6 Month Celebration!!!

My book came out six months ago!!! Now it's time to party! Check out the details below.

Thanks for stopping by! 

BOOK SALE!!!

Want the skinny on my ebook sale this week? Here are the deets!

Learn more about 65 Hours of Silence for CF here.

OneRepublic - I Lived

This is so fantastic! It will bring so much awareness for Cystic Fibrosis. Please watch and share :)

Another Giveaway!!!

Twitter/Facebook Blast $229 Giveaway

2 dozen bloggers & authors have joined together to offer you 1 fabulous prize. The winner will receive their choice of a Kindle Fire HDX or $229 Amazon Gift Card or $229 Paypal Cash!    

Win a Kindle Fire HDX, Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash ($229 value)

All New Kindle Fire HDX 7" Giveaway

The winner will have the option of receiving a 7" Kindle Fire HDX (US Only - $229 Value)

 
Or $229 Amazon.com Gift Card (International)

Or $229 in Paypal Cash (International)

Each of these bloggers/authors paid to help sponsor this giveaway. Sponsor List

1. I Am A Reader
2. Feed Your Reader
3. Morgan K Wyatt
4. Author Julia Antoine
5. Bound 4 Escape
6. YA Author Fabio Bueno
7. Author Michelle Merrill
8. Book Reviews and Giveaways
9. The Books You Read
10. Author Inger Iversen
11. Kindle and Me
12. Bella Street's Weird Romance
13. Bonnie Blythe Pure Romance
14. Librarian Lavender
15. MoreThanaReview
16. I Love to Read and Review Books :)
17. A & E Kirk, Author
18. Fire and Ice
19. Jennifer Laurens Author
20. Leisure Reads
21. Fae Books Blog
22. Lori's Reading Corner
23. Author Kim Cresswell-Trapped Inside My Head
24. Helen Smith (author)

Giveaway Details 

1 winner will receive their choice of an all new Kindle Fire 7" HDX (US Only - $229 value), $229 Amazon Gift Card or $229 in Paypal Cash (International). 

Ends 9/8/14 

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the participating authors & bloggers. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Blah, blah, blah...

Hey, word.

Summer has been crazy crazy. We've been out of town off and on since school got out. I started revising a book, then went out of town, decided to revise a different book when I got back, then went out of town again, and finally decided that it just ain't happenin' this summer! Last summer I wrote a book in six weeks and this summer I can't even keep up with my house and kids. 

I was feeling bad about it every time we packed our bags to visit family or go camping...until I realized that this is what summer's about for my little kids. And they need me. And I need them. Let's face it, I will always be able to write, but my kids will not always be little. They won't always want to talk to me and they certainly won't need me to feed them, dress them, wash them, bandage their owies, etc. for the rest of their lives. As of right now, it's for the best. 

I can't wait to jump back into the writing world when school starts, but until then...keep it up, keep it real, and keep it goin'. 

Have a great summer!

Enter to win 1 of 2 great prizes. Winner’s choice of a Kindle Fire HDX or $229 Amazon Gift Card or $229 Paypal Cash! 

The first prize is available via the rafflecopter below. The 2nd is available only to bloggers who post about this giveaway. You can find info on how to enter the 2nd giveaway in the rafflecopter.

   

Win a Kindle Fire HDX, Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash ($229 value)

All New Kindle Fire HDX 7" Giveaway

The winner will have the option of receiving a 7" Kindle Fire HDX (US Only - $229 Value)

  Or $229 Amazon.com Gift Card (International)

 
  Or $229 in Paypal Cash (International)

Sponsors 
I Am A Reader 
Feed Your Reader 
Author Rachael Anderson 
Author Karey White 
Chelsea Author Promotions 
Illusio & Baqer 
BookReviewsAndGiveaways 
Author Alecia Stone 
Lori's Reading Corner 
Author Inger Iversen 
Shelf of Imagination 
Candace's Book Blog 
Where The Broken Lie by Derek Rempfer 
Helen Smith (author) 
Christine's Blog 
Reviews from a Bookworm 
More Than a Review 
Tressa's Wishful Endings 
Pieces of Whimsy 
Laurie Treacy, Author 
The Loopy Librarian 
Author Dorothy Dreyer 
Author Deanna Lynn Sletten 
Author Steven Brown 
Claudia Burgoa 
Launching Sisters to WitchCamp 
Rhiannon Paille 
Author Amanda Tru 
Melissa McClone, Author 
Author Michelle Merrill 
Author M. Kircher 
Author A&E Kirk 
Author Melissa Lemon 
My Story That I Like Best 
Reviews by Martha's Bookshelf 
J.L. Weil 
Maia Sepp 
Luthando Coeur 
Making it Happen 
Jennifer Laurens Author 
Extraordinary Reads 
Grimmtastic Girls series: Snow White Lucks Out (tween)   

Sign up to sponsor the next Kindle Giveaway here: 

http://www.iamareader.com/category/kindle-giveaway-sign-ups   

Giveaway Details

1 winner will receive their choice of an all new Kindle Fire 7" HDX (US Only - $229 value), $229 Amazon Gift Card or $229 in Paypal Cash (International). 

There is a second separate giveaway for bloggers who post this giveaway on their blog. See details in the rafflecopter on how to enter to win the 2nd Kindle Fire HDX 7", $229 Amazon Gift Card or $229 in Paypal Cash. 

Ends 7/15/14 

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the participating authors & bloggers. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. 

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Great Strides Walk 2014

Here are a few pictures from the Great Strides walk this year! I had a great time, met some awesome people, and loved being a part of it all!


On your marks, get set...GO!

This is my great friend, Sara. She's taught me so much about CF. It's because of her my book came to life!

This is our team captain, Regan Kate! She's the sweet girl in the middle. My whole story was inspired by her life and struggle to breathe every day. I hope they can find a cure soon!

I've learned so much about other people and have come to gain a better appreciation for what I have :)

Summer, summer, summer, summer

Think of the movie High School Musical 2 when they chant the word "summer" over and over again. That's what I'll be saying all morning since this is the last day of school for my kids! I'm not sure who's more excited, me or them. 

Exciting updates for June 4th. First, I'm almost done with another round of revisions on my current WIP. This is my year of revisions, and I can't wait to make some of my manuscripts shine!

Also, Leigh Covington interviewed me on her blog today. Check it out here.

Hopefully I'll get a post up about the Great Strides walk I participated in last weekend. And I also need to post about the writing conference I attended in April! So many exciting things. 

Thanks for stopping by. Be safe this summer and remember to read!

Cystic Fibrosis

If you know anything about my book, Changing Fate, you know it's about a girl with cystic fibrosis. Since this month is Cystic Fibrosis Awareness month, I thought I'd expound on the topic. The facts listed are taken from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation website.

30,000 children and adults in America have CF with the worldwide total estimating around 70,000. 

It's a genetic disease that causes the body to produce thick, sticky mucus--which leads to lung and pancreas problems. 

About 1,000 cases of CF are diagnosed each year.

Nearly half the CF population is age 18 or older. 

That's HUGE! If we go back 60 years ago, few children born with CF lived to attend elementary school. With new research and treatments, people with CF can expect to live into their late 30's, even into their 40's, or longer! 

But the reality is...there's STILL no cure! A lifetime of daily treatments is not only costly, but it's exhausting. 

While writing my book, I worked with some amazing people and parents of children with CF, who've been through transplants and years of treatments. 

Now, every case is different. One girl I worked with said three of the five kids in her family were born with CF. Between those three, the affects of the disease are very different from one child to another. The story I wrote might not match each person, but I hope it can spread the word and help others become aware of the struggle some people go through just to breathe. 

It's good to be aware and help where you can :)

One celebrity made a life changing decision because of her experience with 2 CF kids. Go here to watch Whoopi's story on the Dr. Oz show.

I hope in some way, I can continue to spread awareness and maybe help in the cause to find a cure.

BLOG RELEASE PARTY!!!

MY BOOK IS NOW AVAILABLE!!! I can't tell you how long I've wanted to say those words! I'm so excited to share it. It means so much to me. But for now, it's time to PAR-TAY!!!

Jump up and down,

Spin around,

Touch the ground,

And scream!!!

YAY! 

Okay, I'll calm down...a little :)

Here's the cover and book description one last time!

All Kate wants is to live. Battling cystic fibrosis is hard enough, dying from it is even harder. When her mom moves them closer to the hospital in the middle of her senior year, Kate’s determined to isolate herself—saving everyone the trouble of befriending a dying girl. It’s a difficult task when cheerful optimist Giana insists on being Kate’s friend.

Kate’s resolve falters even more when curly-haired Kyler captivates her with his sweet melodies. As her emotional walls collapse, Kate realizes the people she’s been pushing away may be the ones giving her a reason to live. But it might be too late.

Want a chance to win a free copy? Visit each participating blog and find all 16 key phrases—1 in each fun fact about the author. Put them together and answer the question in the giveaway below for extra points! The giveaway is open to everyone no matter where you live and it runs for a whole week!

Michelle Merrill (1 & 2)

Carol Riggs (3 & 4)

Shallee McArthur (5 & 6)

Kelley Hicken (7 & 8)

Annette Larsen (9 & 10)

Rachel Pudelek (11 & 12)

Melanie Stanford (13 & 14)

Chantele Sedgwick (15 & 16)

About the Author, including fun facts.

Michelle Merrill loves kissing her hubby, snuggling her kids, eating candy, reading books, and writing first drafts. She names her computers after favorite fictional characters and fictional characters after favorite names. 

Here are the first 2 fun facts!!!

1.      I love salad. I’m one of those people who order the salad instead of the steak. But I usually order the whopping one, and eat the whole thing. Can you say, Café Rio sweet pork salad? I think my mouth’s watering.

2.      I’ve been to 48 states…in a 15 passenger van. Including right into downtown Manhattan with a full-size trailer pulled behind with a homemade wing on top for better gas mileage. Yeah, it was all sorts of awesome. 

You can watch the book trailer here: Trailer.

You can add my book to your goodreads here: Goodreads.

You can PURCHASE the book here!!! Amazon: CHANGING FATE.

Thank you SO much! I’ll remind you one last time that ALL proceeds these first two days will go toward Team Regan Kate’s Great Strides Walk, and half of all proceeds will always go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for their continuing research to find a cure.

And since May is CF Awareness Month, the ebook will be 2.99 until June!!! The Paperback is also at a lower price right now! 

GIVEAWAY!!!

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Michelle 

CF Awareness and Great Strides Donations

For those of you who don't know, May is National CF Awareness Month. I'm excited to be part of this cause and I hope my book can spread awareness!

My story was inspired by a little girl with cystic fibrosis. I'll be walking with Team Regan Kate in her Great Strides Walk this year. I hope a cure is around the corner so this sweet, loving girl can live a long life. You can read more about Regan's story here or watch this short video.

Half of all proceeds from my book will always go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, but everything from the first two days will go towards Regan's walk. Please share the word. You never know when your actions might make a difference :)

Last note: My e-book will only be $2.99 for the first two weeks, then it goes up to $4.99! Order from May 8th-22nd to get the early bird special!

Thanks and have a wonderful week! 

GIVEAWAY!!!

Update: The giveaway has ended and the winner has been notified.

This is your chance to win a copy of my upcoming novel, CHANGING FATE! It doesn't release until next week (May 8th), but you could be the lucky one to win a proof copy!

All Kate wants is to live. Battling cystic fibrosis is hard enough, dying from it is even harder. When her mom moves them closer to the hospital in the middle of her senior year, Kate’s determined to isolate herself—saving everyone the trouble of befriending a dying girl. It’s a difficult task when cheerful optimist Giana insists on being Kate’s friend.

Kate’s resolve falters even more when curly-haired Kyler captivates her with his sweet melodies. As her emotional walls collapse, Kate realizes the people she’s been pushing away may be the ones giving her a reason to live. But it might be too late.

Enter below. Giveaway ends tonight at midnight Eastern time. Limited to US entries only. 

NOTE: If you live outside of the US and would like to enter to win a copy for someone with a US address, that's fine. I'll try to host an international giveaway in the future. Thanks!



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Two words: BOOK TRAILER!!!

Here's a sneak peak, teaser, book pilot, trailer. Whew! That's a mouthful! I'm so excited to share this with you! Please watch and spread the word about Changing Fate and Cystic Fibrosis :)

Thanks!

Cover Reveal for Annette K. Larsen

Some of you may have read, Just Ella, a fantastic tale about a princess. 

Annette K. Larsen is coming out with her next book, Missing Lily, on May 15th! Here's the cover!

Isn't it great? I can personally tell you that it matches the story perfectly! Here's the blurb.

 “You don’t know who I am,” I whispered. He didn’t move—either away from me, or closer—and after an interminable moment, I stepped back and hurried out of the house.

He didn’t follow me as I fled into the night.

Lylin was not used to being alone—much less alone, hurt, and lost. So when she is separated from her guard and forced to abandon her horse, she counts herself lucky to stumble upon a manor house. Still frightened by those who chased her into the night, she keeps her identity a secret, calling herself Lily as she accepts the help of kind servants, and the compassion of Lord Fallon. When they fall into an easy friendship, she wonders if her secrecy was too hasty. However, as she gets to know the manor and its residents, Lylin discovers that she’s not the only one hiding secrets, and it may be a very good thing that her host doesn’t know her true identity as a member of the royal family.

Here's more about my good friend, Annette.

I was born in Utah, part of a crazy, fun family of nine. I grew up in Flagstaff, AZ and St. Louis, MO before striking out on my own college adventure in Virginia. I decided to try my hand at writing novels after I was married and living in Idaho. I write clean romance because it’s my favorite genre, but often difficult to find. 

I have Charlotte Brontë to thank for the courage to write novels. After being bombarded with assigned reading about women who justified abandoning either their families or their principles in the name of love, I had the great fortune of reading Jane Eyre. And that was it: finally, a heroine who understood that being moral and making the right choice was hard, and sometimes it hurt, but it was still worth it. After rereading it several years later, I realized that if I wanted more books to exist with the kinds of heroines I admired, then I might as well write a few myself. My books are about women who face hard choices, who face pain and rejection and often have to face the reality of sacrificing what they want for what is right. The consequences are often difficult or unpleasant, but in the end, doing what’s right will always be worth it.

I believe there is no substitute for good writing or good chocolate. Fortunately, one often leads to the other.

Mmmm, good chocolate! Definitely comparable to good writing! 

You can learn more about Annette and Missing Lily here.

Website. Twitter. Facebook.

Have a great week and stay tuned for my book trailer coming next Tuesday!!!

MY VERY OWN COVER REVEAL!!!!

YES, I'M USING ALL CAPS! IT'S ONLY BECAUSE I'M THAT EXCITED ABOUT THIS!!!

If someone had told me five years ago that I'd be a writer, I would've laughed in their face. Sad, I know. In fact, I think a few people actually did tell me...And I'm pretty sure I laughed. 

And I'm still laughing! But it's not a joke anymore. This is for real! Not only have I written one book, I've written seven! Now I finally get to share one with you!

Never in a million years did I imagine it would happen this way, though. I thought for sure I'd get an agent, have a great post about that experience, work with them to get all the details right, then eventually get a publisher. And I still hope to have all that one day. But this book was supposed to be self published. As I've told you before, I have no doubt about it.

Now for the good stuff...

BOOK BLURB

All Kate wants is to live. Battling cystic fibrosis is hard enough, dying from it is even harder. When her mom moves them closer to the hospital in the middle of her senior year, Kate’s determined to isolate herself—saving everyone the trouble of befriending a dying girl. It’s a difficult task when cheerful optimist Giana insists on being Kate’s friend.

Kate’s resolve falters even more when curly-haired Kyler captivates her with his sweet melodies. As her emotional walls collapse, Kate realizes the people she’s been pushing away may be the ones giving her a reason to live. But it might be too late.

Ready for the cover???

On 3.

1

2

3

Isn't is soooooooooooooo pretty? I got to work with some amazingly talented people on this cover! 

And it can be yours on MAY 8, 2014!!!

Note: Half of all proceeds will be donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. I was inspired to write this book to spread awareness and maybe together, we can make it possible to find a cure.

Here's my new author photo and official book bio.

 Michelle Merrill loves kissing her hubby, snuggling her kids, eating candy, reading books, and writing first drafts. She names her computers after favorite fictional characters and fictional characters after favorite names.

To stay updated on the future details, be sure to follow this blog. Or you can find me on twitter and facebook.

Oh...and the book trailer will be out on April 15, 2014!

Thanks for your support!

Three cheers!!!

Three cheers for my friend Carol Riggs, who announced her book deal yesterday. I'd give you all the juicy details myself, but she says it so much better. And if you go to her blog, you get to see her official author photo! 

CONGRATULATIONS CAROL!!! I can't wait to read your book, The Body Institute, in January 2015!

It's a wrap!

The photoshoots for my book cover and trailer are finally finished! The models are perfect for my characters and I can't wait to share the pictures with you! The cover reveal should be soon with the trailer following right after. And then the book release! 

Until then, here is a teaser shot...

Have a great weekend and happy writing! 

Revisions...

For some reason, that word makes me cringe. Yes, there are people who love revising. I'm not one of them. Give me a premise or a character and I'll write a first draft any day. I love the adventure of plotting and creating. But to fix it? I mean, isn't everything perfect the first time it hits the page?

Haha. I wish. Luckily there are people full of helpful information. I just finished a final revision for my book coming out in May, and now I'm going to share with you my 3 best pieces of advice.

#1-Get a critique partner...or five. The more the merrier. Read their comments and consider their advice. But don't change something unless you want to. It's your book. But at least think about their suggestions. If they mention something, stumbled on a word, or a fact...that means it was noticeable. And if your CP's catch it, most of the time readers will too. That's not always the case, but more often than not, my CP's have similar comments. Which is another reason it's nice to have more than one or two. You can compare their suggestions and decide what's best for your story!

#2. Let it rest. Honestly, everything's better after a little rest, right? If I don't get rest, nothing out of my mouth makes sense. If you don't take a break from your story, chances are, it will make sense to you, but not to everyone else. You need that space to gain a different perspective, to think subjectively about your characters, their actions, their decisions, everything. Let it rest and go back to it with fresh eyes!

#3. Read it from top to bottom. Not just once. I'd say it's safe to do after every revision. Even if you think you only made a few changes, sometimes there's a word missing, or an addition you didn't notice. At times one change can have a domino effect. You may not remember mentioning something you omitted later on in the story. Once you do a read-through, though, you'll be able to recognize inconsistencies, word repetitions, etc. Keep it consistent and keep it real :)  

As far as formatting, one of my CP's pointed me to this blog post by Vickie Motter. It's fantastic! 

And if you want more revision tips, Agent Christa Heschke is doing a weekly blog post entitled Revisions From Authors For Authors. Be sure to check it out!

I hope that helps! Good luck with your writing and happy revisions!!!

Imperfections create perfection!!!

One of my facebook friends just posted a buzzfeed article about four regular women photoshopped into cover models. 

You can review the results here.

But I want to focus on the thoughts of a couple of the woman after they viewed the final result. One says,

"This is how I always wanted to see myself. But now that I see it, I'm questioning why I ever wanted to look like that."

Another says,

"Once you take away your imperfections, there's not much left of who you really are."

This is why your characters need faults. They need to be relateable. Don't make them perfect. Give them physical and emotional scars. Things to work through. Things that embarrass them. Then have them work through it and gain strength. Show the reader who your characters really are and they'll love them for it :)

Have a great week!

COVER REVEAL-NOT YOUR AVERAGE HAPPY ENDING!!!

First of all, Happy Valentine's Day! 

I'm excited to share the love for my friend Chantele Sedgwick. The sequel to her first book, Not Your Average Fairy Tale, is coming out on March 3rd!

Without further ado, I present Not Your Average Happy Ending.

When Ash Summerland left the Academy of Magical Beings, he was sure he’d put his troubles behind him. But when his girlfriend, Kendall, is almost killed by an old enemy over something he knows little about, Ash is forced to confront the demons of his past if he wants to save his and Kendall’s future.

With his fairy magic fading and his djinn magic more powerful than ever, Ash isn’t sure he can stop the evil from closing in around him. Although Kendall is the only thing keeping him from going over the edge, if he can’t learn to balance out his magic and find a way to defeat his enemies once and for all, both his world, and the girl he loves will be lost forever

Excited? Me too! Congratulations Chantele! Be sure to visit her blog and spread the love.

Have a great weekend!