Welcome to Allison Blanchard Books!

Welcome to the official website of Allison Blanchard. Allison Blanchard is a Young Adult Romance Novelist and High School English teacher in the Gwinnett County Area. She is the author of The Forget Me Not Trilogy, which include Forget Me Not, Morning Glory, and Tiger Lily. 

Allison Blanchard is currently working on her fourth YA novel, a mystery that divulges from the Forget Me Not universe. 

Book Signing, Interviews, Oh My!

If you are in the Greater Atlanta Area on Saturday, October 26th, come by Ebb and Flow Yoga Studio in Loganville, GA for a book signing, reading, and Q&A. I will be signing copies of all three of my books from the trilogy and answering all your burning questions!

Books will be available for purchase while supplies last. You can always pre-purchase books wherever books are sold.

Also, check out my recent interview in the Gwinnett Daily Post!

P.S.

Currently working on my fourth novel. It is quite different from my trilogy, but I hope to finish soon and get into your hands!

Check out the full online article!

TIGER LILY IS OUT!!!

Tiger Lily: Book 3 in the Forget Me Not Trilogy is available for purchase wherever books are sold!!!! Go get it now! :) 

Tiger Lily, Book Three in the Forget Me Not Trilogy

It’s been one year since the last battle. One year since Dena’s death. One year since Elsu’s betrayal. One year since Adeline Jasley’s whole world changed and transformed into something terrifying - something she didn’t recognize. 

As the Chosen attempt to recover from the events of the past year, Adeline and Cole struggle to connect with one another. Mistrust, lies, and suspicion threaten not only the tribe, but Adeline and Cole’s relationship. 

As the smoke clears and a new normal begins to take root, will there be another fight around the bend? Will Adeline and Cole work together in the light of old enemies? Or will it tear them apart?

Buy Yours Now:

Amazon (US) | Amazon (UK) | Barnes & Noble (coming soon) | Smashwords | Martin Sisters Publishing

Cover Reveal and Press Release - Tiger Lily

Contact: Melissa Newman                                                                                         August 2019

 publisher@martinsisterspublishing.com

Gwinnett County Teacher lands publishing contract for third novel

This war is far from over. This war is only the beginning.

Four months after her father died, Allison Blanchard, who was then a freshman in high school, began to be nagged by a small voice inside her head that just wouldn’t stop talking. Blanchard began to write every day for three months until a novel was born. 

The voice eventually became known as Adeline and the main character of a manuscript that Blanchard called Forget Me Not. That manuscript is now a published novel and the high school freshman who first began penning the story is now a high school English teacher in the Gwinnett County area.

Now an 11^thgrade English teacher at Brookwood High School, Blanchard has published her third novel and the final to The Forget Me Not Trilogy, Tiger Lily. This finale picks up where the last left off and takes readers on a new adventure with familiar faces, new characters, and more troubles that lie on the horizon.

Tiger Lily, Book Three in the Forget Me Not Trilogy

It’s been one year since the last battle. One year since Dena’s death. One year since Elsu’s betrayal. One year since Adeline Jasley’s whole world changed and transformed into something terrifying - something she didn’t recognize. 

As the Chosen attempt to recover from the events of the past year, Adeline and Cole struggle to connect with one another. Mistrust, lies, and suspicion threaten not only the tribe, but Adeline and Cole’s relationship. 

As the smoke clears and a new normal begins to take root, will there be another fight around the bend? Will Adeline and Cole work together in the light of old enemies? Or will it tear them apart?

Allison Blanchard graduated from Georgia College and State University with a double major in English Creative Writing and French in 2015. She graduated from Georgia College and State University again in 2016 with a Master's of Arts in Teaching. She currently lives in Grayson, GA with her husband and best friend, Michael, and their two dogs, Darcy and Norton, and cat, Callie. Allison is a Language Arts teacher at Brookwood High School in the Gwinnett County area. 

Visit Allison’s website to find out more about upcoming venues and dates for book signings and book launch events: allisonblanchardbooks.blogspot.com 

Print and e-versions of Tiger Lily, can be found at www.amazon.comand www.barnesandnoble.comas well as other online and bricks and mortar book stores wherever books are sold.

Information about the book and the author can also be found at the publisher’s website: www.martinsisterspublishing.com

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ART INCLUDED WITH RELEASE:

Head shot: Allison Blanchard by Loria Crews

Book Front Cover: Tiger Lily, published by Martin Sisters Publishing LLC

To find more information about Tiger Lily or to schedule an interview with the author, contact information is listed below:

Allison Blanchard’s email address: allisonpblanchard@gmail.com

Author website: www.allisonblanchardbooks.blogspot.com    

Publisher website:www.martinsisterspublishing.com

 

Cover Art for Tiger Lily

Photo by Loria Crews

Why I Wrote a Novel

One of the many questions I am asked as a young writer and novelist is how did I come up with my story and characters. It’s a very good question and one I have answered before but feel the need to revisit. 

Many of you know that I am not only a writer but also a high school English teacher. I have the extreme honor and privilege of teaching two creative writing focused American Literature classes next year so I’m already thinking about the kinds of things my students will want to know. What they will ask and what they will want to gain from my experiences in order to better their own writing and hopefully publish it.

My first novel, Forget Me Not, was published in 2012, but was written when I was fifteen years old in 2008. Earlier that same year, my father passed away from cancer. While I have always been a writer before my father was ill, as soon as he passed, I dove into it. Similar to how I think an alcoholic might drink their way through bottles upon bottles of liquor. My method was certainly healthier, but a similar effect and desire. I needed to escape.

I struggled to verbalize the pain of grief, the confusion of his absence – how I would sit in the living room, staring at the clock, waiting for it to turn 5:30pm and being severely disappointed when my father’s keys didn’t unlock the back door, signaling he was home from work. My brain knew he was gone, but my body reacted violently each time it remembered he was gone. He wasn’t coming home.

It is very difficult to explain grief to someone who has never experienced the loss of someone. The best way I can describe it or even compare it is to how amputees express the way they feel after they lose an arm or a leg. There is a phantom sensation, that there is something there. But when you look down, you are overwhelmed with the realization that no, your arm really is gone. And you can’t get it back.

So, grief, like a missing limb, never really goes away. It’s constantly there every single day even if other people move on and don’t understand. You learn to live with only one arm. You figure out how to do day to day things, that most able-bodied, or in my case, people who have never experienced loss, do without thinking about it.

But I digress. 

I wrote Forget Me Not and the entire trilogy, to try to put into words or at least through the actions of my characters, that feeling of intense loss in a way other people could sort of relate to. That is why I write. That is why I put pen to paper, fingers to keyboard and spend hours in a different world with characters who know exactly what I am going through on any given day. It’s absolutely a blessing to be a published writer and be able to share my stories and characters with others. Hopefully, it helps another young girl who is dealing with the loss of a limb. Or a father.

The Secret Behind Published : Revised Post

This is a post I wrote several years ago, but I think it is still very relevant. Especially as I have been meeting new people who have discovered my books and want the inside scoop behind writing and publishing. There is a lot that goes into it, but here is the main thing I have learned from my years of experience.

A long time ago, back in college, I had attended a reading of another author (who shall remain nameless). As I was sitting in the audience, I realized something that I think people need to know, especially writers and aspiring authors. It's a big one. A huge secret that people in the literary world don't tell.

Being published will not fix you or all your problems. Being published will not make you happy.

I think for many writers (and I'm putting myself into this category) believe that once they land that book deal, they will feel fulfilled, appreciated, and most of all happy.

Wrong. So wrong.

Being published is great - a huge blessing, but it's not everything. If you're writing for the sole purpose of becoming published, then you should stop now, put the computer away, and find another way to try to "make it." Because it will not give you everlasting joy and peace. It can't possibly do that.

Now, going back to the reading I attended, I learned something very important. But it wasn't till after I had left and talked to someone who knew the writer well. This writer has many books under her belt, has won many awards, has many great reviews, etc. She has a great job and she's doing what she loves. I found myself wishing to be more like her. Until I heard what her friend had to say. Get ready for this.

She wasn't happy. She wanted more awards. She wanted more prestige. She wanted more recognition. You see, simply being published wasn't enough. She wanted more.

Let's be honest, we all have felt the same way this author did. We all want more of something. But hearing that this author, who is quite well known in the literary world, wasn't happy astounded me. But then I realized why she wasn't being fulfilled by the things of this world. Because they are just that. Things.

I don't hide the fact that I love Jesus. I give Him the glory for all my books because He gave me the gift and talent for writing. My trust, my fulfillment, my hope, my dreams are in Him. Not in the things this world has to offer. And I think that's why this author was so unhappy. Her whole life has been dedicated to uplifting herself, gaining more attention, more books, etc. But this world disappoints. And so do its things.

Even if I had never been published, I would still be happy, no, joyful. I have Christ and that is more than enough for me. I have to remind myself of this every time I feel like I need more. I don't need anything but Jesus.

So back to my message to all those who want to be published. It is not a bad thing to want or desire. But it can't consume you. You can't think, "When I am published, then I will be happy and fulfilled." False. Wrong. Not gonna happen.

My biggest advice to aspiring writers has changed over the past several years. Forget the idea that publishing your book will make you happy and joyful forever. It is such a blessing. I'm not bashing published books or writers who have made it. But I am warning you of the danger of letting it consume you. Write because you have to write, because you love it, because your mind would explode if you didn't. Not because you want awards or fame. Trust me, I have gone down that road and it is full of disappointment. Your life's goal has to be bigger than just being published and getting prestige. Being published is such a small thing to live for in the grand scheme of things.

For me, my life is to further Christ's kingdom, to show others His love, and to bring more people into the everlasting, awe-inspiring, unbelievable, beautiful, and overwhelming grace and love of God. That's my mission. That's my life's goal.

Balancing Life as a Writer

Balancing Life as a Writer

One of my most frequently asked questions now that I am twenty-five, married, a full-time high school English teacher, a cheerleading coach, and writer, is how in the world do I balance it all?

Well, it isn’t easy. But, if writing is something you are passionate about, that you cannot live without, then you find a way to make it work for you, your life, and your schedule. For me, I have to be extremely organized and intentional with carving out time for writing. I find I am a better wife, teacher, and coach, when I make sure I give myself the time I need to write and be creative on my own. 

You may be reading this, thinking, but how do I logically make this happen in my life? Whether you are a teacher or accountant or lawyer, hopefully, I can give you some tips on how to manage your time and still write creatively. 

1.    Create a schedule that works for you and your goals.

This may seem obvious, but this is where writers can get very frustrated. Many authors feel that they have to write every single day for hours at a time. Not true! Normal jobs have days off and so can writing. My writing schedule varies during what part of the year it is, but typically I spend about an hour to two hours each afternoon after school working on my writing. Sometimes, early in the morning before school, I will jot some notes down or outline a scene I plan to write later that day. Sometimes I give myself Tuesdays/Thursdays off or I alternate between days. It's up to you to set your own hours!

2.    Create manageable and attainable goals.

Don’t set goals that are too lofty or overwhelming. You want your goals to be something that can be done on a weekly or daily basis. For example, I have the goal to write at least 500 words a day. I rarely tell myself that I have to write for a certain amount of time – I find that I will end up sitting and nothing will happen. When I tell myself, 500 words per day, I can break it up into chunks throughout the day. Some days I go well above my goal and some days I am crawling on my hands and knees, struggling to get to that 500^thword. But setting small, attainable goals is essential to continue your writing life and to love what you do each day.

3.    Don’t punish yourself if you skip a day.

If you don’t meet your goal, whatever it is, DO NOT STRESS. I would always beat myself up if I missed a day or literally fall asleep at 6pm because that’s the #teacherlife. Writers need days off and breaks just like any other professional. It’s okay. Don’t stress.

4.    Create a positive writing space.

Create a place that is calming and creative. I use a spare room in my house with giant windows because I love natural light. I also have scented candles and speaker to play my favorite writing music. I oftent do yoga before I write as well to help me get into a calmer and more creative headspace. However, no two writers are the same. You have to create a space and a routine that helps you get into the right mindset for your writing. Of course, your writing space could be your local library or your favorite coffee shop. Wherever you feel the most creative and ready to work!