It’s the season of New Year’s resolutions, and as the temperatures drop, what better season is there for spending time in the kitchen honing your cooking and baking skills? Whether you’re sharpening your skills for fun or as part of your career, a valuable resource available to you in your culinary endeavors is your local library. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind… [Read More]
Happy Holidays from Swenson Book Development LLC. It’s been a wonderful year in new releases! Our next newsletter and blog will go out on New Year’s Day! Sign-up for our monthly newsletter of insider info and our bi-weekly blog about the business of being an author and the writing life. Here’s to more great books in 2019. Merry reading and happy writing. … [Read More]
Around the country there are a variety of book festivals which bring authors and readers together. Book festivals are different than literary festivals which are intended for writers instead of readers. They are opportunities for authors to promote and market their book directly to their audience. Readers find them celebrations of their favorite books and authors with readings, signings, presentations, special events, and performances. While… [Read More]
As the chilly air of winter continues to give way to spring sunshine, readers and writers from far and wide are gearing up for UntitledTown Book and Author Festival in Green Bay this April. A celebration of reading, writing, and the literary arts in general, the Festival occurs over the course of four days from April 19-22, and it has something for everyone, featuring “120… [Read More]
It is a privilege to serve on the board of the Fox Cities Book Festival and it is with great excitement I can share the news about the 2018 selection for the Fox Cities Reads. Each year one book brings together the communities of the Fox Cities. This year that one book is Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys. In 1945, World War II… [Read More]
Looking for something to read or gift this holiday season? Here are my book recommendations for the best of 2017. None of these titles are written by my clients. Each one of these books is something I’ve enjoyed as a reader during the last year and give you my best word-of-mouth recommendation. I read four or five books a month for pleasure and these are… [Read More]
Whether you are a reader, aspiring author, or working on your next book, there are things YOU can do which make an enormous difference in the life of an author. The reason authors write a book is to connect with readers and the best rewards come from readers who let an author know their book had an impact. Most readers don’t know how important their… [Read More]
Will Schwalbe, author of End-of-Your-Life Book Club, recently spoke at the Fox Cities Book Festival. He read several excerpts from this wonderful new title Books for Living, a memoir of a reader. In 26 chapters, Schwalbe writes about the books which shaped his own life story. He did not intend the specific books which are chapter titles to be a reading list of either the… [Read More]
Linda J. Spielman’s A Field Guide to Tracking Mammals in the Northeast is a wonderful reference tool for the backyard enthusiast or the back-to-the-woods survivalist. Countryman Press published her book on July 4 and her distributor W.W. Norton sent a copy I donated to a Little Free Library here in Appleton, Wisconsin. Little Free Libraries began in Wisconsin and grew into a global movement based… [Read More]
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]
