How to Make Out

Sixteen-year-old Renley needs three thousand dollars for the math club’s trip to New York City, and she knows exactly how to get it: she’s going to start a how-to blog where people pay for answers to all of life’s questions from a “certified expert.” The only problems: 1) She doesn’t know how to do anything but long division and calculus. 2) She’s totally invisible to people at school. And not in a cool Gossip Girl kind of way.

So, she decides to learn to do . . . well . . . everything. When her anonymous blog shifts in a more scandalous direction and the questions (and money) start rolling in, she has to learn not just how to do waterfall braids and cat-eye makeup, but a few other things, like how to cure a hangover, how to flirt, and how to make out (something her very experienced, and very in-love-with-her neighbor, Drew, is more than willing to help with).

As her blog’s reputation skyrockets, so does “new and improved” Renley’s popularity. She’s not only nabbed the attention of the entire school, but also the eye of Seth Levine, the hot culinary wizard she’s admired from across the home-ec classroom all year.

Soon, caught up in the thrill of popularity both in and out of cyberspace, her secrets start to spiral, and she finds that she’s forgotten the most important how-to: how to be herself. When her online and real lives converge, Renley will have to make a choice: lose everything she loves in her new life, or everyone she loves in the life she left behind.

Brianna Shrum has been writing since she could scrawl letters and has worked with teens since she graduated, either in the writing classes she taught or within youth groups. Brianna digs all things YA, as well as all things geeky, superhero-y, gamer-y, magical, and strange. She lives in Englewood, Colorado, with her high-school-sweetheart-turned-husband and her two little boys.

"An addictive mix of heart, humor, and hot. How to Make Out is the perfect lesson in how to fall in love with YA romance." —Gina Ciocca, author of Last Year's Mistake

“How to write a seriously addictive book? Mission accomplished. Smart, hilarious, and un-put-down-able, How to Make Out will capture readers’ hearts.” —Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, author of Firsts

"Full of humor, heart, and some serious chemistry, How to Make Out is a fun and romantic read with dynamic characters I won't soon forget." —Chantele Sedgwick, author of Love, Lucas

"Renley is an endearing character with a lot of baggage. Her father’s infidelity, which led to the breakup of her parents’ marriage, eats at Renley and keeps her commitment-phobic. Her mother’s aloofness stings more than Renley can admit. Readers will immediately recognize that Renley feels more for Drew than she is admitting and will root for them to find their way to each other. This is a story with an obvious lesson to it, but the lesson is delivered in an entertaining manner and will be an easy sell to teen girls." —VOYA Magazine

“This laugh-out-loud coming-of- age novel engages readers immediately and never lets go. . . This book distinguishes itself with peripheral characters who are also well-developed and support Renley and the fast-paced plot. Shrum addresses many bildungsroman issues throughout the narrative in a believable and interesting way and still manages to pull off a thought-provoking story that will let young adults understand and relate to Renley’s many crises and how she comes to handle them. VERDICT Readers of Carrie Jones’s Tips on Having a Gay (Ex) Boyfriend will love this.” —School Library Journal