Hi, all!

(crossposted from http://jessicaburkhart.blogspot.com)

I've been promising an announcement for some time and TODAY'S THE DAY! I absolutely can't hold it in any longer. :) I wanted to do it via vlog, but I have a cold and sound like Snuffleupagus! LOL. So I'll do my very best to convey my CRAZY excitement via blog!

I've been holding onto this news for months and oh, my, it has been SO hard not to spill!! Only a handful of close friends know and I'm thrilled to finally be able to tell everyone else.

So . . . back in December, I signed a new book contract!!

The series, currently untitled, is a chapter book series for kids ages 6-9 (roughly) and it is my first EVER time writing fantasy!


What kind of fantasy? How about one centered around unicorns? :) It felt like such a natural step to take after Canterwood and it has been So. Much. Fun. I've written the first book and had a blast doing so. The series will be edited by the awesome Alyson Heller at Aladdin. I'm thankful to Fiona Simpson for her interest and notes early on. Also, huge thanks to Kate Angelella for helping talk this project through and flesh out concepts.

Alyson is just as excited as I am about all things magic, unicorn-related, and did I mention, princess-y?

The main character is a princess and writing as a princess made me want to move to a castle, LOL.


 The entire world is superfun and magical! I can't wait to share it with you!


Of course, not everything in the books are sparkly and happy. Evil creatures, including some baaad unicorns roam the lands.


Ultimately, the series is about a girl and her unicorn--her best friend. They're about to embark on some amazing adventures together.

The first two books in the series have a tentative publication date of summer 2014.

Yaaaaaay, unicorns!!! :D I'm so, SO glad I finally got to share and hope you're as excited as I am.

For those of you who might remember me stating that I have multiple announcements--that's still true! I can't say anything about the other surprise yet, but I will the second I'm able! It's thrilling in a completely new way. :)

I've been collecting unicorn stuff since I made the book deal and I'll be sure to snap pix and post them on Facebook and Twitter of what I've got. If YOU have anything unicorn related, I want to see it!

Happy weekend, all!

xoxo

Jess Ashley's take on Lady Gaga's Body Revolution 10/17/12

There have been a lot of positive (and some negative) comments in the media recently about Lady Gaga's Body Revolution. In short, the movement is about loving and accepting your body exactly the way it is. Many people are posting their own shots on LittleMonsters.com. I wasn't "born this way," but I'm proud of how I now look.

2: titanium rods in my back
12: number of inches long each rod is
4: inches of height I gained after my spinal fusion
6: pints of my blood used during surgery
1: year until full recovery
9: hours in surgery
0: number of scoliosis cases worse than mine that the doctors had seen
13: age I was at the time of surgery
25: age I am now

xoxo

*Photo credit: Kate Angelella
Cross-posted from authorjessashley.blogspot.com

I'm so excited to be the first author in a line up ahhh-mazing writers to kick off the Dear Teen Me Blog Tour!

If you're not familiar with DTM, here's the official scoop:





 We're very grateful that DTM found a home with Zest Books. I cannot wait until it hits shelves on October 30! Woot!

Anyone in the mood for a . . . prize? :) Leave a comment in this post about anything you like and make sure to leave your address. A WEEK from today (Monday, October 22 at midnight EST) the contest ends and I'll use a random generator to choose a winner. I'll contact you for your name and mailing address (US residents only, sorry!) and you'll get your prize from the folks at Zest!

You'll receive: an autographed copy of DTM (singed by 4-5 authors), post cards, and bookmarks. See the winner's swag below. :)




So, now that you know what DTM is, I thought I'd share the reason WHY I wrote my letter. It started as a blog post on DTM's Website and then I was contacted by the editors to be asked if I'd like to participate in the anthology. Excited? Big time! Nervous? Um, yeah!


I had to write a new story from the one that was posted on DearTeenMe.com. It would have been so easy for me if copy and paste were an option. Then I wouldn't have to think about that Dark Scary Place again. But I was glad, at the same time, that I did have to write a new story. This time, I pushed myself to go darker, access deeper hidden away feelings, and get myself to a place where it felt as though I'd overdosed on caffeine. 

I bared my feelings to a Word document and was left breathless and feeling as though I wasn't the Brooklyn girl with the tattoo(the date I moved to Brooklyn), who was addicted to Starbucks Pumpkin Spice lattes, who had seven piercings, who lived a block and a half from her BFFL, who loved walking the streets and avenue blocks in the summer, and who had discovered a new passion for photography.

Writing my essay had sucked me back into the black hole. The Bermuda triangle. The place where even now makes my (Pause. Sorry. Have to grab a Xanax.) palms sweat, my voice low, and my thoughts try to change the subject. HEY! Do you guys wanna hear about what I'm doing for Lady Gaga's Body Revolution project? Ack! See! <----- Told you I'd try to change topics!

Okay. Writing that piece made me feel everything from sure that I'd vomit to holy-shit-I-did-it to a heartbeat so hard and loud that I was sure everyone in the apartment could hear it. I felt guilt. Shame. Terrific sadness. Loss. Pride. Love. Trapped. Friendship. Freedom. I remembered what it felt like to be there and feeling suicidal. I felt ugly. Hungry. Scared.

I could see my entire future laid out in front of Old Me. There was no change unless I made it happen--I wouldn't, I was too scared on my own. I envisioned my paychecks for Canterwood arriving and never seeing the check except to sign it. The money, and not to brag but rather to show the craziness (that's so the wrong word. Where's my editor BFF when I need her?!) of my then situation, was an amount that was enough to keep a family of four in Florida able to pay the bills and have a little extra.

That would have been fine with Old Me. But the money I earned never went to the family. I fought and argued over every check that was taken by an insane person (using insane here as "one who does the same thing over and over and expects a different outcome each time") and deposited into the latest Get Rich Quick Scheme. Old Me would have fought until she ran out of air for the money to be used for the right things. Old Me, even at a legal age, would not have left the emotionally and verbally abusive environment. She would have thought that the only thing she could do was write books, make money to keep the Insane Person happy, and do nothing else. She was her books.

That was until Old Me met Kate (far left at right) and I became New Me. New Me hated Old Me. She hated her behavior and ways of bowing down to a man. New Me despised Old Me for not being stronger. For not leaving the day she turned eighteen. For being so afraid.

Kate taught New Me not to hate old me. K taught New Me to forgive Old Me and keep learning and growing as a person. With her love, help, friendship, and teaching I very slowly became New Me and Old Me disappeared. It doesn't mean Old Me still doesn't make appearances from time to time--she does--but as time passes Old Me stays away longer and longer.

(And when I saw Kate "taught" me in the paragraph above, I really do mean taught. Remember that scene in Mean Girls where Cady, Regina, Gretchen, and Karen are in Regina's bedroom for the first time? Regina turns on the radio. They have a convo that goes like this:

Regina: Cady, do you even know who sings this?

Cady: Um . . . the Spice Girls?

Regina: I love her. She's just like a Martian!


Martian Jess was the Old Me at nineteen! I'd never used (or really knew what it was) a debit card, never filled a gas tank, hadn't had cable for over 11 years, had only seen two R-rated movies, let my parents drive me to college, hadn't been to public/private school since 7th grade, and a million other things that made me Old Jess. Kate was patient enough to take someone with the knowledge of the world kind of like Cady's and teach me how things in Brooklyn worked. How things in life worked.

Now you get why she's my bestie, right?

Flash forward to now:

I was on my way out the door when my DTM galley came. Even though I was already late for a doctor appointment, I stopped, ripped open the envelope, and flipped though many familiar author faces. I caught words such as "suicide," "anorexic," "bullied," "love," and finally found my own story.

My first reaction?

OH MY GOD. WHY DID I DO THIS? NOW IT'S IN PRINT AND I CAN'T TAKE IT BACK.

That lasted 1.5 seconds. Immediately, a "Whoa. I really did it and look at this beautiful collection of stories." feeling replaced it. I feel immense pride and gratefulness that my name is one that appears alongside authors whose work I've been in love with for years. Authors whom have helped me on the road to becoming New Jess.

There's no such thing as a crystal ball or a way to change how my teen years turned out. If if I could, I honestly wouldn't change a thing.

Writing a letter to my nineteen-year-old self from a now twenty-five year old's perspective was pretty damn satisfying.
Jessica Burkhart (a pseudonym for Jess Ashley) is the author of the 20-book Canterwood Crest series for Aladdin MIX. She has many WIPs, one of which includes KEPT, a fictionalized version of her life told in verse. Jess co-owns Violet & Ruby with Kate and they plan to release dominate, their first e-novella soon. Visit www.jessicaburkhart.com for more!

Go pre-order your copy of DTM today or find us online! Here's how:


Keep up with our blog tour:

• IndieBound [and your favorite independent bookseller by extension!] http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781936976218
• Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Dear-Teen-Me-Authors-Letters/dp/1936976218/
• BAM (Books a Million) http://www.booksamillion.com/p/Dear-Teen/Miranda-Kenneally/9781936976218
• Barnes and Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dear-teen-me-miranda-kenneally/1112324298
• The Book Depository (free shipping internationally to any country) http://www.bookdepository.com/Dear-Teen-Me-Miranda-Kenneally/9781936976218
• Zest Books Dear Teen Me book page has a “buy now” button: http://zestbooks.net/dear-teen-me-blog-tour/

 Author Stock Photos are pictures taken with self-publishing authors in mind to aid in book cover creation. ASP are shot with an 18 mega-pixel camera (full camera detail in future post). The photos are covered with a watermark until they are purchased for use.

1. Just before a storm at a cemetery (Brooklyn, NY) 8/30/12

2. Crane-like flower bud (Brooklyn, NY) 8/30/12

3. Dirt covered hand  (Brooklyn, NY) 8/30

4. Iron gate (Brooklyn, NY) 8/30

5. Tree stump hidden by grass (Brooklyn, NY) 8/30

Cross-posted from here.

Wow. This is perhaps the most difficult blog post I've had to write in a while.

Team Canterwood, I learned news today that is official as of a few moments ago. It's news that you, my readers who have stuck by my side since Take the Reins debuted in January 2009, deserve to hear first.

The Canterwood Crest series will end with the super special Home for Christmas. My publisher, the sales team, and many other people weighed in on this decision and thought carefully about it for a while. They love the series and it was a very hard decision, but they came to the conclusion that it was time to close the final chapter of Canterwood.

I JUST got off the phone call and learned the answer myself, so I'm in a state of shock/saddness/excitement about future projects. I'm feeling a million emotions!

But more than anything, I'm thinking about YOU. Each of you. I promise to give the last books all that I have and to make books that you will read and, hopefully, feel satisfied when you finish the final installment in this journey we've been on together.

I think back to Sasha. Jacob. Eric. Charm. The Trio. They hold such a huge piece of my heart. I will always be grateful to Alyssa Henkin who contacted me about Take the Reins and sold it and future books to Simon & Schuster.

I'm now thinking of Lauren, Drew, Taylor, Brielle, Ana, Riley, Clare, Cole and the New Class. Editor K and I will come up with the best possible send off for these characters. (Who knows--you might even see the old gang pop up.) :)

My deepest thanks to everyone at Simon & Schuster who went on this ride with me especially Bethany, Mara, Fiona, Alyson, Jess H, Nicole, Vanessa, Stephanie, Craig, Dawn, Lucille, Russell, Karin, Katherine, and Courtney.

Endless gratitude to Kate Angelella for wanting four books and ending up with waaay more! The series continued because of your vision and dedication. I would have been writing this letter long ago had it not been for you. <333

Okay. So, that's officially announced and we have books to embrace before it ends! I'm ready for COMEBACK to hit shelves within a week. Then we have PERFECT which is going to be awesome. And finally, we will say goodbye to the world of Canterwood in HOME FOR CHRISTMAS.

I love you all and thank you for supporting the series as much as you have.

xx

(Cross posted from Blogger. Go there to enter!)

It's almost heeeeerrrreeee!! (Can you tell I'm excited? Cuz I'm not. I mean, why would I be freaking out that Team Canterwood gets INITIATION tomorrow?! :D)

Some of you have already found it in stores (thank you, booksellers!) and a lot of you haven't yet. Whether you've grabbed your copy or not, I think it's time to party with prizes! How else are we supposed to welcome Lauren to Canterwood?

In honor of book number lucky 13, I've got some fab stuff (my faves!) up for grabs. Check it:




That's right! We've got AMAZING Hair Tinsel and Gelly Roll pens. (Thank you to everyone at Hair Flairs and Sakura of America for offering up these fantastic prizes.






(Here's a pic of me from last January wearing dark purple tinsel. I was signing a book for our very own Jill (<3!)--the model for Sasha.) :)

The prizes up for grabs:

4 winners will receive:

2 packets of different color Hair Tinsel and either pink or purple Gelly Roll pens (all Tinsel and pen colors chosen by me at random)


1 GRAND prize winner will receive:

Your choice of a 20 minute phone call or 20 minute Skype session with me!  We'll both work out a date and time via e-mail. :)

You must be a US resident to enter. Sorry, international readers!! Winners will be drawn at random and notified via e-mail. So be sure to leave yours!

You have TWO WEEKS starting tomorrow to do one of the following (some options will be worth extra entries!):

* Post a comment here about what you liked about Initiation after reading it

* (Worth 3 EXTRA entries) Send me a photo of you and your copy (it can be a paperback or Nook, Kindle, etc., of Initiation. I will NOT post the photo on my blog unless I have parental permission.


* (Worth 2 EXTRA entries) Post about INITIATION on your blog, Twitter, Facebook, etc. and leave the link in the comments, Tweet it to me, or tag me on Facebook. 


* Post a comment here about how long it took you to finish Initiation

* (Worth 2 EXTRA entries) link to this blog post via your Twitter, Facebook, blog, etc!

* (Worth 4 EXTRA entries) Create something at Polyvore for your fave CC character! 


* (Worth 5 EXTRA entries) Make a YouTube (or other video hosting site) video about Initiation. You can review it, talk about what you liked/didn't like, send a shout out to other members of Team Canterwood--whatever you like! Get creative! :) *Please DO NOT email me the video because the file size will fill my inbox and then I won't be able to receive your messages* Put the link to your video in the comments section of this post. 


* And . . . 6 EXTRA entries go to the person (judged not by me, but by an impartial Internet friend) who gets the most creative about celebrating Initiation's release day. 


The contest closes on Monday, January 16, at 11:59pm EST. I will e-mail the winners on January 17, so be sure to check your email! 


Good luck to all!

Now, other stuff:


Among other places, you can find copies of INITIATION at awesome places such as:

Barnes & Noble

Amazon

Indie Bound

Powells

Books a Million

I've been thinking a lot today about all of Team Canterwood and how lucky I am to have such a wonderful, amazing, intelligent group of readers. It makes me teary when I think back to the first e-mail I ever received about someone liking TAKE THE REINS. I can't believe the very first book will be out for three years later this month.

Wow.

I would not be able to live my dream as a writer without EACH and EVERY one of you. Your messages keep me inspired, even on the darkest, tough days. I wish I could hug you all and be able to come up with better words than "thank you" for everything you've given me and the Canterwood Crest series. It would not continue without you.

I wish you all a very happy New Year! I've got copyedits to finish on POPULAR and then I'm starting to write COMEBACK. :)

Much love and cheers to 2012!

xoxo

I promised you all an update and Team Canterwood (and our friends, especially Alex, Lauren, Becca, Katherine, Bri, and Andi) have been so supportive with e-mails, Facebook messages, etc.

I don't want to put too much of Kate's personal medical history online, but this last visit at Mayo was good and bad. Good because we have a surgery scheduled. Bad because doctors still don't know how to stop/help her with the screaming pain she's in every day.

We're going back to Mayo for the third time the second week of October. Kate is going to have surgery where doctors will try to find a cause for her pain. It's extremely exciting to have this chance, but also absolutely terrifying because of the fear that they won't find anything.

So, we are both very nervous and anxious right now. Going back to the hospital is not fun. I don't know how Kate has done it so many times. She still edits Canterwood while living every day for the past year and a half with a pain that medication won't cover. Pain that makes her scream. It's heartbreaking to witness and there's a helpless feeling.

We thank you all for being there to back us--your support has brought happy tears to Kate's eyes more times than you know.

I ask you all to send good wishes into the universe for Kate on October 11th--the date of her surgery. I'll create a Facebook page as soon as I have time.

Thank you, guys. We love you all!

xoxo

This past Sunday, September 18th, I had the pleasure of signing books and doing a surprise reading of an
excerpt from INITIATION! :) The members of Team Canterwood who came were
AMAZING. One reader got a bright blue feather in her hair because I had
them! And Olivia brought me a lip gloss! So. Sweet.

The Rochester crowd was filled with TC people from all over--some even
driving two+ hours to get to B&N. I can't thank you all enough for
coming. I had so much fun. :)

Enjoy these pics and the video will be up soon!

Thanks to Kate for playing photographer. Thank you, also, to Brianna for helping with the event and Ross for filming.

xoxo

So many people are participating--I LOVE it! I think I'll open this spot for new comments if you want to check in, give a progress report, discuss your project, ask each other questions or for advice, etc.

I'm definitely going to host another write-a-thon event in the future. Next time, I'll give advanced notice and we can all hang out and write together virtually. :) I'm having so much fun.

My progress:

I rewrote chapter 1 of POPULAR (CC #14.) It was waaay too passive. Beginnings always take me the longest and it took about six hours to get the opening right. I edited and wrote more of chapter 2. Got stuck on chapter 3 and skipped ahead to a horse scene. My faves. :) Lauren's about to start a lesson with Mr. Conner. Horse scenes flow fast for me.

So, if you like, check in here or on the first 3daywat post.