Category: doing what you love


Mar
2018

The Romance, The Humor, The Real

categories: Adorkable, Be Yourself, doing what you love, Ninja Girl, Romance, self-publishing, The Unbelievable Inconceivable Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder, YA, YA mystery

Since it’s less than a month away (eep!), I thought I’d do a post about my next book release :).

If you didn’t know, my next YA is a romance murder mystery called The Unbelievable, Inconceivable, Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder.  It’s set in the deep south.  It features a quirky cast of characters that I love, love, love to the tips of my toes.  And at it’s core, it’s the story of a girl, a boy and a mystery.

I wrote this story before ADORKABLE and NINJA GIRL–which to me means, there wouldn’t be those books without this one.  The characters and story are completely unrelated, but what makes TUIUTAEW the same are the things I try to include in all my books.

The romance.  There is so much more mystery to this book than any of my others.  Still, I hope people will fall in love with Delilah and Ethan.  Their romance is slow but true.  It still makes me swoon *sigh*.  I hope readers will get to know them as real people and root for them like I did.

The humor.  I love books that make me laugh.  Real life can be so hard sometimes, and with my books, I hope to make people smile.  My side characters always end up being some of my favorites, and in this one, they are irreplaceable.  George is snarky as heck, has no filter and I LOVE her lol.  Like seriously, I wish I could be more like her :).  Aunt B and Delilah’s mom are awesome as well, and I think their family is just amazing.

The real.  This book is YA.  That means it focuses on themes that will hopefully speak to young adults.  One of the main themes in this book is about feeling left out.  I think Delilah and Ethan, George, Ronnie, Aunt B and Delilah’s mom all struggle with this.  They are quirky like I said–which really means they are odd, awkward, not normal.  And though I love and celebrate them for it, the good people of Bowie, Georgia do not.  They don’t appreciate the strange or the abnormal.  They want everyone to remain inside the box, be just like they are–but my characters defy this expectation.  They rail against it.  They are abnormal.  They are social rejects.  And imo, they are absolutely wonderful in their uniqueness, even though people give them crap for it.

I hope readers, young and old, can relate to the struggle of trying to be yourself in a town that would rather you conform, stay silent, be normal.

Embrace what makes you YOU, readers, and never let anyone make you feel bad about yourself.  Easier said than done, right lol?  But I believe in you and know you can do it!  That plus romance/murder/mystery is what The Unbelievable, Inconceivable, Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder is all about!  I hope you’ll give it a shot!

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman


Mar
2018

Congratulations!

categories: doing what you love, giveaway, Happy V-Day Giveaway, Ninja Girl, The Unbelievable Inconceivable Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder, YA

Today, I’m announcing the winners of the Happy V-Day Giveaway!  Woohoo!!!  Thank you so much to everyone who entered.  You all rock!  And without further ado, the winners are:

Jo (signed copy of NINJA GIRL)!!!

Katharina ($10 Amazon gift card)!!!

Congratulations, ladies, I hope you enjoy your prizes and will send them as soon as possible :).  Katharina, your gift card should get there by tonight.  Jo, your book may take a little longer–speaking of which, I’ve never sent one of my books overseas before, but I’m looking forward to seeing how it all works lol.

In book-ish news, it’s less than a month away from the release of THE UNBELIEVEABLE, INCONCEIVABLE, UNFORESEEABLE TRUTH ABOUT ETHAN WILDER!  Eep, how did the time go by so fast?  I’m excited (and nervous) and will be doing more posts about the book in the upcoming weeks.  Oh, I really hope you’ll love it <3.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman


Feb
2018

Happy V-Day Giveaway!

categories: Adorkable, Amazon, doing what you love, fun, giveaway, Happy V-Day Giveaway, Ninja Girl, The Unbelievable Inconceivable Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder

It’s the day of romance, candy hearts, flowers, book boyfriends and L-O-V-E <3.

Okay, so I added in the book boyfriends lol.  But they rock, and we all love them, so why not, right?  February 14th kind of snuck up on me this year, but I do have a sweet giveaway for all of you!

The Happy V-Day Giveaway will run from today until March 7, 2018.  The awesome part: There will be 2 winners!!!  One winner will get a $10 Amazon gift card, and one winner will get a signed copy of my YA romance NINJA GIRL!  You can enter using the rafflecopter below (and there are a lot of ways to enter–including adding my upcoming release, THE UNBELIEVABLE, INCONCEIVABLE, UNFORESEEABLE TRUTH ABOUT ETHAN WILDER, on Goodreads :)).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck, and Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman


Feb
2018

Coming Soon!

categories: doing what you love, Goodreads, Romance, The Unbelievable Inconceivable Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder, writing, YA, YA mystery

This is going to be an exciting post because…I have a new book coming soon!  Yay, yay, yayyyyyy!!!!!!!

Yes, book baby #3 is on its way, and I’ve even added it to Goodreads.  Here are the main details in case you’re interested:

Title: The Unbelievable, Inconceivable, Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder

Genre: YA romance murder mystery with a Southern twist :).

Release date: April 5, 2018

If you click on the link in the title, you can see the summary as well.  And guess what else???  The cover will be revealed on Thursday!  Yes, this Thursday, as in just 3 days away.  And just so you know, I love the summary and the cover and, of course, the book <3.  I really hope you will, too!

If you’d like to add The Unbelievable, Inconceivable, Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder to your Goodreads TBR, you can do so here :).  When that first person added the book, it was such an awesome feeling.  More info will be coming soon–and again, there will be a cover reveal on Thursday!  I’m so excited, and I hope you’re all having an awesome week!

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman

P.S. BookBub is awesome!!! More on that later as well :).


Jan
2018

Hello Again

categories: Adorkable, doing what you love, Ninja Girl, promotion, YA

Hello again, readers!  It’s been a while since I last posted, but I wanted to let you what’s been going on.  Basically, I ran into some back luck in the new year.  My site (yes, my little author site that only like 5 people read) was hacked.

Yes, hacked.

Ugggghhh :/.

I can’t tell you how disheartening/upsetting/alarming that was–but thankfully, I found help in the form of a WordPress tech wizard named Wesley.  He and his company came in and worked their magic.  They got rid of all the bad stuff.  I’m so thankful for his help, expertise and professionalism.  It eased my mind to know that he was on the case.  And seriously, he helped me get my site back up and running, so yayyyyy, hip-hip-hooray for Wesley the tech wizard!!! 🙂

In bookish news, this week I’m trying something new!  BookBub is a site that helps readers find new books and that allows authors to promote their work.   Like I said in my Goals post, I want to do better at promoting, so this seemed like a great opportunity.  Nerves got to me; the BookBub process was said to be very selective.  I’d read several blog posts about this and was worried that my book wouldn’t be selected.  However, I decided to go for it anyway because what did I have to lose?

And guess what?  They selected ADORKABLE for a Featured Deal!!!  Huzzah!

I was elated.  Part of me had trouble believing it, and I gotta say I’m so excited about this promotion!

ADORKABLE will be available for just $0.99 from January 29 until February 2, 2018.  That’s Monday through Friday, you guys!  If you’d help me spread the word, I’d be ever so grateful <3.

I’m also working on a giveaway!  Not sure yet if it will be a Goodreads, Rafflecopter or Facebook giveaway, but I’m looking forward to it.  Hint, hint: There will be signed copies of NINJA GIRL and ADORKABLE involved :).

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman

P.S. I sent my next book to the formatter today, eep!  And I’ve been working with my designer on a cover that makes me go starry-eyed sigh *__*.  I hope you all have a great week!

 


Jan
2018

Goals for 2018

categories: Adorkable, doing what you love, Happy Holidays, Kamuzasok Kavarasok, Ninja Girl, Romance, self-publishing, writing, YA

First post of the new year, whoop!

It’s a time for new beginnings, new hopes and a fresh start.  It’s also the time for resolutions, but to be honest, I’ve never been a big fan of those.  They are so easy to break.  And it’s so easy to feel like a failure when that happens.  Ugh.

So instead, I set goals.

Some are writing-oriented like: Publish a book.  Finish writing my current WIP.  Try new things with marketing/promotion.  Keep being thankful and doing giveaways because readers rock!  Write more, write better, write something I would love to read.

Others are more personal like: Be a better person.  Make someone’s life easier.  Restore and strengthen my faith.  Exercise more, worry less, keep heart and stay positive.

I ended 2017 surrounded by the people and the books that I love <3.  I’m hard at work on my next books, and I hope that readers will want to read them.  A goal that I’ve always had (and continue to have in 2018) is to write the best book possible for my readers and myself.

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So, how is 2018 treating you so far?  Any resolutions or goals for the new year?  Any new books? 😉

I hope you’re all doing well and that you’re having a wonderful week!

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman

P.S. Another goal for 2018: Figure out why the pics in my posts end up sideways on computer but right on mobile devices lol!


Dec
2017

We have a winner!

categories: Adorkable, Amazon, doing what you love, giveaway, Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Ninja Girl, Ninja Girl Christmas Giveaway, Romance, self-publishing, YA

I hope you all had a very merry Christmas!

My day was spent with the people I love, and it was wonderful to finally give them their presents.  Although I’m not the biggest fan of shopping (understatement of the century–and bookstores don’t count.  I could stay in the bookstore forever), I absolutely LOVE giving.

It rocks.  It makes them feel good, makes you feel good.  Speaking of which…

We have a winner!  The winner of the NINJA GIRL Christmas Giveaway is:

Janet!!!

Congratulations, Janet!  Your $25 Amazon gift card is on its way, and I hope you love it!  Thank you so much to everyone who entered the giveaway and who has supported both NINJA GIRL and ADORKABLE.  I appreciate your support so very much.  I’ll have to do another giveaway soon because it feels so awesome to give :).

May the odds be ever in your favor, may the Force be with you, and may your holiday be filled with awesome!

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman


Dec
2017

Happy Paperback Release Day!!!

categories: Adorkable, Amazon, doing what you love, Ninja Girl, Release Day, Romance, self-publishing, YA

I can’t believe it’s here!  Today is the day, my adorkable ninja readers, the day that Snow and Ash make their big debut in print <333.  And I’ve gotta say:

Happy Paperback Release Day, NINJA GIRL!!!!!!!

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It’s live, you guys!  Snow and Ash’s story is now available in another format, and I’m so excited.  I hope readers embrace their story, and the mix of action and romance.  I hope they love the strength, the chemistry, the funny, and of course, the swoon in NINJA GIRL.

Oh my Ash, do I hope they swoon :).

I can honestly say that this–publishing my second paperback–is just as exciting (and nerve-wracking lol) as the first time.  I care about my characters, and the experience of seeing a physical copy of their story, the beautiful cover, the real-life pages, knowing all the feelings and time that went into writing this little YA romance?  Ahhh, it is a truly amazing feeling <3.

Also, print books are just awesome!  I only give them to the people I really like lol.  I don’t loan mine out because I’m afraid of bent pages and torn covers (shivers).  As much as I love my iPad–and I definitely do!–books you can hold in your hand are irreplaceable.  Some people only read print books.  So, I’m hoping NINJA GIRL will find even more awesome readers and that Snow and Ash will find a place in their hearts and on their shelves.

And it’s just in time for Christmas!!!

I love getting books for Christmas, so hopefully NINJA GIRL (and ADORKABLE) will find its way under some bookish person’s Christmas tree lol :).  As always, thank you so much for your support, and I hope you’re having a wonderful week!

Happy reading and Happy Paperback Release Day,

Cookie O’Gorman

P.S. I’ll be doing a giveaway tomorrow to celebrate, yayyyy! 🙂


Dec
2017

Hello December

categories: Adorkable, doing what you love, NaNoWriMo, Ninja Girl, self-publishing, writing, YA

Hello December!

I hope the month is treating you well so far.  I also hope you’re further along in your Christmas shopping than me lol.  It’s a real problem, you guys.  There’s so much more to do, but I’ve been writing so all is well, right?  Just kidding.  But I did get a few presents today, so at least, it’s a start.

Speaking of writing, as mentioned in a previous post, this year I participated in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) for the first time.  It’s all about words/increasing word count, and I gotta tell you: It is a challenge!  But NaNoWriMo was also a lot of fun. 🙂  Every day in November I wrote down how many words I added to my WIP.  I tried to push forward and not look back.  This was hard, though, because I feel the need to fix things when they need fixing lol!

Anyway, for anyone who enjoys numbers, here are my stats.

Most words written in a day: 1,684 words

Number of Days I wrote: 26 days (the other 4 days I edited (hey, I couldn’t help myself!))

Word count at the end of November: 40,104 words

I had about 12,000 words prior to starting NaNoWriMo–which means I added about 28,000 words!!!  I wanted to significantly advance the story, and that definitely happened.  Also, the more I write this book, the more I love it <3.  Sometimes the words just won’t come, but they did in November, and I’m very thankful for that.

On another note…I ordered proofs for the NINJA GIRL paperback!!!! 0__0  WOOHOO!!!!!  They should be here Thursday, and I’m so excited to add it to my shelf with ADORKABLE.  Ahhh!  They are going to look so awesome together. 🙂  If all goes well with the proofs, I should have NINJA GIRL up on Amazon and available in paperback before Christmas.  Fingers crossed!

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman


Nov
2017

Happy Green Bean Casserole Day!

categories: Adorkable, debut, doing what you love, Goodreads, Romance, YA

Hi everyone!  I hope you are having a very Happy Thanksgiving!  My favorite thing about today is that it reminds me there is so much to be thankful for–and I think, like a lot of people, I forget this way too often.  Family and friends, good health, food (especially green bean casserole, yum!), shelter, kind people with good hearts and bookshelves overflowing with amazing books.  I also found this yesterday which made me pretty ecstatic :).  ADORKABLE was one of the most read this week in sports romance books on Goodreads!!!

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Woohoo!  So thankful for this and the fact that people are still reading my books.  I’ve been writing this month–yay, yay, hooray!–and I’m thankful for that as well.  My work in progress is a story I loved from the very beginning, and I’m falling more in love with the characters as I continue.  Hopefully, I will have some book updates soon, but until then…

Happy Green Bean Casserole Day, everyone! 🙂

Happy reading,

Cookie O’Gorman