It's the End of the World As We Know It...

Okay, I saw this one in my Facebook feed and it yelled, "Write a blog post about me!" Who am I to ignore the demands of a picture?

For those who aren't familiar with Jumanji, it's the title of a book by Chris Van Allsburg. In it, some children find a board game (called Jumanji) in a park and decide to play. But whenever they land on a space, it really happens. For example, if it says, "Land in the Jungle", the players are immediately thrown into a jungle and have to get out somehow. There was also a movie made based on this book.

So basically, when bizarre things that you think would never happen, actually do happen, it could be like the game. For others, this could be a sign of the impending apocalypse!

Thanks to the Mayans, we all know the world was supposed to end on 12/21/12. And thankfully it didn't. But what if it had? What would actually constitute the end of the world? Are we talking total obliteration of the earth? Or the end of all life? Or just a really big disaster of some kind?

Last year when I was thinking about our impending doom, I thought about the various movies made on the subject. Armageddon and Deep Impact both deal with a meteor that is going to hit the earth and have devastating consequences. In the movie 2012, a solar storm wreaks havoc on the earth's surface, leading a select few to - well I won't say in case you haven't seen it! Also released that year was the movie Knowing, where a string of numbers that gets dug up in a time capsule really identifies disasters that have happened, and ones that haven't yet. The string of numbers was written by a girl who hears voices and has strange visions.

My book was influenced by all of these. It takes place 130 years in the future, after a meteor strikes the earth on 12/21/12. I wondered if such a thing were to occur, how could life possibly go on? I figure that since a meteor strike the magnitude of the one that killed the dinosaurs would wipe out all life on the surface, perhaps life could flourish underground. In my book, the Consortium (aided by guy who has visions) learn about this coming cataclysm and begin to build huge underground habitats, thus ensuring that humanity will survive. This was something they did in Deep Impact.

So when you're reading my book, don't be surprised if you find yourself saying, "This sounds like that movie!" It probably does. But I think I've given the end of the world a whole new twist, and I hope you'll enjoy it!

Evernight Teen Valentine's Blog Hop

Hello, and welcome to my first ever Blog Hop!

I have to confess, I have no idea what I'm doing, but here goes:

Romance. Sigh....

It's great when you have it, and not so much when you don't. But I think the enormous popularity of romance novels speaks to our desire for it. Everyone wants to feel needed, like they belong to a part of something more than themselves. In my book, X5 (the main character) has grown up in a Bunker. He was raised with other children, but not as part of a family unit. Imagine growing up in a hospital, with no parents or anyone to show you affection. Not fun. He wants more, and really, who wouldn't?

In the Bunker, relationships are arranged, and purely for the purpose of breeding. X5 is supposed to be mated to A7, but he wonders what it would be like to actually choose the person he's going to be with. He's heard about love, but having never experienced it, wonders what it might feel like.

My book isn't primarily a romance. But it does have romantic elements. And I'm not going to say any more because I can't give it all away! I'm posting the blurb for my upcoming book, X5: Genesis below.

And I've got a PRIZE! A $5 giftcard to Amazon.com! And Evernight Teen is offering a fantastic prize - $$ to use on their website for books from my fellow authors. For my contest, please use the Rafflecopter entry. To enter the Evernight giveaway, post a comment below and answer this question: Who is the hero of the book? I look forward to hearing from you!

Don't forget to check out the other authors from Evernight Teen (links are under the Rafflecopter) who are participating in this Blog Hop. Every comment on their blogs also earns you an entry to the main giveaway, plus they are offering prizes as well! Happy hopping!


X5: Genesis

More than 130 years after a meteor devastated the planet, twenty-five percent of the population is left to rebuild. Among the survivors is a group known as The Consortium. To further their own agenda, they’ve built a top secret Bunker deep within the Colorado Rockies to breed and raise children with psychic gifts, and use those powers for their own gain.

X5, a seventeen year old boy who lives in The Bunker, has a vision of himself covered in blood and running through a forest with A7, the girl who is supposed to be his mate. And when A7 tells him she had a vision of him being killed, he knows they’re in trouble. Their only choice is to run. X5 and A7 have lived their whole lives in The Bunker and know nothing of the outside world. With the Consortium out to get them back, they have to learn quick or their visions will become reality. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

New Beginnings

Life is full of beginnings. Being born. Starting school. Moving around. Going to new schools. Meeting new people. The list could go on and on! 

Now the pessimist would say that life is also full of endings. Leaving friends. Getting out of elementary school. A family break-up. Lots of possibilities here, too.

I try to think of it in the words of one of my favourite bands, Green Day. "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end." (Closing Time) In order to have a beginning, something else has to end. Call it a circle of life if you will.

Well, this is a new beginning for me. I wrote a book! And to find out that it would be published by Evernight Teen was exhilarating. It's a new beginning.

My book is called X5: Genesis, and for those of you who may know a thing or two about the Bible, Genesis is the first book - the beginning. I chose this as the title because it represents two things for my main characters. The first, is the end of life as they knew it. No, they don't die. But this book marks a big change for them. And as one part of their life ends, a new one begins. 

My book should be out in April, and before then, I'll post more information about it, about the characters, about the story, and maybe even some random stuff, too. I'm good at random.

I hope you'll join me on this new beginning!

What new beginnings have you had? I'd love to hear about them! Leave me a comment!