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

3 Favorite Books I Read this Year, Plus an Inspiring Song

Happy Poetry Friday! Today, instead of a poem, at the end of this post I'm sharing some song lyrics I've found especially inspiring during this challenging year. But first, I want to continue our end-of-the year series about a favorite book, poem, or quote we read in 2020.

Last week, Gwendolyn discussed as her favorite book, I See You, I See Myself: The Young Life of Jacob Lawrence, written by Deba Foxley Leach. (I've already added the title to my to-read list.) Unlike Gwen, I couldn't limit my favorites to just one title. I'm sharing three! The first two books are titles picked by the Not for Kids Only Book Club I'm a member of.

1. Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books). 

This book has won numerous awards, including a Newbery Honor, a Printz Honor, a Coretta Scott King Honor, and the Edgar Award Prize for Best Young Adult Fiction. Not only is Long Way Down a beautifully written novel in verse, this powerful book also deals with important issues that are especially relevant today.

2. Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk (Dutton Books for Young Readers).

This novel, set in Depression-era Maine, is a 2020 title featured on Anderson's Bookshops Mock Newbery list. Despite the historical setting, this story about coping with unemployment and hardship is also relevant these days. The writing is quite lyrical, so I wasn't surprised to learn Lauren Wolk is a poet as well as a novelist. 

3. What Is Poetry? The Essential Guide to Reading and Writing Poems by Michael Rosen (Candlewick Books). 

This engaging nonfiction book was first published in the U.K. in 2016, but wasn't released here in the U.S. until 2019 and I just discovered it recently. I'm still working my way through this one because I'm savoring and learning from each section. Michael Rosen includes many great tidbits in this book, such as the following:

"Poems are a midway point between poets and readers. The poet pours in one set of meanings. The reader picks up a poem and puts in another set of meanings, and the two meet somewhere in the middle. That's what reading a poem is all about. It's a conversation between two sets of thoughts: the poet's and the reader's."

In researching Rosen's book, I was surprised to learn the author contracted COVID-19 earlier this year and was hospitalized for three months. He talks a bit about his experience and ongoing health issues at the beginning of this video. I hope he eventually makes a complete recovery.   

Finally, as promised, I'd like to share some song lyrics that have inspired and encouraged me during these difficult times. They're written by Carrie Newcomer, a performer I discovered when someone shared this song with me earlier this year:

Excerpt from lyrics of "You Can Do This Hard Thing"

by Carrie Newcomer

 

Here we stand breathless  

And pressed in hard times.

Hearts hung like laundry

On backyard clothes lines.

Impossible just takes

A little more time.

 

From the muddy ground

Comes a green volunteer.

In a place we thought barren

New life appears.

Morning will come whistling

Some comforting tune,

For you.

 

You can do this hard thing. 

You can do this hard thing.

Its not easy I know, 

But I believe that its so.

You can do this hard thing. 

 

©2016 Carrie Newcomer  

It's hard to believe Newcomer released this song in 2016. "You Can Do This Hard Thing" feels like it could be an anthem for 2020. 

 

You can read the song's complete lyrics on this page of her website by clicking the cover of the album, The Beautiful Not Yet. And you can hear her perform the song below or on YouTube here.

 

Don't forget to check out this week's Poetry Friday round up at Susan Bruck's Soul Blossom Living.

 

 

Posted by Carmela Martino

Into the Woods...

Karen Grencik

... in search of red foxes.

I graduated from the graduate program at Vermont College of Fine Arts Writing for Children and Young Adults (VCFA) with a four-book contract for picture books that highlighted my love of American folklore and history. But, as much as I knew about writing and story, I knew nothing of the business of children’s publishing. And it is, foremost, a business.

I signed on with the first agent who would help me with the multi-contracts. This relationship wasn't a hard find. I already had the contract in hand, or rather contracts. This meant, I already did the hard work. This is never a good idea. Like any relationship, you want to get to know each other, ask questions, and make sure it's a good fit. You don't get married after only a first date. And an agent-writer relationship is akin to a marriage. ( See Mary Ann's wonderful discussion on her relationship with agents!) This agent sealed the deal with the contracts, but a couple of significant  issues arose. She had signed the boiler plate contract. The contracts included a couple of damaging, very strict clauses:  the option clause, which gives the publisher the privilege of publishing your next book, and the non-compete clause, which restricts the author from publishing another book that competes with the work in question. This first agent didn't negotiate to reword or remove them, and I didn't know enough to ask what they meant. Needless to say, that relationship ended in a quick divorce. I found another agent, via one of the agent's clients, but more problems arose.  According to this new agent, because of these clauses, I couldn’t submit work elsewhere, and she couldn’t renegotiate the clauses because she wasn't the agent on record.

 In other words, my career was not only stalled, it was completely derailed.

 That relationship also quickly, of course. Determined, I went to Author’s Guild, learned what I had to in order to understand these clauses, and then I renegotiated the particular clauses myself.

My first two picture books came out in 2009, eight years after signing the contract. The second book was published a year later. The third book came out in 2012, eleven years after signing the contract. The fourth contract was cancelled. Thankfully, I had a strong circle of friends, in particular Eric Kimmel and Marion Dane Bauer, who understood that business side of things and shared their wisdom and support through those many years.

But there was yet another, stronger riptide I had to steer through. Beginning in 2001, the children’s market was changing dramatically. The folklore picture book market was bottoming out. The very genre that I had studied, loved, and sought as my career was no longer an option. What the heck do I do now? Where do I go from here?

Writers have to find a way to adapt. 

Into the woods I went, searching for a place where I belong. 

The challenge became in combining all that I had learned and loved in folklore and history. For a long while, it was a hit-and-miss effort. Finally I had this manuscript, Big River’s Daughter. It was a middle grade novel, an historical American fantasy. By now, I was unsure if it even fit in a market that no longer viewed folklore as relevant. Even historical fiction was having a hard time.

And that’s when I learned my greatest lesson: the importance of patience and perseverance.

I met Emma Dryden via Facebook, when she was describing her experience as a passenger on a Windjammer cruise – the very one I had gone on as I was researching my book, Big River’s Daughter! I’ve known about Emma for decades; she’s legendary in the field. It turns out, she had just started her own business, drydenbks. I signed up, asking her a crucial question: Where do I fit in now?

And of course, Dumbledore that she is, she helped clarify my thinking and create a plan that would help me achieve my goals. Not only do writers have to adapt to the shifting markets, sometimes they have to make their own place.

Part of that plan included an introduction to agent Karen Grencik, who it turns out had just started a new agency, Red Fox Literary. And this time, I wasn’t shy about asking questions – even dumb ones. And we talked, and talked, and talked. I was cautious given my previous experience. Still, it didn’t take long before I knew: She was the one! One month after we teamed up, Karen sold Big River’s Daughter. Three months after that, she sold my second middle grade novel, Girls of Gettysburg.

All things happens for a reason at the time they are supposed to happen. As River plunges into the wilds of the frontier, taking on the Pirates Laffite and the extraordinary landscape of the mighty river herself in the rough-and-tumble Big River’s Daughter, there is that truth of River’s journey: if one perseveres, life can be full of possible imaginations.

 Speaking of perseverance and possible imaginations, don't forget to enter our Book Giveaway to win a copy of the Children’s Writers and Illustrators Market 2017!

--Bobbi Miller

Turn the Page

This week we continue to celebrate our Fourth Blogiversary (the official date is today!) with our giveaway extravaganza.

From Carmela's Friday post:
Today, I'm thrilled to announce an extra-special giveaway in honor of our FOURTH BLOGIVERSARY. To show our appreciation to our blog readers AND to one of our favorite independent booksellers, we'll be giving away FOUR $25 gift certificates to Anderson's Bookshops! And, as a bonus, Anderson's is generously offering our winners a 20% discount, which will help defray the shipping costs if you're unable to redeem your gift certificate in person.

If you haven't already done so, hop on over and read the rest of her post for entry details as well as more information about our blog, Anderson's, and a terrific bonus poem from our very own April (who's also celebrating a birthday this week).

In follow-up to our ode to D.E.A.R. and Beverly Cleary, we Teaching Authors are discussing the great independent bookstores that play such a crucial role in getting the right books into the hands of the right readers.  I will never forget my first visit to the Tattered Cover in Denver.  I was on a business trip, and I got no other business done on that day.  [I owe a debt of gratitude to my patient boss, Stan Cohen.]

Here in exurban Maryland, we have nothing like the Tattered Cover or Anderson's.  Washington has the great Politics and Prose, but my visits to DC with kids at this point in life typically involve the Air and Space Museum, the National Mall, and a stroller.

If you ask me, the coolest and most accessible independent bookstore in my neck of the woods is Turn the Page Bookstore, owned by the husband of local (and international) celebrity Nora Roberts.  Roberts lives in rural Washington County and has singlehandedly turned the tiny town of Boonsboro into a Destination (with a capital D).  Visitors from around the country flock to the bookstore for signings by a variety of authors and may stay overnight in Roberts's nearby bed and breakfast, stop by her gift shop, or have a meal at her son's taphouse. 

In my job as an adjunct instructor at Hagerstown Community College, I am fortunate to be a part of the advisory committee for this summer's Nora Roberts Writing Institute.  Before a recent meeting at Dan's Taphouse, I slipped into Turn the Page for some speed shopping.  Unlike the sprawling Tattered Cover, it's a tiny space, with a nook devoted to children's books, a coffee bar featuring a local roaster's brews, and a terrific assortment of popular fiction, with the literary book club du month selections shelved beside the "beach reads." 

As someone who writes in what may certainly be considered marginalized genres (soap operas and children's books), I greatly appreciated the equalizing effect of this shelving method.  As a child, I fell in love with reading because it was fun and transformative.   There is much good writing in popular fiction, and I love the idea of celebrating the books people read because they want to rather than the ones they feel they have to.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Nora Roberts.
--Jeanne Marie

4th Blogiversary Gift Card Giveaway--Celebrating Independent Booksellers!

Today, I'm thrilled to announce an extra-special giveaway in honor of our FOURTH BLOGIVERSARY. To show our appreciation to our blog readers AND to one of our favorite independent booksellers, we'll be giving away FOUR $25 gift certificates to Anderson's Bookshops! And, as a bonus, Anderson's is generously offering our winners a 20% discount, which will help defray the shipping costs if you're unable to redeem your gift certificate in person.

In case you're not familiar with this family-owned company, in 2010, Anderson's celebrated their 135th year in business, with six generations of the family now working in their stores. Among their many accolades, in 2011, Anderson's was named Publisher's Weekly Bookstore of the Year. Anderson's has a long history of supporting teachers by providing educator resources like mock Newbery contests, arranging author visits, and sponsoring special events such as their upcoming Teacher Open House, where educators can learn about the best new releases for classroom use. And educators always receive a 20% discount off the list price of books to be used in the classroom or library.

Anderson's also has a reputation for hosting wonderful (and numerous!) author signings, and for championing local authors. After many years of attending Anderson's marvelous author events, I was honored to have my first signing at the Naperville store when my novel, Rosa, Sola, came out. That day, the Anderson's staff made me feel like a real star! I couldn't help getting a little teary-eyed as I addressed the crowd of family, friends, and fellow writers, telling them what a thrill it was to have my signing in the bookstore that felt like my second home.

If you're ever in the Chicago area, I encourage you to visit one of Anderson's stores. But even if a physical trip isn't possible, you can visit them virtually via their website, where you can order print and ebooks online. As you'll see below, the winners of our giveaway will have the option of using their gift certificates that way.  

The TeachingAuthors are fans not only of Anderson's, but of independent bookstores everywhere. For the next few weeks, we'll be sharing stories of our appreciation for independent booksellers. Meanwhile, I was pleasantly surprised by the encouraging news the Salon article "Books Aren't Dead" had about both print books and independent bookstores: 

 ". . .  the Christian Science Monitor recently reported [you can read that article here], there are now many indications that a once-beleaguered portion of the bookselling landscape, independent bookstores, are enjoying a “quiet resurgence.” Sales are up this year; established stores, such as Brooklyn’s WORD, are doing well enough to expand and new stores are opening. Indies have been helped by the closure of the Borders chain and a campaign to remind their customers that if they want local bookstores to survive, they have to patronize them, even if that means paying a dollar or two more than they would on Amazon."

I confess, I'm one of those book buyers willing to pay "a dollar or two more" to support my local independent. I want to help ensure they'll still be around when I finally have another book signing. :-)

In addition to celebrating independent booksellers, we decided our blogiversary was a good time for a little spring cleaning here on the TeachingAuthors website. I've created two new pages, which you can find links to under our logo at the top of the page: Links and Writing Workouts. The Links page now contains all the links that used to be in the sidebar, grouped under the following headings:

• Websites of Note
• Children's/YA Lit Reading Lists
• Graduate Programs in Writing for Children and Young Adults
• General Children's/YA Lit Blogs
• Agent Blogs
• Author/Illustrator Blogs.

The Writing Workouts page explains the history and evolution of our Writing Workouts, and allows you to access all of them from one place. I've also shortened the names of our resources pages to simply "For Teachers," "For Young Writers," and "Visits." And I've updated our bios on the About Us page. I hope you'll take time to explore these revised pages and give us feedback on what you think of the changes.

You may also notice a new button in the sidebar labeled "Follow this blog with bloglovin'." I recently learned that Google will be retiring Google Reader on July 1, 2013, and I wanted to provide other options for those who currently read our posts via Reader. Bloglovin' allows you to easily import all the blogs you currently follow with Google Reader. I've also seen positive reviews of the RSS service Feedly (see, for example, this recommendation in Jane Friedman's newsletter, Electric Speed), so I've included a Feedly link in the sidebar, too. You can read a quick comparison of Bloglovin' vs. Feedly here.

If you don't already follow our blog, I'll hope you'll sign up to do so today via email, Bloglovin', Feedly, or one of the other options in our sidebar. (Hint--our blog subscribers automatically qualify for FOUR entries in our blogiversary giveaway. See below for details.)

Before I explain how to enter the giveaway, I want to share a poem the AMAZING April Halprin Wayland wrote in honor of our blogiversary, which actually falls on Monday, Earth Day.

            A Blooming Blogiversary

     Sheaves of paper, leaves of prose
     Typing wobbly rocky rows

     Planting tender inkling seeds
     Sowing words on glowing screens

     Underground the spark is struck
     Growing with some care and luck

     First a shoot, then a sprout
     Weeding all the adverbs out

     Seedlings reaching toward the sun
     Readers, writers we are one

     Blooming in the blogisphere
     Post by post, year by year
poem © 2013 April Halprin Wayland. All rights reserved
 

A special "thank you" to all the readers who have stuck with us here at TeachingAuthors "post by post, year by year."

Now, for our Blogiversary Giveaway details:

As I said at the beginning of this post, in honor of our Fourth Blogiversary, and to celebrate independent booksellers, we're giving away FOUR $25 gift certificates to Anderson's Bookshops!  
Note: if you're unable to redeem your prize in person at one of Anderson's stores, you will be able to do so online. AND, you'll receive a 20% discount on your purchase!

Please bear with us as we try something new for this giveaway--we're using Rafflecopter for the first time. If you've never entered a Rafflecopter giveaway, you may want to read their info on how to enter a Rafflecopter giveaway and/or the difference between signing in with Facebook vs. with an email address.

Once you've logged into Rafflecopter below (via either Facebook or an email address) you'll see that we've provided four different options for entering the giveaway--you can pick one or up to all four. The more options you choose, the greater your chances of winning. While we haven't made it a requirement, we hope that everyone will choose to subscribe to the TeachingAuthors blog.

If you're already a TeachingAuthors subscriber, you need only click on the first option and tell us how you follow our blog to receive FOUR entries in the giveaway.

As it says in the "Terms and Conditions," this giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. You must be 18 or older to enter. And please note: email addresses will only be used to contact winners. The giveaway will run from now through the end of Children's Book Week, on May 19. Winners will be notified May 20, 2013. 

I hope that covers everything. But if you have any questions about the giveaway, feel free to email us at teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com.

Good luck to everyone! And don't forget--it's Poetry Friday. When you're done entering our giveaway, check out the Poetry Friday round-up over at Live Your Poem. 

Happy writing!
Carmela


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