It's Fabulous February Story Time
February brings in a long list of great stories, plus an interview with Carol Baldwin!
Happy February, Story Lovers!
Can you believe that it’s February already? January came and went quickly, but it brought us so many wonderful stories - and February looks to do the same!
Lighted Lands
My debut book, Children of the Ancient Heroes Pt. 1 - Dreams and Nightmares - is on track for it’s launch on November 5th, 2024. I cannot wait for you to meet Tirza, Eli, and the rest of the Lighted Lands gang. The second part is still set to follow in April 2025 with the whole series to follow after that. (Hopefully, I don’t keep you waiting long for each new book).
I am already aligning multiple venues for chances to meet all of you. Also, once I have a good handle on when Advanced Reader Copies are available, I will be putting together a list of those interested. Send me a note if you’d like to be part of that list!
Enchanted Stories Podcast
The first six episodes of the Enchanted Stories Podcast are available with more episodes to follow soon. I LOVE The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald. I hope that you are enjoying it, too. Let me know what you think about it.
Listen on:
So Many Stories
I have a feeling that we are all going to need a lot of books this year in order to keep our sanity. It’s a good thing I know of a place (a few places, really) where you can find a much-needed escape!
Monarch/Caterpillar Press
Some Favorites of Mine
Honestly, there could be no end to the books I want to recommend. Many you probably already know and have read. If not, grab them - from your local library, an independent bookstore (or Barnes and Noble), Amazon, anywhere! And get the Audiobooks for some really immersive storytelling - the readers are simply amazing.
These don’t even begin to scratch the surface of all the wonderful books available to you. Of all of these, as wonderful as each one is, I have to say that the Nevermoor series is becoming one of my all-time favorites.
Interview with Carol Baldwin
Before turning to writing for children, Carol Baldwin published Friendship Counseling: Biblical Foundations for Helping Others and Teaching the Story: Fiction Writing in Grades 4-8. She has published widely in newspapers and magazines and along with Rebecca Wheeler, co-publishes Talking Story, a newsletter for educators and media specialists. She was a SCBWI-Carolinas critique group leader and blog coordinator for many years. In addition, she manages the Write2Ignite blog; a group dedicated to inspiring and educating Christian Kidlit writers. Most recently, she became a volunteer publicist for Monarch Books.
Find her thoughts on the writing process, book reviews, and giveaways on her blog. When she isn’t writing or blogging, you’ll find her golfing, walking, biking, or enjoying spending time with one of her eight grandchildren. She is working on a graphic novel, Nightmare in Nuremberg, and has two picture book biographies on submission.
Interview
You are definitely passionate about writing and reading (and you love to teach others), but what ignited your passion in the first place?
I enjoy teaching writing to teens and adults. It’s always fun to help writers translate their thoughts into words. Teens and tweens have out-of-the-box imaginations which inspire me. When I taught in an adult education program at a local community college it was fun to see new writers create stories that have been in their minds for years.
My parents are largely responsible for this passion. I have a sweet memory of my father reading to my brother, sister, and me at bedtime. One of my first published articles was 30 years ago in Byline Magazine. I framed “My Father’s Voice” and gave it to my father. After he passed away, I hung it in my office. In it I wrote, “My father’s legacy was a love for words: their sounds, patterns, meanings, and rhythms. Their poetry.” Both my parents were German immigrants and reading was a big part of their culture. I can still picture (and smell!) the children’s room of the library that I went to when I was little. I think my father was a frustrated writer. I have several of his autobiographies; my love of expressing myself on the written page comes from him. My mother gifted me with saying I had a way with words.
You have published two non-fiction books and now have your first fiction book, a Young Adult historical fiction called Half-Truths. Did you find the experience writing a fiction book different than the non-fiction books? Was it more difficult, easier, or writing is difficult no matter what genre you work in? Which do you enjoy more, if at all?
Writing fiction is like jumping off a diving board and hoping you’ll find the bottom. It feels much different than non-fiction where I am “safely” describing something that I can see, touch, hear, or feel. I was scared to dive into the world of my imagination—but now I love it!
I wrote my first book, Friendship Counseling: Biblical Foundations for Helping Others after completing my MS in Counseling. My second book, Teaching the Story: Fiction Writing in Grades 4-8, is a series of mini-lessons on creative writing. Both books came out of non-traditional teaching experiences. At the same time that I wrote those books, I also wrote articles for journals, magazines, and newspapers. But I longed to write a story that would resonate with young readers.
An author friend of mine, Joyce Hostetter, suggested I find the story in my own backyard. As I was relatively new to Charlotte, NC, I began imagining what Charlotte was like during the pre-civil rights years. Half-Truths grew out of imagining a teenage girl’s experience moving from a tobacco farm in rural Eastern North Carolina to the high society life of Charlotte in 1950. I loved interviewing people from Charlotte who lived through the period I was describing.
I enjoy uncovering stories that teens today might not be aware of and showing how history is relevant to their lives. As it turns out, I still get to scratch my non-fiction itch because historical fiction depends on events that truly happened.
What prompted your drive to write Half-Truths? What do you hope readers will gain from it?
I’m very aware of how family secrets (and the fear of truth-speaking) can cripple individuals and families. I hope readers will find the courage to voice their concerns and be truth speakers themselves—despite their fears and the risks they might take. I also hope they’ll get a peek into what it was like for two young woman who don’t conform to society’s expectations.
Tell us a bit more about your current works-in-progress? What stories are you bringing to the world?
My current work-in-progress is a middle-grade historical fiction with two points-of-view and two timelines. Here’s the pitch for Out of the Flame: At the turn of the 20th century, a young factory worker is surrounded by deafening noise, blisteringly hot glass, and mind-numbing exhaustion. There is no end in sight until he finds mysterious notes from a boy who lived this life 100 years earlier.
Another middle-grade book, Nightmare in Nuremberg, is loosely based on my grandfather’s experience in Nuremberg, Germany before WWII and is on the back burner. The pitch: John and Sabrina Worthington must discover why they’ve been transported to Nuremberg, Germany in 1935. Sabrina is sure it’s to infiltrate the Hitler Youth and John thinks it’s to save their Jewish relatives from the Nazis. As Sabrina becomes increasingly brainwashed, John realizes he must rescue his ancestors and his sister to ensure his family’s survival. Sabrina realizes the Nazis’ lies, they perform a dangerous rescue, and return home with new priorities.
As it turns out, I love family based, inter-generational books that require research!
And last, but absolutely most important: Most unexpected lesson you've learned while researching any or all of your books?
Research widely and broadly. Be open to new ideas besides your own. You never know what you will learn that will help steer the course of your book. It’s worth the plunge.
Thank you Carol for such a wonderful interview! I can’t wait to do this again with you closer to when your new book releases!
And thank you readers! I am so excited to get to know all of you more and invite you into my own story world. I would love to hear more about your favorite books, too.
Until next time!
Russell J. Fellows
I love the interview with Carol. Can’t wait for it to be available.
The interview with Carol Baldwin is great! I look forward to reading her books!