Gift Book & Reading Recommendations from Author Jen Malone

As a huge fan of author/editor Jen Malone, I'd likely buy an igloo from her if I were an Eskimo. What does that mean? Simply: I trust her taste. So much so that I am sharing her holiday book-gifting recommendations here. It's never too late for a good book!
You can contact Jen at her website here, where you can also request a signed bookplate for her book, At Your Service. Follow the links on her site to take you to her editing services website or her Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest pages. (Remember-good taste!)

Here's what Jen has to say:



 

Perfect For: Kids ages 2-6, anyone who loves a good rhyme and cuddly friends

Why: Every December my family counts down to Christmas by opening one holiday book a night (these stories only come out once a year so they're "like new" each time! My kids are getting a little old for some of them, but they don't care one bit and we all snuggle on the couch to read!) This book will be hanging out under our tree this year because the rhyming is a sheer joy to read aloud and the premise (a boy's monster needs a tree for the holidays, but chaos ensues) is giggle-inducing. 

Perfect For: Kids ages 7-11, anyone who loves funny and sweet, ice hockey, or cats in bathtubs  Why: I read this one aloud to my twins' class this spring and it went over HUGE! There are tons of laugh-out-loud scenarios in this sweet story that is reminiscent of Beverly Cleary or The Penderwicks, but with a Modern Family sensibility (the family it follows through a school year is made up of four adopted boys and their two dads). I love the way it portrays an untraditional family in such a traditional setting- it's very non-preachy but includes a lovely lesson on what it means to be a family today.

Perfect For: Kids ages 7-11, anyone with an annoying sibling Why: My twin boys complain a lot about how annoying their little sister can be, but at least they've never woken up with plastic flowers superglued to their hair! Not so for Masha, who has the injustice of having a certifiable genius (she would say "evil genius") as a little sister. This is a very sweet story (pun intended) about sibling rivalry that includes a ton of outrageous and funny scenarios.

Perfect For: Kids ages 9-13, anyone who loves NYC, mysteries, or art Why: Marcia Wells and I both participated on a Books of Wonder panel called "Only in New York" this fall, which highlighted books that were love stories to the Big Apple. This book is definitely that and her hero, Eddie, is a great little detective. Eddie's drawing skills land him a job helping the police scout out a potential museum heist and I adored the sketches throughout the book. Those, plus the fast pacing, make this one great for reluctant readers!

Perfect For: Kids ages 9-13, anyone who loves presidential history and/or girl power Why: This is one of my top picks for the year. It follows a First Daughter who is not so thrilled about how her mom's new job as President is cramping her social life. When Audrey uncovers Alice Roosevelt's diary in her bedroom floorboards she discovers she's not the first rebellious daughter to occupy the White House Residence. Alice's diary entries were absolutely my favorite part of this book- her voice jumps off the page and it's a perfect mix of history meets modern!

Perfect For: Teens ages 12 and up, anyone who loves travel, reality TV, or has a sister.  Why: My 2016 YA is all about a younger sister doing something crazy for her older sister, so I'd be pre-disposed to love this book even if I didn't already love its author even more. But I promise this story doesn't require any bias to adore- it's a hilarious trip around the world as two sisters compete in an Amazing Race-style reality contest, hellbent on getting revenge on the cheating ex-boyfriend (who happens to be on an opposing team) of the older sister. This is So. Much. Fun!

Perfect For: Kids ages 12 and up, anyone who loves superhero movies and plenty to action Why: We listened to this on audiobook as we drove from Boston to Buffalo this summer and, even after nine cramped hours, my kids didn't want to get out of the car when we got there! We kept trying to find a place to pause, but every chapter ended on a cliffhanger. This one is Oceans Eleven meets The X-Men and is full of characters with supercool abilities and fast-paced action.

Perfect For: Kids ages 12 and up, anyone who loves teen romance from the hottest YA authors.  Why: This is what I plan to recommend to anyone who isn't sure which books their gift recipients have already read. This one is brand new and includes twelve stories from bestselling YA authors (Rainbow Rowell, Stephanie Perkins, Gayle Forman...), so there's something for everyone! Plus holiday romance- what could be better? Bookplates will be signed by the adorable Myra McEntire, who is credited with helping inspire the book (and contributes a fantastic story).

One for the Adults! Why: While I can attest from a few short meetings that Rainbow Rowell is one lovely human being, we're not yet on bestie terms (don't worry; it's on my bucket list).  Therefore, I can't offer signed bookplates for this one, BUT this book is a Top Five of 2014 for me and I couldn't resist the chance to share it. While the premise is a bit "rom-com" (a woman having marital problems retreats to her childhood home where she finds a telephone that lets her speak with her husband pre-wedding, pre-kids) it packs a huge emotional punch that had me shedding tears.

Another for Adults! Why: Technically a young adult novel, I think this would appeal equally- if not more- to adults. The writing is BRILLIANT. it left me sweaty, and scrubbed-clean, and very, very humbled. Jandy Nelson is a genius. That's really all I can say about this one. Sadly I can't offer signed bookplates for this either, but hopefully the awesome cover will make up for that.

Vestal Wins Major Literary Prize

I could claim to have know him when. But the glory belongs only to author Shawn Vestal. I simply had the good fortune to talk with the recipient of the PEN/Robert W. Bingham literary prize a couple weeks before he was presented the award this fall in New York City.

The $25,000 award, the richest from the PEN American Center, is presented for an outstanding work of debut fiction. Vestal was brought to the podium by acclaimed author Louise Erdrich as he sat among other notable novelists and playwrights. An account of his win and subsequent discussion of the literary climate in Spokane, WA where he is a columnist is related in his home newspaper, The Spokesman-Review.

Vestal's short stories are collected in Godforsaken Idaho. In The Spokesman-Review piece, Gregory Spatz and Sam Ligon of Eastern Washington University's MFA program discuss Vestal's story collection which was written as his master's thesis. They also talk about the wealth of writing talent in Washington state and specifically, Spokane, home to another acclaimed author and former Spokesman-Review journalist, Jess Walter, one of Vestal's pals. They are but two on a long list of writing talent in or from that region of the great Northwest. Check out the Spokesman-Review article for much more name-dropping.

Vestal joins an amazing list of writers. I'm thrilled and lucky that a fellow journalist, Gary Graham, Editor-In-Chief at Spokane and formerly state editor at the Fort Wayne (IN) News-Sentinel links us all together. Graham edited me a hundred years ago when I was a stringer and newly-turned out reporter and journalism grad from Ball State University in Muncie, IN. Today, he edits Vestal in Spokane at the same paper where Walter once worked and where his brother, Ralph Walter, still does. A little drinking water from Spokane, anyone?

Looking forward 1.27.15

Meeting A Great One, King of Roadkill Tales

As a long-time reader and fan of Carl Hiaasen, it was great to finally meet him recently at a book-signing in Bethesda, MD. Hiaasen addressed some 250 fans, many of them kids, at the Bethesda Public Library Oct,. 7.

Like his other adult fans, I've been reading Hiaasen since way back in the Double Whammy days. That one's a personal fave, along with Tourist Season, Skin Tight, Stormy Weather and Lucky You. I was reminded about Strip Tease and its movie during his verrrry dry talk. And I never even knew he was a co-writer of the Michael J. Fox movie Doc Hollywood.

What I do know, which was reinforced this night, is that Hiaasen has a whole new generation of fans coming up, and they're starting early, from the look of things, in about sixth grade. I introduced my own son, now 23, to Hiaasen when Hoot came out. Until this week I didn't even know Hoot was made into a movie, or that it is based on actual events from Hiassen's boyhood. More importantly for this quasi-Parrothead, I didn't know Jimmy Buffett figures prominently in Flush, the book, the movie, the music. Jimmy Buffett as a science teacher? Where have I have been?!

Determined to catch up quickly, I ordered Hiaasen's latest kid's book (Middle Grade to Young Adult) Skink No Surrender.  Hiaasen's signing landed on the calendar before I had the chance to read it. The eager, young faces in the audience Tuesday with their sincere questions left no doubt this will be great. How could it not be -- Hiaasen brings back his wacked-out renegade roadkill-eating runaway former Florida governor, now known famously, and only, as Skink. Gotta love it. Hiaasen's advice to a budding junior author in the group who earnestly asked for writing advice? "Don't write about roadkill," he deadpanned.

Hiaasen shared more dry stories from his writing life, including the inspiration for other characters and stories, how he got into children's books, and his sometimes nutty fan following. His discipline to write every day, good or bad, want to or not, comes from his experience as a daily newspaper journalist, he said. Hiassen remains equally well-known for his columns in the Miami Herald.

And stories involving roadkill.

A Shout-Out to Editor- Author Jen Malone!

When I first joined Twitter, one of the people I met was author Jen Malone. Her author website drew me in. Then I read her bio and found there was a long version and a short version-- an official bio and a not-so-official bio. 

Jen's entire bio is enchanting. Here's an example: "I met my husband on the highway. Literally. He passed my car and I made a face at him (I was with my BFF and we sometimes- fine, often- did silly stuff like make faces at total strangers). Then HE made a face back at me the next time we passed, which was both nerdy and cool. I happen to like nerdy and cool. So I wrote my BFF's cell phone number (because this was the Dark Ages and I didn't own a cell phone yet) on a piece of paper and held it up to the window. He called. We married. There was some dating in between."

This person was already Double-AA-OK in my book!

Then in the run-up to #PitchWars on Twitter, Jen graciously offered free critiques for query letters.  I sent her the query letter for the book I am now writing. While free is always good, as starving artists will agree, what struck me about Jen's offer was not the price but the spirit in which it was offered.

The comments she offered on that query letter were fact-based, on the skill of writing, rather than personal-opinion based. She kept her suggestions upbeat and encouraging while still noting what could and should be fixed. She was professional, delivering much-needed advice and support at the same time. 

I've paid much more for advice that was delivered in a snarky, personal-opinion-based manner and was much more critical than constructive. I say, bring on all the criticism you can to help me make the work better, as long as it is constructive.

Given Jen's style, it is no surprise I gravitated to her editing "un-blog," as she calls it. There, she posts excerpts from posts she has contributed to other writing blogs, and it is where she houses her editing services. I'm excited to say Jen will be taking her red pen to Boxed Set's first 50 pages and its query letter. I'm excited because I know her comments and constructive criticism can only serve to make the manuscript tighter and stronger and the query letter more compelling. 

I'm thrilled to be meeting Jen this Friday at the 2014 Baltimore Book Festival, in her hometown. Jen will be speaking 12-1 Friday Sept. 26 at the Enoch-Pratt Library's children's stage and signing her book, At Your Service afterwards. This may be her first book, which recently launched at the end of August 2014, but the amazing Jen has at least, count 'em, four more books on contract and coming out in the next couple of years. As if her previous life as a publicist for Miramax Films and 20th Century Fox was not exciting enough! 

Jen writes for 'tweens and teens--Middle Grade (MG) and Young Adult (YA) fiction. I just finished At Your Service, and although I exceed the target audience age range for MG by just a little bit, I was enthralled by this sweet story. The first three words of the book are: Oh. Holy. Yikes. I was a goner. The cover is just perfect also. No one is too old to enjoy this book. Judge for yourself. The blurb which follows is from Jen's site. The picture is of my copy, which I will be getting signed Friday for a special 'tween I know. I'm looking forward to getting to know Jen and working with her.

"Chloe Turner has pretty much the BEST life. She gets to live in the super fancy Hotel St. Michele, New York City is her home town and her dad Mitchell Turner, concierge extraordinaire, is teaching her all the secrets of the business so she can follow in his footsteps. After helping him out with a particularly difficult kid client, Chloe is appointed the official junior concierge tending to the hotel’s smallest, though sometimes most demanding, guests.

Her new position comes with tons of perks like cupcake parties, backstage passes to concerts, and even private fittings with the hippest clothing designers. But Chloe hasn’t faced her toughest challenge yet. When three young royals, (including a real-life PRINCE!) come to stay, Chloe’s determined to prove once and for all just how good she is at her job. But the trip is a disaster, especially when the youngest disappears. Now it’s up to Chloe to save the day. Can she find the missing princess before it becomes international news?"

 

On Faith

I had an opportunity to talk with author Shawn Vestal, a columnist for the Spokesman-Review in Spokane. Vestal's short story collection Godforsaken Idaho was shortlisted for The Story Prize in 2014. It was longlisted for the PEN/​Robert W. Bingham award, and the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing.

His prose is magnificent; a joy to read. Exciting. The first story in the collection, "The First Several Hundred Years Following My Death," opens the book with much more than a bang. I kept re-reading passages for their beauty and new-ness. I dog-eared pages I couldn't wait to share. 

As fellow Spokane author Jess Walter says on the back cover of Vestal's book, "Wickedly funny and surprisingly profound, these nine stories of prophets and parents, of doppelgangers and pocket dogs, form a thrilling introduction to one of the wryest, most inventive new voices in fiction."

Yes.

Our conversation was not intended as an interview for this blog, nor to talk about his book, although it arrived in the mail the very afternoon we spoke. Instead, Vestal was kind enough to share his story of querying for an agent (and another agent) with me. Although his genre differs and his agent search was a short one (both times), the ultimate take-away I heard is this: keep the faith in your own project, and don't let too much outside noise erode that. 

We also discussed the importance of an MFA for a serious writer. Vestal believes it was a great fit for his writing growth and career.

Lastly, after a day and last few weeks when I've been consumed with writing critiques, challenges, contests such as #PitchWars, #PitMad, and Chum Bucket (from 'the' Query Shark, Janet Reid), and considering which in-person writers' groups to attend via MeetUp, it was quite nice to stop and just listen. My visit with Vestal was calming yet exciting, re-affirming and inspiring.

Reading his collection later in the day was perfect timing; exciting, re-affirming and inspiring. Calming, it was not. In a good way.

Going the distance

There were times when I thought Boxed Set might never be finished. More accurately, there was a period when I didn't know when it would be finished. I think the end was always more or less in mind, but the middle was stuck for quite some time. Now that it has been finished for awhile, left at room temperature and seriously edited, I wonder when the next book will be finished.

Instead of worrying when, if or how Boxed Set will be published, because I believe that it will, that it must be one way or another, I spend more time thinking about going the distance again in a second book. I am about 20,000 words in, and at this point 60-80,000 words seem a lofty goal.

As for Boxed Set, we hope to publish traditionally, but I know as a last resort it could be self-published. The digital age has made that much more sophisticated, attainable and easy to move right onto selling platforms. Still, for two journalists, traditional publishing has much more significance for us. 

So query we will, and meanwhile, I write. Different genre, different style. Must. Keep. Writing. That's what every author advises.

As for what it takes to finish a novel, Amanda Patterson says on her blog, Writers Write, that the five necessary characteristics are self-belief, the ability to learn and grow, the ability to pay attention, perseverance and obsession.

Since I've got perseverance and obsession pretty well covered, I need to remind myself what she says about self-belief. "Too much self-belief can make you blind to your shortcomings. You can become convinced that your way is the only way. Authors who want to publish know they are creating a product. If you’re writing for an audience, you know that you have to consider what that audience wants. This could mean taking a writing class, doing your own research, or reading books on how to write. If you want to become an artist, you take art classes. If you want to learn how to play a musical instrument, you take music lessons. Why would you believe becoming a writer is any different? Being arrogant about your abilities could lead to many wasted years."

Patterson's thoughts on the ability to pay attention are interesting also. "Writers are readers first. Reading is your first step in learning how to pay attention. Published writers read a lot. Writers are also observers of human nature and human behavior. The writers who succeed are curious as to why people, including themselves, do the things they do. They want to know what gives people pleasure and pain. They see patterns in people’s lives. They listen to their words and see if their actions follow what they say. They create characters who are real. If you want to create a memorable book, watch and listen. Most of your material is closer than you could ever imagine."

But my favorite thought from her article is really about obsession. It makes me feel good to be obsessed with our book. "It is easy enough to write a bad book, but authors who make a living out of writing spend an extraordinary amount of time and effort to get things right. You should care about the final product. This is when being obsessive is a good thing. Every rewrite, every edit, and every stage of your book’s life should be important to you. No mistake, no matter how insignificant, should escape your notice."

The above tells me I am right on track to go the distance, and I'm loving every step of the process.

On Wound and Want, and Comps, again.

In a flurry of editing for the #PitchWars deadline 8.18.14 in the Twitter-sphere, I've been trading critiques with other writers, published authors and mentee hopefuls like me, and seeking feedback from a second round of beta readers (gamma readers?) and even neighbors. Sent the manuscript last night to my son, 23, who promised he and a friend would both read and report back.

As I asked in the supportive environment on Twitter where writers gather under hashtags like #amwriting, #PitchWars, #pitchwarssupport group, and more, how much advice is too much? 

Turns out the unanimous answer was: no amount of advice from fellow writers, published or not, is too much. But, said one person responding, you still have to consider your own manuscript. Well, geez. 

So as I sort through the critique notes, print them out so I can see them all together, and as I type up other notes, some from phone advice by a multi-awarded best-selling author, I am "considering" the manuscript we've completed for Boxed Set, before I start any surgery.

One interesting expression from all of this stands out.I have a scrap of paper from a note I took a couple weeks ago. "Remember the Wound and the Want." I love that! It was from Lori Goldstein on YATopia.

As explained, the intensity of want which the main character experiences is key for the reader. It instills doubt in the reader about whether the protagonist can achieve whatever it is, the more intensely he wants it. This also creates needed tension in the plot, especially if circumstances conspire to thwart the main character's achievement(s).

The wound is the thing that makes them want. It's that situation, happening, antagonist, set-up that causes the main character to have to do something. The wound also provides the depth to the story, the motive(s) and back-story. Gotta have that.

So as I study our Jack Wroblesky and Holly Anderson, I'm looking to see if we have fully-captured their Wound and Want. I love a great saying, especially when it speaks to me loudly and clearly.

In an earlier post, I mentioned The Financial Lives of the Poets: A Novel by Jess Walter, which was suggested as a similar theme to Boxed Set, a comp, then. I finished reading it, and haven't found a book I have loved so, so much in many years. It's just a beautiful piece of literary fiction, and so damn funny at the very same time the prose is making your heart swell. It's only a comp in terms of theme: unemployed, sometime hapless journalist. Our book is not literary fiction, and even if it were, I could not compare it to Walter's book. That would require hubris. Another unemployed journalist, Tess Monaghan, leads the crime series novels of Laura Lippman, also a former Baltimore Sun writer.

What I've also learned about comps is that it's important to find some comps in tone, rather than theme or even setting. I'd thought about searching for non-genre fiction set in the Midwest, until a very smart author-friend reminded me I should search for tone.

We've said before our book leans toward the humor of Hiassen or Dorsey, with a dose of reality and moral message. That may work, although our book does not open in a humorous spot. So the comp search continues...seeking a coming-of-age/second-time-around story for grown-ups in adult contemporary/commercial fiction. Not Young Adult (YA) or New Adult (NA). But our Jack is going to have to make himself into a *new* adult in this book. Different kind of new adult from the genre.

If you have a suggestion, please leave a comment! And if you're the one who told me all about Wound and Want, let me know so I can credit you.

A wisp of an idea and then, 300 pages

In pitching and querying Boxed Set, I've used the phrase, based on actual events and, loosely based...

We wrote the first half of this story about an unemployed journalist while one of us was an unemployed journalist. David M. Ettlin, a legend at The Baltimore Sun, describes the day the real debacle hit its crescendo, on his blog The Real Muck. He uses the words bloodbath and massacre, and five years later they still do not seem like hyperbole. Print journalism was having a moment in 2008, 2009, and it hasn't gone away.

I had forgotten about Ettlin's blog post until recently, although I had read it a couple times in past years. Lived through April 29, 2009 with my co-author, who recovered very nicely and returned very successfully in 2010 to his first love, journalism, after six months of not working and a hateful one year on the dark side in PR.

The column resurfaced as I looked again at our protagonist, Jack Wroblesky, the out-of-work sports writer, to make sure his voice is as authentic as possible. 

But the key reference in Ettlin's column is not about my co-author. It is this: Wednesday afternoon, (sportswriter Rick) Maese was back at work at Oriole Park doing an interview when he got the news of his layoff by telephone, according to accounts from colleagues at the newspaper.

Boxed Set is not about Maese either. We heard about what happened to him when it happened, but we also learned of and heard from too many other journalists in the same predicament Ettlin describes, and not just at the Sun. And specifically there were others notified by cell phone while out in the trenches covering the news they had been assigned to cover: sportswriters, photographers, top editors. 

These threads wove themselves together into the first tiny swatch of an idea for our book. And then we ran with it, adding the color to make it fiction. Fiction based on fact.

The second half of the book and the ending happened when we were both gainfully employed, one of us back in journalism and one (me) working in the field of sales and marketing, a fairly distant cousin several times removed from our matching undergrad journalism degrees. 

Interestingly, once the book was finished, shelved and waiting for edits, I also lost my job in a so-called layoff or downsizing: a financial decision by my large hospital system-employer, just one of so many overgrown entities falling victim to the same overarching issues and diseases as print journalism. 

So although I couldn't know internally whereof I wrote in the beginning, I quite unexpectedly got to know whereof I edited after. And still do. I'm not sure an attack on one's beloved profession and individual employment status is ever really forgotten. It's tucked away when a new job is gained, but it's near enough to inspire us to avoid unemployment in the future. As if we have full control of that. 

After about seven months off for me in 2013-2014, when work on Boxed Set was too far from either of our minds, my own unemployment stint has informed the return to edits and shopping the book. Unemployment leaves you hungry. Inspired. And hopefully, a little smarter.

Today, I am a little smarter and a lot happier/sadder, having just finished The Financial Lives of the Poets by Jess Walter, a smart, hip, literary genius rock star of a writer with whom I am enamored now and forever. His unemployed journalist Matt Prior is a little bit of all of us, journo and non-.

In a related non-fiction endeavor, Warren Watson, another journo who is six degrees to Ball State University and a former executive director for the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, is working on a book, Surviving Journalism, due out in 2015. And see more here at Out of the News, a book and blog by Celia Wexler.

In the search for comps, one is found

It was suggested to me today that this little tale might be unbelievable. Discussing the novel last night at length with a new old friend and fellow journalist, a mention of author Jess Walter was made. When receiving back a paid-for query- and synopsis-edit this morning from writing coach Lara Willard, she suggested I check out Jess Walter's The Financial Lives of the Poets: A Novel.

I am embarrassed to say that until yesterday I was not familiar with the work of Jess Walter. So I honed in on his latest, Beautiful Ruins: A Novel, hoping to lose myself on the Amalfi Coast or in someone else's romance.

Then I read the summary for The Financial Lives of the Poets. And got goosebumps.

This is the Amazon synopsis: "The Financial Lives of the Poets is a comic and heartfelt novel from National Book Award nominee Jess Walter, author of Citizen Vince and The Zero, about how we get to the edge of ruin—and how we begin to make our way back.
Walter tells the story of Matt Prior, who’s losing his job, his wife, his house, and his mind—until, all of a sudden, he discovers a way that he might just possibly be able to save it all . . . and have a pretty damn great time doing it."

The search for any comps for Boxed Set has been a challenge. Tagging on to the tails or tales of Carl Hiassen, Tim Dorsey and Christopher Moore either for humor or moral messages delivered with a light hand, felt just okay, not exactly right.

Before I go on, let me say that in finding comps (comparable titles) a writer, especially a debut author, does not mean to assume 'Gilt by Association.' Hiassen, Dorsey and Moore, as well as Walter now, are best-selling authors I admire from afar. I don't seek to imitate or even emulate, or imply that I could.

Nevertheless, agents will ask authors about comps for their work. This, not only to ensure the author is a well-informed, well-rounded reader and current member of the human race, but more importantly, to figure out where the proposed or queried novel would fit upon a bookstore shelf. Are there too many books like it already? How big is the potential audience for a work like this? Can the agent successfully sell this work to a publisher? Can the agent or publisher gain shelf space for it with book-sellers?

So I've been looking endlessly for a good comp (or two) and somehow missed Jess Walter's The Financial Lives of the Poets: A Novel. I wonder how fast I can get it into my hands and my head? And heart? I'd buy it for my Kindle right this minute, but I have this 'thing' that important books have to be held and felt, and slept with, and inhaled. Soonest.

The query for our novel

I promised earlier a peek into Boxed Set. This is an except from our query letter to agents and publishers. Would you want to read this novel? Leave us a comment and tell us why or why not.

Sports writer Jack Wroblesky thought his life was dandy. Tolerable, at least. Sufficient.

Twenty-plus years as a journalist, awards, his face on local billboards and a city bus, nuclear family plus dog, swimming pool, dream car. He takes it all in stride and for granted until, within a few mind-boggling days, all that he had is suddenly gone or out of reach.

Very far out of reach: Jack’s job is abruptly eliminated, he is without available cash or access to any, his car stripped of its wheels and vandalized. He gets served with divorce papers and kicked out of his own house…swindled by his spiteful, soon-to-be ex-wife and father-in-law…just for losing the job, status and income his Ice Princess wife demanded.

As he follows a homeless man to an outdoor shelter in the Chicago suburbs, Jack can’t imagine his life turning around there. But thanks to some intervention from the unlikeliest of characters, and the affection of Holly Anderson, a charming lab tech at the local plasma center where he sells his blood for cash to survive, Jack’s on his way to finding a much more meaningful, satisfying and successful life.

An almost-forgotten family connection to the late Beat Generation Author Jack Kerouac proves both eerily significant and financially valuable as Jack uses his writing skills and heart to turn around his own dire situation and that of the local homeless. His new job will be nothing he ever could have imagined.

Boxed Set is a contemporary fiction work, written from our own experiences as "down-sized" journalists and loosely based on actual events. The all-too-relatable themes of unemployment, financial hardship and self-doubt are balanced with a healthy dose of humor as well as family, friendship and love in this fast-paced story of redemption with a surprising but realistic and satisfying conclusion.

Stayed tuned for many more writing tips we've gathered and gleaned from published experts, and excepts from Boxed Set.