All the winners from this year's awards, plus photographs direct from the ceremony!| Reading Matters
An Evening with Robin Wall Kimmerer: Nature, Story, and the Power of Reciprocity Something remarkable is blooming in Traverse City this summer. On August 9, 2025, the National Writers Series will host renowned author, plant ecologist, and Indigenous scientist Robin Wall Kimmerer for an evening of reflection, learning, and connection […]| Bay Books
Splendid news, everyone! As I announced on my tech blog dedoimedo.com just a few days ago, I would like to invite you to the mega-nice Smashwords Summer Sale, taking place throughout the entire month of July. From tomorrow, for 31 days and nights, you can buy and enjoy the entire catalog of me digital books available on Smashwords at a lovely 50% discount. A good opportunity to grab some fresh reading material, especially since all these e-books are DRM free. And, well, nicely written, I think.| The Lost Words
I read a short story in 2015 that left me staring at the wall in dumbfounded awe while I tried to absorb it. The story is ‘The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas’ by Ursula Le Guin, written in 1973. I’m not even going to try to sum it up, I’m just going to urge you […] The post How Ursula Le Guin inspired me in 2015 first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
I have been a bit quiet lately, and it’s not just that I have been busy writing my new book. We welcomed our second daughter into the world just over two weeks ago, and I am a very proud and busy mum at the moment. I plan to spend the next few months focusing primarily […] The post My latest production… first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
The Indian Ocean on Sunday was cold enough to steal your breath, but we barely noticed. For the fourth time in my life I had the privilege of swimming with dolphins in their own environment – on this occasion with Rockingham Wild Encounters. There are approximately 200 dolphins in the area, and every day the […] The post Wild encounters: meeting my muse first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
There’s a link to the answers at the bottom of the page when you’ve finished! You can also find the images in the gallery. When you’ve finished, find the answers here! col-md-2 The post Try the book cover quiz from the Shallow Breath launch first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
I had a fantastic time last night celebrating the launch of Shallow Breath at Tiger Lils in Perth. It was a fabulous turn-out, and I’d like to say a big thank you to everyone who came. As I said last night, writing might be a solitary occupation, but when it comes to getting books out into […] The post Shallow Breath is officially launched! first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
It’s not about rights (though it seems some rights mean more than others?) It’s not about need (who can say about greed) It’s not about whales (or this rare, safe place they calve) It’s not about flora, fauna, or natural heritage (or dinosaur footprints left 130 million years ago) It’s not about a wilderness few will visit (out […] The post For the Kimberley first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
Signatures have been exchanged, and the deal is done. Most significantly for me at this stage, the deadline has been set. In January 2012, all being well, I will hand over my third novel. I began work in earnest this week, and welcomed back a familiar feeling of giddiness and discomfort – the usual combination […] The post Only 90,000 words to go… first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
Last night, one of the last images I saw before I went to bed was of a terrified Chinese toddler being held at knifepoint in the street by her father. The horror of that situation was not distilled by the frozen photo, the detached computer screen, or the fact I could flick away when I […] The post Helplessness and people power first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
‘The book is too perfect to disappear. Bookstores are fading, but there are also bookstores surviving.’ Annie Proulx ‘Living in a flat in the city it is almost impossible to have a sense of connection to place’ Tim Flannery ‘a still–Volcano–Life’ Lyndall Gordon quoting Emily Dickinson ‘the frontiers of consciousness, where words fail, but meaning […] The post Perth Writers Festival #4: Words I’ll remember first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
To begin with, I was drawn to the writers in the session entitled ‘Reverberations from the past’ more than the topic. Natasha Lester is a friend of mine, whose beautifully crafted book, What is Left Over, After, won the TAG Hungerford in 2009, and I’ve read and heard so much about Gail Jones’ and Jon Bauer’s books […] The post Perth Writers Festival #3: Fiction discussion at its finest first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
On Sunday morning I attended a Perth Writers Festival session discussing the future of printed books in this world of rapid, almost rabid, technological change. I was completely engrossed listening to the panel of Geordie Williamson (chief literary critic of the Australian), James Bradley (novelist), Lev Grossman (novelist) and Angela Meyer (writer, Literary Minded blog) […] The post Perth Writers Festival #2: The death of print? first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
My good friend Natasha Lester has invited me onto her blog to talk about that tricky business of the commercial/literary fiction divide. It’s a frustrating but necessary topic that both of us have become familiar with over the last year or so. To read our thoughts, click here, or visit Natasha’s blog at http://whilethekidsaresleeping.wordpress.com/ Thanks for having me, […] The post Discussing commercial/literary divide on Natasha Lester’s blog first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
I’m still pinching myself that now I have two books out in the big book-buying world. Friends keep asking me how it feels, and to be honest I’m not sure I’ve really taken it in. What with the busy promotional blitz and caring for a toddler, I’m usually doing something work or child-related from the […] The post The big picture – and what’s next first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
I was very excited this morning to read Jessica Rudd’s blog on Mama Mia, speaking out in defence of chick lit and commercial fiction. Go Jessica! While my books don’t fall easily into the chick lit category (they are a bit too dark, although they usually have at least one female chick-lit-style character doing her […] The post There’s nothing wrong with being popular! first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
Read my thoughts on writing ‘Book 2’ in my final outing as guest blogger on Nicole Alexander’s website. Thanks for having me, Nicole! http://nicolealexander.com.au/2010/09/sara-foster-on-the-difficult-2nd-novel/col-md-2 The post That Difficult Second Novel first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
People who work in book publishing always have a ridiculous amount of reading to get through. I once worked on what is pejoratively termed the ‘slush pile’ in the HarperCollins fiction department, where I would often be the first reader. As such, I would get to decide if the story was worth further consideration by those higher […] The post Don’t get rejected before they’ve even read a word… first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
An older version of this blog also appeared on the Random House ‘Random Blogs’ website on 8th April 2010 For me, for a long time my writing was my hobby, and as such I would get through everything else first, promising myself writing time later, as some kind of reward. However, it’s far too easy […] The post Finding the time to write first appeared on Sara Foster.| Sara Foster
I had a fantastic time at the Perth Writers Festival. It was a new experience for me to be on panel discussions, and I am very grateful to Grant Stone, Michael Koryta, Helen Merrick, Liz Byrski and Anita Heiss for making it such a thoroughly enjoyable debut. I very much enjoyed talking about book editing| Sara Foster
Another win for freedom to read legislation on the West Coast this week, as Oregon’s state House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 1098 on Monday, a bill that will protect access to books in sc…| Literary Hub
Here’s something rather cool. As I just announced on my blog dedoimedo.com, from May 15 till May 31, I’m offering my entire Draft2Digital book catalog at 50% discount, through all the available stores. That means Smashwords, Apple, Kobo, Everand, Vivlio, Fable, and others. DRM-free books, too, no strings attached. Should this pique your interest, the following titles are at your disposal: the four volumes in The Lost Words fantasy series, my mythological novel I Shall Slay the Dragon!, an...| The Lost Words
So, I’m going to board the hype train. But not as a passenger. As the driver! Think about it. Who better to write a book on AI than a diehard curmudgeonly tech-savvy skeptic who treats this whole thing as one big conditioning experiment? Exactly. No one. Now, the topic. Ethics, of course. What else is there. Whether we like it or not, the concept of AI is going to be around for quite some time. It signifies a major cultural... Read More Read More| The Lost Words
Well, well, that was quick. Three months, done. Now, let me throw some lovely statistics at ya. Book length? About 80,000 words, give or take a few, thirty-five images, thirty-three tables, a combat simulation (written in octave). Study material? I read about 150 books, and about thrice as many reports, journals, monographs, and webpages in six languages. I marked about 800 annotations, and ended up with slightly under 700 citations and references. And the genre? Now, that’s something I’d...| The Lost Words
I don’t like repeating myself. Let me say that one more time. I don’t … no, wait. Aha! So, as it happens, I’m not really fond of writing “more of the same”, so to speak. Once I’ve done a certain theme, I don’t find great enjoyment in rehashing it. Some authors love their worlds, and keep spinning endless sequels in them. But that’s too familiar, too easy for me. I always need to push beyond my would-be comfort zone, and... Read More Read More| The Lost Words
If you don’t follow my main blog, dedoimedo.com, here’s a wee announcement. Black Friday. Cyber Monday. Yup. This coming long weekend, tens of millions of Americans will be forced to endure the company of their in-laws and awkward cousins over Thanksgiving family gatherings. I would like to help them, and what better way to avoid social unpleasantries than a good reading! My book, How to Make Your Career Suck Less, will be offered at a discount, from the Draft2Digital chain... Read More R...| The Lost Words
Congratulations to our beloved poet and literary darling Percival Everett for joining the ranks of the influential in this year’s TIMES list! You can find your favorite Percival Everett books here at Bay Books, every day, Read further this short article from Cord Jefferson, Oscar winning screenplay writer of American […]| Bay Books
New series is devoted to making remarkable writing from Africa available to Anglophone audiences around the world|
The University of Georgia Press is pleased to announce Michael Joseph Walsh as the winner of the 2024 Georgia Poetry Prize. In partnership with Poetry@Tech at the Georgia Institute of Technology an…| ugapress.wordpress.com
School Library Journal was nice enough to interview me about SOFÍA ACOSTA MAKES A SCENE. Read the interview here!| Emma Otheguy
Fellow author Karla Valenti and I were interviewed on the Booklist Shelf Care podcast about our upcoming books. Read and listen here!| Emma Otheguy
I was honored to be interviewed by librarian and blogger Betsy Bird over at her blog, Fuse #8! Read the interview and learn more about SOFÍA ACOSTA MAKES A SCENE!| Emma Otheguy
Have you seen this list of 8 middle-grade books featuring Latinx protagonists from BookRiot? I’m honored that SILVER MEADOWS SUMMER is one of them. If your library, camp, homeschool or church group will be reading SILVER MEADOWS SUMMER this summer, I’m hosting a pen pal club just for these readers. Find out more & sign […]| Emma Otheguy
I’m thrilled that the UNICORN RESCUE SOCIETY: THE MADRE DE AGUAS OF CUBA, which I co-wrote with Adam Gidwitz, is now out in paperback! Check it out at Bookshop and support independent booksellers. Happy reading!| Emma Otheguy
School Library Journal’s April 2021 issue reviews A SLED FOR GABO with the following verdict: “A distinct mise-en-scène paired with a toasty, traditional message distinguishes this story of snowy self-discovery.” Read the whole review at SLJ, and many thanks to Jose Cruz, Shannon Staub P.L. for this lovely review!| Emma Otheguy
Kirkus reviewed my first fiction picture book A SLED FOR GABO! Check out the full review here. A SLED FOR GABO will be published in January 2021 by Atheneum (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) alongside a Spanish edition, UN TRINEO PARA GABO. You can pre-order a copy in English or Spanish now!| Emma Otheguy
I’m thrilled that the cover of A SLED FOR GABO/UN TRINEO PARA GABO, my first fiction picture book, is now ready for the world to see! Bookpage did an amazing cover reveal feature that includes a sneak peek of the text and interior spreads. The illustrator, Ana Ramírez González, was a visual development artist for […]| Emma Otheguy
Yesterday Adam Gidwitz and I launched our co-authored book, THE UNICORN RESCUE SOCIETY: THE MADRE DE AGUAS OF CUBA with the wonderful people at Politics & Prose Bookstore in Washington D.C. We were sorry not to be there in person, but one advantage of the digital event? It was recorded and you can watch it […]| Emma Otheguy
This book is perfect for kids ages 8-10, though I bet older kids and younger kids will enjoy it as well. Get ready for a Havana adventure, complete with mythological creatures!| Emma Otheguy
Now, if you’re wondering what this effusive title is all about, the novel follows the merry and convoluted escapades of one Prince Dietrich, a cowardly, spoiled, entitled, self-centered, prurient nobleman, who will do everything in his power to avoid responsibility and yet become king. This book is grim-fun, fun-dark, gunpowder-rich and laced in humor and wit. But most importantly, it’s the first book in a trilogy, and the holiday freebie allows you to get a good taste for the rest of the...| The Lost Words
All right, listen up. Are you sitting down? Good. Here we go. As I just announced on my main blog, dedoimedo.com, I am running a discounted sale for all of the books I’ve published through Smashwords. From December 12 through the end of the year, you can grab a bunch of fiction and nonfiction works. These include the four volumes in The Lost Words fantasy series, and please note the first book, The Betrayed is FREE (zero cost), my mythological novel I Shall Slay the Dragon!, and the recentl...| The Lost Words
I did it. The brand new (yet old) 63-chapter, 160,000-word fantasy book featuring magic, dragons, wizards, gritty heroes, and lots and lots of lore is done. I finished the project within roughly six months of leisurely writing (for the most part), give or take a few weeks. On its own, this wouldn’t be a major feat, except … I have tried to “rewrite” this idea three times already, unsuccessfully. But now, I finally succeeded.| The Lost Words
I’m delighted to announce that A Winter’s Romance, an anthology of short stories all set in the Regency period, is now up for pre-order on Amazon. My story, ‘A Christmas Wish’ is included. Set in Bath, ‘A Christmas Wish’ tells the story of Jane Mortimer and Nicholas Anstruther. They have their ‘meet cute’ on Milsom […] The post A Winter’s Romance: A Regency Anthology appeared first on Penny Hampson.| Penny Hampson
I’ve always thought that the most powerful scene in The Wizard of Oz has nothing to do with wicked witches and twisters and flying monkeys. It’s the anticlimax, the moment when Toto exposes the Wiz…| Nerdy Book Club
Between 1997 and 2001, throughout my military service, I wrote my first proper fantasy book. It was a hefty effort, 630,000 words in total. The book had everything: magic, monsters, lore, epicness, colorful protagonists. Only I never published it. Simply put, I tried sending it to various agents and publication houses, and they all turned it down. Rightfully so, because it wasn’t very good. In fact, it was pretty bad.| The Lost Words
Dear readers, it’s been a while since I posted an article here. The astute among thee may wonder why so, and also remember my book plan for 2022, which, so far, does not seem to be progressing according to plan [sic]. Well, my big intention was to bundle The Golden Horde weekly serial into a proper paperback volume and (re)-release it on Amazon. But then 2022 happened. War. And what do you do when your book theme is WWIII and it involves a bunch of countries across Europe and Asia? Well, yo...| The Lost Words
Sometimes, past things are best left in the past. How so, you may ask. Well, earlier this year, I told you I was working on a brand-new fantasy book. Nothing to do with Prince Dietrich, nothing to do with zombies. A fresh start. Then, roughly 15 chapters in, I gave up.| The Lost Words
We’re proud to announce the release of a new e-book called The Myth of the Garage and Other Minor Surprises. It’s a collection of our favorite columns for Fast Company magazine. And it’s free. Here’s where to find it: Get it for the Kindle or Nook or iPad. [U.S. residents only] For readers outside the U.S. or without ebook readers, you can download […]| Heath Brothers
Check out who is reading Switch. Neat!| Heath Brothers
