I remember last year when the application window opened here for the Debutante Class of 2020. I was finishing up my teaching job for the year, and the whole prospect of publishing a novel in the next twelve months still seemed like a surreal dream. I’d been a long-time reader of this site, and I’d fangirled over many of the previous writers in the days before I’d even queried an…
This week, we’re talking about a writing education. Do you need an MFA from a prestigious program in order to write and sell a novel? I mean, no. I don’t have an MFA, and I have sold and written a couple of novels. The truth is, I didn’t even consider a degree in creative writing when graduate school was on the table for me. In teaching, you do need to…
We’re discussing age this week. What’s the perfect age to write a novel? For me, this wasn’t really a choice, per se. I have been an aspiring novelist for basically my whole life, and I penned several books in elementary school. I don’t want to brag, but my mother said they were quite good. What happened later was typical and predictable. I didn’t do all that well in my college…
We Debs are going behind-the-scenes this week, and I’m rubbing my hands together in anticipation. I LOVE behind-the-scenes. I love fictional shows like The West Wing and Unreal and The Americans that imagine the goings-on in mysterious professions. I love documentaries like The War Room, Miss Americana, and the new Michael Jordan-centered series, The Last Dance that show us famous people being seemingly real and unguarded. And finally, I love…
I’m thrilled to introduce our readers to Rita Woods, author of the debut novel REMEMBRANCE. Rita is a physician and medical director who always felt a pull toward writing. I’m always especially inspired by stories like hers of people who have full lives and careers and then finally write their books. And, not only had Rita released her novel, it has also earned heaps of critical praise. The Boston Globe…
I am delighted to welcome Jennifer J. Chow as our guest author this week. Although I met Jennifer in a Facebook group for debut authors, she’s hardly a rookie. Jennifer publishes the Winston Wong Cozy Mysteries as J.J. Chow. She has also written and published acclaimed YA and lit fic novels. MIMI LEE GETS A CLUE, then, is her debut with a large publisher (she and I are imprint sisters…
There’s something you should know: I have absolutely no chill when it comes to books I love. This is why I never tried to be a reviewer—because I enjoy nothing more than to get completely lost in a book. So I’m going to spend the Deb release weeks less reviewing my colleagues’ fabulous works than losing my chill over them, because—wow. These are seriously good books. So you can guess…
I’m so tickled to welcome Kimmery Martin back to the Deb Ball this week! Kimmery was part of the Deb Class of 2018, the same year I read her irresistible novel, The Queen of Hearts. Her publisher described that novel as a cross between Grey’s Anatomy and Big Little Lies, and I was obsessed with it. Now, Kimmery is back with her sophomore effort, another work of medical fiction, The…
I’m delighted to introduce the new social media maven for the Debutante Ball, Class of 2020! Please welcome and meet Kathleen West, whose debut novel Minor Dramas & Other Catastrophes will be out from Berkley (Penguin Random House) on February 4, 2020. Kathleen is a writer, teacher, reader, and semi-professional minivan driver. A life-long Minnesotan, she holds degrees from Macalester College and the University of Minnesota. She currently lives in Minneapolis…
