THE MIRK AND MIDNIGHT HOUR Giveaway and YA Pick and Mix 4/22 Edition

by Martina Boone

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

I heard a new term from two different people this week, and then in the inimitable way of the universe, it appeared in my newsfeed as a Buzzfeed post. (Hear that, Wendy Higgins, Buzzfeed is monitoring your Facebook page!) Have you ever heard of a book hangover?

Apparently a book hangover is when you read a book and you miss it when it’s over. I head a couple of people say it about Compulsion, and I honestly don’t know whether to be delighted or to apologize. (I’ve opted to do both.) But I instantly recognized the feeling.

I’ve felt that way about each book of THE DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE SERIES after I read them. And now I’m reading the third book and dragging my feet. Partly, yes, that’s because I’m working frantically on Book 2 of the Heirs of Watson Island I suspect that’s partly because I’m DREADING having my beloved series come to an end.

What about you? What are you reading? Do you ever consciously or subconsciously slow down because you don’t want a book or series to end? Have you experienced a book hangover? And in case you haven’t, here’s a list of books that are apparently notorious for providing them.

I also have to confess that I’m changing my mind about posting reviews or blurbs here each week. I’m putting them up on my website instead, so if you’re interested in reading them early, or if you might be interested in finding out more about being on the Compulsion street team, please go here.

YA GIVEAWAY OF THE WEEK

The Mirk and Midnight Hour
by Jane Nickerson
Hardcover
Knopf Books for Young Readers
Released 3/11/2014

A Southern girl. A wounded soldier. A chilling force deep in the forest.
All collide at night’s darkest hour.

Seventeen-year-old Violet Dancey has been left at home in Mississippi with a laudanum-addicted stepmother and love-crazed stepsister while her father fights in the war—a war that has already claimed her twin brother.
When she comes across a severely injured Union soldier lying in an abandoned lodge deep in the woods, things begin to change. Thomas is the enemy—one of the men who might have killed her own brother—and yet she’s drawn to him. But Violet isn’t Thomas’s only visitor; someone has been tending to his wounds—keeping him alive—and it becomes chillingly clear that this care hasn’t been out of compassion.
Against the dangers of war and ominous powers of voodoo, Violet must fight to protect her home and the people she loves.
From the author of Strands of Bronze and Gold comes a haunting love story and suspenseful thriller based on the ancient fairy tale of “Tam Lin.”

What is your favorite thing about THE MIRK AND MIDNIGHT HOUR?

The basic plot of a Southern girl meeting a wounded Union soldier is one I have played around with for ages. Through the years, I’ve made up tons of stories in my head as I’m falling asleep, and this is one of them. It’s so fun that I could take this old favorite, adapt it to loosely fit “The Ballad of Tam Lin”—a story I love—and create a book I would love to read myself. It’s kind of like having a dream come to life.

Purchase The Mirk and Midnight Hour at Amazon
Purchase The Mirk and Midnight Hour at IndieBound
View The Mirk and Midnight Hour on Goodreads

RECENT YA GIVEAWAY WINNERS

The Here and Now
by Anne Brashares
Hardcover
Delacorte Press
Released 4/8/2014

Winner – Markella Whetzel

Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.

Thrilling, exhilarating, haunting, and heartbreaking, The Here and Now is a twenty-first-century take on an impossible romance. Ann Brashares’ first novel for teens since The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants is about a girl from the future who might be able to save the world . . . if she lets go of the one thing she’s found to hold on to.

Meet seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn’t come from a different country. She came from a different time—a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins.

Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they’re from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she’s told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth. But everything changes when she falls for Ethan Jarves.

Purchase The Here and Now at Amazon
Purchase The Here and Now at IndieBound
View The Here and Now on Goodreads

BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS

Congrats to Anne Blankman, whose gorgeous PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG releases today! Don’t miss this one, I mean it!

Look who’s on the elusive NY Times Bestselling Children’s Series List!!! Well, there are actually many great series there, but we all know I’m going to celebrate one in particular. Ta da, it’s DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE. Go, Laini Taylor! (And also Abbi Glines, because ABBI!)
Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez died last week. This is a huge loss to literature, so if you haven’t discovered his work yet, here’s a quickie rundown on five pivotal works.
One of the best things I read or saw last week was this video from Neil Gaiman on Reading and Obligation.
Need a Tuesday pick-me-up? Here are 26 songs to instantly cheer you up.
Want to discover some new favorite books? Here’s a list of fabulous first lines from 2014 from Publisher’s Weekly.
The incredible Beth Revis, author of the ACROSS THE UNIVERSE series, wrote an essay on equality that I hope everyone, male and female, will read. She called it: I’m not a feminist, but
Ellen Oh, in the wake of a flurry of discussion on diversity last week, wrote a beautiful and important post on how we are still not doing enough for diversity in books.
Kat Zhang wrote a beautiful post on how art speaks.
The Book Smugglers were nonimated for the best Fanzine category of the Hugo’s! How awesome is that? There were also a few other nominations. Some not so good.
Megan Shepherd’s MADMAN’S DAUGHTER won the North Carolina YA Book Award.
Unless you live under a rock, you’ve probably seen (and sobbed over) the If I Stay movie trailer, right?

And done various sobbish things because you’re worrying about The Giver?

WRITING TIP OF THE WEEK

Six best pieces of advice from successful authors

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Martina Boone

Martina Boone is the award-winning author of the romantic southern gothic Heirs of Watson Island series, starting with COMPULSION from Simon & Schuster, Simon Pulse and the Celtic Legends Collection of novels set in Scotland, Cornwall, and Ireland beginning with LAKE OF DESTINY. She’s passionate about improving lives through literacy and the love of books, and she runs the Compulsion For Reading program to distribute books to underserved schools and libraries.

She lives with her husband, children, Shetland Sheepdog Phinney, and Zoey the lopsided cat, and she enjoys writing contemporary romantic fiction with a hint of magic set in small towns and beautiful places. When she isn’t writing, she’s addicted to travel, horses, skiing, chocolate flavored tea, and anything with Nutella on it.

Post © Martina Boone and/or Adventures in YA Publishing. All rights reserved.

Posted: Apr 22, 2014

Category: Imported from AYAP

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The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p>
<p>Your main character needs to be:<br />
• Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br />
• Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br />
• Active enough to drive the story<br />
• Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p>
<p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />

The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p>
<p>But your theme needs to be:<br />
• Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br />
• Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br />
• Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br />
• Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p>
<p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />

The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p>
<p>In general, your plot should:<br />
• Hook readers fast<br />
• Build tension that a child can follow<br />
• Create page turns that feel natural<br />
• Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p>
<p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.

The Arms of your story are the side characters.

The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p>
<p>Your setting should:<br />
• Make your character's world feel real<br />
• Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br />
• Connect different scenes and moments organically<br />
• Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p>
<p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black.

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