2. You are NOT ALLOWED to explain ANYTHING unless someone messages or comments you and asks. –and believe me, the temptation to explain some of these will be overwhelming nothing is exactly as it seems.

Now, here’s what you’re supposed to do. . . Copy and paste this into your notes, delete my answers, type in your answers and tag as many of your friends as you’d like to.

——- ——- ——- ——- ——- ——-
Kissed any one of your Facebook friends? — YES
Been arrested? — NO
Kissed someone you didn’t like? — YES
Slept in until 5 PM? — YES
Fallen asleep at work/school? — YES
Held a snake? — YES
Ran a red light? — NO
Been suspended from school? — NO
Experienced love at first sight? — YES
Totaled your car in an accident? — NO
Been in a vehicle at more than 100 mph? — YES
Driven a vehicle at more than 100 mph? — YES
Been fired from a job? — NO
Fired somebody? — NO
Sang karaoke? — NO
Pointed a gun at someone? — NO
Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t? — YES
Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? — NO
Caught a snowflake on your tongue? — YES
Kissed in the rain? — YES
Had a close brush with death (your own)? — YES
Ever feared for your life? — YES
Seen someone die? — NO
Played spin-the-bottle? — YES
Sang in the shower? — YES
Smoked a cigar? — YES
Sat on a rooftop? — YES
Taken pictures of yourself naked? — YES
Smuggled something into another country? — NO
Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on? — YES
Broken a bone? — YES
Skipped school? — YES
Eaten a bug? — YES
Sleepwalked? — YES
Walked a moonlit beach? — YES
Rode a motorcycle? — YES
Dumped someone? — YES
Forgotten your anniversary? — YES
Lied to avoid a ticket? — YES
Ridden in a helicopter? — NO
Shaved your head? — NO
Played a prank on someone? — YES
Hit a home run? — NO
Felt like killing someone? — YES
Cross-dressed? — YES
Been falling-down drunk? — YES
Made your girlfriend/boyfriend cry? — YES
Eaten snake? — NO
Marched/Protested? — YES
Had Mexican jumping beans for pets? — NO
Puked on an amusement ride? — NO
Seriously & intentionally boycotted something? — NO
Been in a band? — NO
Knitted? — YES
Been on TV? — YES
Skinny-dipped? — YES
Gave someone stitches? — YES
Eaten a whole habenero pepper (or other hot peppers)? — NO
Ridden a surfboard? — YES
Drank straight from a liquor bottle? — YES
Had surgery? — YES
Streaked? — NO
Taken by ambulance to hospital? — NO
Tripped on mushrooms? — YES
Passed out when not drinking? — YES
Peed on a bush? — NO
Donated Blood? — NO
Grabbed electric fence? — YES
Eaten alligator meat? — YES
Eaten cheesecake? — YES
Eaten your kids’ Halloween candy? — NO
Killed an animal when not hunting? — NO
Peed your pants in public? — NO
Snuck into a movie without paying? — YES
Written graffiti? — YES
Still love someone you shouldn’t? — YES
Think about the future? — YES
Been in handcuffs? — YES
Believe in love? — YES
Sleep on a certain side of the bed? — YES

Okay, GO! Your turn.

Here’s an excerpt:

Enter the Parrot reads like a movie, and I think Hollywood needs to get on the case. Jade’s character is funny and sarcastic. I absolutely adored her family dynamics, being the white girl in the Wong family. The other characters in the book are unique and entertaining. My favorite being TF, of course, the tall, dark, and mysterious young man Jade keeps running into in her search for more clues.

Want to know what else they had to say? Make sure to stop by their blog, and while you’re at it, check out their other reviews, too.

Now TWRP has cut out the middle man and you can get their books directly from their website, for the same price as their e-books!

So if you haven’t shopped for books in a while, may I suggest you start by looking, say, here?

I’ve done a lot of cleaning and restructuring since I came back from Europe, bothy around the house and in other aspects of my life.

But you know what I really need? Reading. While I read, life is good. nothing truly bad can happen, and if it does, it’ll end eventually.

What have you read lately that has removed you from the strains of everyday life?

Keep the fun going.

Kiki’s book release!

10 Best Kung Fu Movies Ever, sort of.

Chinese Whispers

A Flock of Parrots

Enter The Parrot is out today!

Another Fan of Enter the Parrot

Enter the Parrot – Sneak Peak!

I’m late! I’m late!

But I have a great excuse.

You see, I was “stuck” (and by stuck, I mean having a grand time) in Hong Kong, the home of martial arts as most people know it. And when your choice is to go and explore a new city or blog about your book coming up… Well, we were only there for a few days, what can I say?

But today is the day! Enter The Parrot is now available through Amazon, or, even better, directly from The Wild Rose Press. It’s all a bit surreal, but that might be the jetlag…

But I’m not too fuzzy-brained for a give-away!
And not just one, but FOUR awesome prizes are up for grabs!

I’m giving away three e-books of Enter The Parrot as well as some other virtual goodies, and the grand prize is one actual paperback of Enter The Parrot together witha  martial arts goodie basket, put together on three continents.

You have until next Friday to reply to this blog post for your chance to win! All you have to do is tell me either how learning martial arts has helped you, or how you think martial arts would help you in your life. ^_^

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to unpack.Release Day

There are many versions of this one out there, as often people will add to it. I’ll try and add a question or two of my own as well.

1. Name the last book by a female author that you’ve read.

I read mainly books by women, so infact, I had to think a little harder about male authors.  I’ve read books by both on the plane.

2. Name the last book by an African or African-American author that you’ve read.

Pushing Pause, by Celeste Norfleet

3. Name one from a Latino/a author.

Haven’t read one in a while. The last one was It’s not about the accent, by Caridad Ferrer.

4. How about one from an Asian country or Asian-American?

North of Beautiful, Justina Chen Headley

5. What about a GLBT writer?

Drama! series, by Paul Ruditis

6. What have you read lately that takes an opposite political view from your own?

Most books I read are quite apolitical, actually.

7. Have you read any Jewish authors lately?

Not that I was aware of it at the time.

8. How about Muslim writers?

The last one was a while ago. Ten Things I Hate About Me, by Randa Abdel-Farrah

9. If you are Christian or at least monotheistic, have you read any books from an atheistic or agnostic viewpoint lately? Or if you are non-religious, have you read anything written by a Christian or other religous person that specifically form a Christian point of view?

Trust the religious question to be the longest one. >_< I’m not Christian, but I’ve read very Christian books. The last one was It’s All About Us, by Shelley Adina.

10. What was the last book outside your preferred genres you’ve read?

Not sure. There are genres I read less than others, like historicals, but I’ll still pick them up every so often.

11. Any other marginalised groups of writers that you are aware of thatyou’ve read recently?

I think even with a list like this, we don’t cover everything. These are just the big groups we think of, but I’d love to see more variety in fiction, especially in lead characters that go beyond the Anglo world. I’m always interested in books where culture informs how someone acts, feels or thinks. Not in a  heavy-handed way, but just naturally.

I haven’t read any books by Aboriginal authors, but I’d be interested if there was one that fits in my general interest field. Also, I could probably do with more European teen protagonists. I’m getting saturated with the American experience. In general, I want more multicultural YA fiction. Go bring me some.

I’m a sucker for any memes involving books, so there you go.

1. One book that changed your life: Fishbowl, by Sarah Mlynowski. That book pushed me over the edge to become a chick lit writer, my first step into my career.

2. One book that you’ve read more than once: There are surprisingly few books that I re-read. The last one was Uglies.

3. One book you’d want on a desert island: the Oxford dictionary, or something equally hefty and random

4. One book that made you laugh: Drama! by Paul Ruditis (ok, it’s a series, but all of them made me lol)

5. One book that made you cry:  I *hate* weepies. I’ve never really cried at a book, but I’ve been emotional.

6. One book that you wish had been written: Girl Overboard, by Justina Chen Headley

7. One book that you wish had never been written: Breaking Dawn, by Stephenie Meyer

8. One book you’re currently reading: Rumors, by Anna Godbersen

9. One book you’ve been meaning to read:  Ack! There are so many!

10.  One book you’ve recommended to people: The neverending Stoy, by Michael Ende

Your turn! Give me your ten one-book answers.

a. Go to Google
b. Type your name and the words “likes to” all in quotation marks. (e.g. “Ryan likes to”)
c. Report back on the first ten things that come up for your name. Here’s mine:

1. Kiki likes to look out my bay window and plot her schemes to steal the birds from our pear tree
2. kiki likes to play. 
3. Kiki likes to fish for stars, invent things, and explore for new planets.
4. KIKI LIKES TO ROAD TRIP
5. Kiki likes to go drinking
6. Kiki likes to read books with me.
7. KIKI LIKES TO TALK ON THE PHONE. (Note: This was already the first page in Google. Kiki apparently likes to repeat things, too.)
8. Kiki likes to sit in front of the mirror (any mirror) for hours on end
9. Kiki likes to make nests out of hay to sleep in at night.
10. Kiki likes to show off the photo of herself as a cheerleader. 

Kiki agrees with most of these points, except for 5 and 7. And 10. Even though you know I totally would, too.

What do you like to do, according to Teh Google?