I’m a Mess: a Mostly-Good Post

Posted on October 6, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

I’m tired from out-of-state travel without my meds (ugh, that was an accident). No meds means I don’t sleep well (plus my serontonin stuff gets outta whack) which means I’m a mess.

I’m a mess over the Syrian refugee crisis. The stories are so heartbreaking. You can help here.

I’m a mess of nerves about this upcoming weekend– I’m going to a YA lit conference in Chicago, and I’m scared no one will like me (this fear is perpetuated by three days of no meds).

OCD Awareness Week is coming up, and I’m reflecting on how much LESS of a mess I am after ERP in 2008.

I’m up to my neck in novel #2. It’s messy work, but I love it. I love these characters.

Life is confusing and delicious and messy. It’s good (for now) for me to wade right in.

(Even More) Recent Reads

Posted on October 6, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

I’ve been reading a lot lately, hooray! I’m not even joking when I say that The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh seriously messed me up in the greatest way and I couldn’t really read anything for a couple months– with the exception of The Horse and His Boy. Twenty times. I’m not joking. I think I listened to the audiobook about twenty times in a row.

Now that I’m back in the swing of things, here are a few other books I’ve recently read:

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas | This was my first Sarah J. Maas book I’ve read, even though I own the books in her Throne of Glass series. This is a re-telling of the Beauty and the Beast tale, set in a faerie world. It was romantic and kinda darkly sexy; the big twist came near the end, and I liked that. I’m not sure yet if I’m going to continue the series or not. Pretty sure a love triangle is going to pop up in the next book, and I really don’t want it to, not with these characters. Even though I had a tougher time connecting with Feyre, the main character, there is a lot of love for this book out there, and I’d love to discuss it with you, should you read it!

What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick | This was a very engrossing read … could not put it down! It’s a story about Gwen Castle, an “island girl”– she’s one of the poor people who live on the island year-round, while in the summer, the rich people come to stay in their summer homes. This summer, though, rich-boy Cassidy Somers (awesome name, woot!) is working on the island too– and he is Gwen’s “mistake from last spring.” It was really fun to get to know Cass and Gwen and let them battle through their issues on the island. One of the things that I love about Huntley Fitzpatrick’s characters is the way that they talk through things with each other, even when they are awkward conversations. I love that she gives them the maturity enough to do that. I really loved this book. I can’t believe I get to be on a panel with Huntley Fitzpatrick this weekend. (Is this real life??)

Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway | Loved this story! Emmy and Oliver were best friends up until age seven, when Oliver was kidnapped by his own father. Ten years later, he comes home. At first, things are really awkward between them– Oliver barely remembers his former life, and he’s been told lies for the last ten years, not to mention that he still adores his dad, who is now in hiding, and is trying to wrap his head around his dad as the bad guy. But they begin to warm to each other, and of course this is a love story. It was very sweet, very thought-provoking, full of emotion, and I highly recommend it!

Bounce by Noelle August | Noelle August is, of course, the pseudonym for the partnership between Lorin Oberweger and Veronica Rossi. To me, this was the most interesting book of this series. It’s about nineteen-year-old Grey, a partying wannabe rockstar, and Skylar, an up-and-coming actress cast in the movie that Grey’s brother is working on. They have to read lines together, and of course there’s a kiss, and of course the kiss doesn’t feel like acting. 🙂 It was just a sweet, sexy romance that I read in one sitting. One of the reasons I think I loved it so much is that Skylar is a size twelve (and having to lose weight for the movie), but anytime we see her through Grey’s eyes, she’s so perfect. And not in spite of her weight, but because of it. The descriptions were spot-on and lovely and made this book so unique. A fun, charming read.

YA Lit Newsletters I Love (& They’re FREE!)

Posted on October 5, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

Here are a few hints for keeping on top of the latest YA book news!

1) Subscribe (it’s free!) to the Goodreads YA Newsletter (you can change your preferences in your own Goodreads settings).

2) Subscribe (it’s free!) to Publisher’s Weekly‘s Children’s Bookshelf newsletter. This will show you a bi-weekly rights report so that you can learn about all the new YA book deals and start following the authors who interest you on Twitter!

HOCD Questions?

Posted on October 4, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

Out of the OCD sufferers I hear from, 9 out of 10 are battling HOCD.

In the past, a friend “Hannah,” who has come out on top of HOCD, has been happy to answer questions about her experience with HOCD.

Hannah’s 1st Interview
2nd Interview
3rd Interview

If you have HOCD-related questions for Hannah, please read the above interviews first to see if she has already answered them. If not, you can anonymously submit your question(s) for Hannah by clicking here.

Once I collect a handful of questions for her, I’ll send them her way and post the answers!

Thanks!

Book Review: Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead

Posted on October 4, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

I don’t read a lot of middle grade books, but I adore Rebecca Stead.

(Note: the term middle grade refers to the audience [for the middle grades, ages 8-12], not the book’s quality. I mention it because a lot of people simply don’t know that.)

Goodbye Stranger is a lovely book about seventh-grade Bridge, her long-time friends Tab and Emily, and her new friend Sherm. It’s about changing relationships and the staggered rate at which kids mature. It’s about walking that awkward line of caring about someone as more than a friend but not being ready to date.

Plus there is an anonymous second-person voice every few chapters dealing with her own issues. It was fun to try to guess who the person was … and I figured it out (eventually!).

Everything just came together in such a lovely way that feels customary to a Rebecca Stead novel, and it was very satisfying and the epilogue was perfection.

This would be a great novel for, well, anyone— but especially for kids on that cusp of junior high, students who are 10-14. A beautiful book that has me thinking a lot about the novel I’m writing!

Interview: Jackie Lea Sommers on her novel, Truest

Posted on October 2, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

A little interview with incredibly thoughtful questions from the lovely Mariella Hunt …

Mariella Hunt

When I was sent a review copy of Truest by Jackie Lea Sommers, I was immediately captivated by the poetic writing. Not only that, the plot was beautiful–so many sad and joyful feels! It’s one of the best books I’ve read this year so far. You can read my review here.

I’m excited to have spoken with the author, getting the opportunity to ask about Truest, her writing process, and many prominent themes in the novel.

Laurel has a peculiar illness that warps her sense of reality. It’s intriguing and looked difficult to pull off. What does it take to get an illness like that “right?” Was she the most difficult character to handle?

In the novel, Laurel Hart struggles to draw a line between reality and dreaming. You would think that this would be the hardest part to write about, but in reality, it came quite naturally because solipsism…

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2015 Creative Goals: Third Quarter

Posted on October 1, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

An update on this year’s goals … starting to cross some of them off the list … while also realizing that a couple are simply not going to happen.

Dear Diary: September 2015 (Five Truths About My Novel’s Debut Month)

Posted on September 30, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

It was a watershed month. I crossed that invisible line from “writer” to “published author.” It was a turning point in my life, and I’ll always remember September 1st, 2015, when my dreams became reality.
It was amazing. Everyone was so happy for me. I got to celebrate with nearly 200 people, most of whom have walked this incredible journey with me and love me dearly. I cannot explain to you the way it felt to go into three bookstores that day and to see my book on shelves at every one. Especially that very first time. Cindy and I were searching for it and couldn’t find it; then from a row over, I heard Cindy say, “It’s here.” And there it was. A published book that I wrote. Characters that I had breathed into life. Even the booksellers at all the bookstores were so excited for me, had me sign copies, displayed them proudly.
It was scary and hard. It was a supernova of action … and then the silence of space. It’s hard to go from having EVERYONE talking about your book to basically radio silence. It’s this tremendous build up and an explosion of interest and then, relatively, nothing. It’s terrifying. You start to wonder, “Did I spend four years of my life on something that people cared about for fewer than three weeks?” You start to compare yourself to the other novels that debuted the same day (one of which rocketed up to #1 on the NYT Bestseller List almost immediately). You start to cry.
It was a month where kind words at the right moment made all the difference. In the midst of fear and negative reviews and dead air, people spoke up at the exact right moments and each one was like a miniature rescue. A sweet comment, an enthusiastic review, an excited tweet … these mattered this month when I was teetering on the edge of hopelessness. Please never underestimate how much your kind words mean to the authors who write the books you enjoy. It’s like an instant battery-recharge. It’s the strength to continue. It’s, as I said, a miniature rescue mission. Tell artists when you love their art.
It was step one. Sometimes I, in my ultra-dramatic ways, felt like, with the debut day come and gone, that it was all over. But I’m wrong: everything has just begun.

Book Review: Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon

Posted on September 28, 2015 by Jackie Lea Sommers

Madeline is allergic to everything. In fact, she hasn’t left her home since she was about four months old. She spends her days with Carla, her nurse, and her evenings with her mother, who is a doctor. Everything in her life is sterilized and according to a strict routine. She’s not unhappy– this is just the hand she’s been dealt, and she has a good attitude about things.

Then Olly moves in next door, and suddenly Madeline wants more.

Olly is adorable. So is Maddy. Their IM conversations are hilarious and flirty and fun. I just love them!

Initially, I didn’t want to read this book because– looking at the book description– I thought, “There’s no way this can end well.” Then I read a review that essentially said, “Just trust me. Read it. It will be okay.” So I did.

And I’m so glad I did.

I really loved the characters in this one (obviously), though I was a little put-off by Maddy’s selfishness in some situations– but I gave her grace because she’d been unselfish for her whole life, ya know? Early on, I guessed the twist. Then, stuff happens and I thought, “Oh, I guess I was wrong.” But I was right in the end.

All in all, this was a great, happy, interesting, sad (at times) novel that I really enjoyed reading! If you’re nervous about the ending, don’t be. Just read it.

I’ll be interested to chat in more depth in the comment section with anyone who has read it! (So AVOID THE COMMENT SECTION if you don’t want SPOILERS!)

Confession Time