Seeking Hosts for Upcoming Blog Tours

Spring is turning out to be a busy time for author blog tours at WOW! Women on Writing. From non-fiction books to historical romance, there's plenty to attract bloggers looking for quality content and books to review. Please look over the tour information below and e-mail me at renee AT wow-womenonwritingdotcom if you are interested in hosting one (or more!) of the authors. In return, you will receive a copy of the book to read, review or giveaway to readers, as well as your blog's mention on our e-blast that goes out to 30,000 subscribers.

You are Invited!

Author Myrna J. Smith Launches her Blog Tour for God and Other Men: Religion, Romance, and the Search for Self-Love

Dates: Feb. 16 - March 13

About the Book:

Myrna Smith opens her story one Sunday night when she returns home from a ski weekend with her three children. While she was on the slopes, her husband had moved out. That had been the plan.

Yet her story, though it encompasses her divorce, is much larger. Ultimately, Smith sets out to love herself, to find an inner place where she can rest and grow.

In this search-for-the-holy-grail memoir, Smith traces her travels toward enlightenment as a middle-aged American woman with a wry humor and heartfelt longing. On the journey she discovers spiritual fulfillment doesn’t come easily, or all at once. For her, it is quite elusive.

The quest really started, she realizes, in her childhood on an Oregon farm where she and her older sister were once “converted” in their father’s pea patch by two young Bible summer school teachers barely out of their teens. The school was part of the tiny church their mother attended while their father stayed home, read Edgar Cayce books, and mused on reincarnation.

Later, drawn by the mysticism of the Hindus, Smith’s journey leads to Bangalore where she touches the robes of Sai Baba, the Indian saint. Back home in New Jersey, she finds herself in a country farm- house getting prescriptions channeled through a medium for every- thing from her back woes and diarrhea to an obsession with money.

She also writes of the demons that surface during a years-long love affair with her beloved Charlie and what A Course in Miracles stirred within her.

Smith’s story is one of adventure and effort that, in the end, reveals three simple yet essential truths that are both the journey and the destination.

Publisher: Cape House Books

http://www.capehousebooks.com/godandothermen.htm

About Myrna J. Smith:

Myrna J. Smith, EdD, is a retired professor of English and comparative religions who continues to travel and explore the world’s spiritual traditions. God and Other Men is her first book.

Praise for God and Other Men: Religion, Romance, and the Search for Self-Love:

“Never has Myrna J. Smith accept- ed trite or dubious solutions to her soul’s deepest yearnings. The result is a lifetime of tested and practiced wisdom, culled from all the great philosophical traditions of the world and the hard-won lessons of her own heart. This book tells the whole tale in language that never veers from the elegant.”

—Elizabeth Gilbert
Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia

“My Princeton Theological Semi- nary education can’t hold a candle to this exploration of the world’s religions and paranormal sources of spiritual truth.”

—the Rev. Dr. Susan Alloway
Presbyterian Church (USA)

Available Dates: Feb. 17, 20, 23, 24, 26, 27,

March 2, 3, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12

Guest Post Topics:

Writing Topics

• Writing from the Mature Point of View

• How Reading Spiritual Texts and Stories Influence My Writing

Non-Writing Topics

• Being in the presence of love: Zdenko Arsenijvevic could heal and perceive unseen color, but his best aspect was the love that emanated from him to his students and clients.

• Living with an Indian guru: Tapoguna Maharaj led an ordinary life but was not at the whims of the body. (Smith lives in his ashram lived for two months in India.

• Studying with Kenneth Wapnack: The late Kenneth Wapnack, the foremost teacher of A Course in Miracles, worked with the scribe of the Course and helped bring it into print. Smith took classes with him over two years, and was amazed by his compassion while never moving away from the difficult principles of the Course, mainly that we are never a victim.

• Traveling alone or in groups: Smith has traveled to India five times, three times by herself. She will be spending two weeks alone in Vietnam in January. Smith has also gone in partially organized small groups to Indonesia and Thailand, and to China on a regular tour.

• Traveling and/or taking classes when you're in your 70's. Smith is 74 and is taking a five-week trip to Asia, mostly on her own, although she will be traveling with one person the first two weeks.

Myrna is also available for interviews.

Author M. Shannon Hernandez Launches Her Blog Tour for Breaking the Silence: My Final 40 Days a Public School Teacher

Dates: March 9 through April 3

About Breaking the Silence:

America’s public school system is broken and M. Shannon Hernandez knows why, firsthand. After fifteen years in the teaching profession, three gut-wrenching realizations forced her to recognize that she must leave the career she loved so dearly. She knew that if she continued to work for a failing system, she would also continue to lose a little piece of her heart and soul every day.

You are invited into Hernandez’s classroom for the final forty days of her teaching career to understand the urgent need for school reform, clearly demonstrated in each story. You’ll witness the intelligence, vulnerability, and humanity of her students, and the challenges teachers like Hernandez face as they navigate the dangerous waters between advocating for and meeting students’ needs, and disconnected education policy.

This book is not only a love letter to her students, her fellow teachers, and to the reformed public school system she envisions, but also a heartfelt message of hope, encouragement, and self-empowerment for those who feel they are stuck in soul-sucking careers. It is an essential read for each citizen who is seeking a life comprised of more purpose and happiness, as well as parents, teachers, administrators, and policymakers who know our nation’s education system is in desperate need of an overhaul.

About the Author:

M. Shannon Hernandez is the founder of The Writing Whisperer, and her mission is to help heart-centered entrepreneurs and heart-centered authors find their brand voices, share their unique stories, gain more visibility, establish themselves as experts, and create authentic marketing messages, all through the use of smart content strategy and engaging copywriting. The Writing Whisperer was named one of Top 100 Websites for Writers by The Write Life in both 2014 and 2015, and Shannon has been featured as a content strategy and copywriting expert on many prominent podcasts and websites. She is a leading voice in the world of authentic business writing and heart-centered education reform, and she writes regularly for The Huffington Post. Shannon’s memoir, Breaking the Silence, chronicles her exit out of public education, after 15 years, and provides readers an intimate view of her journey to business ownership, finding happiness, and reinvention.

Guest Post Topics:

Education related:

Love: The Missing Ingredient in Public Education Reform

Why Student-Centered Public Education Reform Must Become THE Priority

Changing Lives Across the Country, One Page at a Time OR Chaining Lives Across the Country, One Podcast at a Time

Writing related:

Reinvent Your Life—One Journal Entry at a Time

How Becoming an Author Made Me a Better Person

How to Write a Memoir that Creates a Movement OR How to Write a World-Changing Memoir

5 Signs You Should Invest in a Memoir Writing Coach

Reinvention (of life/career) related:

Having the Courage to Live a Truly Audacious Life

From School Teacher to Business Owner—In 4 Months Flat

How My Life Improved After 15 Days of Saying “No”

Behind the Scenes of a Heart-Centered Entrepreneur

Available Dates:

March 10, 11, 12, 19, 20, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 30, 31

April 1, 2, 3

Shannon is also available for interviews.

Author Karen Mann Launches Her Blog Tour for Historical Romance Novel, The Woman of LaMancha

Dates: March 16 through April 10

About The Woman of La Mancha:
The Woman of La Mancha, a companion book to Don Quixote, tells the woman’s story of Don Quixote by recounting the story of the girl he called Dulcinea, the woman he loved from afar.

It’s 1583. An eleven-year-old girl wakes in the back of a cart. She has lost her memory and is taken in by a kindly farm family in La Mancha. She adopts the name Aldonza. She doesn’t speak for quite some time. Once she speaks, there is a family member who is jealous of her and causes a good deal of trouble, even causing her to be forced to leave La Mancha in tragic circumstances. Having to create a new life in a new location and still unaware of her birth family, she adopts the name Dulcinea and moves in the circles of nobility. While seeking her identity, she becomes the consort of wealthy men, finds reason to disguise herself as a man, and leans herbal healing to help others.

There is a parallel story of a young man, Don Christopher, a knight of King Philip and the betrothed of the girl, who sets off on with a young squire, Sancho, to find the girl. Christopher’s adventures takes them across Spain and forces him to grow up. Does he continue the quest to find his betrothed or marry another and break the contract with the king.

Both young people have many experiences and grow up before the readers’ eyes. Floating in and out of each other’s paths as they travel around Spain, will they eventually find each other and be together?

About the Author:
Karen Mann is the Administrative Director of the brief-residency Master of Fine Arts in Writing Program at Spalding University in Louisville (spalding.edu/mfa) of which she is also the co-founder. Her fiction and nonfiction have appeared in various anthologies. Her second book, The Saved Man: The First Century, is available as an ebook on Amazon. After having lived in Indiana most of her life, she now lives in California.

Guest Post Topics:

Research for an Historical Novel: How to Begin and End
Writing about Places You’ve Never Been
What Does Don Quixote Tell Us About Modern Times?
The Fun Part of Revision
Using a Spreadsheet to Keep Track of Your Characters
Find Yourself a Writing Community
Low-residency VS. Traditional MFA in Writing
Got an Idea for a Novel? How to Get Started
Homeschooling: A Literature Course for Middle Grades

Available Dates:

March 17, 18, 19, 20, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 30, 31

April 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9 ,10

Author D.A. Russell Launches His Blog Tour for Lifting the Curtain: The Disgrace We Call Urban High School Education (2nd Edition)
Dates: March 23 - April 17

About the Book:

The 2nd edition of the acclaimed look at today's failed education system -- with dozens of teacher submissions from across the USA and nine new chapters! Both KIRKUS and CLARION praise this important book "...from the unique perspective of a classroom teacher" that shows the real problems that have destroyed the education of our children. Few parents or legislators have any chance of seeing the real state of education in our urban schools. It is a shameful disaster -- unlike anything that we, as parents, experienced just 15-20 years ago. The real problems stay largely unseen, because career DoE bureaucrats and school administration are extremely good at hiding their failed policies behind the curtain of the school entryway. In Lifting the Curtain, Russell provides a detailed look at urban high school education from inside the classroom, including three years of research, and the first ever major survey of what students and teachers think of the educational system. If we want a real solution for our children, then for once we must focus on the real problems, the ones carefully hidden behind the educational curtain.

About D.A. Russell:

D. A. Russell has spent the last ten years as a math teacher in one of the urban high schools that is the subject of Lifting the Curtain. He is an honors graduate of Dartmouth College, and has his master’s degree from Simon School, where he was valedictorian of his class. Russell is a decorated Vietnam veteran. He has two children that he treasures, and four grandchildren. His son is a police officer who served in the US Army in Afghanistan, earning a Bronze Star for valor. His daughter is a lawyer and his most passionate fan and honorary literary agent. Russell has a passion for children that dominates his life. He has taught and coached children for decades. Few things are more important in Russell’s view than to cherish the children who are our real treasures in this world. He is a contributor for education matters to the Huffington Post, and runs a personal blog at: LiftingTheCurtainOnEducation.wordpress.com dedicated to letting teacher voices be heard in the real problems with education.

Available Dates: 

March 24, 25, 26, 27, 30, 31

April 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17

Website: http://liftingthecurtain.com/

Blog: http://LiftingTheCurtainOnEducation.wordpress.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LiftingTheCurtainOnEducation?ref=hl

Guest Post Topics:

• Standardized testing focus in schools
• The value of PDPs
• Bullying and intimidation by school administrators
• Specific DoE mandates that undermine the ability to teach
• Duties of teachers not related to the curricula
• The loss of arts and elective courses in schools
• The pressure to pass children
• Qualifications and management experience of school administrators

Russell is also available for interviews.

5 Reasons You Should Read The Secret of the Sacred Scarab with Your Kids

Over the past few months, I've had the pleasure of working with author Fiona Ingram as she promotes the second book in her Chronicles of the Stone series, The Search for the Stone of Excalibur, through WOW! Blog Tours. Check back here on Thursday for my review of this book.

Of course, once I learned about the series, I wanted to read the first book, The Secret of the Sacred Scarab. It was such a fun read I'm excited to be able to introduce the series to my kids next. 

About the book:

A 5000-year-old mystery comes to life when a scruffy peddler gives Adam and Justin Sinclair an old Egyptian scarab on their very first day in Egypt. Only when the evil Dr. Faisal Khalid shows a particular interest in the cousins and their scarab, do the boys realise they are in terrible danger. Dr. Khalid wants the relic at all costs. Justin and Adam embark upon the adventure of a lifetime, taking them down the Nile and across the harsh desert in their search for the legendary tomb of the Scarab King, an ancient Egyptian ruler. They are plunged into a whirlpool of hazardous and mysterious events when Dr. Khalid kidnaps them. They learn more about the ancient Seven Stones of Power and the mysterious Shemsu-Hor. They must translate the hieroglyphic clues on the underside of the scarab, as well as rescue the missing archaeologist James Kinnaird, and their friend, the Egyptologist Ebrahim Faza, before time runs out!

About Fiona Ingram:

Fiona Ingram was born and educated in South Africa, and has worked as a full-time journalist and editor. Her interest in ancient history, mystery, and legends, and her enjoyment of travel resulted in The Secret of the Sacred Scarab, the first in her exciting children’s adventure series—The Chronicles of the Stone. This was inspired by a family trip the author took with her mom and two young nephews aged ten and twelve at the time. The book began as a short story for her nephews and grew from there. The Search for the Stone of Excalibur is a treat for young King Arthur fans. Fiona is busy with Book 3 entitled The Temple of the Crystal Timekeeper, set in Mexico.

While writing The Secret of the Sacred Scarab, Fiona fostered (and later adopted) a young African child from a disadvantaged background. Her daughter became the inspiration for the little heroine, Kim, in The Search for the Stone of Excalibur. Interestingly, the fictional character’s background and social problems are reflected in the book as Kim learns to deal with life. Fiona’s experiences in teaching her daughter to read and to enjoy books also inspired many of her articles on child literacy and getting kids to love reading.

5 Reasons You Should Read The Secret of the Sacred Scarab with Your Kids

1. You will learn about ancient history in a way that is engaging and not stuffy. When I began this book my knowledge of Ancient Egypt was pretty limited, but I feel like I learned a great deal from the way the details are subtly layered throughout the story. It would make a great companion book for children to read in school while studying this period of history.

2. The adult characters are fun and colorful. From the stern, yet savvy, Aunt Isabel to the spunky and heroic Gran, Ingram takes great care in creating characters that are humorous, courageous, and charming, even in their flaws (such as in the case of the villain's two henchmen, Ismal and Aziz).

3. You will embark on an adventure without having to leave the comfort of your reading chair. The descriptive details in this book did not disappoint. I felt like I personally was cruising down the Nile in a cruise ship, braving a sandstorm with the heroes, Justin and Adam, and discovering a mysterious treasure hidden away in the depths of a darkened cavern, among other adventures!

4. You will laugh out loud more than once. To keep the mood light when necessary, the author blends humorous anecdotes and conversations throughout, such as in the chapter titled "The Fake Belly Dancer." I won't give anything else away there, but it features another example of one of the adult characters pleasantly surprising Justin and Adam.

5. The fast-moving plot will keep you turning the pages. As you can imagine, the curious nature of both the main characters, Justin and Adam, gets them in plenty of predicaments throughout this book.  You will find yourself alternating between scolding them and rooting for them by the time you get to the exciting conclusion of The Secret of the Sacred Scarab, I promise.

Money Talks (The Truth About What This Writer Gets Paid)

© Alan Crosthwaite | Dreamstime Stock Photos

I was talking to a class of fourth-graders last year about my job as a freelance writer. After I showed them my website and passed around copies of the magazines I contribute to regularly, we had a Q&A session. One of the students raised his hand and asked, "How much money do you get paid to write?" I saw the teacher put her head in her hands, but I had fully expected the question, especially from a group of 10-year-olds. My own kids ask me the question all the time, as they check the mail almost every day and get excited when they recognize a check has arrived.

I told him that the pay depends on the length of the article and the publication, and also how many articles you sell/write in a given month. He seemed satisfied with that answer and we moved on to the next question.

This week I came across a very interesting blog post one of my friends shared on social media, "Sponsored by my husband: Why it's a problem that writers never talk about where their money comes from." What struck me the most was the subhead, which read: "The truth is, my husband's hefty salary makes my life as a writer easy. Pretending otherwise doesn't help anyone."

I had to laugh and nod my head in agreement. I could also admit that my writing career is "sponsored" by my husband. I will say that I have been regularly freelance writing and cashing checks since 2005, but with the exception of 2008 when I worked on staff part-time at a local magazine, my income has not been steady. Depending on what projects/articles I'm working on, my writing can bring in anywhere from $300 to $1,500/month. My husband's salary provides money to pay the larger bills and keep us in health and dental insurance.

Let me explain. Right now I have a few regular clients which provide the bulk of my income. I work strictly part-time hours--anywhere from 15 to 40 a week depending on where deadlines fall. I have time to take my kids to school, pick them up, volunteer at their school, shuttle them to after-school activities, and help them with their homework. They are almost 9 and 11 now, and as they have gotten older, I've tried to pick up more and more work. With one heading off to middle school next year, I plan to increase my work hours and hope to contribute more to our monthly income.

But without my husband's support, I would never have been able to get three novels written and ready to submit or work such a flexible schedule. And that's the honest truth. I tell everyone we make a great team, and one day, the tables will turn, and my writing will be able to support our family and give him the chance to follow his own entrepreneurial dreams.

For my local friends, I will be participating in a panel discussion on the topic of "I’m Published, So Now What? Making a Living Writing" at the Women's National Book Association/Charlotte Writers' Club event on Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. in Charlotte. I hope to see you there!

Book Review: Rooms by Lauren Oliver

Synopsis:
The New York Times bestselling author of Before I Fall and the Delirium trilogy makes her brilliant adult debut with this mesmerizing story in the tradition of The Lovely Bones, Her Fearful Symmetry, and The Ocean at the End of the Lane—a tale of family, ghosts, secrets, and mystery, in which the lives of the living and the dead intersect in shocking, surprising, and moving ways.

Wealthy Richard Walker has just died, leaving behind his country house full of rooms packed with the detritus of a lifetime. His estranged family—bitter ex-wife Caroline, troubled teenage son Trenton, and unforgiving daughter Minna—have arrived for their inheritance.

But the Walkers are not alone. Prim Alice and the cynical Sandra, long dead former residents bound to the house, linger within its claustrophobic walls. Jostling for space, memory, and supremacy, they observe the family, trading barbs and reminiscences about their past lives. Though their voices cannot be heard, Alice and Sandra speak through the house itself—in the hiss of the radiator, a creak in the stairs, the dimming of a light bulb.

The living and dead are each haunted by painful truths that will soon surface with explosive force. When a new ghost appears, and Trenton begins to communicate with her, the spirit and human worlds collide—with cataclysmic results.

Having read Oliver's Before I Fall and Panic and really enjoying both, I was excited to read Rooms, mostly because of the presence of ghosts, something I write about in my own fiction. Unfortunately, it fell short of my expectations.

What worked: The concept of the book is brilliant and kept me turning the pages. Who doesn't wonder about the history of a house? The Walker house is old and full of hidden secrets, and in the different sections of the book, Oliver leads the reader through the various rooms of the house: the kitchen, the study, the basement, the bathrooms, the attic, etc. It's a very unique way to craft a story.

What didn't work: The book is narrated in first person by the two ghosts residing in the house, Sandra and Alice. I've read other reviews that the two women's voices weren't distinct enough, and I have to agree. Both women had destructive relationships with men and I became confused about which man was connected to which ghost. I often found myself having to flip back to the beginning of their chapters so I could keep the narrator straight. Also, once I finished the book I still had a lot of questions about the two women--I'm not sure if I missed the story of how Alice died. If it was in the book, it wasn't given as much attention as Sandra's death. The rest of the book is told in third-person through the POV'S of Richard Walker's daughter Minna, her daughter, Amy, Walker's son, Trenton, and their mother, Caroline. The switching back and forth of all these POVS disrupted the flow of the book and prevented me from staying grounded in any sort of timeline. Richard Walker's voice is also notably absent--and I couldn't quite understand why his family hated him so much. The nymphomaniac Minna was probably my least-favorite character. The ending also wasn't much of a surprise to me.

I enjoy Oliver's writing and will continue to read her books, but I felt like Rooms required an additional two or three readings to fully differentiate each character's individual stories.

Life Lessons from the Film "Dead Poets Society"

When Robin Williams passed away this past summer, I immediately thought his performance in one of my very favorite movies of all time, "Dead Poets Society." I recently had the chance to watch it again after I recorded it off one of my movie channels. I'll be honest--I was crying even as the opening credits flashed across the screen. All of the beloved quotes from the movie reinforced my life-long desire to become a published novelist.

While I love all the characters in the group (with the exception of Cameron, the fink!), I made connections that I had never made before--such as the dichotomy of the characters Knox and Neil. Knox may come across in the movie as a silly, lovestruck teenager, but he follows his teacher's passion in pursuing the things you love--and in the end, he succeeds by winning the girl. Neil also strives to find his own voice on the stage, but his success is his downfall. It's incredibly sad.

This time I also viewed the themes of the movie through the eyes of a parent. I made a vow to never squash my kids' dreams and punish them for working hard at something they love. While I do have clear expectations that they go to college, I'm not going to dictate what careers they pursue. I realize they movie was set in a very different time, but it was a good reminder nonetheless. I look forward to sharing the movie with them in just a few short years and hope they love it as much as I do.

After, watching "Dead Poets Society," I was inspired to pull a few of my poetry anthologies off my bookshelf. I especially love the Romantic and English Victorian periods, but now I also want to dive back into some Thoreau and Whitman, too.

Song

By Christina Rossetti

When I am dead, my dearest,

Sing no sad songs for me;

Plant thou no roses at my head,

Nor shady cypress tree:

Be the green grass above me

With showers and dewdrops wet;

And if thou wilt, remember,

And if thou wilt, forget.

I shall not see the shadows,

I shall not feel the rain;

I shall not hear the nightingale

Sing on, as if in pain:

And dreaming through the twilight

That doth not rise nor set,

Haply I may remember,

And haply may forget.

How I Keep My Kids Reading

In today's day and age, there are so many more distractions for our kids, including video and computer games. When my children were really small, it was very easy to engage them in reading. We read them board books throughout the day and as part of the bedtime routine and visited the library regularly. Being a writer and avid reader, I know the benefits of reading and have always been determined to make sure books remain an important part of my children's lives.

I think for some parents, it's harder to foster the love of books in our kids as they get older when we are constantly trying to limit their time on Minecraft, Disney Infinity, or WiiU. But with a little persistence and encouragement, it is possible. Here are a few ways I keep my kids reading on a daily basis:

Library visits. From early on, I've tried to teach my kids (now ages 8 and 11) how valuable a resource our public library system is. Fortunately, we have access to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Library, which has three branches all within driving distance. We visit the library at least twice a month and stock up on books, DVDs, and CDs. During the summer we participate in their summer reading program (me included!) and focus on reading 20-25 hours during that time period, earning prizes and fee waivers along the way, which come in very handy.

Paying attention to their interests. We all stuck in reading ruts. Sometimes I get hooked on one author and focus on binge-reading all her books, which isn't always the best the best thing for me. When I notice my kids are bringing home the same books over and over from school or from the library, I take the time to walk down all the aisles in the library and bookstores with them. For example, my 8-year-old son gravitates toward humor books like the Diary of a Wimpy Kid and My Weird School series. But he also has a fondness for the German Shepherd dog breed, so I encourage him to check out the non-fiction section, specifically animals. My daughter is interested in all things medical, so on our last visit to the library, I showed her where the juvenile health section was and she quickly found an armload of books.

Browsing thrift stores. It never ceases to amaze me when I browse the book section in places like Goodwill and the Habitat for Humanity ReStores. I've found so many copies of vintage books I loved as a child and teenager and have been able to pass on to my kids. It's like a treasure hunt--the kids immediately head for the books and whoop in excitement when they find several copies of their favorite books for as little as 50 cents or $1 per copy.

I believe keeping my kids engaged in books has helped them become terrific spellers and confident writers and storytellers. I hope they never lose their love of reading, and I will always do my best to keep conversing with them about the books they love, and the ones they don't.

How do you keep your own kids reading?

Book Review: Writing Irresistible Kidlit by Mary Kole

If one of your goals is to finally start working on that children's novel or get serious with revisions on one you've already written, have I got a book for you. Writing Irresistible Kidlit: The Ultimate Guide to Crafting Fiction for Young Adult and Middle Grade Readers helped me realize I still had much to learn about this particular craft, all while keeping me motivated and excited about my own writing.

Author Mary Kole is a literary agent who runs the popular blog kidlit.com, which I was already somewhat familiar with before I picked up the book. I'll be honest, I envisioned the book containing a lot of the same information I've already read in other places--you know, an overview of the different genres in the children's market, popular themes, how to write a book synopsis, query letters, etc. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised at all the useful information Kole packs into this book. Writing Irresistible Kidlit is so chock full of examples, explanations, and exercises that I had to digest it in bits and pieces over the course of a month. I learned all about storytelling foundations, character development, plot, imagery and setting, sidekicks and villains, authority and authenticity, just to name a few. When I was finished, I felt like I had participated in a course students earning an MFA might take.

Here's an example of what I'm talking about, from the chapter on plot:

The rhythms of the writing itself should reflect the emotion of what is being described. You can twist this expectation and play with it. For example, what if a character was meeting a serial killer for the first time, but thought he was friend? Use shorter, choppier sentences to give the scene a sense of foreboding. Your reader may not pick up on your danger signals right away, but you will be raising a subsconscious red flag.

When you want to take the tension to the next level, don't just consider what you're saying--think about how you're saying it.

Wow! This passage gave me so much to think about, as a common critique in my own YA is that I have a tendency to rush scenes. The book I'm currently working on involves a girl with a classmate stalker, so this entire chapter was particularly useful.

I really liked that Kole includes lots of specific examples from YA and MG books currently in the marketplace to illustrate her points. She also guides the reader through exercises designed to improve your work-in-progress, such as this one:

Reading for Tension: Print out your manuscript and settle in for a read. Every time you feel your attention wander at all, even for an instant (be honest!), make an asterisk in the margin. Seriously sit down and do this, don't just think about doing this. Go back through and try the tools from the chapter to add tension to those sagging moments.

My only complaint is that I purchased the Kindle version of the book (I was on vacation and needed instant gratification!) and the formatting isn't as easy to follow, plus I couldn't keep up with the exercises. I will be purchasing a print copy of the book to remedy that though, as this deserves a spot on my writing resource shelf. I've already recommended it to several friends.