Book Blitz: Camp Christmas (Camp Boyfriend #1.5) by JK Rock

Posted December 20, 2013 by Lola in Blog Tour, Contemporary, Romance / 4 Comments

Camp Christmas banner

This is my stop during the book blitz for Camp Christmas (Camp Boyfriend #1.5) by JK Rock, Camp Christmas is a novella which is part of the Camp Boyfriend series and is free to download on the publisher website . While it is part of the Camp Boyfriend series it can also be read as a stand alone. This book blitz is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours . The book blitz runs from 17 December till 21 December, you can view the complete tour schedule on the website of Lola’s Blog Tours. So far this series contains 3 book: Camp Kiss (Camp Boyfriend #0.5), Camp Boyfriend (camp Boyfriend #1) and Camp Christmas (Camp Boyfriend #1.5).

I share some information about the books in this series and a guest post from JK Rock about their descision to use multiple main characters in this series and a few interview questions and favourites.Tomorrow I share my review with you on my blog!

Camp Xmas cover 2

Camp Christmas (Camp Boyfriend #1.5)
by JK Rock
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Category: Young Adult
Release date: 17 December 2013

Blurb:
Hannah never meant to be a mean girl – at Camp Juniper Point or at her high school. It just sort of happened during one painful year when her parents split and her life fell apart. Who knew being mad at the world would catapult her to popularity? But since changing the status quo would make her some serious enemies, she’s prepared to ride out her time until graduation. That is, until a camp friend calls her on the act during their school ski trip. Will Julian out her to her friends? Or will the guy she once accused of being King of the Nerds make her wish she was a whole lot more like him?

You can find Camp Christmas on Goodreads

You can grab your free copy of camp Christmas on the Spencer Hill Contemporary website or buy it for $0.99 on amazon.

Earlier books in this series:
camp kissCamp Kiss (Camp Boyfriend #0.5)
by JK Rock
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Category: Young Adult

Blurb:
The Camp Kiss That Started It All…

Lauren Carlson, a fourteen-year-old expert on the cosmos, superheroes, and science fiction trivia has a crush on her longtime camp friend, Seth. Last summer she’d dreamed about upgrading their relationship to BF/GF status and this year she has a plan… if only her well-meaning cabin mates wouldn’t interfere before she’s ready. She hasn’t even adjusted to her new braces yet, let alone imagined kissing Seth with them. When a dare pushes her out of her comfort zone, will she and Seth rocket out of the friendzone at last? There’s only one way to find out…

You can find Camp Kiss on Goodreads. It is free to download on the Spencer Hill Contemporary website or you can buy it on Amazon .
You can read my review of Camp Kiss here on my blog.

camp boyfriendCamp Boyfriend (Camp Boyfriend #1)
by JK Rock
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Category: Young Adult

Blurb:
The summer of her dreams is about to get a reality check.

They said it couldn’t be done, but geeky sophomore Lauren Carlson transformed herself into a popular girl after moving to a new school halfway across the country. Amazing what losing her braces and going out for cheerleading will do. Only trouble is, the popular crowd is wearing on Lauren’s nerves and she can’t wait to return to summer camp where she’s valued for her brain instead of her handsprings. She misses her old friends and most of all, her long time camp-only boyfriend, Seth. This year she intends to upgrade their relationship to year-round status once she’s broken up with her new, jock boyfriend, Matt. He doesn’t even begin to know the real her, a girl fascinated by the night sky who dreams of discovering new planets and galaxies.

But Matt isn’t giving her up without a fight. As he makes his case to stay together, Lauren begins to realize his feelings run deeper than she ever would have guessed. What if the guy she thought she was meant to be with forever isn’t really The One? Returning to Camp Juniper Point was supposed to ground her uprooted life, but she’s more adrift than ever. Everything feels different and soon Lauren’s friends are turning on her and both guys question what she really wants. As summer tensions escalate, Lauren wonders if she’s changed more than she thought. Will her first big discovery be herself?

You can find Camp Boyfriend on Goodreads.
You can read my review of Camp Boyfriend here on my blog. 

You can buy Camp Boyfriend here:
Amazon (kindle)
Amazon (paperback)
B&N
Kobo
The Bookdepository

Guest post
Each book in the camp boyfriend series has a different main character, but former main characters do make an appearance in later books. How did you come up with the idea to write this series this way and what are the pros and cons of writing a series with different main characters?

It really comes down to a matter of author preference. It’s a very subjective choice. For us, we were intrigued by the opportunity to use the same world, but dig deeper and focus more on specific characters in different books. Both of us are people watchers. It’s fun to sit in a park and imagine the lives of the individuals that pass us. In CAMP BOYFRIEND, we have that opportunity. In one book, a character is a supportive best friend with a bit of an anger issue. In another book, that BFF is now the main character. We get a much better understanding of her, why she has this temper, and root for her as she grows and finds true love. An even greater jump happens when we switch our focus to another cabin entirely, a different set of girls, and get to know them in a way we hadn’t before. You never know someone until you’ve walked in their shoes. And you never know a character until you’ve read his or her story. It’s a thrill to live in a different character’s world and inhabit their lives for different books, rather than staying with only one protagonist for the entire series.
The benefit to writing books with different main characters is that we never feel like we are covering the same ground. Each character has his or her own unique points of view, challenges, and goals for us to explore. This keeps us on our toes as writers as we need to look harder at these characters and envision what kinds of stories will help them overcome what’s been holding them back from finding love. We both want to give our readers fresh and dynamic stories every time. By shifting the series to a different character with each book, they still have the Camp Juniper experience, while seeing it through the unique experiences of that protagonist.
A con to writing books with different main characters is really a logistical issue. It is actually quite intensive work to make sure that the large cast of the series is consistent throughout. Their back stories may be more developed given a particular novel, but they need to match what was written about them in other books. Also, the timeline of events need to match up, requiring meticulous planning. In the series, we actually have an overlapping scene that appears in two books. Both scenes are told from different characters’ points of view. We needed to ensure that every concrete detail matched, while making it seem different and specific to that character’s perspective. However, the extra work is worth the effort when the end result is so rewarding!

I love multiple perspectives in a series and am a firm believer that every has his or her reasons for the way he act and I think it’s great we will be seeing a different perspective in Camp Christmas! Okay and now for some interview questions!

-Who is the main character in the Camp Christmas book and what was the inspiration for her?
Hannah is the main character, which we’re very excited about because it can be interesting to write a character who is viewed one way and sees herself in another way. The girls in Munchies Manor see Hannah as a mean girl. But we wondered… are they right? Is she really mean and if so, why? We ended up really connecting with Hannah and we hope readers will too. She goes on to have some interesting roles in future books, too.

-Which scenes do you find the easiest to write?
K- I’ve always loved writing dynamic scenes full of interesting action with lots of dialogue and a bit of fun thrown in.

J- Scenes with a lot of action and momentum. When a lot is going on, words fill the pages in no time!

-Which scenes do you find most difficult to write?
K-  Deeply emotional scenes are sometimes the most challenging, but ultimately the ones I love the most! I feel so strongly for these characters and if it’s a breakup scene or a setback, I agonize with them. If it’s a love scene, I want to make sure that each word sound real, raw and genuine, not clichéd or expected.

J- Any scene where I’m not sure of the character’s goals or motivations. To which, of course, I tell myself to *stop writing* until I know those things . But sometimes I’ll be excited about a scene because I know the basic action and I think it sounds fun to write. Then I get midway through and realize I’m losing focus because I forgot a story element that’s really fundamental and needs to be in there.

– Are there things you have in common with your main characters in the Camp Boyfriend series?
K- I think I see a bit of myself in every character in the series. If I had to narrow it down to one or two, I would say Kayla and Emily. Kayla, the main character in the third book of our series, CAMP FORGET-ME-NOT, describes herself as a girl who speaks her mind IN her mind- but never really says what she’s thinking for fear of offending her friends. She wants to blend in with the crowd and not be judged, picked on, or left out. I felt like that a lot as a teenager. There were times that I wished I’d been truer to myself, or stood up and did exactly what I wanted, instead of going along with my friends. Kayla’s not a bad person, and neither was I. But we both needed to get a voice and speak up for ourselves, whether people wanted to hear what we had to say or not. Emily reminds me a bit of my adult self because once I’d learned not to care so much about what other people thought of me, I got in touch with my goofy, real personality. Emily cares a lot about the girls she supervises, much in the way I cared about my students when I was a teacher. Yet I never forgot that it was important to have fun while doing activities and to encourage kids to be kind instead of mean, interested instead of apathetic, and act goofy instead of cool because there isn’t anything fun about being cool- too much pressure!

J- I relate well to characters like Trinity and Brittany. They seem a little kooky on the outside sometimes, but only because their passions are a bit outside the norm. I feel like that was me as a teen because I my head was in a story half the time. I was more interested in Catherine and Heathcliff than anything that happened in social studies, and I may have come across as a bit spacey because of it. Also, I was mapping out diagrams of the relationships between the Greek Gods in my spare time or checking out twelve books on Italian art while at the library on my bicycle. I have a quirky side and that’s why I love Brittany for wearing fangs. If you have a passion… own it.

Favourites
– What is your favourite season?
Joanne: Fall
Karen:  Fall… cider donuts, carving pumpkins, leaf peeping, the smell of woodsmoke…

– What is your favourite time of the day?
Joanne: Whatever time is quietest. Usually morning.
Karen:  I love mornings too. Though not too early!

– What is your favourite animal?
Joanne: I like to watch tigers or any big, fast, powerful feline.
Karen:  I love dogs! Any kind. Even pit bulls are cute. Have you seen one when it’s on its back, belly to the sky, tongue hanging out? Irresistible.  
Jk Rock
– What is your favourite colour?
Joanne: pink
Karen:  pink (all shades!)

About the Authors:
Sisters in law Joanne and Karen Rock write Young Adult books under the pseudonym J.K. Rock. They bonded on a set of bleachers, watching their respective Rock boyfriends play baseball, and later, as young wives married into the same big family. Today, they have fun reliving teen drama on the pages of their YA books in their ongoing Camp Boyfriend series, which reviewers have noted for its authentic treatment of navigating relationships and self-identity. Individually, Joanne and Karen write adult romance books for Harlequin. Joanne is a three-time RITA Award nominee and Golden Heart winner. Her books have been reprinted in twenty-six countries and translated into twenty different languages. Karen’s debut romance, WISH ME TOMORROW, has garnered critical acclaim for its sensitive portrayal of a cancer survivor’s journey. You can learn more about their upcoming projects and previous releases at http://jkrock.net

You can find JK Rock here:
Website
Series website
Joanne’s Twitter
Karen’s Twitter
Facebook
Pinterest
Goodreads

There are two blitz wide giveaways!
One of the giveaways is US Only, here is what you can win: signed copies of J. Lynn’s FRIGID, Kimberly Sabatini’s TOUCHING THE SURFACE, J.K. Rock’s CAMP BOYFRIEND, journal, chinese lantern, pen, stickers, assorted bookmarks, friendship bracelets, Camp Boyfriend pen and mini-flashlight and Bath and Body Works Triple Moisture Cream in Aruba Coconut.

xmasbookblitzprize

Tags:


4 responses to “Book Blitz: Camp Christmas (Camp Boyfriend #1.5) by JK Rock

    • I really enjoy this series so far, I loved Camp Boyfriend and both novella’s are great too. The novella’s are free so you can try for free whether this series is something for you or not. It’s great to see how in book 1 Hannah was just the mean girl and now you see her point of view and you realize she isn’t that bad and actually is a great character.

      btw what is your favourite series? I would like to check it out, I also love series like these where each book has a different main character but old mian characters still make appearanced.

    • I’ve read a character like that before. Jaci Burton in one of her erotica series. The second heroine. I swore there was no way I’d be able to like her. She did something pretty awful in her friends book and I was set not to like her. But she managed to really convince me of her and it ended up being my favorite in the series. lol It was great seeing her character really own up and become a better person.

      Hmm. I have two that really stick with me. Jill Shalvis’s Lucky Harbor series. It’s contemporary romance. Sweet but some steamy too. It’s up to 9 books now I think but it’s done in trilogies. So the first set of books are on a group of sisters that are getting to know each other as adults. Each book is one of them finding their mate but you also see their relationship grow through each of the books. Very funny and sweet series.

      Then I love JD Robb’s In Death series. It follows a husband and wife as they meet and then through their marriage. So every book is them as the focus but there are incredible secondary characters that are very active in the book. It’s set in the future in like 2050s. The wife is the police lieutenant and each book revolves around one of her characters. So more mystery with a romance chaser? lol It took me a couple tries to get into book one but after that I flew through those suckers and there are a lot of them.

Leave a Reply to Lola R Cancel reply

CommentLuv badge

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.