Last week we started a new Mad Mashup, which is our own version of a “Mad Lib” style game—except our name is better because I don’t go to jail! I choose a book to “mash up” and remove a few of the words. Without having any insight into the text, you provide a random set of words. I put the words into the text. Hilarity ensues.

OR DOES IT? You’re about to find out.

The book we’re playing with this month is a fun comic mystery called THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING by Amber West. It’s been in the Top 100 Comic Fiction charts on Amazon for a couple of months now. I’m such a big fan of this book and author that I’m giving away a Kindle copy to one of our word submitters.

We assigned every commenter a number in the order that they posted. Random.org gave us our lucky winner… (drum roll)…

…William!

Check your email, William! Your Kindle copy of THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING will be there soon.

And now, on with the game! The words you provided were:

How did we do? Decide for yourself:

Great job mashing up THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING, everybody! Now that we’ve done a couple of these games, I’ve decided that, going forward, I’m going to be allowing more word submissions, instead of cutting off entries. It just seems like a lot of people are having fun with this and seem bummed when they don’t get their words in on time. I’m really looking forward to more of these games, and I hope you are, too.

If you would like a copy of THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING, it’s available on Kindle and paperback. This month, all proceeds from sales of the book are going toward treatment for a cancer patient who needs some financial assistance. You can find out more about this very worthy cause at Amber’s site, A Day Without Sushi.

About THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING:

Jameson Quinn is sick of trying to find herself in the big city. After a gallery opening ends in a trip to the ER and an argument with her self-involved boyfriend, she decides to take off for the peace and quiet of a small town—Ruth Valley. The small town has everything Brooklyn lacked: simple people, peaceful surroundings, and a feeling of safety. Jameson even finds the perfect house to rent from the town’s most eligible bachelor, Sheriff Jack. Life is finally headed in a promising direction. But something isn’t right. A young man is mysteriously injured, then disappears—and Jameson finds he isn’t the only person to suddenly vanish. The suspicious behavior of an abrasive nun and a creepy priest set her off on an investigation of what’s really happening. Will she figure out the secrets of Ruth Valley before she’s the next to go missing?

If you like what you’re seeing here at JenKirchner.com, you can subscribe for more: the RSS link is in the sidebar, and you can also connect with me on Twitter and Facebook. You can also pick up my new book about a comically bad necromancer and her talking sacrificial knives. THE FOURTH CHANNEL is available as an ebook on Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. →

Last month, we played a game based on “Mad Libs.” I took an excerpt from a fantasy novella called Dreamwalker, removed a few words, and let you fill in the blanks.

The result was amazing.

Based on the comments and tweets that I received, you guys had a great time playing, so we’re going to make this a regular segment. However, we can’t call it “Mad Libs” since that’s a trademark name, so I asked you all for suggestions. Erma Gerd had the simplest suggestion with “Mad Mashup,” which a few people liked, so that’s what we’re going with. Runner-up names were “Crazy Ad Lib Crazy Novel Wacky Novel Holy Word Replacements Batman! Jen Takes Words out of a Novel and You Put New Ones In” from Brian Ronk and “Phat Phonics Dench Impromptu Dench Verses Mad Sub Verses” from John McBurney.

Mad Mashup it is!

This month’s mashup will be performed on a comic mystery called “The Ruth Valley Missing.” It’s a great book. If you enjoyed my novel, then you’ll love this—just remove the magic from my book and add a little more mystery, and you’ve basically got THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING.

Here’s my own description of the book:

Jameson Quinn is sick of the bright lights, fast living, and self-centered people of the big city. After a bad night with her jerky boyfriend, she throws in the towel and leaves it behind for a new life in the tiny town of Ruth Valley.

But first, she steals her boyfriend’s favorite shoes.

In Ruth Valley, Jameson finds more than she expected—a welcoming community, a handsome sheriff, and new friends. But not all is as it seems. Jameson discovers that the residents have a strange habit of disappearing in the middle of the night, leaving families and friends behind. As Jameson delves deeper into the disappearances, her investigation does not go unnoticed. She must solve the mystery or become the next of the Ruth Valley Missing.

It’s a fantastic book. I like it so much that I am giving away an ebook copy. If you want to win, all you have to do is post your word submission for the Mad Mashup in the comments below.

If you want to play but don’t want to enter the giveaway, all you have to do is make the (private) email address on your comment something like NoBookPleaseNoBookPlease #AT# ERMAGHERDBERK.com. Or whatever. Just make it clear by your email address that you don’t want to enter the giveaway. Please note: The Ruth Valley Missing ebook is only available for Kindle.

THE RULES

1. Your words must be PG rated. This is a family-friendly blog. Mostly.
2. There are a limited number of nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc. Pick one type and submit your suggestion for that type of word.
3. Once all of a category of word is chosen (say we have 5 suggestions for adjectives) then you have to pick another category.
4. On Friday, I will post the story excerpt with our goofy words inserted, and announce the winner to THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING giveaway! (The winner will be chosen by a random number generator. Numbers will be assigned in order of commenting. If someone has opted out of the giveaway, we’ll skip them and continue with the next entrant. Don’t I sound formal?)

Now remember: the only way this game is going to work is if you ignore your innate lurker tendencies and post a word below. So please participate! You can use a code name if you’d prefer not to use your own.

For THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING Mad Mashup, we need the following words:

1. Sports equipment: 2 words (all taken!)
2. Body part: 2 words (all taken!)
3. Verb: 11 words (all taken!)
4. Adjective: 2 words (all taken!)
5. Profession: 1 word (all taken!)
6. Direction: 1 word (all taken!)
7. Noun: 4 words (all taken!)

UPDATE: We have all of our words… and then some! If you still would like to enter the contest to win a free Kindle copy of THE RUTH VALLEY MISSING, post a comment below letting me know!

Post your suggestions in the comments below! Then come on back Monday, February 11, to read our RUTH VALLEY MISSING Mad Mashup! →

This week, we started a new series inspired by “Mad Libs.” It occurred to me, two days later, that I never explained to you what “Mad Libs” are. Most of you knew. Some of you, surprisingly, did not.

Here’s how the game is played: I pick an excerpt from a book and remove a handful of random words. Without showing you what the excerpt is, I tell you what kinds of words I need. You give me words, which I then place into the paragraph. Then you read it. If the words are good, it’s funny and we play again.

The book we used for this round is called DREAMWALKER by Angela Wallace.

I really like this fun, fantasy novella, and I think you will too—so much that I am giving away a copy. Everyone who participated in the comments section is eligible to win, unless they specifically opted out.

We assigned every commenter a number, in the order that they posted. Random.org gave us our winner… (drum roll)…

…M. Shane McNally!

Congratulations, M. Shane! Check your email because I need to know if you would like a Nook or Kindle version of DREAMWALKER.

Onto the game! The words you submitted were:

And I plugged them into the story, just so. Enjoy!

Nice work on this, everyone! The first post is now the most commented post on my blog. Yep. It even beat The Relic. Never thought I’d see that. All in all, I think this “Lib” came out rather well—and now that we’ve done our first one, I know what to do differently. Next time I’ll ask for more specific “fun” words, like animals, body parts, and the like.

Also, since “Mad Libs” are a trademark, we’re going to need to come up with our own name. You guys may have to help me out with that one. Give me some substitutes for “mad” and “libs” and we can cobble something together.

EDIT: It was brought to my attention that I accidentally omitted the action word “slaughter.” For that reason, I will use that word in our next “Lib” and Lark Midstone (clearly a code name – whoever could he be? LOL) can also submit a second word. Sorry about that.

If you would like a copy of DREAMWALKER, it is available as an ebook at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

About DREAMWALKER:

After Lexa’s comrade died saving her life, she retired from the special forces and retreated to a sanctuary in the mountains. A year later, war is brewing with the neighboring country, and Lexa discovers a threat even the army can’t stand against–a dream assassin. As the only other dreamwalker in known existence, Lexa returns to the capital of Artasia and her old post to protect her country’s leaders. But is the cocky, mysterious dreamwalker who seems to be stalking her the true mastermind? Or is something even more sinister threatening not just Artasia, but the dreamscape as well? As Lexa fights to protect those she loves, she discovers a power that can transcend worlds, and a destiny she never could have imagined.

Readers keep turning the pages for “intrigue,” “romance,” and more of Lexa and Dirk “trying to beat the crap out of each other.”

Thanks for playing everyone!

If you like what you’re seeing here at JenKirchner.com, you can subscribe for more: the RSS link is in the sidebar, and you can also connect with me on Twitter and Facebook. You can also pick up my new book about a comically bad necromancer and her talking sacrificial knives. THE FOURTH CHANNEL is available as an ebook on Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. →