January 2017 Book Wrap Up and Giveaway

At the end of every month, I wanted to do a vlog with a wrap up of what I've read, or more specifically, what titles I recommend reading and why. However, I have found myself continuing to read books that I feel "meh" about. Despite knowing that I should put them down and move onto a different read, I still finish the title despite knowing I'll probably never really enjoy it.

Thus comes the idea that perplexes me. I can go months and years without finishing a writing project, but I can't seem to permanently walk away from an already written book. There have been very few exceptions to this rule. Very few. If I reach fifty pages in, I can't stop.

I tend to research books before I read them. I check out reviews from people I trust, because books are a huge commitment for me. A recent book I read had a huge red flag review, but I still started it anyway. I continued to think, "I should just walk away" until the very last page,

I did read a book in January that I'd like to recommend. At first, I was upset by one YA Trope used toward the end of the book (perhaps I'll make a YA Gets Real post out of it). But as time goes on, I find myself remembering the description, the characters, and the writing, because it was all really strong. The dialect was hard to get used to, but Orleans by Sherri L. Smith is a fast-paced book that starts slow and then becomes chaotic, much like her depiction of Orleans itself.

When I finished reading it, I wasn't as big of a fan as I am now. The trope almost killed it for me, but perspective has made me appreciate it more.

I also wanted to provide a few more recommendations based on the books I read last year. You can click on any of the photos for a link to amazon.

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
Silly somewhat dystopian Lord of the Flies take on a beauty pageant. When I started reading this book, I thought, "Man, this is going to be a trip." It was, but in the best way possible. These girls learn to kick butt. Who cares if it might be a totally outlandish plot, I adored every single ridiculous second of it.





Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick
A disturbing and psychological look at a boy who needs the most amount of help possible. Intense and gripping toward the end when it all slams together in a fast-paced near nightmare.






The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness
You know how all those supernatural stories have other people in them that never get talked about? The ordinary people who somehow manage to still have a normal high school experience despite the insanity going on around them? In this quirky and lovely book, Patrick Ness explores the lives of those people, creating an extraordinary story out of the ordinary.




If you are looking for indie authors to read, I've enjoyed books by all of my fellow Scriptors. I cannot recommend any of their titles enough.

That's it for January. Hopefully February will have several more titles to recommend and more current reads. I'm hoping to break the streak of mediocre books with some amazing titles in the future. Also, YA recommendations are welcome! Leave a comment! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Excerpt: Girl Nevermore

Purchase your copy on Amazon

Girl Nevermore is my dark contemporary young adult novel based on real life events. When I was much younger, my best friend at the time tried to take her own life while sitting next to me in class. She went to the bathroom with the pass that hung by the door, was gone for a while, and came back a completely different person.

She slowly started fading away as she sat next to me.

The image of her eyes haunted me for almost a decade, and I still remember the look she gave me to this day, but I've grown up a lot since then. While the helplessness I felt in that moment used to cause me anxiety, I've realized I'm much stronger now and much more sympathetic because of it.

Thankfully, my friend is still alive, but some people do not get second chances like she did. I've lost a lot of people - a lot of good people - along the way, and I cannot imagine how it would have been to lose her in that moment.

Girl Nevermore's story grew from that single moment, and the thoughts and feelings that I had after. I never truly grasped how much it affected me until later on in life. But events like that change you.

If you are in the mood for a dark story, Cooper's journey is full of life lessons, things that took me a lot longer than her to realize. Today, I am sharing a small piece of Girl Nevermore with you. Cooper finds the journal that her twin sister, Kayla, had been keeping. Over the course of the book, she reads her sister's writing. Kayla never seemed so alive, and then ... Well, I'll let you read to find out the rest. Enjoy the excerpt from Kayla's found journal below:

We pulled into the park, stealing drinks from the flask he keeps in his glove compartment. We leaned against the side of his car, passing it back and forth, him taking bigger gulps than me.

When the sprinklers came on, I was already a little light-headed, feeling freer than I had in a long time. I kicked off my shoes and ran into the grass barefoot, laughing as water soaked through my jeans, my shirt, everything. The grass squelched between my toes, and I watched him watching me. His dark eyes never left my body.

It felt blissful, perfect.

Trent and I don’t talk much. There’s not much to say. We just are. We’re two different people who are from separate parts of the universe. But when we collide, our worlds smash together with such fire I can barely breathe. I want to take the feeling he gives me and bottle it up, keep it for whenever I need it.

This kind of perfection never lasts a lifetime. I’m not stupid. But that’s why I’m soaking it all in. I take every chance I can get with him to make up for all the insignificant moments that will happen later. Because as long as I live, I will never meet anyone who makes me feel as alive as Trent does now.

I spun around in the middle of the field until the stars collapsed in on themselves, blending together into one blurring ball of light. I wanted to kiss that sky, get sucked up into it and dance forever.

When I stopped, the world kept moving around me. Trent marched right through the sprinklers, dropped the flask in the field, and wrapped his arms around me. He kissed me with such an intensity I thought I would melt right into his skin.

That’s how he makes me feel, like I could become something bigger than myself. I’ve never felt that kind of power before. I grinned the whole way home, wondering how I got so lucky, but also wondering how I was going to keep this a secret.

Because I want Trent to be mine and just mine. I don’t want to share any of these moments with anyone else. They are too beautiful, too enormous. And I’m afraid if I tell someone, they might become a little bit smaller, and that would ruin the magic we have now.

Managing Mischief

I think about when I was younger and how, for the most part, I was a fairly well behaved kid. It wasn't because my parents were huge disciplinarians, but because of self-regulation. I felt a tremendous amount of guilt whenever I did anything relatively "bad" or "destructive." The guilt was crippling. A tingling feeling would invade the base of my neck and travel up to my brain, numbing me from the inside out with a painful coldness. Nausea would flood my stomach. I'd be paralyzed, my mind a record repeating the one thing I did wrong over and over.

It was the same feeling I had during the beginnings of a panic attack. Needless to say, young me avoided this feeling like the plague.

I wonder, however, how I came to admire the kinds of characters that I did. I fell in love with Dallas from The Outsiders, thinking of him as a tragic hero. I adored Harry Potter, who wouldn't listen to the rules so long as it meant keeping his friends safe. He was a hero in more ways than one.

Most of the heroes that I read in YA literature have some sort of rebellious nature. What makes them a hero? Doing something heroic, sticking to their guns no matter what? None of them deal with getting caught or the guilt that comes thereafter. If they do get captured, the last thing they are thinking is I should feel guilty about this. No, they do what they have to do.

Though, these heroes are generally not dealing with the mundane, but with tyrants, corrupt governments, and supernatural creatures.

There wasn't a tyrannical government when I was growing up, and there certainly wasn't magic (or maybe I just never received an owl letter). The friends I did have, we had to carve out our own lives. I think self-regulation through guilt forced me into finding different ways to enjoy life. Instead of combating evil, I read. I snowboarded. I wrote. I played games. I drank tea. For a while, I knitted.

I won't get into all the times I spent bored out of my mind or staring vacantly into the distance like a cinematic overly dramatized moment of a slightly depressed teenager (but that happened too).

Because there were not a lot of heroic deeds I could do (at least not the kind we read about), I became the kind of girl who went to parties. But because I wasn't the "party-type," I would grab a single drink and nurse it while having one intense conversation with someone in the corner. I was the kind of girl who wanted to be surrounded by people, be a part of a community, but was terrified to actually get involved (What if they don't like me? What if I'm not cool enough? What if I say the wrong thing?).

Today, I still avoid mischief. Instead, I live out mischief and drama through my writing. Sometimes, the scenes my characters live through are more real than my own memories. Perhaps that's because we change our memories every time we access them, but that's for a different blog post.

So today, I'll sit down and create more mischief. My characters in The Mundane List are almost at the end of their journeys. I always stall with a few thousand words left, because I don't like letting go of them. Once I finish writing the story, I'm onto the first step of publishing, and perhaps, the first step of not having my work be successful (or perhaps, which potentially terrifies me more, it's the biggest hit of my life and I can never, ever live up to that expectation again).

If you feel like reading The Mundane List and seeing what adventures my characters get up to, the first nine chapters are available for free on Wattpad. It is, however, in the very first draft stages (as in, zero editing). I'm going to revamp it this January and hopefully get it published sometime next year.

Hope you all had wonderful holidays! Tell me what mischief you are getting up to this holiday season.

Update on Shenanigans!

I’ve been busy behind the scenes and haven’t had much time to update the blog. So let me take the time now to inform you of what’s been happening!

First, I published Girl Nevermore, my dark contemporary YA book. You can get it on Kindle, Amazon Paperback, and B&N Paperback. And it got some amazingly fabulous reviews from YA Author Robyn Jones, Bookworm Brandee, and Brandi Breathes Books. There's currently a giveaway being hosted on JC's Book Haven too!

Second, I’ve started a newsletter! The newsletter will have exclusive sales information, upcoming releases, links to interviews, and the best part is you'll receive a short story, ZERO, for free for being a subscriber. The short story isn't published yet, but will be in a month. Want it the second it comes out? Subscribe! I solemnly swear not to spam your inbox with tons of newsletters.

Third, I've been gearing up to publish my apocalypse novella, The Unanswerable. Ideally, I want to publish it by the end of October, but we'll see! I'm not afraid to push back the date if it means delivering a better book. Regardless, it will come out sometime this year, which makes for three releases in just one year! That's crazy and really exciting.

I can't believe I started publishing just two years ago, and I'm also shocked with how far I've come. I cannot thank my support systems enough for being there for me! Anyone who has read any of my books, you keep me going! I appreciate it :)

Cover Reveal: Girl Nevermore

I am excited to present the cover for Girl Nevermore, my Young Adult Contemporary novel!

I have mixed emotions about this book. I adore this book, these characters, and the story, but it's a very hard-to-discuss topic. Due to Robin Williams recent passing (may he rest in peace), we've been talking about mental health issues a bit more openly.

When I was growing up, it was very hard for me to reach out and ask for help. That was something I wanted to capture in this story, because it can be daunting for anyone (not just teens) to reach out in a time of need.

The Blurb:

Last week, Cooper Mesa was a quiet, studious bookworm.

This week, she feels unworthy of love or forgiveness.

When her twin sister, Kayla, tries to commit suicide, Cooper blames herself. If she had only paid more attention...

Desperate to understand her sister's decision, Cooper starts down a dark path, discovering her own inner turmoil. Losing herself was easy, but finding a reason to live is becoming impossible.

Girl Nevermore will be out on September 8, 2014.

I am now accepting requests from bloggers for review copies! The ARC is available. So if the premise sounds interesting to you, get in touch!

The Collapse: Out now!

It has been a long journey to get to my third release date. A large part of it still feels very surreal, like I'm dreaming. This has to be a fantasy world, because there's no way I could have three books out... right?  Alas, I'm not waking up from the real world--not anytime soon anyway. So three books it is!

I've learned a lot on this journey. The main thing: stop stressing.

The other thing I learned? Try to finish everything as early as possible. Having more time to ask blogs and get readers before the release would have been nice. But I'm quite happy that I made the deadline with a darn good book.

The Collapse was a lot of fun for me to write. Murphy is such an interesting character and getting to write a dual narrative was a nice change of pace. I wrote about how I switched playlists depending on which voice I was writing for. Jay and Murphy have such different feels, and I think that's what makes The Collapse so interesting.

You can purchase your copy of The Collapse for kindle. It will be out soon in paperback!

Murphy carries on after Jay abandons Hipstopia--and him. With a mixture of hatred and admiration for his new foe, Murphy becomes more aggressive than ever, unearthing a darker side of himself. He’s willing to sacrifice anything to keep Sky and Hipstopia safe, even if it means killing Jay.

Free from Murphy’s reins, Jason wants to begin his new life with Kiera, but she’ll never be able to settle as long as Leo is trapped in prison. The only way Jason can keep her safe is by going back into Hipstopia with her, but if he sees Murphy again, he doesn’t know if he’ll be able to pull the trigger.

Now on opposite sides of the war, Jason and Murphy tell their stories as they come head to head in the final battle.

If you haven't read the first book in the duet, Hipstopia, you can get it for .99 on kindle.

The Collapse: Cover Reveal and Goodreads Giveaway

Guys!  GUYS!  It finally happened!  The Collapse has a delightful cover, and I have a goodreads giveaway set up for two signed paperback ARCs that will end on May 19.  Not only can you enter to win, but you can also look at the pretty thing I created!

Here's the synopsis for the sequel to Hipstopia:

Murphy carries on after Jay abandons Hipstopia--and him. With a mixture of hatred and admiration for his new foe, Murphy becomes more aggressive than ever, unearthing a darker side of himself. He’s willing to sacrifice anything to keep Sky and Hipstopia safe, even if it means killing Jay.

Free from Murphy’s reins, Jason wants to begin his new life with Kiera, but she’ll never be able to settle as long as Lee is trapped in prison. The only way Jason can keep her safe is by going back into Hipstopia with her, but if he sees Murphy again, he doesn’t know if he’ll be able to pull the trigger.

Now on opposite sides of the war, Jason and Murphy tell their stories as they come head to head in the final battle.

Enter the giveaway below!  You can purchase Hipstopia for kindle or as a paperback.  The Collapse will be released on May 26!  Mark your calendars, it's going to be an awesome ride!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

The Collapse

by R.A. Desilets

Giveaway ends May 19, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Weekly Giveaway: Week Three

Congratulations goes to Cordelia -- the winner of Week Two's giveaway.  Once she chooses her book, I will remove it from the list.

As promised, there's another giveaway -- Week Three! This ends midnight PT on 5/4.  If an international winner wins, they will only receive ebook copies of both my novelettes, My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade and Hipstopia.  If a U.S. winner wins, they will get to choose from the list of physical books to have mailed to them AND receive a copy of the ebooks!  Good luck!

You can choose one of the following if you win:

Young Adult Books

• The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
• City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
• The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima
• Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Adult Books 

• The Blind Mirror by Christopher Pike (hardcover)
• The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
• Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
• Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
• The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
• Wormwood by G.P. Taylor (hardcover)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Weekly Giveaway: Week Two

Congratulations goes to Nichole -- the winner of Week One's giveaway.  As promised, there's another giveaway opening up.  This ends midnight PT on 4/27.  If an international winner wins, they will only receive ebook copies of both my novelettes, My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade and Hipstopia.  If a U.S. winner wins, they will get to choose from the list of physical books to have mailed to them AND receive a copy of the ebooks!

You can choose one of the following if you win:

Young Adult Books

• The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
• Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon
• City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
• The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima
• Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Adult Books 

• The Blind Mirror by Christopher Pike (hardcover)
• The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
• Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
• Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
• The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
• Wormwood by G.P. Taylor (hardcover)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Weekly Giveaway: Week One

Hey guys and gals!

So I have a lot of books -- I would say I have too many books, but can you ever really have too many books? (The answer is yes, you apparently can). I don't have any more shelf space which is great news for anyone who enjoys to read!

Starting on Sunday each week (until I run out of books), I'll provide a list of available books.  If you win, you choose one of those books and I'll ship it to you (United States only) - no monetary cost on your end!  You'll also get an ebook copy of both my novelettes, My Summer Vacation by Terrance Wade and Hipstopia!  The giveaway ends Saturday night (PT).

The books you could choose from this week are (all lightly used paperback unless otherwise noted):

Young Adult Books

• The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
• Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon
• City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
• The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima
• Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Adult Books 

• The Blind Mirror by Christopher Pike (hardcover)
• The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
• Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
• Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
• The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
• Wormwood by G.P. Taylor (hardcover)

Sorry, these giveaways are open to followers only - all the other entries are optional! If you are outside of the United States, you can still enter to win and receive the two ebooks!

a Rafflecopter giveaway