DOUBLE NOMINEE!

So...RWA Nationals in San Antonio, TX is in a few days and I'm so excited that RUNNING ON EMPTY was chosen as a finalist for the GDRWA BOOKSELLERS' BEST AWARD & is also nominated for BEST FIRST BOOK! 

Such an honor to be chosen among these amazing authors! Also, pretty excited for my publisher, Spencer Hill Press, who has two books in the running. :)

YOUNG ADULT

"Camp Boyfriend," J.K. Rock
(Spencer Hill Press Contemporary, Patricia Riley)

"Running On Empty," Colette Ballard*
(Spencer Hill Press Tulip Romance (Tulip Teen), Marie Romero)

"Briar Rose," Jana Oliver
(Macmillan Children's Books, Rachel Petty)

"Dirty Little Secret," Jennifer Echols
(Simon and Schuster MTV Books, Emilia Pisani)

"Playing Tyler," TL Costa*
(Angry Robot Strange Chemistry Amanda Rutter

SUPER SUMMER GIVEAWAY!!!

WIN 12 books by 6 authors!

The amazing Katie McGarry is hosting this Rafflecopter giveaway & here's what she said:  

"I asked a few of my favorite contemporary authors to participate and here is the prize package:"

Miranda Kenneally: signed copies of Catching Jordan, Stealing Parker, Things I Can't Forget, Racing Savannah, and Breathe, Annie, Breathe

Trish Doller: a copy of Where the Stars Still Shine

Huntley Fitzpatrick: signed copies of My Life Next Door and What I Thought was True

Joy Hensley: a signed ARC of Rites of Passage

Colette Ballard: a signed copy of Running on Empty

Katie McGarry: a signed paperback of Dare You To, a signed hardback of Take Me On, and a Take Me On poster

"So let's recap--that's 12 books from six amazing authors and this will all go to one lucky winner. This giveaway is international."

a Rafflecopter giveaway

    TEASER from RUNNING ON EMPTY!

    I started to file in the entry gate to join the other juniors who'd be receiving awards, but was stopped when a long, lean leg wearing skinny jeans and black boots stretched across the entryway. Looking like she'd just stepped out of some exotic cigarette ad, Kat let out a long stream of smoke as she leaned against a thick metal beam, her shiny, coffee-colored hair blowing in the breeze.
     "Where's Prince Charming?" She lifted her chin to the nearly full bleachers where Logan would've been taking a seat if he'd walked in with me. "I noticed you came in alone."
     "For your information," I lifted her leg and pushed it away from me like I was opening a latch on a stall door, then let it drop, "he's finishing up a phone call. He'll be here in a minute." I hooked my arm in hers and pulled her to the fence to avoid eavesdroppers.
     Kat opened her mouth to speak, but it turned into a smirk as something else caught her attention. "River, if you're going to waste all your time on a guy, why can't you waste it on a decent guy...somebody like Justice Braden?" She was talking to me, but her eyes followed Justice as he took his seat in the graduates' section.
     I elbowed her. "I grew up with Justice. We think of each other like brother and sister." Not to mention I was still annoyed with him for interrogating me about Logan.
     She raised her eyebrows. "Speak for yourself."
     "Uh-uh." I gripped the cross-hatched wire fencing next to me. "He made it clear how he felt about me a long time ago."
     She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, in eighth-f___ing-grade."
     I held up a finger. "Ninth." I shifted my attention to smoothing the skirt of my dress. "And if you like him so much, why don't you date him?"
     "You know my rules about guys. Besides, he doesn't look at me the same way he does you." The corners around her eyes crinkled as she took a drag off her cigarette.
     "In case you missed it, Logan is my boyfriend." I unhitched my fingers from the fencing and jerked when my thumb caught a jagged edge.
     "Mistake," she sang under her breath as I started for the football field.

Now on Kindle $2.99!
http://www.amazon.com/Running-Empty-Colette-Ballard-ebook/dp/B00G2G22J8/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=&qid=

So...RUNNING ON EMPTY wasn't the winner of the CRW Award of Excellence but it did receive this fancy schmancy finalist medallion!  http://crw-rwa.ning.com/page/2014-aoe-winners

Young Adult/New Adult w/Romantic Elements

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Everything You Know ~ Mary Beth Bass

***Winner! Dirty Little Secret ~ Jennifer Echols

Running on Empty ~ Colette Ballard

The Deepest Night ~ Shana Abe

Too Fast ~ Alexia Haynes

Woo hoo! RUNNING ON EMPTY won 2nd place in WRWA Write Touch Reader's Award! (Young Adult)
http://wisrwa.org/contest.html
YOUNG ADULT
1st - Mary Beth Bass - Everything You Know2nd - Colette Ballard - Running on Empty
3rd - PJ Sharon - Western Desert
4th - Shawna Romkey - Speak of the Devil 

5th - Anthea Sharp - Spark: Feyguard Book 1

Woo Hoo! My YA novel, RUNNING ON EMPTY, won second place in Romantic Suspense!! :)

Attention BEA attendees...

RUNNING ON EMPTY by Colette Ballard (Book Drop). When River kills her boyfriend in self-defense she must leave everything behind—including the boy she’d do anything to protect. (Young Adult)

Thursday @ 10am-stop by Booth 2567 to get a copy! spencerhillpress.com/SHP_BEA_2014.pdf … #BEA2014