Throwback Thursday: Melissa de la Cruz’s Path to Publication & Writing Page-Turners

Congratulations to Melissa de la Cruz on The (Super Secret) Octagon Valley Society (Disney Hyperion, Sept. 5, 2023), the first book in a new middle grade series. From the promotional copy:

You only get in if you’re Extraordinary….

After passing an intense exam, Edwin Edgefield becomes one of the lucky few to attend an exclusive weekend at the mysterious high-tech institute of the uber-famous-ultrabazillionaire-genius-recluse Onasander Octagon.

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Throwback Thursday: April Henry on Adding Tension: How to Make Any Book – But Especially Mysteries & Thrillers – Better

Congratulations to April Henry on Two Truths and a Lie (Christy Ottaviano Books, 2022), an Amazon Editor’s Pick for Best YA.

Take a look back at April’s advice on tension, originally published in December 2010 and reposted in March 2014, it remains the most-viewed writing craft post in Cynsations history.

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