How I Spent My Summer (Plus Publication News)

Happy Friday! 

Today, I continue our TeachingAuthors series on something fun, interesting, or unusual we did over the summer. Esther kicked off the series back in August with this post about the joy she experienced facilitating a Manuscript Workshop in Vermont and also while helping several of her authors birth new books. Next, April gave us this sneak peek into her writing retreat with her best friend, Bruce Balan, and she shared a sensory-filled poetry writing prompt. Mary Ann wrote in September of rediscovering Brenda Ueland's classic So You Want to Write and being once again inspired to write with JOY. (Hmm. That seems a recurring theme here.) And most recently, Bobbi discussed starting a new chapter of her life and contemplating What happens next?  In today's post, I will share bits of writing-related news and a recently published poem. You'll also find a link to this week's Poetry Friday roundup at the end of the post. 

We've had an unseasonably warm fall so far in the Chicago area, and a taste of summer seems to still linger here in the middle of October. I kicked off summer with a visit to downtown Naperville to check out the 18 painted duck sculptures scattered around town. (Watch a video about the ducks here.)

However, I didn't spend as much time outdoors this summer as I would have liked. Instead, I worked on bringing my young adult historical Playing by Heart back into print. I don't recall if I've mentioned here that the book's publisher, Vinspire Publishing, closed their doors unexpectedly in late 2024. I was shocked by the news, but grateful they returned all rights to their authors before completely shutting down. 

Years ago, after I got the rights back from Candlewick for my first novel, Rosa, Sola, I self-published the paperback and ebook versions. But lots has changed since then, and it took longer to get Playing by Heart back into print than I expected. I was finally able to release the new edition, which now includes book discussion questions, on September 8. I'm hoping the book discussion questions will be used by book clubs, classroom teachers, and homeschooling groups. And I'm inviting these groups to join my 25 Book Clubs Challenge. 

As a thank you for participating, I'm offering a free virtual visit to any group that reads the book. I love sharing the true story of the two amazing sisters who inspired Playing by Heart, so I hope you'll help spread the word to any group that might be interested. While Playing by Heart is considered young adult because the main characters are teens, many adult readers have enjoyed it, including members of two adult book clubs I've already visited.  Please help me meet my goal of speaking to at least 25 groups! For more about the challenge, see the Book Clubs page of my website. 

I'm also happy to share two other bits of publication news I received over the summer. First, I found out that my story, “Blessing in Disguise,” was accepted for publication in Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Spirit of Christmas: 101 Joyful Holiday Stories edited by Amy Newmark, which released just this week! 

You may recall that I had a story in last year's Chicken Soup for the Soul: Tales of Christmas: 101 Stories of Holiday Joy, Love and Gratitude. It's fun to have stories in back-to-back Chicken Soup holiday books. But what makes this even MORE fun is the fact that my friend and critique group partner Julie Phend also has a story in The Spirit of Christmas, and we'll be having a joint book signing at Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville on Sunday, November 23, 2025 at 2:00 PM! Details are posted on the Anderson's website here. I hope some of our TeachingAuthors readers will join us!

My second bit of publishing news is that I have a poem in the fall 2025 issue of Little Thoughts Press Magazine. The poem, "Thirsty Amaryllis" is one I first wrote years ago, but it wasn't until recently that I revised it to my satisfaction. I hope you can read it in the photo I took of the magazine page below. Or you can get your own copy of the magazine in print or pdf form here.  

 

For more poetry, check out this week's Poetry Friday roundup hosted by Sarah Grace Tuttle.

Happy writing!

Carmela

Summer of Regeneration

 

One of my Facebook favorite groups is the KIDLIT411, hosted by Sylvia Liu and Elaine Kiely Kearns. They also put out a weekly 411 newsletter that covers relevant industry topics. The group boasts a hefty 18K membership, including many professionals in the publishing industry, so the discussions run the gamut. And while the focus is on all things related to children’s literature, from board books to young adult, the discussions could be applied to any writer working in any genre from children’s books to adult.

One of the most asked questions in the group is “what happens next”? Whether it’s a follow-up question after the first book is written, or the first chapter.  Or how to start your novel. Whether it’s about the querying process or about the value of comps. About characters or plots. Or illustrations and cover-art. Whether it’s about writing to trends or looking for recommendations or offering warnings about the newest scams.  How many rejections must one receive before giving up?

“What happens next” is at once a confrontation with change, fear of that change, and a worry that it won’t ever change.  It’s at once an ask for hope and a cry for help.  

You’ll remember I asked this question not long ago, what happens next? 

I’ve been teaching forty years. FORTY years. I've taught at high school afterschool programs community college, university and graduate schools.  Sometimes at the same time! Forty years is a long time. Last summer I made plans to finally move on. Well, at the beginning of this summer, I began to put those plans into action. I  turned in my notice at a community college, after teaching there for 25 years. Being an adjunct, all this means is filling out a form for no more contracts. No fanfare, no benefits. And, just as this summer ends, I filled out the forms for this MFA, telling them I can’t accept any more contracts.

So, what happens next?

Being an old duck has taught me two things. 1. I can’t control what’s beyond my control. 2. All I can do is waddle forward.

As the Doctor once told us (Doctor whooo, you ask?) Life depends on change and renewal. All you can do is regenerate.

 Because I have several books under my belt, I’m what they used to call a mid-lister. All of my books have earned out. A few won some hefty awards. But the last book was published over a decade ago, so I’m not sure if a mid-lister label still holds.  None of that matters in my current pursuit of a contract. And, as it happens, I’m also in search of a new agent. I've had four agents already, so one would think I’d get this right after all this time. And agents are more selective than ever in large part because the pool is bigger to choose from.

So what happens next?  I keep waddling.

I have no expectations now that I’ll receive another contract. But I have every confidence that my current project will be the best book I’ve ever written. I am reminded of Elizabeth Gilbert’s (Eat Pray Love) on receiving rejections, “Whenever I got those rejection letters, then, I would permit my ego to say aloud to whoever had signed it: “You think you can scare me off? I’ve got another eighty years to wear you down! There are people who haven’t even been born yet who are gonna reject me someday—that’s how long I plan to stick around.”

(Not sure I'll last another 80 years, though!)

But tis the season of regeneration!  This is just a reset. It’s not the end of something, but a new beginning!

You remember what the Doctor said…

 Thank you for reading! -- Bobbi