This past week on FYFA (and in my life):
I have absolutely nothing exciting to tell you about this week. I got more posts up (mostly because the end/beginning of the month has lots of specific posts that need to go up). Um, yeah. It was a week.
If you are a YA or MG writer, you should seriously consider joining me at the WIFYR conference in June. I’m attending the Trent Reedy workshop, where we’ll be talking about revision and giving (and receiving) great feedback. It’s a great way to get feedback on the first 6000 words of your novel (and that beginning is so crucial!). Also, there are more general writing and industry sessions in the afternoons. I’ve read so many comments about how they’re invaluable! Trent told me that you don’t have to have finished your manuscript to attend. He assured me that it’s a really encouraging environment that meets you wherever you’re at with your book.
Now I know I have plenty of blogger friends who write but don’t consider yourself writers (that used to be me!). This is the chance to kick it up and maybe start making that “far off” dream a reality. Getting feedback is the absolute best thing you can do for your book and your writing! Plus, how fun would it be to hang out with blogger friends (like me!) at a writing conference? I know I sound like I’m in serious recruiting mode here, but that’s because I’d really love to spend five days with my friends talking about writing!
Here’s what you may have missed on the blog this past week:
- April 2018 Monthly Wrap-Up Round-Up Link-Up – Link up your April wrap-up posts here!
- May 2018 Discussion Challenge Link-Up & Giveaway – Link up your May discussions and enter to win the giveaway!
- April 2018 Wrap-Up & Best of the Bunch
- My Newly Organized Bookcases! Let’s Discuss.
- The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl by Stacy McAnulty: Review & Giveaway – Still time to enter to win one of three copies of the book!
Book Blogger Birthdays and Blogoversaries:
Here are the birthdays and blogoversaries this week! I hope you’ll go wish these bloggers well on their special days! Make sure you check out the calendar to see what you might have just missed or what’s coming up. (If you want to be added to the calendar, it’s easy! Just fill out the birthday/blogoversary form.)
- May 7th – Sarah @ The Library Girl Writes‘ Birthday
- May 9th – KissinBlueKaren‘s Blogoversary
- May 10th – Lovely Reads‘ Blogoversary
For Review:
I received The Lying Woods from Disney! Thank you!
Purchased:
I got a Quarterly box from PageHabit. Confession: I actually meant to cancel this box after I got the Unearthed one a few months back (I was SUPER excited about an annotated copy of Unearthed by Meagan Spooner and Amie Kaufman, but I hadn’t planned on keeping the subscription). But I apparently forgot to cancel, so …
The good news is, I’ve read some amazing things about Sky in the Deep, so an annotated copy of that one should be really interesting. I also got The Reader (which I already own 🙁 ) and I Capture the Castle, which I hadn’t heard of. Anybody know this one? I’m curious what you think!
Great Discussions/Goings On Around the Blogosphere:
- Daniela @ Nocturnal Devices asks if we have a seasonal slump bug.
- SYNC is back with free YA audiobooks!
- Dani @ Perspective of a Writer invites you to join her new I Heart Characters! meme
- Shirley Cuypers has a list of book bloggers on her blog! Head over and get yourself added!
- Check out the new Banned Books Club over @ This is Lit!
- Pamela Nicole over @ Reverie Society has a new newsletter for Spanish-speaking people who are interested in learning about writing. Let’s help her spread the word!
Pre-Order Deals:
Listed in order of release date. Any new deals that I just added to the list this week will be denoted with a *** so you can easily find them!
Please note: Almost all pre-order giveaways run “while supplies last,” so I can’t guarantee that they’ll be open until the date listed. Pre-0rder early for your best chance to get all the goodies!
- Pre-order PUDDIN’ by Julie Murphy to receive pre-order swag. (INTL)(ends 5/6)
- Pre-order THE GIRL & THE GROVE by Eric Smith to receive a signed mini poster, hand stamped seed paper bookmarks, a signed, hand stamped bookplate, three leaf charms, and other surprise swag from previous books! (INTL)(ends 5/7)
- Pre-Order THE WAY YOU MAKE ME FEEL by Maureen Goo to receive a Graphic Companion to I Believe in a Thing Called Love, a Signed Bookplate, a Food Truck Pin, and a Bookmark. (US Only)(ends 5/7)
- ***Pre-order PERIOD: TWELVE VOICES TELL THE BLOODY TRUTH by various authors and you’ll be donating a period pack to a person in need of menstrual products. (US/CAN)(ends 5/8)
- Pre-order BY INVITATION ONLY by Dorothea Benton Frank to receive a custom designed invitation and cocktail recipe. (ends 5/14)
- Pre-order MY SO-CALLED BOLLYWOOD LIFE by Nisha Sharma to receive a pin, sticker, bookmark, over-sized postcard with a mega list of Bollywood movies, and a mini bookplate. (US Only)(ends 5/14)
- Pre-order FURYBORN by Claire Legrand to receive a signed bookplate and (limited) map of Avitas and a limited edition set of Furyborn character trading cards. You’ll also be entered to win the grand prize. (US, CAN Only) (ends 5/21)
- Pre-order FROM TWINKLE, WITH LOVE by Sandhya Menon to receive an art card with custom character art, a signed bookplate, a bookmark and a sticker. (INTL)(ends 5/11)
- Pre-order ONYX & IVORY by Mindee Arnett receive an exclusive short story. Also, every participant will be entered to win one of up to fifty sets of character cards. (INTL) (ends 5/14)
- Pre-order WAR STORM by Victoria Aveyard to receive an exclusive tote bag. (UK ONLY)(ends 5/14)
- Pre-order RIDE ON by Gwen Cole to receive a character postcard, a cover postcard, a bookmark and a signed bookplate. (INTL)(ends 5/21)
- Pre-order LEGENDARY by Stephanie Garber to receive a custom set of playing cards with four unique suits and a signed bookplate. (INTL)(ends 5/28)
- Pre-order LIFEL1K3 by Jay Kristoff to receive a collectible print featuring an original illustration of a map of the Grande Ol’ Yousay (US Only)(ends 5/28)
- Pre-order THE WORLD OF LORE: WICKED MORTALS by Aaron Mahnke to receive an exclusive enamel pin inspired by the book! (US Only)(ends 5/28)
- Pre-order SAVE THE DATE by Morgan Matson to receive an exclusive notebook! (US Only)(ends 6/4)
- Pre-order BRUJA BORN by Zoraida Córdova to receive a signed bookplate and a bookmark. Also, possibly, a magical Brooklyn map, an enamel pin and a set of character cards. (US, CAN Only)(ends 6/4)
- Pre-order BREAKOUT by Kate Messner to receive a poster and a set of 30 bookmarks to share! (US, CAN Only)(ends 6/4)
- Pre-order LITTLE DO WE KNOW by Tamara Ireland Stone OR reserve it at your local library to receive an autographed, limited edition bookplate, two signed bookmarks and a chance to win the grand prize! (INTL) (ends 6/4)
- ***Pre-order NEVERWORLD WAKE by Marisha Pessl to receive a beautiful, limited edition poster and a leather-bound mini notebook! (US)(ends 6/4)
- Pre-order REAPER AT THE GATES by Sabaa Tahir to receive an Ember Series swag pack and enter to win a reading survival basket! (US Only)(ends 6/11)
- Pre-order THE BRINK OF DARKNESS by Jeff Giles to receive an exclusive enamel pin! (Open to some INTL) (ends 7/9)
- Pre-order THE DARKEST LEGACY by Alexandra Bracken to receive an enamel pin. (INTL)(ends 7/11)
- Pre-order NYXIA UNLEASHED by Scott Reintgen to receive a signed postcard featuring one of four favorite characters from the Nyxia series. (US, CAN Only)(ends 7/16)
- Pre-order KILL THE FARM BOY by Delilah S. Dawson and Kevin Hearne to receive a themed 4 button set! (US Only)(ends 7/16)
- Pre-order CATWOMAN: SOULSTEALER by Sarah J. Maas to receive a cat-tastic PopSocket! (US Only)(ends 8/6)
- Pre-order ENDLESS WATER, STARLESS SKY by Rosamund Hodge to receive a signed bookplate, and a print of one a portrait of one of the four main characters. (INTL)(ends 7/24)
- Pre-order MIRAGE by Somaiya Daud to receive a set of Mirage-inspired nail polishes and a signed bookplate. (US Only)(ends 8/27)
- Pre-order ALL THE WANDERING LIGHT by Heather Fawcett to receive an exclusive world map, a signed bookplate, a bookmark and two stickers. (INTL)(ends 12/3)
Other Current Giveaways on FYFA:
(Besides the ones listed with this week’s posts)
- April 2018 Discussion Challenge & Giveaway – Last chance to enter!
Even More Awesome Giveaways on Other Sites:
- Dani @ Perspective of a Writer is celebrating one year of her Reader’s Appreciation feature with a giveaway!
- Enter to win an Autographed Collectors’ Set of The Crown’s Fate
- Amy Fellner Dominy has a giveaway with a great prize pack including all three of her books signed (I LOVED her last book and am eager to read the next one!)
- Stuck in Books is giving away Before I Let Go by Marieke Nijkamp
- Tressa @ Wishful Endings is giving away a Book from her April/May TBR (INT)
- Bookfever is giving away a book of your choice to two people (INT)
- Lots of blogs participating in the May I Suggest Giveaway Hop!
- Head over to The Novel Knight for a chance to win the Entire SUMMONER Series!!
- Enter Read It Forward’s weekly giveaway! This one is: A Place For Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza
- Head over to Writer Writer Pants on Fire for her weekly giveaway! This week’s is a chance to win one of two ARCS of DARK BREAKS THE DAWN by Sara B. Larson
- Head over to Stuck in Books for a chance to win Branded and Hunted
- Head over to Wishful Endings for a chance to win one of 10 “I love books” USB Flash Drives or a signed copy of The Fall of Grace & a signed copy of Die for You.
- Head over to Alyssa Carlier’s blog for a chance to win Reflection (A Twisted Tale) by Elizabeth Lim (which is a Mulan retelling).
Lots of good stuff! Have any giveaways or great discussions happening on your site right now? Feel free to share them in the comments!
That conference sounds amazing. I’ve been to tons of writing conferences, and they’re always an interesting experience. I hope you enjoy it!
I’ve only been to a couple of writing conferences, but I’ve loved them all!
Ooh nice! I don’t think I know of this subscription box. So every book is an annotated copy? How does that work?! I’d think that’d take a lot of effort on the author’s part since I know a few of those sell hundreds a month!
Hope you enjoy your reads!
Here’s my STS
Have a GREAT day!
Old Follower 🙂
The annotations are originally handwritten but then PgeHabit makes copies onto little post-its (though it’s actually really hard to tell they’re copies—but I know they have to be). You do get a hand-signed bookplate to go in the front, I believe (at least I did for Unearthed. Now I’ll have to go check that for this one). I LOVE the idea of the annotations—it’s the only thing that could get me to do a box, actually. I did cancel the subscription, but that’s just because boxes in general don’t work for me. I’ll have to write a post about that.
The conference does sound awesome. Good luck. And enjoy those fabulous new reads.
Thanks! I’m really excited about it!
That conference does sound awesome. Alas, I don’t have the time nor the money…but I hope you have a blast. I’m sure it will be very helpful.
-Lauren
http://www.shootingstarsmag.net
Aw, darn! I would have loved to hang out with you for a week. I definitely get it, though!
I never read I Capture the Castle, but I saw the film many years ago. I remember liking it. The Lying Woods looks really good. Enjoy!
I didn’t realize it was a movie. Hmmm …
Good luck and have fun at the conference! It does sound like a lot of fun and like a great way to get feedback and really grow as a writer.
I got Sky in the Deep and just read the first chapter today. So far so good!
Shannon really loved Sky in the Deep, which makes me think I probably will too—we tend to like most of the same things.
Enjoy the conference! I visited your color coordinated bookshelves…and they look amazing!
Enjoy your week, and thanks for visiting my blog.
Thank you!!
I got The Lying Woods this week as well. Can’t wait to read it! Have a good week.
I’m really looking forward to it!!
Happy May! The conference sounds like it will be fun. The cover for Lying Woods is great. I hope you enjoy all your new books! I love the tote that came in your subscription box! I used to subscribe to My Lit Box, but when they changed their format, I never resubscribed. I miss it, but cost wise I couldn’t keep it up. 🙁
I hope you have a great week!
Yeah, boxes can definitely get expensive. I have a hard time justifying the cost.
The Lying Woods looks good. Sometimes quiet weeks can be a good thing. I hope this week is a joyous one.
I’m really looking forward to The Lying Woods!!
I haven’t come across any subscription boxes in the UK but I like the idea of them. I’m glad you got a nice haul despite it being an accidental one! 🙂
It is a nice box! I think I’ve heard of a couple UK boxes, but they’re much harder to come by. It seems like there are a MILLION of them in the US nowadays.
Oh that is a pretty good quarterly box! I have heard that Sky in the Deep is really good!! I used to get the PageHabit romance box, but I’m broke so that had to come to an end!!
Have a good week!
I love the idea of the PageHabit box, but I think book boxes just aren’t for me. I’ll have to write a post about that…
I used to want to write. I have a bunch of ideas, but never have actually had the discipline to sit down and actually do it.
I used to subscribe to book boxes but cancelled them after a while.
Hope you have a great week and hope you enjoy your new books.
You should try NaNoWriMo. It gave me the motivation to KEEP GOING and actually finish my book. I need deadlines!
Ah, I see your week was as exciting as mine lol. The workshop sounds like it’ll be great, and at least the book box you forgot to cancel turned out to be a good one! I’m curious though, what is that log-looking thing?
The log-looking thing is a group of stackable tins. This is part of my problem with boxes like these. It’s kind of an interesting item, but I have no idea what I’ll do with it. I just don’t have that many tiny supplies to store.
Awww THANK YOU SO MUCH! I really appreciate you sharing both my meme and my giveaway Nicole!! ❤️ Also the workshop sounds so perfect for writers of YA. I sure wish I could attend. I’m actually half way through a book with my writing partner too. Maybe next year.
I’ll have to chat with you sometime about how you work with your writing partner. I LOVE the idea of having someone on the journey with you. Have you written about the experience on your blog (heading over there now to check)…
Enjoy the WIFYR workshop, dear! ♥ I used to write a LOT when I started reading, until I realized it just wasn’t the time for me. Maybe in the future. 🙂 OH! And I hope you enjoy Sky in the Deep as much as I did, Nicole!
Your time will come. I just know it. 🙂
I hope you have a great time at the workshop!
And I’ve always wanted to subscribe to a bookbox. Maybe someday!
This is my first book box subscription, but I honestly don’t think I’m sold on the idea. I’m planning to write a post about it, actually.
You’ve shared so many great links! Clicking away over here. Hope you enjoy your book mail, and thanks! =)
Always happy to share!!
My week was uninteresting and mostly unexciting. Except for Avengers: Infinity War. Yikes!
Glad you had something to spice it up!
That conference sounds amazing, sadly a bit far away for me. I hope you’re doing well 🙂
Yes, it’s a little far for me too, but I decided it’s worth it (especially since Utah is gorgeous—I’m hoping to take a hike or two while I’m there!). I’m doing this trip in lieu of going to one of the big book events, like BEA.
Oh that conference sounds so incredible, wish I could be in the same continent to attend! I hope you will have a lot of fun there, Nicole 🙂 And great haul, The Reader looks stunning, too bad you already own a copy :/
I hope you’re having a lovely week! <3 <3
Yeah, that would be a bit of a long trip for a conference!
Hope you enjoy the conference, and get a lot of great writing feedback! The Lying Woods looks interesting. Happy reading! 🙂
Thanks! I’m really looking forward to it!
oh, thank you for featuring my discussion Nicole! <3
I am so excited for you and the WIFYR conference!!! I cannot wait to hear more! I agree that the beginning is so crucial!. I have been obsessed with it! I hope you recruit some great bloggers/writers friends to go with you and hopefully I will be able to join next time 🙂
I love your quarterly box!
The beginning of the book is the toughest because it has to hook people. It sort of feels like it has to be perfect before you can even think about trying to get an agent.
Ohhh I’m looking forward to seeing what you think of Sky in the Deep, it sounds amazing!! And that box looks like a lot of fun, but I always hesitate signing up for boxes. I’m such a moody reader sometimes, and I’m nervous I’ll get something I won’t like…….I’m too picky I think? I don’t honestly know. Hmmmm….
One of these days I’m going to write a post about my feelings on boxes. Note to self: Must put this in my drafts so I don’t forget. (leaves for a moment) Okay, done.