Cover Reveal: The Girlfriend Request by Jodie Andrefski

November 22, 2015Cover Reveal, mermaidsEntangled Crush, Jodie Andrefski, The Girlfriend RequestPintip

Today, it is my privilege to host the cover reveal of debut author, Jodie Andrefski’s book, The Girlfriend Request.

Isn’t this cover stunning?

Blurb:

Emma has been best friends with Eli since she moved to his neighborhood ten years ago. Tired of being cast in the role of the girl next door, Emma creates a fake Facebook profile in the hopes of starting an online friendship with Eli, which would hopefully lead to more. Like…way more. From friend request to In a Relationship–it all seemed so completely logical when she’d planned it.

Eli can’t figure out what Emma is up to. He’s pretty sure she’s the one behind the Facebook profile, but then again, why would she do something so drastic instead of just admitting she wants to be more than friends? And who the heck is this new guy he saw her with? Eli starts to think that just maybe… he missed his chance with the girl next door.

Two best friends, one outlandish ruse. Their status is about to become way more than It’s Complicated.

Be sure to keep an eye on EntangledTeen.com for an interview with Eli for their Swoon-Worthy Sunday feature. (Trust me, Eli is definitely just that!) 😉

A note from Jodie:

I hope you love reading THE GIRLFRIEND REQUEST when it releases, just as much as I loved writing it.

A Giveaway:

To celebrate, Jodie is offering a chance to win a $20 Amazon e-Gift Card, as well as this beautiful handcrafted necklace with a vintage rose, glass pendant.

(I’m sorry, but Jodie is unable to ship the necklace outside of the US. If the contest winner is outside of the US, it will be e-Gift Card only. Thank you for your understanding.)

The winner will be selected randomly from all entries, and will be announced Thursday, November 26th.

To enter, click here: Rafflecopter.

Remember, you can RT daily for more chances to win!!

Best of luck in the contest!

Cannot Write Without: E.C. Myers

November 20, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, ec myers, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from award-winning SF author and superhero : E.C. Myers.

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I can’t write without a keyboard.

I’ve tried writing fiction longhand, and it’s just too slow. It doesn’t matter if the keyboard is on a laptop or attached to a desktop computer or a tablet, or if I’m working on a word processor like my Alphasmart Neo — I just need keys to transfer words from my brain to a file!

I prefer clicky keys on a mechanical keyboard, the louder the better, but I can adjust to just about anything if I have to… even a chiclet keyboard.

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E(ugene).C. Myers is the author of the Andre Norton Award–winning Fair Coin and Quantum Coin, young adult science fiction novels published by Pyr, and The Silence of Six, a young adult cyber thriller from Adaptive Books.

Find out more about Eugene at his website: http://ecmyers.net

Cannot Write Without… My Sanity

November 19, 2015mermaidsMasha Levinson

Edgar Allen Poe said, “I am a writer. Therefore, I am not sane.” I think I agree. Sanity is twenty shades of complicated. For me, it’s the ability to think and behave in a normal and rational manner. When life gets tough, or when sanity is tested, writing can be an outlet.
Sometimes.
Except this is not one of those times.
This time I can’t write. And it’s happening during NaNo. When everyone is furiously squirreling away words, the inability to write becomes a miasma of frustration and self-recrimination.
But not this time.
This time I am allowing myself not to write. And not to feel guilty. There are a number of downsides to not being published. But one of the upsides is that the only deadlines I have are self-imposed.
Yes, it’s NaNo.
Yes, I’m not writing.
Yes, I’m okay with that.

Cannot Write Without: Liz DeJesus

November 18, 2015Cannot Write WithoutAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from fantastic fairy tale author : Liz DeJesus.

Liz will be giving away pdf copies of her gorgeous Frost series (three books!) to one lucky commenter today. So…what can’t YOU write without?? Be sure to comment below!

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I can’t write without my gel pen and my Moleskine notebook.

I get easily distracted by the internet if I try to write directly onto my computer. I end up writing a sentence and then going to Facebook to see what all of my friends are up to.

So with a notebook and pen there’s less distractions for me (thank goodness for the Do Not Disturb button on my iPhone. Otherwise I’d never get any writing done).

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Liz DeJesus was born on the tiny island of Puerto Rico. She is a novelist, freelance writer, writing coach and a poet. She has been writing for as long as she was capable of holding a pen. Find out more about Liz and her gorgeous books on her website: www.lizdejesus.com!

Cannot Write Without: Amber Lough

November 16, 2015Cannot Write Withoutamber lough, cannot write without, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from fabulous YA author and current resident of Germany [WHY DOES SHE HAVE TO BE SO FAR AWAY???–Alethea] : Amber Lough.

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lee & AMBER One thing I cannot write without? That’s hard because I have been forced to be quite adaptable. Honestly, I can write on napkins on a boat if I have to. The ONE thing I must have is an alert brain. If I am sleepy at ALL, I will fall asleep on my keyboard.

It’s boring, but it’s the truth. I’ve been known to fall asleep mid-word and dream about the scene I’m writing about. The more rested I am, however, the better I can write.

Ideal situation: laptop, coffee, eclectic and comfortable Cafe, and headphones playing classical music.

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Amber Lough lives with her physicist husband and their two kids in Lower Saxony, Germany.

As a child, Amber moved about every two years and spent much of it overseas in Cuba, Japan, and Bahrain. She attended High School in North Charleston, South Carolina and studied Russian at Saint Louis University in Missouri before heading into the Air Force. She was an Intelligence Officer stationed in San Diego, and travelled the Pacific for her job. She also spent about 8 months in Baghdad, Iraq. After having her first child, she left the Air Force to begin writing full-time.

Visit Amber over at The Fourteenery and The Hanging Gardens where she contributes with other YA authors.

Cannot Write Without: Monica Valentinelli

November 13, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, monica valentinelli, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s Fabulous Friday the 13th answer comes from one of Alethea’s favorite authors and gamer grrls: Monica Valentinelli.

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The one thing I feel I can’t write without is my noise-cancelling headphones.

When I wear them, my world suddenly shrinks and I feel more focused on what is in front of me. It doesn’t matter if I’m furiously typing on a keyboard or scribbling in a notebook, either. Being able to control peripheral noise has been one of the best things that ever happened to me.

It rocks!

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Monica Valentinelli is a writer, editor, and game developer who lurks in the dark. She writes both original and media tie-in fiction and works on games and comics, too. To date, she has over six dozen creative credits with more on the way. She is known for her work as the lead writer and developer for the award-winning line of Firefly RPG releases based on the TV show by Joss Whedon. Recently, she announced The Gorramn Shiniest Language Guide and Dictionary in the ‘Verse will be available in Spring 2016 from Titan Publishing.

To find out more about Monica, visit her website at: www.mlvwrites.com

Do You Hear What I Hear…

November 12, 2015Kerri Carpenter, mermaids#amwriting, Christmas, inspiration, Kerri Carpenter, music, nanowrimo, writingKerri Carpenter

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from the Waterworld Mermaids’ very own Kerri Carpenter.

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I have to keep this short and sweet today. Why? Because it’s NaNo month of course.

Wait, you don’t know what NaNo is? Allow me to explain. Writers from all over the galaxy are trying to write at least 50,000 words during the month of November. Intense, right?

Even more crazysauce is that the Waterworld Mermaids are in a tight competition with the writers over at Romance on the Rocks. Who can write the most words? Fingers crossed for the lagoon! Now, back to the question at hand.

The one thing I absolutely, under no circumstances, no way Jose, cannot write without is… Music!

Some writers need absolute quiet. Others love them some background noise. Me? I gotta have the tunes. For the most part, any music will do. However, I do have some favs. Without further ado, here’s my list:

Field of Dreams Soundtrack

I love the movie and I love the soundtrack. I listen to this constantly.

Random Playlists I Create

I love creating playlists and sometimes I’ll do one inspired by whatever I’m working on. For example, in my contemporary romance, The Best Kind of Love, Penelope and Ethan were created by listening to a lot of Lady Antebellum. I considered the song, “Dancing Away with My Heart,” to be Penelope and Ethan’s song.

Anything by John Williams

John Williams is the man! Like a song from a movie? He probably came up with it. I’ve been listening to his Greatest Movie hits for the last couple months. Star Wars, Superman, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, and soooo many more.

Random Artists

I really do listen to a ton of different music but I will admit I have some go-to’s. Colbie Caillat, John Mayer, Paul Simon, Lady Antebellum, Ben Folds Five, Ashley Monroe, and more.

Christmas Music

I love Christmas music so freaking much! I would listen to it all year long, but I do restrain myself. However, I’m currently working on a Christmas story so it’s been all Christmas, all the time. Bring on Bing, Mariah Carey, and the Chipmunks. I’m in Heaven! (And thank you to the Hallmark Channel for already playing Christmas movies!)

Alright, folks. That’s it for me. I’m off to fire up The Carpenters’ (no relation) Christmas album and get back to the writing.

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Cyber-stalk Kerri at her website.

Like Kerri on Facebook, so you can answer her Questions of the Day and view her plethora of adorable dog photos. Everyone loves Harry!

Retweet Kerri on Twitter, especially when she gets super into #TheWalkingDead on Sunday nights.

What’s that? You still need more Kerri? Wow, you guys are insatiable. Buy Kerri’s books on Amazon. (Most books are also available at Barnes & Noble, iTunes, and kobo too.)

Cannot Write Without: John Scalzi

November 11, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, john scalzi, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from SF celebrity author and karaoke rock god: John Scalzi.

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I can’t write without a computer.

I started writing stories the same year the first Mac came out and so literally I’ve never not written on anything other than a computer.I think about trying to write on a typewriter and it makes me want to run screaming into the night.

So, yes. A computer, please.

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John Scalzi is the most excellent author of Redshirts and Old Man’s War and a ton of other really great SF books. He’s the proprietor of the Whatever website, and as much fun to hang out with at conventions as he is online. He lives in Ohio with his supergoddess wife Krissy, ultrafabulous daughter Athena, one dog, one cat, and two brand new kittens (be sure to follow him online to see all the fabulous photos).

And Alethea Mermaid misses him very much!

Cannot Write Without: Haralambi Markov

November 9, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, haralambi markov, nanowrimoAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from SF short fiction author extraordinaire: Haralambi Markov.

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Whenever you hear professional writers – I’m talking about those writers who are revising a novel under deadline and outlining a new one while simultaneously doing a press tour for a book due to be released any second – speak about writing, you hear one advice come up very often: “Abandon all rituals. Forget about the special pens, notebooks and time of day. Write – it doesn’t matter when, where or how.” It’s damn good advice; gets things done.

I didn’t take it to heart when I first started, of course, because writing is an act of inspiration, OK? You’re an artist – the recipient of a rare gift. You can’t just sit down and write. No, you have to gather all the ingredients, wait for the right hour and use the right instruments to reach the ether and channel inspiration. What this method taught me is that you can’t do much work waiting for circumstances to align. You’re not a witch waiting centuries for planets to align in just the right way for a short window of time. Writing is not that kind of spellwork.

One by one, I had to strip out the rituals and prerequisites to get any writing done. Don’t get me wrong – it’s fine to have a favourite notebook with the best layout, a favourite pen with a great grip and an hour you know your mind is clearest, but I learned to not require them.

Right now, the one thing I cannot sacrifice is solitude. I can’t write knowing there is another person in the same room as me. My desire to chat and goof around trumps my desire to write and even the potential of a conversation breeds tension and dissolve any creative focus. I’m working on overcoming this, too, but so far – I think I hit a hard limit there.

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Haralambi Markov is a writer, an editor, a freelancer, a reviewer, a geek, a book hoarder, a list maker, an art fanatic, a TV junkie, a pop culture aficionado…and lives “with the weird” in the coastal city of Varna, Bulgaria. Find out more about Harry at: http://haralambimarkov.com/blog/ (The Alternative Typewriter)

Cannot Write Without: Steven Silver

November 6, 2015Cannot Write Withoutcannot write without, nanowrimo, stsven h silverAlethea

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from multiple Hugo Award nominated author and editor: Steven Silver.

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Several years ago, I was in a writing group for a short period of time. Each time we got together, I would circulate my works in progress to the other members and usually two or three of them would circulate their works.

Invariably, several people would circulate excuses. “I didn’t have the time.” or “My computer was down.” I kept thinking “You had a deadline. You find the time. You make the time.” or “You didn’t have a pencil? A pen? Paper? A receipt?”

I’ve written things on my phone if that was the only way to get the words down and I’ve remembered things I’ve wanted to write by repetitive memory so that they would stick with me until I got to a computer or paper. So there are very few specific physical things I need to write.

I need a method of getting the words down so they’ll be there when I need them. I don’t need a special keyboard or a magic pencil or a cup of tea (although the last is nice to have). So, what is the one thing I can’t write without…my imagination.

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Steven is a fabulous man who admits that his own website is a little behind the times. So instead, for more information I will direct you all to the website he maintains: www.sfsite.com/news