Donna’s Dream House re-opens!

.
Just a quick note to tell you that Donna’s Dream House has welcomed its first family since the fire. You can read the details here.

Thank you

Here we are, the auctions are closed and the total is in!

*drumroll*

We have raised an amazing…

£1073 / $1694

All the money has already been donated to Donna’s Dream House.

THANK YOU to everyone who donated, bid, promoted and cheered us on.

All of you are special, amazing people and thank you so much.

Update

We’re just sorting through the final bids and will post the total in a little while…

A little love...

...for our last auctions?

We've extended a few lots until tomorrow:

• THREE signed copies of Sky Hawk!
• A signed copy of Mistress of the Storm!
• A signed hardback of Darren Shan's Palace of the Damned!
• Signed copies of Walking with Witches, One Boy's War & Play laugh and learn: Celebrate the Seasons!

Tonight we'll be closing these two items:

• An awesome Scarlet t-shirt!
• A first chapter critique and a copy of Possum Summer!

If you want to help rebuild this...

...to resemble a Dream House again, please do consider bidding :-)

(How's that for pulling heartstrings? ;))

Finally, Melissa Sugar and Johanna, can you email us asap to claim your winning bids? Thank you! :)

We'll update the blog with our total SOON! Thank you all!

<3

Weekend update!

All the auction lots are all live now! And at the end of today (UK-style) TWO more auction items will go to the highest bidders, so let the bidding wars commence once more! :)

Up for grabs today:

• A full YA critique!
• A signed set of the Lottie Biggs series with personalized drawing!

And don't forget tomorrow's items either:

• Signed copies of Tabitha Suzuma's books!
• The Young Sherlock Holmes series, including a signed copy of Fire Storm!

Finally, Fiona Dunbar's signed set of the Lulu Baker trilogy and Luisa Plaja's signed books have both been extended to the 30th! Get your bids in while you still can!

And as always, thank you all for continuing to be SO VERY AWESOME.
<3

Day 13 - Item 4

From Lynn Huggins-Cooper signed copies of Walking with Witches, One Boy's War & Play laugh and learn: Celebrate the Seasons

Eleanor and Izzy are on a trip to Newcastle, visiting the Literary and Philosophical Society library. They see odd shadows and hear ghostly whispering voices - and a book in a glass display case leafs open as they watch. Pages stop fluttering at woodcut of a group of witches hanged on the town moor in 1650. The girls hear a bell ringing and their adventure begins...The friends decide to study the witches for a history project. When witches' bones are unearthed in St. Andrew's graveyard in Newgate Street the girls investigate, and encounter an unearthly dark cloaked figure. As they follow the trail that the accused witches took around Newcastle, the friends fit the pieces of the puzzle together ...and put themselves in danger.



One Boy's War
Sixteen-year-old Sydney is overwhelmed by the excitement of the 1914 recruitment campaigns and the bravado of men leaving for the Great War. Bursting with enthusiasm, he runs away to join up, but soon finds himself a long way from home in a frontline trench where reality - and the rats - begin to bite. Told through Sydney's optimistic letters home and his journal, this is his honest portrayal of the disillusionment and degradation of life and death in the trenches of World War I.


International

Bidding is open until February 2nd 11PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 13 - Item 3

From Harper Collins a SIGNED hardback of Palace of the Dammed by Darren Shan

In the third instalment in the creepy, captivating Larten Crepsley series, Larten finds out what it means to love… but is he also damned to find out what it means to lose?

Lost in the arctic waste, carrying a baby whose love he could never deserve, Larten faces the darkest time he has ever known.

But hope has a way of shining through even the smallest of cracks, and just as Larten reaches the end, a new beginning presents itself. The trouble is, for Larten, the violence of his youth is never far from the surface… and those he loves are the ones he hurts the most. As Larten experiences heaven and hell, and tries to save the soul of a child, the question is: can he save his own?

International
Bidding is open until February 2nd 10PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)
Minimum bid is £10

Day 13 - Item 2

From Jen K Bloom a critique of the first three chapters plus a query AND a copy of POSSUM SUMMER

Jen grew up in the middle of the wind-swept plains of Oklahoma & developed her deep love of traveling & animals from exploring the Sooner state river bottoms. She had a possum (and a raccoon) for pets, could mount a horse Native-American style (saddle-less and flat-footed) and once climbed a mountain only to come face to nose with an American Buffalo.

It was a very big buffalo.

She’s lived as far away as Darwin, Australia as a beach bum (camped in Kakadu!) & as close as Virginia as an owner/breeder Azawakh handler but currently calls Berlin, Germany her home. She is and will always remain an Okie, however.

Jen is owned by the Sphynx cats Yoda and Blue, who do not believe in alarm clocks but do believe in incessant meowing, & is the handmaiden of her darling beautiful daughter Loki.

She’s also lucky to have her husband – who is always her first & best beta reader – regularly tear apart her writing!

POSSUM SUMMER

Princess is a die-hard tomboy growing up in the middle of the Oklahoma plains with only one friend in a thirty-mile radius: her best buddy Mart. Her dad’s off to war and her mama is gone all day working, so she’s in charge of the farm and all the inhabitants living on it for the summer. When she finds an orphan kit in the ragged remains of a possum her dog just killed, she has a real tough decision to make.

Save him against her father’s wishes? Or let him die?

From the moment she looks into his eyes her heart is lost, and she decides to try it – no matter the cost to her. But when Ike the possum’s cover is blown, she struggles to find the power in herself to get past the price he has to pay.

International
Bidding is open until February 1^st 9.30PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 13 - Item 1

From AC Gaughen a SCARLET t-shirt!

SCARLET is a retelling of the Robin Hood legend. Most of Nottinghamshire knows Will Scarlet: a quick and clever thief that sticks to the shadows and protects the band without question, but even those that know Scarlet’s really a girl don’t know the secrets of her past, like how she got the scar on her cheek. Guy of Gisbourne may be the one person who does: and he was just hired to bring Robin Hood and his gang to the gallows.

International
Bidding is open until February 1^st 9PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 12 - Item 5

From Jessica Bell a signed copy of String Bridge & its soundtrack!

Greek cuisine, smog and domestic drudgery was not the life Australian musician, Melody, was expecting when she married a Greek music promoter and settled in Athens, Greece. Keen to play in her new shoes, though, Melody trades her guitar for a 'proper' career and her music for motherhood. That is, until she can bear it no longer and plots a return to the stage--and the person she used to be. However, the obstacles she faces along the way are nothing compared to the tragedy that awaits, and she realizes she's been seeking fulfillment in the wrong place.

International
Bidding is open until January 31^st 11PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 12 - Item 4

From Catherine Knutsson a first chapter critique & signed ARC of Shadows Cast By Stars

Catherine Knutsson lives on Vancouver Island, where she can be found writing, riding horses, and wandering the wilds.  Her first novel, THE SHADOWS CAST BY STARS, will be published June 2012 by Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.

From Catherine: My strengths as a critiquer, in the past I served as an assistant editor for a small spec fic magazine with a literary bent (it's called SHIMMER), and I taught singing for years, so I've got a good eye (ear!) for voice and building authentic-yet-tension-filled relationships between characters.

SHADOWS CAST BY STARS

Old ways are pitted against new horrors in this compellingly crafted dystopian tale about a girl who is both healer and seer.Two hundred years from now, blood has become the most valuable commodity on the planet—especially the blood of aboriginal peoples, for it contains antibodies that protect them from the Plague ravaging the rest of the world.

Sixteen-year-old Cassandra Mercredi might be immune to Plague, but that doesn’t mean she’s safe—government forces are searching for those of aboriginal heritage to harvest their blood. When a search threatens Cassandra and her family, they flee to the Island: a mysterious and idyllic territory protected by the Band, a group of guerilla warriors—and by an enigmatic energy barrier that keeps outsiders out and the spirit world in. And though the village healer has taken her under her wing, and the tribal leader’s son into his heart, the creatures of the spirit world are angry, and they have chosen Cassandra to be their voice and instrument….

Incorporating the traditions of the First Peoples as well as the more familiar stories of Greek mythology and Arthurian legend, SHADOWS CAST BY STARS is a haunting, beautifully written story that breathes new life into ancient customs.

International
Bidding is open until January 31^st 10:30PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 12 - Item 3

From Melanie Welsh a signed copy of Mistress of the Storm

Verity Gallant knows she’ll never be as pretty and popular as Poppy, her perfect little sister – she doesn’t quite fit in. But when a mysterious stranger hands her an ancient red book, everything changes. Verity becomes embroiled in a tale of dark magic and intrigue; she uncovers old rivalries and discovers new friends. Together, she, Henry and Martha explore the secrets stirring in the ancient harbour town of Wellow. But what will it take to stop a powerful witch hell-bent on revenge?

International
Bidding is open until February 2nd 9.30PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 12 - Item 2

From MG author Marissa Burt a 10 page critique of a MG manuscript.

Marissa Burt writes middle grade fantasy and is represented by Laura Langlie of the Laura Langlie Literary Agency. She grew up in Portland, Oregon, and drifted eastward, living in Colorado, Illinois, Tennessee, and South Carolina, before coming back home to the Pacific Northwest.  Along the way, she studied Sociology, Ancient Languages, and Theology and clocked hours as a social worker, barista, 5th grade teacher, bookseller, faculty assistant, and reference librarian. But not all at the same time.  Marissa now lives in the Seattle area with her husband and three sons where she enjoys time spent around family, friends, and good books.

Her first novel, STORYBOUND, releases on 4/3/12.

From Marissa: 

“As far as strengths as a critiquer, I think I can offer my personal experience of the writing and revision process as well as being a Faculty Assistant for graduate level coursework. Hopefully this combination will interest some people!”

International

Bidding is open until January 31^st 9.30PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 12 - Item 1

From Katie Dale & Simon and Schuster

Someone Else’s Life by Katie Dale

How can you face your future when your past it a lie?
When Rosie Kenning's mother, Trudie, dies from Huntingdon's disease, her whole world falls apart. Not only does Rosie desperately miss her mum, but now she has to face the fact that she could have inherited the fatal illness herself. Until she discovers that Trudie wasn't her biological mother at all ...Rosie is stunned. Can this be true? Is she grieving for a mother who wasn't even hers to lose? And if Trudie wasn't her mother, who is? But as Rosie delves into her past to discover who she really is, she is faced with a heart-breaking dilemma - to continue living a lie, or to reveal a truth that will shatter the lives of everyone around her...

AND

Fated by Sarah Alderson

What happens when you discover you aren't who you thought you were? And that the person you love is the person who will betray you? If your fate is already determined, can you fight it?

When Evie Tremain discovers that she’s the last in a long line of Demon slayers and that she’s being hunted by an elite band of assassins –Shapeshifters, Vampires and Mixen demons amongst them – she knows she can’t run. They’ll find her wherever she goes. Instead she must learn to stand and fight.

But when the half-human, half-Shadow Warrior Lucas Gray - is sent to spy on Evie and then ordered to kill her before she can fulfil a dangerous prophecy, their fates become inextricably linked. The war that has raged for one thousand years between humans and demons is about to reach a devastating and inevitable conclusion. Either one or both of them will die before this war ends.

If your life becomes bound to another’s, what will it take to sever it?

UK only (outside the UK but still want it? Have a look here for the “Nozomi loophole”)

Bidding is open until January 31^st 9PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)
These books are not signed.

Day 11 - Item 4

From Harper Collins a SIGNED hardback of Derek Landy's Death Bringer (Skulduggery Pleasant)

Think you’ve seen anything yet? You haven’t. Because the Death Bringer is about to rise…
The Necromancers no longer need Valkyrie to be their Death Bringer, and that’s a Good Thing.

There’s just one catch. There’s a reason the Necromancers don’t need her any more. And that’s because they’ve found their Death Bringer already, the person who will dissolve the doors between life and death.

And that’s a very, very Bad Thing…


UK only (outside the UK but still want it? Have a look here for the “Nozomi loophole”)

Bidding is open until January 30^th 11PM GMT

Bidding is in POUNDS (£)
Minimum bid is £10

Day 11 - Item 3

From Gill Lewis 3 signed copies of Sky Hawk

Something lives deep within the forest... something that has not been seen on Callum's farm for over a hundred years. Callum and Iona make a promise to keep their amazing discovery secret. But is it enough to keep their secret safe from harm? From glittering lochs, across wide oceans to far off lands, the pact Callum and Iona make will change lives forever.

International

Bidding is open until February 2nd 9PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 11 - Item 2

From Patrice Lyle a signed copy of Lethally Blonde

If Elle Woods were a teenage demon, her name would be Morgan Skully.

Morgan Skully is the world's only blonde demon girl, and she's got a brand new, very unusual afterschool job. Spying for the Devil. She'd much rather use her cloak-and-dagger skills to spy on hottie-licious Derek with her friends, but the Devil won't take no for an answer. Luckily for Morgan, her new boss is kinda hot. Her assignment is simple: find out who at Pitchfork Prep is funneling secrets to the Russian Werewolf Council. If she succeeds, pedicures and platinum highlights are just the beginning. But if she fails, she'll be expelled before she can woo Derek into asking her to the Brimstone Ball!


International

Bidding is open until January 30^th 9.30PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 11 - Item 1

From Dan Freedman a signed set of the Jamie Johnson Series

Born to Play

The Kick Off

Shoot to Win

Golden Goal

Man of the Match

World Class

We meet Jamie when he’s 13 in The Kick Off and, in each new book, we follow him on every step of his journey as he aims to fulfil his dream of becoming one of the biggest football stars in the world.

UK only (outside the UK but still want it? Have a look here for the “Nozomi loophole”)

Bidding is open until January 30^th 9PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 10 - Item 3

From Luisa Plaja a choice of 2 signed books, you can choose any from the below:

Split by a Kiss

Swapped by a Kiss

Extreme Kissing

Kiss, Date, Love, Hate

Truth & Dare

International

Bidding is open until January 30^th 11PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 10 - Item 2

From PanMacmillan the first 4 books from the Young Sherlock Holmes Series by Andrew Lane, incl a SIGNED copy of Fire Storm

The year is 1868, and Sherlock Holmes is fourteen. His life is that of a perfectly ordinary army officer’s son: boarding school, good manners, a classical education – the backbone of the British Empire. But all that is about to change. With his father suddenly posted to India, and his mother mysteriously ‘unwell’, Sherlock is sent to stay with his eccentric uncle and aunt in their vast house in Hampshire. So begins a summer that leads Sherlock to uncover his first murder, a kidnap, corruption and a brilliantly sinister villain of exquisitely malign intent.

UK only (outside the UK but still want it? Have a look here for the “Nozomi loophole”)

Bidding is open until January 29^th 10PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 10 - Item 1

From Tabitha Suzuma signed copies of Forbidden, A Note of Madness, A Voice in the Distance, From Where I Stand & Without Looking Back

Sixteen-year-old Maya and seventeen-year-old Lochan have never had the chance to be 'normal' teenagers. Having pulled together for years to take care of their younger siblings while their wayward, drunken mother leaves them to fend alone, they have become much more than brother and sister. And now, they have fallen in love.

But this is a love that can never be allowed, a love that will have devastating consequences…

"How can something so wrong feel so right?"

International
Bidding is open until January 29^th 9PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 9 - Item 3

From Hayley Long signed set of the Lottie Biggs series and personalised drawing!!!
(incl. Lottie Biggs is Not Mad, Lottie Biggs is Not Desperate & Lottie Biggs is Not Tragic)

My name is Lottie Biggs and in three weeks time, I will be fifteen years old.

And this is my book – it’s about important things like boys and shoes and polo-neck knickers and rescuing giraffes and NOT fancying Gareth Stingecombe (even though he has manly thighs) and hanging-out with your best friend having A BLATANTLY FUNNY TIME. It is definitely not about sitting in wardrobes or having a mental disturbance of any kind!

From Hayley: 
This auction item also includes a small ink (or ink and pencil) cartoon drawing of the winning bidder (or whoever they would prefer).  Please be aware that I am not a trained illustrator and the drawing will be in the style of the illustrations I provide in the Lottie Biggs series.  My illustration will be a one-off interpretation of any photograph emailed to me and not the result of a professional artistic commission.
Examples of my illustrations are available here: http://www.mykindabook.com/blogs/2010/12/Lottie-sketches
The illustration will not be framed but will be mounted on cardboard. 
The illustration will be dispatched within one month of me being emailed a photograph by the winning bidder.

International
Bidding is open until January 28^th 11PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 9 - Item 2

From Fiona Dunbar signed set of the Lulu Baker Trilogy

A modern day Cinderella meets Absolutely Fabulous! Lulu's dopey dad is in trouble. He is about to marry Varaminta le Bone, ex-super model, author of How to be Thin Like Me and mother of the odious Torquil.

Lulu, unlike her father, knows that Varaminta is far from sugar-sweet. She is determined to save him, but how? Lulu has no idea...until, on her birthday, she stumbles into an odd little bookshop and Ambrosia May's cookbook falls at her feet.

Packed with magical recipes, including one for Truth Cookies, it seems the only way to get Varaminta and Torquil to reveal their true colours. But that's only if Lulu can only find the strange ingredients (three sun beans? camel butter?) and persuade the ever-dieting Varaminta that these cookies are not to be missed!

Also a hit CBBC show - Jinx!

International
Bidding is open until January 30^th 10PM GMT*
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

*extended deadline due to item changes

Day 9 - Item 1

 From Write Dreams accomplice Marieke a FULL critique of a YA novel.

Marieke (pronounced Mah-ree-ka) is a YA writer, professional dreamer, and proud-to-be geek.

She wants to grow up to be a time traveler. In preparation of that, she spends way too much time watching Doctor Who and searching for stray TARDISes. In the midnight hours of the day Marieke is a storyteller, and all her stories – ranging from literary to fantasy – have a sprinkling of magic to them. Whether it’s histories with a twist, epic fantasy, or magic realism, she loves to write stories that bend the line between reality and imagination. She's been a slush reader for several years, which makes her feel at least somewhat qualified to offer this critique.

In her own words: When I critique a manuscript, I'd like to do a full read through first, to get a sense of the story and the characters. Based on that, I'll write you a detailed reader's report with overall comments on plot development, characterization, and consistency of voice. I tend not to focus on technique so much, but if I notice something is off, I will mention it and sometimes use a few pages to illustrate my point with line edits. Once I've sent you my comments, I am happy to discuss it further and answer any questions you might have.

International 
Bidding is open until January 28th 9.00PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 8 - Item 4

From Sara Wilson Etienne a signed copy of Harbinger, along with a Harbinger lanyard and Holbrook Academy Brochure

Plagued by waking visions and nightmares, inexplicably drawn to the bones of dead animals, Faye thinks she's going crazy. Fast. Her parents think Holbrook Academy might just be the solution. Dr. Mordoch tells her it's the only answer. But Faye knows that something's not quite right about Dr. Mordoch and her creepy prison-like school for disturbed teenagers.

What's wrong with Holbrook goes beyond the Takers, sadistic guards who threaten the student body with Tasers and pepper spray; or Nurse who doles out pills at bedtime and doses of solitary confinement when kids step out of line; or Rita, the strange girl who delivers ominous messages to Faye that never seem to make any sense. What's wrong with Holbrook begins and ends with Faye's red hands; she and her newfound friends—her Holbrook "Family"—wake up every morning with their hands stained the terrible brown red of blood. Faye has no idea what it means, but fears she may be the cause.

Because despite the strangeness of Holbrook and the island on which it sits, Faye feels oddly connected to the place; she feels especially linked to the handsome Kel, who helps her unravel the mystery. There's just one problem: Faye's certain Kel's trying to kill her—and maybe the rest of the world, too.

A rich and tautly told psychological thriller, Harbinger heralds the arrival of an exciting new voice in YA.


US only
Bidding is open until January 27^th 11PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Day 8 - Item 3

From The Class 2k12 and amazing collection books, critiques & gift cards!

CHAINED PLUS a 10-page manuscript critique from Lynne Kelly

LETHALLY BLONDE by Patrice Lyle

ONE FOR THE MURPHYS by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

AURACLE PLUS a 10-page manuscript critique from Gina Rosati

AND

10-page manuscript critique from Caroline Starr Rose

10-page manuscript critique from Katherine Longshore

10-page manuscript critique from Kathryn Burak

AND Gift cards from Kimberly Sabatini $25 gift card to B&N & J. Anderson Coat’s a $25 gift card to Powell's bookstores.

US only
Bidding is open until January 27^th 10PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

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Day 8 - Item 2

From author Kat Zhang a 5000 to 10,000 words critique!

Kat Zhang is an avid traveller, and after a childhood spent living in one book after another, she now builds stories for other people to visit. An English major at Vanderbilt University, she spends her free time performing Spoken Word poetry, raiding local bookstores, and plotting where to travel next. What’s Left of Me–about a girl with two souls–is her first novel and will be released by HarperCollins on 9/18/2012. She is represented by Emmanuelle Morgen of Stonesong. You can read about her travels, literary and otherwise, on her website or check her out on Twitter.

From Kat:

As a critiquer, I have worked in multiple creative writing workshops, as a critique partner for other authors, and as an intern for a literary agent. I can focus on a myriad of different things, from voice to plot development or even as nitty-gritty as grammar and line edits. I'd be happy to look at work from a certain angle, as well--for example, if the author is especially worried about a certain aspect of the writing and wants me to look at that part closely. Whatever the author wants! :) 

Bids up to £30 = 5000 words
Bids over £30 = 10,000 words

International
Bidding is open until January 27^th 9.30PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Show More

Day 8 - Item 1

By The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment's own Matthew MacNish a query critique.

Since its start in March 2010, The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment has been an invaluable source of information for all of us in the querying trenches, with its examples of queries that worked, the many series on writing, the QQQE Creature Compendium, and of course the countless query critiques by Matthew himself. 

Matthew's query critiques are detailed, insanely helpful, and perfect for anyone about to pick up their manuscript and join the trenches! 

International
Bidding is open until January 27^th 9.00PM GMT
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)

Mystery Box

It's... *drumroll*...the Mystery Box auction!

And it’s the mystery boxes of mystery boxes, packed full of amazing donations from Storytellers Inc, Plackitt & Booth, PanMacmillan & the instigator of Write Dreams; Luna

The full contents of the Mystery Box will remain a mystery until they are revealed to the winner. They comprise various MG/YA books, ARCs & swag (some of which is signed!)

But a few clues wouldn’t go amiss, hence the picture and yes that really is an uncorrected proof of Garth Nix’s A Confusion of Princes ^_-

UK only (outside the UK but still want it? Have a look here for the “Nozomi loophole”)
Bidding is open until January 26^th 10PM GMT

minimum bid is £10
Bidding is in POUNDS (£)