HELLFINDER SCAVENGER HUNT

Hello hunters! Welcome to the Hellfinder Scavenger Hunt where your job is to find or borrow or steal (just kidding, don't steal) as many of the 20 items listed below as you can. Why THESE particular items? Because they all feature in the story in one way or another.

Reminder, this hunt goes for 12 hours and if there is a tie for the highest number of items, I will award multiple prizes, so there's no need not to read all of the (admittedly tedious) rules below. Apologies for the long rules—I did this in the past and it was kind of chaotic so I am trying to keep it very organized and clear.

Grand prize for the Scavenger Hunt will be a signed paperback of Hellfinder and your choice of 2 other signed Paula Stokes books, for a total of 3 books! And if you've already pre-ordered Hellfinder, I'll throw in a 3rd signed Paula Stokes book and a signed bookplate instead of the Hellfinder paperback if you want. Availability depends on my current supply of books, but I definitely have brand new copies of Hidden Pieces, Liars Inc, Vicarious, and Ferocious, as well as some used copies of Girl Against the Universe if you prefer a swoony contemp. Sorry, this one is US only because I can't afford to send books overseas anymore.

HELLFINDER HUNT RULES!

• The contest goes from 12:10PM Pacific to 11:59PM Pacific on 8/29/23
• This contest is US entrants only. You must be 13 or have a guardian’s permission to participate.
• There are 20 total items to look for in the hunt, and I am asking you to put up to 5 items in each picture, for a total of up to 20 items and 4 pictures.
• No picture should have more than 5 items.
• The only way you will post fewer than 4 images is if you have zero items from one of the sets.
• Please put all items on floor and photograph them from above so I can identify them clearly.
• Please photograph all items on the same background—carpet or floor. See my examples below.
• You cannot use AI or digital editing to generate any of your pictures.
• The items must all by physical items. You cannot print out images for any of them, including the map, Northern Lights, and volcano items.
• There’s very little wiggle room—you can’t use chocolate chips for the chocolate bar, a cupcake for the cookie, a sweatshirt for a sweater, etc. If you have questions you can post a comment or email me and I'll try to respond within 2 hours, but the answer is probably no.
• I am the final judge of what counts and what doesn’t. It’s possible I will make a decision you disagree with. It is possible I will make a bad decision, as I am human and prone to errors. My decisions are final word. Please remember this is just a fun contest and even if you didn’t win, you also didn’t lose anything, right?
• You must post your images on social media with the caption listed below to enter.
• I honestly don’t think the prize of 3 of my books really warrants cheating, but people do surprise me, so if you are the winner but I think you may have used AI or editing or took someone else’s picture, etc., I reserve the right to ask you to provide extra images to verify your entry.

Please post your 4 pictures before 11:59PM Pacific time on 8/29/23 on FB, IG, or Twitter (sorry i will never call it X) with this caption:

 
I entered the #Hellfinder release day scavenger hunt. I found [number of items you found] out of 20 items. Hellfinder is a YA adventure novel by @pstokesbooks that takes place in Iceland.


Okay, now for the items!

PICTURE ONE:

1. A cookie
2. A mysterious-looking rock that is at least 5cm by 5cm
3. A sweater
4. Tea (loose, bag, or in the cup okay)
5. A backpack

PICTURE TWO:

1. A map (of anywhere)
2. A salt shaker
3. A rock band T-shirt
4. A full-sized or bigger chocolate bar. Must be rectangular (Sorry. No Reeses, M&Ms, etc).
5. Something with the Northern Lights pictured on it (post card, magnet, coffee cup, hat, shirt, travel guide, etc. Must be a physical item and not a drawing or copy/printout)

PICTURE THREE:

1. A journal (smaller notebook or composition book okay)
2. A book featuring devils or demons
3. Ski goggles (sunglasses do not count)
4. A helmet
5. A metal chain (okay if it has a charm on it)

PICTURE FOUR:

1. A first aid kit
2. A cut out paper snowflake, like you probably made in grade school. Since this is the only item in the hunt you can make yourself, I’m going to be a stickler and say it has to have 6 points like a proper snowflake. Again, you can't print out an image. You gotta get crafty if you want this point.
3. A slingshot
4. Something with a volcano pictured on it
5. A pair of crampons (I will accept the more suburban variety like Yak-traks).

Here are my example images. Try not to have other items in your pictures, but cats are gonna cat, so no points off for a photobomb :) And here's my caption:

I entered the #Hellfinder release day scavenger hunt. I found 15 out of 20 items. Hellfinder is a YA adventure novel by @pstokesbooks that takes place in Iceland.

Did you participate in the hunt? I hope you had fun and did not trash your living space the way I did trying to set up these pictures in 10 minutes after oversleeping. Now go drink that tea and eat that cookie. You've earned it :)

HELLFINDER release week contests

 HELLFINDER releases on Aug 29th. If you want a hardcover, you'll need to order directly from the publisher, Regal House Press. I have not even seen the hardcover copies yet, but I ordered one for myself, one for my mom, and one to give away. I'll post a pic when I can.

Speaking of giveways!

HELLFINDER RELEASE WEEK CONTESTS AND GIVEAWAYS

FIND A PHYSICAL COPY OF HELLFINDER (US and INT):
All week, from Monday Aug 28 through Sunday Sept 3, if you find a copy of Hellfinder in the wild at a local bookstore or library, take a picture or video, post it on your social media, caption it "I found #Hellfinder at [name of store or library]", and tag me (@pstokesbooks on IG, Twitter, or FB), you'll win a prize. What kind of prize? It's a secret! :)

RELEASE DAY HELLFINDER-THEMED SCAVENGER HUNT (US only):
From 12PM Pacific to 11:59PM Pacific on Aug 29th. One day only. Come back to my blog on Aug 29th for the Official Hellfinder Release Day Scavenger Hunt (starting at noon because I want to be awake and functional to answer questions that arise). I'll be providing a list of 20 items you have to try and find, as well as giving you directions for how to arrange them in images and share them so you can officially enter the contest. This is not timed. If there is a tie for the highest number of items, I will award multiple prizes.

Grand prize for the Scavenger Hunt will be a signed paperback of Hellfinder and your choice of 2 other signed Paula Stokes books, for a total of 3 books! And if you've already pre-ordered Hellfinder, I'll throw in a 3rd signed Paula Stokes book and a signed bookplate instead of the Hellfinder paperback if you want. Availability depends on my current supply of books, but I definitely have brand new copies of Hidden Pieces, Liars Inc, Vicarious, and Ferocious, as well as some used copies of Girl Against the Universe if you prefer a swoony contemp. Sorry, this one is US only because I can't afford to send books overseas anymore.

THE HUNT IS LIVE. CLICK HERE FOR ALL THE MAYHEM, I MEAN DETAILS :)

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS HELLFINDER?? (US and INT):

Saturday September 2nd, starting at 12PM Pacific. I am (pretend) hiding a fancy hardcover copy of Hellfinder somewhere on the planet. It will be in a very mysterious and (hopefully) hard to guess place.

Starting at noon on 9/2, I will release clues to the location of the book on social media and/or this website. First person to guess the location wins. Guessing the location involves naming the country, city, area/park/building, and specific hiding place. So for example, to win you can't just says "Hallgrimskirkja!" You have to say "Iceland, Reykjavik, Hallgrimskirkja, in the elevator that goes to the roof." 

Don't worry if you have questions, All will be explained. Just know that it's a fun time and you should play, and that I'm going to try to make it harder so people can't use AI or Google to figure out the location in 5 minutes like may have happened in the past, ha :) US winner wins signed hardcover of Hellfinder or $20 gift card. International winner wins $20 gift card.

Do you want to score HELLFINDER pre-order swag but aren't ready to order yet? I will extend the pre-order incentive through the end of release week. Order any time by September 3rd and score a signed bookplate, bookmark, and stickers! US or INT.  See here for more details.

HELLFINDER pre-order incentive

Are you thinking of pre-ordering HELLFINDER? 

Pre-orders help publishers gauge interest for titles and can also generate early buzz for books. Currently my editor is considering a second book from me--this one a girl power contemp with a vibe kind of like if Girl Against the Universe and The Art of Lainey had a baby. If you like the sound of that and you're planning to buy Hellfinder, ordering early is an easy way to show support for future titles by me.

In exchange for your support, I've got some fun swag and bonus contests available only to readers who pre-order.

First, I'll send anyone who orders Hellfinder on or before Sept 2, 2023 a bookmark, 2 stickers, and personalized signed bookplate.

Second, for every 10 pre-orders, I'll give away a 10-page writing critique. Critiques are transferable to a friend or family member, but they can't be sold and the pages to critique must be emailed to me at pstokesbooks@gmail.com by Dec 31st 2023.

Third, for every 25 pre-orders, I'll give away a $25 gift card to Etsy, where the winner could use the credit to buy themselves an authentic gift that was Made in Iceland! (But also it's your prize and you can do whatever you want with it.)

You can order Hellfinder in the usual places, but if you want to support an all-female run small business, pre-order direct from Regal House/Fitzroy.

Regal House is also the only place where you can order a Special Edition Hardcover! I would show you a picture but I don't have any hardcovers yet. I know this gorgeous cover is going to look fantastic in HC, though :)

How to claim your swag and enter for the other prizes:

1. Take a picture of or screenshot your pre-order receipt.

2. Email that image to pstokesbooks@gmail.com subject Hellfinder pre-order by Sept 3.

3. In your email, let me know what name you want me to write on the bookplate or if you just want it generically signed.

4. If you are not interested in entering for the 10-page critique because you don't know any writers, let me know that too and if I end up randomly selecting you I'll pick again.

5. Winners will be notified by Sept 9.

6. Giftcards and swag will be mailed out on or before Sept 16.

7. If you win a writing critique, I need your pages by the end of the year and you can expect turn-around on them in a month or less.

International pre-orders and entrants welcome. I'm not sure where (if?) you can get a physical book without paying a ton of shipping now that Book Depository is gone, but hopefully you can find an ebook if you are interested.

Email me if you have any questions.