A Very Grimbaud Giveaway!

Hello readers! We survived our first week of February. Or maybe it's just me because, after getting hit with a stomach virus at the end of January, I now finally feel well enough to eat... normal food. No more toast, rice, and saltines. Hurrah! 

AND JUST IN TIME! Because I have had Big Plans for this month. If I have anything to do with it, the rest of February is only going to get better. 

I'm excited to announce that I will be hosting a few giveaways this month... and they all start TODAY! 

No matter the giveaway, they all begin today (February 9th, 2016) and run until the end of the month, February 29th, 2016.

Who Can Enter?

ANYONE! These giveaways are open internationally and in the US. 

How Do I Enter the Giveaway(s)?

Depends on the social media. My giveaways are on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. 

Facebook

"Like" my page and leave a comment on my giveaway post. The winner will be chosen at random.

It's February 9th, which meaaaans... giveaway time! In order to win a personalized, autographed copy of LOVE FORTUNES...

Posted by Kimberly Karalius on Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Twitter

Follow me and Retweet my giveaway tweet. The winner will be chosen at random. 

Giveaway! RT & follow @kkaralius by 2/29 for a chance to win a signed copy of LOVE FORTUNES + book swag! Open Int'l pic.twitter.com/L7aa91Jaao

— Kim Karalius (@kkaralius) February 9, 2016

Instagram

Okay, so since I LOVE Instagram way too much, this giveaway is more involved. There will be THREE winners. Why? Because I'm running three different photo contests. You can enter one or all of them:

1. Post a Valentine's Day inspired photo with the words "Love Fortunes and Other Disasters" and "Kimberly Karalius" included in some way, shape, or form. Example below:

2. Post a Valentine's Day inspired photo with your copy of Love Fortunes and Other Disasters.

3. Post a photo of of First Kisses and Other Misfortunes - of you reading it, your favorite page, anything! It's up to you! 

In order to be entered into the contest(s), you MUST use the hashtag #thegrimbaudlife and PLEASE use these additional appropriate hashtags like #kimberlykaralius #LoveFortunesandOtherDisasters #FirstKissesandOtherMisfortunes #SwoonReads

I will choose one winner from each category, but I'll also be able to feature everyone's photos who entered on my blog (as long as you use the hashtags, my friends, haha). 

What do I win? 

Now we're talking, right? 

Every winner, no matter the giveaway, wins this totally awesome pack of Grimbaud book swag and other magical Valentine's Day goodies. Let me break it down:

Left to Right:

1. Big stickers! The one on the right is inspired by Nico and Martin's novella, First Kisses and Other Misfortunes.

2.  A small postcard (front and back)

3. Two different bookmarks. The one on the right is designed like a train ticket!

4. A personalized, autographed copy of Love Fortunes and Other Disasters! 

5. (Not pictured) A bunch of Valentine's Day/Grimbaud inspired goodies! 

What are you waiting for?

Regardless of how you feel about the Most Romantic Month of the year, it COULD be potentially much more awesome if you enter these giveaways. Take a page out of Fallon the gang's book (har-har) and be a little rebellious. 

If you have any questions, feel free to leave them in the comments! 

The Call: Told in GIFs

So Swoon Reads did the thing: announcing the next two books on its second list. And guess who made it...

This day has been crazy exciting. I've had to keep this news a secret for what seemed like an eternity, and now it's finally out! My manuscript previously called WE COULD FALL IN LOVE has been given a great new title: LOVE FORTUNES AND OTHER DISASTERS. And it will be in stores on June 9th, 2015. You can read the official announcement here (and find out about the third book written by K.A. Cozzo). There's also a an interview where I ramble about feeling shiny and a video greeting in which I am showered with paper hearts. Fun times. 

I'm overwhelmed and indescribably honored to be flooded today with well wishes and excitement from friends, family, and a bevy of awesome readers. If I haven't gotten back to you yet, it probably has something to do with me being unable to keep my eyes open any longer. The minute I hit the pillow, I'll be in dreamland, haha. But before I give in, I'd like to share with you what it felt like to receive The Call: that moment when a writer is contacted by a publisher about his/her book. 

The Call actually came in the form of an email first, but the phone calls that followed were nothing short of surreal. When I heard THE Jean Feiwel's voice over the phone, I'm pretty sure I babbled and said silly things as I sat stunned in my cubicle. And when I spoke with my editor, Holly West, we began to get down to business (and with our mutual love of Pushing Daisies, I knew I was in good hands!). 

I have revisions to do now, after the celebrating dies down. LOVE FORTUNES AND OTHER DISASTERS is going to be even more awesome. You're going to love the changes that await Fallon and the gang. 

1. Surprisingly eloquent GIF representation of my publishing journey up until this point (minus the ice cream):

2. Checking my email at work like a sneaky employee:

2. Initial reaction to the Swoon Reads email:

3. Talking with Jean Feiwel on the phone:

4. Talking with Holly West on the phone:

5. Me, internally:

6. Miraculously maintaining my composure for the rest of the day: 

We Could Fall in Love (Maybe. But I'm Talking About the Manuscript)

I've been very bad. For months now, I've been writing something and kept it a secret from you.

Considering how often I've written serially on Figment, this was EXTREMELY HARD to do. I'm terrible at keeping secrets. That's why my friends know better than to ask me about movies and books. I usually slip up with spoilers, though I try to give fair warning. Sometimes.

But now, the time has come. My newest novel manuscript, We Could Fall in Love, is officially online and ready for reading!

So I've been giving you hints about this novel, but really, what is it about? Well, well. I could give you a list, or I could be reasonable and give you a summary instead:

Fallon attends high school in the town of Grimbaud, where magic takes the form of crafted charms, potions, and fortunes. When she receives this year’s love fortune from Zita’s shop, the mysterious woman whose fortunes are said to come straight from Love itself, Fallon refuses to accept what her new fortune decrees: being eternally unloved–and a guaranteed residency at the Spinster Villas. 

But a rebellion is brewing, and she suddenly finds herself at the center of it, joining fellow ill-fated teenagers determined to end Zita’s reign. There she meets Sebastian, a handsome boy notorious for dating and dumping girls before they can know his heart. 

Her aversion to Sebastian fades as she gets to know him, but love is risky when heartbreak awaits her–unless the rebellion succeeds.

Where Can I Find It?

I'm glad you asked.

You'll find three sample chapters on Figment.com. The full manuscript, however, is exclusively on Swoonreads.com. 

Swoon Reads is a teen romance imprint publishing under Feiwel and Friends, an imprint of Macmillan. The great part about them is that they work the same way Figment does, creating a community where writers can share their manuscripts with readers. Swoon Reads is focused on YA and NA romance novels, spanning many different genres and subgenres. The exciting part is the chance of publication: if readers and the staff love the book, you might get offered a publishing contract with Swoon Reads.

You'll need to make an account on Swoonreads.com to read my manuscript, and I hope you do!

Voting for this round ends May 31st.

It may mean that you'll need to shift around your endless reading lists to read and comment on We Could Fall in Love in time, and for that, I'm truly appreciative.

Fallon and Sebastian's story is near and dear to my heart. I've been eating way too many sweets over the past few months, seeing hearts on everything, and questioning the fate (or lack of it) that brings some people together and keeps others alone.

Now is the perfect time to break out into an 80s love song, but I'll save you the torture (I can't sing. Really). Instead, I'll just say that I've been waiting a very long time in Kim-years to share this story with you. Please enjoy!

Tidbits: February Edition

Picture / Photo Find

A Writer Thing

I wish this month was as sugary pink as advertised on television. For the first time, I'm ridiculously busy early in the semester. That means that when I make it past this month, March should be, in theory, a little enjoyable. 

This Thursday, I'll be participating in my university's first creative writing conference; it's nice to be at home for one of these giant celebrations. The conference is called Blank Pages, a two-day marathon full of panels and readings from all genres. The panel I'm directing, and presenting on, is called "Young Adult Literature Not Just For Young Adults" and that'll be happening early on the first day. I'm excited to be speaking about YA literature, though it's easy to feel butterflies during preparation, you know? My part of the panel will focus fairy tale retellings in particular - why are they so popular, from a reader and writer's perspective. 

There's a grad and undergrad reading happening that night called 6x6; I'll be on my tip-toes in front of the mic, reading a story about a girl who's in a long distance relationship with an alien. 

Well, it is the month of love, isn't it?

Also, I've gotten some great questions on Formspring regarding my writing on Figment, and I'm looking forward to answering them. Some of my blog posts will be answers to those questions, a nice change and, perhaps, a good way to stay on track with my blogging. So much writing! 

Song I Can't Stop Repeating

"Like a Song" - Lenka

For a more melancholy, haunted love song, I turn to Lenka. She's one of my favorite musicians ever, and I can never get enough of her music. This song in particular is so soft and sad with a music box melody:

I can't forget you when you're gone 

Your like a song 

That goes around in my head 

And how I regret 

It's been so long 

Oh what went wrong 

Could it be something I said 

Time, 

Make it go faster 

Or just decide 

To come back to my happy heart. 

Video I Watched Too Many Times

Oh yeah, Buster Keaton. This clip is from one of his lesser known talkies called Parlour, Bedroom, and Bath. While most of the movie is pretty slow, the interacts that Buster has with the various women (most of them fairly mean) are hilarious. In this montage, he takes the advice the first woman gave him with the lines he yells and the body movements. 

Not gonna lie - I'd love to hear 'em, no matter how corny. My darling, I love you madly! You must leave leave! I cannot live without you! 

Yay, Valentine's Day. 

A Scene from my April Daydreams

We're sitting outside an old French cafe under wide-brimmed umbrellas. We aren't in France but in Tampa, staring out at the parking lot and listening to the traffic from the congested street only a few feet away from us. The old French couple, who had moved to Florida many years ago, put extra sugar in our fruit salads. The sun is bright and burns our eyes. The umbrellas paint our skin pastel colors and make our food look contaminated by confetti cake mix. I push cut strawberries around with my fork and squint at him; he's smiling at me, but not looking at me - instead, he's busy wiping the sweat off his glass of water.

"What are you thinking?" I ask him.

He shrugs. "I'm imagining you're not here right now."

"Ouch."

He laughs. "What I mean is that you don't seem to really be here. You're mind is somewhere else."

I smirk. "Okay. Maybe you're right. But if I'm daydreaming about us right now, and you think that I'm somewhere else, then what does it all mean? Am I daydreaming within a daydream?"

"I don't think so," he says. I can tell he's thinking hard about this because he bites his lip.

"Where do you think my mind is?"

"Let's start from the beginning," he says, grinning. "In reality, you're actually in bed with your eyes squeezed tight. You've kicked off the sheets because even with the ceiling fan on, you're still sweating. Your head aches from a stress cold and, even though your dog has woken you up three times this morning, you're still fighting to stay in bed. So you're daydreaming about me because you think I can make you feel better. And you do feel better."

I chew on a chunk of apple and sigh. "Ooh. You're good."

"Of course I am. You're the one putting words in my mouth."

"Go on."

"So, even though you're in this imaginary day with me, trying to avoid really waking up, you can't help but remember what you have to do for your last week of school. Right now, you're thinking about the pile of papers sitting in your office. You're trying to figure out how long it will take you to grade them."

He's beautiful as he says this. Really. If I wasn't plugging in the words, I'd probably be lost in the way his lips form the words, how his bangs brush against his forehead. His hand is soaked with glass-water sweat. He's wearing a faded blue t-shirt that looks purple under the umbrella light.

And I know he's right. Or I know I'm right. Even in my imagination, I can't completely escape reality. I haven't thought of personifying responsibility, but I'm sure it looks like a cranky old librarian. Gold-rimmed glasses. Grim smile. A stack full of work and silence. Responsibility.

From far away, I can hear my mother at the sink. She hums a tune as she washes away the breakfast crumbs from her glass and plate. Fiber cereal and grapes, I guess. That's what she's been eating for the past few days. She'll probably peek into my room in a few minutes and nag me for having kicked my covers and sheets to the floor. I can feel morning seep into my bones.

He sips his water and looks at me steadily. "So you're going?" he asks.

I nod.

He's still drinking.

I frown and say, "Aren't you going to kiss me?"

He smiles boyishly and shakes his head. "No way. You're got work to do."

Photo from We Heart It