C. Lee McKenzie

Young Adult and Middle Grade Author

How Can Love Disturb?

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I’ve been off having way too much relaxation, so now it’s catch up time. Here’s a special end of the week post to show you Medeia Sharif’s newest YA novel.

A LOVE THAT DISTURBS by Medeia Sharif
Evernight Teen, June 17, 2016
Purchase from Amazon (merchant sites will be updated on the author’s site)

Maysa Mazari is alarmed by her mother’s talk about arranged marriage. As a hijab-wearing Pakistani-American, she wants to find love on her own. Her judgmental Muslim clique has protected her from racist taunts, although the leader is turning on her as Maysa strays from the group because of her attraction to Haydee.

Haydee Gomez is a former gang member and juvenile detention student. Now living with a clean-cut aunt, she wants to turn her life around, even though one person will never let her forget her roots—Rafe, her abusive pimp. Haydee attempts to pull away from a life of prostitution when she develops feelings for Maysa, although Rafe isn’t willing to give her up too easily.

Finding themselves in danger from Maysa’s friends and Haydee’s pimp, it’s apparent their love disturbs everyone around them as they fight to stay together.

Find Medeia – YA and MG Author

Blog   |   Twitter   |   Goodreads   |   Instagram   |   Amazon

Author, Medeia Sharif

Sounds great, Medeia. It’s always interesting to read about the cultural issues in your stories. Have any of you read other books by this author? How does this one sound to you?

Hats Off Corner Welcomes Medeia Sharif

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I know it’s Friday and I don’t blog on Friday unless I screw up and forget something important on Monday! And I did. However, I’m here to try and make up for spacing out and not posting this when I promised.



Hats Off Corner Welcomes Medeia Sharif

A LOVE THAT DISTURBS by Medeia Sharif
Evernight Teen, June 17, 2016

Maysa Mazari is alarmed by her mother’s talk about arranged marriage. Meanwhile, as a hijab-wearing Pakistani-American, she wants to find love on her own. Her judgmental Muslim clique has protected her from racist taunts, although the leader, Aamal, is turning on her as Maysa strays from the group because of her attraction to Haydee.

Haydee Gomez is a former gang member and juvenile detention student. Now living with a clean-cut aunt, she wants to turn her life around, even though one person will never let her forget her roots—Rafe, her abusive pimp. Haydee attempts to pull away from a life of prostitution when she develops feelings for Maysa, although Rafe isn’t willing to give her up too easily.

Finding themselves in danger from Maysa’s friends and Haydee’s pimp, it’s apparent their love disturbs everyone around them as they fight to stay together.

Find Medeia – YA and MG Author

Blog   |   Twitter   |   Goodreads   |   Instagram   |   Amazon

Hot August Nights Special Offer Winners, WEP Spectacular Settings, Hats Off Corner Welcomes Medeia Shariff

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I sent my subscriber-peeps my Hot August Nights Special Offer and I have two winners, chosen at random. Christine Rains and Mike Boyd will each receive $10 to add books to their libraries or their Kindles, Nooks or bookshelves. Congrats. And thanks for adding your name to my Special Offers Mailing List. Stay tuned for next month’s offer. 
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DENISE COVEY and YOLANDA RENEE

Anyone interested in joining Denise Covey’s and Yolanda Renee’s WEP Hop? HERE’S where you sign up. Not too late. I’ve already posted my contribution, and you might like to see what others have written.
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Hats Off Corner welcomes Medeia Shariff
HOT PINK IN THE CITY, Prizm Books/Torquere Press, 
Release Date: August 19, 2015
Ebook
Purchase from Prizm, Amazon (vendor links will be updated on the author’s site)

Asma Bashir wants two things: a summer fling and her favorite ’80s songs. During a trip to New York City to stay with relatives, she messes up in her pursuit of both. She loses track of the hunk she met on her airplane ride, and she does the most terrible thing she could possibly do to her strict uncle… ruin his most prized possession, a rare cassette tape.


A wild goose chase around Manhattan and Brooklyn to find a replacement tape yields many adventures — blackmail, theft, a chance to be a TV star, and so much more. Amid all this turmoil, Asma just might be able to find her crush in the busiest, most exciting city in the world.

Find Medeia – YA and MG Author

Blog   |   Twitter   |   Goodreads   |   Instagram   |   Amazon

Enter the HPITC book blast giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

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Quote of the Week: “Life is like a lot of jazz-it’s best when you improvise.” George Gershwin

And that’s a wrap! Are you in the hop? Do you hop? (Just kidding.) Want to find out about that rare cassette Asma ruins? Improvise much? 

Surviving the AtoZ April Challenge and Hat’s Off Corner with Medeia Sharif

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I survived last year and the year before. Let’s see if I can do it again this year. 

I’m a new AtoZ Team Member this year, so I’m figuring out what I’m supposed to do or not do as a member of this group. Today I’ve posted on Blogging from A to Z. 

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Hat’s Off Corner 

Medeia  is one prolific writer. Here’s her latest book. Be sure to enter her GIVEAWAY!

52 LIKES, Evernight Teen, 2015
Purchase from Amazon, Evernight Teen (vendor links will be updated on the author’s site)

After a brutal rape and near-murder, Valerie wants to get past feelings of victimhood from both the assault and her history of being bullied. She’s plagued by not knowing the identity of her rapist and by the nasty rumors in school about that night. Valerie follows clues from ghostly entities, past victims of the rapist-murderer, contacting her through a social media site—why do all of their eerie photos have 52 likes under them? Their messages are leading her to the mystery man, although he’ll put up a fight to remain hidden.

Find Medeia – YA and MG Author

Blog   |   Twitter   |   Goodreads   |   Instagram   |   Amazon

a Rafflecopter giveaway

My Quote for the Day: 

I learned early on that if you don’t want your memos to get ou in trouble someday, just don’t write any. Dick Cheney.

Are you thinking about a theme for the AtoZ April Challenge 2015? Did you sign up for a copy of Medeia’s book? Write any memos lately?

I’m off to southern California for a few days, so I may not get around to say hi to everyone right away. Sorry. Have to take care of more of my mom’s estate business. I’ll be back to “normal” one of these days. 

How to Enjoy A Good Book. The International Potluck Blogfest

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The brilliant idea of Lexa Cain, Medeia Sharif, and Beth Fred
A Very International Group 
You haven’t lived until you’ve read The Milagro Beanfield War and crunched a few chapulines. Pair those two delicacies with a lovely pinot, and you understand the concept of heaven.
Milagro was first published in 1974 by Ballantine Books. John Nichols was the author and brilliant in this book.
Here’s what steered me to choose this book and chapulines as the accompaniment.
Kirkus: “More alive than a grasshopper on a hot skillet. . .full of good humor.”
So here’s the Chapulines Recipe:
In May, and up until  late summer (hurry) trap a few thousand grasshoppers.
Thoroughly wash and pat dry. They like the patting part. Washing? Not so much.
After you’ve  thoroughly cleaned and dried them, Take out your comal, sauté garlic in a light oil.
Say good-bye to your tiny long-legged friends and toast your critters until crispy.
Toss in lime juice and salt containing extract of agave worms. This will lend the piquant—sour-spicy-salty—taste to the finished product. 
If you like spicy, add chili.
Get some napkins, the pinot, and find a comfy spot with good lighting. Open to page one and read, “Many people in the Miracle Valley had theories about why Joe Mondaragon did it.”

Hooked? You bet you are. Now enjoy those crunchy chapulines, that pinot, and a great adventure in the beanfield unlike any other. 

Celebrating Some Small Things

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VIKLIT


LG KELTNER @writing off the edge
KATIE @TheCyborg Mom
CAFFEEMAGGIEATO @mscoffeehouse

 One Pond Lily the Raccoons Didn’t Get Last Night

A Happy Face that Greeted Me in The Garden This Morning
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offer up some literary cuisine. 

My quote for the day:  “Work is the greatest thing in the world, so we should always save some of it for tomorrow.” Don Herold, Humorist

Be sure to visit the others and see what SMALL THINGS they’re celebrating. How about entering the International Postluck Blogfest? I’m already in. I love to eat and read at the same time.

Pros Part 4, Medeia Sharif

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In the past weeks I’ve  featured some writer friends who have some excellent books out this year. I asked them to send me their latest book, their tagline and a short piece of advice they wanted to pass on to writers, especially those still seeking publication. Last week MICHELLE ZINK visited with her book, The Wicked Games. Today I have an Evernight Teen author, MEDEIA SHARIF. 

Medeia’s Book Available Now

Tagline: Don’t touch a girl’s most prized possession.


Advice from Medeia: My advice is to get inside a teenager’s head and not to allow a wisp of an adult voice inside your story, save for the actual adult characters. Even during moments of growth, the teenage voice should be there. 

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Here’s one of my favorite quotes about VOICE from Sol Stein. “The author’s “voice” is an amalgam of the many factors that distinguish a writer from all other writers. Many authors first find their voice when they have learned to examine each word for its necessity, precision, and clarity, and have become expert in eliminating the extraneous and imprecise from their work. Recognizing an individual author’s voice is much like recognizing a person’s voice on the telephone.
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Sometimes it takes me a while to “get” the voice I want for my story, even when I think I have a good grip on it in my head. When I have trouble nailing down the character’s voice I want, I try these strategies.
1) I switch the point of view from whatever I’ve written in already.
2) I play with tense.
3) I read both aloud, so I can hear the dialogue and the narration.
4) I decide which has the strongest connection between my character(s) and me.
Here’s a really short bit of a scene from Double Negative. It’s between Hutch and his dad and it’s written in third person, past tense. 
His eyes hurt watching his dad. He missed his easy ways. Dee Dee was part insect, the way she darted around and made gnat sounds just before she jabbed her stinger into him.
“So what’re we gonna do about this school thing, Hutch?” His dad’s “thing” still came out “thang” even after twenty years living away from Texas.
When Hutch answered him, he’d already picked up that sound and Texas was in his voice, too. “I guess I’ll have to stop ditching?”
“You get to Kranski’s office and talk over the problem. If he wants a conversation, you best give him one.”
Here’s that same bit as it is in the book-first person, present tense.
My eyes kinda hurt watching him. I miss his easy ways. Dee Dee’s part insect, the way she darts around and makes gnat sounds just before she jabs her stinger into me.
“So what’re we gonna do about this school thing, Hutch?” Dad’s “thing” still comes out “thang” even after twenty years living away from Texas.
When I answer him, I’ve already picked up that sound and Texas is in my voice, too. “I guess I’ll have to stop ditching?”
“You get to Kranski’s office and talk over the problem. If he wants a conversation, you best give him one.” 
I had to go with the first person and the present tense because, to my ear, it was really Hutch’s voice that way. In third person, past, I lost my kid and I heard more of me. 
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My quote for the day: “It is what you learn after you know it all that counts.” Earl Weaver, Baseball Manager, Washington  Post
Do you have any strategies for nailing voice? If you write for YA readers, did Medeia’s advice ring true for you? Anybody in your life that knows it all?

The Last A to Z Winner and I’m Celebrating

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We did it! 

A to Z in 26 days.

It’s hard not to pop the champagne cork, but it’s only 5AM here at the moment, so I think I’ll wait a bit. But I won’t wait to announce the last winner of the Mystery Blogger contest and give you the answers to the last three bloggers featured on my A to Z.

X= L. Diane Wolfe
Y= e.a.s. deemers
Z= Julie Flanders

On the last round lots of people guessed the Mystery Bloggers, but Samantha Readstreak added that touch of glibness (we won’t mention the bribes of wine and catnip) that shot her score up. So, Sam, email me and I’ll send you that signed copy of Princess of Las Pulgas.

Thanks VIKLIT
  Medeia Sharif has a new book out.

I’ll be posting more books that are coming this May and June from

Tyrean Martinson
Melissa Maygrove
River Fairchild
Pam Torres

I’m beginning to feel like a slug surrounded by all of this productivity! 

If you’ve got a book coming, let me know. This summer I’m dedicating a lot of space to people with book launches and giveaways or awards to show off.