Licensing Monet...

I'm jumping out of my Uggs excited. We just licensed a Monet for the cover of a Spring 2011 book! It was the author's fantasy to use Monet's La Japonaise... and... we were just granted the license from The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Here's my cover sketch...

The Beautiful One Has Come: Stories by Suzanne Kamata (Wyatt-MacKenzie, June 2011) is a collection of twelve stories about expatriates in Japan, Cuba, France and Australia. Stories from this collection have been previously published in literary journals and magazines such as Calyx, Kyoto Journal, Crab Orchard Review and Wingspan (All Nippon Airway's inflight magazine). The autobiographical story "You're So Lucky” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and “Polishing the Halo” about an expatriate mother in Japan who discovers that her daughter is deaf, was a prize-winner in the ANA/Wingspan Fiction Contest. Another story in this collection, “Driving,” was selected by renowned poet/playwright/novelist Nzotake Shange for inclusion in The Beacon Best anthology. An earlier combination of Suzanne's stories was runner-up for the Tupelo Book Prize, and a semi-finalist for the Iowa Fiction Prize. 

Suzanne Kamata is an expat living in Japan. She's the author of the novel Losing Kei and editor of the anthologies Love You to Pieces: Creative Writers on Raising a Child with Special Needs, The Broken Bridge: Fiction from Expatriates in Literary Japan and the award-winning Call Me Okaasan: Adventures in Multicultural Mothering (Wyatt-MacKenzie, 2009). Suzanne has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize five times, and she is a two-time prize winner in the All Nippon Airways/Wingspan Fiction contest.  

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For the Love of Publishing

I often joke with people that the best ROI on a book we've published... ever... was when a young mom who wrote a book about single motherhood gave a reading at a bookstore... and fell in love with the bookstore owner, and vice versa. They were married not long after (in one of the most breath-taking weddings it was featured in the pages of Essence Magazine!)


This week I witnessed another magical moment in a new author's journey. The moment a writer has when someone they've written about in a memoir is the first to get an advance review copy and sends a response like this...

"Sorry, but I just couldn't wait to finish before getting back to you. It's a fascinating read to say the least. Congratulations on a job beautifully done! And not for a moment do I think that my bias has colored my judgment; I am certain that other readers will find All the Pretty Shoes equally compelling.

I hope that you can forgive me one personal indulgence: From the first week or two that we met, I was fascinated by you and the story that I thought you should tell the world. By reading your book I feel charged and invigorated knowing that my judgment about you was spot-on. For that, I am quietly grateful—more, I think, than you are ever likely to imagine.

Over the course of my life, moving about as often as I did, I have had the opportunity to meet many interesting people. Some even had a book inside them. But only you had the courage, perseverance and skill to let it out. I cannot overstate my respect and pride in you."

When Marika forwarded snippets of these emails, from her many-years-past beau, I couldn't help but bubble over with happiness, and with my love of publishing.

Be sure to check out Marika's site I finished last week AllthePrettyShoes.com and read the compelling first chapter. View the photos which made it through the Holocaust and onto my scanner... Man, I love what I do.

The Cracker Factory ....a movie clip and more

The other video I had linked to was removed unfortunately, but I just found this Spanish version -- shows how powerful the story is, it translates well in any language! Seeing our author's name, Joyce Rebeta-Burditt, on the opening credits gives me goosebumps. Any ideas who could star in the Natalie Wood's role... 40 years later?! 


Here's  Cassie having a breakdown at the grocery store, then confronting her husband, Charlie, about it… and then, trying to overdose... before she is brought to the hospital and gets locked in the psyche ward, or "the cracker factory" as she calls it.



The two-book set -- the re-release of the 1977 book this movie is based on, THE CRACKER FACTORY, and our brand new sequel THE CRACKER FACTORY 2 -- will be available as a set on Amazon next month. Our distributor just started offering this option of multi-volume sets and I am beyond excited to see this COLLECTOR'S SET packaged together.

Fans are coming out of the woodworks (actually, the internet) -- "Do you know Cassie Barrett?"seems to be a question many recovered alcoholics, and those still on the path, resoundingly respond, "YES!" And everyone is excited to learn what Cassie (Natalie Wood's character) has been doing over the last four decades. I keep being asked, "Is it fiction?" And I laugh, "It's a thinly veiled semi-autobiographical novel. Both books are fiction... but you have to read Book #2 to see the unveiling of the author's real world in Book #1.

To complement the one-of-a-kind structure of the writing, I've taken my creative license on the interior of this one. Literally, and visually, it is a screenplay within the screenwriter's memoir. I have a personal affinity to books in which the author discusses their writing career, reflecting on the actual publishing of their work, and oh-my-gosh the making of their book into a movie!

The author's wild Hollywood career since the release of her first book is mind-blowing... even though there is a generation not familiar with her work, (She wrote and produced Matlock starring Andy Griffith, Perry Mason starring Raymond Burr, and Father Dowling Mysteries starring Tom Bosley and Tracy Nelson. She then created Diagnosis Murder starring Dick Van Dyke) there's a bridge between the books, and the audience, because of the timelessness of the story, and of alcoholism and addiction. The character from the 70's movie played by Shelley Long could have easily been depicting a current-day Lindsay Lohan, and the author's memoir of big-network politics and extra-curricular affairs could be lifted from a current script of Entourage!

Pre-Order SOUL TO SOUL PARENTING!

I'm so proud of this book! I was one of the millions of people in 2008 who participated in Oprah's class with Eckhart Tolle. I ate it up. I admit, I thought some of it was a little “woo-woo” =) but it was all very, very cool. Oprah said A NEW EARTH was her most important Book Club pick ever. 

At the core of Tolle’s teachings lies the transformation of consciousness—a spiritual awakening that he sees as the next step in human evolution. 

Did it cross my mind at the time -- how amazing a book would be that helped parents teach these principles to their children? Yes.


On January 12, 2010, amongst a wave of book proposals that had come in the previous day, I had an email from literary agent William Gladstone. The pitch was simple, but had me dancing in my chair. 


"Attached please find the book proposal from educator and workshop leader Annie Burnside for SOUL TO SOUL PARENTING: A Guide to Raising a Spiritually Conscious Family. This is a much-needed book with a unique perspective for a market of spiritually aware parents that is growing rapidly."


And, in one click, I realized -- Mr. Gladstone is Eckhart Tolle's agent. I lost my breath.


Since I'm such an early riser, I had to wait about four hours before I could call Mr. Gladstone, but I did at 9:00am. We had a serendipitous conversation. One of those perfect moments in time when everything came together and I had a "this is why" shiver wash over me. A few days later I spoke to Annie, and that was even more magical. We had a signed contract within a week. 


Annie and I have connected on a level that is bigger than us. We are both beyond excited to send this new book out into the world. Annie is a powerful combination of spiritual teacher and parenting coach. She has filled the book with "spiritual themes" and provides numerous "vehicles" with which to share the conscious-opening issues with your family -- exercises, examples, and age-appropriate resources of books, movies and music -- make it simple, functional, and applicable (and not too woo-woo)!

I encourage you to PRE-ORDER now! 

If you're a book reviewer or journalist interested in a review copy or interview please contact me, or Annie's publicist Dea Shandera.

Wyatt-MacKenzie signs with Apple for iBooks on the iPad

Coming this Summer to the iPad iBookstore! Wyatt-MacKenzie has signed with Apple to release our first line of iBooks...

Playful Parenting Audio

We're anxiously awaiting the brand new release of Dr. Larry Cohen's PLAYFUL PARENTING AUDIOBOOK on Amazon and iTunes! Here's the final cover. I have been enraptured by Larry's wonderful parenting ideas for many years, he was one of the first to endorse our book CONNECTION PARENTING.  Our two books are always matched up on Amazon and I'm beyond excited to add such a talent to our roster! Learn more at PlayfulParenting.com. Larry's great parenting tips are also on our free app PARENTING THE FUTURE.

Wyatt-MacKenzie Signs with Sony

We've signed with Sony for distribution of our eBooks thru Sony eReaders! Watch for our first collection of Wyatt-MacKenzie titles to be available in the eReader Store this fall!




From the SonyStyle website: Together with Google Books, the Reader^™ Store brings you access to over 1 million eBooks. That's twice as many as the Kindle Store.

Stem-Cell Transplant Memoir Holds Key to Curing M.S.

March is M.S. Awareness Month and Sandi Selvi celebrates the ten-year anniversary of a successful stem-cell transplant and remission from M.S. in her humorous memoir WON'T DO STAND-UP IN A WHEELCHAIR (Wyatt-MacKenzie, Mar. 31, 2010).

After being diagnosed with M.S. in 1995, Sandi Selvi began to decline rapidly and quickly became frustrated with conventional medical options. The drugs had nasty side effects, and in her case, the drugs stopped working. So, in March of 2000 Sandi joined forces with the brilliant doctors at Scripp's in San Diego for a $100,000 autologous stem cell transplant. 

During the two-month medical procedure Sandi came pretty close to death, but a $10.99 box of comedy tapes she bought at Costco helped her through recovery, and changed her life. Sandi now shares her journey, and her medical miracle, through stand-up comedy, and through inspiring, yet humorous, keynote speeches.


Lynn Ruth Miller, author of STARVING HEARTS, reviews, "Spell-binding-rings true on every level. Inspiring and empowering for anyone facing challenges they think are so insurmountable that they cannot be overcome." 

Sandi Selvi has since been delighting audiences with her wit and insight at places like the Improv, Rooster T. Feathers, the Comedy Store, Caroline's on Broadway and many other venues since her transplant. Her keynote speeches are in-demand at corporate and professional association events. Based on her incredible medical journey, magazine and newspaper articles have been written about her life and sense of humor, and Sandi was also featured in the movie Comedy, Ain't for the Money.


For Sandi’s performance dates, video clips, or inquiries about her keynote speeches, visit http://www.SandiSelvi.com.

Thriller - Out Tomorrow!

We're thrilled to announce our first nail-biting thriller THE SAVANNAH PROJECT by Chuck Barrett has hit stores. 

“An intense, heart-pounding St. Patrick’s Day thriller!” 

THE STORY: An NTSB investigator is called to Savannah to investigate what appears to be a routine aircraft accident during the St. Patrick's Day celebration. Ensuing suspicions of sabotage launch a deadly chain of events. He must elude an assassin if he is to expose the cause of the crash. Secrets surface that could bring down governments and the search for the truth draws him to Ireland and a race against the clock before the killer strikes again. 

 ABOUT THE AUTHOR After growing up in Panama City, Florida, Chuck Barrett received a degree in Aviation Management from Auburn University. Five years spent flying charter, air ambulance, and flight instructing in Mississippi was followed by 25 years as an air traffic controller in Northeast Florida.The Savannah Project, Barrett's first novel, interweaves his aviation expertise, a long-held passion for writing and a keen sense of suspense. For more on Chuck visit www.chuckbarrett.org

¡Nuevos Libros en Español!

I'm thrilled to announce the upcoming Spring 2010 SPANISH EDITIONS from Wyatt-MacKenzie...

Karin Piper's CHARTER SCHOOLS is currently being translated into Spanish by Laura Hercha and will be available mid-May 2010. We are excited to be reaching Spanish-speaking families that are facing school choice decisions and are seeking an informative guide from the perspective of a parent. Learn more about public charter schools from Karin's informative blog. 


Danielle Rocheford's MOMMY I FEEL FUNNY! A Child's Experience with Epilepsy has been translated into Spanish and will be available mid-March 2010. This book has been embraced by the Epilepsy Foundation and we're thrilled to put it into the hands of Spanish-speaking children who have epilepsy. Learn more, and find great epilepsy resources, at Danielle's site mommyifeelfunny.com.
  
¡Celebre!

The Soundtrack to the Logging Industry

When we first launched Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing in 1998 we helped some local musicians record a concert and package it on CD. Wyatt and MacKenzie's dad was a logger, dropping out of high school at 14 to work at the logging camps in Alaska. For 25 years he worked in the woods, crippling his body and leaving him tense at the end of every day. It's a grueling career. 

I was finally able to make the music available as MP3 downloads – if you're a logger, you'll love it. If you know a logger, let him know, and he'll love you for it. Take a listen on amazon: http://tinyurl.com/craig-terry

ABOUT THE MUSIC

Deemed "the most well-known and successful band dedicated to the woodsman and his family" - Craig (Jenkins) & Terry (McKinnis), and their band are talented musical loggers who have entertained the logging industry for three decades. 

Their songs are about the logger's life, all written by men who have been there. A sampling of the titles tell it all: "The Snag Fallers Ball," "Gypo Crummy," and "Two Moonlight Rides," words and music by Don Beck. The introduction to "Two Moonlight Rides" explains that back in the days of his youth, when Don went to work for an old logger he was promised two things: two moonlight rides, and a picnic in the woods every day. "Spenders and Jeans" by Craig Jenkins tells of the conflict between a logger and his wife when he wants to wear his suspenders to town. 

Bon Voyage... A Book Launch at Sea!

SECOND BLOOMING FOR WOMEN authors Kathleen Logan and Betsy Smith set off to the high seas yesterday for a "Growing a Life that Matters after Fifty" Seminar!

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Once women turn fifty, they ask life’s ultimate questions with increasing urgency: “Am I making a difference? Does my life matter?”

Most women over fifty have decades yet to live! The authors of Second Blooming for Women want to inspire us to live a life that matters by picturing, planning, and nurturing their future. The book provides the benefits of a personal coach as women make this historic transition, empowering them to embrace their "second half of life" with optimism, self-knowledge, confidence, and enthusiasm!

A beautiful gift book... take a peek inside the pages:

6 Wyatt-MacKenzie Books released today!

Our January books...


Wyatt-MacKenzie's Dixie Coskie releases UNTHINKABLE a book which stirred me to the core. Dixie chronicles her experiences from the moment she gets the call,  “Dixie, get down here, Paul has been hit by a car; the ambulance is on its way.” Dixie's 13-year-old suffered a traumatic brain injury. She has compiled her story with soul-saving tips for other parents who encounter a traumatic injury or illness in their family.


And, we have 4 new Imprints releasing 5 books this month...


A semi-autobiographical novel from another TBI surviver, Jennifer Chamber's LEARNING LIFE AGAIN.

The most wonderful book for women of all ages, but especially those over 50, SECOND BLOOMING from Betsy Smith and Kathleen Logan. Stay tuned for more info about their Cruise Book Launch!

An absolutely moving collection of adoption stories, SNOWFLAKES compiled by Teresa Kelleher.

If you have teens taking the SATs and ACTs these resources: Subject Tests and Secrets are indispensable from math tutor Richard Corn.