Time goes by so very fast, you know. It's seems like only a couple months ago we were celebrating the first release of OH. MY. GODS. and now GODDESS BOOT CAMP is just around the corner! Hopefully it will be on shelves in bookstores across the country, but I know a few places where you can definitely get it, because I'll be signing copies. Here's the rundown of my summer schedule:
I'm going to be in Las Vegas the first part of July, so there might be some additions to the summer schedule later down the road.
Over the next few days, I'll be posting the winning poems from my OH. MY. GODS. Poetry Contest (all five winners have graciously allowed me to share). Be sure to check back because they're awesome.
And now, for your GBC Teaser (only a few more, because the teasers stop when the book hits the stores).
Today I am thrilled to announce the winners of the OH. MY. GODS. Poetry Contest. So many fun poems to read! It was very tough to decide, but after careful consideration I've narrowed it down to my five favorites.
Shelly B.
Lesley C.
Abbey C.
Cynthia H.
Paradox
If you're on the above list, please email me (tlc@teralynnchilds.com) and let me know the following:
Your mailing info.
Whether you want an OMG paperback or GODDESS BOOT CAMP (as soon as I get some).
Whether I can share your poem on the blog (I won't do it without your permission).
Even the most basic technology seems to be failing me now. First, it was losing my internet and cable for two days last weekend. Next, it was my laptop having a total meltdown (which it is still having and will now require a trip to a computer doc). Then, last night, there was a double-whammy.
A transformer (or something equally nefarious) in my apartment complex blew up (yes, as in EXPLODED), flashing my power off for a minute and causing me to lose precious segments of the Deadliest Catch marathon.
And my toilet, my dear sweet please-keep-a-bleach-tab-dropped-in-or-I'll-show-you-some-nasty toilet, went kablooey. Until the maintenance man person (although, to be fair, it's only ever been men so far) from my complex shows up, I'm forced to leave the water turned off until I need it (aka when I have to flush). This is not convenient, godlets.
With such a major #techfail happening in my world, I think it might be better just to live in a cave. No technology (plumbing or otherwise) to fail you in a cave because, well, there isn't any. So, if anyone know of any good cave, not currently occupied by bats, wolves, bears, or other non-human-friendly beasties, please forward your suggestions.
And, in other news, your GBC Teaser.
"I think you're having delusional fantasies again."
Today is the last day to enter the OH. MY. GODS. Poetry Contest (although I'll technically give you until I wake up tomorrow morning)! Send in those entries for a chance to win a paperback edition of OH. MY. GODS. or, if you already have OMG, a copy of GODDESS BOOT CAMP when it comes out next month.
And your GBC Teaser:
"How do you become a runner?"
Asked, not by Phoebe (obviously), but by an entirely new character!
With the release of GODDESS BOOT CAMP only weeks away, the buzz is starting to build. First, there was a sidebar in the Teen Scene section of Romantic Times magazine. (Which is awesome, because it's read by thousands of romance fans and aspiring authors.)
Now, GBC is lucky enough to be featured as a "Must Read" in the June/July issue of Girls' Life magazine. (FYI, the two "Must Reads" in this issue are my little darling and Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen. Um, can you say amazing company?) Here's a snap of the feature:
I'm in major swoon. (And not exactly because of Mitchel Musso off to the right, although he is kind of a cutie.)
After two long—looooong—days without internet or television, I'm finally back online. Woohoo! Apparently, there was a huge swathe of my area with no service this weekend ... only no one bothered to tell me that it got repaired some time in the last 24 hours. I could have been answering emails long before now! Grrr!!!
At least AT&T stepped up and is crediting me back (a very generous) part of my bill for next month. Everything turned out fine in the end.
However, because I was down and out just as the OH. MY. GODS. Poetry Contest deadline loomed, I'm going to extend the deadline until Friday (that's May 22nd, for anyone paying attention). I've got a bunch of entries, but I want to give it one more push to give everyone a chance to enter.
And, at long last, another GODDESS BOOT CAMP teaser.
I don't want to get caught confessing to the evil stepsister.
My parents went on an OH. MY. GODS. paperback hunt yesterday (completely of their own volition, I assure you) and they've produced the first official sighting on the shelves of a Barnes and Noble in Oklahoma City.
(They decided against driving all the way to Norman to snap a shot of their six (6!) copies.) Remember, send me the pic if you spot it in your local bookstore.
And your (seemingly) daily GBC Teaser:
When it runs, the whole house roars like we're keeping a Cyclops in the basement.
Today is the day! The OH. MY. GODS. paperback edition is set to release, taking over shelf after shelf in bookstores everywhere. (Okay, so that's probably Nicole's plan, but Phoebe and I are a little more rational about the situation. We don't expect more than a single shelf dedicated to our new-covered release.)
I'm going to hit a bookstore or two today, just to see if it's in stock. If you see it anywhere and could snap and send me a pic, I would love you forever. (Not that I don't already, but, this is extra special adoration.)
Quick reminder about the Poetry Contest: The deadline is Sunday night! So get those poems whipped into shape (or, you know, not) and send them in. Right now I've only got three entries, so you have a 1-in-1 chance of winning!
Sorry for the slacking. I had to travel to Illinois and Indiana for family business and was just not motivated enough to locate computer (or to think up a topic). But I'm back and, after sleeping for most of yesterday, I'm even recovered. And just in time, too, because ...
tomorrow OH. MY. GODS. is available in paperback
With a shiny new cover. Woohoo! Online pre-orders should already be in the mail. Fingers-crossed that all the big chains stock it this time. If you happen to stop by a bookstore tomorrow and spot OMG on any shelves (or tables or endcaps or hanging from the ceiling) I'd appreciate a cell-phone-pic to share with the world.
Some days I feel like I am turning into a grumpy old person. One of those "kids drive too fast" and "nobody's got not respect anymore" people. Especially on days like today.
After a quick run to the mall, I had to go to the bank. (Note: Those two events are not related.) When I got there, a car was at each of the two drive-up windows. Rather than pick one lane or the other--because you never know which one is attempting to perform a hostile takeover through the teller tube--I hung back so I could pull up to whichever one opened first.
But as I was sitting there waiting, diplomatically between the two lanes, a new car--a truck, actually, for an auto glass repair company--pulled up. Can you guess what he did? Bet you can. He pulled right around me and in behind lane number two.
This annoys me. A lot. Especially because--of course!--the driver in his chosen lane finished first.
Am I alone in thinking that, if there are two or more lanes in use, it is polite to form one line so that customers get to advance in the order in which they arrived? (I feel the same is true in grocery stores, drugstores, DMVs, airports, and pretty much any one of the twelve-thousand places we get stuck in line.)
Okay, rant over. Time for a GBC Teaser.
"No one's been chained to a mountain in centuries."
If you think really hard, you can probably guess who would say this.
The OH. MY. GODS. poetry contest has only been up for two days and I already have an entry! (A fabulous one, too, so bring your A+ writing game, godlets!) Did you miss the post about the contest? Well go back and check it out!
Now, for your refreshing GBC Teaser of the day.
It feels like a bucket of ice water emptied over me.
In honor of Cinco de Mayo (aka the anniversary of Mexico's defeat of the French at the Battle of Puebla in 1862) I hunted down a great-sounding Frozen Virgin Margarita recipe. (I found the recipe at cdkitchen.com.)
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons kosher (coarse) salt
1/2 lime, cut into 4 wedges
1 can (6 ounce size) frozen limeade concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup orange juice
4 cups ice cubes
Directions:
Place the salt in a shallow dish. Rub the rim of each of 4 margarita glasses with a lime wedge and dip the rims into the salt; set the lime wedges aside.
In a blender, blend the limeade, orange juice, and ice cubes on high speed for 1 to 2 minutes, or until well blended and the ice cubes are crushed.
Pour evenly into the glasses and garnish with the lime wedges. Serve immediately.
Enjoy!
And, of course, your daily GODDESS BOOT CAMP Teaser.
"I have never been more mad at anyone in my life than I am at you right now,"
Feel free to guess who said that to whom, but I'm not telling.
Happy Cinco de Mayo! And don't forget to enter the contest.
In honor of the paperback release of OH. MY. GODS. in two weeks (on May 14th, to be specific) I'm holding a contest. You have to work for this one, though. By writing poetry. Let me explain...
Ever since my editor first suggested the title OH. MY. GODS, whenever I think those words ... my mind drifts back in time. I go back to high school, my junior year, when there was a really popular hip hop song called Baby Got Back by Sir Mix-a-Lot. It's not the song itself that I think about (because really, a song about a guy who likes big booties doesn't have much to do with my book) but the opening discussion.
(Directions: Read with a total valley girl accent.)
Oh, my, god. Becky, look at her butt. It is so big. She looks like, one of those rap guys' girlfriends. But, you know, who understands those rap guys? They only talk to her, because, she looks like a total prostitute, 'kay? I mean, her butt, is just so big. I can't believe it's just so round, it's like, out there, I mean - gross. Look! She's just so ... black!
It's a little crude, yes. (Okay, a lot crude.) If you want to see how crude the whole song is, you can Google the video on YouTube or see the complete lyrics and listen to the song on Rhapsody. (Note the explicit lyrics warning, though.)
This is also the same song Burger King is using for their SpongeBob commercials.
Anyway, the whole point of this is the contest. You can see, right, why that opening line comes to mind with OH. MY. GODS.? I want you to take that opening and rewrite it as a (much nicer, please) poem. There are two rules.
Nothing crass, crude, degrading, or otherwise yucky.
Your poem has to begin with "Oh. My. Gods. Phoebe, look at her..."
The rest is up to you.
Wanna know what you can win? Well, I'm going to be giving away five (5) -- count 'em FIVE -- copies of the OH. MY. GODS. paperback. (For anyone who already has OH. MY. GODS. you can choose to wait a month and get a copy of GODDESS BOOT CAMP instead.)
You can enter your poem by either leaving it in comments, posting it elsewhere and sharing the link in comments, or emailing it privately to tlc (at) teralynnchilds (dot) com.
Want to double your chances to win? Then make your poem into a video and post it either on YouTube or on the Goddess Boot Camp Ning.
Deadline for the contest is midnight Pacific Time on Sunday, May 17th (aka the day before my dad's birthday).
Your daily GODDESS BOOT CAMP Teaser:
And the benefit of the doubt is hard to hold on to.
Every year, NY Times Bestselling suspense author Brenda Novak hosts an online auction to benefit juvenile diabetes research. There are about a billion fabulous prizes, everything from vacations to designer purses to an editor evaluation of your book. And there are even once-in-a-lifetime opportunities like having breakfast with your favorite author!
This year, along with my USA Today Bestselling critique partner (Sophie Jordan/Sharie Kohler) and a fellow RITA-nominated suspense author friend (Colleen Thompson), I am donating a breakfast meeting in Washington DC on July 16th. (This coincides with us Houston authors being in town for the Romance Writers of America national conference. No, you don't need to attend the conference to win the breakfast.) The winner will also get copies of our latest books. Place the winning bid and you could be having a no-holds-barred morning chat with three fun and fabulous writers!
Today I got a very special package in the mail: an advance copy of GODDESS BOOT CAMP!!! Not an ARC/bound galley. This is the real deal, actual hardcover book. The one that will (hopefully) be available in stores everywhere come June 11th. I snapped some shots of my baby to share with you.
Here's her shiny front cover.
And her heretofore unseen back cover (with review quotes from the first book this time, instead of quotes from the gods, but still pretty). I love all the clouds.
And wanna know the best part? The cloth cover beneath the jacket is PINK!!! With shiny turquoise writing! Isn't it beautiful?
After I finished drooling over the exterior, I flipped inside to make sure the things I'd corrected on the page proofs made it into the final document. Especially the name in my acknowledgments that got misspelled in the process. (See Kirsty, now it's fixed!)
And, because we all know the opening pages are the most important ones in an entire book, here's a sneak peek at the very first page.
Serious book love, godlets. GODDESS BOOT CAMP turned out great and the people at Dutton/Penguin Young Readers did a fantastic job. Woohoo!
And now, because I promised and because I'm so giddy over my shiny new book, I'm going to give you one of my favorite teaser lines from the whole book.
My first clue that something is very, very wrong is the giggling.
Aren't you curious? I tell you, if you were in that situation, you'd feel just as terrified as Phoebe does.
