Final revisions are done!

And so it’s with the editor for line editing, then it shall go to formatting. Nothing yet on possible covers and styles, but I’m patiently waiting and overcommitted to springtime planting projects, and life slowly getting back to normal, so I know I’ll hear from my team before I know it that we are making another delicious leap forward.

Which also will involve more of the dreaded DECISIONS, so I’ll be careful what I wish for. I’ll just enjoy being at a minor pause in the project and rally myself for the marketing piece that I’ll need to be doing more of. Good thing it’s sunny and warm and I’m focused on the weather and more activity with sports and school.

I’m so glad it’s not last Spring for so many reasons. I am pleased kids here get a prom again, and graduation, and sports, and all the milestones I would have really missed had the pandemic happened when I was in school.

But of course this is not the sum of the post, book progress and lamenting on spring and coronavirus. There’s always a YA book review!

May is also Mental Health Awareness Month, and, as Psychologist who would have loved to have these kinds of books on the shelves when I was a kid, they absolutely need air time on the blog. The book I’m releasing definitely addresses mental health and self acceptance, because they are important, but the two books I am posting on today put it front and center. I’m so grateful for these writers who can write illness so well and that these books are out there.

When We Collided, Emery Lord

A summer romance blooms between a girl struggling with a mood disorder and a boy taking care of his family while mired in grief.  As in any book worth the pages it’s printed on, both kids find growth and new emotional spaces to inhabit as a result or this summer romance.

So, this book grabs you right away.  You want to know who Vivi is and why she’s in a new town for the summer.  You like her and want to get to know her.  And Jonah is the lovely understated teenage boy that you just know is worth your time if you’re lucky enough to get to know him.  I love all the teenager-y things they talk about and the far fetched life plans they make. But the real brilliance in this book is the spot on depiction of bipolar disorder in Vivi, which is not a spoiler alert. It was one of those books while you read while wanting to cover your face because you care so much about her and you know something is going to go to crap.  

I love YA that deals with mental health.  It’s such an awesome way to help understand the disorder and engender empathy for what it’s like. It would have helped me understand it as an aspiring Psychologist.  Although I struggled with books/TV/movies that could be stressful more than I do now, and this one had the potential for stressing me out a lot.

Every Last Word, Tamara Ireland Stone

A lovely popular girl who, from the outside, looks like she has it all, harbors an intense case of obsessional OCD.  She finds a secret poetry group in school and steps out of her comfort zone to be part of this unexpected group and finds amazing solace and healing in writing poetry.   She goes from superficial to genuine and gets in touch with herself.

Okay, so I was hooked on this one too, the instant introduction into the world of a popular girl living on superficial images and relationships.  I mean, we all think at one time that we want to be popular, even though we know how superficial it can be, but then I love reading about how she takes a risk and brings added levels of depth to her life.  So the character arc is epic even before there’s a plot twist that blew me apart.  Yas. I was already there and then the author got me.

Also she’s a swimmer and I was in high school and college too, so...

Again, empathy engendering stories, stories to help us all understand that things are not as they seem on the surface are so incredibly important.  I am glad publishing has moved in the empathy direction in all ways, with illnesses and colors and different walks of life.  I love this book.

Now with revisions done I do need to turn more attention to blogging consistently, and making sure this more and more an author website in the hopes that I can interest you in checking out my book when it comes. And maybe more books as I move forward? I have a ton of books read and ready for reviews to be posted, so stay tuned!

Happy Mother’s Day!

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