Saturday, August 18, 2012

Authors ARE Rockstars Tour: Guest Post by Gretchen McNeil & Giveaway

Today I have a guest post and a giveaway from Gretchen McNeil for this stop on the Authors ARE Rockstars tour, and I'm very excited to have her here as a guest! 

When I first read Gretchen McNeil's debut novel POSSESS, I knew immediately that Gretchen was a rockstar. She managed to write a novel filled with all the elements I love in a story: family, friends, sarcastic narrators, creepy talking dolls (okay, I don’t love this, but it freaked me out so that’s a bonus), diverse characters, sweet guys, and a captivating mystery. Gretchen McNeil is also a total rockstar because she sings with a circus troupe called Cirque Berzerk. How cool is that?  Plus, anyone that can take the song Ice Ice Baby and sing it in an opera style is a rockstar in my mind.  
"Gretchen McNeil is an opera singer, writer and clown.  Her YA horror POSSESS debuted with Balzer + Bray for HarperCollins in 2011.  Her follow up TEN – YA horror/suspense about ten teens trapped on a remote island with a serial killer – will be released September 18, 2012, and her third novel 3:59, sci fi horror pitched as The Parent Trap meets Event Horizon, is scheduled for Fall 2013.

Gretchen is a former coloratura soprano, the voice of Mary on G4's Code Monkeys and she sings with the LA-based circus troupe Cirque Berzerk.  Gretchen blogs with The Enchanted Inkpot and is a founding member of the vlog group the YARebels where she can be seen as 'Monday.'"
TEN by Gretchen McNeil
Releases September 18th, 2012
Balzer + Bray
And their doom comes swiftly.

"It was supposed to be the weekend of their lives – three days on Henry Island at an exclusive house party. Best friends Meg and Minnie each have their own reasons for wanting to be there, both of which involve Kamiak High’s most eligible bachelor, T.J. Fletcher. But what starts out as a fun-filled weekend turns dark and twisted after the discovery of a DVD with a sinister message: Vengeance is mine.

Suddenly, people are dying and the teens are cut off from the outside world. No electricity, no phones, no internet, and a ferry that isn’t scheduled to return for two days. As the deaths become more violent and the teens turn on each other, can Meg find the killer before more people die? Or is the killer closer to her than she could ever imagine?" 
Top Ten Things You DON'T Know About My Books
by Gretchen McNeil

1.  While most people know that POSSESS was not the first book I wrote (there's a YA urban fantasy set in Ireland that my agent signed me for) most people don't know that the first book I wrote was actually and adult chick lit book called O'DONNELL WITH TWO L'S.  Also partially set in Ireland.  Go figure.

2.  There is also a shelved YA historical spy adventure novel with pirates and cross-dressing girl spies and a hot, hot Navy lieutenant that's just sitting in a drawer somewhere, waiting to see the light of day.  It's my pet project.

3.  POSSESS was originally titled BANISH.

4.  TEN is an homage to two of my favorite authors of all time – Agatha Christie and Christopher Pike.

5.  When I found out that Christopher Pike was going to blurb TEN, I cried.  True story, I read the email from Mr. Pike and burst into tears.  My boyfriend asked why and I explained that I was reading an email from the Christopher Pike.  His response?  "Why is the Captain of the Enterprise emailing you?"  Tears quickly turned to laughter.

6.  TEN is dedicated to the memory of the mother of a dear friend.  I was flying from LA to San Francisco for her memorial service the day I got the call from my agent that my publisher wanted to sign me up for more books.  It seemed appropriate.

7.  The idea for 3:59 came while I was waiting at a stoplight on my way home from my day job and had a weird doppelganger experience.  By the time I pulled into my driveway, I'd formulated a rough sketch of the plot.

8.  There are two significant surnames in TEN.  Pritchard (a nod to Mathew Prichard, Agatha Christie's grandson) and Fletcher (from Jessica Fletcher of Murder, She Wrote.)

9.  I've always hated my first name. When I was in the second grade, we did a project about other names our parents were considering.  My mom told me that they'd almost named me Bridget.  The next day I started telling people to call me Bridget.  The teacher had to call my mom to clarify, whereupon my mom sat me down and explained that once I was 18 I was welcome to change my name to whatever I wanted, but until then I would be Gretchen.

10.  I pitched my next two books as Revenge meets The Breakfast Club.  Look for the first in 2014…


Thank you for the fascinating guest post, Gretchen! Gretchen's also sponsoring a giveaway for one paperback copy of POSSESS (US ONLY), so enter using the Rafflecopter below: 


a Rafflecopter giveaway


49 comments:

  1. If I wasn't already sold on reading POSSESS you totally sold me with that description. And oh the creepy dolls. Those would freak ANYONE out.

    I loved this top ten list. I think I only knew two of the ten, so it was awesome to learn these new things about the author.

    And yes, I'm totally intrigued about a book that has anything remotely similar to The Breakfast Club. :)

    Gretchen McNeil is a total rockstar and yep, I'd seen her wonderful operatic performance before. She totally rocked it! I'd click the link again but don't think my neighbors would appreciate it blasting at close to 1 a.m.

    Thank you so much for agreeing to be a part of our tour and being such an awesome host for such an awesome writer!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But who doesn't love a little Vanilla Ice at 1am???

      Delete
  2. Ooh, Revenge meets The Breakfast Club? Definitely going on my wishlist. Great top ten list--always intrigued by the various incarnations of a novel before it's published.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I should be able to announce the deal for the new series next month. :-)

      Delete
  3. Why do you hate your name? I like it. And if you do, why havent' you changed it yet?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mostly because everyone assumed I was German, and I'm actually 100% Irish. And also, I've just never felt it was a pretty name.

      Delete
  4. I love how authors still get fan crazy over other authors. I makes me feel normal for going fan crazy over an author. I love Possess and can't wait to buy Ten!

    -Emilia

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yep. I totally lost my cool over Christopher Pike!

      Delete
  5. Ahh, no wonder I was reminded of And Then There Were None when I read your book's blurb! You're an Agatha Christie fan! :) I played the game- yeah, there's one- and it was really fun! :) Haven't read the book though- but I wanna read TEN more! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Huge Christie fan. Like read all of her books multiple times kind of huge.

      Delete
  6. I've wanted to read Possess for awhile, and Ten sounds so awesome! I love the Ireland connection, as that is the next place I want to visit next time I go out of the United States. I also think that using surnames that give connections to what she is a fan of is such a neat idea. In the one novel I've got halfway done, I've done some of that myself. Such a neat post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've got a lot of family and friends in Ireland so I've been quite a bit. I love it there.

      Delete
  7. Haha I'm so nervous to read Ten because I'm not the best with scary stuff, but I promised myself I'd try new genres and I decided Ten would be my foray into that genre. But I also promised myself that I would read it in broad daylight with all 3 of my cats sitting with me to guard me from anything! haha

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's a quick read! Like pulling a band aid off. ;-)

      Delete
  8. Ten sounds so amazing! I love the Ice, Ice, baby part lol. Yes I can totally see crying if I got an email from Christopher Pike. I grew up reading his books and loved them. Truth be told I still have most of them and reread them sometimes. Witch was always a favorite of mine. I think most of us go through a spell of not liking our name. Thank you so much for a great stop. I love this tour and finding out so many new things about different authors.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I love about your name! I use to do a little research project with my 7th graders about their names and what they mean etc. So many disliked them or disliked their middle names!!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I can't wait to try Ten.
    I'm a mystery loving girl too.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I've had Possess on my TBR list for a while, and I think I should pick it up soon!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I would love to read Possess. It sounds very good. Thanks for the giveaway. Tore923@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
  13. This was a totally awesome guest post! When I first heard that there was an author named Christopher Pike, I, too, first thought of Star Trek. LOL!!!

    Thanks so much for being part of the tour, you did a fantastic job!

    -Patricia

    ReplyDelete
  14. I'm waiting for that pet project about "cross-dressing girl spies" to see the light of day as well. I know I will be first in line to read it.
    And Christopher Pike~ I love his work. I remember falling in love when I first picked up Falling a few years back (I still don't think it belongs shelved in the YA section, but I loved it all the same).

    Lilian @ A Novel Toybox

    ReplyDelete
  15. I had no idea you wrote both books I have them both on my TBR list I love and then there were none so as soon as I read it was a kind of retelling I had to add it

    ReplyDelete
  16. Awesome 10 Things list! I LOVE Christopher Pike! That is so awesome that he wrote a blurb for Ten! And I love your boyfriend's response toward the Christopher Pike e-mail. I love the sound of your pet project, especially for the hot Navy lieutenant. I can't wait to read Ten!

    Revenge meets The Breakfast Club - YES!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Creepy talking dolls? Sign me up!

    Oh, and my adoration for Agatha Christie knows no bounds, so I love that you love her. Also, I think I may explode with impatience before I finally get my hands on TEN.

    ReplyDelete
  18. I think Gretchen is a beautiful name, and ... my best friend from high school had the last name of Pritchard lol

    Just like everyone else, I can't WAIT to get my hands on TEN ... my birthday is in just a few days and I put it on my wish list <3 :D

    Thank you for the sweet giveaway!
    Mary DeBorde M.A.D.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Hey Gretchen. Great post. I was wonderining why you changed your book name from Banish to Possess?

    ReplyDelete
  20. I've heard enough about Gretchen McNeil to know that she's a rockstar. I can't wait to read Possess and Ten!
    Great post Gretchen! x]

    ReplyDelete
  21. I am literally counting down the days for TEN

    ReplyDelete
  22. Is ten based on And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie? I know you said it's homage to her. I read that book in the eighth grade and still think about it sometimes which is the mark of a good book right? I loved the mystery of that novel so I can't wait to read Ten to see the influence!

    --Markella

    ReplyDelete
  23. I didn't know she wrote TEN as well, but I read Posses and I LOVED it! Can't wait until TEN comes out!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  24. Awesome Top Ten List, who knew.. I've had Ten and Possess on my wish list for a while now.

    ReplyDelete
  25. I have been wanting to read Possess since I first started following you on Twitter, so even if I don't win a copy, I'm buying a copy:)

    ...But I still hope I win! :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. I love the bit about Christopher Pike blurbing your book and your hubby! TOO FUNNY and AWESOME all at the same time. I can't imagine what it's like to score a huge author like that to blurb your book. Very cool.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Gretchen is a rock star! I'm excited for Ten even though, admittedly I haven't gotten to Possessing yet.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I actually just finished Ten yesterday!! I loved the mystery and intensity of the book:)

    ReplyDelete
  29. I love Christopher Pike. I think I would cry if he ever wrote anything for me too!! I'm so excited to read your book!

    ReplyDelete
  30. Christopher Pike is a rockstar author! I don't blame you for crying, I would have too, after I picked myself up off the floor that is!

    So, when you turned 18 did you ever think about changing your name? I considered changing mine because my mom and I have the same first name and same middle initial. Our credit histories were all confused. Instead, the day after I got married I went to change my last name and completely dropped my maiden name. (well okay, if not my name would have been over 30 characters long...)

    ReplyDelete
  31. I am so freaking excited for Ten. There's not a lot of good YA horror floating around these days so I always look forward to new stuff and I've already been hearing great things about Ten!

    ReplyDelete
  32. I'm adding both POSSESS and TEN to my wishlist ASAP. Great post!

    ReplyDelete
  33. Both books look fabulous! Thanks for an awesome spotlight! I can't wait for Ten. It looks thrilling, creepy, AWESOME-SAUCE! Woot!

    I missed putting Comment Name in the Rafflecopter! OOps! I'm entry 90

    ReplyDelete
  34. Number 5... omg... I laughed so hard I think I cried. And the name thing. I love Gretchen!!! I met her at BEA and she is so super fantastic.

    ReplyDelete
  35. I so want to read Ten. A murder mystery with teens isolated on an island. It definitely sounds like a book I'll enjoy.

    ReplyDelete
  36. I am incredibly excited for Ten, even if the plot somewhat reminds me of the season finale of Sunset Beach (a horrible soap opera I watched fifteen years ago). I am just going to assume that this will be much, much better;)

    ReplyDelete
  37. Great interview! I thought that TEN sounded like a great book before knowing anything about the author-now having read interview I want to know more about her books. I love the subtle nods she gives to fav characters and authors in her books. Crossing my fingers for the win.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Nice list. I like the title and cover.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Possess sounds really interesting! I also liked the Christopher Pike scenario.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Great post! I love learning about different authors!

    ReplyDelete