Laura Ellen

At 4pm Saturday, January 26 Changing Hands Bookstore presents YAllapalooza 2013, a literary extravaganza for tween and teen readers. Here's your chance to mix and mingle with your favorite YA authors, get signed books, enjoy pizza, and more! Attending Authors: Tom Leveen, Cecil Castelluci, Amy Fellner Dominy, Shannon Messenger, Suzanne Lazear, Janni Lee Simner, Kevin Emerson, Erin Jade Lange, Lisa McMann, Suzanne Young, James A. Owen, C.J. Hill (aka Janette Rallison), Laura Ellen, and Lisa Schroeder. YA writers: Sign up for the YA Writing Conference 8:30am-3pm. Details here » Looking for 2013's winning story from the "Son of a Pitch" game? Click here » Blind Spot by Laura Ellen | hardcover, $16.99 » | Tricia Farni was last seen alive the night she fought with Roswell Hart—a night Roz can't remember. Can Roz piece together the events of that night, despite the eye disease that robs her of most of her vision, in order to clear her name and find a murderer? Blind Spot is Laura Ellen's debut novel. The Lost Code (Atlanteans #1) by Kevin Emerson | hardcover, $17.99 » | Perilous adventure in a grimly plausible dystopian future, fueled by high-stakes action, romance, and a provocative question: What would you do if you had the power to save humanity from its own self-destruction? Kevin Emerson also wrote the Oliver Nocturne series. The Year of the Beasts by Cecil Castellucci | hardcover, $16.99 » | Fifteen-year-old Tessa tries to be happy when her crush, Charlie, falls for her younger sister, Lulu, and it becomes easier after she begins a secret relationship with Jasper, a social outcast who lives next door to Tessa's best friend. Cecil Castellucci is also the author of the teen novels First Day on Earth, The Queen of Cool, Rose sees red, Boy Proof, Beige, and the Plain Janes series. Falling for You by Lisa Schroeder | hardcover, $16.99 » | Very good friends, her poetry notebooks, and a mysterious "ninja of nice" give 17-year-old Rae the strength to face her mother's neglect, her stepfather's increasing abuse, and a new boyfriend's obsessiveness. Lisa Schroeder is also the author of the teen novels Chasing Brooklyn, I Heart You, You Haunt Me, and others, along with the middle-grade novels It's Raining Cupcakes and Sprinkles and Secrets. Zero by Tom Leveen | hardcover, $16.99 » | After graduating from a Phoenix, Arizona, high school, aspiring artist Amanda "Zero" Walsh unexpectedly begins a relationship with a drummer in a punk rock band, which helps her come to terms with her feelings about herself, her falling out with her best friend, and her parents' personal problems. Tom Leveen is also the author of Party. Erasing Time by C.J. Hill | hardcover, $17.99 » | Eighteen-year-old twins Taylor and Sheridan are pulled into the future and must find a way to stop the evil government from using the time machine again. C.J. Hill (a.k.a. Janette Rallison) is also the author of Slayers, My Unfair Godmother, Just One Wish, My Fair Godmother, How to Take the Ex Out of Ex-Boyfriend, and various other teen comedies. Island of Silence (The Unwanteds #2) by Lisa McMann | hardcover, $16.99 » | As the Wanteds, Unwanteds, and Necessaries struggle to adjust to changes in their society, Mr. Today begins training 14-year-old Alex to replace him as Artime's leader one day while Alex's disgraced twin, Aaron, connives to take over Quill. Lisa McMann is the author of the middle-grade novel The Unwanteds. She also wrote teen novels Crash, Dead To You, Cryer's Cross, Wake, Fade, and Gone. The Dragons of Winter (Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica #6) by James A. Owen | hardcover, $17.99 » | With the Archipelago of Dreams in the hands of the Echthroi and the link to the Summer Country lost, the Grail child, Rose Dyson, the new Cartographer, Edmund McGee, and the Caretakers Emeritus seek to rebuild the Keep of Time but face a terrible new enemy who was once an ally. James A. Owen is also the author of the rest of the Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica series. Innocent Darkness (Aether Chronicles #1) by Suzanne Lazear | paperback, $9.95 » | When spirited 16-year-old Noli Braddock and her best friend Steven "V" Darrow take a flying car out for a joyride, neither expects Noli to be sent to reform school to mend her hoyden ways. While at the dreadful school, Noli's innocent mid-summer's eve wish summons Kevighn, a mysterious man who takes Noli with him to the Realm of Faerie. Innocent Darkness is Suzanne Lazear's debut novel. Butter by Erin Jade Lange | hardcover, $16.99 » | A lonely obese boy everyone calls "Butter" is about to make history. He is going to eat himself to death—live on the Internet—and everyone is invited to watch. As the dark encouragement of his peers grows, it begins to feel a lot like popularity. And that feels good. But what happens when Butter reaches his suicide deadline? Can he live with the fallout if he doesn't go through with his plans? Butter is Erin Jade Lange's debut novel. Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger | hardcover, $16.99 » | At age 12, Sophie learns that the remarkable abilities that have always caused her to stand out identify her as an elf. After being brought to Eternalia to hone her skills, she discovers that she has secrets buried in her memory for which some would kill. Keeper of the Lost Cities is Shannon Messenger's debut novel. Audition & Subtraction by Amy Fellner Dominy | hardcover, $16.99 » | Tatum, a fourteen-year-old clarinetist, competes with the new student, Michael, for a spot in honor band. But Lori, her best friend, has a crush on Michael, which is beginning to threaten their friendship. Meanwhile, Tatum's good friend Aaron seems to believe her fib that Tatum and him are dating. Amy Fellner Dominy is also the author of OyMG. A Want So Wicked by Suzanne Young | hardcover, $17.99 » | The follow-up to A Need So Beautiful. Elise is a normal 17-year-old girl until the day she Wakes up in a desert park with no idea who she is. Now she's experiencing unexpected flashes of insight into people's lives—people she's never met before. Suzanne Young is also the author of A Need So Beautiful. Faerie Winter by Janni Lee Simner | paperback, $8.99 » | "In the sequel to Bones of Faerie, Simner continues Liza's adventures in a magical postapocalyptic landscape. More intense, more devastating, higher stakes, this book will have you clenching your fists right to the last page." —Aprilynne Pike (Wings) Janni Lee Simner is also the author of Bones of Faerie. Back to top

Location: Street: 6428 S McClintock Dr. City: Tempe, Province: Arizona Postal Code: 85283 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown
Blind Spot by Laura Ellen
Renegade by J.A. Souders
Kiss the Morning Star by Elissa Janine Hoole
Personal Effects by E. M. Kokie
Starting From Here by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

Author Event Join us as we host six members of the Apocalypsies! Authors include E. M. Kokie, Lisa Jenn Bigelow, Anne Greenwood Brown, Laura Ellen, J.A. Souders and Elissa Janine Hoole. Event starts at 7:00 pm. This event features current teen titles. (added from Barnes & Noble)… (more)

Laura has lived in many states including Florida and Virginia, and recently moved from Ann Arbor, Michigan to Scottsdale, Arizona, but the place closest to her heart, where she was born and raised, is Fairbanks, Alaska. She doesn’t miss the winters, but she definitely misses the summers and that small town, out-in-the-middle-of-nowhere feeling. Alaska is still a big part of her and pretty much everything she writes takes place there. Something people often don’t know when they first meet Laura is that she has an eye disease called macular degeneration — diagnosed when she was fourteen — and as a result, is legally blind. That means basically that she can’t drive, can’t read regular print, and tends to avoid crowds because she can’t see faces real well. For a long time, Laura struggled with the fact that she wasn’t ‘normal’–that is until she realized, no one’s normal! She used this experience to write her debut novel Blind Spot. Laura earned a MA in Children’s Literature from Eastern Michigan University and is a former Language Arts teacher and special education aide for middle and high school students. She writes full-time now, but runs a monthly Creative Writing Club for fifth through eighth graders at her children’s school and never passes up an opportunity to talk about or help children with writing. Photo by Vania Stoyanova, VLC Productions

Location: Street: 2513 Jackson Ave City: Ann Arbor, Province: Michigan Postal Code: 48103-3818 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)