The Half Birthday Contest a.k.a Contest where I give away 15 or more books!

Hey everyone,

I decided a while ago that I'd have a contest for my “Half Birthday” because as a kid I always celebrated it. My birthday is January 1^st and in my entire life, I've only had one party on my actual birthday... most birthday parties were weeks after my birthday sometimes a month or more. Plus, a lot of times it would rain on my birthday party and I was never able to have a beach party so I'd celebrate my half birthday in the summer. The only differences between my actual birthday parties and half birthday parties is that I wouldn't get any presents at the half birthday. I got cake, balloons, and friends over at the half birthday parties but no presents. So, since it's my half birthday, I will celebrate it here the same way that I would for my actual birthday-- throw a giant contest!

WARNING: READ EVERYTHING CAREFULLY. IF YOU DON'T, YOU MIGHT MISS SOMETHING!

CHALLENGE #1:

If I get 100 followers by July 15^th (Midnight PST)-- I will add FOUR more books to category B. I already know which books that I'd add. (at the point of me posting this contest I have 62 followers so that means that I need 38!)

CHALLENGE #2:

If I get 100 different people entering in the contest by July 22^nd (Midnight PST)-- I will add THREE more books to category B. I already know which books that I'd add.

CHALLENGE #3:

If we end up with 200 or more different people entering in the contest by the 27th, then I will add an additional THREE books to category B!

CHALLEGE #4:

Complete all three challenges before the end (it's okay if they don't get done by their certain dates), then I'll add an additional TWO books to category B!

If you guys meet those four challenges, you can end up with 13 more extra books on the list. And trust me, you guys want more books. I've got a few more ARCs that haven't been published yet and a ton other books that aren't ARCS...I might just add a 4th big ticket item-- aka a signed book, IF I am impressed by the amount of people entering and the number of entries. But that is up to my discretion.

Now here are the books!

THE BOOKS:

Category A (aka Big Ticket Items):

Fire by Kristin Cashore (ARC-- release date: 9/09)

Fade by Lisa McMann (Hardcover, SIGNED)

The Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink (ARC, SIGNED--release date: 8/09)

Category B (aka everything else):

Persistence of Memory by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes (ARC-- release date: 12/08)

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do by Niki Burnham, Terri Clark, Ellen Hopkinks, Lynda Sandoval (ARC-- release date: 5/08)

How To Be Popular by Meg Cabot (ARC-- release date: 8/06)

Being Nikki by Meg Cabot (ARC-- release date: 5/09)

Models Don't Eat Chocolate Cookies by Erin Dionne (ARC-- release date: 3/09)

My Life In Pink And Green by Lisa Greenwald (ARC-- release date: 3/09)

Pretty Face by Mary Hogan (ARC-- release date: 4/08)

Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson (Hardcover)

Crowned by Julie Linker (paperback)

Jane In Bloom by Deborah Lytton (ARC-- release date: 3/09)

Twilight by Stephenie Myer (paperback, movie cover edition-- one slight crease in the spine)

Red Glass by Laura Resau (Hardcover)

BOOKS ADDED LATER:

Tenth Grade Bleeds by Heather Brewer (ARC-- release date: 7/09)

Pool Boys by Erin Haft (paperback)

How to enter:

1. Leave a comment and tell me which books from Catagory A you want to be entered for (if any) and a minimum of your top 10 choices from Category B. 1 is what you want most and 10 would be last choice ***Make sure I can a way to contact you via e-mail. No e-mail address, no entry.***(OR, send an email to: caprubia(at)gmail(dot)com with “GB JULY CONTEST” in the subject line and make sure that you list everything you did in the e-mail)

Please put all of the entries in one comment and tell me everything you did with links and your e-mail address. (OR, send an email to: caprubia(at)gmail(dot)com with “GB JULY CONTEST” in the subject line and make sure that you list everything you did in the e-mail)

How to get Extra Entries:

1. +1 entries for following me on Twitter. Please @ reply to me and tell me in the your comment. I will check at the end to make sure that you're following.

2. +1 for every comment you leave on my other posts for the month of July.

3. +1 for telling me what you like about my blog (please be specific, if you leave short answers, you wont get the entry)

4. +1 for telling me what you don't like about my blog (please be specific, if you leave short answers, you wont get the entry)

5. +1 for giving me a tip so I can improve my blog. Up to five entries for five different tips. (please be specific, if you leave short answers, you wont get the entry)

6. +2 entries for blogging about this contest. Make sure you give me the link. Sidebars are AWESOME. (2 entries per each place, no maximum number of places... Twitter, blog, sidebar, etc. Make sure I can see it)

7. +2 if you were referred--please name the person whom you were referred by

8. +2 if you referred anyone-- they have to name you, you can't say that you referred someone.

9. +3 entries for writing an original poem about a book or character(please tell me what book it's from) you love. Really good (funny, touching, really complicatedly written, etc) poems will get extra entries, at my discretion.

10. +3 entries for being awesome! Tell me why you're awesome. (basically this is a freebie for anyone who actually reads all of these... but you have to give a reason why you're awesome.)

11. +3 entries for commenting on this blog post (I'm very proud of my Trapeze video b/c I'm afraid of heights) and telling me what YOU are afraid of and an additional +2 entries if you comment directly on the Youtube video (tell me your username so I can give you credit).

12. +3 entries for being a follower or becoming a follower of So Adam, How's That Book? His birthday is my half birthday! He's having a birthday contest for four awesome books, enter HERE.

13. +3 entries for following me (make sure you let me know)

    OR

    +4 entries for my current followers (as of 6/30), please let me know.

14. +4 entries for making me a button. Send to caprubia(at)gmail(dot)com (maximum of 20 entries, but as many buttons as you want to make to be entered in the honorable mention category.)

15. +5 entries for joining the Five Awesome YA Fans Ning (make sure you let me know if you did, and what your user name is there!)

Please put all of the entries in one comment and tell me everything you did with links and your e-mail address. (OR, send an email to: caprubia(at)gmail(dot)com with “GB JULY CONTEST” in the subject line and make sure that you list everything you did in the e-mail)

What You'll Win:

1^st place winner:
One book from Category A, three books from Category B.

2^nd place winner:

One book from Category A, two books from Category B.

3^rd place winner:

One book from Category A, one book from Category B.

Honorable mentions:

Person who referred the most people:
Two books from Category B.

Person who makes my favorite button (only if five or more people send me a button):

Two books from Category B.

That person who has only one entry:

One Book from Category B. (I'm going to make sure that one person who only has one entry will win a book because I'm nice. But only if someone from 1st-3rd place didn't have just one entry-- otherwise they count as the person who won with only one entry.)

Everyone else:

It all depends on if your number gets picked. If you have a lot of entries, chances are higher you might win a book or more than one book. Keep in mind, if you won 1st-3^rd place or one of the honorable mentions (& if you still have more entries) you might end up winning more books. The stats of winning more than one book all depends on how many entries you put in.

So yeah. It's kind of crazy how the entries will work out but you don't need to understand it to enter in the contest. Minim of 5(or 6) winners, maximum all depends on how many books end up in the pile by the end of the contest because of the challenges. And if all 3 challenges are met early on, I'll come up with more things for you guys to do to earn more books. I want to see how big it can get and I hope that you guys meet all of the challenges so there can be more books in the pot, because I do have the books! : )

Please put all of the entries in one comment and tell me everything you did with links and your e-mail address. (OR, send an email to: caprubia(at)gmail(dot)com with “GB JULY CONTEST” in the subject line and make sure that you list everything you did in the e-mail)

Open to: Addresses in the United States only. Sorry, I'm only a college student!

Ends: July 31^st at 11:59 PM PST***

*** HOWEVER, Note that if I don't get at least 100 different people entering the contest- then I will keep it open until I get a minimum of 100 different people entering. If I'm throwing a contest this big, then I want a lot of people to enter. I'm not going to have a 15 book giveaway when only 5 people enter.

Please put all of the entries in one comment and tell me everything you did with links and your e-mail address. (OR, send an email to: caprubia(at)gmail(dot)com with “GB JULY CONTEST” in the subject line and make sure that you list everything you did in the e-mail)

Overall, there is a TON of stuff you can do to get entries. You can earn well over 50 entries. I expect that it will be a nightmare to sort it all out in the end but that's what I'm aiming for! A giant contest that I have no idea if I will ever be able to top. I haven't figured out how I'm going to pick the winners-- a random generator or putting ALL of the names into a large hat. We'll see once we get to the end.

Good Luck!

~Genevieve