Summer Reading
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August 15, 2017

August is a reading month. Summer reading is for everyone, though it’s essential for developmental editors, agents, and acquisition editors. Some take their books to the beach. Editors to the porch. I have a handful of new client projects to read this month. So what am I reading? Sherman Alexie, You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me: A Memoir, Little, Brown & Company, 2017…. [Read More]

Three Book Giveaway
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July 25, 2017

Summer is for reading. And this summer World War II has never seemed more relevant. To reward reading and reflection on this history, Swenson Book Development LLC is offering a three book giveaway. Marcel’s Letters, Chasing Portraits, and Shot from the Sky are the three titles by author clients who have agreed to reward one lucky winner with all three books. To register to win,… [Read More]

Author Shelfies
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June 27, 2017

Good writers don’t happen by chance. Chances are they draw from their favorite books to craft their own. What’s on your shelf? We encourage you to post your shelfie in the comments below and on Instagram. Six of our authors with forthcoming or new releases shared what is on their bookshelves, giving you an inside look at the books they’ve been reading. Check out their… [Read More]

Tweak: Confessions of an Editor
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May 16, 2017

Hi. I’m Jill and I’m an editor. I enable writers. I mainline books like a junkie. I free base text into prose. I’m always jonesing for a good story. Yes, I’m hooked on grammar. I get a tremendous high when one of my writer’s books gets a starred review in Kirkus, featured in the New York Times or pops up as a question on Jeopardy…. [Read More]

Untitled Town Book Festival April 28-30 in Green Bay
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April 25, 2017

A new book festival brings Sherman Alexie and Margaret Atwood to the Packer’s Title Town the end of this month. Untitled Town Book and Author Festival is the first event of its kind for the greater Green Bay area and plans to unite readers, writers, podcasters, storytellers, publishers, books, and Packer fans. Alexie and Atwood are not the only big name authors who are featured… [Read More]

Historical Novels-in-Verse for Young Readers
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April 4, 2017

April is National Poetry Month. Do people hate poetry? According to novelist and poet Ben Lerner, yes. His new book, The Hatred of Poetry, argues we are always looking for our humanity in poetry and find mere poems instead. There are three reasons why I haven’t picked up an epic poem for decades. 1. The Epic of Gilgamesh. 2. The Illiad. 3. The Odyssey. My… [Read More]

One Book, One Community
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March 28, 2017

Across the nation there are community reading programs that ask everyone to read and discuss the same book. For almost 20 years the American Library Association has developed resources for librarians to build community–wide reading programs. People who share a common reading experience come together to discuss the book. “The idea is that the city that opens the same book closes it in greater harmony,”… [Read More]

Building your literary community
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February 21, 2017

One of the things no one tells writers about becoming a successfully published author is the importance of building your literary community and participating in book culture long before you land an agent or a publishing contract. There are no shortcuts to creating a career as an author. I hate to disillusion you of the idea that you will be “discovered” and become rich and… [Read More]

Holiday Reading Recommendations
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December 6, 2016

During these cold winter months I love to curl up with a book and escape to other worlds between the pages. I bet you do, too. Finding more time to enjoy reading for pleasure is the best gift you can give yourself this year. When I think about the books I’ve read during the last year there are some which stayed with me a long… [Read More]

Gratitude for Great Works
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November 29, 2016

As the year begins to come to a close, the Thanksgiving holiday reminds me of how much light there is in my life. I live in a community that reads, celebrates books, and supports literary artists and libraries. Books are something I feel passionately about and I’m grateful to have made them my calling, my livelihood, in this chapter of my life. For her skills… [Read More]