November is the month for a couple of important conferences: one for school librarians and one for English teachers, adults who I hope will have a chance to read my book and recommend it to their students. I was delighted to see that Penguin Young Readers had included advanced reading copies of my book at… Read more »
My Books
The Mad Wolf’s Daughter on Sale!
Things change suddenly in publishing, and one thing that has just come up for The Mad Wolf’s Daughter is the many bookstores where it’s suddenly on sale. My husband and I have had fun checking out our favorite indies from around the U.S. and seeing if they have my book for preorder (so far, they all have!)…. Read more »
Cover Update
The world of publishing can be a complicated business, a special journey with paths that a debut writer could not easily foresee. As I’ve said a few times when I meet new situations, I’ve learned a lot. And one thing I’ve learned recently is that a cover you love can change. But before you freeze… Read more »
Vlog Review of The Mad Wolf’s Daughter!
I have my first review, and in the form of One Minute Books, a librarian’s vlog that recommends YA and MG novels for patrons. It’s pretty amazing to hear someone other than my beta readers or my agent or editor talk about my characters! Enjoy!
Arrival of My ARCs
Advanced reading copies. The famed ARCs. Also known as galleys, these are the first appearances of a novel into print. ARCs are used to introduce a book to reviewers, awards committees, and readers (with an eye to publicity and future purchases). But at their core, they share an author’s fictional world with a selectively chosen… Read more »
Early Praise for The Mad Wolf’s Daughter
Getting a blurb is a big deal for a debut author. It’s an early validation of your book and your talents, and it’s one of the high points in the months before the publication date. When a debut author received blurbs from established authors she admires (or adores, or worships), the resulting emotions are immense…. Read more »
The Power of the Rewritten Word
One of the hardest things for young writers to remember is that a work of writing isn’t finished when you reach the end of the paper or file. Revision, that frightening word, is next. But that can be hard to appreciate. For many students, writing is simply hard, and rewriting an agony. In elementary and… Read more »
Penguin Classics and Me
When I was 14 years old, I began writing seriously. I loved to read and write and knew that I wanted to be a novelist. My parents took that dream seriously. While I was always free to read anything I wanted, they suggested that I also read the classics. I don’t think they planned for… Read more »
My Cover’s Art
If you’re like me, you’ve surely fallen in love with at least one cover to a book. That’s the book you always carry around with its cover facing out. Before you sit down to read, you stare at its cover for a few seconds and feel warmth, awe, and inspiration. When you’re done reading, you… Read more »
Happy birthday, Mom! I wish she were still here so that I could call her and hear her lovely voice. I always rang her on her birthday, and we chatted about whatever was going on. Usually, she`d tell me a story about what her dogs were up to (she had two Rhodesian Ridgebacks who were great companions), something fun that had happened at work (she made so many friends, so the story might have been about one of them), and a thank-you for the flowers I`d sent.
Just sharing that memory and this, a picture of her that I have on my desk. She`s at Bug Point Light in South Portland, Maine, and it`s a freezing day with the wind whipping off the water, but she`s beaming because she`s with her family, including her son-in-law, whom she adored.
I miss you, Mom, but thank you for being such a warm presence in my life. I will always remember that feeling.
#Birthdays #ParentalLoss
Eight years ago today, I lost a person very important to my life, one of my best friends ever: my mom. Here`s one of my favorite pictures of her on Mount Desert Island, a place she loved. Mom was a huge support and advocate for me as I grew up on that island, and always believed in me. When I was an adult, though, we had a new and very special relationship. She`d come to visit me and we`d go on adventures, exploring the area where I lived. She had a job, but she`d leave early on Friday and spend the whole weekend with me, returning home late Sunday. Those times, just Mom and me, were so incredibly special. We joked, talked, sat in companionable silence, and just felt each other`s company. My mom loved to learn and adored history, nature, plants, and animals, and more. I miss her so much. The grief of loss softens, but it never goes away.
#ParentalLoss #Love