Tribal Tuesday!!!

Just a few newsy things this week!

You still have time to enter to win a galley of NIL UNLOCKED over at Bewitched Bookworms. 3 days left, to be specific. :) The clock is ticking . . .

A signed copy of NIL is up for grabs at Becoming Books . . . plus a Q&A in which I gush about the #NILtribe.:)

 Also, next month I'll be at the Vegas Valley Book Festival on October 18, on a panel with Amy Tintera, Mindy McGinnis and more! Find out all the details here!

Last but not least, I wanted to share the cool tune I've been writing to this week. I'm working on a secret project THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE NIL RELATED. We'll see.:)

Here you go!

Gaslight Anthem's Get Hurt:

Happy Tuesday #NILtribe!

xo
Lynne

Tribal Tuesday!!!

Hi y'all!

Welcome to the first Tribal Tuesday!

These are the days when the #NILtribe gathers and noms island snacks…and sits around and gets ALL THE ISLAND SCOOP.:)

Seriously, these are the days when the tribe gets to speak up. To ask questions, about NIL, NIL UNLOCKED, or the island itself . . . about characters and sequels . . . about writing or publishing or cookies or whatever the tribe has on their mind.:) It's also the days when I'll share island scoop.

NIL or NIL UNLOCKED scoop . . .  like the fact the the cover for NIL UNLOCKED was just released and I LOVE IT!

If you missed it, go here to check out the cover goodness and enter to win a galley of NIL UNLOCKED.

And ICYMI, here's the blurb of NIL UNLOCKED:

On the island of Nil, the rules are set. You have exactly 365 days to escape—or you die. Rives is now the undisputed Leader of Nil City, but keeping the City united is tougher than ever.

Raiders have grown bolder, supplies are dwindling, and non-human inhabitants have taken a turn toward the deadly. New arrivals cause rifts within the City, putting the Search system at risk, and calling everything Rives knows into question. Desperate for answers, he teams up with the only other person searching for them: Skye, a new arrival with a mysterious past of her own. Soon the duo find themselves locked in a desperate race to save all the residents of Nil—and possibly destroy the island forever. But at what cost? And who will pay the price?

Cool, right?:)

Ok, #NILtribe, the floor is yours! Got questions? Leave them below! Or you can ask me on Twitter at @LSMatson.:)

And don't forget . . . tomorrow is #WinNIL Wednesday on Twitter and FB--good luck!

xo
Lynne

NIL UNLOCKED HAS A COVER!!!!!!!

I LOVE THE COVER OF NIL UNLOCKED SO MUCH I CAN'T EVEN.

Seriously.

It's AMAZING. When I saw it for the first time, I screamed "YES!" (Well, not out loud actually, but IN MY  HEAD.:D) It's so perfect!

Wanna see?

I'll post here but before I do, you should know the official cover reveal is happening over at Bewitched Bookworms and Danny is also hosting a giveaway! You can enter to win a hardcover of NIL and a galley of NIL UNLOCKED.  So go! Enter! And you can read the story behind NIL UNLOCKED too.:)

But if you're still here . . .




and you want to see the cover . . .




scroll down. :)




Keep going . . .




and scrolling . . .




once more . . . .





BOOM. Here you go! The awesome I'm-so-in-love-with-it cover for NIL UNLOCKED! (Which will be out in May. Just in case you didn't know.:D)

Isn't it so cool?!
Love the graphics inside the word NIL.:) And the reflection on the water!

More NIL UNLOCKED scoop coming soon!!! Thanks for stopping by!:)
xo
Lynne

#NILquote Contest

Hi y'all!

I'm SOOOO happy to say I finished edits on NIL UNLOCKED. *cue crazy happy dance*

To celebrate, I thought have a contest!

And since school is in session, here's the contest assignment:

Tell me your favorite quote from NIL in the comments below, and yes, you can leave more than one! (Max entry=five.:D)

Contest will run until December 1. Open internationally!

I'll pick the winner at random  and the winner will win some special Nil bling from the upcoming NIL UNLOCKED and BE ELIGIBLE TO WIN AN ARC OF NIL UNLOCKED TOO . It will also run on Twitter, FB and Instagram...so if you posted your answer elsewhere, be sure to use the hashtag #NILquote so I see your answer.

Sound cool?:)

Oh, and did you catch that all commenters will be automatically entered in my first contest to win an ARC of NIL UNLOCKED when I get them??? Yup. It's true. Drop a #NILquote and you could get your hands on NIL UNLOCKED early. Just like that.:)

Good luck! I can't wait to hear your favorite quotes!!!

And welcome to the tribe!
#NILtribe

xo
Lynne

It's OFFICIAL! NIL UNLOCKED will be out next year!

I've been waiting for SOOOOO long to share this exciting news! 

NIL UNLOCKED will be out next year. *cue crazy tribal happy dance*

Here's proof:

The official Publisher's Marketplace announcement! Woot!

NIL UNLOCKED is a sequel to NIL, picking up on the island from the moment where Nil left off.  Like NIL, NIL UNLOCKED is told from two different POV's, with each character bringing different information and desires and secrets to the story.

POV number 1? Rives. One of Thad's Seconds in NIL, Rives is a character worthy of more time. I lurrvvvee Rives. Like Charley during her days on Nil, Rives is driven to uncover Nil's secrets and solve all the island's mysteries…but his desire to unlock Nil is quickly approaching obsessive proportions.

And the second POV? Skye. A newcomer with a family past tied to Nil, Skye is a rookie unlike any Rives has ever met.

Want a blurb to make you drool? The tribe's wish is my command!!!

NIL UNLOCKED

Still on Nil after Thad's shocking play, Rives is the undisputed Leader of Nil City. But keeping the City united is tougher than ever.

Raiders have grown bolder, City supplies are dwindling, and the non-human inhabitants have taken a definite turn toward the deadly. New arrivals cause rifts within the City, putting the Search system at risk and calling everything Rives knows into question: the island, his humanity, and his heart. Rives’s desperate thirst for understanding is rivaled only by Skye’s, a new arrival with a mysterious past of her own. Soon they're locked in a desperate race to save all the teens at once--and destroy the island forever. But the cost of success may be greater than they ever imagined . . . just like Nil's power.

Told from the dual view points of Rives and Skye, NIL UNLOCKED offers a stunning conclusion to the story begun in NIL. Fans of NIL will be glued to the pages until the last one is turned.

Okay, #NILtribe, there you go!  Next year will be full of more Nil, more mysteries, more feels. :) And more #NILtribe!!!! So get your grass skirt ready. We're ALL IN.  More #WinNIL Wednesdays (one a month until April 2015). . . more Nil sekrit scoop.

And coming up next? Tribal Tuesdays. They start Sept 2.:)

xo
Lynne

Ft. Myers!

Hey #NILtribe! A quick shout-out to say I'll be signing books and sharing NIL sekrits at the B&N in Ft. Myers this Saturday!

Come say hi!!!:)

Here's the link: http://store-locator.barnesandnoble.com/event/84507

And last week I got to go to Chicago and sign books at Anderson's Bookshop…as part of the #MMBB! They were AMAZING!!!:)

Plus I got to meet heaps of the @YA_Valentines….like Paula Stokes, Lindsay Cummings, Phil Siegel, Bethany Crandall, and Amy Rolland PLUS the lovely and talented Anita Grace Howard! I posted pics on my Instagram account.:) So you can go there to check them out.:)

xo
Lynne

Blog Roll!

Hi y'all! I've been tagged by the amazing Mary Pearson!

Mary is the award-winning author of The Jenna Fox Chronicles, one of my all-time favorite series. Gorgeous writing, mind-blowing premise, and characters to root for. Now Mary also has an incredible new book coming out called THE KISS OF DECEPTION. It's already receiving amazing (and starred!) reviews. 

Mary tagged me last week in a blog roll, where writers share a bit about how their writing process works. So here goes! (warning: you are about to peek inside my head) ;) 

1. WHAT AM I WORKING ON?

A sequel to NIL! Tentatively titled NIL UNLOCKED, the novel picks up on the island where NIL left off, although with a different character's POV. Told from veteran Rives' perspective, NIL UNLOCKED explores the island's secrets and history...and its future.:) Why does the island exist? Why do only teens make it to Nil? And why does each teen only get 365 days to escape, or die? And why risk falling in love if your time is short and nothing is guaranteed?


2. HOW DOES MY WORK DIFFER FROM OTHERS OF ITS GENRE?

I love this question! For me, it all comes down to the author's voice. Voice is what makes each book unique; it's what makes a book stand out. My books are character-driven with a Twilight Zone twist and heaps of feels, because I want the reader to yearn to linger in that world with my characters just a bit longer. 

I don't think NIL is easily classified (sic-fi? magical realism? sci-fi romance? YA with crossover appeal?) so that helps NIL stand on its own--rather like the island itself.:)

3. WHY DO I WRITE WHAT I DO?

Because the characters that grab me refuse to let me go until I write their stories. I especially love writing YA, because of the firsts and the feels. The powerful nature of the firsts--first kiss, first broken heart, first time running from tigers lol--makes for equally powerful feels.


4. HOW DOES MY WRITING PROCESS WORK?

My books always start with an idea, an "what-if." For example, NIL began with the idea; "What if a girl woke up naked in a red rock lava field and had no clue where she was or how she got there?" After the initial idea, I start writing and the story flows from there. I'm a pantser all the way. After my first draft, I go back and fill in the holes until the entire story is smooth and polished and shinier than a Christmas tree.

The other part? Music. I listen to music from start to finish: during drafting, revising, and brainstorming. Sometimes it's the lyrics, sometimes it's the tunes, but music is critical for me as I write.:)

5. AND THE OTHER PART OF THIS QUESTION, HOW DOES MY WRITING PROCESS NOT WORK?

Honestly, sometimes I just get stuck. It's like a pothole in the drafting road, and for a few days I can't find my way out. The only way out, I've discovered, is to keep writing. I maybe not be writing the right words, but I won't know until I get the wrong words on paper, because if I don't have any words then I have nothing to work with. Also, music. Music has the power to pull me out of a writer's slump same for reading.:) 

Now I get to tag someone!

Tonya Kuper, you're it! :)

Tonya's debut novel, ANAMOLY (the first in the Schrodinger’s Consortium Series) comes out in November and holy cow, AMAZING. Like Mary who tagged me, Tonya writes sci-fi too, and ANAMOLY promises to keep you up late at night until the last page is turned. Plus, also like Mary, Tonya is a sweetie and I LUUURRVE her.:)

So go find out the sekrits behind Tonya's writing!!!:) 

xo

Lynne