Swenson Book Development: What We’re Reading This Summer
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July 26, 2016

August is reading month and if you’re looking for something to take to the beach or enjoy at the cabin, consider these current titles the team at Swenson Book Development LLC is reading now. Samantha Kolb: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas     Alanna Rieser: The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway Mother… [Read More]

American Daredevil: Biography of America’s First Celebrity Travel Journalist
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May 31, 2016

More than 75 years ago, Richard Halliburton set sail in a Chinese junk, “The Sea Dragon,” hoping to arrive in time for the San Francisco Golden Gate International Expo. Instead, he vanished without a trace when his craft sank in March 1939. Halliburton had been a household name since 1930, known for his bestselling books published by Bobbs-Merrill. The first biography written about this nearly… [Read More]

ARROWS author Melissa Gorzelanczyk’s unusual road to publication
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January 26, 2016

The launch of Green Bay author Melissa Gorzelanczyk’s debut Young Adult novel ARROWS (Delacorte Press, 2016) is one example of how social media can play an important role in author success. Melissa’s novel ARROWS is a modern cupid story set in present-day Wisconsin combining the fantastical elements of Greek mythology with the contemporary drama of MTV’s Teen Mom,” according to Melissa’s website. Her novel also has… [Read More]

7 Books to read before the end of 2015
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December 22, 2015

The last week of the year is a book orgy for me. No distractions. No interruptions. It is the time of year when I can indulge in reading works I have set aside because I know I am going to enjoy them. Some of these might have ended on my list to wrap up for 2015 if I hadn’t set them aside for my end-of-year reading… [Read More]

2015 Books to Wrap Up
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December 8, 2015

This past year had many wonderful new titles and as the year comes to a close you’ll see many Best Books of 2015 lists in your newsfeed. Belarusian writer, Svetlana Alexievich won a Nobel Prize in Literature in 2015 and things are looking up for nonfiction writers. Elizabeth Kohlbert won a Pulitizer for The Sixth Extinction in 2015. There are many award lists of books,… [Read More]

All In Her Head: A Novel
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November 10, 2015

Today is the release date for All In Her Head: A Novel by Sunny Mera from She Writes Press. I look forward to celebrating the book launch in Brooklyn later this week. To be honest, I wasn’t sure this day would ever come. Not because Sunny Mera couldn’t write, but because of the enormous risks she would need to take in sharing her story with… [Read More]

Tis the Season of Book Festivals in the Midwest
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October 13, 2015

Book festivals are celebrations of reading and writing and they bring authors face to face with their audiences.  Don’t overlook them in your marketing plan as you will find they are a wonderful way to meet your readers and market your books. Like rock concerts and music festivals to recording artists, book festivals are the performance highlights to any author’s book tour. Autumn and book… [Read More]

Managing the business of being an author
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September 8, 2015

To be an author is a status many work hard to attain. Most of that work is invisible to the reader’s eye. Much of it doesn’t involve creative writing. The roles and responsibilities of an author go far beyond producing a wonderful manuscript. Writer is one role and the manuscript is one important responsibility. There are other roles besides writer and many more responsibilities. The role… [Read More]

Recommended. Summer. Reading.
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June 23, 2015

Two novels. Both are set during the Second World War and yet neither is a war story.      Anthony Doerr, All the Light We Cannot See, won the Pulitizer Prize for fiction this year. Read it to gain an appreciation for what editors mean when they say “character-driven plot.” This is much more than a story about WWII. Marie-Louise is a blind 14-year-old girl… [Read More]

Top 10 Books of 2014
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December 16, 2014

It’s December and I reflect back on the books I’ve read this year which stand out above all others from my vantage as a book development editor. Here’s my top 10 list of great new books and why I think these works will stand the test of time. Fiction #1 A Tale for the Time Being  by Ruth Ozeki – March 2013 In Tokyo, sixteen-year-old… [Read More]