To celebrate the upcoming release of my next novel, Jekel Loves Hyde, I'm holding a new contest to find an official book trailer. 

Prizes include signed books and some other fun stuff, including a visit by me to your local school or library.  For more details on the contest and prizes, click here.

Or, if you've already created a trailer, submit your entry by posting a comment below.  Remember:  You must provide your YouTube user name and the URL for the video you've posted on YouTube. 

This is also where you can leave comments after viewing any videos that are submitted.  (I'll take your thoughts into consideration when I choose a winner.)  Entries can be seen here.

I love the trailers that have been created for Jessica's Guide, and I look forward to seeing some creative takes on Jekel Loves Hyde!  Good luck!

I hope you liked the first pages of Jekel Loves Hyde.  And thanks to everybody who's been e-mailing, asking for a "sneak preview!"   

The book will be available this coming spring, but you can pre-order it now at Amazon and Borders, if you're interested...

And, of course, because I love doing contests and giveaways, I'm working on a new contest - this time with help from my publisher, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, which means the prize will be the biggest I've been able to offer yet! 

Check back for more details in the coming weeks!

I can't believe the wedding is over!  :-(  It was so fun writing the chapters and checking in on your comments... It really was kind of like hosting a big party, for me.  I hope it was fun for you, too!  Thank you so much to everybody who helped plan the ceremony and to all of you who left such nice notes in the "guest book!"

Now, on to the contest...  Over 1,300 of you scrambled to "catch the bouquet" - which is about 1,000 more than I expected!  The great response made me think two things: 

1. I'd better offer more than one prize!

2. The grand prize better be pretty good!

So the winner of the toss is getting a signed copy of Jessica's Guide..., an advance copy of Jekel Loves Hyde, an original "hard copy" of the wedding chapters (printed by me), the very last T-shirt with the Jessica's Guide cover art, and some kind of random surprise (because random surprises are always fun to get!)

I'm also giving two second-place winners signed books and bookmarks, and five runners-up signed bookmarks.

And the winners are...

Grand Prize:  S.M. (fillmore_chick415@....)

Second Prize: Amanda Grosz and Stephanie R (chiccachiccabam@...)

Runners-up:  Prawnee, Kristen (bittahsweetharmony@...), Megan Koch, Krystal (ksparkles21@...), and Tiffany (boxerluvr58@...)

Congratulations! 

I'll e-mail all of the winners to get your mailing info.  And for those of you who didn't get the bouquet this time - you know how I love giveaways!  There will be more chances soon...

And thanks again all you bridesmaids and guests of honor!  You really did make this "event" a ton of fun for me!

Hey everyone!  During the next few weeks, I'm going to use this space to let you "sign in" and share your thoughts on Jess and Lucius's wedding. 

I hope you have fun reading the chapters...  My goal is to post a new chapter every other day at noon until the wedding is complete.  (Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, etc...)  So check back every other day to read new stuff.

And for those of you who haven't signed up to "catch the bouquet" yet, the contest is open until the last chapter is posted.  Just go to the Catch The Bouquet blog entry.

Thanks for making this wedding so fun and for all your nice comments in the past!  Happy reading!

You voted, and the results were overwhelming, to say the least!   A VAST majority of you think Jess and Lucius's first bite as husband and wife should be saved for the honeymoon.  The ceremony will be sealed with a kiss.  Your wish is my command - but a few commenters gave me an idea for how blood might be shared romantically at the ceremony, too.  We'll see...

The wedding starts tomorrow... Check in at my website any time after noon for the first chapter!

And a HUGE thanks to everybody who served as bridesmaids!  This was amazingly fun for me... I hope you all enjoyed it, too!

This week's vote on the song for Jess and Lucius's first dance was the most fun for me so far.  Not only was it fascinating to read what you chose and why, but I also discovered a lot of new music for my own iPod! 

Your tastes ran from Bach to Etta James to Sinatra to Death Cab for Cutie... WOW! 

When it was time to make my choice, I took into consideration both the individual songs you suggested, and the "theme" of the comments overall.  And one of the things I took away was that a lot of you believe Jess and especially Lucius would prefer something timeless and classic that would reflect Lucius's background and the idea of an eternal love.  And when I read this comment by Lisa (Sept. 7), I knew exactly what I was looking for:  "something that... captures their essence as a couple... soft and tender at times, but also clashing and crescendoing at others."  That summed it up perfectly!

First, here are the songs that are runners-up, and which I think make a great playlist for the wedding - or the book, overall.

* Breathe Me - Sia

* Gravity of Love - Enigma (although the video was too creepy!)

* Your Guardian Angel - Red Jumpsuit Apparatus (lots of votes)

* She Is Love - Parachute (very sweet, also lots of votes - a song that made me think of Jess)

* Marry Me - Evanescence (it gives me chills!)

* Nothing Else Matters - Metallica (don't you love when he growls, "Trust I seek, and I find in you..."?)

* Iris - Goo Goo Dolls

* Dark Waltz - Hayley Westenra (more chills)

* Faraway - Apocalyptica

* Dance D'Amour - The 69 Eyes (a true "vampire love song" as Sophia (Sept. 7) noted - and it has almost a German metal edge, which reminded me of Lucius)

* String Quartet #4 - Bartok (Lucius would appreciate the Hungarian/Romanian roots!)

Ultimately, I chose Beethoven's Piano Sonata #14, also known as the "Moonlight Sonata."  As Michaela (Sept. 6) pointed out, "It's really breathtaking, has a gothic feel, you get lost in the way it flows."  And when I listened to it - hearing it again for the first time in years - I knew that it was absolutely perfect.  It's dark, it's light, it's haunting, romantic - and timeless. 

Three people suggested this piece, so I had to draw names. My daughter Julia picked Michaela's name from the bowl, so congrats!  Contact me so I can send you your book!

Thanks, as always, to everybody who suggested a song... I wish I could have picked even more!

And don't forget that starting tonight, you can vote on how Jess and Lucius should seal their union.  Then it will be time for the wedding to begin!

This week, we'll choose the song that Lucius and Antanasia will dance to for the first time as husband and wife.  And this time, submissions are wide open!

(For more details and suggestions, click here.)

When you leave a comment, please include:

* the name of the song or piece

* the artist

* a way that I can sample the music, in case it's new to me.  (For example, on YouTube or iTunes, etc.)

And if you're musically inclined, I'd love to hear your original composition, too.  (How you submit your work is up to you, but I promise I'll listen if you get it to me!)

At the end of the week, I'll choose the music that I think best reflects Antanasia and Lucius, as a couple. 

And as an added bonus, the person whose song is chosen will win a signed copy of Jessica's Guide and one of the last remaining T-shirts with the cover art on it.  (If more than one person submits the same winning song, I'll draw names.)

Song submission is open until Saturday, Sept. 12, at noon.

Then, next week we'll have the final vote on how Jess and Lucius should seal their eternal commitment - and the wedding will begin! 

Wow!  With over 430 votes cast, the white dress won by an overwhelming margin!  

Here's how the voting came out:

* Dress 1 - Black - 77

* Dress 2 - Red - 68

* Dress 3 - White with a Black Twist - 290

I LOVED all of your comments, and I jotted down a lot of your thoughts to draw on when I write the chapters.  It was fun to see how you connected the different dresses to specific scenes in the book, or took into consideration how Lucius might feel to see Jess in each gown, as well as the symbolism of the colors.  Thanks so much for all your thoughtful insights, which will  really help me as I start to write!

I can't wait to see which songs you choose this week!

The votes have been counted, and Jess and Lucius will be married in the castle! 

Here's how you voted:

Castle - 168

Cave - 91

Mountains - 111

Thanks to everybody who cast a vote and left comments!  I'm already starting to daydream about how I'll "decorate" for the ceremony.  (I might have some plans for the cave and mountains, too...)

Vote for the dress below!

It's time to choose the dress that Jessica will wear when she begins her new life as Antanasia Dragomir Vladescu, vampire princess - and wife of Lucius!

To see the choices again, click here.

Vote:

1 - Dramatic black

2 - Regal red

3 - White with a dark twist

IMPORTANT:  Please include the numeral (1, 2 or 3) in your comment, to make it easier for me to tally the votes.  And if you'd like, tell me why you chose the dress that you did.  It's fun for me to read your opinions, and actually helps me as I begin to plan the new chapters.  After all, I want this wedding to be based on YOUR ideas. 

Voting on the dress will close Saturday, September 5, at noon.

Thanks for taking part!

Thanks for stopping by to vote on where Jess and Lucius's wedding should be held.  I hope you like the three choices!

For a complete description of the locations, click HERE.

IMPORTANT:  Please begin your entry with a NUMERAL (1,2 or 3) so it's easier for me to tally the results. 

Vote:

1 - Castle

2 - Cave

3 - Carpathian Mountains

Then feel free to explain why you made your choice.  I can't wait to read your ideas!

Voting on location will be open until Midnight, Saturday, Aug. 29 - when we'll start choosing Jess's dress!

I'm so excited to be hosting this on-line wedding...  I can't wait to write the new chapters in which Jess and Lucius get married, using your suggestions.  I promise - it will be the romantic event that so many of you have requested!

Voting on the location will begin Sunday, August 23, and last for one week.  Please stop back then!

And if you haven't already done so, make sure to go to the blog entry "Catch the Bouquet" to register for the prize package! 

What's a wedding without a bouquet toss?

Since I can't really throw flowers to one lucky guest, I'm going to wrap up this ceremony with a prize giveaway that will include:

* a signed copy of Jessica's Guide

* one of the very first advance copies of Jekel Loves Hyde - before reviewers even seen it!

* one of the T-shirts with the Jessica's Guide cover art

* some other fun surprises that I'm still putting together...

All you have to do is leave a comment below - with some type of contact information.  I'll draw the winner after the last new chapter has been posted. 

Thanks for joining the wedding!

I thought it would take all day to give away those 20 bookmarks, but it was all over in a flash!  I'll be sending them out to the first 20 ASAP.  And I'm looking around for more packs - it's possible they're hiding in my messy office - so I can do this again!