Five Years of Gratitude (AND CONTEST!)

Dear amazing readers, This Sunday marks my fifth anniversary of being a full-time author. Back in 2011, I thought, "So I guess I'm going to try this for a year and see what happens." Believe me when I say that I genuinely didn't think I'd be here five years later still writing full-time. It hasn't been easy, but I'm so incredibly grateful that I've been able to live this dream for five years, and can only hope that I can do it for at least five more.

The reason I get to do this is because of YOU. Writers can write without readers, but it is hard to maintain a career unless you have readers who support you by buying books and talking about them to others. Thank you for reading my books and bringing these characters that I have created into your life. I especially want to thank my amazing Spanish-language readers who are a huge part of why I can still do this. I have no idea why my stories resonate with you so much, I'm just thankful they do!

I wanted to do something to commemorate this occasion so I'm doing a contest on Twitter to win a signed set of my books!

So be sure to check out my Twitter feed on Sunday, February 21st, as I'll be posting a picture. For a chance to win, all you have to do is re-Tweet it! I'll pick one winner from random at 10pmEST. But here's the hard part (and I know I'm going to make A LOT of people mad), it's for US only. I know, I know, I KNOW! I'm so sorry! But it's very time-consuming and really expensive to send things abroad. I realize I owe my Spanish-language readers something and I'm working on it. I was so happy to meet so many of you in Guadalajara, and I've got another surprise trip somewhere else planned soon (hoping I can announce shortly), and can only hope that writing more books will make up for it. I LOVE YOU ALL and hope you can forgive me for having this be US only.

Speaking of other books...

In case you missed it, the cover of my middle-grade debut was released last week. It comes out in the US on September 6 with the UK, Australia, New Zealand to follow. I don't have any other foreign release dates yet, but will let you know when I do. I hope you enjoy reading about Shelby and Watson's adventures as much as I enjoyed writing them.

I should mention that my next YA novel will be coming out early 2017 and will be announced very soon!

Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH for your support throughout the years. I'm a very lucky and appreciative girl.

XOXO, Elizabeth

We Can Work it Out - The "Easter Eggs"

Hello, dear readers! This past Saturday, I did a contest on all references to my past books in We Can Work it Out. I promised that after the contest, I would write a blog with all of the references. Now I don't think any of these references giveaway anything that happens in the book, but if you haven't read We Can Work it Out yet, proceed with caution. (Please note, the page numbers are from the US hardcover edition.) BETTER OFF FRIENDS The idea to do little shout-outs/references to my past book came when I started working on branching the Lonely Hearts Club beyond Parkview, IL. A very exciting thought hit me: I could have characters from Better Off Friends pop up since Milwaukee isn't that far away from Chicago. So, yes, that is Danielle e-mailing Penny on page 34. Then Danielle and Macallan show up at the Lonely Hearts Club Valentine's Day party, pages 92-93 . (And don't worry, Macallan is only there to support Danielle, she and Levi are doing fine!)

REVENGE OF THE GIRL WITH THE GREAT PERSONALITY This is the hardest one to spot, so I didn't do a trivia question for this. When Penny tells Tracy that a guy is interested in her (page 123), Tracy's deadpanned reaction is, "Well, I do have a great personality." Subtle, but it's there!

PROM AND PREJUDICE Okay, I will mark this one as a potential SPOILER. On page 124, Tracy tells Penny that she doesn't see the point in dating in high school because most couples don't last. "...all I'm saying is there's a reason why all those romance books end with the guy and girl getting together. Because if you show what happens after the first date, it will be filled with disappointments. In the real world, most of those relationships would end in a few weeks. Well, except Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy. I may have a heart made out of coal, but even I can't deny Jane Austen." [Also, dear reader, this is what you call foreshadowing!!]

There's a second shoutout, which credit goes to my editor David Levithan. He was cracking up at all my self-referential items in the manuscript. Then he couldn't believe I had Penny saying that she was weary of prom and suggested what's now in the book, "I became a little prejudiced against prom." (Page 287) I'm actually disappointed in myself for not thinking of this first!

TAKE A BOW Not only do readers get to meet Penny Lane's oldest sister Lucy in the book, they get to experience the wedding. So when I was listing the many different artists the DJ was playing during the reception (page 185), in addition to the Beatles (duh), I threw in Teenage Kicks, Emme, Ethan, Jack, and Ben's band. Now, if you've read the Ten Years Later Epilogue that I did for Take a Bow, you'd know that they never lasted beyond CPA, but hey, it's my world and I can make changes if I want to!

I also have the Bloom family actually "take a bow" on page 191 after their "Twist and Shout" performance.

That's it! We Can Work it Out was a book five years in the making, one that so many readers had asked me for. So while I had a blast putting them in, I also did it as a little thank you to those of you who have stayed with me through SIX books. SIX BOOKS! SAY WHA?

Now I'm off to work on book seven (which is the first book in my middle-grade series, The Great Shelby Holmes, coming fall 2016) and book eight (my next YA!). I'm one lucky duck. THANK YOU GUYS!

XOXO, Elizabeth

The Great (and late) We Can Work it Out Easter Egg Hunt contest!

Hello all! I know I've been MIA on this blog, but a) I've been busy traveling for the release of We Can Work it Out and b) working on the first book in my new middle-grade series, The Great Shelby Holmes (coming Fall 2016)! It's been great meeting so many wonderful readers, and look forward to meeting more of you at the LA Times Festival of the Book next weekend! When I sat down to write We Can Work it Out, it was a big moment for me. Not only did I get to revisit the characters that have meant so much to me, but I got nostalgic for all my characters. As I started writing a scene in which the Lonely Hearts Club was going to spread beyond Parkview, IL, I realized that I could bring a couple characters from a past book into this world because it worked out geographically. Then I started putting little references to other books throughout.

Now, the two characters who appear are fairly easy to spot (many of you have). But the others aren't so obvious. I did a trivia question on Twitter about one and nobody got the answer right, but then I realized it wasn't that fair of me. I hit people up out of the blue. Which leads me to...

THE GREAT (AND LATE) WE CAN WORK IT OUT EASTER EGG CONTEST!

On Saturday, April 25th, I'll be hosting a contest over on Twitter asking about specific references in We Can Work it Out. The first person who answers correctly will win a signed book from me (it can be We Can Work it Out or any of my books). I'll be doing it throughout the day and giving people a heads-up when it's going to happen. There are technically SEVEN references to past books (Prom & Prejudice, Take a Bow, Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality, and Better Off Friends--all get a little nod, some more obvious than others). Afterwards, I'll post a blog with a listing of all those references for those who are curious.

Of course, I can't host a contest without rules, so please note: you have to answer in reply to my question, you can't just start tweeting references you spot. The first person who shows up IN MY FEED with the correct answer wins (this was a problem last time and there were screenshots involved, trust me, I'm an honest person). And, I'm sorry, but it's US only.

Why US only? Well, first, We Can Work it Out is only LEGALLY available in the US and Canada right now. So if you've gotten a copy of it online for free, you've technically stolen it. I won't reward that! Plus, it's complicated to ship internationally. I LOVE my foreign readers and WILL do something for you closer to the foreign release dates for We Can Work it Out (and since I'm always asked, this is what I know so far: Spain on May 21st, Latin America and Mexico in October and please note, I have NO CONTROL over when/where my books come out).

These little shout-outs were fun for me to write, but I also did them for my readers. Without you, I'd just be some crazy girl with voices in my head. Now I get to write those voices down and people think I'm only somewhat crazy. ;) Thank you again for all your support and hope you enjoy reading We Can Work it Out!

XOXO, Elizabeth

We Can Work it Out giveaway extravaganza!!

Hello all! I haven't had a chance to do any giveaways for We Can Work it Out yet, mostly because I didn't have any ARCs. Plus, it was the holidays. And, I was on deadline for my next book and kinda lazy. But now it's time! I'll be hosting two different giveaways: the Instagram one starts NOW and Twitter will be next weekend (from January 24-26).

(This is also a good time to mention that if you want a signed, personalized copy of the book AND FREE Lonely Hearts Club swag, you can pre-order We Can Work it Out from Books and Company. Details here. And be sure to check out my events page to see if I'm coming to a city near you!)

INSTAGRAM CONTEST Starting today, I'll be hosting a contest over on Instagram through January 25th. Do you have a favorite quote from one of my books? Post the quote on Instagram (and feel free to add graphics and make it look fancy) with the hashtag #elizabetheulbergquotes plus the hashtag from which book it's from (examples: #takeabow #betterofffriends, etc.). You can also tag me @elizabetheulberg. Can't wait to see what you guys come up with.

RULES: One winner will be chosen at 10pm EST on Sunday, January 25th and will received a signed, personality copy of We Can Work it Out. US only.

TWITTER CONTEST Trivia question time! Make sure you have read the Lonely Hearts Club e-shorts.They are all FREE and available wherever books are sold OR you can read them over on my Wattpad page.

On Friday, January 24, I'll ask a question about A Hard Day's Night. The question on Saturday, January 25th will come from Two of Us, Sunday's question will be on From Me to You.

RULES: I will post the time I'll be tweeting the trivia question each day at 10 a.m. EST. Once I tweet the question, the first person to answer the question correctly wins a signed, personalized copy of We Can Work it Out! US only. There is one small caveat with this contest: last time I did this, I was harassed so badly by someone on Twitter, I was in tears. So if you harass me, you'll be blocked and will NOT win. That was not cool.

Dear non-US readers, I know people are probably upset that this contest is for US only. The reason: it is extremely expensive to ship overseas. Plus, there are lots of forms to fill out and I honestly don't have time as I'll be getting ready for the release of the book. I ADORE my foreign readers and I'll do something for you soon, but sadly, it can't be now. Sorry!

That's it! We Can Work it Out is almost out (January 27th) - I'm so excited for you guys to see what's in store for Penny Lane and crew!

XOXO, Elizabeth