2017 - She Writes Press (PDF)

1 2017 She Writes Press Catalog  2 About SHE WRITES PRESS She Writes Press is an independent publishing company founded in 2012, with a thriving publishing program dedicated to community, education, and giving women authors a voice and a platform for their writing. We are a curated press that’s both mission-driven and community-oriented, aiming to serve writers who wish to maintain greater ownership and control of their projects while still getting the highest quality editorial help possible for their work. Every expert we work with has been handpicked by She Writes Press Publisher Brooke Warner. Celebrating five years of publishing in 2017, She Writes Press has signed more than 300 authors. We are an award-winning press whose authors have appeared in publications ranging from O, The Oprah Magazine to People to Redbook, as well as all the industry trade reviews. Our books are distributed by Ingram Publisher Services and are sold into bookstores, libraries, and specialty retail accounts. We are excited to be partnering with high-caliber authors whose books are giving the publishing industry reason to keep its eye on She Writes Press. She Writes Press is now a proud member of the SparkPoint Studio family, spearheaded by its CEO, Crystal Patriarche. Publisher Brooke Warner is a cofounder of the press and leads the editorial and production department along with two talented and dedicated project managers, Cait Levin and Lauren Wise. She Writes Press is known for its beautiful cover designs and interiors; for this we would like to thank our design team, led by Creative Director Julie Metz, who’s supported in her efforts by Leah Lococo, Tabitha Lahr, Rebecca Lown, Kiran Spees, Stacey Aaronson and Katherine Lloyd.  3 SHE WRITES PRESS editorial solutions are a cornerstone of our commitment to our authors, and we have established three specific tracks for authors who submit their works to SWP. Track 1. Green Light/Good to Go Track 1 is for those SWP authors who are ready for publication. If we determine that you have a publish-ready manuscript, you will proceed directly into the production process, meaning your manuscript will go straight to layout (designed pages). Track 2. Copyediting (not included in the She Publishes package) Track 2 is for those SWP authors whose manuscript requires something heavier than a proofread. We offer a brief assessment of your work in order to point you to the places in your manuscript that have rendered it in need of a copyedit. We do not require that you get your copyedit done by SHE WRITES PRESS. Track 3. Developmental Editing/Coaching (not included in the She Publishes package) Track 3 is for those authors who require more than a copyedit. We will recommend that these authors work with one of SWP’s coaches for developmental editing and/or coaching. Your manuscript will qualify for this kind of service if we see inconsistencies in your story, the need for character and/or scene development, point of view problems, or lack of structure. Proofreading (included in the She Publishes package) All authors publishing on SHE WRITES PRESS will have their final manuscript proofread after their project has been laid out (designed). How It Works  4 SPRING 2017 Jumping Over Shadows by Annette Gendler To the Stars Through Difficulties by Romalyn Tilghman A Ring of Truth by Michelle Cox Cut by Amy S. Peele Of This Much I’m Sure by Nadine Kenney Johnstone Not a Perfect Fit by Jane A. Schmidt Expecting Sunshine by Alexis Marie Chute Dog as My Doctor, Cat as My Nurse by Carlyn Montes De Oca Oink by J. L. Newton Anchor Out by Barbara Sapienza I Know It in My Heart by Mary E. Plouffe Eden by Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg A Work of Art by Micayla Lally Arboria Park by Kate Tyler Wall Filling Her Shoes by Betsy Graziani Fasbinder Second Chance by Thais Nye Derich Light Radiance Splendor by Leah Chyten Home Free by Rifka Kreiter Last Seen by J.L. Doucette Blinded by Hope by Meg McGuire Operatic Divas and Naked Irishmen by Nancy R. Hinchliff Baffled by Love by Laurie Kahn American Family by Catherine Marshall-Smith Elmina’s Fire by Linda Carleton The Inheritors by Gita Baack Rethinking Possible by Rebecca Faye Smith Galli Song of the Plains by Linda Joy Myers Raising the Bottom by Lisa Boucher Godmother by Odile Atthalin Dark Lady by Charlene Ball Happier at Work by Gayle Van Gils Being Ana by Shani Raviv The Gift of Goodbye by Rebecca Whitehead Munn Slipsliding by the Bay by Barbara McDonald Stones by Jeanie Kortum The Velveteen Daughter by Laurel Davis Huber 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 table of contents  5 Fall 2017 The Bad Dream Notebook by Linda Dahl Terminal Hope by Sharon Eagle Parent Deleted by Michelle Darné Venetian Blood by Christine Evelyn Volker Bridge of the Gods by Diane Rios Finding My Badass Self by Sherry Stanfa-Stanley Living a Spiritual Life in a Material World by Anna Gatmon, PhD Among The Survivors by Ann Z. Leventhal Just Be by Meredith Rom Mikey and Me by Teresa Sullivan The Skeptic and the Rabbi by Judy Gruen I’m The One Who Got Away by Andrea Jarrell The First Signs of April by Mary-Elizabeth Briscoe Everything I Never Wanted by Barbara Santarelli Negatively Ever After by Deanna K. Willmon The House on the Forgotten Coast by Ruth Coe Chambers Remember Me As Loving You by Kimberly Childs Murder Under the Fig Tree by Kate Jessica Raphael The Other New Girl by LB Gschwandtner Loving Lindsey by Linda Atwell When It’s Over by Barbara Ridley Nightingale Tales by Lynn Dow Swearing Off Stars by Danielle Wong This Is How It Begins by Joan Dempsey Hug Everyone You Know by Antoinette Truglio Martin But My Brain Had Other Ideas by Deb Brandon Lost in the Reflecting Pool by Diane Pomerantz It Never Ends By Sandra Butler and Nan Fink Gefen Motherhood Reimagined by Sarah Kowalski You Can’t Buy Love Like That by Carol E. Anderson Our Grand Finale by Laraine Denny Burrell The Book of Calm by Nancy G. Shapiro Just in Time by Joan Lindstedt Jackson While They’re Still Here by Patricia Williams I Like You Like This by Heather Cumiskey Breaking Sad edited by Shelly Fisher and Jennifer Jones Hidden Treasure by Alice McDowell PhD Clara at the Edge by Maryl Jo Fox 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81  6 Spring 2017  7 Description: History was repeating itself when Annette Gendler fell in love with a Jewish man in Germany in 1985. Her great-aunt Resi had been married to a Jew in Czechoslovakia before World War II―a marriage that, while happy, created tremendous difficulties for the extended family once the Nazis took over their hometown in 1938 and ultimately did not survive the pressures of the time. Annette and Harry’s love, meanwhile, was the ultimate nightmare for Harry’s family of Holocaust survivors. Weighed down by the burdens of their family histories, Annette and Harry kept their relationship secret for three years, until they could forge a path into the future and create a new life in Chicago. As time went on, however, Annette found a spiritual home in Judaism―a choice that paved the way toward acceptance by Harry’s family, and redemption for some of the wounds of her own family’s past. about the author: Annette Gendler is a writer and photographer. Her work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Tablet Magazine, Bella Grace, and Artful Blogging, to name a few. She served as the 2014–2015 writer-in-residence at the Hemingway Birthplace Home in Oak Park, Illinois. Born in New Jersey, she grew up in Munich, Germany; she now lives in Chicago with her husband and three children. Visit her at www.annettegendler.com. Jumping Over Shadows APRIL 2017 “In this extraordinary work, Annette Gendler illuminates the borders and meeting points between Judaism and Christianity, Germans and Jews, American Jews and Israeli Jews. Writing with eloquent precision, she reminds us why converts to Judaism are among the most precious gifts to the Jewish people. This book confirms Annette Gendler as an indispensable Jewish voice for our time.” — Yossi Klein Halevi, author of Like Dreamers and Senior Fellow, Shalom Hartman Institute, Jerusalem Publication Date: April 4, 2017 Collections: Memoir Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 5.5 x 8.5 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-170-6 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-171-3 A Memoir Annette Gendler  8 Description: Andrew Carnegie funded fifty-nine public libraries in Kansas in the early 20th century―but it was frontier women who organized waffle suppers, minstrel shows, and women’s baseball games to buy books to fill them. Now, a century later, Angelina returns to her father’s hometown of New Hope to complete her dissertation on the Carnegie libraries, just as Traci and Gayle arrive in town―Traci as an artist- in-residence at the renovated Carnegie Arts Center and Gayle as a refugee whose neighboring town, Prairie Hill, has just been destroyed by a tornado. The discovery of an old journal inspires the women to create a library and arts center as the first act of rebuilding Prairie Hill after the tornado. As they work together to raise money for the center, Traci reveals her enormous heart, Angelina discovers that problem-solving is more valuable than her PhD, and Gayle demonstrates that courage is not about waiting out a storm but building a future. Full of Kansas history―from pioneer homesteaders to Carrie Nation to orphan trains―To the Stars Through Difficulties is a contemporary story of women changing their world and finding their own voices, powers, and self-esteem in the process. about the author: Romalyn Tilghman is a freelance writer and consultant in arts management. She earned BA and MS degrees from the University of Kansas and has studied writing through UCLA’s Writers Program. To the Stars Through Difficulties is her first novel, inspired by her work as Executive Director of the Association of Community Arts Councils of Kansas and then as Regional Representative for the National Endowment for the Arts. Since then, she has consulted with private foundations, government agencies, and performing arts groups, and served on national boards and panels. She lives in Southern California. AwardS: 2017 IPPY Awards: Contemporary Fiction, Gold Medal To the Stars Through Difficulties APRIL 2017 Publication Date: April 4, 2017 Collections: Contemporary Fiction, For Women Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 5.5 x 8.5 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-233-8 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-232-1 A Novel Romalyn Tilghman “. . . this charming debut will appeal to women’s-fiction fans of gentle reads.” — Booklist “. . . this warmhearted first novel celebrates the value of community (and libraries!); the inspirational story of women past and present is a must-buy for Kansas libraries and recommended for general adult readers.” — Library Review Journal  9 Description: Newly engaged, Clive and Henrietta now begin the difficult task of meeting each other’s family. “Difficult” because Clive has neglected to tell Henrietta that he is in fact the heir to the Howard estate and fortune, and Henrietta has just discovered that her mother has been hiding secrets about her past as well. When Clive brings Henrietta to the family estate to meet his parents, they are less than enthused about his impoverished intended. Left alone in this extravagant new world when Clive returns to the city, Henrietta finds herself more at home with the servants than his family, much to the disapproval of Mrs. Howard―and soon gets caught up in the disappearance of an elderly servant’s ring, not realizing that in doing so she has become part of a bigger, darker plot. As Clive and Henrietta attempt to discover the truth in the two very different worlds unraveling around them, they both begin to wonder: Are they meant for each other after all? about the author: Michelle Cox holds a BA in English literature from Mundelein College, Chicago, and is the author of the award-winning A Girl Like You, the first book in the Henrietta and Inspector Howard series. She is known for her wildly popular blog, How to Get Your Book Published in 7,000 Easy Steps – A Practical Guide, as well as her charming Novel Notes of Local Lore, a blog dedicated to Chicago’s forgotten residents. Cox lives with her husband and three children in the suburbs of Chicago. A Ring of Truth APRIL 2017 “Set in the 1930s, this romantic mystery combines the teetering elegance of Downton Abbey and the staid traditions of Pride and Prejudice with a bit of spunk and determination that suggest Jacqueline Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs.” — Booklist “Henrietta and Inspector Howard make a charming odd couple in Ring of Truth, mixing mystery and romance in a fizzy 1930s cocktail.” — Hallie Ephron, New York Times best-selling author of Night Night, Sleep Tight Publication Date: April 4, 2017 Collections: Contemporary Fiction, Mystery, For Women Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 5.5 x 8.5 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-196-6 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-197-3 A Henrietta and Inspector Howard Novel Michelle Cox  10 Description: While the federal government is launching a national investigation on the “equity” of organ distribution, a female tech CEO flies across the country to get a liver transplant. Soon, well-respected transplant nurse Sarah Golden and her best friend, Jackie, find themselves tangled up in an intense plot to uncover the answer to the question on everyone’s mind: Can you buy your way up to the top of the waiting list? Their pursuit of justice brings them to Miami, San Francisco, and Chicago―a sometimes fun, sometimes dangerous roller coaster ride from which they barely escape with their lives. about the author: Amy S. Peele was born and raised in the Chicago area, where she graduated from South Chicago School of Nursing. She discovered her passion for organ donation and transplantation when she started as a transplant coordinator at University of Chicago, and has since enjoyed a thirty-five-year career in transplantation in both Illinois and California. Peele has lived and worked in the San Francisco area since 1985 and has been writing creatively for over fifteen years. In addition to killing people in her murder mysteries, she enjoys meditating, yoga, swimming, and pursuing her spirituality by studying the teachings of Deepak Chopra. Cut APRIL 2017 Publication Date: April 11, 2017 Collections: Contemporary Fiction, Mystery Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 5.5 x 8.5 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-184-3 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-185-0 A Medical Murder Mystery Amy S. Peele  11 Description: At twenty-two, Chicagoan Nadine Kenney is thrilled to meet her future husband, Jamie, while vacationing in Florida. After a whirlwind, long-distance romance, Nadine leaves her friends, family, and city to join Jamie in suburban Massachusetts. Once married, they begin trying for a baby without knowing how hard that road will become. Nadine soon faces the little-known horrors of IVF when a procedure causes severe internal bleeding and she wakes up from emergency surgery with a six-inch scar instead of a baby bump. In the difficult year that follows, anxiety and additional failed fertility treatments threaten her new marriage and her mental state. By some saving grace, she eventually becomes pregnant naturally, but the horrors are not over: her son is diagnosed with potentially terminal kidney complications. Ultimately, Nadine learns that in an unpredictable life, the only thing she can be sure of is the healing power of hope. about the author: Nadine Kenney Johnstone teaches English at Loyola University and received her MFA from Columbia College in Chicago. Her work has been featured in Chicago magazine, The Moth, PANK, and various anthologies, including The Magic of Memoir. She presents at writing conferences internationally and lives near Chicago with her family. Of This Much I’m Sure APRIL 2017 Publication Date: April 11, 2017 Collections: Memoir Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 5.5 x 8.5 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-210-9 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-211-6 A Memoir Nadine Kenney Johnstone “Of This Much I’m Sure says it—the truths we keep secret. It goes there: messy and beautiful and complicated and terrifying and, ultimately, joyful. It’s a story about fighting like hell. It’s a story that is more necessary than ever before.” — Megan Stielstra, The Wrong Way to Save Your Life  12 Description: Not a Perfect Fit is a collection of stories that are laugh- out-loud funny one minute and thought-provoking the next. Stories range from Schmidt’s experience living off-grid as the only English woman in an Amish neighborhood to family trips that are remarkably similar to National Lampoon’s Vacation. Through it all, she manages to rise above the many challenges she faces―inspiring and entertaining her audience along the way. Filled with animal antics, gratitude, mishaps, and madcap adventures, Not a Perfect Fit’s tell-all, single-girl-gone-country, down-home stories give readers permission to laugh and cry― and, most important, to carry on. about the author: Jane A. Schmidt is an award-winning columnist for the Crawford County Independent and Kickapoo Scout. She is the owner of two businesses, Fitness Choices and Turtle Adventures. When not teaching her fitness classes or encouraging women to get outside, she spends her time backpacking in places like the Grand Canyon, Superior Hiking Trail, and Isle Royale National Park; biking across Wisconsin; hiking and kayaking in the Kickapoo Valley Reserve; or just hanging out with her animal family in rural Viola, Wisconsin. Not a Perfect Fit APRIL 2017 Publication Date: April 11, 2017 Collections: Memoir, Humor Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 5.5 x 8.5 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-206-2 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-207-9 Stories From Jane’s World Jane A. Schmidt “Jane Schmidt documents the essential day-to-day of rural Wisconsin life with a deft balance of sentiment, reportage, and humor. City mouse or country mouse, newcomer or old-timer, you will find yourself nodding, grinning, and sometimes dabbing at your eyes as you read these stories.” — Michael Perry, best-selling author of Truck: A Love Story and The Jesus Cow  13 Description: After her son, Zachary, dies in her arms at birth, visual artist and author Alexis Marie Chute disappears into her “Year of Distraction.” She cannot paint or write or tap into the heart of who she used to be, mourning not only for Zachary but for the future they might have had together. It is only when Chute learns she is pregnant again that she sets out to find healing and rediscover her identity―just in time, she hopes, to welcome her next child. In the forty weeks of her pregnancy, Chute grapples with her strained marriage, shaken faith, and medical diagnosis, with profound results. Glowing with riveting and gorgeous prose, Expecting Sunshine chronicles the anticipation and anxiety of expecting a baby while still grieving for the child that came before―enveloping readers with insightful observations on grief and healing, life and death, and the incredible power of a mother’s love. about the author: Alexis Marie Chute is an award-winning artist, writer, and filmmaker. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting and photography from the University of Alberta, and her Masters of Fine Arts in creative writing from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Chute is a highly regarded public speaker and has traveled around the world presenting on art, writing, and the healing capacities of creativity. She is widely published in anthologies and magazines, and her artwork has been exhibited internationally. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada with her husband and their three living children. Expecting Sunshine APRIL 2017 Publication Date: April 18, 2017 Collections: Memoir, Self-Help, Inspirational Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 5.5 x 8.5 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-174-4 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-175-1 A Journey of Grief, Healing, and Pregnancy after Loss Alexis Marie Chute “An amazingly moving and emotional story that any woman―or any parent― can easily relate to.” — Jennifer Hamilton, Editor, CanadianFamily.ca “An honest and tender memoir about the complex and difficult emotions of grief and joy a mother goes through during a pregnancy that follows the death of a child.” — Lindsey Henke, LICSW, founder of Pregnancy After Loss Support  14 Description: Written for the dog and cat lover, animal advocate, and fan of natural medicine, Dog as My Doctor, Cat as My Nurse reveals how our timeless relationships with our beloved animal friends hold the keys to our optimal health. Acupuncturist, plant-based nutritional consultant, and animal advocate Carlyn Montes De Oca weaves together an insightful tapestry of prescriptive advice, personal stories about her lively “six-pack” of rescue dogs and cats, and testimonials from other dog and cat lovers, including best-selling author Jack Canfield. In an age when most people will suffer from a preventable chronic disease, Dog as My Doctor, Cat as My Nurse opens readers’ eyes to the fact that our beloved companion animals can be some of the most powerful allies we will ever have on the journey toward a healthier, happier, and more extraordinary life. about the author: Carlyn Montes De Oca is an acupuncturist, plant-based nutritional consultant, and animal advocate in private practice near San Francisco. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Loyola Marymount University in communication arts and a master’s degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine from Emperor’s College. She is also certified in plant-based nutrition from the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutritional Studies at Cornell University. She was voted PETA’s Sexiest Vegetarian Over 50 in 2011, and has been a spokesperson for the Guardian Campaign at In Defense of Animals. She is also the founder of The Animal-Human Health Connection, which focuses on bringing awareness to the many powerful ways that animals enhance human health, happiness, and longevity. Montes De Oca lives in Marin County with her husband, Ken, and her beloved rescue animals. Dog as My Doctor, Cat as My Nurse APRIL 2017 Publication Date: April 18, 2017 Collections: Non-Fiction Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 6 x 9 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-186-7 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-187-4 An Animal Lover’s Guide to a Healthy, HAPPY, AND EXTRAORDINARY life CARLYN MONTES DE OCA, LAC, MTOM “Dog as My Doctor, Cat as My Nurse is a beautifully written book filled with healing insights and heartwarming stories that compel us to look at our relationships with our dogs and cats in a whole new way. For those who seek out alternative therapies or for those who are just curious, this engaging, informative, and entertaining read will have you marveling over the healing powers of dogs and cats. If you love animals you will love this book. If you don’t live with an animal, you will want to adopt one so you too can live a healthier, happier, and more extraordinary life.” — Maria Jacquemetton, Emmy Award–winning Executive Producer and Writer of Mad Men  15 Description: Emily Addams is the last person you’d expect the police to be circling in a poisoning investigation. A professor of women’s studies, a foodie, and a doting mom, Emily has spent her life building a campus community and engaging in peaceful struggles against injustice. But when Peter Elliott, a professor of plant biology at bucolic Arbor State, is found comatose in a pig pen clutching a piece of Emily’s corn bread (unmistakable for its goat cheese and caramelized onions), it’s in her direction that the police turn. Even as she comes under suspicion, Emily and her comrades in women’s, American, and ethnic studies are fighting the administration’s attempt to defund their programs and run their beloved Arbor State more like a corporation than a place of higher learning. Her efforts to save her own skin and to protect the campus community she loves converge as she launches her own investigation to find out who really slipped the professor a piece of cornbread spiked with pesticide―and as always, it is community that helps her solve the crime. In an expression of communal spirit, Oink comes with recipes. about the author: J. L. Newton is Professor Emerita at a land grant university. She is at work on another mystery and lives in California, where she tends her garden and cooks for family and friends. You can contact her via [email protected], www.face-book. com/TastingHomeComingOfAgeInTheKitchen, and Twitter: @ jnewton70. Oink APRIL 2017 Publication Date: April 18, 2017 Collections: Fiction, Mystery Price: $16.95 paperback/$9.95 e-book 5.5 x 8.5 Distributed by Ingram Publisher Services Print ISBN: 978-1-63152-212-3 E-ISBN: 978-1-63152-213-0 A Food For Thought Mystery J. L. Newton “It has been said that the comic campus novel is no more (things in higher ed are verging on the tragic), but Oink proves otherwise. A witty combination of a campus novel, a murder mystery, a debate about GMOs, and a recipe book, Oink is a celebration of community connected to the joy of food and fellowship. At a time when collegiality is on the decline because of the corporatization of higher education, Newton’s light-hearted novel makes the serious point that collegiality is important not only personally but also politically.” —Maggie Berg and Barbara K. Seeber, authors of The Slow Professor: Challenging the Culture of Speed in the Academy