Win a $500 gift certificate to the bookstore of your choice!

I did some thinking after last week's post, and decided that if I was going to pre-order a book I wanted and could get something for it, here's what I want: a gift certificate to my fave bookstore.

So, in my on-going attempt to get 1000 pre-orders of Miracle I've decided that once I get 1000 pre-orders, one person will get a FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS (yep, $500!) gift certificate to the bookstore of their choice.

Plus! Five other people will get $100 gift certificates and twenty will get $50 gift certificates. (Please note, this contest is only open to US and Canadian residents)

To enter, all you have to do is the following:

1. Pre-order Miracle from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or your fave indie bookstore

2. Send the confirmation order email to me at elizabethscottcontest@gmail.com

3. That's it! Once I hit 1000 pre-orders, the winners will be picked and notified.

Please feel free to spread the word about this--the more pre-orders that come in, the more gift certificates might be added....

5 years, Texas, and 1000...

Three things to talk about today:

First, Bloom is FIVE years old! I can't believe it, but it's true--Bloom first hit stores on April 24, 2007. (!)


Second, I'm going to the Austin Teen Book Festival!! It's going to be held on September 29th from 10 AM-5 PM at The Palmer Events Center in Austin. (And not only am I super excited about the festival--Neal Shusterman is the keynote speaker!--I'm also determined to squeeze in a good long shop at Book People, one of the best indies in the country!)

Finally, thanks to everyone who's responded about my attempt to reach 1000 pre-orders of Miracle -- once again, if you want to help me try and get there, you can pre-order the book from your local indie bookstore, Amazon, or Barnes and Noble. (The book is less than a dollar more than the pb will cost (on Amazon and B&N))

Also, it occurs to me that if I actually get 1000 pre-orders of Miracle, I totally owe you all something! I've been trying to think of stuff. I could

1. Show you the picture of Joe that inspired his character and share a scene I wrote about him but cut because I loved it, but felt it held up the story

2. Talk about PTSD and how I really was dumb enough to write a book about it while not knowing that I HAD it. (and how I'm dealing with it now)

3. Reveal the order of my books as they were written (let's put it this way--Something, Maybe was written BEFORE Living Dead Girl, although everyone thinks it was written after)

4. This is my husband's suggestion: YouTube video of me attempting to do a cartwheel. (Which I cannot do AT ALL and sometimes attempt thinking that surely I'll have somehow mastered it because I mean, COME ON! It's a cartwheel!)

So, what do you think? 1. 2. 3. or 4.--or any other suggestions?

okay, then! And 1000

Well, I go to write my blog post this morning and okay, the whole interface has changed! Did Google give a heads-up about this, or did they just change it? Either way, it's very...new. I don't know if I like it or not yet. Anyone else with a blog on blogger? What do you think? New interface or old? (Also! last week's contest winners have been notified, and thanks to everyone who entered!)

I also want to talk about something else. I promised myself when I started blogging again I'd post more than just industry info and the occasional food link, but I gotta say, being honest is hard.

But I did promise, so--here goes.

I've been reading about Veronica Roth's 35,000 pre-order push (and yes, I pre-ordered Insurgent--I did the second it showed up for sale! I mean, Divergent was blow-your-mind awesome!) (and yes, the Four POV short was awesome!) and I thought, a. I want Four's story and b. what a fabulous way to make sure that your first week sales are going to be great! (My guess is, number 1 on the Times list and pretty high up on the USA Today list as well)

So, I'm aiming for 1,000 pre-orders of Miracle. Will you help me? You can pre-order the book from your local indie bookstore, Amazon, or Barnes and Noble.

I should add the book is less than a dollar more than the pb will cost (on Amazon and B&N) and that Miracle is the only book I have coming out this year.

okay, spring it's WAR (and free books!)

Is it just me, or is this spring (although it seems weird to call it that when daily temps are in the 90s!!!) the worst in terms of pollen?

I seriously can't go outside without seeing it everywhere. It's totally coated my car and, I suspect, that if I was willing (and able) to stand outside for fifteen minutes, it would coat me too.

Is anyone else in the same boat as me? (And by boat, I mean extra antihistamine to the point where you have to take it at night so you won't spend your days staring, dazed, at nothing)

Also, I've got some books to give away. I just tried to take a photo of all of them, but let's just say holding three books while facing a computer camera isn't my strong suit and leave it at that. (Please??)

So, the three books I'm giving away all have very striking covers, the kind that make you stop and say "Wait, what???"

--an ARC of Starters by Lissa Price
-- Harbringer by Sara Wilson Etienne
-- Incarnate by Jodi Meadows

For your chance to win one of these books, you need to have a US mailing addy and leave a comment telling me what your favorite "hey now!" YA novel cover is by this Friday, April 20th at midnight EST. Winners will be chosen at random and don't forget to leave a way for me to contact you...

P.S. Don't forget there are only TWO days left to sign up for your chance to win an ARC of Miracle over at Goodreads!

Miracle ARCS and more

Awesome news! Simon Pulse is giving away not one, not two, but TEN ARCS of Miracle over at Goodreads! To enter, just go here or, for those link-stripping feeds, http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/enter_choose_address/23696-miracle


In other news, Simon Pulse does have a few ARCs of Miracle left that they'll send to bloggers (they've already done one big mailing) and if you're interested, here's how you might be able to get one (I can't promise you will, because I don't know how many ARCs are left):


1. Your blog mailing addy must be in the US
2. You must have reviewed at least two of my books in the past two years
3. That's it! If you're interested, please write to me at elizabeth at elizabethwrites dot com with MIRACLE ARC in the subject line and please include a link to your blog along with your full name and mailing addy in the email.


One last thing: I've started a tumblr! I don't know about you, but I LOVE tumblr. It's way more fun (for me, at least) than twitter, and it feels more personal too. I'm mostly posting bits of poetry that have caught my eye but there's some other stuff on there too and I've set it up so that if you want to share a fave poetry bit, you can! Check it out: http://elizabethwrites.tumblr.com

getting through

One of the things I've promised myself is that I'm going to try and blog more regularly again. Yes, my body still apparently hates me (I'll find out how much when I'm off to see a new specialist in May.

As a side note, why does it always take so long to get in to see a specialist? I know they are busy, but let me tell you, knowing I'm going to have to wait over a month to start with the exams and the endless round of blood testing..ugh. Seriously, I think there may be more blood of mine in lab tubes than in my body at this point.

But I am trying not to worry. I am thinking about Miracle, which is coming out so soon (June 5th!) and ended up being the most personal book I've ever written. (And you all know I've never put anything that's ever happened to me or anyone I've known in any of my books and now this! It's been a weird thing, that's for sure :-)

Miracle will also be my only book this year.

As for the blog post title, there have been a lot of things that have helped me as I'm wrestling with all of this. Aside from the usual, I totally discovered Parks and Recreation. The first season, eh. Second, pretty good. Third--BRILLIANT. Not a single bad episode. I'm starting to watch the fourth now, and so far, I'm loving it!

How about you? Have you ever discovered something that helps you when things aren't going so well?

*blinks*

I know, I've been away for a while and I've missed all of you so much! Here's what's going on:

I wasn't feeling really well during September, which is while I went offline, and when I went to ALAN in November (because there was NO way I was missing that), I basically staggered around a bit, did my panel and signing, then went home and collapsed.

For real. I got a concussion and everything.

Long story short, after some rest (because apparently recovering from a concussion can mess with blood test results), I went to see my doctor. She ran a lot of tests and told me to go see another doctor about my eyes, which had been painfully dry for months.

The eye doctor told me that my eyes weren't producing tears (in fact, one eye isn't making any tears at all) and that I had an infection in my eyes' oil glands. After I got done saying "Ewww!" (because, really, even though it isn't contagious, it explained why my eyes looked so awful) So, loaded up with prescriptions, me and my eyes went home.

Then I heard from my doctor. My red blood cells are--and this is a direct quote from my doctor--"floppy." (HUH??) Apparently it means they are too large. So I am on meds for that, and go back for more testing in March to see if I'm okay or if I have to go see a specialist.

To top if all off, when I went back to the eye doctor, my eye infection had actually gotten worse (I didn't say "Ewww! this time. I said another four letter word.) And so I got more medicine.

And that's where I am now. I'm really not able to go online much at all (I suppose that's obvious, huh? :-)

Hopefully, come March, my blood tests will be good and my eyes will be better. I've got my fingers crossed....

Miss you all SO much!