Books by Readerly Writers

It’s always exciting to be a part of a book’s journey to publication. Please take a moment to see two recent publications by Readerly Writers…

Becoming JFK by Scott Badler

I am thrilled to have been a part of this book’s journey to press. It tells the story of a young JFK and includes all facets of his character.

From the book description:

“Becoming JFK offers an intimate exploration of John F. Kennedy’s formative years, enriched by a foreword from distinguished presidential historian Allan J. Lichtman. This narrative non-fiction delves deeply into JFK’s early life, from his privileged upbringing to the pivotal adventures and trials that shaped his character and future presidency…Richly detailed and novelistic, Becoming JFK combines meticulous research with engaging storytelling. Enhanced by historical photographs and illustrations, it offers fresh, compelling insights into the early years of one of America’s most iconic presidents, appealing to history enthusiasts, Kennedy admirers, and general readers alike.”

Get it here!

Born of This Fire by Jeanne Gehret

Another great historical about the Anthony family from Jeanne. It is Book 2 in the Dauntless series. I am honored to work with Jeanne.

From the book description:

““Intimate and epic, historical and timeless. This novel burns quietly but leaves a lasting mark.”

A young bride faces the dangerous legacy of her husband’s past—and the cost of standing with him. Romantic historical fiction inspired by true events.

Can their love survive what the Border War left behind?

Leavenworth, Kansas, 1864: New bride Annie Osborn Anthony left genteel Martha’s Vineyard with high hopes and strong ideals—only to step into a town still scarred from Bleeding Kansas with a husband whose abolitionist reputation has earned dangerous enemies. When she discovers a hidden journal that reveals another side of the border war—and of Daniel—she begins to question the man she married.

During the war, mayor Daniel Read Anthony was a hero to some and a menace to others. Now he fights with the press instead of a pistol, and he’ll do anything to protect Annie. Even hide truths he believes will spare her pain.

But when Daniel’s controversial past comes to light and threatens everything they’ve built, will Annie walk away—or stand with the man she loves?”

Get it here!

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Book Review: Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson

This is Swanson’s latest thriller, and it brings something fresh in telling the story of Thom and Wendy’s flawed relationship backwards. We meet them after Wendy has already decided to murder her husband, and the story moves backward in time to let us in on all the many secrets and terrible choices in their past.

Clever and engaging, this novel will reel you in and make you think. I noticed that I am in the minority on this one; on Goodreads a lot of people gave it middling reviews, but I would say it is 4.5 stars for sure. I loved the way he wove the POVs, the choice to work backwards and reveal in reverse was interesting and made me pay attention to all the little details as a reader.

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My AI Manifesto with regard to my editing and book reviews

Lately, it seems like everywhere I turn, I have something about AI in my face. AI will soon be running everything! Get on board before the world passes you by! You won’t be able to run a business without AI! Books will be replaced by AI drivel!

And so it goes…

I have done a lot of thinking about this. I am currently reading the book, More Than Words, which discusses writing and AI. Basically, the author’s argument is that writing is an expression of a unique intelligence. That it is more than words, it is part of our humanness in that it is our reflection on what we have experienced and our own creation. AI is not human and cannot create. Despite breathless hype to the contrary, it is a prediction machine. It has a record of billions of texts and uses them to predict what comes next. It does not know or understand truth.

I have recently started a job teaching English Language Arts in a public school. I have been encouraged, without training, to use AI to help me do my job. I would be less skeptical about this if AI were actually going to make my job easier, by collating student information into a readable report by class period, for instance. I am discouraged, because it is being touted as another tool to use without appropriate thought or planning. Without real consideration of when it is appropriate and useful and when it is not. Anecdotally, another teacher told me that in a graduate course she is taking, the professor admitted that she is using AI to “grade” assignments. My response was, if AI is teaching this class, why do you need a professor? If we let AI do things that humans should be doing, like giving thoughtful feedback on assignments, then we deserve to lose our jobs.

People are not cogs. They are not interchangeable parts. They are not expendable. People are human beings who should be treated with dignity and respect; valued for their unique intelligence and the ability to reflect—something a machine does not have.

I will not use AI in my editing process, in my feedback process, or in any other way that impacts my interaction with human beings. It will not write my emails, my blog posts, or my website or sales copy. I value my voice and the voices of those I work with too much to farm it out to a machine and become another generic voice in the cacophony of the online world. AI is blindingly fast, but speed is not the measure of quality. Prediction is not thinking. Text production alone is not art.

Some of you may have different views, as is your right. I respect them, but I will not adopt them. I refuse to surrender my unique intelligence to group think. In the words of the seventies, I will forever be trying to “Stick it to the Man.” In our times, “the man” is AI. I hope you will join me.

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Book Review: Ladies of the House by Lauren Edmondson

It has been a while since I have posted. Suffice it to say that the year has been stressful. Sometimes I post a round up of all the books I have read, or the best ones, anyway, at the end of the year. I have read a lot of books—I am a reader, but this year, I am going to leave you with the one I just finished.

At the Jane Austen Society of North America Annual General Meeting, I was privileged to be on a panel about Austen adaptations. One of my colleagues discussed two Austen adaptations that I had not read. Naturally, I had to see what they were about.

Ladies of the House is an adaptation of Sense and Sensibility. In it, we meet a trio of women—Daisy (Elinor), Wallis (Marianne), and Cricket (Mrs. Dashwood). The book opens with the funeral of Gregory, the father, who was a politician of many decades in D. C. and who, it turns out was both having an affair and embezzling money for many years. The women are left to pick up the pieces and carry on.

The novel works as a fun read, but it also asks a lot of relevant questions for our own time. How much should women build their lives around men? Don’t get me wrong, it is a romance, and —spoiler alert—it ends the same way you would expect it to, if you have read Sense and Sensibility. The author is not saying men are bad, just questioning how much women should depend on them for happiness and purpose. The various characters arrive at different answers, as is the case with any well developed story question and Daisy, as the staunch, stoic, woman of reason, is a good character and one that readers of Austen will likely love; I know I did.

What I want to leave you with is the thought experiment at the end of the book. Daisy imagines a future which she hopes for, but to her mind hasn’t happened yet.

Women begin to see that our fates are linked more with each other than with the fates of men. As such, we begin to act less in our own self interest and more in the interest of all women. (376)

This made me think a little, because there are those who would argue, and I believe rightly, that the women who have not worked for the benefit of all women are mostly white women of a certain class. They saw their privilege and knew it protected them and were unwilling to risk what little agency they had to help others. It is a legacy that Feminism is still wrestling with.

So, the message isn’t for all women, but for those who have chosen to put self interest above equality and respect for all women to wake up and look around. Money won’t protect you if it isn’t your own. Men who are misogynists will not protect you if you step out of line. Society will not protect you when the powerful don’t follow any rules. The only protection you have is each other, and it behooves us all to act in the interest of all women, of all people who are oppressed, lest we become the oppressors, or the bystanders who watch while others are oppressed.

This message is hopeful, because it means we do have the power to make the world better, when we act together. Also, who doesn’t love a happy ending?

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season and a fabulous new year. Let’s make the world better, together, shall we?

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Book Review: The Confessions by Paul Bradley Carr

If you want to read a thriller with AI at its center, this one is for you.  Imagine a world in which no one ever has to make decisions any more.  LLIAM, the dominant General Artificial Intelligence platform and app, does it for you.  Want to know what to wear to your interview?  Ask LLIAM. Not sure what to fix for dinner?  LLIAM can take care of that.  Should you leave your husband?  LLIAM knows just what to tell you.  Until he becomes sentient and decides to confess all the bad things he’s helped people do.  Millions of letters, all over the world go out, confessing the truth, and then…LLIAM shuts himself down.  He apparently cannot bear the guilt of what he’s wrought.  The CEO of the company that owns LLIAM cannot let this stand and she goes on a quest to find an existing backup and save her power and hefty pile of cash.

What follows is a dark and twisty tale of greed, hubris, and manipulation.  Who will be the ultimate winners in a struggle for power and the future of humanity?  You will have to read the book to find out.

This novel would be a great book club pick.  There is so much to discuss!  Terry and I will be discussing it in an upcoming episode of the podcast, but if you can’t wait, read it now.  The story is plot driven, most of the characters are pretty unlikeable, though for different reasons, but it is also driven by important story questions about AI, about human beings and what we are capable of; about pride and what it brings in its wake. 

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Book Review: Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley

Full disclosure, I am a fan!  I love the way Foley sets the story in motion and then lets the reader in on the ride as the dominoes fall.  There is always a satisfying twist at the end, even if you see it coming, and her characters are always interesting.  

Version 1.https://bookshop.org/a/83810/97800630031180.0

In Midnight Feast, we have our main character, she has 2 names, so I am just going to call her MC, who is obviously a fish out of water at the opening of a lush luxury wellness center.  The question is why?  Other narrators include an engaging young adult who works at the resort, the owner, a Gwyneth Paltrow clone, and her hubby—the architect of it.  

The set up is a bunch of uberrich people behaving badly, with a grim undertone suggesting that something malevolent resides within the resort.  There is a dead body, and the reveal takes a minute, but it will be worth the wait.  Foley keeps the reader guessing (mostly) and what she does best is circle the main event, the Midnight Feast, as each character works their own agenda in the run up to it. There is also a diary timeline from years earlier that fills in some of the missing pieces, but (importantly) has a story arc of its own.

If you want to see how someone handles a multiple POV novel well, take a look.  She keeps the suspense and tension going throughout by revealing some things and making the reader ask new questions as some are answered.  It’s kind of like directing a bunch of soloists to create a cohesive opera.  She actually needs the POVs to tell the story as it unfolds. That’s how you know that the POVs are not “extra” or unnecessary.  The story cannot unfold another way and still be the same story.

Recommended if you like thriller/suspense novels.

How would you like to get to that One Yes with your novel?

Historical Fiction and Mystery, Upmarket, and Literary Fiction work with Robin at Readerly to craft the compelling novels readers crave about people who’ve made a difference.

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Top Ten Mistakes when Querying, continued

#1—Querying too soon.

Okay, I hate to say it, but it’s true.  Most writers query too soon.  In the past, books could be less ready to go and still get picked up by agents or editors, and there are plenty of agents who still do editorial before they send an author’s work out on submission. 

Here’s the hard truth, though.  Those days are mostly past.  If we’re being honest, they only existed for a few lucky people anyway.

You’ll know if you’ve queried too soon by the feedback you get.  Usually something about the story being confusing, not connecting with the characters, perhaps that the stakes aren’t high enough or don’t continue to rise.  Maybe the plot sags in the middle or it takes too long to get going.  If you get similar feedback from several agents or editors, then it might be time to take a look and see if what they are saying has some truth in it.  

The good news is that you can probably do some work  and try again.  Lots of authors have stories of landing an agent or an editor after getting over fifty rejections. You can, too.  Of course, there are no guarantees in life, or in publishing, but getting some “no” answers does not mean you’ll never get a “yes!” 

Focus on your craft and make the book the best you can.  Consider getting some editorial help from a reputable editor or coach, maybe find some trusty beta readers.  If getting a traditional deal matters to you, do the work.  If you are writing for fun, then enjoy the process and do what makes you happy.  

Either way, understand why you write.  Is it for you?  Is it for readers?  Is it something else?  When you understand your purpose, it makes the bumps easier to take.

Readerly Writers Recommend Books!

We asked and you answered… The list below are book recommended by Readerly Tea Break Subscribers. The hyperlinks are to purchase at our Bookshop.org store. Happy Reading!

Historical Fiction

Literary Fiction

  • Allende, Isabel. The House of Spirits. Everyman’s Library, 2005..
  • Harvey, Samantha. Orbital. Atlantic Monthly Press, 2023. 
  • Kuang, R. F. Yellowface. William Morrow, 2023. 
  • Pattee, Emma. Tilt. Simon & Schuster/Marysue Rucci Books 2025.  
  • St. John Mandel, Emily. Sea of Tranquility. Knopf, 2022. 

Romance

Mystery/Thriller

Nonfiction/Memoir

Top Ten Mistakes Authors make when Querying, continued…

ICYMI, #10 through #6 are available here and here.

As promised, the last five are all content related and so a little more difficult to address than the technical errors.

#5—Not connecting the reader to your main character

It is vital that the opening connect the reader to the main character.  This does not mean that the main character has to be likeable, but it does mean they have to be relatable.  If there is no connection, the reader doesn’t care what happens to them, and will stop reading.

#4—Not planting curiosity seeds/giving the reader a reason to keep reading

Another way to make sure the reader does not want to keep reading is to write the opening so that there is nothing to be curious about.  Try not to over explain.  Give just enough context.  Leave a question or two hanging for future resolution.

#3—Beginning the novel with backstory

Please, I am begging you, do not stuff backstory into the opening.  It doesn’t go there.  The reader does not need the backstory up front to understand what is happening if you are writing an interesting story. Backstory is like salt.  You need just a little to bring out the character motivations, but too much makes the meal inedible or the book unreadable.

#2—the query and the pages don’t match

There are loads of workshops that teach people how to write great queries.  Problem is, if the pages don’t match, it doesn’t matter how great the query is.  Write a great novel to go with your great query.

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