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Albert Camus

Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.

Monday, July 10, 2017

It’s not chemistry... - Artificial Sweethearts (North Pole, Minnesota #2) by Julie Hammerle

"This was super easy to get into. The writing was fun and just amazing. You want a fun and easy summer read, HERE IT IS.The characters are great. [...] The characters went through such a journey in this story. So wonderful to read." - Nicole, Goodreads


Description:

Release Date: July 10th, 2017

It’s not chemistry between Tinka Foster and Sam Anderson that made them agree to fake date. With her parents trying to set her up with an annoying student golf coach, and intentionally single Sam’s family pressuring him to bring a date to his brother’s wedding, they could both use a drama-free summer.

So it’s not his muscular arms and quick wit that makes Tinka suggest they tell everyone they’re both taken. Definitely not. And it’s not butterflies that makes a kiss for appearances during the lake party go on way too long—so long that Sam wishes it were real.

But Tinka keeps people at arm’s length—she’s always been second best, even to her parents. And her relationship-for-show could crush everything when she realizes she’s done with fake, pretend, and second-best.

Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains bikinis at the lake, a lot of making out in dark theaters, and a meet-cute you’ll read twice.

GUEST POST
Writing YA That Appeals to Adults 

One of my favorite things that happened after my first book, The Sound of Us, was published was when I started hearing from all of my 30-something guy friends who loved the book. I knew they’d only read it because of me, and I thought at first they were blowing smoke up my bum J, but then they started quoting lines to me and getting specific about what they liked. I couldn’t believe they’d actually read the book, let alone enjoyed it. Maybe my core audience wasn’t teenage girls after all? J 

But I think the key to writing young adult fiction that appeals to adults, too is…well, I don’t know what the key is. I don’t try to write for adults, and I don’t try to write for younger people. My job is to tap into the feelings and emotions of the characters in my stories, who just so happen to be teenagers. As adults, we’ve all been there before; so if the writer has done her job, the book should be able to transport you back to all those feelings of unrequited love, first kisses, and being asked to prom (or not). 

I’m always trying to tap into the very real feelings from my own past, keeping them close, and being able to draw on them when needed. I have my yearbooks on hand, and old assignment notebooks, and shoeboxes full of notes my friends and I sent each other during all four years of high school. I can look back at these things now with some distance, some feelings of regret and sadness. I see my characters making the same mistakes I did, and I channel myself into their psyches. I try to keep my own head near my seventeen-year-old self as much as possible, and I hope I can carry my readers there as well.


About the author:
Julie Hammerle is the author of The Sound of Us (Entangled TEEN, 2016) and the North Pole, Minnesota young adult romance series (Entangled Crush, 2017). She writes about TV and pop culture for the ChicagoNow blog, Hammervision, and lives in Chicago with her family. She enjoys reading, cooking, and watching all the television. 

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