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The One with the Final Book

Give me just a sec while I…

Today is the day that my last planned book (a novella) in the Losing It series releases. Seeking Her is from Jackson Hunt’s POV and acts as a prequel to Finding It with a bit of crossover. It will give you some insight into Jackson and how he sees Kelsey, and let you revisit how their relationship began. It’s available now as an ebook for $.99. And the paperback (which is already up for pre-order) releases next month and is just $3.99! 
In case you missed it over the last week and a half, I’ve been counting down the reasons that you should read Jackson’s story, and now here they all are in one place: 
And now it’s here! You can buy it from all major e-retailers. I want to thank you all for the tremendous support you’ve shown me throughout this series. These books and all of you are so, so very close to my heart. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! 
If you’re around tomorrow, I’m doing a Google Hangout with the awesome Lisa Desrochers (Check out her Little Too Far series!) and blogger extraordinaire Yara from Once Upon a Twilight. You can join us here at Noon EST. Or… if you can’t make it, we’ll be posting a video of it later, so tweet or facebook me your questions before the chat, and I’ll try to get them all answered. I’ll mostly be talking all things Jackson and Kelsey, but I never tire of talking about Cade, Max, Garrick, and Bliss. So, all questions welcome! 
Besides that… I’ve got the Cover Reveal coming up for the first book in my new series on February 13th! Bloggers, if you haven’t already signed up and want to, do so here. There are so many characters in this new series I can’t wait for you to meet– Dallas, Carson, Silas, Ryan, and Stella to name a few! 😉 
I’m also about to start jetting all over the place for events again too! Check out my appearances page for details, but in my near future, I’ve got events in NYC, Jersey City, Houston, Austin, Orlando, San Antonio (Man… so much Texas), Cleveland, Des Moines, D.C., and New Orleans, just to name a few!
As always… 
In Awkward <3, 
Cora 

P.S. A GIVEAWAY!!!!! a Rafflecopter giveaway

The One with Goodbyes and Hellos

Hello my loves!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful 2014 so far! I was lame and didn’t post an end-of-the-year wrap up, mostly because I was busy writing and revising for that new series that releases this year! One thing that’s clear though is that 2014 will be a year of endings and new beginnings for me.

On January 28th, Seeking Her, the Finding It novella, releases and officially closes out the Losing It series for me. It’s from Jackson Hunt’s POV, and contains both new and familiar material from Kelsey and Hunt’s story. And GUESS WHAT? You can already read the first couple chapters of the novella here!

Now, I get people asking me all the time if I’ll ever write more books for the Losing It series, and I always says the same thing… I’ll never say never. 🙂

It’s one of those things I’d only ever do if the right idea struck me. As much as I would love to spend some more time with Garrick, Cade, or Jackson, forcing a new story wouldn’t make you or me happy. But perhaps somewhere down the line, they’ll call to me again. 
And for now… I’m incredibly excited about the Rusk University series. In fact, I let my sister read All Lined Up this past weekend and she said (and I quote), “I think this might be my favorite of any of your books!” After the release of Seeking Her, you’ll start hearing more about that book. Including the super exciting cover reveal in February! 
In the mean time though, we’re closing out the Losing It series in style! For a limited time, LOSING IT, FAKING IT, and FINDING IT are on sale for $2.99 each! I’m super excited because for LOSING IT especially, it’s the first time it’s been on sale in FOREVER. And of course, both novellas are just $.99!
So, I’m hoping (pleading with puppy dog eyes, really) that you all will help me give the series the best goodbye we possibly can. 
So, I have this fun sale graphic if any of you are willing to share! 
And because I love you all SO MUCH (and you’re the bestest best best), here’s a giveaway, too! <3

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The One With the Christmas Giveaway

Hello my lovelies!

As some of you might know, I am notoriously not into Christmas.  I’m not sure what it is (Well.. I am, but I won’t bore you with the long explanation). 🙂

But if there is one thing that makes me smile this holiday season, it’s the chance to say THANK YOU to you all for the life-changing year that was 2013.  It’s been an incredible journey this year and I am thrilled and humbled that you have come along for the ride. I appreciate you reading my books, keeping up with my tweets, drawing me funny pictures, bringing gifts to me at signings, finding me pictures of hot guys with cats, and all the other wonderful things that you guys do for me on a regular basis.  In short, my fans are THE BEST and I love you all so very much!
Here’s to hoping 2014 is just as fantastic! Here’s what I’ve got coming up next year: 
SEEKING HER (a Finding It novella) that’s from Jackson Hunt’s POV
ALL LINED UP (the first book in my new Rusk University series pitched as a New Adult Friday Night Lights). 
Rusk University Book #2 (Title to be revealed later. But I’ll tell you this… there’s a bad boy involved).
Plus lots of fun events and conferences and perhaps a few surprises in the works. 😉
Now… even though the thought of eggnog and candy canes makes me want to stick my hand in a blender, I would like to give you guys a Christmas gift through an AWESOME CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY! 
Three winners will be chosen and this contest is open to my international fans as well. Enter through Rafflecoptor below. Merry Christmahanakwanzika! I love you guys! 

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The One with NAThanksgiving!

Hey Loves!

(Cue unrelated gifs because I’m too busy to find ones that make sense).

I am deep, deep, DEEP in the writing cave at the moment. (Cue at least one on topic gif representing how I’m feeling at the moment).

But I wanted to pop in an say HAPPY THANKSGIVING (almost)! And to say that you can now get e-book copies of the entire Losing It series for like eleven bucks. YEP. THAT’S RIGHT. There’s an e-book boxed set of the whole series, just in time to push some awkward on everyone you know for christmas. 🙂 

And in honor of the release, I’m giving away a few copies! Just enter the rafflecopter below:

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And as if that were enough awesome, there’s also an e-book boxed set of six of Harper Collins New Adult books! The boxed set contains Wait for You by J. Lynn, Losing It by ME, Taking Chances by Molly McAdams, A Little Too Far by Lisa Desrochers, Rule by Jay Crownover, and Foreplay by Sophie Jordan. I seriously love ALL these books, and you can’t beat this price!

So, I’m totally going to give away some of those too!

But first, I want to take a minute and say how very thankful I am that New Adult is enough of a “thing” now that a major publisher is willing to do a boxed set like this. It’s been a long journey from the time that I chose to self-publish Losing It because traditional publishers weren’t open to NA. It’s been a long journey since we all celebrated when the term started appearing in articles and in deal announcements.

We’ve come a long way, guys, and I am so thankful. Not just because I was lucky enough to have my books be a part of this explosion of awesomeness, but because I still believe whole-heartedly that we need NA stories. I’ve said this before, but when I was in college, I would have given anything to be able to easily find books about characters dealing with the transition to adulthood. At it’s heart, one of fiction’s chief purposes is to reach out to readers and say, “You’re not alone.” And in a period of life that is often stressful and joyful, terrifying and transformative, lovely and lonely– I know there are readers out there who need these books. And there are authors who need to tell these stories.

So, this thanksgiving I’m thankful that twenty-somethings can now go to Barnes and Noble or Target or Books-a-Million, and they can find books about how difficult it can be to find yourself in a chaotic and challenging world.

I’m thankful for New Adult books and New Adult readers!

And even if Thanksgiving isn’t a “thing” where you are… well you can still celebrate with us. Because we’ve already established that anything can become a “thing” if enough people believe in it.

Enter the giveaway below for your chance to win this New Adult bundle. And if you’re so inclined, spread some NA love this week by thanking your favorite NA authors! And do it under the #NAThanksgiving hashtag, so we can all join in!

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The One Where Finding It is ON SALE!

Hello my lovelies!

Just popping in to say OMG FINDING IT IS ON SALE FOR $1.99!! It’s currently on sale on B&N and Amazon.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Jackson Hunt is my favorite book boyfriend from the Losing It series. I know! I know! Garrick has an accent and Cade is the sweetest guy EVER. But Jackson is a mystery, and as Kelsey says in the book, “Women love a mystery. But only if we think we can figure it out.” 
Jackson is strong and brooding, but he can also be silly and fun. And more than anything… he’s a good person. I can’t wait for you all to read his novella, Seeking Her, in January! 
And if you’re new to the entire series, I have GREAT news! Just in time for the holidays, we’re releasing an a boxed set of the Losing It series, which includes the e-books for Losing It, Faking It, Finding It, and the novella Keeping Her. The Losing It bonus scenes from Garrick’s POV that I posted on my blog will also be published for the first time in this omnibus edition! All in all, it’s over ONE THOUSAND pages of awkward humor, swoony men, and happy endings for just eleven bucks! 
But right now, in honor of Jackson and Kelsey and this fantastic Finding It sale, I think it’s time for a giveaway! 
So… help me spread the news about Finding It, and you could win: 
*A grand prize which includes a signed Finding it Paperback and this awesome journal>>>>>
The journal will include a personal note from me, and has been signed by the following best-selling authors: Me (obviously), Jennifer L. Armentrout, Katy Evans, Colleen Hoover, Abbi Glines, Tammara Webber, Molly McAdams, Tina Reber, Rebecca Donovan, KA Tucker, Jay Crownover, Nyrae Dawn, Michelle A. Valentine, KA Linde, Jillian Dodd, Sophie Jordan, Lisa Desrochers, Christina Lee, Michele Scot, Toni Aleo, and KA Robinson. 
(Pretty awesome, right?)
*Ten people will also win an e-book copy of Finding It
So, if you want to win, check out the rafflecopter below! <3 <3 <3

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The One Where Hunt Gets Protective

Hello my loves!

 It’s Friday Flash Fiction time!

 Every Friday, I’m going to make a post on my Facebook page calling for writing prompts. You can pick any character from my books– main characters like Garrick or Cade or minor characters like Rusty and Spencer. Comment on my post with that character’s name and then a place or object for a prompt. Heck, you can even post things like songs or pictures. Anything you’d like to see me write. Then, I’ll pick one and write just a fast and fun little snippet to post here on my blog.

So far we’ve had one for Max/Cade and one for Bliss/Garrick. So, I figured it was only fair to do Hunt and Kelsey this week.

Today’s prompt comes from Susi: Hunt in Naples with pizza.

So, without further ado, here’s my Flash Fiction Friday entry #3

WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS FOR FINDING IT.

WARNING PART TWO: This is unedited. So, if there are errors, don’t judge me.

NOTE: This is NOT an excerpt from Finding It or Seeking Her. This is special, original content just because I love you guys.

It’s the simple things in life that comprise the difference between existing and living.
I had a lot of practice existing. Just scraping by. Surviving.
Waking up with Kelsey’s blonde hair tickling my chest? Living.
The way she kept glancing at me between snapping pictures of the Naples street? Living.
Staring at her between bites of the single best slice of pizza I’d ever tasted? Definitely living.
Kelsey snapped another picture, and her eyes met mine. I didn’t bother looking away. I was way past pretending I wasn’t obsessed with her. The sun glinted off her golden hair, and she looked at me through long lashes. She bit her lip to stifle a smile, and snapped another picture on her phone.
My eyes were trailing down the smooth column of her neck, studying the way the angles of her collarbone gave way to the soft curve of cleavage that peeked out of her shirt, when Kelsey said, “Uh-oh.”
On high alert, my eyes snapped up. “Uh-oh? Uh-oh what?”
She looked across the table at the lone slice of pizza in my hand.
“We’re done, right? You can eat that while we walk?”
She stood up, hastily gathering her things from their table on the café sidewalk.
“Uh, sure.”
I reached for my wallet, but she threw down some cash, and grabbed my elbow. I barely had time to snatch what was left of my pizza before she was tugging me away.
“What’s got your panties in a twist, princess?”
She rolled her eyes, but then glanced over her shoulder and picked up her pace. I looked backward too, no longer in a joking mood. What had her in such a panic?
Tension climbed up my spine, and I focused scanning the area around us for threats. I didn’t see anything.
“Kelsey, what’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing.”
“Kelsey,” I warned.
She sighed. “Remember when you told me to stop taking pictures of possible mafia members?”
A smile pulled at my lips.
She continued, “Well, I didn’t listen. And now some giant dude with pythons for arms is glaring at me because he saw me taking pictures of him.”
I laughed. “And what? You think he’s going to come after you? Murder you and dump your body in an alley?”
“Maybe.”
“Oh man, don’t look now.”
“What?” she paled.
“He’s coming after us. We need to run.”
“He’s what?”
She whipped around, her hair fanning out around her. I took one look at her wide-eyed gaze and burst into laughter.
She searched the crowd for a few moments, and when she saw no suited man following us, she smacked my arm.
“That’s not funny!”
I laughed harder. She threw her arms up and turned away from me. I used her elbow to pull her back and sideways into an alley.
“What are you doing?”
I pressed her back against the brick building and murmured into her neck, “Hiding you from the mafia.”
She scoffed, and I could hear the sarcasm before she even spoke. “Oh, yeah. You’re intentions are completely protective.”
I opened my mouth against her pulse point and tasted her sensitive skin. She shivered, her hands clenching on my shoulders.
“I’m always protective of what’s mine.” 

The One with Super Cool Visitors

So…. This happened.

 
Finding It had a FANTASTIC release day on Tuesday. I cannot even begin to describe how overwhelmingly wonderful it was to see all the pictures from people picking up their copies. In particular, the search for the Super Special (or as Twitter fondly called it “Golden Ticket”) Target copies was one of the coolest things  the coolest thing EVER! If you don’t know what I’m talking about, read this. 
And I think I’m still kind of in shock about seeing all three books together. It’s a crazy, amazing thing, and it doesn’t feel real. And so many people have messaged me to tell me how much they loved the book. An overwhelming number have called it their favorite of the series, and every time it loosens one of those scary-release-day-knots in my stomach. 
If you haven’t picked up your copy of Finding It yet, I hope you’ll check out the Signed Special Edition at Target. Not only does it have my signature, but also a deleted scene. And more than that, Target has been really fantastic about supporting New Adult authors and the category as a whole. And I think we all hope that will continue! If you’ve got your copy, I can’t wait to hear what you think of Kelsey’s story! And Jackson, too, of course! Especially since he’s getting his own novella (Seeking Her) in January! It’s a sort-of-prequel. And by that I mean, it picks up a few weeks before the opening scene of Finding It with all new material, and then the last half of the novella overlaps with the beginning of Finding It, meaning you’ll get those early scenes from his POV. 
But enough about me… 
As fantastic as this release week has been so far, I’m actually popping in to tell you about another new release! One of the best things about being an author is getting to meet other authors (most of which I TOTALLY fangirl over). Two such amazing authors that I’ve had the pleasure of meeting are Steph Campbell and Liz Reinhardt. And when we discovered that we were sharing a release day, we decided to do something special! 
They’ve just released the newest novella in their Lengths series, Riptides. If you haven’t read this series, you need to jump on it ASAP! Though this one can be read as a stand alone, FYI. It’s all about Enzo, a super hot surfer dude. And MAN… can I just say that I TOTALLY have the hots for Enzo! Here’s a little more about his story: 

Enzo Rodriguez doesn’t take much seriously–unless it involves waves, boards, or good beer.

When too-hot-to-handle Jessica Mills strolls into his life, Enzo is willing to forego all of those things for every second he can spend with her.

But Jessica has a huge secret–and when it’s revealed, it not only crushes Enzo, but has the last person he wants to ask a favor of–his brother-in-law Adam–bailing him out of jail.

Enzo is convinced that the only way to mend his bruised ego and heart, is to pack his bags and leave the turbulent waters of Silver Strand…for good. 


And in honor of this new book, I’ve invited Liz and Steph to the blog to answer some fun questions! Here’s the interview below: 

1. So I know you guys probably get this A LOT, but I just had to ask because I’m so curious. What’s the BEST part of writing with a partner? And the WORST? How do you decide who writes what? Is one of you the slave driver of the bunch? Give me all the juicy details!

Liz: We DO get this question all the time…but you’re lucky we like you, because we’re gonna give you all the deets! Best part: STEPH CAMPBELL. Seriously, my best friend and heterolifemate. Steph and I have gone through the very best and very worst of publishing together, and it’s been sheer, total joy to get to do this with her. Sometimes I go into a cold sweat thinking that I ever did this WITHOUT her. She inspires me with her gorgeous writing and is a kindred soul to bounce my ideas and passions off of. Steph never, ever says ‘no’ to any wild/crazy idea I might come up with, and I am always shaky with excitement when she calls and says, “I know this might be crazy, but maybe we should write this…”
The worst part? Steph and I both come from Irish Catholic backgrounds and we’re moms, so we deal with a lot of pre-programmed life guilt at all times. When you write your own book, you put on your big girl pants and do what you need to do. And you accept the criticism as gracefully as you can. But when there’s another person depending on you, it’s incredibly upsetting when you don’t do well. You feel very, very responsible, even when you know full well you did your very best. I never want to let Steph down, and that drives me to work extremely hard on our projects.
STEPH:  I’m sort of a control freak, so to have found someone (Liz) that I trust so implicitly not only business wise, but with my art has been amazing and unexpected.
I’d definitely say I’m the slave driver of the pair. I tend to do more of our outlines and calendering and the detail type work. Liz has learned to laugh at me and/or roll with it when I get mildly obsessive. As for who writes what, it varies and we’ve tried it all the ways! In one book, we split characters and each wrote one, no deviation. In another, we wrote whichever character and whichever scene we were feeling that day and skipped all around. It’s fun to try different things with each project, and we *hope* we’re doing it in a fairly seamless way to where you can’t tell who is writing at any given point. 🙂
2. One of the things I feel like you guys do so well is character and family. Everyone has their own unique traits and yet they fit together so well. So, what I want to know is for the main characters in your books (especially Enzo from Riptides), what high school yearbook superlatives would they have won?  (Ex: Most likely to Succeed, Friendliest, Most likely to be a Reality TV Star, etc)
Why thank you, Cora!
Deo- Most Likely to Have a Restraining Order Against Him for Constantly Hugging
Cohen- Most Likely to Be Sweet on the Streets, Alpha in the Sheets
Adam- Most Likely to Kick Ass and Take Names…While Solving Scientific Mysteries
Enzo-  Most Likely to Break Free from the Family Business
Whit – Most Likely to Disappear After High School and Become a Tattooed Freak
Hattie – Most Likely to Take Over (and Organize) the World…All of It
Genevieve – Sexiest Heels for EVERY Occasion
Maren – Most Likely To Defend Her Man in the Zombie Apocalypse
3. If we could bring Enzo to life for a day, what would you three do together? Or would he abandon you all to go surfing? 😉
Liz: Wait. Will children read this blog? Bwahaha! Just kidding ;)! Enzo would take us out dancing and show us all his moves. He’d bring us to his mother’s house and we’d have a Mexi-kosher meal that would blow our minds. And, of course, he’d take us surfing! I’m a huge klutz and can barely swim, so I’d have to grip onto his big, muscled arms!
4. What Hogwarts houses would you be in? What about Enzo? Any other characters you’d like to mention?
STEPH: No question, Lydia is Slytherin all the way. Genevieve is Ravenclaw. Deo, could be a Hufflepuff spokesperson, I’m convinced. Our Rodriguez boys, Cohen and Enzo are definitely Gryffindors: loyal and chivalrous (and sexy as hell…that’s a prerequisite according to the Sorting Hat, right?)
5. ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE. *it happens* Which of your characters dies first? Who would you want by your side fighting zombies? Who goes off searching for a cure? Who completely loses it? Who is thebrains behind keeping your group alive? (Can you tell I’ve been marathoning The Walking Dead).
You and Cohen both! He’s obsessed! And would be the brains keeping them all alive, because that boy is the ultimate alpha when he needs to be! Maren would be by his side, since he’s prepared her with hours of zombie movies/what if scenarios.
 Poor Deo goes first…he’s too busy cracking jokes a la Bill Murray in ZOMBIELAND to take the attack seriously. Whit is who I want by my side, because after Deo gets eaten, she’s a killing machine hell-bent on vengeance! Ryan backs her up with all his training and skills. Genevieve loses it…she can’t wear her heels, there is no beach time, and Adam has to leave her to go cure the disease!
Hattie and Adam team up to get the cure and administer it. And those zombies don’t stand a CHANCE!

PS LOOOOOOOOOVE WD!!
6. In Riptides, we get a lot of surfing and baking (including one particularly delicious scene back in the kitchen… YOU KNOW which one I mean). Are either of you bakers? Surfers? I had an easy bake oven once… *blinks*
Liz: I am an uncoordinated blind bat who burns everything! Steph is the surfing, baking hero of my life! I depend on her for all that inspiration and knowledge. And also to feed me. And to explain how movement works. I’m very, very co-dependent. (But I’m totally willing to use my kitchen like Enzo did…so my husband is very cool with my complete lack of baking skills ;)!)
STEPH: I cheat, in that I love to bake, but I don’t have a sweet tooth at all. So I bake constantly, but pass it all off to other people to devour. 🙂 I’m from So Cal, so I’ve surfed a handful of times, but nothing major (unless you consider my lack of coordination major. Which it is. Eep!)
Thanks so much for having us, Cora! We’re both STOKED for the release of FINDING IT! 

Ahhh…. I seriously love those girls! They write such strong characters. Their books are fun and smart (my favorite kind). I hope you’ll check them out! And drool over Enzo with me! 🙂

The One with the Celebration

So, like I mentioned yesterday, I’ve officially been doing this whole “author” thing for a year now. And I love that the third and final full-length book in the Losing It series s releasing almost simultaneously with this anniversary.

It feels like I’ve come full circle. This series is ending, and a new one is beginning.

So, I figured we should celebrate!

And when my publicist and I sat down to talk about what we wanted to do to commemorate the occasion, the theme seemed obvious. 
FIRSTS. 
This is, after all, the end of the first year containing my first series, which opened with a book about first times, followed by a book about two people confronting their demons for the first time, and ending with Kelsey’s first time out on her own.
So here’s what you need to know: 
What you can win: A signed set of LOSING IT, FAKING IT, and FINDING IT. And I’ll let you choose whether you prefer the US or the UK set, that way you can get the ones that aren’t readily available wherever you live. 🙂 AND…. the winner will also receive something very special, of which there are only two. I have one, and you will get the other. That would be… Hamlet the demon cat. 
Stuffed, of course. (Doesn’t he look so stinking angry? Adorable). Starting with my last signing in Seattle, I adopted a stuffed version of Hamlet, complete with an “Awkward people need love, too” bracelet for a collar. I bought one for me to take to signings, and another to giveaway. Here’s your chance to have a Hamlet of your very own (including his bracelet collar). And if I can figure out a way to sign him, I will. 🙂 
How to win: Earn one entry for the usual stuff– Tweeting, Liking, Following. Earn TEN entries by telling us about one of your awkward or funny FIRSTS in the comments. You can tell up to four stories (each in a separate comment) for a total of 40 entries. 
I realize not everyone is ready and willing to bust out stories of their awkward first times (nor does everyone have an awkward first time… lucky bastards). So, that’s why all kinds of firsts are on the table. You can tell us about a first kiss, first date, first time meeting the parents, first time making a colossal fool out of yourself in any romantic capacity. Really, we’re flexible. We just want to celebrate with some laughs. 
So, to give you an example, I’ll spill one of my firsts! 
FIRST SERIOUS RELATIONSHIP
I’d been in a few relationships before, but this is the first one I really counted. The others had either been too short or not that serious. This guy was different though. He was older, and it went beyond the usual puppy love of my middle school days. (He was actually my first french kiss, too, which occurred in my bedroom with a friend of ours playing video games a few feet away. My head was in his lap, and he leaned over me and gave me a spiderman-esque upside down kiss, which was not nearly as seamless as it appears in the movie. My nose was shoved up against his chin, and I remember thinking only I would manage to have my first kiss upside-down). 
Anyway, long story short: About three weeks into this new and different relationship, he showed up to school with a stuffed animal and chocolates. I asked him what it was for, and he said our one month anniversary. Now, I knew positively that it was not our one month anniversary. In fact, he was a full ten days off. I was head-over-heels, and had been counting the days. But the guy was just so cute and sweet that I agreed and didn’t say anything. He looked all hurt because he thought I had forgotten (when really, he was just bad at math).
We proceeded to celebrate the wrong anniversary for the entirety of our relationship. And to make it worse, he was one of those overly sweet guys that wanted to celebrate our anniversary every. single. month. And each time, it killed me. I was a bit of a commitment-phobe even at that age, so combine that with my know-it-all-hermione-granger-wannabe personality, and it was practically torture. To this day, I’m so weird about anniversaries. 
I can’t remember if I actually ever told him either. Wherever he is, let’s all hope he’s not working any job that requires he be good with numbers. 🙂 

Well, there you go! So tell us about your firsts! Give me your awkward, weird, and humiliating stories, and I shall give you my unfettered adoration (just don’t expect me to celebrate anniversaries).

WARNING: This giveway is only lasts until release day! So, make sure you enter now!

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The One with the Anniversary

One year ago, today, I self-published LOSING IT.

One year.

MIND. BLOWN.
So much has happened in one year that I just… I… 
Most days I’m too busy trying to catch up and do all the things I need to do that I don’t really think about how drastically my life has changed, but today is a day for retrospect. And it’s kind of overwhelming. 
Before I started writing full-time, I was a high school teacher. I’d thought it would give me time to write, but I have this problem with over-committing, so I’d gotten myself pretty busy. In a move that likely made my father’s blood pressure spike, I decided to resign from teaching. I was working two other unpaid jobs in publishing in order to build my resume, as well as getting my Masters in Creative Writing. Both jobs promised to pay in the future, but I would have to get by with no paycheck for a while. 
In my first month post-teaching, I wrote Losing It. Then I put it aside to go back to my Masters. I made it to the fall living off the last off my teacher salary and my savings. But as I approached the end of what I could handle financially, I decided to take a long shot and self-publish Losing It. At best, I thought it would buy me another month or two before I needed to figure out what the hell I was doing with my life. 
Instead, it turned my world upside down.

 In just over 24 hours, it hit #1 on B&N, and I was left pinching myself. The week that followed was the craziest, most stressful week of my life. And it’s been a wonderful whirlwind ever since.

In the last twelve months, I have: 
  • Written two books, two novellas, and started several other projects. 
  • Visited my book in bookstores
  • Signed tens of thousands of signatures
  • Traveled all over the country (and to two other countries) to meet my AWESOME fans
  • Met long-time online friends and some fabulous authors
  • No, seriously. I’ve met some amazing authors (and managed to keep my fangirl scream to a small shriek). 
  • Found an agent that rocks my face off, and the sweetest editor in the world, who cares about my characters as much as I do. 
  • Moved TWICE. 
  • Twitter and Facebook are part of my JOB. 
  • And I can now write full time. 

It’s just absurd to think of how much has changed. When I wrote Losing It, I was adrift like Bliss. I didn’t know what I was doing with my life, and I was always feeling like I was the butt of life’s joke. To quote Bliss (and well, by extension me): “There’s only so many times you can handle someone asking about your fall back for when things don’t work before you start thinking that maybe the fall back should just be your plan.”

I wasn’t ready to quit, per say. But I was tired. And Losing It had felt like my last ditch effort to prove I could do this.

I guess, I just wanted to say… It’s been a wonderful year. All thanks to you guys. It’s still SO CRAZY when I see pictures of people with my books or talk to people online. It’s baffling to me that other people actually read my stuff, and they care. They care enough to drive hours to a signing. They care enough to write me awesome letters or make cool things for me. They care enough to take time out of their day to talk about my books. 

I owe everything to you. Absolutely everything. 

Seriously. I cannot even begin to describe how much I adore you guys. Everytime I do a Facebook or Twitter giveaway, I plan to only give away one copy. But then I always end up giving away two or three. I read your messages, and I literally battle urges to just give away all the free things! I feel the itch to say, “Of course, I’ll do a signing here and there and everywhere! I’ll just come hang out!” You all mean so much to me, and I just wish I knew a better way to give back. The signed edition of Finding It at Target is one way. Now, anyone close to a Target can snag a special copy. 
But I know there are plenty of readers out there that aren’t anywhere close to a target. So, I knew I needed something more. 
So in that vein, I stumbled across a website recently called Libboo. The idea behind it is to reward the fans who go out of their way to spread the word about my books, as opposed to doing random giveaways where the odds are stacked against everyone. 
Essentially, Libboo puts the odds in your favor (woot… HG reference, FTW). It allows me to put up rewards like free swag or signed bookmarks. Then all you need to do is open an account and spread the word about my books on social media via Libboo. You earn points or “buzzes” when people follow your links. Every week, I set a reward number limit and a threshold. This week (through Sunday), the first 20 people to hit 20 buzzes can win either signed bookmarks or one of my “Awkward people need love, too” bracelets. 
Some weeks the rewards will be general, like this week. Or the prizes might be bigger and more selective– a giftcard for the top 5 buzzers or a skype hangout with me for the week’s top spot. The point is… no more gaining points on rafflecopter for a “maybe” win. Libboo is the best way I could find to pay you all back for how awesome you are. 
I hope you guys will join me on Libboo. And if you have suggestions for rewards you’d like to see on the site, please do let me know in the comments. 
So, cheers, friends! To our anniversary. 
P.S. There will be a rather fun contest coming tomorrow in honor of year two in my writing journey (and you know… that book that comes out on Tuesday). 🙂 It will only last until release day, so don’t forget to check back. 
<3

The One with ONE More Thing You Need to Know About Finding It

Okay… So I know it was like six hours ago when I made that post about “Everything” you need to know about Finding It.

Well… I LIED.

Not on purpose. I just didn’t have the go ahead to spill this particular news. BUT NOW I DO!!

News that I have been teasing about for MONTHS. And now… I can finally share. Back in July and August, I was juggling A LOT. Final revisions on Finding It, the release of Keeping her, moving from Texas to NY, and my sister was about to pop out a fourth kid (Yes, fourth. She’s crazy brave like that).

And on top of that… I was doing this:

What are those? You might ask. Well, that’s the first box of what was 10,000 sheets of paper. More specifically, 10,000 copies of the title page of Finding It for me to sign. 
To give you some perspective, this stack is probably around 500-600. And on average, I could sign about 100 every 45 min to an hour (depending on how interesting the TV show was that I had on in the background). 
And I signed them all. Every single one of them. My hand hurt. My back hurt. My neck hurt. 
And a few of them, I signed with a little something special. Out of those 10,000 copies there are a handful that are completely unique (even to each other). They each have a different little inscription, and most are in a different color. Here’s one of those super special ones:
Now where are those 10,000 signed sheets of paper going? I’m glad you asked… 
A signed Special Edition for Target. That’s where. Not only will you be able to walk into Target and buy a signed copy of my book (while supplies last), BUT… the special edition also contains an exclusive deleted scene involving swimsuits, a game of chicken, and haikus. 🙂
AND… if you happen to snag one of those extra special copies that has something more than just my signature, send me an email to coracarmack(at)gmail(dot)com with a picture, and I’ll mail you some signed swag, too! AND… because really these copies are SUPER special, I’ll even do one better. If you find one of the special copies and email me, I’ll put your name in a future book. 
Not too shabby, right? Just keep in mind, 10,000 copies sounds like a lot, but when they’re divided up and sent to all the Targets across the country, they won’t last long. So you’ll definitely want to go nab yours ASAP after the release date (October 15th). 
Well… that’s the last of my major Finding It news. I’m so happy to finally share this news with you guys. Sitting on it has been KILLING ME. And please, if you see Finding It out in the wild during release week, snap a picture and tweet or facebook it to me! I’ll love you foreverrrrrr! 
And before I go for the night… I just have to say THANK YOU. THANK YOU X A THOUSAND. It is so unbelievably crazy that this is even happening. I don’t even have the words to express how much this means to me. And none of it would have happened without you guys. Heck, five years ago, I was working at Target to make ends meet while I went to school. It’s hard to fathom how much has changed since then. Many of you took a chance on LOSING IT just under a year ago. I was a nobody with no following, and you guys championed me in a way that I’ll never ever be able to thank you enough for. 
You’ll never even know all the ways in which you changed my life just by buying that book or by telling a friend or posting about it online. And everyone who has bought one of my books since… Target certainly wouldn’t give a flip who I was if it weren’t for you all. All I can say is… YOU. ARE. POWERFUL. The market is changing, and you as the reader have more influence than you ever have. So please know that each time you buy a book or push it on a friend or post on your blog, you’re changing someone’s life just like you did mine. And we are so grateful for it.