Interview up at Riding Through Life

Sixteen-year old Christine was kind enough to interview me for her awesome blog, Riding Through Life. She's a homeschooler, like I was, a rider and a supercool girl. Check out the interview! Thank you, Christine! :)

Thank you :)

Happy Saturday!

I'm just about to start writing, but wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone for embracing my DearTeenMe.com essay. It went viral like I'd never imagined and the Tweets, comments, emails, etc., about it were so kind.

I've got a *lot* of work to do this weekend, so I'm going to get to it, but thank you all again.

I hope everyone's doing something fun!

xoxo

I'm up at Dear Teen Me

I'm very proud that my essay is posted on Dear Teen Me. It wasn't easy to write and, honestly, I'm feeling kind of queasy/excited right now. It was a great exercise for me, personally, and as a writer. My YA proposal, KEPT, is about this very topic and now it feels like people are getting a sneak peek at what KEPT is about. (If you're interested in more about KEPT, e-mail me or check my Publishers Marketplace page for details.)

But a portion of the essay is on DTM and you can read the full piece on my Jessica Ashley blog post right here.

*Please note that this essay contains some mature content.

Tonight's Pretty Little Liars finale!

Tonight is the finale of PRETTY LITTLE LIARS! *sobs* K and I love, love the series and it's usually the show we work to. I've read all of the books and K's making her way through the series.

I hope tonight's finale delivers and I can't wait for the show to return.

In honor of PLL, Kate and I wanted to feel pretty too, so we did a Queen Helene face mask (above) and did a little extra make up.

Anyone else watching tonight?

45 days and counting . . .

till CHOSEN releases! I'm sooooooooo excited about this book! It's the first ever Canterwood super special and Kate and I worked our butts off on this book. Notice I said "first" super special? Welllll, I'm announcing it for the first time that there will be another super special! A holiday themed one. :) I'm superthrilled to be writing about the holidays, winter, parties, horses in the snow, etc. It's going to be so. much. fun. I hope you guys like the plan, too!

It's going to be a non-stop working weekend for me. I'll be writing INITIATION. It's coming along well so far. A little slow with the beginning just because I still heard Sasha's voice in my head, but now I hear Lauren. I absolutely love her and I think you will too.

I want to know your weekend plans! Doing anything fun? Reading anything good? Spill!

Back to writing with Pretty Little Liars in the background.

Love to Team Canterwood.


xoxo

Just an FYI . . .

(Cross-posted from Violet & Ruby)

Violet and I just found out that there may be someone out there posing as "Violet & Ruby." Though this may just be a big misunderstanding (we hope so, at least). But please be sure that when you're looking for us, stick to this website and this website only (other than our twitter account and each of our separate pages) until further notice.

Sorry about any confusion this may have caused . . . we are both profoundly confused ourselves. But it's safe to continue to visit this site for any updates about the real deal Violet & Ruby :)

Have a good night, all!

A gorgeous Team Eric video

I just found this AMAZING Team Eric video on YouTube from HorseAddict16's channel.

Thank you so much, HorseAddict16! Kate and I watched the video twice and I'm going to buy Taylor Swift's song right now! If anyone else creates a video in the future, please let me know so I can favorite it.

Enjoy, everyone!

Working on a super special suprise for TC!

Because you guys are so awesome and I totally <333 my readers, I'm writing something special for YOU. And just for you. I'm working on it now (slowly as I'm still getting over the flu--ick!), but it'll be ready as soon as I can.

Hints?

It's Canterwood related.

Boys. Or one boy. :)

Also, I finally re-joined Publishers Marketplace--it's a dual page for Kate and me. I'm excited to be able to talk about Violet & Ruby and my WIP. I'm getting ready to look for an editor who might be interested, so if you're curious about it, definitely check out my PM page. (I'm unagented, but have 20 MG books under contract.) Kept, my YA novel, has 40 pages and a synopsis. It's in verse form and I'd label it as The Glass Castle or The Riches meets Ellen Hopkins. Send me an e-mail if you're an editor who'd like to see the proposal.

Back to working on superfun boy project. Much love and many thanks for all the get well wishes!

xo

Vlog answering ?s from MIX

Aladdin MIX's marketing team sent a Flipcam for me to shoot video responses to some questions. I posted the vid on my YouTube channel and the video will also be part of a montage of videos from other authors. The project was talked about by Galley Cat and The Wall Street Journal--pretty cool!

Kate generously offered to shoot the video. Hope you enjoy! :)

Some celebratory shopping

I got some exciting news yesterday! It led to the purchase of the suuuperfun hoodie and the tank below from the place where, um, most of my paycheck goes--VS's PINK line.

The news? Take the Reins earned out its advance! Yay! It wouldn't have happened without *you,* the readers, and my ridiculously talented editor, Kate Angelella.

We decided some celebratory online shopping was in order, so I snagged that doodle zip hoodie and the pretty tank. I love that mix of blue and gray! Plus, I'm always cold, so I can't get enough hoodies.

Again, I'm so grateful that Take the Reins is doing so well and in it's . . . 6th (?--I should check that . . .) printing. I'll be working as I start to feel better on Initiation this weekend and I'm counting down the days until Chosen releases in May. I've got a lot of fun giveaways during release week! :)

Anyone else a PINK fanatic? What's your go-to store when you want to celebrate with clothes, accessories--whatever?

Dominate schedule change

(Cross-posted from Violet & Ruby)

So, I've got some good news and some bad.

First, the bad: I caught a really bad case of the flu and haven't been on the computer much because it makes me nauseous to look at the screen. That meant something happened that does to every writer on a rare occasion--I'm missed my deadline. I'm not well enough to finish my pages for dominate, so the e-novella won't be released on Friday (today) as planned. So sorry, all!

As soon as I feel better, I'll get back to writing and Kate and I will have the e-novella available.

The good: Kate and I decided that we'd give everyone a taste of dominate. Look below for the prologue and we hope you enjoy it! :)

More to come on dominate and thank you all for being so patient!


xo


Jess

dominate

PROLOGUE

The sirens closed in. Before anyone even knew that anything was wrong, the sirens sounded and the lights lit up the stormy midnight sky.

Atop the steepest hill in all of Roquefort Falls (of which there were many), red and blue flashes of light swarmed through the beautiful stone-and-red-brick campus of Wellington Preparatory School like firefly armies invading to warn the entire campus that something had gone very wrong.

Blue flashes cast a pallor over the curious faces of students who were beginning to look out the windows of their dorms, or even pad outside in their designer slipper-shoes, unable to contain the excitement or intense curiosity of what an entire army of police cars must mean.

The students at Wellington Prep were familiar enough with the occasional police car. But, more often than not, their parents took care of whatever the “misunderstanding” before it actually came of anything. Someone would write a check and—poof—the car and the reason for it would disappear.

But this, this was different. There was no misunderstanding.

Wellington was under siege for something real. Too real. And everyone knew it.

It was eerily quiet on campus now. The cars had finished climbing Roaring Brook Hill Road, which led to campus. And, once on campus, the sirens had been turned off so as not to alarm the sleeping students.

A girl with a pale, delicately angular face and sandy brown hair—even more a contrast in the blue-lit moonlight of night turning to early morning—stood outside her dorm and watched as the cars lined up outside. Her expression was stony and cool.

But as she looked up at the tenth floor of her building, her even demeanor shifted.

All over campus, dorm room lights were turning on. But it was her building the police cars were flocking to and lining up in front of. Policemen had begun getting out of the cars, sizing up the building where the girl with the light-brown hair lived.

Their eyes, too, looked up to the tenth floor.

And finally, a light flicked on.

Curtains pulled back, revealing the most stunning girl most people would ever see in real life. A beautiful blond girl, pale hair in long layers of expertly-placed lowlights and highlights. Rosebud lips so naturally pink, she always looked as though she wore a matte rose lipstick. Porcelain, cool-toned skin. Melting brown-sugar eyes that shone clear and placid in the blue and red lights.

She looked down at the girl outside and held her gaze for longer than a minute.

The police, pens and writing pads poised, made their way up to the tenth floor.

The sandy-haired girl watched as the blonde stepped away from the window just as another girl with short, silky blue-black hair stepped in front of her and swished the curtains closed quickly, almost as though she was angry they’d been open in the first place.

The sandy-haired girl took in the scene. A campus full of the best and the brightest. The beautiful and the wealthy. Promise.

Minus one girl. A girl from the tenth floor.

And she knew Wellington Prep would never be the same again.

© Jessica Ashley and Kate Angelella

Initiation (CC #13) up on Amazon

I haven't been on the computer much recently (I'm super sick, ugh!) but someone on Team Canterwood e-mailed me to say that Initiation (Canterwood #13) was up on Amazon. I don't have the high res-cover yet, but this little one is online. Yay!

I love this cover and the names of the new characters will be revealed over time. When I get the cover in a bigger version, I'll repost it so you all can see the details.

Dominate trailer live!

Hope you all like the dominate trailer that Kate and I made! It's also up at Violet & Ruby. We're counting down 'till the March 11 release! Woo!

Couple of cool things

Aladdin MIX's 5th anniversary is coming up. They're giving authors FlipCams to film some fun Q&As and a few other things. The idea made the Wall Street Journal. Cool! Check out "Writers Get Close in Video Interview."

Kate and I also have an account on Smashwords. (Thanks, Bri!) We'll likely be selling our e-books there in addition to other outlets. Here's our profile. :)

I'm finally back on Publishers Marketplace. I added (first time ever) a project that's available. Since I've been unagented for almost 2 years, I thought it was time to get an account for my projects in progress. If you're looking for a YA verse proposal, e-mail me for more details. Plus, there are details about the packager work Kate and I are doing with Violet & Ruby.

New post on YA blog

Just letting my JB blog readers know that there's a new post up on my Jess Ashley blog. :)

'Night!

"Love Is Never Ugly. . ." Beastly by Alex Film to film

Beastly is out today! Anyone else dying to see it? I read Alex Flinn's novel when it came out and loved the book. Kate looooves the trailer, but she hasn't read the book yet. It'll be interesting to see it with two POV's--one who has read the book and one who hasn't.



Anyone read it?

Anyone not read it and going to see the film?

The reviews, um, aren't great. On Yahoo, the 7 critic reviews are a solid D+. The Boston Globe said, "Twilight knockoff is just way off: Beastly a fantasy that fizzles out." Another review, from ReelViews, said the film would have been better suited for ABC Family or The Disney Channel. Is that a knock against two channels with some killer shows? Hello, Pretty Little Liars!

There are several other critics that say things along the same lines. But I'm not one to really pay attention to critic reviews. I mean, when Britney Spears' Crossroads came out in 2002 (don't throw rotten tomatoes at me! :)), I thought it was The. Best. Movie. Ever. I watched it a zillion times on DVD. I was fifteen, but still. Owning it--I loved that movie. And I'd watch it again. La, la, la . . .

(Sorry for the weird French version!)

I like critic's reviews, don't get me wrong, and they serve a purpose. But I highly value reader/viewer reviews even more. If you love a book or movie and a critic hates it, who cares? The main thing is that YOU enjoyed it.

I hope it's the same case with me and Beastly. The book was unforgettable and I'm ignoring the reviews and am excited to see it. I'll try not to compare it to the book--I know how those things work and how changes need to be made. But it'll also make for interesting conversation about the changes that came about from the novel to the big screen with people who have and haven't read the novel.

So, I said Yahoo had rounded up the critic's reviews that gave the movie a D+. Well, the reviews from viewers are a B+. One of my fave review titles from a viewer is "Candy for the eyes, chocolate for the heart." Um, sounds good to me! I'm hoping I'll walk out saying, "Candy for the eyes, sparkles for everyone!" :)

I'm curious to see High School Music-er Vanessa Hudgens out of that role (I haven't see her in anything else though I know she's been in a couple of films) and I have not seen Alex Pettyfer before. Kate and I want to see I Am Number Four, though.

It's especially interesting for us as writers because I Am Number Four is the first film to come from James Frey's controversial packager, Full Fathom Five. If you're a writer, or an aspiring one, and you haven't read the linked article, "James Frey's Fiction Factory", by Suzanne Mozes, I highly suggest you do. I'm getting off track from Beastly, BUT the article about Full Fathom Five is a must read for any writer. This particular article came out last November and there are several new ones since. It serves as a warning, especially to new writers, about this company and if you see a poster, flyer, etc., at your college or university (there are some floating around NYC campuses, apparently), definitely approach the company about work for hire writing at your own risk.

BACK to the blog topic! (Geeze--ramble much?!) Today's a big day for Alex, so go congratulate her! If you see Beastly or have read the book, come back and chat about it. I'd love to hear your take. I'll be on the computer a lot this weekend and I'll be checking comments and responding as I'm able.

TGIF, everyone!

xo