Jeri Smith-Ready

Blogtoberfest Day 7 - Kelly Parra

Our first Blogtoberfest winner is Jamie, who won a signed copy of Rosemary Clement-Moore's The Splendor Falls. Jamie, please send your mailing address to me at jeri AT jerismithready DOT com in the next week.


Today's Blogtoberguest, Kelly Parra, had a stunning debut in 2007 with Graffiti Girl, which went on to be a double Rita-Award nominee, receive a Latinidad YA Topi Pick, and has even been optioned for film! Not too shabby right out of the gate, yeah?

Her latest book, Invisible Touch, got a Gold Award of Excellence from the prominent YA book site, TeensReadToo. It looks absolutely amazing. I love stories about fate and fighting back against it.

Once again, my words of description would be blah compared to moving, speaking images, so check this out this book trailer:





Many thanks to Jeri for having me on her blog during her cool Blogtoberfest! I wanted to share a little about Kara Martinez, my character from my novel Invisible Touch. Kara is different. She looks very much normal on the outside, but on the inside, she has a gift that is more like a curse. Kara sees signs like a puzzle, and must piece together these signs to save someone from an unfortunate fate. She whispers her thoughts and experiences on an anonymous blog called Secret Fates. Here Kara shares her latest Halloween experience…


Secret Fates blog Entry, October 2009
From the Mind of Kara Martinez (Invisible Touch)

Halloween was just another day for me.

I stopped dressing up and trick-or-treating years ago since the accident. How could I celebrate something like that when seeing signs no one else can see is like experiencing my own Halloween everyday? But I humored my mom by carving a pumpkin and giving out candy to the little kids.

The doorbell rang while I held the jack-o-lantern. The counter was full of pumpkin guts. At a loss, I answered the door, pumpkin in arm, and smiled at the sight of a pirate, witch, and fairy singing, “Trick or Treat!”

With my free hand, I dropped a candy in each treat bag. I was about to turn away when a little ghost sidled up behind them.

“Oh, didn’t see you.” I dropped another candy in the treat bag, grabbed the pumpkin more securely, and blinked.

The night’s sounds pulsed in my eardrums. The echoes of children laughing…singing. The ringing of doorbells…of feet skipping. My blood pumped slowly, my breaths softening to a near whisper. Behind the child the atmosphere faded away. The ghost brightened with a special glow only I could see. Through the hole cuts in the costume, the ghost’s eyes shined the color of pennies.

And just as I had so many times before, my gaze traveled lower to my own personal psychic TV, to see a sign I never wanted to see. Because when I saw a sign it meant something bad. It meant fate.

It meant I had to stop it.

On the torso of the little ghost were flashing car lights. Usually that was it. One sign. One image to ponder. But tonight was different. Urgent.

The flashing car lights shifted. A pumpkin hit the ground and broke. A candy bag fell and candy scattered. A scream made me flinch.

The pumpkin dropped from my hands…and broke.

The little ghost turned away as Anthony strolled up the walk, smiling. “Little accident, huh?” Then he must of saw the expression on my face. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

I swallowed. “I have to follow that ghost.” Quickly, I grabbed my coat, told Mom I was going out, and updated Anthony on the signs as we followed my latest puzzle.

“Okay,” Anthony said, “but if there’s any danger, I’m the one doing the saving.”

“You’re not getting yourself hurt, Anthony.” There was some heroic spark in Anthony that made me nervous. He never thought twice about helping others no matter the costs.

He stopped me briefly, and brushed hair away from the side of my neck. “Either are you. Deal?”

“Okay, deal,” I said with a small smile. Hand-in-hand, we caught up with the kid.

Three blocks doesn’t seem far, but it was long enough to slow your reflexes. A group of trick-or-treaters ran past us. One dropped his treat bag. Candy scattered.

Right then, I knew. It happened so fast.

Anthony kneeled to help the trick-or-treater gather candy. I jerked my gaze toward the ghost as he stepped off the corner curb. I glimpsed car lights.

There are moments when you don’t really have time to think. Just react. And deals you make are unintentionally broken.

I ran. I screamed into the night, grabbing the little ghost so tight.

The car’s tires screeched. The driver put on the brakes, stopping mere inches from where we stood.

The little ghost shivered in my arms. Anthony rushed to me and held us close. “What about the deal?”

I winced. “It was an accident?”

Labels: Blogtoberfest, Contests, guests

• posted by Jeri @ 9:00 AM
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