Book Spooks: Cast Your Villian

WORD for Teens is holding a hugely awesome Halloween event. It runs everyday until Halloween, and there are going to be all sorts of bookish events. One of the activities that they have planned is the Cast Your Villain challenge. If you participate, you could win TWO books; The Body Finder and Desires of the Dead.

To enter, simply choose a villain from one of your favorite reads. Then, find an actor (or actress) who should play that role in the movie version of your book. I've chosen to cast Mayor Prentiss of the Chaos Walking series. I am currently reading Monsters of Men and feel like I have a good picture of this evil, controlling man in my mind. Here he is:

Malcolm McDowell as Mayor Prentiss

Doesn't he look scary? Even when he's happy? That's the kind of man we need to play Mayor Prentiss, the king of evil and manipulation. This actor is no stranger to playing evil characters. He starred in the film production of A Clockwork Orange, which is easily one of the most disturbing book-to-movie that I've ever seen. But, this had better happen soon, as Mr. McDowell is getting older by the minute. Quick, someone cast him for this role!

Helluva Halloween II Contest: Choose Your Paranormal Character/ Story

I am a huge fan of all things Halloween. I love creepy stories. I like to eat candy. I love to dress up and get into character. I love this holiday because it does not take itself all that seriously, yet its fans take it so very seriously. It's all good.

I am participating in the Helluva Halloween Challenge, which is hosted by the Book Rat. This Challenge is an awesome collection of book reviews, craft-offs, games and goodies. It's super fun and I'm joining in with a little challenge to all of you and a giveaway reward for TWO random winners. If there are more than fifty entrants for this contest, I will add another prize. It'll be amazing.

Here is what you need to do to enter:

Pretend that you are a character in a paranormal YA book. What is your paranormal identity? Are you a vampire? A werewolf? A zombie? Something else? Give a name to your character and a bit of your story. 

Here's an example from me. If I were a character in a paranormal book, I'd be a zombie named Mrs. DeadRaps. I would roam the earth in search of literary brains. And then I'd eat them. No author of any genre would be safe! Poets, journalists, horrible jingle-writers for commercials--No one would escape me! And, here's a visual (in case you couldn't image me as a zombie):

That's my sample. Have fun creating your own! You can either post your answers in the comments section of this blog, or create a post and use the Mr. Linky provided. If you create a post and win, I'll throw in a little extra something for you.

Uninspired? Don't know where to start? Here are some name generators to get you going:

Ghost Name Generator
Vampire Name Generator
Werewolf Name Generator
Zombie Name Generator

And, on to the prizes!

 I have one ARC of The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan up for grabs for the first place winner. 

I also have a Team Zombie or Team Unicorn button for another winner.  

(And an extra surprise if there are more than 50 entrants!)

So, enter away! This contest closes on Halloween night--October 31st at midnight (EST). How ghoulish is that? And, remember to leave an email with your entry if you're just commenting so that I can contact you if you win.

(Unfortunately, this giveaway is only open to paranormal characters who reside within the US. I will be hosting an international giveaway soon.)

Halloween Read-A-Thon: Sign-Up

Though this Read-A-Thon takes place during the weekend of a huge graduate symposium during which I need to present a huge paper, I'm thinking that my addled brain might need a little break from all of the research about literacy and such. So, I'm going to sign up for the Halloween Read-A-Thon that's being hosted by Young Adult Books Reviewed.

Want to join? Sign-ups started today! Don't know if you can participate? That's okay, because it's more than two weeks away. There will be mini challenges and giveaways for those who join and read, so it'll definitely be worth your efforts!