Tia the Tame Tiger and Angela the Angel Present Depression Cookies

I've started to think of marketing books like cereal. When I walk down the cereal aisle, there are way too many colorful boxes jumping out at me. So what do I do? I am a marketer's dream. Tony the Tiger, Toucan Sam, Cap'n Crunch, Lucky the Leprachaun, and the Trix rabbit all call to me. Sure, when I found out my daughter had allergies, I had to look more carefully. But, for the most part, I go with the mascots. I only stray from this when a friend highly recommends something to me.

Image from http://www.theimaginaryworld.com/


How does this relate to books? Walking through the bookstore is information overload. I'm sure a vast majority of the books there would be a good read, but I don't have the money or the time. I have to pick. Usually I do this based on my friends' and book club recommendations, but sometimes I stray from that because I've seen an interesting article or interview on an author.

Branding. My mother and I are the "faces" of our brand, Depression Cookies. We can't even rely on the occasional impulse buy in a bookstore, because we aren't prominently featured in the big chains. We need people to think we are interesting enough to buy our book. Selling yourself is hard. Mom and I are passionate about our book, but it goes beyond that. People want to see you, genuine and willing to share.

I recently attended my first book festival. I love people, and can talk all day (well, when I have a voice). Much to my husband's dismay, I am enamored with people's stories, motivations, and passions. When Haley Tanner stopped by my booth with her mother, I was enchanted. They were so sweet together and loved chatting about the mother-daughter bond. I glanced up to see Haley wearing a "Featured Author" name tag. When I asked her about it, she said she was there to talk about her book. Her mom then, as moms do, beamed with pride and told me a bit more.

The very next week I was going through some magazines and newspapers sitting around our house and picked up the USA Today. Sure enough, there was Haley listed under the "New Voices" section. I started following her on Twitter, looked up her website, and ordered her book (haven't received it yet). Would I have stopped to read the "New Voices" bit if I hadn't met her? Even if I did, would it have stuck? But because I met her and she glowed, I couldn't wait to get my hands on a copy of her book, Vaclav & Lena.

This experience taught me a lot about branding. You have to put yourself out there. I think a blog and participating in social media sites are a good start, but nothing takes the place of personal interaction. The best part of attending festivals, conferences, book clubs, and local events is socializing. Not only is it an opportunity to learn, it's an opportunity to give. And market.

Have you ever met someone (online or in person) who impressed you so much you went home and googled them to find out more?

Why a Daughter Needs a Mom: Reasons Three through Five

As part of our continuing series, we examine Gregory E. Lang's Why a Daughter Needs a Mom: 100 Reasons. If you missed the beginning of our series, please check out Reason One and Reason Two. There are few things in life as special as the mother-daughter bond, and Lang's book does a fine job illustrating this in 100 Reasons (he also wrote Why a Son Needs a Mom: 100 Reasons).

Reasons Three through Five:
 

To assure her that she always has a place to come home to.

Because no one understands girls like a mom.

To remind her that in faith there is fellowship.

There's no place like home, as Dorothy so eloquently said in The Wizard of Oz, and my mom and dad made sure home was a place of love. Because we moved so much, it was a constantly changing structure but the love always remained. And as much as my dad loves us, there are some subjects a daughter feels more comfortable discussing with her mom. I've recently experienced this as my 5th grade daughter viewed the Family Life video at school. We've had several open discussions. She loves her father dearly, but she wanted him nowhere near us as we talked about menstruation, body parts, etc (and he, full of love as well, was okay being left out).

There's a moment in Depression Cookies where Krista feels lost. Her mom, Abby, has been gone for awhile helping her own mother heal after the death of her husband/Abby's dad. Krista says it all, "Our house without Mom was incomplete−a structure of wood and plaster without a heart. There was no warmth or joy; we just went through the motions. With each passing day, the air became more dense and stale. Dad tried his jokes, and we would gurgle out a pathetic attempt at laughter, but we needed Mom back. Pure and simple."

My parents weren't raised as church-goers and found religion together. They wanted to gift us with faith, and I now pass this gift to my daughters. This faith, as well as our faith in each other, is a tremendous source of fellowship.

Just yesterday a mother asked how many kids I have. Three girls, I replied. She then said, "I'm sorry." I was confused, and told her not to be because I love my girls. "They are so much harder than boys," she said. I thought for a second, and said simply, "And worth every second."

My family at Great Wolf Lodge this winter

New Weekly Feature: Tub-full Tuesdays

My recent experience with Michelle Rafter’s Blogathon taught me many things I wanted to incorporate into my blog. Some of those features are taking longer than others. One was to have theme days. We already discuss our favorite thing we read during the week on Fridays. But I was inspired by fellow blogger Lisa Carter of Intralingo to add another: Tub-full Tuesdays. She does a great post weekly called Thankful Thursdays, and I’ve always enjoyed reading it.

My daughter’s Kindergarten teacher told her students they have buckets. When you do nice things or someone does something nice to you, it fills your bucket. But mean/sad things empty your bucket. Looking for T words (I’m all about alliteration), Tub-full reminded me of a bucket.

Now if this isn't a Tub-full, I don't know what is
(and please don't tell my preteen this picture is up!)

As evidenced by yesterday’s post about balance, too often I don’t remember to take time to be thankful for all my blessings. Mom agreed. So keep any eye out for our posts every Tuesday about things that fill our tub. It might be as simple as a quote that lifted our spirits, a picture of an event, or a short post.

This week, I wanted to say again how thankful I am to Michelle Rafter of Blogathon for taking time out of her busy schedule to round up 200+ blogs and pass on her wisdom. In addition to learning, I met a wonderful group of bloggers who inspire me every day to keep at it and post interesting and meaningful material. Leading up to Blogathon, my tub was leaking. I wasn’t sure if having a blog was worth it. Now my blog tub is overflowing!

I have to also mention my baby sister (she hates when I call her that!), Dana Newbrough, aka our Blog Designer and Webmaster. She is awesome. Check out our blog's brand new look. All Dana. She takes the crazy rantings of how I see our blog in my head and turns them into reality (okay, a lot of it is from her own head). I am blessed (and she works for extra diaper coupons and the occasional Target giftcard!).

What has filled your tub this week?

The Delicate Balancing Act of Life

Today I wanted to share the teaser link to our upcoming appearance on Lifetime Television's morning talk show "The Balancing Act." The show is set to air on Tuesday, June 21st at 7am/6am (EST/Central) on Lifetime. The link: http://www.thebalancingact.com/video/?v=CHS56QHE203174.

But this really got me thinking. Balance. Lately, my life has been completely out of whack. I thought I planned everything so well. I graduated college, worked in a very practical career for almost ten years, saved money, had my first child and stayed home, had all three of my children in five years, and wrote a novel. Depression Cookies was published just as my last child was entering school. I'd have all the time in the world to market, build on my writing career, and catch the eyes of important people in the industry.

Stop laughing. It was a plan. Or, rather, the plan developed as the novel took so long with life constantly getting in the way. But, then my husband announced another move. Five locations in ten years. Crazy. That's okay, I thought. While the kids are in school, I will transition all of us to a new state AND promote a newly published novel while also writing and building my author platform.

Okay, enough with the laughing. I am striving for balance. It's hard. I want to be a mom, and it is my first priority. I also want to be a good wife to my wonderful husband. One, because I love him. Two, he will still be here once the three sweethearts fly the coup. I also want our home to be a warm, loving environment that is also CLEAN! Oh, and finally, I want to be a successful author.

What I'm finding . . . there simply aren't enough hours in the day. As a newbie in the social media and marketing world, I could spend 12 hours a day just scouring the internet devouring information on all these topics. As our book has garnered more attention, like our recent award!!, I feel the pressure to keep the momentum going. Plus, we are working on the follow up novel, I'm writing a YA novel, and we are trying to grow our blog!

In addition, the more visible our book becomes the more the professional marketing gurus come out of the woodwork. Their first question: what's your budget for marketing? Hmmmmm. "Very little, so I can't wait to hear what you can do with that!" I exclaim to a ringtone.

I know I need to set a timer for two hours and write, then set it for an hour and do social media, then an hour for cleaning and bills, then . . . it just never works. The phone rings. Child forgot their lunch. Hurry! Finally settle back down and hear the dog puking on the carpet. Clean! Look up at the clock to see it's almost time to get the kids off the bus. Run! "Girls, can Mommy have an hour to wrap some things up on the computer," I say. The baby replies, "I hate the computer. I wish I could smash it." Guilt.

HELP! I'd love your suggestions for finding balance.

WSJ Article Suggests Darkness in YA Literature: I Say Parents are the Light

I woke up to Twitter buzzing with #YAsaves and commentary on the YA publishing industry. Not only do I have YA readers in my house, I read YA and write the YA voice (I wrote the 13-year-old point of view in Depression Cookies and am working on a YA novel). Intrigued, I clicked on the Wall Street Journal article causing all the stir.

"Darkness Too Visible" had a screaming tagline: "Contemporary fiction for teens is rife with explicit abuse, violence and depravity. Why is this considered a good idea?" The article starts by identifying a 46-year-old mom of three looking for a YA book for her 13-year-old at a Barnes & Noble.

The article goes on to detail her horror at the book selections and states, "Profanity that would get a song or movie branded with a parental warning is, in young-adult novels, so commonplace that most reviewers do not even remark upon it." Then find new reviewers. I, for one, review YA books (as does my daughter) on my Mom in Love with Fiction blog and indicate if I think a book does not fit within Amazon's suggested reading ages. But, it's only my opinion. A parent should monitor what their child reads and watches on television by judging the material themselves or finding a reviewer they trust.

My other issue right out of the gate was the fact this mom was in a chain bookstore hoping for YA guidance. This is where readers are feeling the gaping hole left when smaller bookstores closed down. But, at the very least, head to your library and speak with the Librarian about appropriate book recommendations. Don't let the major chains and traditional publishers push anything down your throat, much less your child's. A great site for reviews of lesser known YA novels is my fellow Blogathoner's BooksYALove blog. She also has a great post today about this very topic.

Reading on, ". . . a careless young reader−or one who seeks out depravity−will find himself surrounded by images not of joy or beauty but of damage, brutality and losses of the most horrendous kinds." Wow! What a generalization. A careless young reader is only as careless as his/her parental guidance. Yes, a child can come across explicit material outside the parents' control, but responsible parents will follow up with a discussion.

I just read Max & Menna, a wonderful YA novel by Shauna Kelley. A great book, but not for young readers (I wouldn't let my 11-year-old read it for a few more years). The problem with the YA classification is its broadness. What category can really encompass 12- to 18-year-olds and consider 9- & 10-year-old advance readers? Movies aren't just PG and R, there's the middle ground of PG-13. Even then, a parent has to use his/her own discretion. Why should books be any different? Assuming no better labeling system is forthcoming, parents need to arm themselves with information. CSI is full of disturbing images and is ranked TV-14. It's a guideline. I've seen episodes I wish I hadn't seen, much less a young teenager.

The article then points out what they consider the flipside of the argument by stating young-adult novels "validate the teen experience, giving voice to tortured adolsescents who would otherwise be voiceless." Amen. Kids suffer inexplicable horrors and some need to know they are not alone. More than that, kids (considering their maturity levels as judged by their parents) should understand we don't live in a utopian world where bad people don't exist. But wait. "Yet it is also possible . . . that books focusing on pathologies help normalize them . . ." Nothing normalizes rape, incest, abuse, etc. Nothing. To suggest that is preposterous.

As a kid, I devoured Judy Blume books. When Forever hit the shelves, I begged my parents for it. The answer was No. They did their research. I snuck a rogue copy anyway, and guess what? My parents were right. I wasn't ready. Hmmmm. I'm sensing a theme about parental involvement.

The article then goes on to respond to an author's quote comparing books to what kids see on the Internet: " . . . one depravity does not justify another. If young people are encountering ghastly things on the Internet, that's a failure of the adults around them, not an excuse for more envelope-pushing." But the material kids read is NOT a responsibility of the adults around them? I'm confused.

Finally, a ray of light. Politics & Prose, an independent Washington, D.C. bookstore, is singled out for provided a special "PG-15" area for books. An independent bookstore with a better system. Interesting. Yet the article criticizes this by saying, " . . . creating a separate section may inadvertently lure the attention of younger children . . ." Come on! Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Again, parents are you listening? Monitor what your children read.

For those who argue we need a system in place for parents who don't take responsibility for their children, I agree. Let me know what you come up with that actually replaces good parenting!

I'd love to know what you think. Please comment below. And if you are on Twitter, share your thoughts at #YASaves.

Winner of our Blogathon Comment Contest

The very first day of Blogathon we announced a giveaway: the person who commented the most on our blog during the month of May would receive a special prize. Congratulations to Lisa Carter! If you love an interesting perspecitve and/or are interested in literary translation, please check her out. She also guest posted here in May, a wonderful piece about Shameless Self-Promotion.

A copy of Depression Cookies is on its way to Ontario, Canada. She is the first person to get a copy of our book with the Finalist sticker on it.

Thanks to Lisa and everyone else who commented in May. You've really encouraged us to keep at it!

Friday Feature: My Favorite Thing I Read this Week and Why

Upon initial reflection, my favorite thing to read this week was my calendar and the date May 31st . . . end of Blogathon. But I miss it! The few days I took off from blogging felt wrong. Thanks to all the bloggers I met throughout May, I know the blog's readership will grow if I am consistent and write interesting posts. So I'm going to trod along.

Mom and I both enjoyed our Friday Feature (established for the Blogathon), so we are going to stick with it. This week, my choice was simple. My favorite thing I read this week was the "You've reached the Summit" sign at my Bolder Boulder 10K race. I knew at that point it was all downhill.

Photo courtesy of the Bolder Boulder 10K website

See I now live in the Land of Sissies, at sea level in Maryland. Training at sea level for an altitude race is not the smartest thing I've ever done. But I did it!

Similarly, jumping into a Blogathon with a brand new blog was terrifying. I'm so glad I took the leap. I learned so much. My "summit" for this blog and my writing is nowhere in sight, and I'm thrilled to be taking the uphill. But, like my race, I can't do it without wonderful friends and supporters, so please keep visiting and commenting.

Are you pushing toward your summit?