Tuesday, September 29, 2020

Fall 2020 YA Scavenger Hunt

 

I'm humbled and honored to participate in the final YA Scavenger Hunt! I participated in my first YASH back in 2013 and it has been a wild ride. I've really enjoyed hosting bonus content, designing secondary giveaways, and being part of the internet's most epic blog hop for YA books.

YASH gives you a chance to check out scads of fun bonus material and enter to win lots of books and other fun prizes. If you're new to the hunt, confused about how to play, or you get stuck somewhere, check this site for instructions on how to hunt. The hunt starts at noon Pacific (so 3pm Eastern) on Sept 29 and runs through noon Pacific on October 4. If you start hunting early, it's possible not all of the links will work.

NOTE: There are multiple numbers in this post because Jessica's book description contains numbers and so do the above paragraphs. The secret number is NOT 2013, 3, 29, or 4. You will know it when you find it :)



Once again, I am proud to represent the  BLUE TEAM! I'm thrilled to host fellow Portland-area author Jessica Brody, who is featuring a book she wrote with Joanne Rendell. SKY WITHOUT STARS is the first book in the System Divine series. Is this cover magnificent or what? Score yourself a copy here. The second book in the series, BETWEEN BURNING WORLDS, is also available for purchase.




A thief.
An officer.
A guardian.

Three strangers, one shared destiny…

When the Last Days came, the planet of Laterre promised hope. A new life for a wealthy French family and their descendants. But five hundred years later, it’s now a place where an extravagant elite class reigns supreme; where the clouds hide the stars and the poor starve in the streets; where a rebel group, long thought dead, is resurfacing.

Whispers of revolution have begun—a revolution that hinges on three unlikely heroes…

Chatine is a street-savvy thief who will do anything to escape the brutal Regime, including spy on Marcellus, the grandson of the most powerful man on the planet.

Marcellus is an officer—and the son of a renowned traitor. In training to take command of the military, Marcellus begins to doubt the government he’s vowed to serve when his father dies and leaves behind a cryptic message that only one person can read: a girl named Alouette.

Alouette is living in an underground refuge, where she guards and protects the last surviving library on the planet. But a shocking murder will bring Alouette to the surface for the first time in twelve years…and plunge Laterre into chaos.

All three have a role to play in a dangerous game of revolution—and together they will shape the future of a planet.

Power, romance, and destiny collide in this sweeping reimagining of Victor Hugo’s masterpiece, Les Misérables.


For her bonus content, Jessica is sharing these incredible character cards, which were created by fellow author Jessica Khoury at Lizard Ink Maps.







I literally gasped when I saw these. I still can't decide who is my favorite, but I wish I could trade cheekbones with any of these characters. I also wish there were five (5) more of these, or perhaps a dozen! The artwork is très magnifique! (Yes, the secret number for this post is 5, but keep reading for a chance to win a gift card or some cold hard ca$h!)

Here's more about Jessica:

Jessica Brody is the author of more than 20 novels for teens, tweens, and adults including The Geography of Lost Things, The Chaos of Standing Still, A Week of Mondays, 52 Reasons to Hate My Father, Better You Than Me, the Unremembered trilogy, and the System Divine trilogy which is a sci-fi reimagining of Victor Hugo's Les Misérables, co-written with Joanne Rendell. She’s also the author of Save the Cat! Writes a Novel (the #1 bestselling plotting guide for novelists) and several books based on popular Disney franchises like Descendants and LEGO Disney Princess. Jessica’s books have been translated and published in over 23 countries and several have been optioned for film and television. She lives with her husband and three dogs near Portland, OR

Visit her online at JessicaBrody.com. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram @JessicaBrody.


SECONDARY GIVEAWAY!

For my secondary giveaway, I'm going to hook a second winner up with a $20 gift card for Amazon, B&N, Etsy, Society6, Target, Kohls, Best Buy, or Starbucks. If none of those gift cards work for you, you can also select to receive $20 USD via Paypal or your choice of any book(s) up to $20 in price from Book Depository or Wordery.

Some of the entries involve promoting STELLAR. This is one of my favorite things that I have ever written. Stella and Betsy's friendship was pure joy to explore--the dialogue basically wrote itself--and the internet romance was inspired by real events from my past life as a girl gamer. I was planning to post this novel on the SwoonReads platform today, but they're currently closed to submissions, so I hope to find a publisher for this novel or release it myself by early 2021. Sorry about the last minute change! If you read the first 10 chapters and really don't want to wait to read the rest, send me an email and I'll try to set you up with a digital ARC.

 To enter my secondary contest, just fill out the Rafflecopter below.

In case you missed it, my secret number is 5. Good luck!

Are you ready for more exclusive content, fantabulous secondary contests, and general YASH mayhem?!? Michelle Reynoso is next for the blue team.

As always, A HUGE THANK YOU to the organizers of the hunt. Thank you so much for your time and effort throughout the years. It's been a blast and I feel honored to have been included. #YASHForever :)


Monday, February 3, 2020

Stronger than Words Street Team

I'm recruiting for a small street team for my latest release, STRONGER THAN WORDS, available now on Wattpad and the Swoon Reads platform. Teamers who complete all of the required activities will receive a $10 gift card plus the opportunity to use me as a reference for college, graduate school, internships, or relevant job applications! And if Stronger than Words is selected by the Swoon Reads team for publication, all teamers will receive $100 via PayPal or another gift card.



Here's more info about the book:
Formerly homeless Mackenzie Craig has worked her way up to the number two spot in her graduating class and secured a scholarship to a great college. But then she collapses at the state debate championships. She's rushed to the hospital where her prognosis is grave--she's having a stroke.

Mackenzie wakes up unable to walk or speak normally. She works hard to return to school in time to graduate, but when she overhears a classmate insulting her little sister, she doesn't have the words to tell him off, so she punches him.

When her college finds out about the assault, they threaten to revoke her scholarship. Mackenzie must meet with them to defend her actions before the fall semester starts. But August is only three months away. Can she re-learn to communicate in time for her hearing? Or will her stroke steal away her entire future?

Stronger than Words
is a story of perseverance, hope, and human connection.




Here are the street team details:

In order to apply, first read the entire story on Swoon Reads and leave a short review in the comments for the book. Then fill out this form to officially request to be part of the team. I will accept applications until February 26 and notify accepted teamers by Feb 29. Incentives will be mailed out at the end of June to teamers who complete all of the following activities.

In order to apply you must have (or be willing to create) the following:
  • a free Swoon Reads account
  • either a Twitter or Instagram account--ideally both
  • a Goodreads account
  • At least one additional way beyond the above to review the story--could be Facebook, Wattpad, a personal blog, membership to a YA review blog like YA Books Central, a YouTube channel, a Tumblr, etc. If you don't have any of these things and still really want to participate, you can agree to write a short review on your Instagram account.
  • There is no requirement as far as number of followers you have. If you're looking to get some book promotion experience, this is a great opportunity for people just starting out. International teamers welcome.

Here are the required activities:

February:

March-April:
  • Cross-post your review from Swoon Reads to Goodreads.
  • Add your quotes from STRONGER THAN WORDS to Goodreads, or vote for them if they've already been added.
  • Vote for STRONGER THAN WORDS on 3 Goodreads lists. You can also add the book to other existing lists.
  • Create four to eight quote/image graphics using your fave quotes from the story. You can make your own backgrounds if you own the rights to the images or you get them from a free image bank like on Canva. For an easier option, you can use templates I will provide formatted for both Twitter and IG and simply add text to them. If you've never done this before, canva.com is a great way to start. If you're unclear whether an image is copyrighted, for purposes of this team you must assume it is. I don't mean for these to be time-consuming unless you want to spend extra time making your own. If you use my templates, you should be able to cut/paste quotes from Goodreads and format everything in less than an hour.
  • Once a week, during March and April, for a total of eight times, post a quote/image graphic on Twitter or Instagram with a link to the book on Swoon Reads. You can use each quote up to two times if needed. If you forget one week, you can do two the next week, but no more than twice a week. Be sure to tag me (@pstokesbooks) so I can retweet if I happened to be on social media. 
You can make up your own captions, but if you want to use something ready made, here are a couple to make your life easier ;) 
Did you know you can read STRONGER THAN WORDS, an uplifting contemporary YA novel by @pstokesbooks for free on @SwoonReads? https://www.swoonreads.com/m/stronger-than-words/
Did you enjoy @pstokesbooks GIRL AGAINST THE UNIVERSE? Check out her latest contemporary YA novel, STRONGER THAN WORDS, for free on @SwoonReads! https://www.swoonreads.com/m/stronger-than-words/

May-June:
  • Catch up time--if you missed one or two of the March-April activities, you can do them now for full credit. Life happens to all of us and this "professor" accepts late work ;)
  • Review the story one other way--this could be YouTube, Facebook, Wattpad, personal blog, YA review website, Instagram, etc. You can cross-post your earlier review or edit it longer or shorter for the medium you choose.
  • Complete one additional promo activity of your choosing. This could be making and sharing a mood board (again Canva is great for free images), creating fan art, making and sharing a five-question discussion guide, interviewing me on your blog or social, getting three of your friends to read the story, hosting a contest in support of the book, reviewing the book on an additional site, etc. I'm totally flexible here and if you think it counts then it counts. Pick something fun!
  • Read at least 20% of one additional book (written by anyone) on Swoon Reads and leave a comment at any point during the February through June period. I don't want people to join the site just to enter a contest of mine without giving anything back to the community. I have pledged to read a book a month this year and I'm going to work hard to keep that pledge :)
  • Fill out the Street Team form (I will send to all teamers) by the end of June with links/images/whatever to show that you completed all of the activities



Here's what you'll get for being a teamer:
  • Everyone selected who completes all of the above activities by June 30, 2020 will receive a $10 gift card or a $10 book from Book Depository or Wordery. Sorry, I know it's not much, but this girl is financially struggling at the moment ;)
  • If STRONGER THAN WORDS is selected for publication by Swoon Reads, everyone on the team who completes all of the activities will receive $100 via PayPal or a $100 gift card.
  • Everyone selected who completes all of the activities is free to contact me at any point in the future to request a reference for college, graduate school, an internship, or a job that is somehow related to books and/or book promotion.

Here's the link to apply for the team. Thanks for considering supporting my latest novel. It was not a hard choice to give the book away for free. I love it, I believe it's quality work, and I think it could empower readers. However, not having a traditional publisher means there's no one with industry backing to get the word out about the book. Even if the street team is not for you, I hope you will consider checking out Stronger than Words on Swoon Reads, especially if you'd like to read more contemporaries from me someday :)