Hello friends and welcome to an exciting week here at One Guy's Guide to Good Reads. For the next week, my beautiful bookish soul-mate, Christina Marie from LuLo Fangirl and I will be hosting an incredible new feature series to get everyone PUMPED for UtopYAcon in Nashville, TN next week!
After WEEKS of deliberation, Christina and I have hand-picked FIFTEEN of our favorite authors attending UtopYA and will be spotlighting one each day for the next 7 days. These posts will include an interview with 15 special guests, ranging from seasoned literary vets to first-time debut authors. Each post will also feature a quick spotlight of the authors latest or upcoming works. You are not going to want to miss out on this awesome series!
Each day Christina and I will feature a different author on one of our blogs and will be cross promoting between the two. We really want to get the word out to all of our readers. As a special incentive, we are offering an exclusive UtopYA giveaway for a signed book from ANY participating UtopYA author! How exciting! We can't wait to share this awesome series with you all and look forward to an awesome time in Nashville!
Happy Reading!
3 DAYS UNTIL UTOPYA
Day One: Meet Julie Wetzel
Julie Wetzel
Originally from Ohio, Julie always dreamed of a job in science. Either shooting for the stars or delving into the mysteries of volcanoes. But, life never leads where you expect. In 2007, she moved to Mississippi to be with her significant other. Now a mother of a hyperactive red headed boy, what time she’s not chasing down dirty socks and unsticking toys from the ceiling is spent crafting worlds readers can get lost it. Julie is a self-proclaimed bibliophile and lover of big words. She likes hiking, frogs, interesting earrings, and a plethora of other fun things.
FIND JULIE WETZEL
Intro to Julie Wetzel:
Julie Wetzel. Guys. The love is real. I have got to tell you guys that I am absolutely in love with every piece of literature that Julie has published. I don't have enough words to say how awesome she is. She recently became one of the only authors I work with to have received five 5-star reviews from me. I came across Mrs. Julie through my working with her publishers at Crimson Tree Publishing to promote her amazing Kindling Flames series. Julie is the perfect combination of fun and snark to make her one of my favorite people on this planet. She's not only been an incredible supporter of One Guy's Guide to Good Reads, she's become one of my best bookish friends! I'm so thrilled to host her here today!
Let's learn a bit more about Julie and her work:
Latest Release by Julie Wetzel
When Michael Duncan is sent to investigate the disappearance of several dragon subjects, he finds himself in a bind. Locked in a dungeon, his only hope lies wrapped in a bundle of cloth tossed at his feet. One kiss and his life is changed forever. Hunted by his own people for crimes he didn’t commit, Michael has to learn a whole new life at the hands of a beautiful woman. Can she help him clear his name, or will just being in her presence get him sentenced to death?
Carissa Markel doesn’t know who this man chained to the wall is, but he’s her only chance for escape. She has power, but, born without a voice, she lacks the means to wield it. One choice, made in desperation, sends them running for his life. Does she have the strength to help him clear his name? And what will her brother, the King of Dragons, do if he finds out what she’s done? That’s immaterial, the real question is… can she keep her hands off him long enough to find out?
I haven't had the pleasure to devour this one yet, but I haven't met a Julie Wetzel book I didn't love yet!
Also by Julie Wetzel
Every one of these was a 5-star read from me!
Exclusive UtopYA Interview with Julie Wetzel
1. Tell us about your experience with UtopYA. What's your history with UtopYA and why do you attend?
This will be my second year going to UtopYA. Last year I had just signed Kindling Flames with Clean Teen/Crimson Tree and hadn’t had the pleasure of knowing what it was like to be an author. It wasn’t very far from where I lived, so the ladies at CTP invited me up to meet them and learn more about the publishing world. I broke open my piggy bank and jumped on the opportunity to learn about the craft. I loved it. The panels were great, the people were amazing, and I learned so much. I’m coming back for the atmosphere and to see what new trouble I can get into this year!
2.What is your favorite Nashville attraction and why? If this is your first time attending UtopYA/visiting Nashville, what are you most excited to see?
Nashville attraction? I really can’t say I’ve seen much of Nashville. I’ve driven through it countless times, but I’ve never really spent any time in the city. Last year we went to the city and visited a few bars, but that was about it. I’ll have to take a look to see what’s in the area and visit some things this trip.
3.What makes UtopYA different from any other book convention/signing?
I’ve only ever been to two book conventions. UtopYA and Book Expo of America. There is no way I can compare or contrast the two. It would be unfair to both!
4. When not attending the conference, where will you be spending your week in Nashville?
When I’m not in conference, I’ll either be hanging out at the CTP table or visiting with people. UtopYA is a great excuse to meet up with some of those out of town friends you’ve been dying to meet (yes Ethan, you are on my list of friends to meet)!
5. What are you reading right now?
Right now… I’m in the middle of an ARC of So Shall I Reap by Kathy-Lynn Cross, but I have three whole bags of books I just got from BEA that are calling my name! But I really should be finishing my next dragon book… and my fifth Kindling Flames novel. I just wish there were more hours in the day!
6. What are some of your favorite summertime reads? What recs do you have for your readers to check out this summer?
This is a hard one. Most of my summertime is spent chasing my son and reading things below a fifth grade reading level. Bunnicula is always a favorite. Karl really likes The Celery Stalks at Midnight. Me, I like a good romance novel, or a bad one. It all depends on what I have closet to me when I finally find a place to crash. The collection The Undead in My Bed is a great read I keep going back to when I want to veg out.
7. What can we expect next from you?
Should I list taking over the world here? Oh! You want to know what my next project is… Well, let’s see. In August I will have A Castle for Dragons out. This is a historical story set in the same world as On the Accidental Wings of Dragons, but it really isn’t part of the same story arch. In October I’ll have the second book in The Dragons of Eternity Series, For the Memory of Dragons. And I’m elbow deep in the third book. Right now I’m going with For the Heart of Dragons on that one, but it could change. For those of you interested in the Kindling Flames series, I haven’t forgotten about you. I’m about halfway through the fifth book, Burning Nights. I ran into a snag with the main bad guy and got stalled out, but I think I’ve gotten it figured out. Now I just have to do it… Oh and that will be my Camp Nanowrimo project for July! So I had better get hopping!
Quick, don't think!
-Favorite summertime beverage? Southern Sweet Tea
-Favorite Ice Cream flavor? Black Raspberry Chocolate Chunk from Graeter’s in Ohio
-Favorite part about summer? Sleeping in (no school)!
-Lounging on the beach or summer road trip? ROAD TRIP! Forget the map, let’s just drive to some place new!
-Favorite 'song of the summer’? Phineas and Ferb - Summer (Where Do We Begin?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v80TE-coUQw
Yeah, I have a kid!
-Favorite summertime beverage? Southern Sweet Tea
-Favorite Ice Cream flavor? Black Raspberry Chocolate Chunk from Graeter’s in Ohio
-Favorite part about summer? Sleeping in (no school)!
-Favorite 'song of the summer’? Phineas and Ferb - Summer (Where Do We Begin?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v80TE-coUQw
Yeah, I have a kid!
Alright readers, that's all I have for you today during our UtopYAcon Author Spotlight Series! I hope you've learned a lot about our featured author, Mrs. Julie Wetzel! Words cannot say how absolutely PUMPED I am to meet her next week! We've got a standing Waffle date. Yes you read that correctly. WAFFLES!
Don't forget that Christina is also hosting an amazing spotlight over on her blog today, her guest is Mrs. Jo Michaels! Click the LuLo FanGirl banner below to check out Christina's post!
-Ethan
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