Sneek Peek ...

of the cover for my new short story: THE WAY LIFE WAS FOREVER

coming Thanksgiving 2011

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

IT'S BACK-TO-SCHOOL WEEK!
Did I say wonderful?...I meant painfully chaotic.

So rather than post for the sake of posting, let me tell you what's coming up next week.

MONDAY 8/22 I will be launching a new multi-author blog venture where we  talk YA not the business of writing YA. The title of my inaugural post: "What about prom, Blaine? What about prom?"

Swing by Monday morning for a link to the new site. :)

Then on THURSDAY 8/25 I'll be divulging my sales-to-date here: Going Indie - Is it worth it?

For anyone in the Cincinnati area, on FRIDAY 8/26 I'll be headed to the Carrico-Fort Thomas Branch of my local library for the Girls Taking Over the World Young Adult Author Event including NYTimes bestselling author and 2011 RWA RITA winner Julie Kagawa sponsored by the awesome Blue Marble Bookstore.

See you next week!

First Love Fridays - Shea Berkley

Today, I'm thrilled to be talking with Shea Berkley, one of Entangled Publishing's debut YA authors.

CC: Thank you, Shea, for being a part of First Love Fridays: where we explore the glory and angst of first loves, first kisses, first breakups, and life beyond.

Shea: I’m thrilled to be here, Carey. I wouldn’t miss this chance to talk about the teenage years.

CC: Tell us about your first kiss. To protect the innocent feel free to use an alias.

Shea:

My first real kiss... oh heck, please don’t think I was a skank.

Age: Thirteen. So young, but I thought I was soo smart.

Time: Mid summer. Humid and hot, hot, hot.

Guy: Let’s call him “Tex”. Older than me by about two years.

Where: Driveway.

Teen motto: When the opportunity strikes, go with it.

CC: I love that! And I don’t think you’re a skank. Heck, I kissed a boy in third grade because his dad and mine had the same occupation. *chuckle* It seemed like the right thing to do at the time. Next Question - How long were you together?

Shea: Ours was a summer love. One of those intense two-week inseparable relationships. He was visiting family and I knew his cousin.

CC: Was he a good kisser?

Shea: It was night time so it was black—the ground, the night and all the parked cars were nondescript. Heck, now that I think about it, I could have been kissing anyone that night. I could barely see.

But no, it was “Tex” because he dragged me out there, very insistent I go with him. He was leaving to go home the next day. You see, he was a summer love, there to visit family. So when he dragged me outside for a “private” talk, me being me thought he wanted to exchange numbers and addresses, you know the usual stuff. I don’t actually remember what he said to me, but it was kinda corny. And then BAM! Lip attack… and sadly no world-rocking. It was over before it really got started. I remember him being nervous. I definitely wondered what all the fuss was about after that. Only when I started dating “Jack” did I finally understand what the big deal was. “Jack” was hands down the best kisser. (sigh)

CC: How did you get over him?

Shea: There really wasn’t anything to get over. He was nice and I liked him, but he didn’t live anywhere near me and I think I only saw him one other summer after that, but by then I didn’t care. I was already with “Jack”, a friend of his cousins.

CC: Have you connected with him since then?

Shea: Nope. If that kiss had been world-rocking, I’m sure I would have written him and called and kept in touch more, but I think we only wrote a few times and then contact just faded away.

CC: Tell us about your most recent project. What role does love play in the story?

Shea: Love plays a huge part in my book THE MARKED SON—love between Dylan and Kera and love for other people who are being treated unfairly.

I love the way being in makes a person feel different, special…and sometimes out-of-control. It’s those emotions that I wanted to tap into when I wrote about Dylan and Kera. They have a once-in-a-lifetime love. It’s something they can’t deny or run away from.  

CC: Ever since Entangled revealed this cover, I've been a little in love with Dylan. :) 

CC: Do you have any final wisdom to share with us about first loves?

Shea: I was a chronic dater when I was a teenager. I wanted to find the qualities I liked in a guy, so I went out with a lot of boys, but rarely kissed them unless I was dating them. By the time I was twenty, I knew what I wanted and what I wouldn’t put up with in a guy. I knew the qualities that were special and the ones that were a smoke screen. If a guy ever made me feel unimportant, then I knew he wasn’t the guy for me.

Life is too short to put up with a guy who treats you badly. So go with the guy whose eyes light up when he sees you. He may not be the handsomest, strongest, or most popular guy, but then again, he just might. I married the star quarterback of the football team and the golden boy of his high school. (I was shocked when I learned about his past) But you know what? He has never treated me poorly. I know without a doubt, he’ll drop everything and be by my side when I truly need him. And I’ll do the same for him.

So don’t jump into a relationship. Get to know the guy. Don’t get pressured to go fast. If he’s really worth anything, he’ll wait around. The good ones know the right girls are worth the wait. And trust me, they will wait for as long as it takes.

CC: Great advice! And I can’t wait to read The Marked Son. This is especially exciting because it's your 2010 Golden Heart finalist project. I’ve got my copy on order and I’m hoping it gets here soon!!!

Thanks again, Shea, for stopping by to share the love.

First Love Friday with YA author Tina Ferraro

Happy June everyone!  To kick off the long, hot summer months, YA author Tina Ferraro is joining me to talk about her first kiss.

CC: Thank you, Tina, for being a part of First Love Fridays: where we explore the glory and angst of first loves, first kisses, first breakups, and life beyond.

TF:  Haha, I live and breathe this stuff! 

CC: Tell us about your first kiss. To protect the innocent feel free to use an alias.

TF:  Okay!  My first kiss happened under a tree in a vacant lot in middle school.  The funny thing is that he told me it was his first kiss, too, but in high school, I found out he'd told the same/done the same with one of my very good friends a year earlier. So forever I will think of him as a serial first kisser. But a sweet and cute one!

CC: OMG—that’s hysterical! Was he a good kisser, at least?

TF:  LOL--hard to say.  I think I was too obsessed on the fact I was actually kissing a boy to make a real memory of the event.  (Haha, says she, the author of a book called The ABC’s of Kissing Boys!) 

CC: Was there a love connection?

TF:  I’d say a “crush connection.”  He “asked me out” that afternoon and we were a recognized couple for a month or so.  Later he transferred to a private high school while I went to the public one, so our paths stopped regularly crossing.

CC: Have you connected with him/her since then? Have you gone searching for him/her on Face book?

TF:  We still have mutual friends, so I know he’s happy and doing well!   

CC: Tell us about your most recent project. What role does love play in the story?

TF:  My agent is presently reading the full of my latest young adult novel.  At present it’s hush-hush on the specifics, but believe me when I say there is love and kisses--although not a first.  In fact, the confusion that the main character feels about her first kiss (back in middle school--wonder where I got that idea?) is what lays the groundwork for the a-little-bit-crazy plot!  But I promise, it’s all made-up from there!  

CC: I will actually be seeing your agent today, I’ll be sure to tell her about you being my FLF guest. ;)  Do you have any final wisdom to share with us about first loves?

TF:  Cherish the memories, but it’s okay to move on, too!

Tina’s *amazing* RITA nominated book The ABC’s of Kissing Boys, is a perfect summer read. So add it to your beach stack today!  You won't be sorry.

 

THE HALO CHRONICLES: THE GUARDIAN release day!

“Thrilling and oh-so-romantic, THE GUARDIAN will keep you up all night, turning the pages!”

 –Kristi Cook author of HAVEN

Rated five stars on Barnes & Noble.com and Goodreads, THE HALO CHRONICLES: THE GUARDIAN is now available in all eBook formats.

Buy THE HALO CHRONICLES: THE GUARDIAN (a 2010 RWA Golden Heart® finalist for young adult fiction) at Amazon     Barnes & Noble    Smashwords  coming soon to iBookstore

Turn your computer into a free eReader: Kindle for PC  NOOK for PC

more information at www.careycorp.com

The day has finally arrived and to celebrate, I’m giving away a free digital copy. This contest will run until midnight Wednesday 5/25.

FIRST:

“Like” THE HALO CHRONICLES: THE GUARDIAN facebook page

NEXT:

Tweet, post, or share this post, Or add to your goodreads TBR

THEN:

Paste the link in the comment section of this post. Each link is worth one entry.

I will announce a winner Thursday morning.

Friday, I will be hanging with Vanessa Barneveld at Authorness. I will be sharing my *honest to God* teenaged guardian angel story and asking readers to share theirs. Plus, there will be another chance to win a digital copy of my book. You won’t want to miss it. 

I promised to reveal my very first book. Click below. J

Lucas—shmookas! I wrote Star Wars.

Here’s a book from a little, unknown author written back in 1977. Me! Did you know I wrote Star Wars? It would be hard to prove. Perhaps I could have it carbon dated, but I’d rather have it preserved in carbonite.

A long time ago, in an intergalactic trailer park far, far away....

 

C3PO, R2D2 and their happy friend "WC" *insert wookiee speak*



Saw Princess Leia's hologram

Then Barbie - or is that Leia? - and her bf Luke (Hey, you thought they'd get together, too! But as I matured I realized the real catch was Han *insert swoon*) went off to save the universe from intergalactic tyrrany and some evil dudes.

On left - Death Star or maybe an easter egg?... On right - Darth Vader and some Stormtroopers going to the Bengals game.



Since all good sagas end in a cliff hanger, I ended on the terrifying proposition of SPs. Just what are they? We have no idea. Perhaps they're Scary Pigs. (In all likelihood, this is a Tusken Raider, representative of the vicious Sand People, which scared the bejeezus out of this seven-year-old author.)

The Force is also strong in my first recent novel. In THE HALO CHRONICLES: THE GUARDIAN, Alex’s best friend Derry is a huge Star Wars fan. He spent most of his life in foster homes and his number one fantasy was that C3PO and R2D2 would show up with an intergalactic message of great importance. Together with Alex, Derry and the droids would speed away from their home planet and wretched lives.

May the Force be with you my wookiees!

Disclaimer: This humble author would never presume to take credit for the life-changing Star Wars saga. Let it be further expressed, that Mr. Lucas is AWESOME and I regard him and his intellectual property with the utmost respect.

Buy THE HALO CHRONICLES: THE GUARDIAN (a 2010 RWA Golden Heart® finalist for young adult fiction) at Amazon     Barnes & Noble    Smashwords  

Also from Carey Corp: DOON, inspired by Lerner & Loewe's Brigadoon. Available now from BLINK/HarperCollins. Find out more at www.DoonSeries.com.