Street team updates, pictures to share, and more.

So first of all, the winner for last week's Romantic Times random grab bag prize drawing is:

Kiirsi!

Email me at readbree(at)gmail(dot)com and I'll send you the list of random prizes to choose from.

Next item of business: Chapter 3 is up on Romantic Times! If you haven't already--head on over there, comment, then come back here and let me know you did, so you can be entered in a drawing for a prize out of my random grab bag.

Also, don't forget about the Huge Frakkin' Giveaway. Contest ends Dec. 14th and all you have to do is comment to be entered. Extra entries are available for those who do something fun and creative to help promote TDD.

On that note-- I wanted to share with everyone how awesomely cool my street team is. Seriously, they completely and totally rock and I can't thank them enough for all their efforts to spread the word about The Dark Divine so far.

Several of the street team members took advantage of the gatherings centered around the release of New Moon to show some Team Daniel support with their TDD shirts and by passing out bookmarks and stickers at the theaters--so I thought I'd share a few of the pictures they sent me.


Alexus showing off her mad SWAG distribution skills.


Debbie at one of the New Moon Party events she helped organize.


Sarah handing out bookmarks in line (even though she didn't get to see the movie that night, she still stuck around to hand out SWAG. How cool is that?!)


Katie in TX and Kelly in NY were able to put book marks in hundreds of SWAG bags for the attendees of the premier parties they were hosting.


Amber handing out bookmarks and talking up TDD before the movie starts.


And the Literati group went all out filling a whole row with TDD shirts after spending the preshow time handing out SWAG.


Hubby even got into it and was able to get some co-workers to wear the TDD shirt at work and pass out even more SWAG at the movie release that evening.


Like I said: Awesomely cool, right?

Clarifying Countdown Contest rules, and my Thanksgiving gift to you: Grace Divine's infamous caramel apple pie recipe

So I wrote my last blog post really late at night and I've realized that the The Final Countdown to THE DARK DIVINE Contest rules are totally confusing. Therefore, I will clarify them here (and on that actual post). And for being patient with my previous nonsensical rules, I will treat you all to the fantastic recipe for Grace Divine's Caramel Apple Pie.

Here's what you have to do in order to enter The Final Countdown to THE DARK DIVINE Contest:

1. Be a follower of the blog. (So if you're not a follower, start following :D)

2. To get 1 entry in the contest, all you have to do is leave a comment here saying that you'd like to entered. Easy peasy, right?

For bonus entries you can do the following:

1. Get 2 extra entries for Tweeting/Facebooking/blogging about the Countdown contest

2. Get 2 extra entries for Tweeting/Facebooking/blogging about the Romantic Times preview (Plus, you will get entered into the weekly random prize giveaway, if you tweet about the preview, and leave a comment on the RT blog.)

3. Get at least 5-10 BONUS entries (as determined by me or hubby based on what you do) for doing something to show your excitement for THE DARK DIVINE. I'm assuming since you are reading this blog and entering this contest, you are at least somewhat excited about TDD. So all I'm asking you to do is to share that excitement with the people around you. (Creativity will get you closer to the 10 entries)

You can vlog, make a music video, make a youtube commercial for the book, get all your friends to wear all purple and black to school one day, start a campaign to get TDD to be a trending topic on twitter, wear a Team Daniel t-shirt to New Moon, go door to door at your dorm and tell people how excited you are about the book release, call your local bookstores and ask them to carry the book or have me come do a signing, 0r get your entire English class to read the first six chapters of TDD on the RT blog . . .

Okay, you get the point, right? Do something creative to show your excitement for TDD and then come back here and tell me about it. Physical evidence is also requested (not required) such as posting a picture or video on your blog/myspace/facebook/twitter/youtube. Or you can email it to me at readbree(at)gmail(dot)com. (Please nothing obscene or illegal!!)

Remember, this is just for BONUS POINTS, don't let the creativity thing scare you off from entering the contest in the first place.

UPDATE, originally I was going to to end the contest and announce the winners on December 22nd, but I have decided to end the contest on December 14th and announce winners December 15th instead. That way if you want to give away any of the books you win as Christmas presents, you will get them in time for the holiday.

*Sorry, for legal/customs reasons, this contest is only open to U.S. residents.

Okay, I hope that all makes more sense. Basically, all you have to do is comment to be entered in the contest. . . anything else is just for bonus points. You can comment on this post to be entered, or you can comment on the previous post. If you have already commented on the previous post, you are already entered in the contest, so don't worry.

To see a list of the many fantastic prizes (including an iPod nano and 8 different books) CLICK HERE.

And now, for being patient with me, I give you the much requested and much coveted award winning (I'm not kidding, it's really won awards) recipe for Grace Divine's Infamous Caramel Apple Pie:

1 jar of Mrs. Richardson’s Butterscotch Caramel (You can find this in the aisle with the Hersey’s Syrup)

Pie:

Your favorite pie crust (Grace would make pie crust from scratch, but I use Pilsbury pre-made crust that you roll out into the dish. It saves a lot of time and tastes just as good as homemade, in my opinion.)

¼ cup sugar

3 Tbsp flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp salt

5 ½ cups peeled apple, thinly sliced (I use Rome apples)


Mix apples with sugar, flour, and spices and fill pie crust

Topping:

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup flour

½ cup oats

½ cup butter

Mix topping ingredients. You can spoon out the topping onto the top of pie and smooth it out, or roll it out like a giant cookie onto wax paper and then transfer to the top of the pie.

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, and then put foil around the crust edges and bake for another 20 minutes or until the top is crunchy and firm. (Grace would like me to remind you not to leave the pie in the oven while you run to the store to get last minute Thanksgiving supplies. Seriously, it's not a good idea.)

You can serve the pie hot or cold. Just before serving, warm a jar of Mrs. Richardson’s Butterscotch Caramel (with lid off) for 30-60 seconds in microwave and then pour desired amount over the top crust of the pie

(Hint, hint: Making Grace's pie for Thanksgiving and telling everyone at the table about TDD would be a great way to earn bonus points in the contest.)

The Final Countdown to THE DARK DIVINE (a.k.a. A huge frakking giveaway)

So business first:

1. Don't forget about The Romantic Times' serialization of THE DARK DIVINE. They are posting a new chapter a week of TDD up until the debut on December 22nd. (That's SIX chapters total!!) Plus they are giving away signed hard-copies of the book + TDD nail polish. They will be posting chapter 2 sometime on Monday the Nov 23rd. Go here to check it out.

2. I'm giving away random prizes from my random prize grab-bag for people who read the chapters and then leave a comment on the RT blog. Be sure to come back here and let me know that you commented so you can be entered in the weekly drawing. And you get extra points for tweeting or blogging about it. The random prize grab-bag includes autographed books, TDD Nail Polish, gift cards, and more!)

3. This week's random winner is: Bunny B
Email me at readbree(at)gmail(dot)com and I will send you a list of prizes to choose from.

Okay, on with the actual post:

So this is it! There is officially only one month left until the debut of THE DARK DIVINE!!! Holy crap, can you believe it? I know, I know...I can't either. No matter how many times I pinch myself, I still can't believe this isn't all some crazy tripped out dream and I'm going to wake up and realize that I've been lying in a hospital bed for the last seven years since that terrible car accident.

But just in case this isn't a wacky comma induced fantasy, we need some big time Countdown to THE DARK DIVINE Contest craziness going on. I'm thinking it should be our biggest giveaway yet!

Sound like a good plan?

Yeah, I thought you'd agree.

Okay then, let's get down to business.

Grand Prize:


An autographed hardcover copy of THE DARK DIVINE (The final cover is so fantastically beautiful in person I about died when I held the proof in my hands. Even better than the ARC.)


A bottle of TDD nail polish

A TDD custom T-shirt (Designs soon to be unveiled on the blog. I'm very excited!)


And A purple 8GB iPod Nano engraved with a personal message + the TDD soundtrack

(Apparently, the Beautiful Creatures ladies are giving away a similar package, but this is something I've been planning for a while, so it's honestly just a coincidence. You should go enter their contest, too.)


Prize #2
Egmont Prize-pack including:

Hardcover copy of CALLIE'S RULES by Naomi Zucker

Hardcover copy of VIOLET WINGS by Victoria Hanley

Hardcover copy of LITTLE BLACK LIES by Tish Cohen

And an ARC of BRIGHTLY WOVEN by Alexandra Bracken


Prize #3

Utah Author Prize-pack including:

Signed copy of THE RING by Bobbie Pyron

Signed Copy of THE HOURGLASS DOOR Lisa Mangum

Signed Copy of THE WAY HE LIVED by Emily Wing Smith

Here's how to enter:

(Update: these are the clarified rules and are different from what was originally posted. Please read them over again. You will find that entering is much easier now.)

1. Be a follower of the blog. (So if you're not a follower, start following :D)

2. To get 1 entry in the contest, all you have to do is leave a comment here saying that you'd like to entered. Easy peasy, right?

For bonus entries you can do the following:

1. Get 2 extra entries for Tweeting/Facebooking/blogging about the Countdown contest

2. Get 2 extra entries for Tweeting/Facebooking/blogging about the Romantic Times preview (Plus you will get entered into the weekly random prize giveaway if you tweet about the preview, and leave a comment on the RT blog)

3. Get at least 5-10 BONUS entries (as determined by me or hubby based on what you do) for doing something to show your excitement for THE DARK DIVINE. I'm assuming since you are reading this blog and entering this contest, you are at least somewhat excited about TDD. So all I'm asking you to do is to share that excitement with the people around you. (Creativity will get you closer to the 10 entries)

You can vlog, make a music video, make a youtube commercial for the book, get all your friends to wear all purple and black to school one day, start a campaign to get TDD to be a trending topic on twitter, wear a Team Daniel t-shirt to New Moon, go door to door at your dorm and tell people how excited you are about the book release, call your local bookstores and ask them to carry the book or have me come do a signing, 0r get your entire English class to read the first six chapters of TDD on the RT blog . . .

Okay, you get the point, right? Do something creative to show your excitement for TDD and then come back here and tell me about it. Physical evidence is also requested (not required) such as posting a picture or video on your blog/myspace/facebook/twitter/youtube. Or you can email it to me at readbree(at)gmail(dot)com. (Please nothing obscene or illegal!!)

Remember, this is just for BONUS POINTS, don't let the creativity thing scare you off from entering the contest in the first place.

UPDATE, originally I was going to to end the contest and announce the winners on December 22nd, but I have decided to end the contest on December 14th and announce winners December 15th instead. That way if you want to give away any of the books you win as Christmas presents, you will get them in time for the holiday. 1. This contest is only open to followers of the blog. So if you're not a follower . . . well . . . hint, hint.

*Sorry, for legal/customs reasons, this contest is only open to U.S. residents.

And don't forget to pop over to the Romantic Times blog to see if the next chapter of TDD is up. UPDATE: Chapter 2 can be found by clicking HERE.

SQUEEE!!!! The Romantic Times preview of THE DARK DIVINE is up + giveaways!!

Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, oh my goodness!!! It's up! It's up! The Romantic Times preview of THE DARK DIVINE is finally up!!

Okay, I have been talking about this for weeks now, but in case you missed it: The Romantic Times is offering an exclusive sneak peak of the first SIX CHAPTERS of THE DARK DIVINE!!! They will be posting a link to a chapter a week every Monday up until the debut of TDD on December 22nd. Even if you've read the ARC of THE DARK DIVINE, you should still check it out because. . . 1. The final manuscript of TDD has slight differences from the ARC text. 2. Each week they will be posting a message from me with insider tidbits about the writing of, or the inspiration for, each chapter. 3. Best of all, they are running a contest where you have SIX CHANCES TO WIN A SIGNED COPY OF THE DARK DIVINE & TDD NAIL POLISH!!!

But wait, that's not all! To further incentive you to read and share the preview, I'm having my own contest here in conjunction with it all.

Here's the deal:

For the next six weeks, I'll be giving away random prizes from my Random Prize Grab-Bag (including signed books, TDD nail polish, gift cards, etc.)

Get 2 entries for leaving a comment on The Romantic Times blog posts about TDD.
Get 1 additional entry for tweeting about the previews with a link to the RT blog posts
Get 2 additional entries for blogging about previews with a link here, and a link to the RT blog

Be sure to leave a comment here, reporting your activities so I can give you your proper amount of entries in the contest.

Each week for the next 6 weeks, I'll pick a random winner of a random prize. (They may be random, but they're still GOOD!) Be sure to check back here to see if you've won. And I'll be sure to post a link each Monday to the new chapters for you to read. CLICK HERE to see this week's chapter offering.

Oh, and in case you missed all the flurry on twitter, I am so excited to announce that TDD is a Teen Reads pick on the American Booksellers Association's IndieNext List for Winter. Check it out here (scroll down to Teen Reads). And huge congrats to my author buddies James Dashner (#1 on the overall IndieNext list!!!) and Becca Fitzpatrick (who made #6).

Street Team and Updates (plus more videos!)

So here's what going on over here in ReadBree land:

1. Want to read more than the first chapter of THE DARK DIVINE? Already read TDD but you'd like a few behind the scenes tidbits about the writing of the book? Then get ready, because starting on November 16th until December 21st, the Romantic Times will be serializing the first 6 chapters of TDD on their blog, plus they'll be posting exclusive descriptions by me about the writing of each chapter. They will also be running a contest for 6 chances to win a signed copy the book and a bottle of TDD nail polish. I'll be sure to link to it here and on twitter when it starts.

2. The Romantic Times reviewed THE DARK DIVINE and gave it 4 stars!!! That's pretty awesome considering the highest ranking they'll give a book is 4.5 stars. They also ran an awesome feature on the book called "Saving Grace" that had an interview with me and a lot of background info about the inspiration for the story. I wish I could post it here, but you can buy the mag or look up the article in the December issue at Barnes & Noble. (Available now!) Just ask for the The Romantic Times Book Reviews.

3. This weekend I will be speaking on a panel at the SCBWI Conference in Salt Lake City. If you are a kidlit or YA writer in Utah or Idaho, you really should be going to this conference. In fact, going to this conference in the past was a huge step for me in my path to publication, and this is where I met the amazing Brodi Ashton who has become one of my bffs and my loyal writing buddy. For more information, CLICK HERE. You can even register at the door on Saturday if you want.

4. Team GI vs. Team Tamale update: Team GI scored a goal by turning in 45 pages of TDD2. Now Team Tamale is up to bat and Brodi MUST finish her entire first draft of her current novel by 11:59 Wednesday night. Do you think she can make it? After that, I am required to finish 50,000 words of TDD2 by November 30th. (And yes I know that I just mixed my sports metaphors--but at least I know what a bat and a goal are. Sort of.)

3. The Street Team is up and running. I am so grateful to this wonderful group of book lovers. So far they've been blogging, tweeting, reviewing, posting interviews, and generally book lusting after TDD. They even created a facebook fan page for the book. There's a spot over in the side bar where you can join and become a fan of TDD. Go do it. Now. Thanks. Okay, now come back over here.

4. Lots of reviews of TDD, interviews with me, and give-aways for ARCs and swag are popping up around the blogosphere.

For reviews CLICK HERE. Look under "announcements" and you will find links to all of the reviews out there of TDD. (Or at least all the ones that I know of.)

For recent interviews CLICK HERE and HERE.

And for current TDD contests where you can win an ARC CLICK HERE and HERE.

5. And last, but certainly not least, I wanted to feature a couple of more videos from the street team members. They're a lot of fun, so be sure to watch and enjoy.

The first is from Sarah. She was actually the very first person to win an ARC of THE DARK DIVINE when I did my very first giveaway. She liked the book so much she decided to join the street team--and take on all of BYU campus in the process.


The second is a by a teen member of the Street Team named Alex who did a few crazy stunts--like dancing in a men's bathroom--to prove her desire for THE DARK DIVINE.

So many things, so little time

So I have all these things I want to share with you all, including a video and Halloween pics, but I'm going to try to do it quickly since I've got a writing deadline staring me right in the face.

So here we go:

1. Have you heard about the great author smack-down between me and Brodi Ashton? It all started with me having a mental breakdown in a Costco parking lot last week, and ended with Brodi shouting at the top of her lungs "Bree hates BYU!" in the middle of a crowd of BYU fans buying snacks right before the big homecoming game. Basically, Brodi challenged me to a author smack-down and said that I MUST produce 45 pages of my sequel for her by 11:59 pm on November 2nd or else she will break my legs and spread lies about me on her blog. Since then, she has been incessantly tweeting, IMing, and texting me threats/encouraging messages. She's even had her blog followers come over here and leaves threats in my comments section.

Well, not to be threatened without a fight, I've challenged Brodi right back. She must produce a finished draft of her current work in progress by November 8th, or else I will send my burly New Zealand relatives after her.

Brodi has officially dubbed or fight the Chimichanga Challenge of 09. She is team tamale, we are team gluten-intolerance. Please go over to her blog and leave a few threats for me. We at team GI need to show her who's boss! (And don't tell her that I still have 9 more pages of writing to go by tomorrow night.) You can read more about the smack-down here and here.

2. You know how I told you all that I was going to finish my first draft of my sequel by November 24th? Yeah, well, due to unforeseen obligations and a few mental breakdowns (please refer back to the Costco incident) I've realized that isn't going to happen. Instead, I have decided to join the ranks of NaNoWriMo and extend my deadline to November 30th. If you don't know anything about the NaNo, it's a strange phenomenon where writers all over the world gather together during the month of November in an effort to write a 50,000 word novel from start to finish in 30 days. (They each write their own novel, not a giant communal one.) It is basically the NYC marathon of the writing world. You win simply by finishing by the deadline, and there are no prizes, just self satisfaction. Today was the official first day, and I surpassed the daily writing quota by a good 600 words. Go me!

3. Did I tell you that we sold audio rights to THE DARK DIVINE? I know I announced it on twitter, but I think I forgot to mention it here. I used to listen to books on CD all the time while I cleaned my apartment or did homework in college. And now I think it is infinitely cool that people will be able to listen to my book while they drive to work, or while they do the dishes. Just to think that my book may help brighten the mundane tasks of the world!

4. The Romantic Times is going to be doing a huge promotion of THE DARK DIVINE. Starting on November 16th, they will be posting a chapter a week from my book on their blog up until the release date on December 22nd. In conjunction with the serialization, they are also going to be running a 6 week long contest with 6 chances to win a signed copy of TDD and the TDD nail polish. In addition to all that, they will be running 3/4 page ads in their magazine and a feature on the book and a Q&A with me. I'll be sure to keep you guy posted on all of that.

5. Just got word that IndieBound has chosen THE DARK DIVINE as one of their Children's Picks for Winter. I'll link you guys to that when it's officially up on their website.

6. Have I mentioned to you guys just how much I LOVE Halloween? We had an absolutely great time. I carved a dark divine pumpkin to go along with my kid's pumpkins on the porch, and we handed out TDD bookmarks to the mommies who came around on Halloween with their kiddies. But my favorite park of Halloween is getting to wear a costume. I mean, why should wearing costumes just be for kids? Hubby gets even more into the costume thing than I do. In fact, he's the one who makes most of our costumes.

In the last few years we've been: The Scooby Doo gang, The Ghostbusters, The Justice League (yes, I was conned into a Wonder Woman costume by my husband--and NO, I will not post a picture of it here), The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Jedi Knights. This year, we were a little lost for ideas until reading KidA his favorite bedtime story a few weeks ago. That's when we decided to go for a WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE theme. KidZ decided to do his own thing a be a Clone Warrior from STAR WARS. But KidA is still impressionable enough to be talked into being Max while Hubby and I sported Wild Things costumes. Hubby even hand-sewed KidA's Max's Wolf suit. And I dare say he was the cutest kid at every Halloween party we went to.

Max, the king of all the wild things

KidA & Hubby

Me & my little Max

The Whole Wild Gang, including our Clone Warrior

Me & KidZ

7. Last thing: We have finally finalized the Street Team--finally. We were so pleasantly surprised by the amount of applications we got. We were hoping for 10 members at the very least, but because the response was so awesome, we ended up adding a few more spots on the team and ended up 19 official members. But unfortunately, we still weren't able to accommodate everyone who wanted to participate. (Ah, if only promotional fundage grew on trees!)

Members have been contacted, and their goody packages are on their way. I loved the promotional plans and videos we got from everyone. I thought I'd share some of the videos with you all. Here's one of my favorites. I'll feature more of videos and other activities from the street team in future blog posts, but now for your entertainment, I give you Dani and her awesome little brother: