The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer ~ It’s a chance to share news ~ A post to recap the past week on my blog and share news about what’s coming up in the week ahead.
What’s been happening since my last Sunday Post:
Apparently, I haven’t posted a Sunday Post in a while. I had a post completely written for November 17th and then – just didn’t hit publish? Not sure, but that seems to be the case. Anyway, here’s what I would have said then, and what’s been going on since…
Well, the election … happened. And that’s all I’ll say about that.
There’s been a huge bookish migration from Twitter (or, I guess, X) over to Bluesky recently. If you’re on Bluesky, I’d love to connect with you there. I’ve been getting a flood of writing people, but I feel like I’m still missing my old blogging friends. So, if you’re there, give me a shout-out so I can see you!! You’ll find me @nicolemhewitt.bsky.social.
I enjoyed spending time with extended family for Thanksgiving. We went to my sister-in-law’s new lakehouse, which is quite an impressive property to say the least. Can’t wait to visit in better weather. Hope you all had a wonderful holiday too!
Book News:
- My first conference as an author! I attended the AISLE conference, which is for IL school librarians. This is the first time I’ve officially attended a conference as an author, so it was very exciting for me!
- Audiobook is up for pre-order – I spent a few days listening to audiobook narrators last month. I don’t get final say, but I do get input on the narration, and I was happy when they were responsive to my suggestion that we use two narrators, one for Brob’s POV and one for Lyriana’s (at first they were just going to have one female narrator, but I think that would make it more confusing – especially for MG readers). I haven’t found out for sure who they’re using, but my favorite guy narrator just happened to follow me on Instagram, so that feels like a really good sign. 🙂 The audiobook is now up on Audible for pre-order! (I actually love the way the audiobook cover looks with more of winter showing.)
- Discussion Guide – I decided to commission a Discussion Guide from an educator who regularly does them, and it turned out great! I included a page I wrote listing the formal poetry forms used in the book, too. I think the guide will be a fantastic resource for educators, libraries, book clubs, etc. You can see it here if you’re interested!
- Signed Up for World Read Aloud Day – I’ll be doing free virtual visits on February 5th for World Read Aloud Day! If you’re an educator and want to sign up for a timeslot, I still have a few open (and I may decide to add a few more if these fill up.) Check out my Sign-Up Genius.
Past book news you may have missed:
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- The book is available on both Edelweiss and NetGalley. (If you read, I’d appreciate it if you leave a review!)
- Also, it’s a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection!
- You can read about my inspiration for the book here and check out my trailer here.
- My pre-order campaign is live!
What I Read:
- I read Don’t Let the Forest In by CG Drews. Many of you know CG from Paper Fury. I was so excited to read this book, and it lived up to all my expectations! I’ve been thrilled to see the book’s success – it hit the NYT Bestseller’s list!! My review is already up, so check it out for more of my thoughts on it.
- I listened to Let It Glow by Marissa Meyer and Joanne Levy. This book is this month’s B&N monthly pick for MG, and it’s wonderful and delightful!
- Next I listened to Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell, B&N’s YA monthly pick. I feel like I’m the last one to read this one, but I also know there was some controversy about it having problematic Asian representation, so I was mindful of that when I listened. I can definitely see why the controversy exists, but as a white woman, I don’t feel qualified to give an opinion one way or the other that, but I will say if you choose to read it, there are lots of great books by Asian authors out there to read alongside it!
- I also listened to The Ice Monster by David Walliams. The audiobook for this one is narrated by a full cast and is great fun!!
- Then I read Bea Mullins Takes a Shot by Emily Deibert. This middle grade hockey romance is written by a fellow 2025 debut author. I absolutely love how relatable it is. Watch for my review coming very soon!
- And I listened to Dive Smack by Demetra Brodsky. I won a copy of this book ages ago, and never got around to reading it, so I decided to go ahead and listen to it. Honestly, at least half the time lately, I listen to the books I own instead of reading them.
- Finally, I listened to James by Percival Everett, which is Barnes & Noble’s Book of the Year (and now also the National Book Award winner). It’s a fantastic book – made me want to pick up Huck Finn to read the original inspiration and compare and contrast (I don’t think I ever read it, though I did read Tom Sawyer several years back).
Here’s what you may have missed on the blog since my last Sunday Post:
- #IMWAYR & #MMGM: Bite-Sized Reviews of Accidental Demons, Kareem Between, and Don’t Let the Forest In
- November 2024 Monthly Wrap-Up Round-Up Link-Up and Giveaway
- December 2024 Discussion Challenge Link-Up & Giveaway!
NEW Pre-order Campaigns
Head over to my Pre-Order Campaigns Page to see ALL of the pre-order deals, including pictures!!
Here’s a list of the pre-order campaigns I added to the list since my last Sunday Post:
Pre-order IT’S A LOVE/SKATE RELATIONSHIP by Carli J. Corson OR request it from your local library to receive an art print, a signed bookplate, and a bookmark! (INT) (Ends 1/27) CLICK FOR DETAILS
Pre-order IT’S WATCHING by Lindsay Currie from The Novel Neighbor to receive a signed copy with a special mystery stamp on the title page, and a foil sticker!! (Ends 2/3) CLICK FOR DETAILS
Pre-order STORY SPINNERS by Cassandra Federman from a participating indie bookstore to receive an exclusive art print! (Ends 3/17) CLICK FOR DETAILS
Lots of good stuff! Have any news? Feel free to share in the comments!
Congratulations on your first conference! Sounds like things are moving along well for your release.
Congratulations on attending the conference as an author. How exciting! I really like the idea for narrators for each POV. If more audiobooks did that, I’d probably read more.
Congratulations on your new author status, I wish you lots of success!
I added you on BlueSky ( Shelleyrae.bsky.social )
Have a great reading week
I really like Rainbow Rowell’s writing style (or I did back when I read some of her books), but she definitely did some insensitive things in how she shaped her stories, alas. 🙁 Always a good thing to be aware of while reading. Did you enjoy it?
The conference sounds so cool! I hope that maybe your book will get nominated for my state library book awards and one year I’ll get to meet you in person at our conference! I just went and ordered Let it Glow for my niece for Christmas, I think I picked her book last Christmas or her birthday from one of your suggestions too.
Congrats on your 1st conference there as an author!!
That’s awesome that you attended a conference as an author. I’m planning to get on Bluesky and get off Twitter soon too.
I’m glad to hear that authors do have a voice in choosing narrators although I know the final decision is not yours. Congrats on your first conference as an author!
Honestly I have no idea what Bluesky is! I left Twitter or X when Elon took over and I have enough social media as it is to be honest! Congratulations on your first conference as an author!