That Post Everyone Dreams of Posting

I think the title of this gives it away, don't you think? So since I know you'll just scroll to the part where I announce all the awesome stuff (I'm totally guilty of that), I'm just gonna tell you flat out.

My YA supernatural horror: THE GATEWAY THROUGH WHICH THEY CAME is going to be published by Curiosity Quills!!!!!

I KNOW, RIGHT?!

I AM SO FREAKIN' EXCITED YOU GUYS YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW. 

Here's my query for those interested: 

To seventeen-year-old Aiden Ortiz, letting the dead walk through his body to reach the other side comes with the territory––the territory of being a Gateway. It’s hard enough doing the exchange, sending even one Bleeder away without being seen, but when Koren Banks––the girl who’s been mysteriously missing for the last seven months––comes back into his life, the Bleeders begin seeking him out in droves. 

When confronted by a Dark One, a Bleeder gone rogue, Aiden finds himself infected with an evil inside of him that wants nothing more than to be released. Fighting the urge to let the darkness consume him, Aiden discovers that not only does the Gateway send things away––it also brings things back. 

With Koren and his two best friends, Trevor and Evan, by his side, Aiden fights to rid the world of the evil that’s been released by the Dark Priest, while saving the girl he loves from her haunting past. Time is running out, and Aiden must find a way to abolish the Dark Priest and his Brethren of Shadows before he finds himself consumed into a world of evil––and before the monster lurking inside of him takes control.

THE GATEWAY THROUGH WHICH THEY CAME is a YA Horror with supernatural elements complete at 72,000 words. It will interest fans of ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD and BEAUTIFUL CREATURES. I can be contacted at xxx-xxx-xxxx. 

I can also be found on Twitter: @HeatherMarieYA

Thank you for considering my manuscript. 

Sincerely, 

Heather Marie

If you follow me on Twitter, then you may have noticed my talk of Gateway revisions and such. My manuscript was fortunate enough to make it into the hands of Alisa from CQ, who absolutely loved Gateway to pieces. She not only cared about the characters and their story, but she opened my eyes to things I never would have thought to incorporate. She helped turned Gateway into something I like very much to something I *LOVE*. 

When someone not only believes in you and your work, but they also ask all the right questions to challenge you as a writer, it is exactly what you need to create a successful story. I knew Gateway needed work, and many people told me just that, but having Alisa on my side throughout the revision process meant so much. 

Revisions are far from over, of course, but I'm ready to push on and make this book everything it needs to be. I so look forward to this new adventure with Curiosity Quills and their amazing team. Thank you to everyone for all your support and for cheering me on along the way! xo 

It's NaNoWriMo time again!

So I wasn't sure if I was going to participate this year, but since a shiny new idea has popped into my head, I figured the time is now. To be honest, I've had this concept in my head for a really long time. I've never attempted contemporary before and I wasn't sure if I could actually pull it off. But once I let the ideas flow and the words scramble out, I knew it was time to get it done. I'm really, REALLY excited about this new project. It's a story very close to my heart.

For the first time ever I'll be drafting two mss at the same time. Not sure how well this will go over, but it's a challenge I'm willing to accept. If you're doing NaNoWriMo and want to add me, you can find me here.

Here's the synopsis for my YA dark contemporary as posted on the NaNo website:

Delia Summers has been hiding a secret, one of many. From the outside looking in her life appears like any other, but it's what happens within the house that no one could ever know. If they could see the bruises hidden under her clothes or the scars on her arms, the truth would be exposed. No one understands what it's like to know real fear––a fear manipulated by the one person who was always supposed to protect her. 

The scars along her arms were the seams keeping her stitched together. They were her survival. But when she meets Jackson Briggs, her best friend Jenae's new boyfriend, suddenly her life doesn't feel so dark anymore.

You can also find an excerpt of SCAR TISSUE on my NaNo page as well. Happy writing and good luck!

The Launch of YA Scream Queens

Have you checked out my newest group blog YA Scream Queens yet? If you haven't, please do! You can find my introduction post by clicking on the link below.

My Scream Queen Intro

I'm pretty excited about this new venture and hope you are too! Expect to find lots of awesome posts from writing horror to horror films, books, etc. It's gonna be a scream.

Follow us on Twitter to stay up to date: @YAScreamQueens

Get Entranced

If you haven't heard yet, I have officially signed on to an internship with Entranced Publishing. I am very, VERY excited about this! It's been something I've considered for a long time, but just wasn't sure how to go about it. I always loved the idea of getting into the publishing world one way or another, in hopes that it could lead to bigger and better things. 

When I asked Twitter last Friday (because Twitter knows all) if there were any positions available, the word spread quickly. And thanks to everyone's retweets, I heard from Entranced managing editor, Julie, who was seeking an editorial intern. After a few exchanges via email over the weekend, Julie and I agreed that we would love to work together. By Sunday morning, I was a part of the Entranced Team! 

If you aren't familiar with Entranced, you should definitely check them out. They publish eBooks in several genres/categories and are absolutely wonderful to work with. If you'd like to consider an eBook format for your manuscript, check out their submission process via their website. 

Good luck to all! And thank you for all the lovely words in celebration of my new position. Cheers! 

Kindle Giveaway!

The time has come, my friends! 

With your help, I've reached 2,000 followers on Twitter. Woo hoo! 

As promised, I'm giving away a Kindle to celebrate the occasion. Are you ready for the awesome? 

(photo)

Enter to win an Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (WiFi)! Check out the Rafflecopter below to find out how. 

Thank you to all my friends and amazing followers for making this happen. You have until June 30th to enter. I know that seems like a long time, but this is a pretty big giveaway and I want to make sure everyone has time to enter. I'll announce the winner on July 1st. Good luck! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

That Time I Almost Gave Up

Remember a few months back when I said I wasn't giving up on writing? Yeah. I almost gave up. I went through a dark phase where I was just too emotionally drained. It's kind of scary how that could happen to you, and there's nothing you can do to stop it. You cry for no reason. You sit there staring at the computer feeling sorry for yourself. You completely stop writing and feel even worse. You feel completely at a loss and don't know how you're gonna make a comeback. Everything seems kind of pointless.

Most people don't realize how much of yourself is invested in your writing. They don't understand all the time and energy and passion you put into those words every single day, every hour. People are like: "It's just writing." No. No, it isn't. IT'S MY LIFE.

It's when you want something so bad, you'll spend days, weeks, months working on something that earns you no money. That keeps you up all hours of the night. That becomes the constant thing on your mind no matter where you are. Most people comment on the fact that I spend all this time and nothing ever comes up it. How can you spend all that time working on something for free? Because I love writing. It is everything to me. And because I want to say one day: "Yep. That's my book."

I don't care about the money. Sure, who doesn't want to quit their day job and become a full time writer? OF COURSE I WANT THAT. But what I want more than anything in the world is to hold a book in my hands that I wrote and know that I did it. I made my dream come true. I'm a published author and this is only the beginning. I don't want to stop at one book, or two. I want to write for the rest of my life, because I've never been more passionate about anything.

So when I hit that rather large bump in the publishing road, I very nearly gave up. I wasn't sure, and I'm still not, whether I'm going to get another agent. I don't know if this book or the next is gonna be the one. And you know what? That scares me more than anything. But what I do know is this:

I love to write.

And if this is all I ever do––if all I do for the rest of my life is write one manuscript after another and nothing comes of it––I'll at least know that I gave it everything I got. And to me, that's all I can ask of myself. I win either way.

25 Page Critique Giveaway!

Okay. You guys have been super awesome, so I decided to announce the giveaway early. YAY!! I really want you guys and gals to know how much I appreciate you. You've been beyond supportive of me since the beginning and I seriously couldn't ask for better friends. Thank you for being so amazing. Seriously.

To celebrate your awesomeness, I've decided to have a giveaway at 1900 (the critique) and at 2,000 Twitter followers. As most of you know that giveaway will involve a Kindle. Say WHAT? IKNORITE?

Enter below to win a 25 page critique by me! You have until Monday at midnight. Good luck! a Rafflecopter giveaway