Reviewer Appreciation GIVEAWAY!

Ahh!! You guys! I am LOVING all the review love for Avow! You peeps rock! :)

And BECAUSE you rock--and also because your reviews make my heart happy--I've decided to give away a COMPLETE SIGNED SET of my Archers of Avalon series...and maybe more! :)

 *throws confetti* 

GIVEAWAY TIME! 

Here’s how to enter:

Florence + The Machine = Best Concert Ever

I totally meant to post this last month, but I'm a flake. So here it is now. Haha.

In October, I got to see Florence + The Machine in San Diego and let me just tell you, WOW! I was completely blown away and entranced by their performance! 

AVOW is here! And so is a little teaser ;)

It's. Here.

The final book in my Archers of Avalon series, AVOW.

AHHHHHH!!!

BUY KINDLE              BUY NOOK

I'm INCREDIBLY excited to share this book with you guys!!! So read up! (And be prepared for some shirtless Archers.)

Speaking of which...want a little teaser? ;)

The Star Trek Teaser - Awesomeness!

I'm so excited for this movie! 

Star Trek rocks! And so does Chris Pine. 

Have you seen his eyes? Have you SEEN them???

Avow - SNEAK PEEK!

Here it is, guys! The SNEAK PEEK from...

CHAPTER 1

Scarlet had her memories back, which meant two things.

She knew where the Fountain of Youth was. 

And she was mad at Tristan.

Still clutching a bloodstained knife in her hand, she marched through the graveyard and glanced over her shoulder at the green-eyed boy she’d loved for centuries. “By the way, you suck.”

Avow Video Trailer & International Giveaway!

The AVOW Video Trailer & Giveaway!
Enter to win a Kindle Fire! 
(and like other stuff too, but we all know you really just want the Kindle Fire ;) 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

AVOW - Cover Reveal!

It's here guys! The cover of AVOW!

SYNOPSIS

Scarlet remembers. Everything. Her past lives, Tristan, Gabriel, Nate: she remembers it all--including how to get to the Fountain of Youth. But time is running out. 

Heather and Gabriel have been kidnapped by Raven, while the curse that has plagued Scarlet and Tristan for centuries has shifted, putting the star-crossed lovers in more danger than ever before. Water from the Fountain of Youth is the only thing that can save Scarlet and her loved ones. But the water comes at a price.

With lives--and hearts--at stake, Scarlet leads her friends on a dangerous journey to the Fountain of Youth. Where eternal life is possible, but death is certain.

AVOW 
Archers of Avalon, Book Three
Available December 11th, 2012! 

Ahhh! :) I'm so excited!!!

Float Wisely: Writer's Block and Other Nonsense

We all get writer's block and blah, blah, blah. Even if you're not a writer, I'm sure you still get writer's block when you're composing a breakup email to your cheating boyfriend or attempting to write something sweet (and more emotional and memorable than what your little sister is going to write) in the Mother's Day card you bought twenty minutes before meeting your mom for brunch on her annual holiday. *shrugs* Writer's block can pop up anywhere.

The truth of the matter is this: We all get stuck. Whether we're writing or drawing or building or learning...sometimes we hit a wall and it breaks our nose and then we're bleeding all over the place and the last thing we want to do is charge the bricks again.

But we need to. And this is what I tell myself when I'm stuck. 

Don't try this at home. I'm being figurative.

I need to charge. Because the brick wall that just broke my nose is like Platform 9 3/4 from Harry Potter and I am never going to get to Hogwarts if I don't run full-speed into the wall. (Wow. I had no intention of throwing a HP reference into this post, but whatever. It applies.)

The ANEW Blog Tour!

HEY-O!

It's blog tour time! This is my first official blog tour so I'm flipping excited! *jumps up and down and squeals* And guess what? Each blog in the tour will be hosting a giveaway of Anew! That means you'll have sixteen chances to win! Yay!

Check out the super awesome tour stops--starting TOMORROW!

Monday, September 17 - BookshelfBanter Giveaway, Review & Interview
Tuesday, September 18 - ReaderGirls Giveaway, Review & Guest Post "Why I Write Fantasy/Paranormal"
Wednesday, September 19 - In Between Reading and Writing Giveaway & Review
Wednesday, September 19 - SimpleBooks Giveaway, Review & Interview
Thursday, September 20 - PapercutsYA Giveaway & Guest Post "The Differences Between Sophie & Carter and Anew"
Thursday, September 20 - Book and a Latte Giveaway & Excerpt
Friday, September 21 - Denim-Jacket Librarian Dishes Guest Post "The Fountain of Youth, Avalon Style"
Saturday, September 22 - Moosubi Reviews Giveaway & Interview
Sunday, September 23 - Captivated Reader Review & Guest Post "Start With A Song, End With A Chapter"
Monday, September 24 - Hypable Interview
Tuesday, September 25 - Starting the Next Chapter Giveaway & Review
Wednesday, September 26 - Novel Thoughts Blog Giveaway, Review & Character Interview
Thursday, September 27 - The Readiacs  Review & Interview
Friday, September 28 - MundieMoms Giveaway, Review & Interview
Saturday, September 29 - Head Stuck in a Book Giveaway, Review & Guest Post "High School Head Rush"
Sunday, September 30 - LadyBug Storytime Giveaway, Review & Guest Post "Dream Cast for Anew"

If you're a blogger and are interested in participating in a future Archers of Avalon blog tour, please contact Kelly with InkSlinger PR. kpsimmon@gmail.com

My Sister Doesn't Let Me Suck

Every writer needs to have someone in their life that can read their manuscript over and say,

"This sucks. Try again."

For me, that person is my little sister, Cameron. 

Top Five TV Moments on The CW

I'm a sucker for pretty much any show on The CW. That being said, I've compiled a list of my favorite moments from some beloved CW shows. (Both new and old.) Here are the top five:

1) Roswell - the one where Max comes back from the future to tell Liz she has to break his heart, otherwise the world will be destroyed.

This is one of my favorite episodes--not just scenes--of all shows, ever. Future Max is super hot and all badass, so that's fun, but mostly I loved this episode because it was so freaking heart-wrenching. Future Max has Liz break up with him so he can fall in love with the girl he's destined for? So sad! I totally cried like a thirteen year-old girl.

Book Two Is Hell

While I was writing book two in my Archers of Avalon series (Awry) there were several days that nearly killed me. And I mean this this literally. There were days when I just wouldn't eat because I was so stressed about the storyline. And nights where I would stare at my ceiling instead of sleep because I was so worried about how book two was going to be received by readers. I was sick to my stomach, peeps.

I call this writing period of mine "The Dark Months".

During these months of darkness, I wanted to blog about all my hatred of book two and let people know that I was failing miserably as a writer and, therefore, book two was probably going to suck.

But I didn't.

Mostly because, if I was going to sit down and force myself to write something, I was going to write about Tristan. ;)

But now, two months after the release of Awry, I think I'm ready to share my thoughts on writing book two in a series because I think (and maybe some authors would agree) that book two is a very different monster than book one.

Ready? *dramatic pause*

DELETED SCENE Awry (Nate & Tristan in the Kitchen)

(This scene came just after Scarlet asked the guys to use a Head Ghost on her to retrieve her memory of the fountain of youth.)

Tristan watched Scarlet's cheeks tint with fury as she grabbed her coat.

“All of you are impossible,” she said, spinning on her heel and heading for the door.

She wanted help extracting memories from her brain with an unstable memory device. Like hell that was going to happen.

Gabriel followed after Scarlet, trying to sooth her over with sweet words and promises and other bullshit that would no doubt only infuriate her more. But best of luck to him anyway.

Left alone in the kitchen with Nate, Tristan stretched his neck and shifted in his seat at the counter.

Nate stood and stared at him for a moment. “You were pretty quiet just now.”

“Yeah, well. Gabriel kind of made it clear he doesn’t want me 'interacting' with Scarlet.” Tristan made air quotes around the word his twin had used.

"Does 'interacting' involve naked time?" Nate made his own air quotes. "Because if so, I'm with Gabriel."

Video Blog: Why I Wrote My Series in Third Person

Why I wrote my series in third person rather than first person. 

DELETED SCENES from Sophie & Carter

-->

These deleted scenes are from the night of Sophie & Carter's high school graduation.

SOPHIE

It’s Friday afternoon and the Littles’ school carnival starts soon.  I’m officially done with high school, which puts me in a good mood.  Carter Jax loves me, which puts me in a great mood.

 

Chloe and Abram thump down the stairs dressed and excited for the carnival.  Michael trails behind them with his earphones in.  He’s not thrilled about the carnival, but he’ll go anyway.  I’m grateful for this because it makes us feel like a family.

I file everyone out the front door and lock it behind us.  We make our way over to Carter’s house and I let myself in.

Carter’s dressed and moving around quietly.  His mom must be asleep.  Carter doesn’t like to leave his mom at nighttime for more than an hour or two, so her sleeping buys him a little time.

He looks at me and smiles. “Ready?”  His smile is deep and genuine, as if there’s no painful past or crazy mom.

“Yep.”  I smile back with the same sincerity, pretending my painful past and crazy mom don‘t exist either.  We’re good for each other, me and Carter. 

Behind the Cover - AWRY

What's in a cover? Well, to put it simply, a cast, a crew, and a whole lotta fun!

This past spring I had the pleasure of working with an incredibly talented team to capture the faces of my characters (Scarlet, Tristan, and Gabriel) and put together the cover (and other promo pics) for Awry (book two in my Archers of Avalon series).

We set up in a warehouse in Mesa, AZ at the crack of dawn with a trailer (for wardrobe changes and hair/make-up stations), some extension cords, and a truckload of set design props. And then we brought the Archers of Avalon to life.

It was phenomenal, people! Here's a video to sum up all the awesomeness that was had!

Meet the AMAZING TEAM behind the cover of Awry!

My First Year As A Writer

Last month marked the one-year anniversary of publishing my first book. A year ago, Sophie & Carter went up for all the world (or, at least, the book world) to see, and my life instantly changed.

It's funny, because a year ago I wrote a blog post about how afraid I was of failing as a writer (see Dear Fear) and, now, here I am. Writing. Publishing. And loving every minute. Even the hard ones. :)

So, in honor of my constantly-suppressed fear, here's a summary of the last 12 months of my life:

The accomplishments:

• *I published three books, Sophie & Carter, Anew and Awry
• *I snagged the amazing Suzie Townsend as my literary agent. She's a superhero.
• *My Archers of Avalon series has been optioned for film and/or TV! Say what??
• *Anew was a finalist for Best Book of the Year by ForeWord magazine *jaw drops*
• *Anew was awarded Best Book Cover by UtopYA Con *squeeeee*
• *I attended UtopYA Con as a panelist. So fun! (click here to see pics)

Picture Review of UtopYA Con 2012!

Last weekend, I had the priviledge of attending UtopYA Con in Nashville, TN and it was amazing! If you're a paranormal book reader, writer, or fan, you NEED to attend this event next year! (Tickets are on sale now :)

Here's a picture review of my weekend:

Dinner with my awesome roomies! These girls were gracious enough to invite me to hang with them all weekend. They put up with all of my embarrassing moments and jittery nerves and my tendency to be a complete idiot, haha. But, seriously :) Thanks, ladies!

From left to right: Heather Hildenbrand, K.C. Neal, Angeline Kace and myself.

The Usual Suspects: Airport Edition

This past weekend, I traveled to Nashville for UtopYA Con 2012 (which was AWE-some, by the way) and, while spending excess amounts of time at the airport, I decided to jot down the typical characters you run into around your flight gate.

Here goes.

The Neck Breather: This is the guy that stands so close behind you in the security line that his breath dampens your neck. There are only two peeps who are allowed to breathe on my neck:

Hot guys (for obvious reasons--hello, sexy tingles)

And dragons.

Dragons get a free pass because they are both mythical and terrifying. You don't want to tick off an airport dragon. Clearly, if they are at the airport, their awesome reptilian wings are broken which probably means they're in a bad mood.

Video Blog: Awry, Film Option & UtopYA Con

My new book, the film option, and UtopYA Con 2012! :) 

UtopYA Con 2012!

where all the cool kids go to meet their favorite female authors

It’s time to get excited and to get to Nashville for UtopYA Con--the convention for female, paranormal/fantasy young adult authors and readers who love them!

It will be held at the Scarritt-Bennett Center in Nashville, TN on July 6-8, 2012. Would you like to come? (Say yes.) You’re already excited I know, but wait until I tell you who’s coming (and this is just a few)…

BIG NEWS!

I have big news, guys. BIG. Are you ready for this?

*takes a deep breath* 

My Archers of Avalon series has been 
optioned for film/TV!

Say whaaaaaaaaat???  *squeals*

What does this mean? Well, mostly it means I'm jumping around like a kid who's just reached the front of the line for the Dumbo ride at Disneyland. *flails hands and squeals again*

But it ALSO means that Tapestry Films--the same peeps who brought you WEDDING CRASHERS (that's right, they're big time)--are hoping to put my Archers of Avalon series on the big screen! Or maybe make it a television series! Either way? Dream. Come. True!

YAY!  

I'm so SO excited! I'm smiling so big my face hurts. Ahhhh! 

So, yeah. Tell your friends, tell your family, and shout it from the rooftops! (But be careful climbing up there because I'd hate to have to you fall off in the middle of your "Archers of Avalon has been optioned for film!" proclamation and land in a garbage can or bounce off an awning or something.)

Are you guys as excited as I am??? *takes another deep breath* It might be a while before I calm down. Like, a day. Or two. Or ninety. 

Bring on a big-screen Tristan Archer! WHOO-HOO!!!

AWRY is here!

I'm so so excited to share my newest book with you all, Awry! 

Awry is book two in my Archers of Avalon series!

 

click here to read an excerpt from Awry (book #2)

or click here to read an excerpt from Anew (book #1)

Buy for Kindle               Buy for Nook

My Thoughts on Snow White & The Huntsman *SPOILERS*

WARNING: Huge spoilers to come. So please, please, do not read on if you haven't seen Snow White but you plan to.

*clears throat* On with the rave....

First of all, I give it 5 stars. For blowing my mind and making me want to sing along with Florence + The Machine at the end. But then again, when do I not want to sing along with Flo?

To sum the movie up in one word: BEA-UTIFUL. The winter courtyard? The drops of blood on the snow? The forest? Gorgeous. All of it.

At the beginning, we have a young Snow White, who is totally cute with her freckles and innocence, and her daddy, the King.

What's the deal with kings? They're always being tricked and murdered and taken down by pretty women. Never put a man in charge of a kingdom. He and his sex drive will always screw it up, am I right?

Moving on....

Eleven Signs That You're In Novel Underworld

Writing a story can suck you into, what I like to call, Novel Underworld. Where characters are real, people are annoying, and coffee is oxygen. Have you been there? Here is a short list of dead giveaways, just in case you missed the "Welcome to Novel Underworld" sign.

You might be writing a novel if....

1. On your desk, you have a collection of old napkins (some used) with book/chapter ideas scrawled out from that one time, at lunch, when you thought up something brilliant and had to use the eyeliner pencil in your purse to jot out your idea while eating your salad. Okay, fine. Cheeseburger.

2. You've perfected the art of smiling and nodding like you're paying attention to whoever is talking to you, but really you're lost in your head arguing with your characters about who's going to die next.

3. You have Wonderland eyes. You know what I'm talking about: Your eye muscles are so mad at you for staring at a computer screen for 20 hours that they've decided to shut down. Your vision gets blurry around hour 15. You have to blink every two seconds at hour 17. And by hour 19, the words on your screen are floating and spinning around like they just walked out of wonderland and want to play. Wonderland eyes. I'm not sure if this is a scientific term--but it should be.

Awry - COVER REVEAL!

I am ridiculously proud to present the cover of my upcoming book, Awry! Awry is the second book in my Archers of Avalon series and will be available this June (next month)! 

Cover design by Jon & Ashley Bugg www.buggphotographer.com

SYNOPSIS:

Three curses. Two brothers. One love triangle.
Sometimes love is meant to be. But sometimes love...is the death of you.

Seventeen-year-old Scarlet has just died. Only, dying isn't unusual for a girl under a centuries old curse that left her semi-immortal. 

This time, though, she comes back to her current life instead of awaking in a new one, and she realizes the curse is changing. With the help of the immortal Archer brothers, Scarlet must piece together her life and try to break the curse before her impending death comes again.

Click here to check out the ARCHERS OF AVALON website!

 

Want to add Awry to your shelf?

(available June 2012)

Tristan's Tattoo!

Here it is, readers...the long-awaited picture of Tristan's tattoo!

And, just because I know you all love half-naked immortals, here's a pic of the tattoo on his body....

 The cover for Awry (book 2) will be out shortly, so stay tuned for more Tristan hotness!

Get ANEW for only 99¢! (Limited Time Only!)

The Indie Book Collective is hosting another amazing Bestseller For a Day event this Thursday featuring my book, ANEW!

And guess what?  
ANEW is only 99¢ during this promotion!!! 

Avengers Movie Trailer

Oooh! I'm so excited for this one!

My Super Awesome Literary Agent!

I am proud to announce that I am officially represented by none other than the amazing Suzie Townsend of Nancy Coffey Literary & Media Representation! :) Can I get a WHOO-HOO?

Here's Suzie:

Isn't she adorable? But even better than that, she's an AMAZING agent and I'm completely honored to have her on my team! (Which currently consists of me, my sister Cameron and her sassy remarks when she pre-reads my manuscripts, my coffee mug--because I can't write without caffeine, it's physically impossible--and SUZIE!) I call us TEAM AWESOME. We're like the Justice League. But without the red tights. Or super abilities. Or insane need to constantly "save the world".

Okay...so we're not really like the Justice League at all. Whatever. We're still cool.

You can follow Suzie's super incredible blog HERE and you can follow her on Twitter HERE

Go Team Awesome!

Video Blog: Why I Wrote A Cliffhanger

Tristan Teaser Pic

After searching and searching for the perfect face for Gabriel and Tristan, I have finally found my cover model! His name is Lonnie and, aside from being gor-geous, he is insanely talented. I am honored to work with him for the cover of Awry. Hopefully, his face is everything you imagine the Archer brothers to be!

Are you ready for the teaser pic of TRISTAN ARCHER? (Keep in mind this is a teaser. After all, I can't very well let you see all of him before the big cover reveal. That would spoil the surprise! :) 

There you have it! A (partial) picture of Tristan. *sigh* Isn't he beautiful? :)

Chelsea vs. The Owl

Last night, I had a showdown with an owl. That's right, a full-feathered, creepy-necked, sharp-beaked owl.

Did my owl encounter happen on a farm? Or in a heavily-wooded area where the chance of an owl run-in is probable?

No.

My owl showdown happened at the grocery store.

And the winner is...

After one of the BEST blog tours ever...the time has come to announce the winner of my ANEW gift basket! (Okay, so...maybe it's not a "basket"...but you get the idea.)

But first...I want to thank EVERYONE who dropped by my blog last week and commented about their favorite love triangles! It was so much fun to meet you all and to chat about books and TV shows! Hopefully, everyone who commented received a FREE eBook of Anew as a thank you from me! (If not, please email me.)

And now, on to the winner!

Drum roll please....

Playlist for ANEW!

Hi guys!

Below is a playlist of songs that inspired me while writing Anew. Music plays such a crucial part in the development and creativity of my stories and I wanted to share my inspiration with you guys!

That being said, do any of YOU have song suggestions for Anew? I heard from a reader the other day (thank you, Belle!) about a song that she associates with Scarlet and Tristan and, after listening to it (and getting goosebumps because it was AWESOME), I totally added it to my playlist!

So, I wanted to open up the playlist idea to all my fan-freakin'-tastic readers to see if there are any amazing songs out there that you guys think are perfect for Anew! Comment your ideas below or, if you'd rather, you can email me: chelseafinebooks@gmail.com


Here is my playlist (the short version...because the long version is, like, 59 songs) but if you want the long list, you can click HERE.

RUNNING UP THAT HILL by Placebo (Chapter 2 - Introduction to Tristan)

YELLOW by Coldplay (Chapter 11 - Gabriel & Scarlet's picnic)

RUSTED WHEEL by Silversun Pickups (Chapter 14 - Tristan shooting arrows)

SO EASILY by Kathryn Calder (Chapter 27 - Tristan & Scarlet sit in the woods)  *I'm lame and couldn't figure out how to add this song to the list but you can listen to it HERE

CLOSER by Kings of Leon (Chapter 29 - Tristan meets Maniac in the alley)

LIGHTS by Ellie Goulding (Chapters 44-48 - After Tristan saves Scarlet)

HEARTBEAT by Enrique Iglesias, ft. Nicole Scherzinger (Chapter 53 - Pancakes)

LOOK AFTER YOU by The Fray (Chapter 59 - Gabriel sees Scarlet's stomach)

WOLF & I by Oh Land (Chapter 68 - Scarlet realizes what the design is)

LOST IN PARADISE by Evanescence (Chapter 73 - Scarlet confronts Tristan)

NO LIGHT, NO LIGHT by Florence + The Machine (Final Chapters)
 

Click here to check out Anew!