Indy Book Fairy: Broken By Jamie Loeak

Title: Broken

Author: Jamie Loeak

Series: The Outsiders Series (#1)

Genre: YA Contemporary

Publisher: Self –Published

Edition/Formats: eBook

Blurb/Synopsis:

Two hearts meet in a field.

One is open,

The other is a shield.

Two heartbeats,

Four hands.

One soul lives between the two of them.

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

Carter Daniels is a typical runaway. Unsure of who he is or where he’s going, Carter is only sure of one thing: his past is going to stay in the past. But when he gets pulled into the popular crowd at Silver Valley High School, he’s forced to choose: tell the truth about who he is or lie. Lie. And it seems to be working. His parents wanted to get him that cheap apartment because they’re never home. He crashed his car so he doesn’t have one. His weekends are filled because he has to spend time with his parents. But when Carter is forced to open up to an outsider because of an English assignment, everything changes. There is something he sees in her, an undeniable connection. There is a need to discover what lies behind those sad eyes. But will Carter be able to lower his defenses in order to get past hers? Will he let her in, or will he choose to stay broken?

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Excerpt

I decide to push my head around one of the trees I’m hiding behind. I watch, stunned, as a girl pushes her way through the brown and tan grass. She walks quickly, with her eyes on the ground. She has dark hair and creamy skin. Her body is thin, and I study her legs as she pushes forward. She wears dark jeans that hug her slight curves. I can’t help but push my eyes upward. She wears a navy jacket, one of the ones that swishes when she moves. From here, I can’t tell much else, so I just lean back and watch what she does. I tell myself that I’m not watching her because I’m interested in who she is. If she walks toward me, I want to be able to run.

She doesn’t, though – walk toward me, that is. Instead, she moves to sit on a log that’s kind of near me. It reminds me of the concrete slab that Sam and I share. A feeling of longing keeps my eyes on this strange girl, a feeling of connectedness overwhelms me as I watch her move.

The girl sits down, her back facing me, and pulls her knees up to her chest. Her shirt and jacket pull up and I can see a thin line of her creamy skin. I bite my lower lip, wanting to be next to her for some reason. Maybe it’s the way she walks or the way she looks at the ground like she has no need to see the world around her. Maybe it’s the tiny bit of skin of her back, the small dimples that sit above the line of her jeans.

I swallow and blink over and over again until I can’t see her anymore. She reminds me of Sam so much. I wonder how she found this place and whom she shares it with. It makes me wonder if Sam will share our place with someone new. I don’t want her to and I don’t want this girl to either – no, I’m not crazy. I share a similar life to her.

I stop my incessant blinking and watch as the girls shifts position, pulling her legs in closer, holding them tighter. She rests her head on her knees and stares out at the small pond. Her shoulders begin to quiver and it takes me only a second to realize that she’s crying. She stays like this for quite a while. The only thing that tells me that she’s alive is the slight movement of her back when she breathes, the soft sound she makes when she wipes her tears by rubbing her cheeks against her knees.

Together, we stay there in that field – me watching and her crying. We stay like that until the orange sun begins to fall behind the thick, grey clouds. I watch her walk away from me then, and before she pushes through the trees, I catch a glimpse of a school crest. I think it’s time for me to enroll here. I guess I’m staying for a while.

Author Information

Hi there! I’m Jamie Loeak, YA author of the Chronicles of Light and Darkness, The Outsiders Series, the Atlantis Novella Series, and The Star Caster: a novella. Wow! That sounds like a lot for a girl that spent most of high school and college starting – and never finishing! – things. It all started with songs and poetry but the never-finishing part soon transferred to books.

It wasn’t until I started writing Body and Soul, the first book in the Chronicles of Light and Darkness, and my debut book, that I actually finished something. I blame/thank my parents for leaving me to dog sit on their vacation – they left me with a Jeep but I can’t drive stick, so I was literally stranded! However, I managed to finish a book I had been dreaming of for quite a while. So, in all reality, they are the reason that I even began writing.

Other than the story of my beginning, I’ll tell you a few things about myself. I was a special education teacher and now work in compliance (making sure that all aspects of a special education child’s education is legal). My hobbies include: writing – duh! – playing guitar, reading Jane Austen, browsing bookstores, trying to cook and bake, and photography. At night, when I’m falling asleep, I tend to come up with plans for world domination – and not my world domination, but a world where all people are good and do the right thing… I swear, it’ll all happen one day!!!

Five Fun Facts:

I’m obsessed with my cat, Charlie.
I’m practically paleo but not all the way! (you can see recipes on my blog cottoncreative.blogspot.com)
I live in sunny Florida.
I’m a neat freak and clean at least every other day.
My sister is on the cover of The Star Caster and I took the photo!

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Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?

As someone that works in education, I saw bullying happen all the time. I worked at a low income school so it wasn’t the only thing I saw, and this is why I wanted to write the first book in the POV of Carter, the boy that’s running away from home. You see the bullying from his POV.

I want students and all children to understand that watching bullying happen is just as bad as being the bully. I want them to realize that one person can change everything.

Was there an Author who inspired you to write?

In a way, every author that I have fallen in love with has inspired me to write. JK Rowling inspired me to build a world that others want to live in. Stephanie Meyer inspired me to write about a love that will never die. JD Salinger inspired me to write about difficult, tough things that go on in an adolescent’s life. I could go on and on but I’m sure you get the idea! :)

How did you come up with the characters in your books?

I dreamt I was Kate from The Chronicles of Light and Darkness so when I sat down, I knew exactly who she was. Knowing that, I knew the kinds of people she would love and which kinds she would hate. The same goes for Kyra from The Atlantis Novella Serial.

Now Broken is very different. I actually asked the models to choose the names of their characters. I built the character’s looks around them and then went from there.

What are your current projects?

Flawless, the last full novel in The Outsiders Series, has been sent to the editor! Now I get to finish The Atlantis Novella Serial, Flightless Bird.

Do you see writing as a career?

I think I could, if I was ever given the opportunity to make it one. For now, though, I love my job. It’s so exciting and ever-changing. Plus, who knows, I might find a character there!

Do you ever picture yourself and one of your heroines? If so, which one?

Oh yes! I believe that all of my heroines have pieces of me embedded into their souls. I’m the stubborn and proud part of Kate, the frightened part of Vani, the I-want-everything-right-in-the-world part of Kyra. I’m in all of them.

Do you have a favorite heroine/hero from one of your books? If so, who?

Kate was the first girl that I wrote. I will always love her.

What kind of research do you do for your books?

I actually do none. I make up fictitious places that I can dream up in my mind. Although, I did a small bit of research about dragons...can’t tell you what book that’s for, though!

What is the hardest part of writing your book?

For me, it’s always writing the last two or three chapters. I don’t want it to end. I don’t want to say goodbye and my brain must also feel the same way - it doesn’t let me concentrate!

Title: Torn

Series: The Outsiders Series (#1.5)

Genre: YA Contemporary

Publisher: Self-Published

Release Date: Aug 1

Edition/Formats: eBook

Blurb/Synopsis:

I am done with laughing.

I am done with breathing.

Both need lungs,

Which I am not using.

So take my parts

Though they are worn.

Take what once worked.

Leave me – torn.

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

Vani Carter is just beginning eighth grade at Silver Valley Middle. She’s got her friends, Brooke and Anne Marie, guiding her through the year that is most crucial and things seem to be going all right, until all the fighting starts at home.

When Vani needs someone to talk to, she turns to Colton, the boy that’s destined to be popular. Over their lunch conversations, they become friends that care for one another unconditionally.

However, as Vani and Colton’s friendship grows stronger, Anne Marie and Brooke become more jealous, and that’s when things change. Vani’s forced to endure, not only the pain of her parent’s constant arguments, but also the pain of Anne Marie’s mean comments and threats.

When Vani is forced to choose which kind of pain is easiest to bear, will she make the right choice? Will she give in or will she fight back?