Free ecopies of Way Over the Line

I'd like to give out free e-copies to my middle grade novel called Way Over the Line. I'm doing this by giving out a code from Smashwords that will get you the book for free. Here's a description:

"Jessie Campbell loves baseball, but he's terrified of the ball. Though he can make great running catches, if a ball is hit right at him, he'll duck out of the way. And forget about batting. When he and his best friend, Ryder Gonzalez, are abducted by space aliens, the boys learn that the aliens want Ryder to play in the huge Intergalactic Over the Line Tournament. Jessie is only along for the ride. He soon learns, however, that this won't be a simple spectator sport. He'll need to deal with horrors such as space pirates, and, even worse, actually participating on the field. With the help of Ryder, his alien teammates, a cute girl from another planet, and even Mickey Martell, the best baseball player in the Universe, Jessie must learn to push away his fears and focus on learning how to better play the game--both mentally and physically.

And if all of that wasn't enough pressure, there's also whisperings that he may be the fabled Chosen One, destined to bring the championship to his team."

This is a book aimed at 10 to 13 year olds who are baseball and/or science fiction fans, though I think it's a story that can make anyone happy who reads it. And who can beat for free, right? To get your code, you don't have to agree to do anything but send me a direct message on Twitter. You can find a link to me on Twitter here. That's it, though I do have some requests.

If you enjoy the book, or if you think you know others who would enjoy it, please give them the link either on Smashwords or Amazon (both links are at the top right of my webpage, and I will put them at the bottom of this post). If you know teachers who teach upper elementary school or middle school/junior high, I'd love for you to share the links with them. If you know parents with age-appropriate kids, I'd love for you to give them the links. If you know others who simply enjoy a good story, I'd love for you to give them the links. The book is only $1.99 on both Smashwords and Amazon, so it won't cost much at all for those you recommend to. I'd appreciate it if you didn't hand out the code to anyone else, but honestly, there's nothing I can do to stop you from doing so. I only earnestly ask that you don't publish the code anywhere in a public forum.

That's all I request: if you enjoyed it, let others know. I don't even require it from you, just request. You don't need to retweet my links, you don't need to say anything about it. Just send me a direct message on Twitter and you get a code for a free book. I'd love a review on Goodreads, at Amazon, at Smashwords, but again, none of that is necessary for you to get your free code. It's just me humbly asking for some publicity for my story.

So, to recap, simply send me a direct message on Twitter and I'll send you a code for a free copy of Way Over the Line. That's it. No hidden catches. I just hope you enjoy the book and tell others that you enjoyed it. Thanks everyone!

In case you've never used Smashwords, I believe you have to sign up for an account to get the free book, but that account is free and should only take you a minute or two to sign up for. I also believe you don't need to enter any credit card number if you put in the free code.

Click here to find Way Over the Line on Smashwords

Click here to find Way Over the Line on Amazon for the Kindle

Way Over the Line at Amazon.com

Way Over The Line is now available on Amazon for the Kindle: Click here to check it out! If you don't have a Kindle, you can download a free app to read Kindle books right on your computer. Or if you have a smartphone or other device, you can download a free Kindle reader for that, too. No excuse to not check this out! ;-) It's only $1.99. It's geared towards kids ages 10-13, but I think even adults will enjoy it. It's a science fiction story with plenty of baseball, so if you enjoy either of those, give it a read. If you know any parents with kids who enjoy science fiction and/or baseball, let them know. And tell teachers about it, too; I'm sure they know some kids who would be interested in reading this story. I hope you give it a go and enjoy it!

Way Over the Line

Way Over The Line is now available on Smashwords: Click here to check it out! You can download it to most (if not all) eReaders and phones with eReader apps. Smashwords has plenty of options. You can also read it right on your computer if you don't have any devices to read it on. It's only $1.99. It's geared towards kids ages 10-13, but I think even adults will enjoy it. It's a science fiction story with plenty of baseball, so if you enjoy either of those, give it a read. If you know any parents with kids who enjoy science fiction and/or baseball, let them know. And tell teachers about it, too; I'm sure they know some kids who would be interested in reading this story. I hope you give it a go and enjoy it!

Way Over the Line

On Wednesday I'll be publishing ebook versions of an upper middle grade novel (might be considered a younger young adult novel) called Way Over the Line. I have another blog set up for it with sample chapters available. As of right now, you can read the first eleven and a half chapters. By Tuesday, you'll be able to read the first fifteen chapters (roughly one-third of the book). I'd love for you to go check it out, see what you think, and pass along the link to anyone you think would be interested--especially teachers, parents, and, of course, kids! That link to sample chapters also has a description and the cover art. Enjoy reading! It'll be available on Smashwords and Amazon for the Kindle on Wednesday, December 1 (or very soon after).

Novel writing process

I recently started working on a novel, and I'm happy with how I went about all of the pre-writing exercises to allow for an easier first draft experience. I got a book called Book in a Month by Victoria Lynn Schmidt, not because I wanted to pound out a book in thirty days, but because it looked to have a good structure. I honestly feel that I've had trouble in the past getting a novel written because I lack structure in my writing process. I've tried other methods, but nothing has ever really sung to me. This one looks like it has promise.

I'm using many of the exercises and worksheets provided (though I'm doing so in a separate notebook, not right in the book, because I'm cheap that way), and I'm tweaking others to fit me. The book is set up to use each of the 30 days, with reminders of things to be looking for and exercises on how to throw a creative curveball into the mix. I've decided, since I don't want to dash it out so quick, that I'd move on to the next page with every 7 or so that I write--that'll get me to a good word count for a middle-grade novel. I made scene cards on 3x5 cards, and those have become my outline for the story. I sketched out my main character with enough information--using the book's character guide--and I'll fill it out more as I write. This seems to be an excellent way to get going on a novel for me.

The tough part, of course, will be actually writing the thing. I've set myself a goal of two pages a day/6 days a week. I like to set my writing goals low so I have a hard time missing them. Often I write more than that, so it's a nice little confidence boost for myself when I do write more. I started in the middle of last week, and so far I've met my goal every day. I'm confident this system will serve me well not just through the first draft, but through the revision process as well. That's all I have for you this week. Until next time, keep reading and/or writing.

Writing for Children

When I write my stories for adults, I don't really have any interest in writing anything that doesn't have some sort of genre twist, be it horror/paranormal/fantasy/science fiction/or whatnot. You get the idea. I don't like to read straight literary or contemporary work (there are exceptions, of course, but usually not), so therefore I don't like to write stories in non-genre categories. It just doesn't interest me.

I'm finding, however, that when I right for kids, I have no problem leaving out the fantastical element. Depending on the age group--usually the very young--normal everyday things can have the air of the fantastic. A simple story about hats can be a fun thing for me to write--which just so happens to be what I'm working on now. I've sent out two children stories to publishers so far, and one is a picture book/young reader about a brother and sister on a fun treasure hunt that their mother designed, and the other is a very short story about a child looking in a mirror. Neither have my normal genre twists, yet both were quite fun for me to write.

I'm finding that for older children, my genre preference is still shining through. I'm working on a middle grade novel that has plenty of paranormal activity and elements of the fantastic. It's a blast to write. It's much different from the genre stuff I can write for adults because I really have to censor my word usage/visual images. Don't want blood and guts to be flowing all over the place in a story for 10 year olds, while that would be fine in a book for adults. It's a nice new challenge for me.

So I guess the point of my post today is to try something new when you're writing. It'll free up your mind in ways that will create fun new challenges for you. Until next time, keep reading and/or writing.