Video Blog: Anew, Sophie & Carter, and More!

What I do when I'm not writing...

I write. A lot. 

How else am I supposed to unleash all the many stories and characters that are trapped in my head?

BUT...when I'm not writing? I'm painting. More specifically, I paint murals. Children's rooms, schools, pediatric offices....I paint everywhere.  :)  Wanna see some pics?

 

Enter to win a GIVEAWAY copy of ANEW!

The lovely and amazing Avery Olive is hosting her 13 Days of Christmas giveaway...and guess what? I'm featured for day 10! 

What does this mean for you???

It means you can enter to win a free copy of ANEW--the first book in my new
paranormal romance series The Archers of Avalon!

A Ridiculous List of 5 Things NOT to do

I recently finished writing my first Young Adult Paranormal Romance book (yay) and during that time I learned some very valuable lessons about what NOT to do when writing a book:

1) Don't try to hash-out your plot line with rational people. They will look at you like you're crazy and say something like, "But witches aren't real." <---people like this don't belong in my world.

ANEW is now available! **Special Release Day Price**

It's here......  ANEW (book #1 in my Archers of Avalon series) is now available!

I am so excited to share this story with you all! It's about curses and death...forbidden love and sacrifice...cafeteria food and fashion....  You get the picture. :)

Ah, high school in the paranormal world of literature: where homework takes a backseat to magic and supernatural showdowns always happen at prom.

Check out the trailer!

Book Trailer for ANEW!

Oh, boy! I am freaking out! Are you guys freaking out? I am FREAKING out! Eeek! Anew comes out in 9 days!!! Aghhhhhhh!

Here's the thing about releasing a new book: It's super exciting...but also terrifying! Haha. I mean, what if it sucks? (Oh, man...I really, really hope it doesn't suck....) Eeek!  :)

Okay, now, down to business....
Below you'll find the official video trailer for Anew (yay!) I hope you like it....

Want to add Anew to your Goodreads shelf?

Countdown button for ANEW! Release Date: Dec. 7th!

I am so excited to announced the official release day for   
Anew: Book #1 in The Archers of Avalon series is

Wednesday, December 7th, 2011!

That's only 16 days from now...can you believe it?  In honor of the release date (and because I like purple things) I made a countdown button--check it out!

100 blog followers!

YAY! Wow, guys! Thanks so much for following my blog--you all ROCK!

When I started writing this blog, my hope was to have 40 followers in the first year (and, of course, 39 of those would be family members) but WOW! 100 followers in 4 months? That's awesome!

Thanks, everybody, for caring enough about my babbling self to follow my blog! :)

Here's a picture of how happy I am ----->

See? SUPER happy! Love you guys!

Anew - COVER REVEAL!!!

 

Cover design by Ashley Bugg www.buggphotographer.com <---how amazing is SHE? :)

Cover model: Kasey Goff <---most gorgeous model, ever. :)

I'm proud to present the cover of Anew! What do you guys think?  

 Anew is the first book in my Archers of Avalon series and will be available this winter! 

SYNOPSIS:

Scarlet awoke in the woods without her memories...without a past...without a future. Until she met a boy with a familiar voice. A boy with secrets. A boy with answers. A boy named Gabriel Archer. 

Intrigued by his voice, Scarlet immerses herself in Gabriel's life only to discover he has a brother he's kept hidden from her: Tristan Archer. Once Scarlet meets Tristan, her world becomes even more muddled. 

While she's instinctively drawn to Gabriel, she's impossibly drawn to Tristan--and confused out of her mind. Why does Gabriel seem so familiar? Why is she so attracted to Tristan? And why do both brothers keep telling her she's cursed to die?

Scarlet doesn't have the answers...but the Archer brothers do.

Want to add Anew to your To Be Read shelf?

Meet My Characters!

Phew! (whew?) Ah, man...yet another word I don't really know how to spell despite my career as a "writer".

Anyway, PHEW!

I just completed chapter 25 in my new book, Anew. I have been typing nonstop for weeks and I'm proud to announce that I'm almost done! Wow, guys, it feels soooo good to say that. :) I'm, like, really, REALLY excited about this book.

I've been living in my characters heads for so long now I'm afraid I might be taking on some of their personality traits...which isn't really a bad thing...unless, of course, you consider that one of my characters out to kill someone....

A Day In The Life Of Me

Sorry it's been so long! *sigh* I've just been a writing fool lately and have practically been living in my studio--diligently working on my next book, Anew.

I live off coffee and granola bars and rarely ever do I put on "real" clothes. I have to tell ya, writing isn't as glamorous as it sounds. At least not for me, haha.

Two years ago I worked at a credit union, financing loans for rich people (not as cool as one might think). A normal day for me back then went something like this:

Because I Can

I've changed my mind! (Not about the male-fairies-with-wings thing...that will probably never change....)

No, I've changed my mind about the title of my next book and my book series! :) The series will be called THE ARCHERS OF AVALON and the first book in the collection (hopefully out this December) will be titled ANEW.

Why did I change everything? Because I can... Mwah-haha-ha-haha! :)

Wow, I'm feeling quite powerful right now...like I could go lift a couch or something....

Who, me?

You can't see me right now, but I'm smiling so big my face hurts. Why the super-sized grin, you ask? Two reasons:

1) Vampire Diaries returns for a third season in two weeks. This is cause for celebration and completely blog-worthy. In fact, I might just do a video blog in honor of the season premiere. That's how excited I am. Does this make me obsessive? Absolutely.

Okay, reason number two....

2) Sophie & Carter has spent the last few days at the top of Amazon bestseller charts! #2 in Social Issues and #5 in Teen Love & Romance! SAY, WHAT???

Looks like Damon might have some competition...

There's a new show in town, and it makes me want to howl.


MTV's Teen Wolf has just finished its first season and, my-oh-my, what a season it was. I'm not going to recap the show, but I do want to point out how totally better it is than the movie of the same name. Let's compare photos, shall we?

My First Video Blog!

Will there be a sequel for Sophie & Carter?

My Writing Studio

As a writer, I think WHERE you write is super important.  For instance, I find that I cannot write well when I'm seated at the kitchen table, between my two children who are throwing chicken nuggets at one another.  For whatever reason, I find this distracting.  Go figure.

So instead, I write in my studio.  I call it my 'studio' because, up until 4 months ago, I spent the majority of my time painting.  (Well, let's be honest here, I spent the majority of my time eating and watching TV.)  But when I wasn't eating chocolate or watching reruns of Psych, I was painting.  In the back room of the house.  AKA the 'studio'.

But since my life has changed a bit and I now find myself reading and writing every minute of the day (wow, that's almost not an exaggeration) my 'studio' has become less of an artist's free-for-all and more of a writer's workshop.

So anyway, I have this great studio that my awesome husband made for me and it's so wonderful and inspiring but...I'm messy.  :(

I can't deny it. "Messy" just comes with my personality.  I'm loud.  I'm artsy.  I draw tattoos on people with sharpies.  I let my kids throw food and color on the walls....I'm the epitome of "mess".  Here is a picture of my studio earlier this afternoon:

Pretty wrecked, eh?  Did you notice the dead plant on the piano bench?  *sigh*  Yeah.  I fail at gardening.  You'll

I love the 90s...just saying.

Remember the 90's?  *sigh* If not, I've decided to post some pictures as a refresher.  Hope you enjoy!

Ah, SAVED BY THE BELL.  I mean, was there ever a better high school show? (Don't answer that!) Remember the episode where Jesse freaked out?  "I'm so excited...I'm so excited..I'm so...scared."  The ultimate after school special, right there.

I don't know about you, but I was in love with Mike Vitar.  

"You're killing me Smalls!"

Wait, does that mean strangers are reading my book?

I'm having a good day.  Partly because I spent the morning cuddled up with my babies on the couch (*love* my children).

But also because Sophie & Carter is doing much much better than I ever anticipated.

When Sophie & Carter was first published four weeks ago, I thought approximately five people would buy it (and all five people would, of course, be friends of mine) and then it would disappear into the oblivion of Amazon books.

But that hasn't happened...yet.  :)

My sales rank with Amazon started out at #60,302 out of 750,000 Kindle books.

Not bad.  :)  I was feeling victorious because my book---written by ME, a newbie author---was in the top 100,000 ebooks.  Awesome!

But this morning I checked my sales rank again and...     drum roll please.... 

Meet Blaire Kensley

Over this past week I had the opportunity to meet an awesome up-and-coming writer by the name of Blaire Kensley, author of the soon-to-be hit series THE CREED. And guess what?  She agreed to let me interview her!

See below!

***************************************************************

1) Blaire Kensley, who are you?  Tell us about yourself.

I guess the simple version is, I was born and raised in Texas but unlike most tried-and-true Texas folk I would love to actually travel and even live in different parts of the world if the opportunity presents itself.  I have an almost irrational sense of adventure, which frightens my husband to no end; especially when I attempt to plan my irrational acts and make them appear more rational than they really are. (Yeah, he’s not fooled either.)  I was the only girl raised in a house full of boys (4 to be exact) and am ranked somewhere close to the top in age, so I’m pretty tough, a little quirky, I smile a lot and possess the tendency to ramble on and on when I get nervous.

Because A Raccoon Attack Makes Sense

I took my first lesson in archery a few weeks ago as research for my next book. I'm not sure what my expectations were, exactly, for lesson #1, but I'm almost certain they didn't include 1) the equation for kinetic energy 2) a smoking audience and 3) my medieval death.

Allow me to elaborate.

1) The Equation for Kinetic Energy
I took my lessons at Sportman's Warehouse which, for those of you unfamiliar with the store, is like a Costco--but instead of crates of spaghetti sauce, and mouthwash by the gallon, Sportman's has guns, knives, kayaks, tents, fishing poles, deer heads, men with beards...you get the picture.

Amidst the plethora of dead creatures and weapons with which to execute such mammals, there is a small area in the back labeled: Archery. It was to this area I went for my first lesson in the subject.

After weaving my way through ammunition and bear spray (a real thing), I approached a gentleman at the archery counter. We’ll call this gentleman "Bert". So, up to Bert I went, all excited to learn about bows and arrows.

Hot Male Fairies...Ahoy!

I'm officially retracting my previous fairy post. (The one about male fairies not being hot because of the whole wispy-iridescent wings thing.)

Don't get me wrong--I still think butterfly wings are lame on a hot guy...BUT...I just finished reading C.C. Hunter's "Born at Midnight" (staring a male protagonist that just so happens to be part fae) and I'm hooked.

Now, for those of you who have read "Born at Midnight", I want to make it clear that, although I'm crazy about Derek (the half-fairy guy), I'm still totally Team Lucas (the other hot guy in the series).

Why am I Team Lucas?

For the same reason I'm Team Jacob (Twilight), Team Damon (Vampire Diaries), and Team Eric (True Blood). I root for the sexy, misunderstood, somewhat-dark-and-evil hot guy. Always.

Because I can't resist a 'monster' with a heart.

...And I don't want to. [insert wagging eyebrows here]

Anyway... starting today, I'm onboard with hot male fairies. Just FYI. :)

Love like WHOA

I have great friends. I mean truly, fantastic friends.

I had a meltdown in my kitchen two days ago. Like a real cry-my-eyes-out-snot-all-over meltdown. And not because I'm a terrible chef and should never be allowed to construct a sandwich or pasta dish without supervision. But because I was feeling overwhelmed by two incredibly powerful things:

1) The fear that I might not be able to make my next book good.

2) The all-consuming desire to MAKE my next book good.

Essentially, these are the same thing. And, although I started rewriting Promise Me Not earlier this week, I'm already 28,000 words in...so I'm feeling better about it. Which means it's not hopeless.

But my point, is that my friends (and by friends, I also mean family members) are awesome. Because they love me like crazy and they tell me so. I was re-reading some of the facebook messages my friends have been sending me for the last few months and I almost started crying again--geez, I'm such a girl!--because of how encouraging they all are. It means so much to me. More than I could ever verbalize to them.

Starting Over

I'm 40,000 words into my next book, Archers Immortal (a title I will probably change), and I've decided to start over.  Completely.

Not because those 40,000 words suck, but because I feel like I now know my characters, and I think I can do better.  This is how I do pretty much all creative things in my life.

When I paint, I always start with a picture that morphs into something else entirely by the time I'm finished.  So I'm not surprised to find my writing following suit.  The creative process is--at least in my case--like an unruly vine that stretches across my mind, growing into places I didn't know existed.  I feel blessed by this (the unpredictable nature of that which I create) and so I shall embrace it.

So I'm starting over.

It's tricky; the business of telling a story from the beginning.  Because it requires that I know everything upfront.  And honestly, I don't.  I have an outline so I won't get lost along the way; sketches so I can visualize facial expressions and locations; and an ending.

But I can't promise you that somewhere amidst my story, their won't be a character who goes rogue and completely redirects the entire plot.  Because who knows?  Maybe the villain chick will turn out to be likable and everyone will want to have her over for cookies and quilting lessons.  Or maybe the hot male protagonist will decide to become a career game show contestant and, therefore, lose all sex appeal.  I dunno.

But that's how I roll: total surrender to creativity.

So I'm starting over today. And I might start over again. But I will eventually tell my story. And it will rock.

Holy Tuna!

Sophie & Carter is now available on Kindle!

Click Here To Order!

I can't explain how surreal this is for me.  I've spent the last several years living in front of my Kindle, night after night, downloading new works of fiction for my brain to get lost in before I fall asleep.  I never imagined my own book would someday be in the Kindle store.

So, I feel triumphant in this.  Even if no one reads my Kindle book, I still feel triumphant. Because it's there, sitting on Amazon's electronic shelf, like it's worth reading.  And I've never been so proud.  Or terrified.

Proud, because I did something I didn't think I could do.

And terrified, because the only thought that keeps running through my head is, "Holy mackerel!  What did I just do?  I am a lunatic.  What if everyone hates it?  What if I suck?  I probably suck.  I probably suck and should never, ever try and write again.  And also, I really need to put away the pile of laundry that's been sitting on my couch for two days."

Okay, that last part, about the laundry, has nothing to do with Sophie & Carter-- but it still plagues my thoughts!  (By the way, the saying "holy mackerel" is weird, don't you think?  I might as well say, "Holy Catfish!" or "Holy Tuna!"...right?")

That's it.  It's official.  From now on I will be saying, "Holy Tuna!" at every possible opportunity.

So, anyway...here's to my book being on Kindle...

...And to laundry that folds itself.
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Wait, is that not a real thing?  Holy Tuna!

Pajamas Rule And Zombies Drool

Last night, I wrote 5,000 words in my next book, bringing my word count (thus far) up to 35,000.  What is my next book about?  To put it simply, it's about two brothers who love the same girl.  And because love triangles aren't messy enough, I'm throwing in a curse, some immortal blood, and a little bit of archery.  <---because it's hot when guys know how to use archaic weapons.

But no vampires. 

Or werewolves.  

Because the market is a bit over-saturated with such creatures and, honestly, I don't think I could put a new spin on that particular world of fantasy.  I mean, maybe if I made the vampire allergic to blood and obsessed with getting a tan, or a werewolf who had a bad case of fleas but couldn't go to a vet in his wolf form because he would, ya know, eat the vet...maybe that would be a new twist on a vampire/werewolf story.  But who would read that?  No one.  Exactly.  So I'm not writing about vampires or werewolves.

Or fairies.  

Because fairies confuse me. I can't decide if they're good...or evil...or just purchasing my teeth so they can make tiny fae weapons out of human bone. (Which begs the question, why are fairies always in some kinda war?  I mean, aren't they the ultimate tree-huggers? Come on!) And also, I just can't take a hot guy seriously if he has butterfly wings.  Angle wings? Sure.  Iridescent, wispy wings?  FAIL.

I also will not write about zombies--at least not in this book. (I've started writing a completely different book about zombies that I will someday publish...but that day is far from now.) Because here's the thing about zombies: they're gross. I mean, even if you try to hunk them up, you just canNOT make a decaying, brain-eating, drooling, dead guy sexy. So, no zombies.

Dear Fear....

I found myself doubting my ability to write today and it nearly paralyzed me.  

Because who am I?  I am no English major with a master's in creative writing.  I am no well-traveled journalist who has important things to say about life.  I am nothing of consequence in the world of writing.

I am just a girl who likes to read and remembers what it's like to be a teenager.  So what can I possibly have to say on paper?  

I was sitting in front of my computer, wallowing in insecurity, when I realized fear—specifically the fear of failing, or being unworthy—will be my nemesis regardless of what I choose to pursue in life.  Fear’s not going anywhere…but I refuse to stay put. 

So to my nemesis I say, “Bring it on!” 

Ogres, People of Walmart, and my book trailer.

What an exciting last few months! 

I've been reading and re-reading and writing and re-writing Sophie & Carter endlessly, in the hopes that I just might be able to publish something that at least one person out there (who is not my mother or any other obligated relative--yes, relatives, you are obligated to like my writing) will enjoy.  Maybe not even enjoy...maybe just relate to...or understand...or maybe just not hate with a feverish passion.  

Really, I believe, that is my biggest goal:  NOT to evoke a mass uproar of readers who hate my story and are, therefore, picketing outside my house with cardboard signs and torches and ogres (because whenever I envision a picketing crowd, there's always an ogre in the background looming over the enraged townsfolk and drooling) while chanting a catchy mantra of dislike...and all because they didn't like my book and think I should stick to things I do better--like lying on the couch and watching reruns of Gossip Girl.  I'm very good at that.  In fact, I might just ditch this blog post right now and conjure up a dusty DVR recording of Gossip Girl Season 2.  Who's with me?

Anyway...these last few months have been crazy.  Crazy wonderful.  Crazy weird.  Crazy I'm-so-nervous-and-excited-I-can't-eat-or-sleep-so-instead-I-spend-an-unhealthy-amount-of-time-on-www.peopleofwalmart.com-because-it-makes-me-laugh-out-loud-at-3am-and-vow-never-to-wear-neon-mesh-in-public.  Yes, these months have been just plain crazy! :)  

But it has honestly been the best kind of crazy I've ever experienced.  And I hope (so so SO bad) that I continue to have the craziness of writing and re-writing and editing and publishing saturate my otherwise sleep-and-food-filled life for many years to come!

Now, onto the reason I'm posting (because I certainly had no intention of going off on a tangent about ogres or confessing my short stint as a peopleofwalmart voyer when I sat down today). 

I am proud to announce that Sophie & Carter is now officially available for pre-order on Amazon.com!  

The title will be released by July 1, 2011 and should be ready for purchase at www.barnesandnoble.com and www.ebooks.com within the next few weeks/months. 

Click here to pre-order today!

Also, I had the pleasure of working with a very talented videographer to produce the official book trailer for Sophie & Carter.  Check it out and let me know what you think. :)

by Anderson HD Photography

Welcome to my Blog!

Hello everyone and thank you for checking out my blog. :)

A short time ago I was going about my merry little life painting murals and trying to avoid housework at all costs ...when BAM! I suddenly found myself right smack dab in the middle of the exciting and nerve-racking chaos of publishing a book! And, honestly, I was kinda freaked out. :)  But now that I've had time to let it all sink in...I am totally thrilled!

My first book, Sophie & Carter, will be out this summer and I have butterflies in my stomach just thinking about it! I am so excited for the opportunity to share my stories with others. :)  I will be coming out with my next book (unrelated to Sophie & Carter) in early 2012.

I hope those of you who get a chance to read Sophie & Carter enjoy it. In the meantime, you can swing by my website www.chelseafinebooks.com or check me out on Twitter.

Much love to you all!

~Chelsea~