of the trip to New York City to spend a day shadowing a real live editor at Simon & Schuster, and some time hanging out with me, is...

WAIT. First, I have to say something, and it's from the heart:

I was absolutely blown away by all of you who entered. It made me happy that there are so many of you out there who love to write as much as I do. I am really proud of each person who put a little piece of him or herself out there for others to see. That's really hard to do.

Narrowing the entries down to the top ten was really difficult. There were so many great stories. Our team of judges had a really tough time deciding! We had a variety of reasons why these ten were chosen, including writing ability, style, creativity, plot, voice, and uniqueness in coming up with an idea that others haven't thought of.

Choosing the winner out of these ten great stories? One of the most difficult choices I've had to make in a while. A long while. I want to congratulate again the nine finalists, and I want you to hear me -- you are talented. You have great potential. If you enjoy writing, you should keep doing it, because you are good at it.

Being a writer, getting published, winning prizes when you're up against hundreds or even thousands of others is a hard mountain to climb. If you have the stamina and can handle the rejections, the near-misses, the not-quites, you will succeed eventually. You have to keep going, and going, and going. I had over a hundred rejections for the first novel I wrote, and it never got published. Nor did my second novel. But I kept writing, and I kept going, and I kept looking at rejection in the face and saying, "You are only making me tougher. You are only making me want to fight for this more."

I want you to keep going too. Everything you write is valuable. Nothing you write is a waste of time. Every word you write makes you better at the craft of writing. So keep going, knowing that you have what it takes.

Thanks for reading this (even though I know you all skimmed that bit, I hope you went back and read it again). :)

And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for, THE WINNER of the Wattpad/Pulse It story contest is... *drumroll*


CRAVE THE RISK, by lucille0912.

CONGRATULATIONS!!! I chose your story because I loved the way you approached the prompt. I love that you made the long-haired main character a boy. I love that you added the hint of a paranormal element with this boy having the strength similar to Samson (and I LOVED that you didn't name him, but made that story sound ominous, and it made the reader wonder what kind of society they lived in), and I liked the twist at the end. Your idea was fresh and different. The thing that clinched it for me, though, was your sense of voice in the story. It was strong and distinct, and I could feel his attitude, I could hear him speaking and thinking in my head. Voice is so difficult to learn to write well -- some writers have it naturally and some have to work very hard to achieve great character voice. Whether you had to work at it or it came naturally, it was there, and it was excellent. Additionally, some of your phrases were really stunning. I remember thinking "I wish I'd written that" a few times as I read your story.

lucille0912, I look forward to meeting you! I’ll be emailing you shortly so we can arrange your awesomely awesome trip to NYC.

Congratulations again to the winner and to all the writers who entered the contest. You are amazing! Keep going. :) And please stay in touch -- you can find me often on my facebook fan page and twitter.

I know you are all waiting on the edge of your seats to find out who the winner of this contest is! There were a lot of entries to the contest (over 300!) and now we’re finally close to announcing. Well, almost. :D


To celebrate CRYER’S CROSS releasing in paperback this coming Tuesday, I am announcing the top 10 finalists for this contest! As the ten of you listed below all made it to the top with your excellent stories, I wanted to say congratulations by giving you a set of ALL my books! Email [email protected] with “Lisa McMann Final 10” in the subject line & your full name and shipping address in the body of the email to receive your prize.

You can go over to Wattpad to get extra content and extended excerpts of CRYER’S CROSS (http://www.wattpad.com/1739563-cryer%27s-cross-we) and THE UNWANTEDS (http://www.wattpad.com/1739693-the-unwanteds-the-purge) plus a sneak peak to my new book DEAD TO YOU (http://www.wattpad.com/1740073-dead-to-you), coming out February 7th.

Tune back in here on Thursday, December 8th, around 7pm EST (4pm Pacific) for the official announcement of the final winner of the trip to NYC!

OK – enough of the suspense. Here are the finalists (in alphabetical order)!

A Choice by NinjaComesNaturally (http://www.wattpad.com/2095760-a-choice-lisamcmann)
Crave the Risk by lucille0912 (http://www.wattpad.com/1791036-crave-the-risk-lisamcmann)
The Half Blooded by CARLI123 (http://www.wattpad.com/2135634-the-half-blooded-lisamcmann)
The Heir Assassin by eternaldestiny (http://www.wattpad.com/2047255-the-heir-assassin-lisa-mcmann)
Labyrinth by DOODLESNOODLES (http://www.wattpad.com/1837763-labyrinth)
Mr. & Mrs. Young by DeeStory (http://www.wattpad.com/1766160-mr-%26-mrs-young-lisamcmann)
Saving Order by Becca_Lovatt (http://www.wattpad.com/1857754-saving-order-lisamcmann)
An Unexpected Agreement by BrianaBrooks (http://www.wattpad.com/1769575-an-unexpected-arrangement-lisamcmann)
Violet Eyes by kellyca (http://www.wattpad.com/2096076-violet-eyes)
Wanted by RainySkky (http://www.wattpad.com/1774535-wanted-lisamcmann)

1. If you want to have a chance at winning one of my pre-holiday giveaways (i.e. books galore!) you need to be subscribed to my e-mail newsletter list. I try hard not to be annoying by offering fun contests and prize opportunities in every newsletter, and I only mail out six or fewer newsletters per year. In our fall newsletter I gave away 3 copies of The Unwanteds, a Wake Trilogy boxed set, a copy of Cryer's Cross, and an arc of my upcoming teen novel DEAD TO YOU. Who knows what awesome prizes await you in the holiday edition! The more subscribers I have, the more I give away, so tell your friends too.

2. I had a fun interview with BookPage recently where I talk about what happens in The Unwanteds: Island of Silence (Unwanteds #2).

3. Publisher's Marketplace announced my latest sale (yay!): NYT bestseller Lisa McMann's third book in the UNWANTEDS series, again to Liesa Abrams at Aladdin, for publication in Fall 2013, by Michael Bourret at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management. I have plans for seven books in this series, and I will be offering a different collectible postcard (signed & numbered) with each book featuring artwork drawn by my son Kilian, who did the first one (the Eliminators):



4. If you want autographed copies of any of my books for yourself or for gifts, you can order them through my local indies, Evermore Nevermore and Changing Hands. And I'll be doing a special event with Scottsdale bookstore Poisoned Pen in early December where you can order or stop by to get signed copies as well.

5. Did you sign up for my newsletter yet? It's easy, and I won't sell or give your email address to anyone. Just go here and fill out the info in the gray box on the left.

6. Hi! I love you!

The final stop on my tour is in Pasadena, TX, at the TWEENS READ BOOK FESTIVAL this Saturday, Oct 29th. I'm so excited to see my friends from Blue Willow Books again! And I hope if you are anywhere nearby, you'll stop in for an hour or stay for the day. Great authors, great books. It's going to be a blast.

I had such a great tour. Thanks to all of you for coming to my events - I really mean it. It was a total blast and it makes my year when you guys show up. Also nice? Seeing the colorful leaves as we drove across Michigan. Haven't seen them in 7 years!

This Wednesday, Oct 19th, at 4pm Central I'm doing a ustream.com event with the Houston Public Library. Hope you'll join us from wherever you are -- you don't have to be in Houston!

And speaking of Houston, I have one last official tour event -- the TWEENS READ book festival near Houston (Pasadena, TX) on Oct 29th.

If you live in my neck of the woods (Phoenix area), I'll be doing a special holiday event with Poisoned Pen bookstore in Scottsdale, AZ with several other authors on December 11th. And even if you don't live nearby, you can order signed copies through them and they'll ship them out right away (along with a few stocking stuffers I'll include with all purchases of THE UNWANTEDS).

I will be handing out free prize packs with purchase of The Unwanteds (while they last). Can't make it? Call the store to order a copy -- I'll sign it for you when I'm there and leave a prize pack for you too.

*Wednesday, October 12, 2011, 7:00 PM
B&N - Holland
3050 Beeline Road
Suite 50
Holland, MI 49424

*Thursday, October 13, 2011, 6:00 PM
SCHULER BOOKS
1982 Grand River Ave.
Okemos, MI 48864

*Saturday, Oct 15, 2011, 2:30PM
FERNDALE PUBLIC LIBRARY (with Book Beat)
222 E. 9 mile Road
Ferndale, MI 48220
Co-sponsored by the Ferndale Public Library and Book Beat

See you at the Tattered Cover Bookstore on Colfax this Saturday, Oct. 1st, 3pm. I'll be handing out special Unwanteds prize packs with purchase of the book.

Coming soon -- stops in Holland, Okemos, and Ferndale, Michigan. Join me in my home state!

The grand prize winner of The Unwanteds book club/class pack of books is...

Heather from Buried in Books!

Congratulations to you and all the recipients of your pack of books. I hope you enjoy!

Many thanks to Heather and Danny from Kismet Book Tours for making this blog tour so fantastic for me, and for all of the awesome bloggers who worked hard to keep the tour rolling along. I feel very lucky to have been a part of one of your tours.

THE UNWANTEDS is available NOW in bookstores and online.

Note: I will be handing out The Unwanteds collector packs with purchase of the book at these events!

*Wed, Sept 21, 2011, 4 pm
BOOKS & COMPANY
1039 SUMMIT AVE
OCONOMOWOC,WI

*Thurs, Sept 22, 4 pm
West Allis Public Library (with Boswell Book Company)
7421 West National Avenue
West Allis, Wisconsin

*Friday, Sept 23, 2011, 4 PM
ELA AREA PUBLIC LIBRARY with Lake Forest Book Store
275 Mohawk Trail
Lake Zurich,IL


*Saturday, Sept 24, 2011 -- 8th Annual YA Lit Conference w/ Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville

If you're not on the newsletter mailing list, join now! I do exclusive contests for newsletter subscribers, as well as let you know what's new with me and the books and the family, and what books the McManns have been reading lately. I send roughly 6 newsletters per year. Join here: http://lisamcmann.com/html/contact.php

WINNING ENTRIES - Congrats to all who played!

For the Unwanteds contest, you had to put two animals together, tell me what they'd be called, and describe what they looked like. Here are my favorite three:

1. If I could put two animals together it would have to be a pig and a chicken (a Picken) that way your could get your bacon and eggs from one animal. The animal would have the body of a pig with the face and butt of a chicken and completely covered in feathers. by W.E.

2. 1. Chonky :D - Cheetah/Monkey but it's more fun to pronounce it chunky. See a hybrid between a money and a cheetah would allow the animal to be able to travel effortlessly through the trees and run speedily on the ground. 2. Cat/horse- I only like that one so that it could make the sound MEOWNEIGHHHHH! Because seriously what's a hybrid without an awesome sound :) by T.P.

3. An imaginary creature that I've always thought would be cool is a mix between a dolphin and a unicorn, uncreatively named a unifin (although it does have a nice ring to it). It has the shape of a dolphin, but instead of flippers it has short forelegs with hooves, and it's head is that of a unicorn. It's mane resembles seaweed but can appear in a variety of colors, and whichever color the mane is matches the color of it's long, fish-style soft dorsal fin, which is in place of a dolphin's dorsal fin. Unifins thrive underwater, although they can go on land for short periods of time, in which they shift to resemble regular unicorns. PS. I made it to the end! by M.W.

These three each won a signed copy of THE UNWANTEDS.


For the DEAD TO YOU contest, you had to describe in a word or phrase how it would feel to find your family again but not remember them.

Our winning entry was: Desperate to be invisible but aching to connect - by S.G.


For the WAKE TRILOGY contest, you had to tell me why you neeeeeeeeeeed a box full of Janie and Cabe. Here is the winning entry:

Okay. This is a doozy. It's a reason I Neeeeeeeed a big ole box full of Janie and Cabe. Truth is it's because aliens invaded my podunk little town of Ringgold. Yup. They just up and swooped in! Anyway, they'd only been here for a few minutes when they heard of this amazing series of books: the wake trilogy. (I guess aliens are big fans of reading. Who knew, right?) And, being aliens, they knew the fastest way to get us earthlings to do anything is to abduct us. So they came to my house in the middle of the night, abducted my family, and demanded that I find them a set of these AHMAZING books. And I, being thoroughly and completely miffed at such behavior from Ringgold's newest inhabitants, had to agree. (They were aliens after all. Kinda creepy.) So, that became my quest: find a set of the WAKE trilogy, and get my family back. (Well, except for my little sister. They can have her. :P) I was beginning to lose hope, about to go into hiding, when BAM! There's my answer. Right there in my email, just waiting for me to open it. :) So. That's my tale. My best reason why I NEEEEEEDDD those books. Don't believe me? Check out the picture I attached. It'll convince you my story's true. :)

P.s. I swear I'm normal... I just get all dorky when left to my own devices. Oh, and I made it to the end of your newsletter. It rocked my so

If you haven't had a chance to buy THE UNWANTEDS yet, now's a great time! You can find it in your local independent bookstore, B&N, Target, and online everywhere books are sold. If your favorite store doesn't have it, ask them to order it for you!

The first leg of THE UNWANTEDS tour was absolutely fantastic. Eleven days in the southeast part of the country with Margaret Peterson Haddix - what a blast! I met so many incredible students, parents, librarians, teachers, and booksellers. Thank you ALL for coming out and making everything fun.

I'm home for a few days (working on copyedits for THE UNWANTEDS Book 2!) but head out next week to the Milwaukee & Chicago areas.

Then it's on to Denver, where I'll have a signing at Tattered Cover on Colfax, Saturday, October 1, 2011, 3:00 PM

In mid-October I'll make my way back to my home state of Michigan, making stops in Holland, Okemos, and Ferndale.

Then, closing out 2 months of touring, I'll be in Houston for the Tweens Read Book Festival, yay!

If you are in the area, please come! I'd love to meet you. Thank you so much for your awesome support of this book! I hope you enjoy the entire series!

xox

Lisa

Please come, I'd love to meet you!

*Sunday, Sept 4, 2011B&N Alpharetta, GA, 2pm with Margaret Peterson Haddix

*Wednesday, Sept 7, 2011QUAIL RIDGE BOOKSTORE with Margaret Peterson Haddix3522 Wade Ave.Raleigh,NC5:00PM

*Thursday, Sept 8, 2011THE VERO BEACH BOOK CENTER AND CHILDREN'S STORE with Margaret Peterson Haddix2145 Indian River Blvd.Vero Beach,FL6:00PM

*Saturday, Sept 10, 2011BOOKS & BOOKS with Margaret Peterson Haddix265 Aragon AveCoral Gables,FL3:30PM

See the whole tour here.

And a great review from Shelf Awareness:

In her first book for middle-graders, Lisa McMann (the Wake trilogy) creates a magical adventure that serves as a worthy successor for fans of Harry Potter. The author introduces us to Quill, a land whose governors label artistic children "Unwanted" and deport them to the Death Farm. On the morning of the government's annual Purge, the governors separate the Stowes, who are 13-year-old identical twins: they keep Aaron ("Wanted") and ship Alexander ("Unwanted") off to die. High Priest Justine warns that "creativity [leads] to revolt," which doesn't faze law-abiding Aaron. He will serve her and her Quillitary, an army of Wanteds, and co-exist with the Necessaries (the sect to which his parents belong), who must perform menial labors.

The Unwanteds do not undergo the fate they expect at the Great Lake of Boiling Oil, however. Instead, they are spared by Mr. Today, a mage who has been saving children for decades. He invites them to Artimé, where artists are not punished but rather rewarded and their gifts nurtured. While Quill is colorless and flooded with suspicion, Artimé is vivid and inspires a feeling of security. If their magical world were ever to be unveiled, the residents of Artimé would be prepared to battle with the Quillitary--which would pit Alexander against Aaron.

McMann creates a spectrum of well-defined worlds, peopled with characters that resemble archetypes yet retain original qualities. Stunning fight sequences make use of unique weapons such as slam-poetry charms and origami dragons that breathe fire. This masterpiece delivers a new spin on what it means to be wanted. --Adam Silvera, a bookseller and an intern at Figment.

Discover: A middle-grade dystopia where drawing in the mud gets you banished to the Death Farm. What's on the other side?

The CRYER'S CROSS paperback comes out Dec 6th!

Thanks as always for your wonderful support of my books. I hope you enjoy THE UNWANTEDS series. Book 1 is available in stores and online now.

Every year in Quill, thirteen-year-olds are sorted into categories—the strong, intelligent 'Wanteds' go to university, and the artistic 'Unwanteds' are sent to their deaths. When Alex is announced as an Unwanted, he leaves behind his twin, Aaron, a Wanted.

But upon arrival at the destination where he expects to die, Alex discovers a stunning secret—behind the mirage of the 'death farm' there is instead a place called Artime. There, each child is taught to cultivate their creative abilities and use them magically, weaving spells through paintbrushes and musical instruments. Soon, as Alex and Aaron's bond stretches across their separation, a threat arises for the survival of Artime that will pit brother against brother in an ultimate, magical battle.

Please stop by one of my book signings if you're in the area! Here's my tour schedule:
http://lisamcmann.com/html/tour.php

Not Just For Kids: 'The Unwanteds' by Lisa McMann

SPECIAL OFFER:
We've extended the Prize Pack offer! Due to popular demand, Changing Hands and I have decided to extend The Unwanteds Prize Pack off through Tuesday, Aug 30th - the night I'll be doing the big launch party at their store in Tempe, AZ. We're hustling to put more prize packs together right now! Order a signed copy of The Unwanteds via phone, online, or in person and you'll get a free prize pack. Shipping is available at a special rate for this offer. See the link for all the details! The postcard illustration will be a collectible - I plan to have a new one for each book in this series, so get in on the action early and you'll have the whole set!

CONTESTS: If you want in on the plethora of contests I'll be holding starting next week, you have to sign up for my newsletter or you won't hear about them. Go here.

TOUR TOUR TOUR:
I will be traveling for parts of September and October. Here is the current list of stops. Please come out and see me! Find updates at the tour link above or here.

*Tuesday, August 30, 2011, 7pm -- THE UNWANTEDS launch party and Prize Pack special offer!
Changing Hands Bookstore
6428 So. McClintock
Tempe,AZ


*Sept 3, 2011 -- Decatur Book Festival
Teen book stuff: The Escape at the Decatur Library Saturday, 12:00 pm - 12:45 pm
The Unwanteds: Children's Stage Saturday, 3:30 pm - 4:00 pm with Margaret Peterson Haddix

*Sunday, Sept 4, 2011
B&N Alpharetta, GA, 2pm with Margaret Peterson Haddix!

*Wednesday, Sept 7, 2011
QUAIL RIDGE BOOKSTORE with Margaret Peterson Haddix
3522 Wade Ave.
Raleigh,NC
5:00PM

*Thursday, Sept 8, 2011
THE VERO BEACH BOOK CENTER AND CHILDREN'S STORE with Margaret Peterson Haddix
2145 Indian River Blvd.
Vero Beach,FL
6:00PM

*Saturday, Sept 10, 2011
BOOKS & BOOKS with Margaret Peterson Haddix
265 Aragon Ave
Coral Gables,FL
3:30PM

*Wed, Sept 21, 2011
BOOKS & COMPANY
1039 SUMMIT AVE
OCONOMOWOC,WI
4:00PM

*Thurs, Sept 22, 2011
BOSWELL BOOK COMPANY
2559 N. Downer Ave.
Milwaukee,WI
4:00PM

*Friday, Sept 23, 2011
7:00 PM
LAKE VILLA DISTRICT LIBRARY (with Lake Forest Bookstore)
1001 E Grand Avenue
Lake Villa, IL 60046

*Saturday, Sept 24, 2011 -- 8th Annual YA Lit Conference w/ Anderson's Bookshop, Chicago. Details to come.

*Saturday, October 1, 2011
Tattered Cover
2526 East Colfax Avenue
Denver,CO
3:00PM

*Wednesday, October 12, 2011, 7:00 PM
B&N - Holland
3050 Beeline Road
Suite 50
Holland, MI 49424

*Thursday, October 13, 2011, 6:00 PM
SCHULER BOOKS
1982 Grand River Ave.
Okemos, MI 48864

*Saturday, Oct 15, 2011, 2:30PM
FERNDALE PUBLIC LIBRARY
222 E. 9 mile Road
Ferndale, MI 48220
Co-sponsored by the Ferndale Public Library and Book Beat


*Friday, Oct 14 - Sunday, Oct 16, 2011 GLIBA convention, Dearborn, MI. More info to come.

*Saturday, Oct 29, 2011 Houston Area TWEENS READ Book Festival - Bobby Shaw Middle School in Pasadena, TX

Hello readers! I am so excited to show you this cool prize pack that anyone can order starting today through August 25th (limited to the first 100 orders, so you might want to hurry). You'll get exclusive, limited edition prizes free with your purchase of a personalized, signed copy of THE UNWANTEDS through my local independent bookstore, Changing Hands.

It's a great way to support an independent bookstore (did you know I worked in an indie bookstore for ten years?) and get some cool free stuff for you too, including a limited edition postcard of an illustration (The Eliminators), drawn by my son Kilian (he's 17). It'll be hand-signed by me, dated release day 8.30.2011, and numbered.

All the details are here on the Changing Hands website. You will also receive these bonus items by coming to my signing at Changing Hands Bookstore. And the store will ship inside the US for a nice price of $22 total (includes taxes/shipping) and internationally (additional fee for postage).

It's the funnest giveaway I've ever done! I hope you enjoy the goodies.