So I'm clearly the worst at blogging, ever. Well...not really. I just spend all of my time over at MidnightSocietyTales.com You can find yours truly hanging out there every second and forth Friday.
I have news, my darlings!
My dear friend / patronus / Creator of aforementioned Midnight Society, Jolene Haley, put a call for submissions for Pizza stories a couple months ago! And she picked my short, KNEADFUL THINGS, as one of the stories!
Book Name: A Pizza My Heart: An Anthology
Book Genre: YA fiction anthology
Book release
date: November
12, 2016 (National Pizza with the Works except Anchovies Day)
Gooey
cheese and warm pepperoni, with a side of kissing and murder.
A Pizza My Heart is a quirky and fun
anthology that crosses all genres. Fifteen extraordinary authors have united to tell stories of
mystery, mayhem, romance, danger, deceit…and pizza.
Sometimes
spicy, sometimes cheesy, but always delicious, A Pizza My Heartinvites you to explore
life, happiness, and the pursuit of pizza.
So kneadless (haha) to say, I'm pretty thrilled! I've always wanted to be in an anthology, and let's be honest...does it get any better than writing about pizza?
Here's a sneak-peek of my story :D
Yay!
That's all for me, kittens. Enjoy your long weekend!
My name is Jenna and I'm a mentor for Brenda Drake's #PitchWars contest this year!
Let's jump right into the goods now, shall we?
About Me:
I'm a mom/wife/reader/writer from Calgary, Alberta...(Canada). I'm represented by the amazing Kathleen Rushall of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency. I write both YA and MG. I tend to stick to horror but have been known to dabble in thrillers / dark contemporaries if the mood strikes.
I love ALL things horror: books, movies, TV shows, forums, art, whatever gives you the chills, I want it. I also love tea, carbs, attempting to cook, dogs Matt, and tiny humans named Jasper.
And you know what else I like? Your manuscript.
Why me?
Because I'm awesome!
Oh, you need more than that? Well. I found my agent with my third book, so I know all about the dark, stanky trenches. I've made some bad career choices, which has taught me a lot about what NOT to do. Learn from me, grasshopper.
I'm super accessible, so if you have a question or something you want to brainstorm about, I'm here for you!
Pick me because I will be 100% dedicated to making your MS sparkle like a freaking diamond. I want you to get an agent. I want you to get that drool-worthy announcement in Publisher's Marketplace. I want you to get a sick movie deal and cast me with Robert Pattinson (my Twilight love will NEVER die).
What I'm looking for (MG ONLY):
1. I'm going to get into some genres I'm interested in, but it really comes down to VOICE. Introduce me to a character I want to adventure with and I'm yours.
2. Like I said above, I LOVE horror. And not just horror. Give me your thrillers, your mysteries, your dark, intense contemporaries (but send your lovely, happy ones somewhere else <3). If someone has shuddered while reading your MS, send me your application. If you have to research with the lights on, I want your words. Nay....I need them.
3. I love stories that - regardless of the subject manner - have some heart. I love love love stories that mix real life issues with the horror/thrillers etc. I want your haunted-hospital-exploring-MC to be searching for a cure for her grandmother while she's fending off ghosts. (YEAR OF SHADOWS is one of my favourite MGs of all time. So if that's a comp title for you, please pick me :) )
4. I love a good twist. Especially if there are a few red herrings to throw me off along the way.
5. I miiiiight be interested in urban fantasies, but they have to be super original and the writing needs to be on point.
I'm not the mentor you're looking for if you write:
Fluffy contemporary
High/epic fantasy
Science Fiction
Non-fiction
Westerns (unless it has any of the characters from Tombstone. Then I might be down)
Historical
Note:
I can forgive a not-so-hot query if the pages are fantastic, but it doesn't work the other way around.
I'm a good person to work with if:
You prefer a 3-5 page edit letter (maybe longer - I tend to ramble). I'll go through your MS and leave in-line notes, but I'm most likely to address issues in the letter.
*If I notice one big thing off the bat i.e.: WAY too many dialogue tags, I'll probably mention that as something to get started on while I finish reading*
If our schedules are meshing well, I'm totally open to do as many rounds as we can fit in before the agent round. I know that life happens, and revising more than once probably won't happen, but I'm open to it.
Books I love:
This is just a mixed category list of some books I've loved: WHEN YOU REACH ME, THE MONSTRUMOLOGIST, YEAR OF SHADOWS, SHARP OBJECTS, THE WINNER'S CURSE, AN EMBER IN THE ASHES, THE GIRL FROM THE WELL, and I'm currently reading THE NIGHT GARDENER and loving it so far.
Remember to double-check your query for spelling mistakes and HAVE FUN!!
If I don't tickle your fancy, someone below surely will!
Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Auto-Linky widget will appear right here!This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.If this widget does not appear, click here to display it.
As most of you know, I'm a giant horror fan. If you don't know that, I really need to work on this whole brand thing. Anyway, another thing I love is advanced movie screenings. When you mix the two together, you have one happy Jenna.
Last night, the two came together fantastically and I went and saw the advanced screening of THE GALLOWS. This name sound familiar from the "Charlie, Charlie, are you here?" viral video that went around a month or so ago. If you STILL don't know what I'm talking about, here is the trailer!
The evening started off with a little giveaway. Pro Tip: Always know a few little bits of trivia about the movie you're going to see. Most of the answers are in the trailer :) I won myself this sweet swag pack!
I LOVE the t-shirt!
Now, let us get to the goods.
20 years after a tragic accident, a high school drama class is about to present the play that started it all...THE GALLOWS.
Only they don't get to the play part. The night before the play is set to open, the star (Reese), his jock best buddy (Ryan) and his cheerleader girlfriend (Kassidy), break into the theater to destroy the set. Though this may seem like a dick move (and it kind of is) they have honorable intentions at heart. Reese is a miserable actor but unfortunately he's starring aside his crush, Pfeifer, the girl who brought the show back to life in the first place. Rather than bomb on opening night, Reese and his friends think Pfeifer will handle a broken set better than a bad show.
A few broken trees and a partially deconstructed hangman set (the Gallows, I guess) later, they hear a loud bang. Pfeifer shows up and is super upset that Reese would even consider damaging the set. While Reese chases after his sobbing lady love, Kassidy and Ryan soon discover they're locked in the school...and they're not alone.
Dun Dunn Dunnnnnn.
The rest of the movie is spent following the teens around as they taunt, and then flee, Charlie, our noose-wielding ghost.
While THE GALLOWS (TG) does nothing too original to earn it's shrieks, it earns them none the less. Whenever that white noise kicks in (ie: PARANORMAL ACTIVITY), you just know something scary is about to happen. A fair number of scenes had the camera staring into the dark, where sometimes a hangman's mask-wearing ghost lurked with his constantly-creaking noose.
There's a tricky little twist at the end that I didn't see coming until it was thrown right in my face...and I'm usually pretty good at twists.
You will like (perhaps love) this flick if you: Are a horror buff in general, were even remotely involved with theater in high school, or are afraid of hanging / the dark / heights.
You won't like it if you: Are sick of found footage movies or get nauseous easily.
Since I don't have a legit rating system, I"ll give this one a very solid 3.5/ 5.
So life has been crazy. If you follow me on twitter (and if you don't, you should. I'm funny. Sometimes), you know that I recently had a baby! I'm going to do a big old post about my wonderful little peanut, Jasper, but here is a little snapshot.
I know all parents think their kid is the freaking cutest, but come on. Look at that little man. Ugh. Brb. I need to go kiss his tiny face.
*Smooch break*
Okay, I'm back. So even though I've been crazy busy, I've managed to fit in a few writing days. I'm working on a YA horror my agent and I brainstormed up one afternoon before the wee one made his appearance. Part of my drafting process is immersing myself in the genre - books, music, movies, etc. Needless to say, my 3 am feedings have gotten pretty freaky.
I thought it be fun to share some of the sweet movies I've seen...just in case you're a fellow horror buff :)
The first is IT FOLLOWS. Gah, this one was incredible. It is this muted, chill movie some parts are so intense it's hard to watch without constantly looking over your shoulder. I love how it had no specific time era - it was a mash of the 70s to present day. Also, I really like the clam shell e-reader...if anyone is in the mood to invent something.
If you like horror comedies, then TUSK is for you. This one takes place in the motherland (Canada, obvs) and stars one of my faves, Justin Long. Haley Joel Osment is also in it. When I saw THE SIXTH SENSE for the first time, I stayed up reading my children's bible until 6 am.
TUSK is about a fella who does a podcast focusing on viral videos, weird stories, etc. When a lead falls through, he spends the night with a gentleman who tells him an interesting tale about a walrus. The rest is...well...I'll let you see for yourself.
Finally, we have WILLOW CREEK. If you grew up anywhere even remotely woodsy, you've probably heard of the Sasquatch (Bigfoot for all you city folk ;) The story of the possibly carnivorous biped was my go-to campfire story. I scared a lot of kids, even when I was one myself.
Anyhoo, the story of WC is told using found footage*. It follows a Bigfoot enthusiast who is determined to check out a famous Bigfoot sighting location. With his lovely girlfriend in tow, they take off into the woods to hopefully catch a glimpse themselves.
While the majority of WC isn't scary, the last twenty minutes is so suspenseful my jaw ached from clenching it. If you watch it, make sure you have a pillow (or baby) to hug when they get into the tent for the night. You'll know it when it happens.
Since WC is woefully gif-less, here's the trailer. I have no idea if the trailer will actually play or not.
Well, that's a wrap on my recommendations for the day. Hopefully you'll like those flicks as much as I did.
<3
** UNFRIENDED was another awesome found footage-style movie. Though it wasn't super scary, the style was refreshing.
Monday, 2 February 2015
Good Morning, Kittens!!
As you can tell, I'm completely dreadful at keeping my blog updated. I'll do better. Anyhow, I'm blogging today for a very awesome, super fun reason!
This lovely lady is Marci Lyn Curtis, my agency sista-from-anotha-mista. You can learn all about her just below!
Bio:
Marci Curtis grew up in Northern California, where she went to college and met an amazing guy in a military uniform. Two college-aged kids and one dachshund later, she lives in Maryland, where she laughs too loudly and eats peanut butter off spoons. Her YA contemporary debut, The One Thing, comes out September 8th, 2015 via Disney-Hyperion. Learn more about her at Marcilyncurtis.com.
Along with her bio, I sent Marci a couple interview questions to pick from, and here are the ones she chose.
Did you ever feel like giving up?
I know this sounds strange, but no. The story had been picking at my brain for a year-plus before I started writing it. All I wanted was to get it down on paper and out of my head. Don’t get me wrong—I had a lot of doubts about what I’d actually do with it once it was finished. But when it came right down to it, I was a closet-writer and had nothing to lose, so I just went for it.
Even when I started subbing it out to agents, I was like, Well, what’s the worst they can do? Reject it? I was lucky enough to nab Kathleen Rushall—the most enthusiastic and dedicated agent on the planet—lucky to land with the insanely brilliant Laura Schreiber at Disney-Hyperion.
So I guess there’s a benefit to tripping and falling into the publishing world. I didn’t know enough about how things worked to even consider giving up. And luckily, I’m still pretty clueless. ;)
What is your favorite line/bit of dialogue?
There are a few lines toward the end of the story that I believe in strongly. They’re about the messy growth that occurs after tragedy strikes, about what happens to us when we weather through heartbreak and disaster:
What was different about me wasn’t me: it was what I noticed. What I paid attention to. After all, circumstances don’t change us. They reveal us.
Awesome answers - and I totally echo that Kathleen is the greatest agent on the planet :D
Now, without further ado, here's the blurb for THE ONE THING. (I bet you thought it was going to be the cover....Patience, grasshopper)
BLURB:
A soaring tale of life and love, of sacrifice and renewal, and learning to see people as they really are.
Maggie Sanders might be blind, but she won't invite anyone to her pity party. Ever since losing her sight six months ago, Maggie's rebellious streak has taken on a life of its own, culminating with an elaborate school prank. Maggie called it genius. The judge called it illegal.
Now Maggie has a probation officer. But she isn't interested in rehabilitation, not when she's still mourning the loss of her professional soccer dreams, and furious at her so-called friends, who lost interest in her as soon as she could no longer lead the team to victory.
When Maggie first meets Ben, she thinks she can add crazy to her list of problems. But the precocious ten-year-old isn't a hallucination. Maggie can actually see him. She immediately befriends the kid, desperate for any chance to see again.
It turns out Ben's older brother is Mason Milton, the ridiculously hot lead singer of Maggie's new favorite band. Music is the first thing that has made Maggie feel alive since losing her sight. But when she learns the real reason she can see Ben, Maggie must find the courage to face a once-unimaginable future...before she loses everything she has grown to love.
!!!!!!
Now, I'm lucky enough to have already started reading this, but once I saw the cover, I had overwhelming feelings of:
Okay, for reals now, here is the cover for Marci Lyn Curtis' YA contemporary, THE ONE THING.
ISN'T THAT BEAUTIFUL?! I love the color scheme and font. The pink just jumps out at you and Marci's name looks FANTASTIC...it was born to be on covers :)
Now I'm sure you're wondering how you can add this beauty to your TBR lists and follow Marci, so here you go.
It's 777 Challenge time! As most of you know, the 777 challenge is one writer challenging another (or however many you'd like) to post seven lines of text, seven lines down, on the seventh page of a work in progress.
I was tagged via facebook/gchat/DM/all the ways Rachel Simon (hi!) and I chat, so I'm tagging Amber Mauldin! I'm going to do THE BONE TREE, since it's the best representation of where my head is at right now, and because I love it SO much. It's a contemporary MG with a healthy dash of horror and a few sprinkles of adventure. I'd give you some comp titles, but they always make me feel dreadfully inadequate. So, without further ado, here are 7 random lines.
(from pinterest)
Roman continues. “Yup. Anyways, Samuel spent night after night at Mary’s grave, crying and begging God to show him his wife.” “Did God answer his prayers?” I try to remember my old Sunday school classes. I know people rose from the dead all the time, but I can’t remember if they roamed graveyards after or not. “Someone did, but I don’t think it was God.” Roman walks in a slow circle around the tree. “On the fourth day Samuel found his wife, still dressed in the white gown she was married in, and later buried, in. Samuel scooped her up, but she was made of icy mist and nothing more."
I love the fall. I love the colours, the crisp pumpkin everything-tinged air, and chunky sweaters. But most of all, I love the movies. Here are a few of my favourite Halloween flicks, in gif form, naturally.
Since I'm Canadian, we have two super fab holidays in October; Thanksgiving AND Halloween. I know, turkey and candy in one month?? It's pretty awesome.
Anyways, since October is the perfect month for spookiness, I thought I'd share a wee bit of fun news! THE MIDNIGHT SOCIETY, a fun new horror blog, held a flash fiction contest. All you had to do was write a story, 700 words or under, that has to do with a mailbox.
They announced the winners of the contest yesterday, and I won :D Check out this sweet badge I got.
I'm going to include my entry below, because if your phone is like mine, it takes forever to open new windows, but I really hope you'll go check out the other creepy entries.
Here's my entry to the contest. Since I'm know to be a little long-winded, I clocked in just under the 700 mark at 682. Enjoy :)
An
hour ago, I was tucked in bed and dreaming. Now I’m standing barefoot in a dark
field. I knew this was going to happen. I am, after all, a legacy.
Mom
has been grooming me for this sorority since I started my freshman year. Now
the wait is over. All that stands in my way it tonight.
I’m
surrounded by my fellow pledges and my future sorority sisters. The sisters
hold flickering candles. The pledges and I blend into the blackness.
“Listen
up, bitches.” Claudia, sorority president, stands on a makeshift podium. “The
test is simple. At the end of the field is a mailbox. All you have to do is
stick your arm inside for three minutes, and then you’re in.”
“That’s
it?” A shadowed pledge asks.
“That’s
it. The only catch is that you’re not allowed to scream.” Claudia scans the
crowd. “Who’d like to start things off?”
I
take a deep breath and step into the wavering light. “I will.”
“A
legacy,” Claudia purrs. “Perfect. Come with me.”
I
follow the girl into the inky depths until we stop at a rusted red and blue
mailbox. It’s nothing special; it’s the kind that would stand on a busy street
corner. It’s big enough for large parcels, or teeny sorority sisters. When my
mom pledged, it was one of these bendy sisters that grabbed her hand and yanked
it the second she slid it through the mail slot. But Mom didn’t scream and
neither will I.
“I’m
going to leave you alone now.” Claudia walks backward. “But I’ll be close
enough to hear you yelp.”
Once
I’m alone, I pull my foot back. If I can startle whoever is hiding in the lower
compartment, I won’t be so scared. I let my foot fly and boot the mailbox.
Silence.
It was worth a shot.
I set
the timer on my roommate’s dorky digital watch for three minutes. I clench my
jaw and lift the mail slot. I slide my watch-less hand into the narrow gap and
squeeze my eyes shut.
The
air inside the mailbox is thick and humid. The hair on the back of my hand
stands up and digs into my skin like tiny needles. I wiggle my fingers to let
the hiding girl know I’m there. I nearly lose it when I graze a patch of coarse
hair with the back of my hand.
Found you.
I
crane my neck and look at my watch. Two minutes to go.I nudge the girl’s head with my hand. She
leans into my hand and a throaty sigh rumbles up the mailbox.
“What
the hell?” I pull my hand back but the furry head follows.
Hot
breath cascades over my palm. Chills erupt over my body and cover my limbs. I
shiver but I don’t make a peep.
“You’re
halfway there!” Claudia calls.
A
warm, fleshy tongue drags across my palm. Saliva covers my hand like ooze. I
flick it off and it tings against the medal siding.
They’re really going all out this year.
My
timer beeps. One more minute.
Razor
sharp teeth graze my thumb. I flinch and shove my hand into the corner of the
mailbox. The mouth follows. The teeth trace my fingers and break the first
layer of skin.
I
wince but I don’t make a sound.
Canines
dip into the flesh between my thumb and pointer finger. It hurts, but it’s not
enough to make me fail. The tongue laps at warm beads of blood. Another sound,
this one more like a growl, makes the entire mailbox vibrate.
Thirty
seconds.
Finally,
the monstrous head pulls back. I smile and let out a deep breath. I did it.
Suddenly,
vise-like jaws clamp around my wrist and yank my entire arm through the slot. Skin
pushes up my forearm like a bunched sleeve.
Whatever
lurks in the mailbox smashes my arm against the side of the opening. Bone
snaps. The world starts to spin. The teeth rip into the soft flesh of my bicep.
Teeth gnash. It’s tongue slurps.
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