In the very near future, the country is plunged into drought and unrest. Scarce resources and constant heat are making life completely miserable. Casey doesn't think she can stand slugging back another gel pack or working one more shift at the wells. Fortunately, there's a solution: anyone over the age of seventeen can sign the Forever Contract and enter a utopian paradise. While people's minds take a permanent vacation, their bodies get warehoused and hooked up to a complex array of sensors and feeding tubes. As Casey's brother says, "You upload your consciousness to the system and you're free to live as long as you want, however you want. No more pain, no more heat, no more awful dust, no more work. Just pure thought. It's what our species has always been meant for. Suffering is for philosophers. Not for me." Casey's ready to sign--a permanent vacation is just what she needs. There's only one problem: her boyfriend James doesn't trust it. Told from his and her perspectives, The Forever Contract is a 17,000 word (60 page) novella suitable for readers in grade 8 and above. Would you sign the contract? About the Author Under the pen name Avery Sawyer, Laura Schaefer is the author of Notes to Self, a young adult novel about a teen with a traumatic brain injury, and The Forever Contract, a young adult dystopian novella about escaping from hardship by loading one's consciousness into a digital paradise. Schaefer is also the author of The Teashop Girls (Simon & Schuster 2009), The Secret Ingredient (Simon & Schuster 2011), and Planet Explorers Travel Guides for Kids. Learn more about her by visiting teashopgirls.com and planet-explorers.net. Look for Laura on Twitter: @teashopgirl

Valerie Jewell's life sucks. Her father passed away last year, her mother is so dense she barely notices Val's alive, and furthermore, she is being harassed and tortured at her new high school. Derek Flynn, the soccer jock, won't leave her alone and his teasing is beginning to piss her off. Despite her unwillingness, Val finally agrees to let her mother dye her black locks back to their natural, honey-blonde shade. But the color backfires, turning her goth locks a grayish white. Now, Val must go through life unnoticed as before but that's almost impossible when you're hindering deadly secrets that could possibly tear her apart.

Lexi Callaghan is broken. From a traumatic childhood that still haunts her, to her slowly deteriorating mental health, things are pretty bleak. The only source of light in her otherwise dark universe is her best friend and soulmate, Jasper Reynolds, who is constantly striving to make her smile and see her self-worth. The problem is that Jasper is moving to a different continent at the end of August, leaving Lexi on her own to fend for herself in a world where everything feels like it's collapsing inward. ▶▷▶A long, honest one month journey about friendship and finding solace from your inner demons. There are fun, lighthearted moments; there are emotional, heartbreaking moments; and there are moments in-between. Just like how real life works. ◀◁◀ ❝As I stare up at the creaky old Ferris wheel cycling around and around, I think about how everything that spins does so on an axis. And really, I guess that's the best way to describe what Jasper is for me: he's the axis that keeps me from spiraling out of control. But what'll happen when August runs out of days and I lose the only person who keeps me rotating in this life that I've been given?❞

They met in December.

Lexi Grayson is a normal teenager, as normal as she can be with her unobserving skills and her overthinking mind. But she might need the overthinking if she wants to unravel the smirking mystery that is Blake Eaton.

Reed Hadley would gladly spend her day holed up in her room with her dog, watching horror movies or surfing the internet on her trusty laptop. Too bad she is the daughter of one of the biggest matchmakers in the business. As soon as Reed started to develop into what scientist dubbed an adolescent, her mom has been sitting her up on dates, which seem to go wrong every time. Reed is done with these dates, and she realizes that the only way to get her mom off her back is to find a boyfriend. When Reed is partnered with bad boy Parker Hunt on a school project, they can't stand each other. However, Reed and Parker quickly realize they need each other; Reed needs Parker so that her mom will stop with the blind dates, and Parker needs Reed so his jealous ex-girlfriend will leave him alone. So, this odd pair strikes up a deal. For appearances' sake, they're an item. Behind closed doors, they may fight like children, but Reed and Parker have managed to fool the people they need to. However, can a fake relationship stay fake forever?

The conversations between Eli and Aeryn.

❝ i miss the way your name tastes like forbidden toxins on my lips. ❞ copyright - all rights reserved

❝ sometimes you need to leave the people you love most because they're better off without you. ❞ // sequel to "letters to you." copyright, all rights reserved. [lowercase intended.]

Luca is a player, who is handsome, caring, and above all extremely charming. Megan is the complete opposite, she is gorgeous but doesn't know it. Guys falls in love with her instantly, not just because of her amazing looks, but also because of the innocent personality that comes goes along with those looks. Luca is Megan's older brother's best friend. In a total cliche kind of way for as long back as Megan could remember she has been in love with Luca. She grew up with him and would trust him with her life, but could she trust him with her heart? While she waits along the wings for Luca to finally notice her as more than his best friend's little sister, there are plenty of men chasing Megan. Will Luca realize his feelings for her before it is too late. Or will Megan decide to move on and pursue one of her many offers?