a weekend as perfect as this where I get to say, 'these are my friends' and 'this is my book' and for a long time it was only for my eyes, but now it belongs to them, it belongs to us. This is them being well themselves, except in costumes. From the left, Sam, Jeep, Jello, TJ, Ray, Ayla All of them have a part in it. All of them are enthusiastic about the project. Sam

IMM: You Against Me, Madly & Wolfhardt, Never Eighteen and more

2011-09-24T22:17:00.002-05:00

It's been a few weeks since I've posted an IMM and it's just because of these copy edits. They're beckoning me at the moment but after ranting, I don't know if I'll finish them. So instead I thought I'd tell you about the great books I got this week! Madly is your average nearly-eighteen year old girl-for a mermaid princess, that is. Madly James is thoroughly enjoying her internship in

Review: New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

2011-09-24T15:12:00.000-05:00

The Blurb: Shoot, I muttered when the paper sliced my finger; I pulled it out to examine the damage. A single drop of blood oozed from the tiny cut.It all happened very quickly then.Edward threw himself at me, flinging me back across the table...I tumbled down to the floor by the piano, with my arms thrown out instinctively to catch my fall, into the jagged shards of glass. I felt the searing,

My Passion Play: The Phantom of the Opera

2011-09-22T13:35:00.000-05:00

This week my pick is the Christine, Raoul, and Erik love triangle from Phantom of the Opera. Yes, the Phantom of the Opera's name is Erik. Christine Daae is a young soprano that's just become part of the Paris Opera House. There she hears Erik, The Phantom, whom she calls her Angel of Music. He teaches her how to sing. She keeps the Angel of Music a secret from everyone. Raoul comes into the

Coming Soon: Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick

2011-09-21T15:06:00.000-05:00

Hey Everyone! Michelle over at Simon & Schuster e-mailed me today (because I'm finally on their mailing list) about Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick coming out. She asked for a blog post dedicated to the coming release and so here it is! I feel sad that I can't be in Brampton, ON on October 27th, but I'll be in Winnipeg, MB. waiting for William Shatner and Kevin Sorbo to arrive at the Central

#FoS September Teaser: Many things in Avristar are forbidden . . .

2011-09-20T08:54:00.000-05:00

It's Tuesday, which means it's time for a teaser! See if this one strikes your fancy! Many things in Avristar are forbidden “Are you Krishani?” the feorn asked. Krishani narrowed his eyes and stared over at the elven girl who was trying not to watch them. He realized that this feorn must be one of Kaliel’s kinfolk from Evennses. “Yes. And yourself?” “Pux,” he answered. He shifted nervously

Madness: This is what happens when . . .

2011-09-18T20:00:00.000-05:00

You take film people / cosplayers / photographers / military / chefs / authors / children to camp for a weekend of acting mayhem. And this was just the beginning of the first day. That's me shaking my head, and that boy is my MC, except he thought it'd be funny to wear something under his costume. So we told him to take it off. Yeah there was no such thing as privacy. See? Abby is looking

My Passion Play: Romeo and Juliet

2011-09-15T06:00:00.004-05:00

Hey everyone! Welcome to the new meme where I talk about couples in literature. You might wonder about the name of the meme, "My Passion Play" and I was hoping you would! It comes from Phantom of the Opera, The Point of No Return. During Christine's solo she sings, "Our passion play has now at last begun!" See if you can spot it in the song below! And now for this week's featured couple!

Review: Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

2011-09-14T14:11:00.001-05:00

The Blurb: Isabella Swan's move to Forks, a small, perpetually rainy town in Washington, could have been the most boring move she ever made. But once she meets the mysterious and alluring Edward Cullen, Bella's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. Up until now, Edward has managed to keep his vampire identity a secret in the small community he lives in, but now nobody is safe, especially

#FoS September Teaser: You were having nightmares again

2011-09-13T15:45:00.002-05:00

Ahh, it finally feels like September today, so I will post a teaser from my upcoming debut novel, Flame of Surrender. I don't think this clip needs an introduction ... enjoy! You were having nightmares again “You were having nightmares again.” It wasn’t a question. Krishani shrugged. “No, they were just dreams.” Benir glared at him. “I know when they’re nightmares. You twist in the hammock

Monday Madness: A Blog Schedule? What is that?

2011-09-12T14:19:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone! No I didn't stare at this wondering what to write for five minutes. I'm also not wishing for a nap after being up until 3am . . . True Blood was awesome last night. If you don't watch the show you need to, and if you do watch it, holy wow, Jason and Jessica! It got cold today. Plus 30 yesterday and now it's cold. My daughter was almost late for school, which was my fault for

FOLLOW: When the enemy should win . . .

2011-09-09T08:10:00.000-05:00

Good morning! Q. Have you ever wanted a villain to win at the end of a story? If so, which one?? Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer. I wanted the Volturi to fight with them and I wanted them to eliminate someone, maybe not everyone, but someone, maybe a werewolf, maybe a vampire. Beautiful Creatures, I wish that Riley had stayed bad. I liked her when she was bad. Immortals by Alyson Noel,

Some Official Book News . . .

2011-09-07T16:59:00.001-05:00

The pretty press release, feel free to repost this on your blog! Coscom Entertainment welcomes DEBUT author Rhiannon Paille The boy who follows death, meets the girl who could cause the apocalypse. That’s what sold Rhiannon Paille’s YA Fantasy, Flame of Surrender, to editor-in-chief A.P. Fuchs of Coscom Entertainment. Fuchs has been active in the publishing field since 2004, having published