October 2013

Growing Up Wilder finished, release date pending

Growing Up Wilder has been an absolute joy to write and even more fun to read. I had initially planned for the novel to come in at 60,000 words. However, the book has grabbed the interest of an agent who said she’d be even more interested if it came in at 80,000. I went back to the keyboard in June and tapped out another 20k. While the process of adding 20,000 more words to a finished novel is frustrating, I must say that the final product is much better than the original. The characters are now more fleshed out and so is the story line. The narrator is still young Dancy Wilder who watches her father, Everett, as he falls into and out of love with some of the most interesting and crazy women you’ll ever meet. Dancy is guided by her biker chick of a mom Lou and her Mamaw, but mostly by her much older (only two years) and wiser sister, Marla.

Growing Up Wilder has gone through some tough edits by a few experts in the literary field. I am very grateful to all who had a hand in making this third novel of mine sing like Pavarotti.

E-mail often at melissa@melissanewman.net

I love hearing from you.

Melissa

 

April 2011

Looking forward to House of Cleaving’s release and meeting many more of you

I am thrilled to say that House of Cleaving will be released in June. My loyal readers have been asking when, and it certainly feels good to be able to tell them, “Yes, House of Cleaving has a birth date soon!”

Cleaving will arrive on the literary scene with much fanfare in the form of two upcoming book events at Kentucky’s premiere book stores — Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lexington on June 25 and Carmichael’s Book store in Louisville on July 9. I will also have book events at my local venues as well, and simply can’t wait to take Cleaving to Frankfort in November for Kentucky Book Fair.

The good news for those who have been wating for Cleaving’s arrival is that this book will be avialable in book stores coast to coast and not just in select book store locations.

Again, thank you to all my loyal readers. I hope I get a chance to meet each and every one of you at some point in my life. From my first book event at Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lexington, Kentucky to last fall’s Kentucky Book Fair in Frankfort, I have been absolutely blown away by the show of interest and support for my work.

I truly hope you enjoy reading House of Cleaving as much as I enjoyed writing it. I simply can’t wait to hear your comments about Cleaving. Everyone has a crazy Aunt Veda and even an eccentric Uncle Asher. You are sure to recognize someone from your family in this book full of crazy, loveable and sometimes really “out there” characters.

E-mail often at melissa@melissanewman.net

I love hearing from you.