Sunday Seven

1. I meant to do a Friday Five last week. But I didn't.

2. So I thought I'd do a Sunday Seven.

3. There will probably NOT be seven items on this list.

4. You know I suck at counting.

5. So in case you were wondering, I haven't blogged in awhile because:
    A: I've been on major writing deadlines
    B: I've had to teach double the classes I normally teach because of Branson/Snow/Life
    C: I was kidnapped by a sparkly vampire. He asked if I'd have his mutant babies.
    D: Ok, maybe C was a lie...
    E: But if he didn't sparkle I might have said yes.

6. Reality has absolutely no place in my world (if you get this reference I LOVE you)!

7. It's my BIRTHDAY this week!!! Wednesday actually--the same as this guy!

Dr. Seuss

And him too!

Bon Jovi!!!

 I'm muy muy excited!

8. Also, I'm getting A LOT of emails lately and I think it's time to add a FAQs page to this blog.

9. So if you could tell me some questions you'd like me to include--or just answer in general, I'd SUPER appreciate that!

10: Please?

11: Pretty PLEASE?

12: With Cherries?

13: Are you watching the Oscars tonight? Yah...me too!

14. Ok ask me some questions, either that you desperately want answers to or that you think should be in my FAQs.

15. That was bolded so you can tell I'm serious.

16. Did I tell you you're looking very pretty today? Because you are :-)

17. Bon Jovi thinks so too!

Final Post On Branson

I am still recovering from my trip to Branson--partly because I didn't get a ton of sleep, partly because I was hit over the head with awesome (and snow...and maybe Julie Kagawa), and largely because while I was away, my life at home did not stop. There's been a LOT of catching up!

But the ever awesome Jackson Pearce just posted this video which includes her final thoughts on Branson and scenes of me in a blue wig and belly dancing (not at the same time).

So I thought I'd share that with you and just a few pictures. All the pictures I took are currently up on facebook which you could see if you are friends with me. And if you are not friends with me, then you should be. Now. Because I like you.

So I give you pictures and a vlog.

With Natalie C. Parker

With wigs and Natalie Standiford

We're escaping Branson! At the Mule Express!

Still writing, even at the airport.

Happy Wednesday! Off to teach!

Just Kiss Already Blogfest

Happy Valentines Day Everyone! Also Happy Birthday to my brother, Michael!

In honor of V-Day I'm participating in the Just Kiss Already Blogfest hosted by the fabulous Christina Lee and Stina!!! And I had NO time to write this, so it's super quick and rough--but hope you enjoy!

The lights dimmed and the giant vat of popcorn appeared on the screen. The movie would start any minute and I had NO idea what to do. Sean’s hand splayed across the armrest between us and I could feel the tiniest bit of heat from him. He was almost, but not quite touching my arm.

If I moved my arm closer to his arm, would he notice? Or not? It was just an inch of space, or maybe more like a half inch or a centimeter. Crap, I never really could judge distances that well. But he was close. Really close. And if I touched my arm to his and he didn’t notice I would die. And if I touched my arm to his and he DID notice I would die. But if I touched him and he pulled away, I would REALLY die.

Also, the fact that I was staring at the space between our arms for this long was really getting creepy. Even worse, Sean seemed to have noticed.

“Sara,” he whispered.

“Yeah.”

“Popcorn?” He shoved the tub under my nose.

“Um, sure,” I mumbled, stuffing a handful in my mouth. A few pieces spilled from my hand and rolled down my shirt. Now THAT was sexy. Also, it kind of burned.

Sean laughed. “I think you got some in your hair.”

“What?” I wriggled in my seat, hoping the popcorn would fall out of my shirt. But Sean was suddenly close. Very close. His fingers were running through my hair. And our arms were definitely touching.

“Did you get it?” I asked, holding my breath.

“I don’t know. I’d better check the other side,” he said, turning my head.

Our lips brushed.

That was definitely on purpose!

His fingers curled in my hair and he pulled me closer. He smelled like cologne. And butter. And boy. Our lips touched, but neither of us moved.

“Get it?” I breathed.

“Not even close,” he said, sealing his lips against mine.

His arm pressed against mine as our mouths moved together.

Yep. Definitely touching…

Ok, that's it! Happy Kissing!

What Happens In Branson Stays In Branson

You guys, I'm HOOOOOOOMMMMMEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I escaped from Branson! Wheeee!!!! And that's about all my brain can process right now.

But I have THIS for you. Enjoy!

Live From The Moose Lodge of Doom

We may be trapped here, snowed in, restless and starving (watch out for Myra McEntire, she only let us all have 2 baby potatoes each) but we're still having some fun.

When we're not hiding from Julie Kagawa who I'm convinced is actually Katniss come to life, we're shooting videos.

It's the Hunger Games here. Branson is the new Panem.

Enjoy!

1. I get smacked (literally) by mother nature.



2. We're going to eat Maggie...

Trapped In Branson!

Guess what all the writers in Branson did this morning?

We packed ALL the suitcases.

But guess what we found when we looked outside?

Snowpocalypse!

And then ALL the cabs said they refused to drive and ALL our flights were canceled.

Soooo needless to say, we are trapped in Branson for another night with this guy...

Freddy The Moose! I'm nailed to the wall, watching u write!

But at least we're in good company :)

Valerie, Brenna, Tessa, Me, Maggie

Natalie, Valerie, Me, Jessica

Now, we just have to conserve our food. Or this will quickly turn into a Carrie Ryan novel....

Oh and SNOW PRANKS courtesy of Jackson Pearce

Friday Five (or more)

1. With all the ThunderIce and the ThunderSnow I want to add THUNDER to the begining of every word ever! Like yeah, I'm reading a ThunderBook! Tomorrow I'm taking a ThunderPlane. What? Is that weird?

2. If you guys haven't read Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev, you should. Or better yet, you should listen to the audio! It's full cast which considering this book is set up like a live play, lends itself really well. The voice of Ariel--a smexy air elemental is awesome. And the fairies have the cutest voices. I could just listen to Peaseblossom talk all day long.

3. OMG Vampire Diaries!!! Caroline is the best vampire ever! That's all!

4. Did you know there's a contest at First Novels Club this week? You can win Before I Fall, by Lauren Oliver, Mostly Good Girls by Leila Sales and All Unquiet Things by Anna Jarzab, plus bookmarks signed by all three authors!

5. I'm leaving in the morning to go retreating...or rather I'm going at 4 in the morning, to get to my flight. I'm concerned about when I'm going to sleep.

6. You should be too.

7. Also, I have NO idea what my blogging situation will be like when I'm at my writers retreat.

8. So in case I don't blog until I return...Have a Fabulous weekend and a mostly Fabulous week.

9. I'll be back Wednesday night--it's not forever.

10. :-)

Delirium Celebration

Today is the day that I hope everyone has been waiting for.

The Snowpocalypse?

NO!

Delirium by Lauren Oliver is in stores today!!! In honor of her book birthday I'm reposting my review. I highly suggest you all go snag a copy before the horrendous weather comes! And if Lauren Oliver is heading near your hometown on tour--DEFINITELY go see her. It's so worth it!

I Love this new cover, SO cool!

Delirium....

I'm still pulling myself off the floor.

Here's the product description from Amazon.

Ninety-five days, and then I'll be safe. I wonder whether the procedure will hurt. I want to get it over with. It's hard to be patient. It's hard not to be afraid while I'm still uncured, though so far the deliria hasn't touched me yet. Still, I worry. They say that in the old days, love drove people to madness. The deadliest of all deadly things: It kills you both when you have it and when you don't.
Lauren Oliver astonished readers with her stunning debut, Before I Fall. In a starred review, Publishers Weekly called it "raw, emotional, and, at times, beautiful. An end as brave as it is heartbreaking." Her much-awaited second novel fulfills her promise as an exceptionally talented and versatile writer.



So I present to you....

10 Reasons Why DELIRIUM made me Delirious!

1. The Premise! This is a dystopian novel and the world that Lena lives in pretty much looks and sounds exactly like ours except that love aka deliria is a disease that is cured when you turn 18. You undergo a procedure and then...you're completely apathetic and everything is decided for you, who you'll marry, what you'll do. It's scary sounding and boring as crap! This also makes a killer set up for a love story.

2. Philosophizing. I'm convinced Lauren Oliver is really like a 1,000 year old philosopher hiding in the guise of a 20 something year old woman, because her novels have a way of making me want to take apart my world and how I live and look at them from another angle. She slips in these little bits of truth that you know already but probably forgot or never gave much thought to, and I can't help coming away from her writing feeling like I've truly gained something beyond just a great reading experience.

3. Rounding The Bases! This is probably always going to be one of my reasons for loving a book--or at least a bonus feature. But what can I say? I'm a sucker for romance. I'm a sucker for kissing. And I'm a sucker for...other things:-) And Lauren Oliver does it right..you know, the writing of that stuff. Also, she nails the emotional aspect too when it comes to this territory. Yay!

4. Character Arc. Lauren Oliver is fabulous at this--taking a character who is totally A and tearing them apart and putting them back together until they are Z! Lena goes through a massive journey in this book from completely buying into the party line--Love is EVIL, the cure is GOOD. We wants it NOW! To....OMG the cure is EVIL, love is AMAZING! RUN!!!!!

5. ALEX! Lauren, you had me at Kent McFuller....and now...ALEX!  I don't want to talk about Alex too much because I don't want to spoil the story for everyone but....I love Alex! He'd make me change my beliefs about everything I thought was true too. And once I finished Delirium, I had one thought in my head....ALEX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

6. The Swooning. There were some MAD cute scenes in this. When Lena was first falling in love with Alex, they were soooooo adorable with each other, giving secret looks, making up excuses to see each other. It made my heart melt with cuteness. And then....there were other scenes like when Alex reads love poetry to Lena that just....SWOOOOOOON!

7. Love is worth it! In this book, LOVE isn't just something you want or desire or makes life worth living. Love IS life. Love is worth dying for, and it makes you remember how unbelievably special and important it is and that it's worth sacrificing your life to experience it, save it, or just hold onto it. I'm telling you....1,0000 year old philosopher!

8. The Suspense! Seriously the last 100 pages had me on the edge of my seat biting my nails and freaking out until I got to the very end and cried and then started thinking....ALEX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

9. Hana! Lena's best friend had some of the best lines and was a real eye opener for Lena in her quest. I was kind of surprised by Hana's character arc, but she made a fabulous foil for Lena and really played an important role beyond just being the  cliched obnoxiously annoying best friend filler because every girl in a YA needs a BFF. Hana was not that character at all. She was so much more.

10. ALEX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sorry, I had to get that in there one more time. Seriously, I LOVED this book! It had everything you could want. Love, romance, action, philosophizing, ALEX!!!!!!!!

Ok, I'm going to go cry now.

Some more.

Hope you enjoyed the review, hope you enjoy the book. I'm off to get my copy and everyone stay safe and warm tonight if you're in a snowy area.