This month is a great time to celebrate the efforts that we all are making toward living healthy, happy lives. Ok, I know, I know, super vague. But here’s the deal, it’s just as important for us to take care of our mental health as it is our physical health, and to do that it’s helpful to do things like read, or write, or do some Jazzercise, or whatever makes you feel good. And when you’re stressed, it can help to talk to someone. A friend, a professional, someone who can help you sort through what’s going on.

Some lovely friends who have written about mental health issues, recovery, and kickass therapists are helping me spread the word this year, and because they’re so totally awesome, I’m going to give away SIGNED COPIES OF THEIR BOOKS! Here’s a bit about each:

SOMETHING LIKE NORMAL by Trish Doller

This is the story of a young Marine’s struggle with PTSD after Afghanistan.

From Goodreads:
When Travis returns home from a stint in Afghanistan, his parents are splitting up, his brother’s stolen his girlfriend and his car, and he’s haunted by nightmares of his best friend’s death. It’s not until Travis runs into Harper, a girl he’s had a rocky relationship with since middle school, that life actually starts looking up. And as he and Harper see more of each other, he begins to pick his way through the minefield of family problems and post-traumatic stress to the possibility of a life that might resemble normal again. Travis’s dry sense of humor, and incredible sense of honor, make him an irresistible and eminently lovable hero.

THE DOWNSIDE OF BEING CHARLIE by Jenny Torres Sanchez

In The Downside of Being Charlie, Charlie struggles with understanding his mother’s deteriorating mental health as he himself deals with body image and bulimia.

Charlie is handed a crappy senior year. Despite losing thirty pounds over the summer, he still gets called “Chunks” Grisner. What’s worse, he has to share a locker with the biggest Lord of the Rings freak his school has ever seen. He also can’t figure out whether Charlotte VanderKleaton, the beautiful strawberry lip-glossed new girl, likes him the way he likes her. Oh, and then there’s his mom. She’s disappeared—again—and his dad won’t talk about it.

Somewhere between the madness, Charlie can at least find comfort in his one and only talent that just might get him out of this life-sucking place. But will he be able to hold his head above water in the meantime?

CRACKED by K.M. Walton

 Victor hates his life. He’s relentlessly bullied at school and his parents constantly ridicule him at home.

Bull is angry. He’s sick of his grandfather’s drunken beatings. And he likes to take out his rage on Victor.

Determined to end it all, Victor takes a bottle of his mother’s sleeping pills—only to be disappointed when he wakes up in the psych ward. And his roommate? None other than Bull, whose loaded-gun effort at self-defense has been labeled as a suicide attempt. Things go from bad to worse—until the boys discover they might just have something in common: a reason to live.

A message from Kate: If you’re being bullied or if you are a bully, you are in pain. Seek help immediately. Only you can make the decision to heal your heart and mind.

PUSHING THE LIMITS by Katie McGarry

No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with “freaky” scars on her arms. Even Echo can’t remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.

But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo’s world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.

And because I want to share in all the book love, every winner will get a signed copy of BREAKING POINT and a signed copy of ARTICLE 5 (paperback)!

Sorry, this contest is only open to US and Canada. It closes on Sunday, May 19th. Winners have 24 hours to respond with their address by email, otherwise another winner will be chosen. Thanks for entering, and good luck!

Enter here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you are looking for national mental health resources for yourself or someone you care about, click here, or check out my previous posts on common mental health diagnoses.

www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org (Suicide Prevention Website – also call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) if you are in emotional crisis or need to talk.  This service is free and confidential.)

First, I had caffeine, which I haven’t had in a long time. WEEEEEEEE!!!! AND LOOK AT THE LITTLE TENT THE TEA COMES IN! SO CUTE!

THEN, I played with the thermostat in my room. It totally went up and down by half degrees. Amazing? I thought so.

I had a fabulous time on the OTHER WORLD Panel with Ilsa Bick, Marissa Meyer, PJ Hoover, and Joelle Charbonneau. Items of discussion: optimism vs. pessimism (I fall on the dark side, but ONLY when it comes to the direction our world is heading. Otherwise I’m generally pretty positive.); why teens like dystopians (because they reflect the real world oppression by THE MAN); PJ’s impressive use of excel spreadsheets; and Star Trek vs. Star Wars (or rather, hot star ship captains).

Really excited to finally meet fellow Apocalypsie, Marissa Meyer!

I got to spend time with Fabulous Frain, editor extraordinaire…

…who foolishly left me alone in her room for 5 minutes. Maybe next time she will think twice about that…

So, as you can see it was awesome. Thank you Tor for sending me!

Anyway, things are great here! I just finished a video interview for my German publisher, which I will be posting here at some point. If you haven’t met me in person you can finally see just how smooth and articulate I actually am (Yeah. Right.).

AND, I’m so excited because this week I’ll be joining the lovely PJ Hoover, Marissa Meyer, and others to talk about Other Worlds at TLA. Which will be sort of funny, since my world isn’t so other…but hey. It’s going to be awesome. The fabulous Kendare Blake will also be there, but she’ll be talking about Other Stuff. Can’t wait.

Things on the BREAKING POINT front are going well. I’ve been having fun chatting and Skyping with readers, including a very fun Q & A session with the Kentucky School for the Blind this past week. Also, just as a reminder, I do have a study guide for students and book clubs. If you are interested, please email me (kris10simmons@gmail.com) and I will send it over.

Other than that I’ve been editing during baby nap times. My first round revisions for the GLASS ARROW (a stand alone story coming out after the A5 trilogy) are complete, and I’m preparing to work on edits for THREE (ARTICLE 5, book…you guessed it…3). Revising is not always my favorite part of the process, not going to lie, so it’s been a little tenuous. But I always feel better with the product once I’m done, so that’s good.

And with that, I’m off to Texas. Yee-haw, ya’ll. Have a great week!

Last week was absolutely amazing. So much fun. Thank you to everyone who came out and said ‘hello.’ The BREAKING POINT Book Tour could not have gone better. Here’s a visual recap of all the fun…

…beginning with a visit to one of my favorite places. The Homemade Ice Cream and Pie Kitchen in Louisville, Kentucky. Yes, I went there before going anywhere else. Is it any wonder why?

Okay, I may have accrued two of these on the first day. (Insert string of curse words here.) But after that, smooth sailing!

Monday night we went to Crestview Hills, KY, just outside of Cincinnati, OH. Everyone was so nice. Even the baby had a good time – everyone could hear him screeching like a dinosaur all the way across the store.

Thanks to Joseph Beth Booksellers for making BREAKING POINT their book of the month!

And yes, I made these lovely ladies pose with me. Aren’t they great? The fabulous Bookseller Sarah and Ali (of Ali’s Bookshelf) are included.

The next day I was fortunate enough to visit with the students of the Kentucky School for the Blind. They had read ARTICLE 5 both in the classroom and as part of last semester’s Drop Everything And Read (DEAR) program.

I learned so much from the students and their teachers. Pictured above is a Book Port Plus, just one of the many devices that helps students with visual impairments read. Several other students had read the hardcover, or listened to the audio book.

The process of turning a book to Braille is long, but the outcome is often worth the wait. Here is a gift from the KSB Library – a beautiful Braille children’s book entitled THE WOLVES ARE BACK. Thank you KSB!

That night we journeyed to Joseph Beth Booksellers in Lexington, the largest bookstore ever (besides maybe Powell’s in Portland, Oregon). The store, which I had the pleasure of visiting last year, is breathtaking. I could spend hours here (and did – there is even a full restaurant inside).

This very pretty horse sat with me the entire time I spoke. He was very well behaved.

Had a lovely time talking about the book and visiting with some awesome Chase (and Rosa!) fans. Hi girls! The next days were filled with school visits. Thanks to the students and teachers of Eastern High School and Moore Traditional School for making me feel so welcome. We had really great discussions on the Moral Statutes and what rules in our world are “fair.” Which was almost as exciting as standing in front of a bulletin board with my name on it.

Yeah…these guys…they were so funny.

And then there was the ever fabulous Carmichael’s Bookstore in Louisville, Kentucky, just down the street from a very crucial scene in Breaking Point (Ember’s home). It was a great event, we packed the house with friends and fans. Such a heartwarming, emotional reunion. I love that place! I love those PEOPLE!

And in conclusion, this was the giant statue just down the street from my hotel. That’s all I have to say about that.

Thanks to all the great people at Tor who made this possible, and for everyone who came out to visit. You made this week very special for me.

I had an awesome weekend hanging out with the lovely ladies of the Sunshine Tour. If you haven’t heard me mention it on Twitter or Facebook, the Sunshine Tour features Florida authors at various bookstores around…you guessed it, Florida! This was my first weekend joining them, and it was truly an honor. The amazing Sarah Nicolas and Jenna DeTrapani organized the events and they were fantastic (for Jenna’s coverage of the BREAKING POINT Launch Party, click here). Without further ado, here are some pictures of my newest bookly adventures.

Barnes and Noble Bookstore, March 2nd, 2013, 2PM

The ever talented J.A.Souders (Renegade, 2012) and super organized Sarah Nicholas

I am SO EXCITED to be here!

We had a great turn out! Thanks to everyone who came by!

Signing books with J.A. Souders and the hilarious Anna Banks (Of Poseidon)

Lucienne Diver, Jessica Martinez, Me!, J.A. Souders, Anna Banks, Gaby Triana,

Karen Amanda Hooper, Jenny Torres Sanchez, Heather Burch

Barnes and Noble Bookstore, March 3rd, 2013, 3PM

All lined up for the Q&A

How cute is this? The back of our name cards had little inspirational messages.

Fun new friends!

We get a little wacky.

Me, Trish Doller, Gaby Triana, Heather Burch, J.A. Souders

Jenny Torres Sanchez, Karen Amanda Hooper, Lucienne Diver, and Anna Banks

With the very sweet Jenny Torres Sanchez

Next week I travel to the midwest – would love to see you if you’re around!

Crestview Hills Joseph Beth Booksellers on Monday, March 11th at 7:00pm

Once again, I’m honored to be a part of the book community, and I’m so grateful to have all of you in my life.

But enough talk! Here are some pictures from the event.

Hello book friends!Amanda at Inkwood Books is super nice. Love this little bookstore.

Had a lovely time talking to media specialists from local high school libraries.Joy! Signing books!Hello bloggerific friends!The fantastic Jess Souders (Renegade, 2012, Tor Teen) came ready with hugs and high-fives. Thanks Jess!How cute are these girls? Irini and Emma – so sweet. This adorable baby shirt below is thanks to them. Love it!

Thanks again for a wonderful night.

See you next week in Orlando and Clearwater, where I’ll be joining the Sunshine Tour! Hope you can make it!

March 2nd: Orlando, 2pm: Barnes and Noble Winter Garden
March 3rd: Tampa, 3pm: Barnes and Noble Clearwater

Hope to see you there!

Also, here’s a little interview I did this past week with the lovely Shelia English at Reader’s Entertainment Radio. I ummm and uhhhh a little bit…maybe more than a little bit…but it was fun regardless.

I’d love to say this past year I’ve grown a thick skin, that negative reviews don’t faze me, that I don’t chew my nails down to nothing when people tell me they’re reading my book. But these things aren’t true. I think maybe the sensitivity helps the creative process. I used to think writing a book ended at the writing, but I know better now. It ends with the reader, and maybe not even then. And because you’ve taken a chance to share this journey with me, I thank you. I’ve laid a piece of my soul out for you to see, and feel honored that you have chosen to hold it in your hands. Just for a little while, anyway.

Thank you for reading my books. I know nowadays there are a million things to do every day, and it takes dedication to sit down and read. I appreciate you choosing Breaking Point. I do hope you enjoy it.

The BREAKING POINT Blog Tour is off and running! For the next few weeks you can check out reviews, sneak peaks, and interviews from over 30 participating bloggers!Oh yeah, and a TON of stuff is being given away – books, buttons, bookmarks, fan art…it’s awesome. Click here for more information and to get the schedule of events.

Bloggers are so the best. A huge thanks to Jean BookNerd for organizing this wonderful event!

In other awesome news, BREAKING POINT has a book trailer! What do you think? I love it.
watch?v=n2qs8v_S9jo

Have a great week everyone. Remember, the last extra scene from Chase’s POV has been posted. You know what that means…

BREAKING POINT comes out soon! February 12th! SO EXCITED!