Best Book : Soooo hard to pick, but one of my all-time faves since I was a child is CHARLOTTE'S WEB. It never fails to amaze me, now matter how many times I've read it. A newer favorite? THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE by Jandy Nelson. This book is pure poetry and is a story about things that matter: family, friendship, music, nature, joy, love, dealing with loss, and finding your best self.
 
Best Band: The Beatles
 
Best Animal: Cats, elephants, whales, otters, and Esther the Wonder Pig (if you don't know who she is, Google it!)
 
Best Food / Worst Food: One of my favorite treats is Cadbury Eggs but I can only eat them for a few months of the year! My worst choice is meat since I've been a vegetarian since my early teens.
 
Best Drink / Worst Drink: Diet Coke with Lime- a must-have when I'm writing / regular Coke
 
Best Alcoholic Drink: It's hard to choose a favorite but I usually drink red wine!
 
Best Friend: I've been lucky to have Liz as my best friend since college! We're very different but she's always been there for me and seems to know what I'm thinking before I put it into words. <3
 
Best Writing Moment: When I finally saw the email saying my debut novel, Extraordinary, had sold! It had been out with the last publisher for 8 months and my agent and I had parted ways so it was totally unexpected!
 
Best Childhood Memory: Going ice skating on Thursday nights at the outdoor rink in NJ with my friends. My dad, an engineer who wrote plays in his spare time, would sit on a bench in the warming area with the latest scene he'd written and a pen.  When we finished skating, I'd find him there, reading his words and laughing at his own jokes. He always bought me a Milky Way and a hot chocolate before we headed home.
 
Best Word / Worst Word: I'll state the obvious here:  Peace/War
 
Best Shop: Street Fair—my favorite hippie shop in Asheville, NC where I can find all my favorite skirts, barettes, earrings, and bumper stickers.
 
Best Sport: Ice skating
 
Best Saying: "The only way to guarantee failure is to quit."
 
Best Teacher: The best teacher I had was in 1st and 2nd grade. She encouraged me to write and asked me to go to the upper grades and share my stories.  The worst teacher I had was my 8th grade history teacher who gave me a zero when she fell asleep during my presentation. She'd also stand behind students while they were taking one of her challenging quizzes, cackling. Yes, she actually cackled. A real witch of a teacher! When I modeled a teacher after her in one of my manuscripts, I was told by everyone to tone her down because she wasn't realistic.
 
Best Time of Day / Worst Time of Day: Afternoon/morning
 
Best TV Show: Current favorite: This Is Us. Full of amazing writing and people you wish were family members. Each episode is a work of art. Bring a box of tissues.
 
Best Restaurant: Ben Tanh Vietnamese
 
Best Movie: HAROLD & MAUDE—I first saw this back in college and I will always remember how I walked out of the screening and it was raining outside, and while I'm usually not a fan of rain, I wanted to stop and feel the rain against my skin, feeling the joy of being alive. (Really! this movie will do this to you)
 
Best time of year: Fall
 
Best School Subject / Worst School Subject: Reading/Math

​Yes, yes, yes. I promised this blog would go out on Wednesday last week. I failed miserably, I know. I had other blogs scheduled plus work and edits and kids, so I have valid excuses! :) Anyway, here's part two as promised. 

I shared some insight on Monday as to why I've been celebrating lately and you can read about that right here, but there have been other goings on behind the scenes, and I made a big ol' decision earlier in the year that I wanted to talk about. 

It still pains me to think about this and to share my decision brings on triple tears, but a few weeks back, I decided to hang up my Pitch Wars mentoring hat.

Ugh. I'm so sad. Pitch Wars has been one of my most positive, exciting, and satisfying experiences of the last few years. I HAVE LOVED IT. Loved my fellow mentors, my mentees, and I loved Brenda and Heather with all my heart. I still love them all. Being part of this opportunity for new writers gave me so much and became something I missed and anticipated in each off season. 

Having the opportunity to read so many upcoming writers' queries and first pages has been an honour. Honestly. I know people say that, but I really do mean it. It's a weird feeling, that you've been trusted with one person's words, that they've already put their faith in you as a mentor to guide them and help them polish their craft. And I got to work with a handful of INCREDIBLE people. I will be forever indebted to those I chose as mentees each year...

J.S. Roberts
Stacey Goldstein
Melanie Dixon
Kimberly Afe
Kirk Kraft 

...my co-mentors...

J.C. Davis
Ashley Martin
Amanda Rawson-Hill
Cindy Baldwin

... the other writers I connected with via the contest (you know who you are!), all the people I chatted with via Twitter, and all the new friends I've made. You have given me so much and actually kept me going through some hard times. When my dad passed a couple of months before the contest opened in 2016, the focus on Pitch Wars and the support of my friends held me up. 

So, yeah, it's safe to say that this annual contest is a blessing and I know it will continue going from strength to strength, offering opportunities for new writers to hone their skills, make new friends and build their communities, and maybe even launch some more sparkly careers. 

But, because I know I am going to miss the whole mentoring experience too much, added to the fact that I'm cutting back on my editing services this year (though Rebecca, copy editor extraordinaire, definitely won't be!), I have decided to offer something special. Later this year, of which the details of entry will be shared via one of my next newsletters, I would like to offer a one-year mentorship to one writer. The writer can have a manuscript already written or they can be at the idea brainstorming pre-writing bit. I don't mind at all. I just want to continue paying it forward. All I will ask is that the writer is committed and enthusiastic to learn - that's it. 

So, if you think this is something you'd like, please do sign up to my newsletter to find out the details of how to enter, as well as all the editing and writing advice that comes with it. It won't be right now, more likely something that will commence in the autumn. I really haven't settled on the details yet. 

But, in the meantime, goodbye Pitch Wars. A part of my heart will always belong to you. And thank you so much for everything you've given me. It's now my turn to be the writer - of course with some editing in between! 

​
As a child, Kendra wrote her first books on construction paper and bound them together with ribbon, though she can’t remember even one of those early stories. Once a teen and young adult, she jokingly referred to herself as Queen of the First Five Chapters, as that’s where every story seemed to fizzle out. It wasn’t until she was in her mid-thirties, when her family relocated to the West Coast, that she got lost in libraries again and finally managed to type “The End.”
​
Since finishing that first manuscript, Kendra hasn’t been able to stop new characters from talking to her. 
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Her fascination with all things abnormal comes out in her writing, whether it’s steampunk freak shows, vampires, or ghosts – if it has fangs or goes bump in the night, she’s writing about it.

Kendra now lives back in Chattanooga, Tennessee with her husband, Tim, who’s responsible for making her believe all her writing dreams will come true. Together they have two daughters, Savannah and Tabitha, who both enjoy art and writing as well. By day, Kendra teaches eighth grade English & Language Arts in an urban middle school where she shares her love of writing and dreaming “big dreams” with her students.

Website
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Amazon Author Page 

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Excerpt

Father paces in the shadows as we approach, his face set in a stern scowl. “You might have told your father you were stepping out with a beau.”

I let out a disdainful snort while Brice feigns offense at my reaction. “It’s only Brice, Father. Not a beau in sight, I swear it.”

Father tips his plastic goblet in Brice’s direction. “Keeping my princess safe, I assume?”

Brice bows, doubling nearly in half at the waist.

“Spot any rogue dragons, whilst you were about?” he asks.

“No, Father,” I sigh. “No dragons, only a local homeless man in need of medication for his stomach. Do we have anything?”

Brice clears his throat, stepping into character for my dad. “Still, I didn’t chance allowing Josilyn to travel too close, King.”

Father nods, running his index finger around the rim of his goblet.

“Care to fence a bit before I depart? A show of our sword prowess might deter the fiends from attacking.” Brice rests his hands on his hips, tilting his head back as if he were posing for a photograph at a cheesy renaissance fair. Brice manages Father’s delusions as well as I do without missing a beat.

Father’s chest expands in approval before asking me to get his fencing swords, but as I pass the rough cut wooden swords to him, he shakes his head. “On second thought, Daughter, you are getting out of practice. Brice is not as good as I, but he is a capable sparring opponent.”

Brice’s smile swallows up the better half of his face as he takes the sword from my hand. If I ever question why I put up with the agony of being so close to him, I’m reminded of it at times like this.

Anxious to put on a good show, Brice’s grin widens as he advances, but I’m not new to this. Father insists on regular training sessions, even demanding I study other fencing forms in old library books. We circle, assessing each other before our swords meet a second time.

I avoid Brice’s jab easily, returning several strikes of my own. Loud clacks split the night air as our wooden blades clash again and again. He parries, anticipating my next attack, but isn’t quick enough to recover himself when I feign right and lunge again. It’s my favorite series of steps, but before long we’re both nearly ready to collapse.
​
Father, ever attempting to be regal, bows, his broad smile beaming in the moonlight. “Knighthood would serve you well, Sir Brice.”

“It does have a nice ring to it,” I add.

Brice repays our compliments with one of his best half-tilted grins, his eyes dancing with mischief. We say our goodbyes, with Brice assuring Father he’ll be on guard for any dark knights. Brice doesn’t break character for a second, not even to exchange a silent glance with me.

The stars are bright tonight, like a brilliant sea stretched out before me. I bring out an extra blanket to sit on and gaze at the constellations, my back resting against the strongest part of the castle. I pull up one corner, wrapping myself in it, and divide my attention between trying to identify my favorite constellations and listening to Father’s critique of our performance, which is mostly favorable.

My world is small, but it’s mine, and I love it despite all the reasons I shouldn’t.

As if in a show that the heavens themselves approve, a falling star streaks across the sky.

Before I can think, my heart makes a wish my mind wouldn't have agreed to if it had been given a chance to argue. Brice turns back, his eyes lock with mine, and I am at peace.
​
Unfortunately, peace never lasts long in a castle, especially if it’s made of cardboard.  

Reviews

"CARDBOARD CASTLES is by turns introspective, heart-wrenching, brilliant, and daring. I adored Jos, the desperate and supremely unreliable narrator whose cynical yet world-weary voice evokes Bogart at his best. K.L. Young's prose seized me like a dragon's talons, never letting go..." -Keith W. Willis, author of the Knights of Kilbourne series.
 
"Loved this book! Beautiful writing, great premise, and characters that I rooted for and cared about all the way through! I didn't know I was a fan of dragons until I met Falcon. Now he has my heart." -Carmen Erickson, Editor 
 
"An absolutely brilliant and touching story. The characters made you feel everything in the storyline that was happening. I enjoyed this so much I would read it again and again." - Amanda Williams, Goodreads
 
“I loved this book. Such a heart gripping story of homelessness and mental illness, which many people experience in society today. I couldn't put this book down as it was written so well that it kept you glued to the pages right till the end. Highly recommend you read this book." -Anne Kinslow, Goodreads
​

​Best Book – Harry Potter
Best Band – Def Leppard
Best Song / Worst Song – Best: “Best Day of My Life”/ Worst: “Does That Make Me Crazy”
Best Holiday / Worst Holiday – Best: Halloween / Worst: New Years (I can barely make it to midnight) LOL
Best Animal – dogs and Beluga whales J Yes, there’s a story behind the belugas.
Best Item of Clothing – yoga pants for the win!
Best Food / Worst Food – Best: Pizza / Worst: Anything gritty (pears, seafood with sand, etc -- shudders)
Best Drink / Worst Drink – Best: Sweet tea! / Worst: Sodas. I rarely drink them.
Best Alcoholic Drink / Worst Alcoholic Drink – Best: Margarita! / Worst: Beer. Gross.
Best Friend – my husband, hands down.
Best Writing Moment – hmmm. I can’t pick just one. It’s the moment when a story or character really comes to life. I start giggling. That’s when I know it has to be written.
Best Childhood Memory – Best: Sitting on my grandmother’s sink and talking to her while she cooked or did the dishes.
Best Word / Worst Word – I can’t just pick one best word. I love them all. Except for seepage. Seepage is always bad.
Best Shop – Target!
Best Sport – None? I’ll say football or baseball for my husband though.
Best Job – Not sure?
Best Saying – “It’s always about the reader.” I say it to students all the time, especially when we’re talking about grammar. 
Best Teacher / Worst Teacher – Me? And also me? LOL Seriously, Best: Janice Payne from my elementary years / Worst: My geometry teacher, Mrs. McClintock. When I think about what kind of teacher I don’t want to be, I think of what it felt like to be in her class.
Best Time of Day / Worst Time of Day – Best: Either early in the morning, when I can watch the sunrise with a cup of coffee / Worst: When everyone is running and busy.
Best Room – Does my back porch count? It’s screened in and it’s my favorite place to be.
Best Day Ever / Worst Day Ever – Both are too hard to choose
Best Smell / Worst Smell – Oh this one’s easy. Best: Honeysuckle or my husband’s cologne are the absolute best / Worst: Spoiled milk or Doritos.
Best TV Show / Worst TV Show – Best: Stranger Things / Worst: is hard to say. I don’t watch a lot of television anyway.
Best Gadget – Corkscrew? Haha!
Best Sound / Worst Sound – Best: Laughter / Worst: A high pitched/whiney voice. I can’t take it.
Best Restaurant – Alleia in downtown Chattanooga. My absolute favorite.
Best Movie / Worst Movie – Best: The Princess Bride / Worst: Napoleon Dynamite. We still make fun of that move in my house.
Best Time of Year / Worst Time of Year – Best: Fall. Love the Fall / Worst: I like Summer for about two weeks, then I’m ready for Fall again.
Best School Subject / Worst School Subject – Best: Science and English / Worst: Always math.
Best Body Part / Worst Body Part – Best: Eyes? / Worst: Legs. Definitely legs. 

So thrilled to help celebrate the release of the lovely K.T. Hanna's new book! SOMNIA ONLINE: INITIALIZING is here and it looks freaking amazing. I haven't read this one yet but have read some of K.T.'s other work and her writing is tense, sharp, and exciting. I highly recommend you head out and grab a copy today. I know I will be! 

Hello, writers! 

How are you all doing? I hope well. Selfishly this blog today is going to be all about me! Though I sparkly promise the next one on Wednesday will be more for all you guys (definitely don't miss it). But what a few weeks it's been. If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook then you might have seen the massive announcement I made at the end of last week. It went something like this... ​

 
It feels so good to have finally found myself a partner in crime. Someone I can trust with my words, with my writing career, and to hug my horrible anxiety when it rocks back and forth in the corner. Colleen is that person.

Here's a brief rundown of how it all came about. 

I haven't queried much, and when I have, I am THE SLOWEST QUERYER OF ALL TIME. I can't confirm this, obviously, but I reckon I'm up there with some of the best snail queryers in history. It's not that I don't enjoy the process (I don't much), but it's more that I suffer major anxiety and doubt every single time I hit send. Probably just like so many of you, I'm sure. I also love editing - as you might probably guess. I love feedback and I love taking ideas on board and revising my work. So, when I send one or two queries, I like to wait for replies. Is that laughter I hear? Yeah, it's okay, I'm laughing with you. Currently, even a form rejection is something to celebrate when so many agents offer nothing but radio silence. But, forever hopeful once the anxiety fades, I keep my fingers crossed an agent might offer their reasons for passing so I can then reconsider my opening chapters or my query. 

Anyway, I had an agent a few years back, which didn't work out sadly, (and let's not mention the fallen-through offers of publication and the disastrous publication ordeal!) and in the wake of our separation I lost a whole bunch of confidence in my writing for years to follow. I didn't stop writing -  I doubt that will ever happen - but I was afraid and reluctant to share my stuff. My decision to end the querying break came when I thought I'd take a serious shot at Twitter pitching contests. #PitDark was the first, if I remember correctly, followed by a few others including #PitMad. I did pretty well with favourites coming from some dream agents. Yet, in typical me fashion, I decided to embark on a major rewrite, so held off on sending my manuscript. Nuts, I know. But, the manuscript improved tenfold due to this revision and I added some confidence blocks to my core. Here's one of the pitches I used that resulted in some favourites:  

"Kids fall sick. The dead rise. Black smoke lingers. Boy teams up with asylum patient who predicted the end to save humanity."

Still, when I started querying my MG horror, HALF DEAD, my expectations were super low. So, cue the surprise and buzz when I started receiving partial and full requests! In fact, I had an almost 50% success rate with my query and opening chapters. AMAZING! For those who like studying query letters, here's mine (although I tweaked and personalised it often!)... 

"THE SKELETON TREE meets STRANGER THINGS meets SERAFINA AND THE BLACK CLOAK. HALF DEAD is an upper middle-grade light horror with paranormal elements and plenty of emotional depth, and is complete at 42000 words.

Thirteen-year-old Charlie Oaks wants his old life back—a dad who doesn’t shout, a mom who hasn’t abandoned her family, and a sister that isn’t dead. He tries his best to avoid dealing with his new reality, but it’s getting harder each day. And now that a nasty flu epidemic affecting only children is forcing schools to close, Charlie will be stuck at home with his depressed dad, which might just rob him of all the hope he has left. 

When visiting his sister's grave, Charlie sees skeletons roaming the cemetery. Tendrils of black smoke rise from the earth and drag him towards the town's derelict asylum. Rescued by Molly Denton, the most unpopular kid at school, Charlie is both terrified and desperate. With a new goal to become a disease research scientist, he wants answers. He needs to find out why he—and Molly—aren't sick like all the other kids. It seems one person has the answers—Molly’s demonologist dad. Only problem is, he's an ex-asylum patient who was locked up for having a mental breakdown. 

With the epidemic spreading quickly and the living plotting ways to take down the walking dead, there's a darker evil at work. It’s not the skeletons who are the bad guys, and now the professor believes the last of Charlie’s profound hope might be enough to restore belief in humanity and save the sick children—if there’s still time."

(I ended with a paragraph about me and some writing-related things that I thought might make me sound attractive. Meh, who knows if that worked!) 

Yeah, of course, the rejections still came (and they tend to hurt a heck of a lot more on a full than simply a query) but eventually so did an offer. And what a feeling that was! Okay, so I have been there before, but this time it felt so different. It's what I can only describe as right. I am ready. And yeah, my excitement could be premature, but I am a creature that trusts my gut and this time it's pretty darn calm. 

So, now came the chasing the outstanding queries and a flurry of full requests. Plus, a few more offers! AMAZING! I couldn't believe it. And, when I made my decision that Colleen was the agent for me, turning these agents down HURT LIKE CRAZY. Not because I experienced any concern or regret for the decision I made, but because I loathe letting people down. And that's how I felt. Ridiculously, I wished Colleen had been the only agent who'd offered so I could have avoided that part. 

And here I am. Agented and feeling pretty validated and pumped for my next steps. The positive words I received for my writing through this experience will always mean everything, no matter what comes in the future. I learned that I can write - and quite well. It might not be to everyone's taste but I'm okay with that. Subjectivity smiles its cheesy grin on everyone! 

I also have to go public with my thanks to a certain few people that supported me, beta read, and critiqued HALF DEAD at various stages. My mum, J.S. Roberts, Stacey Goldstein, Lynn Leitch, J.C. Davis, and Rebecca Carpenter. These guys...LOVE THEM! There are others who helped as well, but we'll stick with these guys for now. 

And that's it. I have another blog coming on Wednesday, entitled NEWS, and this one isn't just about me, I promise. In fact, it's my way of celebrating and sharing my good news with you. But, I hope there are some helpful things in today's blog at the very least, and please feel free to ask any questions in the comments. 

Until Wednesday, thanks for reading!