If you had asked me a year ago if I wanted to write a poetry book, I would have looked at you like you were crazy. In fact, a year ago I didn’t even share my poetry. It was something that I was ashamed of, something I viewed as an unwanted necessity.

Isn’t it funny how life can change in a year? If anything, 2020 has taught me how life can change in one night. How you can go from plans for the rest of the year to a blank schedule with the exception of a million video calls.

But a lot changes in a year. You learn lessons, meet new people, maybe welcome a pinto bean to the family (a very cute pinto bean), you ask for help and receive it, you grow, change, and you love. Before you know it, God has given you the ability to do something you thought impossible.

Fifteen talks about a lot of the things I’ve written about on this blog. It talks about having friends and losing them. It talks about losing yourself and finding yourself. It talks about sadness, depression, anxiety. It talks about pain, about tears, about giving up.

But it doesn’t let you give up.

Fifteen is so dear to my heart, it gives you laughter and word pictures. It brings hope and joy to your soul. It makes your feet want to dance after it tore your heart and made you cry. Because it doesn’t let you lose hope.

Quite a few times these past two weeks I’ve been ready to just give up on Fifteen. Marketing takes a chunk out of you, and there’s been a lot going on outside of Fifteen. (Migraines aren’t jokes, folks.) But each moment I just had to take a breath and remember why. Why I’m doing this.

God knows it isn’t because I wanted to have a poetry book out there for the world to critique. Fifteen isn’t for me. It’s because God has called me to do it for you. For the people who need to read it, who need a helping hand.

As you know, the blog tour is going on right now, and those posts have totally made my day. I’m going to go through the posts during this week, and point out some fun things you should read.

October 11th

Olivia @ https://oliviaspenn.wordpress.com wrote this beautiful review. I honestly couldn’t believe what I was reading. I was so thrilled I ran into the living room and read it aloud to my family. She says:

“Is it Shelf-Worthy?

This is an undeniable yes. Amie Woleslagle has created a glorious compilation to adorn any shelf. I’d personally recommend this to preteen and teenage girls. This is a call to girls by a girl, screaming that while darkness is looming, there is always hope. This is the perfect introduction to poetry for young readers looking for a relatable perspective that mirrors their life in such a familiar and relatable way. Read it. Read it again. Then again. And see the glory of God’s goodness pouring through from Amie’s heart to yours.”

October 13th

Malaya @ https://lifewithmalaya.blogspot.com/ hosted me on her blog with a lovely interview. It was so much fun answering her questions, and one of my favorite questions she asked was about the title of Fifteen, and what it means to me. So if you want to learn about that and her other questions, go check out her blog.

Hailey @ https://haileyhuntington.com/blog-feed/ also interviewed me on her blog, and we talked about all things book and Fifteen related. I loved how she asked about what people without mental health issues will take away from Fifteen, so if you don’t have mental health issues, definitely go check out Hailey’s interview. (Even if you do have mental health issues check it out. She has other amazing questions as well.)

October 14th

Ryan Elizabeth @ https://ryanelizabethwrites.com apparently reviewed Fifteen a month ago without me realizing it. (Epic fail on my part.) So you can read a review AND an interview on her blog. In the interview, she asked my advice to authors thinking about getting published for the first time, so definitely check out the interview. She also wrote this in the review:

“It’s clear that the author has personally experienced what she writes about; she cares for and sympathizes with those who have also unfortunately experienced it. I was impressed by how delicately the topics were handled while still being extremely meaningful! I was also delighted to find how strong the Christian themes are, while being nowhere near the level of ‘preachy.'”

Liesl @ https://lieslbrunnerauthor.wordpress.com/ conducted an awesome interview with me, which I loved! We talked about things that surprised me about Fifteen, and what helped me the most during writing, so go check out this interview.

Kyra H. @ https://potatoesarebeautifultoo.home.blog wrote an epic review. I don’t even know where to start with this review because oh my little heart. She says:

“First of all, this is no ordinary poetry book. The poems in this collection highlight the struggles of mental health and finding who we are inside this crazy, broken world. In a way Fifteen isn’t a poetry book at all- it’s an autobiography in poem form. Amie tells her story and the stories of many others, sharing bits and pieces of her heart as she shows us glimpses of what it’s like to be in her head.”

You have to go read the rest of her review and comment on that post, so I can see it and like it because yes. Yes. It is amazing.

October 15th

Carolyn @ https://wordsthatspeak1914.weebly.com also wrote a review. I’m floored by all these reviews, guys. Like, wow. She says:

“Amie really showcased how we matter–and that we all have a purpose here. She also showed how we shouldn’t get stuck, caught, or even overwhelmed with our inner battle. We know the One who can break us free from these chains. We are not going through this alone.”

Esmeralda @ https://latteswithliterature.wordpress.com spotlighted Fifteen, so definitely go look at her blog. It’s about lattes while reading literature. How can life get better than that?

October 16th

Bella @ https://bellaputt.com/ wrote another beautiful review. (Can I say I also love seeing all of these blogs, and how the blogger’s personalities shine through them?) She says:

“Amie weaves these poems together with the most powerful, emotional words, where I could really feel what she was saying. There have been many instances when I’ve felt something that I didn’t know how to describe, and she took that feeling and managed to perfectly portray what I felt.”

She also gives quite a few sneak peaks at verses, so go check them out!

October 17th

Maya @ https://mayajt.wordpress.com wrote a very honest review, which I appreciated! She said:

“But I have to be honest and say that this book… was not really for me . . . However. Amie’s message is something that so many teens need to hear, and I’m still incredibly glad that I get to read it and share about it! I definitely recommend purchasing yourself a copy of the book. Even if, like me, it’s not your favorite style, I promise you won’t regret owning this lovely book with fabulous illustrations and such a meaningful theme.”

Sarah @ https://authorevelynbrooks.wordpress.com hosted another fun interview, in which we dive into the mystery of indie publish, so definitely go check that one out!

Breanne @ (writingflyingfree.com) also hosted a wonderful interview! Aside from diving into tea and Starbucks drinks (the essentials, you know), we also chatted about the influence behind Fifteen.

Marie @ https://writingincolor632931833.wordpress.com – Spotlight (coming sometime today)

Fe @ https://theunshaken.blog posted a lovely lovely lovely SO MANY LOVELIES review. It made me cry, because I just . . . couldn’t believe it, to be honest. She says so much, so you must read her review, but here’s the part I’m going to quote here.

“Before each poem, she explained the meaning behind it. I really appreciated that because it helped me understand the whole story. One example is from her poem “Asthmatic.” It’s one of my favorite ones in the book. She related grief and mental pain to asthma. She explained that people we love help relieve the pain like an inhaler, but when they leave the pain would come back all over again. I wouldn’t have understood it without her explanation. It was BEAUTIFUL, for sure, and it sounded like it could be in a hit song, but it really sank in when I realized what it was about.”

Over the next few days you should be seeing post from:

October 18th

Emeline @ https://kawaiivillage12.wixsite.com/quillofhope

October 19th

Coralie @ https://gracebought.wordpress.com/

October 20th

Juliet @ https://songsofjoyjuliet.blogspot.com

Laura @ https://simplybeautiful311.wordpress.com

October 21st

Hannah @ http://www.precariousbookstacks.com/

Kaelyn @ https://kaelynslife.wordpress.com

October 22nd

Abigail @ https://readreviewrejoice.com/

October 23rd

Amie @ https://amieanne.blog

Now. You can’t forget two important things, though if you go to all those post and have read all of this OH MY WORD you are a trooper. You can’t forget:

A. The scavenger hunt. You can find details here.

And

B. The giveaway, which you can enter here.

Now, this is probably a super long post with a million typos, but no. I’m not editing it. Thank you all so much for your support. It’s crazy to believe that it’s SIX more days until Fifteen is launched!

(*whispers* Don’t forget to get your pre-order goodies. *magically inserts image*)

~~Amie~~