The New Book Review

This blog, #TheNewBookReview, is "new" because it eschews #bookbigotry. It lets readers, reviewers, authors, and publishers expand the exposure of their favorite reviews, FREE. Info for submissions is in the "Send Me Your Fav Book Review" circle icon in the right column below. Find resources to help your career using the mini search engine below. #TheNewBookReview is a multi-award-winning blog including a MastersInEnglish.org recommendation.

Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Nonfiction. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Nonfiction. Sort by date Show all posts

Friday, February 7, 2020

Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care

Title Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care 
Author Dianne L. Rowe
Publisher:  Dianne L. Rowe
ISBN-10: 057861524X
ISBN-13: 978-0578615240
ASIN  B0847J48XX
Price $10 paperback, $4.99 Kindle
Page Count 208 pages
Formats (PB, Kindle)

Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care

A brand new book with a variety of adoption stories has just been published. Fifteen writers tell of their own experiences. The children were in orphanages abroad, adopted directly from hospitals, were foster children, or even arrived by orphan train. We hope you will enjoy our book!

Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Dianne L. Rowe had the initial inspiration for this book. She wrote three stories for it which included one about her mother who was adopted from an orphan train. She adopted a child through Catholic Charities and so that is one of her other stories. 
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Ann Kalin writes a detailed story as she adopted two children from two different adoption agencies in Minnesota. When one agency said they were only placing one child per family, she found she could adopt another with a different one.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Christopher Luehr is a storyteller, attorney, professional speaker, coach, dinner-table comedian, and North Minneapolis resident. Through his organization, Joyful Noize (joyfulnoize.net), he helps mission-driven organizations promote their message through story. You can be assured he has an excellent story in the book.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
John Strahan says, “This is a story that I have told more than once and am willing to tell it to anyone who will listen. Without fail, it brings tears to my eyes and warmth to my heart. I gladly responded to Dianne Rowe’s request to share our story. It is over 53 years old but still worth telling.” It is a charming story.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Lois Miller Caswell has two stories in the book as she also adopted two of her three children. With her fantastic memory for details, readers will feel like they are talking to her over a cup of coffee in the kitchen while enjoying the stories.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Leif Wallin received a phone call and the caller said, ““Leif sit down. We found her. She was from Great Falls, Montana. Her name was Sandy.” Intriguing, isn’t it? The story is pretty amazing.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Esther Holgate beings her story this way:
“There once was a very little girl who was born in the far-away country of South Korea.” This is a story of adoption from an orphanage in Seoul, South Korea.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
David Zander was born in London. In July 1940, During WW2, at a time that America had not yet entered the war. He says, “My first memories are of war, being carried down into an Air raid shelter during the nightly air raids.” To top it off, he found out his first family was not his birth family when he was still very young. His story is quite interesting.  
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Dawn McClean learned she was not the eldest child in the family after all. How could that happen? You can imagine, but this story tells of her feelings about learning the truth.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Mary (Marge) Smith had to have her family vote about a situation related to adoption, It was not for the actual adoption, but part of a rather complicated story. In the picture on the left, you can see Marge with Patti.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
E. Irene Theis says, “Saturday, July 30th, 2016, was the special day when I first met Stephanie, my granddaughter, and Susan, my great-granddaughter.” 

Another amazing story!

Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Jackie Maher and Katie DeCosse now see each other often, but it wasn’t true over the decades they could not find each other. They each have stories in this anthology.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Irene Reuteler tells a family story which is about the adoption situation for relatives. She was able to predict the future to some extent and help guide them to successful adoption.
Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Carolyn Wilhelm also has a story of an adoption from South Korea through the Children’s Home Society located in St. Paul, Minnesota. She has also authored children’s picture books about the experience.
Thank you for reading, Carolyn Wilhelm

Carolyn Wilhelm is the author of The Wise Owl Factory site and blog. She has an MS in Gifted Education and second educational masters in Curriculum and Instruction K-12.

MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page and in a tab at the top of this blog's home page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites so it may be used a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

Monday, March 30, 2015

Jodi Webb Gleans New Ideas from Book Proposal Demystified


Title:The Nonfiction Book Proposal Demystified: An Easy-Schmeasy Guide to Writing a Business Plan for Your Book
Author: Nina Amir
Website: www.ninaamir.com
Genre:
 Writing Craft
Publisher: Pure Spirit Creations
Publication Date: July 9, 2014
E Book: 46 pages
AISN: B00LNR8HKO
To buy the book: 
THE NONFICTION BOOK PROPOSAL DEMYSTIFIED

Reviewed by Jodi Webb originally for The Muffin
After reading The Nonfiction Book Proposal Demystified, I'm looking at book proposals in a whole new way. In the past they seemed like a chore to do before sending your book out to an agents or publisher. Nina makes you see that, aside from being a helpful tool for agents and publishers, a book proposal can be a helpful tool for YOU, the writer. Do you have a dozen book ideas rattling around in your brain? Which one to work on first...how will you decide? It's easy. Writing book proposals will help you judge the marketability of your ideas as well as strengthen any weaknesses you may find in your idea BEFORE you begin writing.
The Nonfiction Book Proposal Demystified breaks the book proposal down by section telling you what should be in each section and helpful tips like how long each section should be, what you shouldn't be saying and how the agent/publisher will be looking at each section. The book also recommends several other books that cover book proposals. This is short book that provides step by step instructions and makes an overwhelming job manageable.
 
More about the Author: 
 
Nina Amir, the bestselling author of How to Blog a Book and The Author Training Manual, is a speaker, a blogger, and an author, book, and blog-to-book coach. Known as the Inspiration to Creation Coach, she helps creative people combine their passion and purpose so they move from idea to inspired action and positively and meaningfully impact the world as writers, bloggers, authorpreneurs, and blogpreneurs. Some of Nina's clients have sold 300,000+ copies of their books, landed deals with major publishing houses and created thriving businesses around their books. She is the founder of National Nonfiction Writing Month, aka the Write Nonfiction in November Challenge, and the Nonfiction Writers' University.

More about WOW Mini-Review Blog Tours:

WOW-Women on Writing organizes WOW Blog Tours of all lengths and types: everything from blog tours featuring interviews, guest posts, review and giveaways to social media reviews to tweet tours. We're also always open to new creations if you have something special in mind to promote your book. Nina is on one of our latest offerings, the WOW Mini Review Tour. The WOW Mini Review Tour launches with a review and giveaway on WOW's blog The Muffin http://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com/2015/02/authorpreneur-how-to-build-business.html then moves on to at least six other blogs that feature a review as well as reposts of the review on spots such as Amazon, Goodreads, Pinterest, B&N and Powell's. To learn more about WOW Blog Tours contact us at blogtour@wow-womenonwriting.com

More About The Reviewer

 Additional book reviews by Jodi Webb can also be found at Words by Webb (http://jodiwebb.com) and Building Bookshelves (http://blogs.republicanherald.com/bookshelves/)
-----

The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Friday, February 22, 2019

Publishing Professionals Share Publishing Experience


TITLE: The Nonfiction Book Publishing Plan
SUBTITLE: The Professional Guide to Profitable Self-Publishing
AUTHORS: Stephanie Chandler and Karl W. Palachuk
ASIN: B07H39LPSX
ISBN:  978-1-949642-00-1
PRINT LINK: https://amzn.to/2Jq5Sic 
GENRE: Nonfiction
CATEGORY: Publishing



Stephanie Chandler and Karl W. Palachuk have written The Nonfiction Book Publishing PlanStephanie founded the Nonfiction Authors Association and is this decade’s expert. Today there are many go-to experts, but no one can exceed her experience. Paluchuk is an ideal partner for such an all-encompassing project! 

This Book Publishing Plan (it will work just as well for creative works as nonfiction!) says it all. I always suggest that authors read more than one book on any publishing topic, but this is the perfect place to start for anyone considering publishing of any kind. In the first chapter it takes the reader through some of the trials experienced by anyone approaching the publishing industry with the old model in mind. I have a few horror stories of my own, but Chandler and Palachuk quickly move into how nonfiction authors in particular will benefit from self-publishing and takes them well beyond—starting with titles and subtitles, bylines and moves on to giving an author enough information to get a great start on a marketing plan.

I believe in reading books to get the expertise needed for publishing—even traditional publishing. Don’t be fooled that readers can get what they need piecemeal from the Web (it is hard to ascertain credibility with so much conflicting advice!) or even to choose what to read from extensive tables of contents (which would be better titled “Contents” to avoid redundancy). This is the place to start. These authors complement one another. It is full of memorable experiences and anecdotes you won’t forget as well as specific advice. At the beginning of this review, I said it is the place for new authors to start, but seasoned authors in any genre (seriously!) will find inaccuracies they have come to believe gently corrected and comfort knowing that many of their instincts have been right all along. 

Hint: Notice how Palachuk and Chandler weave their biographies—read that experience—into the first chapter and how well that works in a book covering a difficult and far-ranging genre like a how-to for the publishing industry! 


Publishing Professionals Share Publishing Experience





MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG AND GETTING REVIEWS AND ANOTHER FREEBIE


 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Of particular interest to readers of this blog is her most recent How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically (http://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews ) that covers 325 jam-packed pages covering everithing from Amazon vine to writing reviews for profit and promotion. Reviewers will have a special interest in the chapter on how to make reviewing pay, either as way to market their own books or as a career path--ethically!

This blog is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.



Note: Participating authors and their publishers may request the social sharing image by Carolyn Wilhelm at no charge.  Please contact the designer at:  cwilhelm (at) thewiseowlfactory (dot) com. Provide the name of the book being reviewed and--if an image or headshot of the author --isn't already part of the badge, include it as an attachment. Wilhelm will send you the badge to use in your own Internet marketing. Give Wilhelm the link to this post, too! 


.

Monday, November 20, 2017

Literary Journal Shares Carol Smallwood Poetry Review


Interweavings
By Carol Smallwood
Shanti Arts Publishing, Brunswick, ME.
2017
ISBN 978-1-941830-46-8 
paperback, $16.95, 162 pages.


Reviewed by Kathrine C Aydelott, MLIS, PhD., Dimond Library, University of New Hampshire originally for Big Muddy: A journal of the Mississippi River, Fall, 2017

As Lynn Z Bloom writes in “Living to Tell the Tale: The Complicated Ethics of Creative Nonfiction,” “Because writers of creative nonfiction are dealing with versions of the truth, they—perhaps more consistently than writers in fictive genres—have a perennial ethical obligation to question authority, to look deep beneath the surface, and an aesthetic obligation to render their versions of reality with sufficient power to compel readers’ belief” (278). Carol Smallwood brings us into her world, shares her perspective, and we believe her.

Smallwood, well known in library circles for her volumes on libraries and librarianship, including ALA published titles Library Management Tips that Work (2011), and Bringing the Arts into the Library (2014), is also widely acclaimed for her poetry, in titles such as Compartments: Poems on Nature, Femininity, and Other Realms (2016), which was nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and for the well received In Hubble’s Shadow (2017).

She is as adept at creative nonfiction, as demonstrated by her recent volume, Interweavings (2017), a series of forty-three short essays, separated into seven categories: Visits, The Feminine Side, A Sense of Place, A Backward Look, Things Literary, Strands, and Observations. Conversational and sometimes intimate in tone, the book reads easily, like letters from a friend. The essays are often very short, almost to the point of being sketches, and like musical refrains, elements brought up in one story circle back again later in the collection, tying the whole together.

Libraries, texts, and learning are prominent in these essays and it’s clear that Smallwood has a deep love for words, for education, for science, and for books. But for me, the motif of time passing predominated my readings. In retirement, Smallwood has moved to a small college town from a larger city, and her private thoughts and public encounters center around moments of connection and disconnection, of nostalgic looking backwards and of the necessary moving forward. Smallwood is on the cusp of the rest of her life, and many of the familiar elements of society are taking new shapes in the face of war, technology, aging, and of transition generally. Like Sarah Orne Jewett’s nineteenth-century short stories of Maine, or Virginia Woolf’s twentieth-century musings in Mrs. Dalloway, in Smallwood’s work we see a familiar world coming to an end and a fragile new era about to begin.


For example, in the first essay, “The Library Visit,” Smallwood, writing this time in the third-person, is struck, Alice-like, by a college campus’s renovation of a traditional institution. The building’s newness makes her feel foreign in a familiar place. The library itself is in a period of transition. If the books “didn’t have the answers, they’d done their best,” and the reference area is “deserted” (16).  The “psychedelic” carpet evoked the seventies, while the technology of the expanding bookshelves “encouraged a wariness of being smashed when you walked between them” (20). In Woolfian stream-of-consciousness, asking herself questions discursively, she muses on the architecture inside and the environment outside, all while the library’s new atrium windows evoke a beautiful panopticon, where all of nature is staring back at her, beckoning the author in spite of the rain, to return to an arena that is familiar and unchanging.



Thinking in snippets of lyric language, Smallwood both locates the reader in the present and simultaneously makes clear that there is a discomfiture of time and place. A feminine zeitgeist predominates. In the essay “Women and Time,” Smallwood remarks that “Perhaps their monthly cycles give women an accurate sense (call it intuition) that everything is in flux as they revolve on a planet that’s still forming” (40). As such, Smallwood’s details depict everything as new, and we enter the author’s mind that is observant in all of the senses.



Although her tone is often gentle and wistful, the author travels lightly along in the current of change. In “Karen’s Visit,” she thinks her friend’s voice “had such sadness in it that I wanted to show her it was possible to have dreams” (33). In “Women and Time” Smallwood even admits that “Time is an illusive, slippery, chimerical companion, exasperating to understand especially as one gets older and no closer to finding wisdom long thought to accompany age” (40-41).



Some of the essays are ultimately too short and read more like blog entries than finished pieces. I would have been happy if many of these had been longer, as it is a pleasure to spend time with the author as she considers her life’s triumphs, her reading, and her memories. The strongest essays are in the beginning, I feel, in Visits, where the writing shines and the words are most compelling. But don’t overlook the final essay, “They Will Come,” which masterfully closes the volume. This essay speaks of spring, and renewal, and here Smallwood acknowledges what she does not know, and is confident in the ambiguity. She states, “Yes, I will capture spring this year. Or, like aging, will it be too gradual and immense to grasp?” (159). Interweavings is an attempt to understand what it means to age, in all of its gradations and immensity. 


Philip Gerard, in Creative Nonfiction, defines the genre as “stories that carry both literal truthfulness and a larger Truth, told in a clear voice, with grace, and out of a passionate curiosity about the world” (208). Carol Smallwood’s writing epitomizes this definition.





1.     Bloom, Lynn Z. “Living to Tell the Tale: The Complicated Ethics of Creative Nonfiction.” College English, vol. 65, no. 3, 2003, pp. 276–289. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/3594258.



2.     Gerard, Philip. Creative Nonfiction: Researching and Crafting Stories of Real Life. Cincinnati: Story, 1996.











MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Thursday, September 7, 2017

University Librarian Reviews Creative Nonfiction


Interweavings
Subtitle: Creative Nonfiction
Author: Carol Smallwood
Genre: Creative Nonfiction
Publisher: Shanti Arts Publishing, Brunswick, Maine, 2017
ISBN 978-1-941830-46-8
Paperback, $16.95, 162 pages.
Purchase from Amazon

Reviewed by Patti Gibbons originally for Amazon
Accomplished author, poet, and editor Carol Smallwood’s latest offering, Interweavings: Creative   Shanti Arts Publishing, 2017, is a collection of essays that offers readers a chance to view select moments of Smallwood’s life where she pauses, as a woman and as a writer, to reflect, analyze, and contemplate the interconnectedness of her earlier self, life’s universal moments, and the outlook that comes with the passage of time. Smallwood’s perspective brings strength ingrained in her as a member of her generation’s feminist movement, a theme that supports the overarching tone of the collection of essays.

Smallwood’s assembly of over forty essays are organized into seven thematic chapters, and work on the individual essay level, as groups of essays, and finally as a whole collection. Looking at the mundane, such as visits to the post office or to the library, Smallwood works in an accessible realm, one which readers of all backgrounds can relate to, but her voice filters her experiences through her vantage point, namely as a woman born in a pivotal generation, and through it rings a perspective that prompts readers to go beyond an interpretation of her stories as descriptive pieces, to a body of work that provides a faceted look at the small moments of life that communicates deeper meanings and speaks to experiences Smallwood narrates from her reflections across her lifetime. Smallwood shares her private thoughts in clear and uncensored terms, not for shock value, but as a reflective simplicity that has come clearer into view as she benefits from the long view of maturity.

Interweavings: Creative Nonfiction is a peek into a writer’s sketchbook, a collection of ponderings and meditations when the author encounters silently powerful moments in her everyday life, and rubs and massages them to tease out the emotional underpinnings and delineates how each speaks not only to the conversation at hand, but to deeper dialogues when examined in light of a lifetime of living and experience. The perspective presented in the individual essays is perhaps clarified by the writing process, and Smallwood, as an author skilled in many genres, is able to share feelings, sentiments, and wisdom with an apparent simplicity and economy of words, due in large part to her mastery as a writer. Smallwood’s Interweavings: Creative Nonfiction shows universal expressions of feeling.

Readers of all backgrounds could easily connect with the themes, and readers seeking to examine American life and the life of twentieth century women, in particular, would delight in the insight Smallwood provides, and the honest reflections she shares. Smallwood’s essays leak with quiet sentiment and encourage readers to approach her prose intuitively. Honest and uncoated, Smallwood evenhandedly leads readers through a series of richly described vignettes that are relatable and prompt readers to interject themselves into the circumstances she writes about, to experience situations first-handedly themselves, as well as on behalf of the author.

As Dr. William Brevda, Professor of English at Central Michigan University, aptly points out in the foreword, “What Smallwood has written is literature. It has staying power.” Through her descriptive yet careful voice, Smallwood candidly captures how she experiences daily life through the medium of language in a profound manner that reaches the level of lasting art.  

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER
Patti Gibbons works at the University of Chicago Library in the Special Collections Research Center. 


MORE ABOUT THIS BLOG


 The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Of particular interest to readers of this blog is her most recent How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically (http://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews ). This blog is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Interview: Vet Pens Historical Fiction




Hi! I am Carolyn Howard Johnson, your trusty New Book Review blogger and author of the multi award-winning HowTo Do It Frugally Series of books for writers. This blog has heretofore been exclusive for reviews but I thought I’d do a special series of interviews after I chatted with Jeanie Loiacono, President of Loiacono Literary Agency – Where ‘can’t’ is not in our vocabulary!  I thought sharing the interviews would help the many subscribers and visitors to this New Book Review blog, including authors, reviewers, and, of course, readers who just might find a new favorite author among the featured books and authors.

So, today welcome Thomas E. Simmons. 

Simmons grew up in Gulfport, Mississippi, attended Marion Military Institute, the U. S. Naval Academy, the University of Southern Mississippi and the University of Alabama. Tom was once the commercial captain of a seventy foot sailing vessel, has been a pilot since the age of sixteen, (3000 plus hours in the air), has flown professionally and participated in air shows flying aerobatics in open-cockpit bi-planes. In the late 1950s he served as an artillery officer in Korea. He is the author of three nonfictions: The Man Called Brown Condor (Skyhorse, 2013), Forgotten Heroes of World War II: Personal Accounts of Ordinary Soldiers Land, Sea and Air (Taylor Trade, 2014), Escape from Archangel (University of Mississippi Press); and two historical fictions: By Accident of Birth (TouchPoint Press, 2015) and The Last Quinn Standing (TouchPoint Press, 2016). He has also written numerous magazine articles, an example of which, “Growing Up With Mr. Faulkner,” was published in The Oxford American, a literary magazine founded by John Grisham.

  1. What is your genre? Is it fiction or nonfiction? Both historical fiction and nonfiction.
  2. What made you want to be a writer? My love of books, and the fact, as with most writers, I write because I am driven to.
  3. Of all the authors out there, who inspired you most? Too many to list.
  4. What is your writing style? Do you outline? Linearly? By scene?  Linearly. Why? It is the way my brain works. Nonfiction should flow as the history of your subject to make it easier for the reader to follow and understand. I write fiction linearly for it wouldn’t be fun if I knew how my story will end. I want it to be as big a surprise to me as for the reader.
  5. Do you write every day? How much? How long? When working on a project I write a little almost daily. If my muse is flowing, I may write late into the night when all is quiet and there are no interruptions.
  6. Do you think reading is as important to writing for an author? Absolutely. Why? It presents a study of sentence structure, new ways of looking at specific words, different story or fact presentation, implants the desire to do better; all, of course, if you read quality work.
  7. What are some of the things you would like to share with budding authors? Perseverance, dedication, courage, research, research, research until you know your subject, character, setting, facts…never get caught stating facts or details that are wrong; revise, revise, revise; develop a thick hide to handle criticism, rejection slips, and disappointment, and work hard to get an agent (mine is Loiacono Literary Agency, Jeanie Loiacono www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com ) in the field of which you are writing.  If you can’t get an agent, rework the piece and try again. Remember, John Gresham (with his book The Firm ) was turned down by some thirty-nine or more agents.
  8. Do you have any marketing and promotional advice, referrals, tips you would like to share? Work with your publisher, work with independent book stores in your area, use any contacts you have with radio stations, TV stations, newspapers in your local/regional area, volunteer to make talks and book signings, use social media. Friends will spread the word, and last but not least, read Carolyn Howard Johnson’s book The Frugal Book Promoter.
  9. Do you think conferences are beneficial? If so, what have you learned? Which ones do you frequent? Yes, they are beneficial. Only been to one and that is where I met my agent. There is much you can learn at conferences about writing, publishing, and marketing.
Where can we find you, your books and when is your next event? You can find me at my web site www.thomasesimmons.net; at my E-mail tesim@bellsouth.net. I have a new novel, By Accident of Birth, which has just been released, with launch at Barnes and Nobel 15246 Crossroads Parkway, Gulfport, MS 39503, and a second printing of The Man Called Brown Condor (which won the Gold Medal for Biography from the Military Writers Society of America) this time in soft cover due out in January 2016; its launch at Barnes and Nobel 15246 Crossroads Parkway, Gulfport, MS 39503.
Three books of mine are currently in print and can be obtained at any book store, Barnes and Nobel, Amazon, Kindle, and one as an audio book. Nonfiction: Escape from Archangel; Forgotten Heroes of World War II: Personal Accounts of Ordinary Soldiers Land, Sea and Air and The Man Called Brown Condor, hard cover and soon in soft cover. Fiction: By Accident of Birth just released. www.thomasesimmons.net  Amazon Author Central
Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency, Jeanie Loiacono http://www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com/authors/thomas-e-simmons

MORE ABOUT THE SPONSORING AGENT

Jeanie Loiacono, President, Loiacono Literary Agency
A facilitator of dreams, Jeanie Loiacono represents over eighty authors. Her forte is mystery, romance, thrillers, historical/military/southern fiction, and all quality fiction/nonfiction. Her passion is to see her authors succeed.

“There is nothing more rewarding than to hold one of my author’s books and know I helped bring it to fruition. I am so blessed and privileged to be able to work with some of the most talented writers in the world.” Jeanie.L@llallc.net  www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com    



IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE INTERVIEWS--TO FIND GREAT READING OR TO NETWORK WITH AUTHORS--PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG. YOU ARE A WELCOME ADDITION TO THIS FAMILY WHO LOVES BOOKS! YOU'LL FIND A WINDOW TO DO THIS AT THE TOP OF THIS BLOG PAGE.
----- 
The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.

Saturday, January 30, 2016

Interview: Creative Nonfiction Writer Gives Career Advice to Budding Authors



Hi! I am Carolyn Howard Johnson, your trusty New Book Review blogger and author of the multi award-winning HowTo Do It Frugally Series of books for writers. This blog has heretofore been exclusive for reviews but I thought I’d do a special series of interviews after I chatted with Jeanie Loiacono, President of Loiacono Literary Agency – Where ‘can’t’ is not in our vocabulary!  I thought sharing the interviews would help the many subscribers and visitors to this New Book Review blog, including authors, reviewers, and, of course, readers who just might find a new favorite author among the featured books and authors.

So, today welcome Diane Yates.

Diane Yates is a member of the Columbia Chapter of the Missouri Writer’s Guild and the President of the Ozarks Writers League.  The sequel to Pathways of the Heart, All That Matters, is due for release April 2016.

What is your genre? Is it fiction or nonfiction? My first two books, Pathways of the Heart and All That Matters, are creative nonfiction.

What made you want to be a writer? I write to be read. From a young age, I wrote skits and loved creating or telling a story. My desire is to evoke feelings from my readers: feelings of joy, peace, love, romance, and empathy, just to name a few. I would love for them to laugh, cry, and rally for my protagonists. When they read the words ‘THE END,’ and close the cover, nothing would please me more than if the book they’d just finished would inspire them to be a better person. Change the world, so-to-speak, one reader at a time.

Of all the authors out there, who inspired you most? As a teenager, I waited eagerly for the release of Jane Aiken Hodge’s next book, which was about one a year. I devoured each one with its strong female protagonist immersed in diverse conflicts set amidst riveting historical events. As an adult, there are many authors such as Tom Clancy, John Grisham, Nicholas Sparks, Janette Oke, LaVyrle Spencer, and Karen Kingsbury.

What is your writing style? Do you outline? Linearly? By scene? Why? I find that I outline by scene. In writing creative nonfiction, I don’t want to miss pivotal points that often add to the complex character of my hero or heroine. Outlining helps me see the big picture.

Do you write every day? How much? How long? My goal is to write each day. However, it’s important for me to be inspired, and, when that inspiration arrives, I follow, no matter how long the journey.

Do you think reading is as important to writing for an author? Why? For me, I love to read, and I’m sure I learn writing techniques and style in the process.

     What are some of the things you would like to share with budding authors? When I began writing novels, I forgot to pray for direction. Instead I was writing just for fun. My advice for budding authors is to seek guidance regarding the purpose of your writing. Whether it’s fiction or whatever genre, you want people to read your work. Consider how your words are adding to the lives of your readers. E.B. White, author of Charlotte’s Web, said, A writer has the duty to be good, not lousy; true, not false; lively, not dull; accurate, not full of error. He should tend to lift people up, not lower them down. Writers do not merely reflect and interpret life, they inform and shape life.”

Do you have any marketing and promotional advice, referrals, tips you would like to share? I struggle with marketing and promotion and therefore welcome advice from others instead of sharing my lack of knowledge!

Do you think conferences are beneficial? If so, what have you learned? Which ones do you frequent? Connecting with other writers and industry professionals at a conference, and learning from them, is vital in improving your craft. I’m a member of local writing groups, such as the Ozarks Writers League and The Columbia Writers Guild, and attend their conferences as well as others that offer topics or speakers of interest.

      Where can we find you, your books and when is your next event? My website contains information about my books, my faith, and other personal data. My book, Pathways of the Heart may be found on: Amazon  Hudson Book Sellers  B&N  BAM  IndieBound  The Book Depository  Shelfari  GoodReads Pathways of the Heart Reviews I will be speaking on the consequences of “Choices Along our Path” at the Meet the Authors Festival on Saturday February 6, 2016 from 9:30 am to 2:00 pm at Kimberling Area Library (KAL), 45 Kimberling Blvd, Kimberling City, MO 65686. http://www.kalib.org/  www.dianeyates.com Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency, Jeanie Loiacono http://www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com/authors/diane-yates/
    
MORE ABOUT THE SPONSORING AGENTS

Jeanie Loiacono, President, Loiacono Literary Agency
A facilitator of dreams, Jeanie Loiacono represents over eighty authors. Her forte is mystery, romance, thrillers, historical/military/southern fiction, and all quality fiction/nonfiction. Her passion is to see her authors succeed.
“There is nothing more rewarding than to hold one of my author’s books and know I helped bring it to fruition. I am so blessed and privileged to be able to work with some of the most talented writers in the world.” Jeanie.L@llallc.net  www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com



IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE INTERVIEWS--TO FIND GREAT READING OR TO NETWORK WITH AUTHORS--PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG. YOU ARE A WELCOME ADDITION TO THIS FAMILY WHO LOVES BOOKS! YOU'LL FIND A WINDOW TO DO THIS AT THE TOP OF THIS BLOG PAGE.

----- 

The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.