At long last I have a publication date for Arborview: Sept. 29.
It’s coming up quickly, and we have a ton of work to do to get ready. Please check here or at www.karenguzman.com for updates, availability, reviews, and other perks.
For fun, I’m going to post some of my favorite passages from the book during the days leading up to publication, hopefully to whet everyone’s appetite for the whole thing.
I’m so grateful to have you all on this journey with me. –Karen
Baking, and food in general, play a big role in Arborview. The heroine is a pastry chef. Here’s the first excerpt:
Please welcome debut author Mark Jones to Write Despite. After “retiring,” Mark has stumbled upon a new career! –Karen
Take it away, Mark:
My first novel with the Wild Rose Press, Peculiar Activities, includes a dedication to one of my high school literature teachers. I enjoyed writing in high school, especially when our school district created an “English” track course with an emphasis on it.
Still, writing was not something that followed me into college or my banking career, or later, my work in the world of higher education finance.
Then after thirty-three years, I retired from the financial services and budgeting departments at the University of Oklahoma and the University of Central Oklahoma…and thoughts of writing returned.
I developed a concept for a mystery/detective/international intrigue story and began putting my thoughts on paper. Two writing classes at a local career tech center, plus local and state writing conferences, offered a great deal of knowledge, as well as several invaluable contacts.
The Peculiar Activities manuscript then won the mystery category in the Oklahoma Writers’ Federation annual contest in 2019, and it finished as a finalist in the U.K.’s Page Turner Awards in 2020. In February 2021, I signed a contract with the Wild Rose Press, and the book is now in the final stages of production—while I wait for a release date, probably early this fall.
It’s hard to believe this is happening. I think literature teacher will be proud. My suggestion to other aspiring writers? Never give up, have faith in yourselves, and work, work, work. Publishing is a challenging and sometimes harsh business. But keep writing.
As summer winds down, I want to put in a plug for a fantastic story that I think will touch many of you.
The Liability of Love, a new novel from my friend and fellow Connecticut author Susan Schoenberger, is now available. Please check out the buy link on Amazon. There are more links on Susan’s website.
Here’s what Kirkus Reviews had to say:
“In matter-of-fact prose studded with pithy observational gems. . . the various players can only get what they deserve by speaking their own truths. A keenly observed, compassionate, and absorbing work.”                                                             —Kirkus Reviews, starred review
I read an early version of this manuscript when Susan and I were part of a “First Chapter” critique group. The finished novel exceeds what any of us imagined this book could become.
Please join me in congratulating Susan and enjoy this read.
Write Despite 