Reviews! 🎊

One of the many meaningful parts of publishing a new book is reading the reviews. Much appreciation to readers and fellow writers who take the time to leave a review.  

Stay tuned for some great reviews of my latest book as well as some tips for leaving reviews for your favorite authors. Please check out the hotlinks and support the social media and books of the mentioned authors—they are super talented, riveting writers. 😊

Also, if I’ve inadvertently missed anyone’s post or review:  my sincerest thanks for your time and effort on behalf of my writing—writers rock and are so generous!  

These awesome reviews might give you inspiration for the many easy ways you can spread the word about your favorite writers as well as the many fun, articulate ways you can describe their books. 😊

Excerpts from What Readers Are Saying about Does It Look Like Her?:

From Martha Engber Reads Reviews:

“Melanie Faith’s Does It Look Like Her? is a narrative poetry book that reads like a novel. But rather than rely on a lot of words as novels do, each of the 26 poems in the three-part fictional story of Alix is a brushstroke like the kind used by a renown artist to render her likeness into fame…

Image Courtesy of Martha Engber.

If you’re new to poetry, this book should be your entry. It’s accessible, but not simple, beautiful, but not “cute.” Best of all, each poem’s ending packs an insightful punch that caused me to think about, and find, new angles to my own life, rendering me to murmur, ‘Ah.’”

Amazon and Goodreads feedback:

From Carolyn R Russell’s review:

“With each reading, forwards or backwards, my connection to this examined life, this character, and the language of this stunning little book intensified. Certain narrative threads receded while others popped. Linguistic phrases seemed to leap at me with new significance as context for them deepened.”

From Laurie’s @lauriemiller2015 [Instagram]’s review:

“This collection is passionate, melancholy, loving, and to me, an homage to artists who may struggle with their writing, painting, or creating their art. My favorite pieces were the three in which Alix’s son, Sam, speaks about a famous portrait of his mother—the first at age eight, the second at age 20, and the third at age 39. Through those three poems, the reader sees Sam’s perspective, and his relationship with and understanding of his mother, evolve. As the mother of a grown son, I related to the changes in their relationship, and it was beautiful.”

From an Etsy review by Janessa Haley @janessahaleyauthor [Instagram]:

“Melanie's book is so inspiring! This lovely book of poems has been added to the special place on my bookshelf full of Melanie's other books :) If you love beautiful words and poems that tell a story, this book is a must for all poetry lovers!”

From an Etsy review by Jessie Carty:

“So excited to read Melanie's newest poetry book!”

From an Instagram post by Ian M. Rogers:

“Psyched to get Melanie Faith’s new poetry collection, Does It Look Like Her?...If you haven’t already, check out her new innovative, story-based poetry book and her first foray into independent publishing, the latest of many new endeavors—she has signed copies available on her Etsy store (just Google Melanie Faith Etsy), or you can buy it from the Big A (Amazon). Here’s to more creative adventures, and I can’t wait to dive in!”

From a Goodreads review by Terri McCord:

“This book rings true as not only an inventive tribute to creativity and family, but also to the rich history of art and artists. Does It Look Like Her? is also a wonderful collaborative chat with art-makers, past and present, and shaped with such great care by this writer/poet, and art-maker herself. The language is musical, and the relationships are tender, and the portrait that emerges is well worth reading.”

***

If you’ve ever thought about reviewing anyone’s book, here are 5 helpful ideas:

*Don’t have much time right now? No problem—click on the number of stars you wish to give a book at Amazon, Goodreads, or another site.  You can return later to write your review, and in the meantime, you have contributed to a better rating for the book. Win-win.

*Unlike formal reviews, you can literally leave just a sentence or two. [See “running short of time” above.]

*Not sure what to say? Here are a few options. Compliment: 

•        characters you connect with

• good pacing

•         funny passages or passages that made you think  

•         a resonant line or two you liked

•         the conflict or main goal of the protagonist

•         how this book compares to others in the same genre (you can even name-drop a book or two it reminds you of)

• your favorite chapter/poem/essay/line

•          what you like about the dialogue

•          POV or alternating POV in the book

•         what you like about this author’s writing style

*In addition to the book sites listed above, some writers (like myself) also sell their books through an Etsy shop or a personal website. Etsy, in particular, has a feedback box which is another great place to reach readers who are interested in the book.

* Post a few words about a book you love at your own socials and tag the author if you’d like.

*There were also many generous Facebook posts and Facebook replies that I deeply appreciate. Facebook and Facebook Groups can be a great place to share reviews.  

To writing beautiful book reviews that make a difference to readers and authors alike!🥳

***

Would you like to read a copy of Does It Look Like Her?:

Signed copies of Does It Look Like Her?  available at my Etsy store: clickety-click. Also, available (unsigned) through Amazon: clickety-click.  

Cover design and photography by moi 😊

Doodles 🖼️

It’s been a hot minute since I shared some doodles, so I felt like a post would be in order.

I’m not above using erasers or cover-up tape to make my drawings better if the first try goes awry. 😉

For my birthday last year, my awesome sister got me a doodle journal. I’ve had lots of writing journals over the years, but never one specifically to encourage my development as a visual artist.

Each page has a prompt. They range from very broad and easy to interpret to real headscratchers that make me amp my creativity and test my sketching abilities, like the day it suggested drawing the final scene from a movie (gulp!).

I spend just ten to thirty minutes on each drawing (the shortest sketch was my Easter tulips), often in-between grading and making a snack or at the end of the day when I’m wide awake but too mentally tired to dig into a draft in-progress.

I find I care much less about whether the sketches are realistic enough to satisfy my inner censors and much more about the fun of using the art supplies.

The slowdown is very rejuvenating on my nervous system—almost like swimming, I can feel the languid time opening up. I was thinking about that a lot this week, as I paged through what I’ve doodled so far and treated myself to a box of soft oil pastels, which are new to me.

This has also given me a chance to practice doodling people, one of my weakest skills. I gave it a whirl on a doodle of a Jane Austen book cover as well as my version of The Bard.

I used a variety of colored pens, colored pencils, gel ink, whatever was handy on these sketches.

Sometimes, I accompanied the sketch with a short sentence or two reflection, almost like a journal, either in answer to the prompt or just a thought on my mind, such as the day it was 18 degrees outside.

Enjoy this medley of doodles from my sketchbook, and may you continue to find enjoyment and inspiration in your own writing and artistic journeys! Create on. 🥳

Thanks for taking a look at these sketches and for all of your support of my books and teaching. Signed copies of my latest poetry book, Does It Look Like Her? , available at my Etsy store: clickety-click. Also, available (unsigned) through Amazon: clickety-click. 📔

This prompt asked doodlers to draw a self-portrait of themselves from another era. I drew myself in an 1860s tintype. My 1860s self is not as smiley. 😁

My Article Published: "5 Fabulous Perks of Freelance Editing" 🥳

So excited that my article about the perks of freelance editing was published at The Muffin. 🥳

My webinar on this topic this Friday, April 12th is also sure to share even more perks to freelancing. To learn more: clickety-click! ✍️

My article:

Do you love to read? Have you participated in a writing workshop or beta read for a friend? Or taken a creative writing class to learn the building blocks of prose and poetry? Have you offered suggestions for a friend’s essay or creative piece? Are you a creative writer? Are you a fan of precise or beautiful language? Do you love talking about the writing and revision processes? Do you enjoy discovering an individual author’s voice and offering encouragement?

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, freelance editing may very well be a wonderful fit for your natural skills, bring enjoyment, and offer some spending money or a helpful additional income to your household while doing something you already love—communicating and developing fun-to-read, page-turning literature for fellow readers.

Let’s look at just a few of the many perks of becoming a freelance editor. 

1. One of the best parts of freelancing is working directly with a motivated writer who is open to suggestions for making their manuscript clearer and more gripping to readers. We all know how hard it can be to spot errors or inconsistencies in one’s own writing, and as a freelance editor you get the privilege of offering feedback that the author may be too close to the manuscript to notice while self-editing. You work as a team to sculpt the work to optimal length, genre specifications, literary devices, pacing, character and/or plot development, and so much more.

2. You also will likely expand your network and build a bond or a friendship with authors whose manuscript you have the chance to review. It’s a sacred, meaningful honor to be entrusted with a writer’s work, and while bringing out the best in the writing, editors and writers work towards the same goals. Once you have offered supportive, clear feedback to an author on one project, they often return when they have other manuscripts they’d like constructive, helpful suggestions on in the future.

3. Freelance editors have freedom of time and freedom of project-choice. Freelancers set up a schedule and a deadline that mutually work for both writer and editor. Freelance editors also enjoy the freedom to pick the kinds of projects and the genres of writing that most excite us. Do you love reading thrillers and fantasy but dislike mysteries and dystopian work? As a freelancer, you can pick and choose the projects that you feel most excited to offer feedback on and that most inspire you.

4. Most freelance editors begin their small businesses as part-timers, so whether you are working another job, serving as a caregiver, raising a family, running another small business, or juggling multiple life stages and vocations, freelancing offers the flexibility to work from home or a café or shared office space at times that work best for you, your schedule, and your life circumstances. I’ve worked with freelance editors and students of all ages—from their twenties through their retirees—who start editing, and these editors have found that freelance editing fits into their lives around other life events and responsibilities with a little organization and planning.

5. You can work with clients from your local neighborhood or from all around the world at a time that is best for you and your clients’ needs.

Clearly, freelance editing offers countless perks and the satisfaction of adding quality, entertaining, meaningful books to the literary landscape. If you have any interest at all in this exciting, flexible field, it’s well-worth looking into and giving it a whirl. 

Image courtesy of WOW! Women on Writing

Interested in Freelance Editing? Join my April 12th Webinar! 🎊

Great news! I’ll be giving a webinar through WOW! Women on Writing on Friday, April 12th at 1 pm ET about life as a freelance editor.

More details at: An Insider’s Look at Launching as a Freelance Editor. Clickety click!

I’d love to have you and a friend attend and learn about this versatile, fun, meaningful profession. 😊👍

Image courtesy of Women on Writing

⭐ My Narrative Poetry Article Published at Women on Writing's Craft Corner! ⭐

Super excited that my article about narrative poetry was published at Women on Writing today in the Craft Corner. 🪻🥳

I had a blast talking about this meaningful type of poetry as well as my own writing practice, and I packed it with tips for writers exploring this exciting form of verse!

Signed copies of Does It Look Like Her? available at my Etsy store: clickety-click. Also, available (unsigned) through Amazon: clickety-click.

Also, If you, your friends, or your students or writing group are interested in learning more about writing poetry, I have a lot more writing advice and fun prompts for poets in my Vine Leaves Press book, Poetry Power (scroll to the second book on the page for links to Poetry Power ) ! Check it out: Poetry Power: clickety click and at Amazon:clickety-click.

Copies for Signing Have Arrived! 🥳

Great news: my copies for signing have arrived. If you’d like a signed copy, here’s the link to my Etsy shop:

Does It Look Like Her: Signed Poetry Book— Clickety Click!

Copies [unsigned] are also still available through Amazon: Book Clickety Click!

I also had a ridiculous amount of fun creating this self-portrait with my book. 😁

Thanks for all of your support, and here’s to books and poetry! 📔

Does It Look Like Her? Book Birthday! 🎂

It’s book-birthday time! 😊So excited to release my little-book-that-could out into the world of readers. It’s available now at Amazon: clickety-click. 🥹📚

Photo: Free Stock at Unsplash.com, courtesy of Laura Adai

For anyone who’d like a signed copy, I have some books en route: I’ll post that link to my Etsy when I have copies in hand, likely later this week or early next, so sayeth the postal estimate. 😉  

If you’re on Goodreads, please consider adding my book as a want-to-read and/or leaving some stars and a short review at Goodreads or Amazon—reviews make a huge difference in championing a book and are much appreciated. 💗

 A poem from the collection to celebrate book-launch day🎊 :

Alix Encourages a Discouraged Student Who Stays After Class at the Art League 

it’s okay

to be tired

of it all and

yet to keep

showing up

in fact, what

they don’t

tell you is

we all do,

it’s how we get

to a breakthrough

Photo: Free Stock at Unsplash.com, courtesy of Ashe Walker

Sneak Peek: "Does It Look Like Her?"

Care for a glimpse at my poetry collection’s plot? Ta-da! 🎊📚

Alix briefly meets an accomplished artist at a coworker’s dinner party and subsequently sits for a painting that becomes well-known. But Alix is neither a one-trick pony nor an ingénue; she’s 47 and embarking on her own painting and teaching journeys while starting her life over with her young son.
 
This collection of narrative poetry spans years and POVs—including Alix; her son, Sam; her ex; and her colleague, Meghan—and explores what it means to pursue artistic passion, the personal meanings we overlay onto art and artists in a society not conducive to art-making, ambition at midlife, the indirect route to so-called overnight success, and more.
 
Includes Questions for Discussion, Reflection, or Journaling as well as Additional Reading Suggestions.

New Project: Does It Look Like Her? Cover Reveal 🎊

Surprise! Time for a cover reveal of my new poetry collection, Does It Look Like Her? Also known as: my first self-published book project and a grand adventure.

Next week, my book will officially have a book birthday and be available for purchase (stay tuned for more details!), but I couldn’t wait any longer to share this first glimpse at my little first-born, self-published book baby.

For a few years now, I’ve loved teaching a university course about submitting work and publishing, getting to share my own knowledge as an indie and small-press-published writer and editor, but the one aspect of publishing I didn’t know a lot about was self-publishing. I previously had no firsthand experience with self-publishing a book through KDP, which was a shame because I’ve long been meaning to learn. #goodintentions  

When I started writing these narrative poems early last year, in the back of my mind, I thought, “Hmm, maybe this is the perfect time to learn a thing or two about self-publishing with one of my own manuscripts, so I can share with my students and friends.”

Fast forward a few months #lifeflies and a rollercoaster learning curve, and I finally nudged myself into gear and am so grateful I did. #stepbystep #perfecttiming   

If there’s anything you’ve been dreaming of doing or thinking about starting for a few years, begin here and now. This is your gentle nudge; you’ve got this first step.

My collection may not be perfection, but I gave it my all, and I can’t wait to share these poems about a painter, her son, and the artistic process!   

My Flash Fiction Published at Bright Flash Literary Review! 🎉

I’m excited to announce that my flash fiction, “It was just supposed to be,” was published this week at Bright Flash Literary Review! 📚

Check out my story below as well as the awesome stories by fellow authors at their current issue. If you write flash, consider submitting, too.

“It was just supposed to be”

a quick zip through aisle seven and back.

Somebody said she’d moved outside Rawston somewhere after, so it never occurred to him that Tuesday before New Year that he’d turn the corner with the laundry detergent in his right hand and there was Maisy.

“Hey,” was all he thought to say.

“My sister needed a few things,” she half-smiled.

Photo courtesy of Eduardo Soares on Unsplash.com, free stock

There was a baby strapped onto her in one of those carrier things he didn’t know the name of. She was someone’s mom now. That was weird, and new. Fifteen years together. They never. He never thought she’d wanted one. He didn’t. Doesn’t.

The baby bopped legs and arms in herky-jerky movements. The baby had Maisy’s curls. 

“Just getting this,” and he held up the neon plastic jug like he was proving something, as if until he’d pointed it out it’d been invisible.

Should he have said something, asked about the baby—Maisy’s baby—a name maybe? An age? He hadn’t seen any teeth when the baby had grinned at Maisy, but how old are kids when they get front teeth? Do back ones come in first?

Maisy had bounced a bit on the balls of her feet near the stacked boxes of soda crackers; the baby laughed in reply. They made a tableau together like he’s seen mothers and kids do on TV.

“Yep, everyone needs clean clothes,” she said.

She looked tired in her eyes, but happier than she ever was their last few years. Calmer somehow.

“Good…good point. Hey, great seeing you,” he said, because he could think of nothing else to say but random inanities. The baby’s hair the exact raven black of Maisy’s the night they’d met as freshmen. He’s got some grays now.

The baby had some other guy’s eyes. Weird. He’d turned away.

“You, too, Darvin,” she said, using her sympathy voice.

The baby kicked into cracker boxes, and the front one wobbled but didn’t fall.

“Look what you’ve done, little cutie. Yes, you, my little cutie,” Maisy cooed and laughed.

He ducked into aisle four; he dropped the detergent onto a random shelf. No longer any energy left for waiting in line, for another possible sighting. He couldn’t. He was outta there.

He lightninged through electronic double doors, out of breath but not running.

He’ll grab another detergent at the QuickShop after work tomorrow and stew about Maisy tonight.  He leans back in the tan recliner; they’d picked it for their first apartment after college. He’d liked the red one, but Maisy said tan would go with more things. She’d been right about that. About more than that, he guessed. 

He should take his mother up on her offer to reupholster it.

“Give it a new look,” Mom had said. “Or else donate it to charity, get something new.”

Yeah, but the chair’s the last thing left from their years together.

He keeps the living room lights off tonight; his laptop casts a pale green light that wobbles against the opposite white wall, the same color it was when he moved in.

Is Maisy still at her sister’s on Root Lane? Seven miles is nothing; how easily he could jump in his truck, drive out that way. Just to see.

He presses back into the tan upholstery, but there’s nowhere further to go. It was far easier when he could think of Maisy as alone, like him, near Rawston at night.

He feels it in his gut: Maisy’s gone home to the man whose eyes the baby shares. Their baby.

Biography:  Melanie Faith is a night-owl writer and editor who likes to wear many hats, including as a poet, photographer, professor, and tutor. Three of her craft books about writing were published by Vine Leaves Press in 2022, including her latest, From Promising to Published. She enjoys ASMR videos, reading, teaching online writing classes, and tiny houses. Learn more at https://melaniedfaith.com/ .