Release Day: ELEVATED by Elana Johnson (and a surprise contest!)

Guys. It's been a very long time since I was so excited about a book. But this one? FIVE STARS. Or diamonds. Or thumbs up. Or whatever you use to rate books. Seriously. 

Here's the scoop. ELEVATED is written all in verse (aka poetry), which doesn't sound all that appealing necessarily, until you open the cover and read the first page. And then the second page. Before you know it, you arrive at the last page and it's three hours later and you missed going to the gym and picking up your kids from school and taking them to sports practice or dance class or whatever and it's past dinner time and you didn't even know it because you were lost in this beautiful story. Really. 

I absolutely loved Elly, and finding out why she clearly loves Trav, but doesn't want to talk to him. I love the emotional impact that hits again and again with each event that leads to the one fateful day when they end up stuck together in an elevator with their secrets and their heartache. I love how it's written. I love the voice. I love the characters. I love how real the world and the conflicts feel. But mostly, I love that Elana has managed to cram SO MUCH story into so few words. If you've never read a book in verse, read this one. You'll be converted. If you've read one and didn't like it, read this one. You'll change your mind. 

By the way, this cover is a tiny bit different from the one that was revealed in January. I like this one better. It rocks! 

Check it out!

About ELEVATED: The last person seventeen-year-old Eleanor Livingston wants to see on the elevator—let alone get stuck with—is her ex-boyfriend Travis, the guy she's been avoiding for five months.

Plagued with the belief that when she speaks the truth, bad things happen, Elly hasn’t told Trav anything. Not why she broke up with him and cut off all contact. Not what happened the day her father returned from his deployment to Afghanistan. And certainly not that she misses him and still thinks about him everyday.

But with nowhere to hide and Travis so close it hurts, Elly’s worried she won’t be able to contain her secrets for long. She’s terrified of finally revealing the truth, because she can’t bear to watch a tragedy befall the boy she still loves.

Buy Links:

Amazon 

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

iTunes

On Goodreads

Praise for ELEVATED:

"ELEVATED will take you on an emotionally gripping journey through the highs and lows of first love."

~Carolee Dean, author of Take Me There and Forget Me Not

"Poignant, raw, and intense, ELEVATED is a novel that will grip your heart and linger in your mind long after you turn the last page."

~Stasia Ward Kehoe, author of Audition and The Sound of Letting Go

About Elana Johnson: Elana Johnson’s work, including Possession, Surrender, Abandon, and Regret, published by Simon Pulse (Simon & Schuster), is available now everywhere books are sold. Her popular ebook, From the Query to the Call, is also available for free download, as well as a Possession short story, Resist. School teacher by day, Query Ninja by night, you can find her online at her personal blog or Twitter. She also co-founded the Query Tracker blog, and contributes to the League of Extraordinary Writers.

Social Media Links:

Website/blog

Twitter

Facebook

Tumblr

Wattpad

League of Extraordinary Writers

WriteOnCon

Elana on Goodreads

And just because I'm so excited about this book, I've decided to hold a little contest. I'm going to give away a free e-copy of DESCENDANT to one lucky winner. To enter, all you have to do is help spread the word about ELEVATED and fill out this form. You can choose to do only one or a few, or all the options on this list. I'll notify the winner by email. Open internationally. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: ELEVATED by Elana Johnson

Guys! I am so excited about this book. I was one of the lucky early readers, and let me tell you, I am SO IN LOVE with this book. Seriously. And it's like, the fastest read ever. Super short, all in verse, and incredibly romantic. If you're a fan of romance (and really, who isn't?) you definitely need to put this on your to read list. 

Now, check out this gorgeous cover! 

Fabulous, right? 

About ELEVATED: The last person seventeen-year-old Eleanor Livingston wants to see on the elevator—let alone get stuck with—is her ex-boyfriend Travis, the guy she's been avoiding for five months.

Plagued with the belief that when she speaks the truth, bad things happen, Elly hasn’t told Trav anything. Not why she broke up with him and cut off all contact. Not what happened the day her father returned from his deployment to Afghanistan. And certainly not that she misses him and still thinks about him everyday.

But with nowhere to hide and Travis so close it hurts, Elly’s worried she won’t be able to contain her secrets for long. She’s terrified of finally revealing the truth, because she can’t bear to watch a tragedy befall the boy she still loves.

Buy Links:

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/elevated

iTunes:

On Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18947183-elevated

Praise for ELEVATED:

"ELEVATED will take you on an emotionally gripping journey through the highs and lows of first love."

~Carolee Dean, author of Take Me There and Forget Me Not

"Poignant, raw, and intense, ELEVATED is a novel that will grip your heart and linger in your mind long after you turn the last page."

~Stasia Ward Kehoe, author of Audition and The Sound of Letting Go

About Elana Johnson: Elana Johnson’s work, including Possession, Surrender, Abandon, and Regret, published by Simon Pulse (Simon & Schuster), is available now everywhere books are sold. Her popular ebook, From the Query to the Call, is also available for download, as well as a Possession short story, Resist. School teacher by day, Query Ninja by night, you can find her online at her personal blog or Twitter. She also co-founded the Query Tracker blog, and contributes to the League of Extraordinary Writers.

Social Media Links:

Website/blog: http://elanajohnson.blogspot.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ElanaJ

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/possessionthebook

Tumblr: http://elanajohnson.tumblr.com/

Wattpad: http://www.wattpad.com/user/elanajohnson

League of Extraordinary Writers: http://leaguewriters.blogspot.com/

WriteOnCon: http://writeoncon.com/

Elana on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4044383.Elana_Johnson

To celebrate the book's upcoming release, Elana is holding a giveaway for Paypal cash (which is the most awesome idea ever). You can enter to win here: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Never Surrender Story

(This one is a little longer than my usual posts—sorry!)

For over a month, I’ve been planning this post. Originally, I was going to write (once again) about myself. About how I keep submitting and querying and how I’ll never give up, no matter how many rejections I get and blah, blah, blah.

But I changed my mind.

Today’s post isn’t going to be about me. It’s about other people in my life. People I believe in, and who inspire me. People I know will someday have the world at their feet if they continue to persevere. That person could be you. Or someone you know. Or someone you’re related to. (But don’t ask if it is, because I’m not telling.)

The Girl Who Never Gave Up

There once was a girl who yearned to swim. When she was little, her parents introduced her to water, and she taught herself to stay afloat. Later in life, she visited nearby pools and lakes, where she learned how to backstroke, and breaststroke and butterfly.


One day, she saw a picture of the ocean, with its endless expanse of crystal blue, and knew that someday she would go there to swim and live forever. That same day, a friend told her about sharks, barracudas, swordfish, and a whole lot of other scary creatures who could swallow her whole should she ever encounter one.

And the girl was afraid.

That friend told her that these creatures swam faster than any person, that their teeth were sharper than the blade of any knife, and that they were experts at hide and seek.

And the girl, however much she longed to swim, pictured the ocean as a dark, frightening thing. A place where no self-respecting, independent young lady should visit. But her desire to go there, to bask in that never-ending stretch of water, would not die, no matter how hard she fought the idea.

In the back of her mind, she began to plan. Twice a day, and often more, she practiced swimming. In pools. In rivers. In lakes. She learned to scuba dive, and studied books about creatures of the sea. She joined the swim team, and though she competed well, swam better than many other swimmers, was eventually cut from the team because she refused to stay within the dividing lines.

Then something terrible happened. Her beta fish—a most trusted, loyal companion—died. His final wish was that she not flush him—as most people would have done—but instead, to release his body to the sea. So on that day, when she was more alone than she’d ever been, the girl faced her greatest fear, and also experienced her greatest dream. She saw the ocean. And after she’d released her fish, she dove in herself.

The fresh, cool water invigorated her senses, reawakening the hope that fear had tried to extinguish. She swam and swam and swam until she encountered a shark. The shark opened its enormous mouth, and the girl cried, “Please, don’t eat me!” And swam with all her might.

The shark gave chase, snapping a powerful jaw full of razor-sharp teeth. But the girl was faster, and eventually, she got away. When she made it back to shore, she crawled up on the sand, realizing something about her was different. The ocean had changed her.

Not only was she no longer afraid of the ocean, she wanted to stay in it. Live in it. No amount of scary creatures could keep her from this place, this thing, that she loved. After many, many years, and hours and hours of swimming, conditioning, practicing, she experienced the biggest miracle of her life.

She grew gills and a fin. And with a shout of, “Never surrender!” the girl swam away, never remembering that she’d been cut from the swim team or that she’d been afraid of the ocean or that someone had convinced her that her dream was impossible.

And guess what? She lived happily ever after.

(If you think that story was cheesy, then most likely, it was meant for you. Also, there are a bazillion more cheesy stories where that came from, but I try to keep them out of my “real” writing. Usually. Most of the time. I swear!)

**Click here to read the rest of the Never Surrender blogs or find other blog fest participants**

Guest Post: Elana Johnson and The Making of a Character (also MORE giveaways!)

Ahhh! Still excited. Last night's launch party was amazing and exciting and I can't wait to tell you all about it. But today I have a special guest. Author Elana Johnson is here to talk about my favorite character in Surrender. Also, she's giving MORE stuff away. (And it's not too late to enter to win one of the awesome prizes from the Never Surrender giveaway.)

The Making of a Character: Gunner Jameson

A guest post by Elana Johnson

Okay, so SURRENDER is one day old today, and usually you’re still in the hospital with your new babies. But not me. I did have my launch party last night, but I’m here today to talk about one of the MC’s in the novel, Gunner Jameson.

I wanted to take a couple of tour spots to introduce readers to the characters, because SURRENDER is not a traditional sequel to POSSESSION. It’s more of a companion, where the storyworld is the same, but the narrating characters are different. (You can find out all about Raine Hightower on Shannon’s blog today. Go check it out!)

So Gunner Jameson. Let’s start with his name. It is a requirement of mine that my MC has a name that can be shortened. I adore nicknames, and I’ve been trying to use the name “Gunn” for a while now. I actually started a different book with this name, and when it died, I took the name and transplanted it into this novel.

And it worked perfectly. Gunn is reluctant recruit for the Insiders, the underground rebel group in the Association’s capital city of Freedom. He’s never known his father, and he has no siblings, so it’s just been him and his mom for as long as he can remember. He doesn’t need to move into a student flat, and while he doesn’t really agree with the controlling government, he’s more than happy to fly under the radar.

Because the alternatives have always meant separation from his mom. But when he finds a hidden microchip with Director Hightower summoning him to Rise One, Gunn gets in touch with Raine, and joins the Insiders.

Gunner has voice talent—remind you of anyone? (Did you say Jag? You should have.) His voice is the reason he’s been summoned to Rise One. He doesn’t speak much, but when he does, it’s to say something important. He’s got that whole, strong silent thing going on. He’s fiercely loyal to his family and friends, and he’ll do whatever it takes to fight for what he believes in.

I wanted Gunner to be sort of like this skater-dude, except with a hoverboard, of course. I wanted him to be cool and confident on the outside, even when he was freaking out inside. Writing Gunn was harder than I thought, mostly because he’s a guy and I’m not. I liked writing his chapters, but I wasn’t sure if he was coming off too sensitive or too emotional.

You’ll have to tell me when you read the book! You can read the first two chapters of SURRENDER for free on my Facebook page.

And it’s giveaway time! You can win one of five SPECTACULAR SECOND books this week! It’s easy peasy lemon squeezy.All you have to do is fill out this rafflecopter widget with what you’ve done, and you can win a signed copy of either INSURGENT (by Veronia Roth), A MILLION SUNS (by Beth Revis), CROSSED (by Ally Condie), PERCEPTION (by Kim Harrington), and IN HONOR (by Jessi Kirby)—all spectacular second novels by some of today’s hottest YA authors.


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Also today for one day only, you can enter to win a swag package of exclusive character art—including Gunner Jameson—and stickers and bookmarks. No rafflecopter widget necessary – just leave a comment!

Never Surrender Week! (With prizes and free stuff.)

Ahhhh! You guys, I have been waiting for this week for so long. Do you know what happens tomorrow? (And by tomorrow, I mean at midnight tonight?) Elana Johnson’s Surrender hits store shelves. I’m a big fan of Possession, and have been waiting a long time for Surrender.

*giggles*

Okay, actually, I’ve already read it. AND I. Love. It. Seriously, I love it even more than I loved Possession, because not only do we get to see more of Jag and Vi and Zenn, but we also get to know the hot-tough-guy-empath Gunner and tormented-gorgeous Raine.


Check out the trailer:



Okay, and now for the fun part. Because I’m so excited for the release of this book, I’m sort of going fan-girl-obsessed, which means this week I’ll be talking a lot about free will and strength and not surrendering. And I will be doing this to remind you of this really frawesome contest, wherein you can enter to win a BUNCH of Surrender inspired prizes, including some hard cover copies of Surrender, Possession, and Regret. No purchase necessary. All you have to do is enter below.

AND if you purchase a copy of Surrender between now and Saturday, we are offering free downloadable bookmarks. Simply email a copy of your receipt to surrenderbomb @ gmail . com.

Also be sure to check out the other blogs participating in Never Surrender week. Some are hosting additional giveaways that you won’t want to miss (and be sure to check back here on Wednesday for exclusive content).

Christine Fonseca
Lisa and Laura Roecker
Ali Cross
Jamie Harrington
Dustin Hansen



Good luck! (Enter using the link below.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Controversial Ebook vs Paper Book Discussion

(Also, some FRAWESOME deals of the week.)
*I inadvertently scheduled this blog to post on Monday instead of Wednesday. No idea why, but clearly the universe wanted this out before then, so I'm just going to go with it. Count this as my regular Wednesday post, okay? Thanks!

A couple weeks ago, some friends and I had that inevitable discussion about ebooks versus the ink-and-paper versions. I’ve had this talk before with a number of people, and have come to some personal conclusions (which are solely my opinion and feelings).

1. There is nothing quite like holding an actual book in your hands, smelling the paper, turning the pages, stroking the cover, etc. I will ALWAYS prefer paper books to ebooks, no matter how convenient or inconvenient. And I will ALWAYS *heart* libraries and bookstores.

2. I love my Kindle, and also the Kindle app on my iPhone. I love that wherever I go, I can pull up a book and start reading. Ereaders are possibly the best invention ever.

3. I love books. And when I find one that resonates with me, I buy it. More often than not, one copy to keep, and one to give away or loan out. And if I really, really love a book, I have been known to buy both the hardcover copy AND the ebook. That’s right, I BUY BOTH. (And no, I am in no way rich.)

4. I have an extensive library of ink-and-paper titles in my house. I also have a growing ebook library. If you were to walk into my house and compare the actual books to my ebooks, you’d find a lot of repeated titles.

5. My actual book library is still bigger, and continues to grow faster than my ebook library.

In conclusion, I believe that while ebooks seriously ROCK, there will always be a place and purpose for their ink-and-paper counterparts.
Yes, I know publishing is changing. I understand that the market is constantly evolving and growing and becoming something completely unpredictable. I’m okay with that, because I think avid readers will adapt with it. But I also think that goes both ways. I think the market will adapt with the needs of people. And scary as that sounds, it’s also exciting to see how much more easily accessible great books will become for those who need them.

So what do you think? Is one market-type going to overtake the other?

*Also, dudes, if you’re a fan of Elana Johnson’s Possession, don’t miss out on this FANTABULOUS, AWESOMESAUCE opportunity to win an exclusive (never to be released digitally) character booklet filled with beautiful illustrations based on the next installment, Surrender. Also, you can read the first two chapters of Surrender here. All you have to do is preorder Surrender by Elana Johnson. You’ll find all the details here.

**And if you love reading like me, don’t miss the amazing deal on the ebook versions of Lani Woodland’s Intrinsical and Indelible. 


Yay for fun opportunities! And guess what? I just found a bunch more awesome deals, including some free stuff,  all listed here. Be sure to check them out.

Possession Winners!

Last week, a whole bunch of people signed up to participate in a blog hop hosted by me, Ali, and Windy in celebration of the release of Possession, by Elana Johnson.

The first portion of the contest was to blog about a time when the blogger broke the rules. The incentive? Every participant was entered to win one of three autographed copies of the book. So Ali used Random.org to draw three winners (which we then verified had all actually posted)! 

Congratulations to: 

Amy Mcbray
John Sankovitch
Rachel Morgan

Now for the rest of you, I hope you've all gone out to buy your copy of Possession this week, because we're still taking receipts as entries into our second drawing for personal Elana time! (You do NOT want to miss out on this!) Send me your proof of purchase to writenichole @ gmail . com.

Good luck!

Breaking and Entering, Possession-style

Oh my gosh, you guys! Today is the day. Possession is officially on shelves and in stores, and being sold to smart readers all over the world. If you’re one of them, don’t forget to send me (or Ali or Windy) your proof of purchase and be entered to win personal ELANA time! (I know, it’s almost too awesome to comprehend.)

If you’re hopping Possession blogs today, you know I’m supposed to be discussing a time when I broke the rules. *takes deep breath* And since [in Possession] Vi, Jag, and Zenn are teens, I’m digging back into my teens for this one as well. Here goes.

Several years ago, while on a tour with my advance drama class (I think it was either my sophomore or junior year of HS), we’d stopped for lunch between performances, at a strip mall which included a movie theater. After eating, a group of friends and I wandered to the closed theater, and discovered an unlocked side door. The boy (I’ll call him…Jack) who discovered that the door was unlocked looked at the rest of us with a mischievous glint in his eye. “We have to go in.”

I looked at Jack, the wheels in my brain turning. “We should check to see if the theater is being robbed.”

Another friend (we’ll call him…Allen) opened the door went in, grinning. “Let’s just call it what it is. Breaking and entering.” But the rest of us willingly followed him (as was pretty typical of us). There was no one inside, and the place was clearly meant to be closed and locked up tight. But. We were in there.

Now, being that we didn’t have a lot of time, and none of us were really “bad” kids, we didn’t do anything more than explore, run around screaming, and do a few cartwheels in the lobby. Well, actually, since I’m telling the truth, “Jack” insisted he had to do something that could be classified as vandalism. So he found a light bulb on a countertop and broke it to bits over a garbage can.

Then we found a payphone and called the police to report the open door.

And. We were late getting back to the bus, and got in big trouble with our teacher.

I spent a lot of time with this particular group of friends, and we somehow managed to end up in a number of situations like this. No. We really weren’t baddies. We were just into having fun.

Okay, your turn. What rules have you broken?

Rockin POSSESSION to the Top with a Bloghop and Contest

“What?” you ask. “You’re doing another POSSESSION contest? Seriously, Nichole. It’s almost like you’re obsessed with this book.”

(You can read more of what I thought about it here.)

Dudes, I know. But really, this is a phenomenal book, written by a completely phenomenal author and people, the day is coming. POSSESSION IS ALMOST HERE!

*cheers and dances in excitement*

The blogosphere is a buzz. In a totally good way. You DO NOT WANT TO MISS OUT. This is your chance to participate in the fun and win signed copies of POSSESSION along with other wicked-cool prizes.

Ali, Windy and I are hosting this particular activity, and it has two parts:

PART ONE: The Bloghop

Sign up today, or any day between now and June 7th, on any of our blogs. On June 7th, Possession’s birthday, write a post on your blog about a time when you broke the rules.

Three lucky winners will win a signed hard-cover copy of POSSESSION. (Can you say shiny?)

PART TWO: The Pre-order

Anyone who pre-orders a copy of POSSESSION between now and June 7th, will be entered in a drawing to win a prize of your choice, but get this: they all are your own personal Elana-time! (Ridiculous, I tell you. Is that not the coolest prize ever?) You’ll choose a query critique, OR an online or Skype talk with Elana!

To enter, send a copy of your receipt of purchase to me, Ali or Windy no later than June 7th. (writenichole @ gmail . com)

All winners will be announced on Wednesday, June 8th.

**UPDATE: The deadline on the Elana-time portion of this contest has been extended to accommodate those who are purchasing their books at actual bookstores. (We *heart* bookstores.) Send in your proof of purchase from ANY store (online or physical) by no later than noon on JUNE 16th. Elana will announce the winner during her virtual launch party during her online chat. (Also, I will post the name here.)**

So there you have it—yet another frawesome contest. But dudes, there is a point to this, so maybe you could help us out? Advertise these contests on your blogs, Facebook,Twitter, linkdIn, Goodreads, and everywhere else. Rent a billboard, mention it on the radio, have it written in the sky, etc. With a little help from our online friends, we have the power to make POSSESSION debut on the New York Times Bestseller list.

Sign up here:



Let’s rock this thing.

Winner of the Possession Prize Pack

I know you're all dying to know who won here. Believe me when I say I am too. I just finished tallying the numbers (almost 400) and plugged them into the random generator.

The number that was pulled is 317. (Yay for lucky numbers!)

Now here's the tricky part. For some reason, the name section of my spread sheet comes up completely blank. That part has even disappeared off the form, from what I can see. This spreadsheet is where all the form information went. I'm going to blame it on Blogger and all the problems it caused during this contest, because, well, it's the only explanation, really. The good news is the email address portion still shows just fine, so even without a name, I can contact the winner. 

Lucky number 317's email address starts with sshandem. Congratulations, lucky winner! I don't know your name, but I will be emailing you shortly (after which I will come back and add your name on this post).

Thanks for playing everyone. Keep reading. You never know when I might offer another rockin giveaway. (Ahem, like, maybe Wednesday.)