Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Teaser Tuesday - 8/28/12

This week's Animorphs Teaser Tuesday is from book 37: The Weakness.

While Jake is away at an out-of-town wedding, Tobias discovers the place where Visser Three feeds. There is a unanimous decision to acquire cheetah morphs and run him down. But which Animorph will lead the mission in Jake's absence?

The rules for Teaser Tuesday are:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
  • Then hit up Should Be Reading to add your link.

And the teaser:

And in order to do the great things, in order to win wars and build cities, or whatever, you've got to have pride and confidence. You've got to be just a little bit arrogant.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Teaser Tuesday - 8/21/12

Aw, guys... I'm still reading Animorphs. What can I say? It's a 54 book series, not including the specials. And even though I'm reading at a rate of roughly two books a day (remember, these are meant for ten-year-olds), I'm not quite fast enough to finish in a week. But I am up to book 21: The Threat.

There is a new Animorph. And he's arrived just in time, because the Yeerks are preparing their biggest takeover ever. The ultimate target: the world's most powerful leaders gathered together in one place. What better way to get into the minds of humans? Literally.

At first, David joins the fight with a vengeance. But there is definitely something wrong. Because he's starting to break the rules. Taking risks that could get them all captured. Or killed. The Animorphs don't know what to do. Because there was a time when the Yeerks were their greatest enemy. That's about to change...

The rules for Teaser Tuesday are:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
  • Then hit up Should Be Reading to add your link.

And the teaser:

She snatched the tie out of my hands, whipped it around Ax's neck, tied it neatly, cinched it up, rebuttoned his shirt using the buttonholes we'd managed to miss, buttoned the top button of his jacket, straightened his lapels, and pushed his hair into place. All in less time than we'd wasted staring blankly at one another.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Game On Blog Tour

gameonsmall2

I'm so thrilled to have a special guest on Chock Full of Words today. Meet Leah Walker, the star of Game On by Kyra Lennon. She's here today to talk about her family. Much of Game On centers on the relationships between Leah and her brother and parents, so I'm excited to hear more of her thoughts on the subject (especially her nephew Jamie, who was without a doubt my favorite character in the book. Please give a warm welcome to Leah Walker! (I know, I know. I missed my calling as a game show announcer.)

I’d like to tell you a little bit more about my family. You see, now I live in L.A, I don’t get to see them much anymore. And by that I mean, I haven’t seen them in over a year, since I moved to America. I think some of my friends here think that I don’t miss them because I rarely talk about them. In fact, the opposite is true. I miss them so much, it hurts to talk about them.

My mum, bless her heart, is kind of... old before her time. And she’s always been that way. We used to be close, but my rebellious teen phase put a huge dent in that. This wasn’t her fault. It was mine. I shut down, and stopped talking about what was going on with me. She didn’t make it any better by pushing, and she can give a guilt trip better than anyone I know. But it was me who initially weakened the bonds. I hope that one day we can fix it all. We talk on the phone every few weeks, and in spite of the distance, we have got closer. But there are many things beneath the surface we need to deal with.

My dad’s quiet. Not in a grumpy old man kind of way. He just likes to keep life as simple as possible, and would never dream of starting an argument, or nitpicking over something that might cause a row. He just sits back, waits. His facial expressions always give him away though. He’s the kindest man I know, and he only ever wants what is best for everyone.

My brother, Josh... he is amazing. He’s kind of the perfect combination of my parents, personality-wise. He’s like my mum in the sense that, if someone has a problem, he wants to help. But like my dad, he knows when to hold back. He didn’t interfere in my decision to move to America. Well, he didn’t try and talk me out of it. He told my parents to let me go and stop badgering me into staying near home. I knew he wanted me to stay, but he made sure that I didn’t feel any pressure from him.

Josh’s wife, Christina, is just about the sweetest person you could ever hope to have in your family. She’s been with Josh since they were at school, so she’s known me since I was thirteen. I always looked up to her when I was growing up. I thought she was really cool, and I loved her blonde curls. I remember asking my mum over and over if I could dye my hair blonde. Mum always laughed and said that blonde wouldn’t work on my black hair, and it would be more likely to come out green. During the rebellious phase I mentioned, I paid to have blonde streaks put in my hair, and they were most definitely blonde, not green. Mum was livid!

Josh and Christina have two wonderful children. Jamie is seven and Grace is sixteen months. I haven’t seen Grace since she was a baby, and I know there is a lot I’m missing out on. I was always exceptionally close to Jamie, and it lights up my day when I get to speak to him on the phone. He’s a great kid, and I know he is going to grow up to do great things.

I’m lucky, I know. I’m really looking forward to seeing them again, but talking about them? That’s always hard. So now I’m going to get a glass of wine, and think about something that doesn’t make me want to jump on the next plane to England!

Thanks so much for being on my blog, Leah! If you're interested in buying Game On (which you should be), you can purchase it on Amazon or Smashwords, at the following links:
Amazon Kindle
Amazon paperback
Amazon UK Kindle
Amazon UK paperback
Smashwords
Barnes & Noble Nook

Kyra's Blog


Go Team Leah!

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Teaser Tuesday - 8/14/12

What am I reading right now? Oh, that's right. Animorphs! I'm having a crisis of... age... and I've decided to go back to my reading roots. Also, I was insanely curious as to how these books would withstand the test of time. Turns out they're still awesome. This teaser comes from book 7.

The fight for the planet continues in this gripping installment. The Animorphs must make an exacting choice. The last time Rachel and her friends entered the giant Yeerk pool beneath their town things went very bad. This time they plan to be careful, and sneak in as roaches, just to spy. Once they're inside, though, the team gets caught. But right as things are looking their most dire, everything stops. Everything. Then Rachel and the Animorphs hear a voice. It belongs to a very old, very powerful being, and it says it can save them. But if it does, the Earth will be defenseless.

The rules for Teaser Tuesday are:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
  • Then hit up Should Be Reading to add your link.

And the teaser:

"I knew you were coming," the future Rachel said. "After all, I was you. Once I stood right where you stand now, and looked just like you look now, and saw myself as I am today."

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Teaser Tuesday - 8/7/12

I read so many good books this week, still mostly in the contemporary YA genre, but the one I'm reading now is a little more fantasy and a little more fun: Chantele Sedgwick's Not Your Average Fairy Tale.

Ash Summerland has it all–good looks, popularity, and the best grades at The Academy of Magical Beings. Ready to complete his last assignment in order to graduate, Ash is confident he will get the apprenticeship he wants. When he opens the letter from the Council, he is shocked to discover he has been assigned to apprentice Lady Shenelle, Keeper of Happy Endings. A.K.A. the head fairy godmother. Ash is forced to grant three wishes to a troubled human girl named Kendall, and ultimately give her a "happy ever after". But Kendall turns out to be more than he bargained for. Still grieving over her father's death, Kendall doesn't want anything to do with him. And worst of all, she doesn't believe in happy endings.

The rules for Teaser Tuesday are:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
  • Then hit up Should Be Reading to add your link.

And the teaser:

I wasn't ready to grant her other wishes yet. I wanted her to take her time. I wanted more time with her, but once she said the words I wish, I had to grant them no matter what.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

July Wrap Up

And fail.

Okay. I think the universe is trying to tell me something. I've had a string of unsuccessful started stories and about a gazillion new ideas, and nothing's catching. Nothing's lighting me up. And I think the reason is because I really need to finish editing Capitoline Hill. No more excuses. So for the month of August, that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to edit and polish my query letter and synopsis, and when that's done, maybe I'll be able to write again.

So here's last month's goal breakdown.

  • Write 11,000 words. I wrote about 7,000.
  • Have a polished MS for CH, along with a complete query letter and synopsis. I have a complete query letter that I'm happy with and a complete synopsis that is... okay. I don't have a polished MS for CH.
  • Get 150 followers on Twitter and 100 followers on my blog. 145 followers on Twitter, 86 on my blog.
  • Enter at least two bloghops. Turns out the What If Blogfest is actually in August, but I did the Hookers and Hangers Bloghop. And it was two days, so that counts, right?
  • Submit at least one short story for a contest/magazine submission. No.

August's goals:

  • Have a polished MS for CH, along with a complete query letter and synopsis. Because I'm turning into the girl who cried edits.
  • Enter at least one bloghop. Because, as I said, the What If Blogfest is actually in August.
  • Visit K.S. Lewis. Plane ticket already purchased!
  • Relax, shake it off, and approach my writing with fresh eyes in September.

Did anyone have a productive July? Please, share with the class.