Southern Festival of Books 2013

It was great fun attending the Southern Festival of Books again this year and a real treat to participate as an author. Here are a few pics from the festival. For a full report by Paige Crutcher of Publishers Weekly, click here.

I volunteered in the SCBWI Midsouth booth with these ladies: Susan Eaddy, Shellie Braeuner, & Genetta Adair

Reading from The Devil's Backbone (photo by John A. Parker)

With Beck McDowell (YA author of This is Not A Drill) 

after our presentation on YA Protagonists Who Take A Stand. I think I'm still talking in the photo.

(photo by John A. Parker)

Making an Indie Book Cover – the Parker way

Making the book cover for my self-published middle grade novel, The Devil’s Backbone, was a family project. I asked my photographer husband if he would shoot an original photo for the cover. He said yes; he takes lots of photos. Then I asked if he would also design the cover. After a slight hesitation, he said yes, on the condition if I wasn’t pleased, I could hire someone else to turn the photo into a cover.

Stage 1:

Look at ALL the book covers in the children’s section of the bookstore. Yes, all of them. I knew I wanted the cover to be a photo of a scene from the book. I shared comparison covers with my cover artist.

Stage 2:

Convince my son (who portrays the ghost, Kit) and his friend (who portrays the main character, David) to be on my book cover. They both said yes right away, even before I told them there would be pizza after.

Select costumes and props (the ghost’s hat and mailbag). This took WAY longer than expected.

Choose a location for the photo shoot.

Stage 3:

White board drawings by the cover artist

-Wait for weather to cooperate.-

Stage 4:

The Photo Shoot at Gordon House on the Natchez Trace, an important place in the book. What a fun day! And my daughter (also a photographer) documented the day with more photos. Here are a few shots from the day. (photos by John A. Parker)

Acting out the scene to get into character. The boy on the right is an actor.

Here I'm saying something like: you see the ghost is desperate for David to take this mailbag.

And somewhere in the middle of all the photos, the Money Shot! This is the photo that turned into the book cover.

After the photo shoot, I went through the over 500 photos taken that day. Right away, I knew one was my favorite. Hubby looked through the photos and chose his favorite photo. We compared and we had picked the SAME ONE! No joke. (you see, that’s why we’re married).

Stage 5:

More discussion about fonts and other stuff. Finally the photo turns into a book cover. Here it is:

 I think Mr. Parker did a great job on his first book cover design. I love it! And not just because my name is on the cover. 

Rhymes Memorial Library Booksigning

A booksigning for The Devil’s Backbone was hosted in my hometown, Rayville, Louisiana, by the Rhymes Memorial Library board. The parish library is in a newer, larger building and the Rhymes Memorial Library is now used for special events. The library was Louisiana’s first parish library. Here are a few photos from the event on June 4th. (photos by Audrey N. Parker)

The library is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Signing books & giving away David's road trip snacks from the book.

Talking and catching up.

The Devil’s Backbone Launch Party

The launch party for my debut middle grade novel, The Devil’s Backbone, was last Friday evening at Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee. The event was part of the store’s Children’s Book Week celebration. What a great evening! Here are a few photos from the event. (photos by John A. Parker)

beautiful front window display

talking about The Devil's Backbone

signing books

with my critique group - me, Courtney Stevens, Hannah Dills & Kristin O'Donnell Tubb

Launch Party for The Devil's Backbone

The book launch for The Devil's Backbone will be part of the Children's Book Week Celebration at Parnassus Books. If you are in the area, I hope you can join me. I am asking everyone to RSVP so there will be enough books and snacks for the event. 

Here are the details:

Book Launch Party for The Devil’s Backbone

Parnassus Books 3900 Hillsboro Pike, Nashville, TN

Friday, May 17^th @ 6:30 p.m.

Please RSVP here

Cover Reveal for The Devil’s Backbone

I am thrilled to reveal the cover for my debut novel, The Devil’s Backbone.

The cover is an original photo taken by my cover artist, John A. Parker. The photo was shot on the Natchez Trace Parkway, where the book takes place. The boy on the left portrays Kit, the 200-year-old postal rider ghost and the boy in the blue hoodie portrays David, the main character.

Blurb for The Devil’s Backbone (for readers ages 9 & up):

David Baxter takes the blame for the graffiti on the school gym doors to keep his friend out of trouble and earns a three-day suspension. His dad, the juvenile judge, forces him to go on a roadtrip to redemption on the Natchez Trace Parkway. What his dad doesn’t know is that David meets a ghost carrying the last letter of Meriwether Lewis - the piece of evidence that may solve the 200-year-old mystery of Lewis’s death. Thanks to the ghost, David just might figure out how to relate to his dad and forgive his wayward mom.

I love the cover and I hope you do, too. The book will be available next month. Stay tuned for more info.

The Devil’s Backbone – My Debut Novel Coming Soon!

My debut novel, The Devil’s Backbone, will be available next month. It’s a middle grade mystery-roadtrip-ghost story for readers ages 9 & up.

Here’s the blurb:

David Baxter takes the blame for the graffiti on the school gym doors to keep his friend out of trouble and earns a three-day suspension. His dad, the juvenile judge, forces him to go on a roadtrip to redemption on the Natchez Trace Parkway. What his dad doesn’t know is that David meets a ghost carrying the last letter of Meriwether Lewis - the piece of evidence that may solve the 200-year-old mystery of Lewis’s death. Thanks to the ghost, David just might figure out how to relate to his dad and forgive his wayward mom.

I’m very excited for the book (paperback & ebook) to be in the hands of readers.

Stay tuned for the cover reveal.

The 13th Sign by Kristin O’Donnell Tubb

It’s finally here! Today is the day The 13^th Sign by my fabulous critique partner, Kristin O’Donnell Tubb, is out in the world. Kristin is an award-winning author of historical Middle Grade novels, but today her first Middle Grade fantasy is released. And if you like Middle Grade fantasy, stories set in New Orleans, or just really good books, I hope you’ll give The 13^th Sign a try.

Here’s the blurb for The 13^th Sign published by Feiwel & Friends (Macmillan):

ONE SMALL SHIFT CAN CHANGE EVERYTHING - AND EVERYONE

What if there was a thirteenth zodiac sign?

You’re no longer Sagittarius, but Ophiuchus the healer, the thirteenth sign.

Your personality has changed. So has your mom’s and your best friend’s.

What about the rest of the world?

What if you were the one who accidentally unlocked the thirteenth sign, causing this world-altering change - and infuriating the other twelve signs?

Jalen did it, and now she must use every ounce of her strength and cunning to send the signs back where they belong. Lives, including her own, depend on it.

                                      Kristin with The 13th Sign