authors: book clubs are underrated

I launched my memoir, Under the Birch Tree, ten months ago. My book events have wound down and are now inching along in pace with the spring weather. I recently attended three book club events in the past couple of months, and I was surprised at what I learned from them. Book club events are underrated and I underestimated my [...]

7 steps (or less) to ready your memoir for publication

There's a lot written about starting a memoir, how to do it, how to organize it, if you have enough reflection and takeaways. And then there’s how to structure your memoir, too. But what happens after you’ve completed your revisions and edits, when you believe you have a finished work ready for the eyes of prospective publishers? Not so fast. Did [...]

Do you know why writers write?

I find most reasons writers write are self-centered, inner directed, maybe even self-serving. Don’t get me wrong. I consider writers to be artists and artists create from the self, personal expressions manifested through words or pictures. But I wonder if there could be more to the egocentric responses." “Why I Write,” a title of an essay consistently pops up in writing [...]

How “aha” moments are your “becoming”

Michelle Obama’s recently released memoir, Becoming, has sold more than 2 million copies in 15 days. The number of copies sold in a short period of time did not surprise me. The long awaited release, characterized by preorder numbers and publicity, drove anticipation. Why were so many eager for the book to be in hand, to hold it as if [...]

Transitioning: book publication to post pub

Your book was published. You cold called indie bookstores and libraries, sent email inquiries to venues for author events, you met up with writing groups, friends, co-workers, fellow writing colleagues, you solicited book reviews and book awards. Publicity and book tours. There was always something to do. Perhaps some authors have no discernable transition because it’s a “business as usual” [...]

post publication – the unexpected

And what a post publication week it has been! On pub day, Culturalist included Under the Birch Tree in its “Top 10 Inspiring Stories of Self-Discovery to Read When You’re Feeling Lost.” And Buzzfeed listed my memoir as “Five Captivating Memoirs You Need to Read This Summer.”  My book made a list? I certainly didn't expect my book to make [...]

i called you a memoir, part II

  “I considered creating you after I read Summers with Juliet by Bill Roorbach and realized how a memoir such as this could be so inspiring and magical while understated in innocence and adventure and complement to nature. I had something uplifting to express as I could communicate my own experiences, drawing connections to places and people and home, despite [...]

What was my inspiration, motivation and publishing process?

  Find out what first inspired me to write, my motivation to publish my memoir now, and how I found the publishing process to be, plus answers to many more questions about the making of Under the Birch Tree from my interview with the San Francisco Book Review.       San Francisco Book Review interviews Nancy Chadwick

notes from a (almost) published writer

With just one week away until my memoir's debut, and one day remaining for the Goodreads giveaway, the excitement is kicking in! There's still time to preorder, or maybe you are holding out to support your local bookstore. In the meantime, enter the giveaway, if you haven't already. You could win! There's bookstores to visit and connect with as well [...]

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