Kim Hooper's Blog, page 30

Books I read in 2018

This is always one of my favorite posts of the year because I get to look back on my year of reading and do a grand tally. This year, I read…drum roll, please…75 books! I’m a little surprised I read that many because this year was so hectic–a newborn, going back to my full-time job, publishing a book and working on edits for the next one. I did get through a lot of books while breastfeeding when I was on maternity leave. I’m guessing that’s what got me to my total. Did you read any of the same books as me? What were your favorites of this year?

Good ol’ fiction:

Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker

Portrait of an Artist, as an Old Man by Joseph Heller

This Was Not the Plan by Cristina Alger

Watch Me Disappear by Janelle Brown

You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott

The Ten-Year Nap by Meg Wolitzer

Close Enough to Touch by Colleen Oakley

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

All is Not Forgotten by Wendy Walker

P.S. I Miss You by Jen Petro-Roy

Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood

Between Me and You by Allison Winn Scotch

The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney

In Twenty Years by Allison Winn Scotch

Girls in Trouble by Caroline Leavitt

Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong

The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn

Tell Me Something Real by Calla Devlin

Sweet Little Lies by Caz Frear

Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan

Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby

Hag by Kathleen Kaufman

Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult

Profound and Perfect Things by Maribel Garcia (advance copy)

The Leavers by Lisa Ko (still working on this one, but I’m counting it)

Nonfiction:

Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson

The Sociopath Next Door by Martha Stout

I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death by Maggie O’Farrell

It’s Messy: On Boys, Boobs, and Badass Women by Amanda de Cadenet

The Girls Who Went Away: The Hidden History of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe v. Wade by Ann Fessler

From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death by Caitlin Doughty

American Fire: Love, Arson, and Life in a Vanishing Land by Monica Hesse

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara

Happiness: The Crooked Little Road to Semi-Ever After by Heather Harpham

People Who Eat Darkness: The True Story of a Young Woman Who Vanished From the Streets of Tokyo–and the Evil That Swallowed Her Up by Richard Lloyd Parry

The Good Nurse: A True Story of Medicine, Madness, and Murder by Charles Graeber

The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple by Jeff Guinn

Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment and How It Can Help You Find–and Keep–Love by Amir Levine, MD and Rachel SF Heller, MA

Everything is Horrible and Wonderful: A Tragicomic Memoir of Genius, Heroin, Love, and Loss by Stephanie Wittels Wachs

Apocalypse Child: A Life in End Times by Flor Edwards

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah

Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women’s Prison by Piper Kerman

The Long Run: A Memoir of Loss and Life in Motion by Catriona Menzies-Pike

Evidence of the Afterlife: The Science of Near-Death Experiences by Jeffrey Long, MD

Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover

Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression–and the Unexpected Solutions by Johann Hari

The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women by Kate Moore

How Animals Grieve by Barbara J. King

Small Fry by Lisa Brennan-Jobs

We’re Going to Need More Wine by Gabrielle Union

Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose by Joe Biden

Wedding Toasts I’ll Never Give by Ada Calhoun

The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit by Michael Finkel

Anxiety: The Missing Stage of Grief: A Revolutionary Approach to Understanding and Healing the Impact of Loss by Claire Bidwell Smith

A Mother’s Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy by Sue Klebold

This Will Only Hurt a Little by Busy Philipps

The Still Point of the Turning World by Emily Rapp Black

Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala

Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis

The Angel in My Pocket: A Story of Love, Loss, and Life After Death by Sukey Forbes


A Beautiful, Terrible Thing: A Memoir of Marriage and Betrayal by Jen Waite

Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens by Eddie Izzard

Becoming by Michelle Obama

Mom books:

The Wonder Weeks: How to Stimulate Your Baby’s Mental Development and Help Him Turn His 10 Predictable, Great, Fussy Phases into Magical Leaps Forward by Frans X. Plooij and Hetty van de Rijt

Achtung Baby: An American Mom on the German Art of Raising Self-Reliant Children by Sara Zaske

How Not to Hate Your Husband After Kids by Jancee Dunn

Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth, MD

The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep by Harvey Karp, MD

The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night by Elizabeth Pantley

Precious Little Sleep: The Complete Baby Sleep Guide for Modern Parents by Alexis Dubief

The post Books I read in 2018 appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

Cherry Blossoms Event: Newport Beach Public Library

First of all, if you haven’t been to the Newport Beach Public Library, you should go. It’s one of the best libraries I’ve ever been to. I just wish I lived closer. I’d be there all the time.

Thank you to everyone who came out to hear me talk about Cherry Blossoms. When I finished reading and talking, I looked at the clock and saw that only 20 minutes had passed (it always feels so much longer when I’m the center of attention), so I wasn’t sure if we’d fill the full hour. But we did! There were so many thoughtful and interesting questions. Thank you, again, to everyone who came.

I saved the event poster, thinking, “Maybe one day my daughter will think this is cool.” Then my friend brought me back to Earth and said, “Probably not.” Ha.

The post Cherry Blossoms Event: Newport Beach Public Library appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

(Kind-of-sort-of) writing with a baby

I was compelled to write this post after a co-worker approached me in the work kitchen and said, “I don’t know how you work full-time, have a baby, and write books. You must not sleep.” Lest I give the impression that women should burn the proverbial candle at both ends, I had to correct her: “Oh, I haven’t written a thing since my daughter was born. And I sleep every hour she lets me.”

This isn’t totally true–I did work on short stories while I was on maternity leave (back when my daughter actually napped…She is not a fan now). And I did work on edits for book #3 (more about this soon), but this wasn’t really “writing” and, for the record, I had to ask my publisher to give me more time (which is something I’ve never done before. I’m not a deadline-misser).

(What is true is that I sleep every hour my daughter lets me. I am in bed before 9 and up around 6 most days. I do not skimp on sleep. )

This was back when my daughter was just shy of 3 months old. I was on maternity leave and she wasn’t really mobile, so I found some time to write.

I have panicky moments of wondering when I’ll ever write a book again. I have a new story in my head that I want to get out, but I don’t know when that will happen. I worry that my excitement about the story will fizzle. But, really, I should take comfort in the fact that the stories really worth telling never fizzle. I started Cherry Blossoms in 2009, set it aside for years, and was still excited about it when I came back to it in 2017.

I used to write a lot on weekends. Now weekends are for errands and family time. When my daughter is awake (which she almost always is during daylight hours), I can barely make a meal, let alone write a chapter.

For a while, the bowl of fruit was the go-to entertainment while I made dinner. She’s bored of it now.

She has been sleeping through the night for a while, but I still feel like I’m catching up on so many months of lost sleep. I can’t bring myself to stay up late or get up early to write. I think that will change soon though. I’m starting to feel more and more “like myself,” and that means I am getting the urge to work on something again. I have accepted that it will be slower than I want to be, and not always on my terms, and I am okay with that.

REMINDER: I’ll be at the Newport Beach Public Library at 2pm tomorrow to talk about Cherry Blossoms. Come out if you’re in the area!

 

The post (Kind-of-sort-of) writing with a baby appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

Cherry Blossoms Launch Event

Thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate Cherry Blossoms at Laguna Beach Books yesterday. I love, love, love Laguna Beach Books so it’s a true honor to have my launch events there (they also hosted my event for People Who Knew Me). Also, thank you to my friends and family who took photos and shared them with me. Most were of my daughter. I’m okay with her stealing the show.

The post Cherry Blossoms Launch Event appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

It’s here!

Today is the day Cherry Blossoms makes its way into the world!

You can buy it at all the usual places, including:

Amazon ~ Barnes and Noble ~ IndieBound

You can also listen to it on Audible.

Happy reading! I can’t wait to hear what you think.

The post It’s here! appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

Southern Festival of Books: A Recap

 This past weekend, I was fortunate enough to attend the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville. It was my first time visiting Nashville and my first time away from my daughter (cue the tears). Thankfully, the author goodie bag included some hard liquor.

My session was on Friday afternoon. If any of the people who were there are reading this, THANK YOU for coming. I tend to assume that I will be in a room by myself when I do these types of things, so it’s wonderful to have a little crowd and to talk about what I love so much–writing. I read part of chapter 1 from Cherry Blossoms and then we chatted about all kinds of things–the journey to getting published, views of suicide in Japan, mental health in the US. It was very interesting.

That night, I attended a really nice author dinner and got to hang out with Kathleen Kaufman (check out her latest book, Hag–who doesn’t like Scottish witches?). We are both with Turner Publishing and we LOVE them. My relationship with Turner is what I always thought a writer-publisher relationship should be.

I caught a flight home the next day. I used the plane time to work on edits for book #3 (!). It’s been a while since I’ve flown–is it just me, or are the seats significantly smaller?

The festival made me even more excited about the release of Cherry Blossoms. I can’t wait to talk to more readers. We’re exactly 2 weeks from publication day!

The post Southern Festival of Books: A Recap appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

Goodreads giveaway for Cherry Blossoms!

Publication day is just a few weeks away and I have some exciting news–you can enter to win a copy of Cherry Blossoms on Goodreads.

It’s very easy. Just sign into your Goodreads account and go here. The giveaway ends on the publication date (October 30).

If you win a copy, all I ask is that you leave an honest review on Goodreads and/or Amazon.

Good luck!

The post Goodreads giveaway for Cherry Blossoms! appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

This month!

It’s October 1, so I get to say, “My book will be published THIS MONTH!” I felt a similar excitement last year on October 1, when I got to say, “I’m having a baby THIS MONTH!” My daughter was due on October 12, but came 8 days early. October is also my birthday month. All in all, I’m a fan of October.

Cherry  Blossoms comes out on October 30. In case you missed my last post, I’ll be talking about the book at:

Southern Festival of Books: I’ll be speaking on October 12 at 2pm
Laguna Beach Books: I’ll be celebrating the launch on November 4 at 4pm
Newport Beach Public Library: I’ll be reading and chatting on November 17 at 2pm

Someone asked me the other day if I get nervous about my book coming into the world and I said YES. I’m not immune to the judgment of others. But, really, I love this story. It’s very me. I’m more excited than nervous–excited to talk to people about the story.

29 days to go…

The post This month! appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

Upcoming events

I cannot believe that Cherry Blossoms comes out next month. I have a few launch-related events on the calendar. If you’re in the area, come out and say hi!

Southern Festival of Books ~ October 12-14

I’m heading out to Nashville in a few weeks to experience this festival (and Nashville!) for the first time. It will be baby’s first plane flight, so wish me luck. A couple authors I’m dying to see there: Celeste Ng and Lorrie Moore. I’ll be doing a talk (about Cherry Blossoms and whatever else comes up) on Friday. You can see the full schedule on the website soon. Also, if anyone has any Nashville recommendations (especially baby-friendly ones), I’m all ears.

Laguna Beach Books ~ November 4

My official launch event will be at Laguna Beach Books, my favorite local book store. They hosted me for the launch of People Who Knew Me and it was such a great time. The event starts at 4pm. I will bring wine (red and white). Like last time, my husband will probably pretend to be a casual attendee and ask me questions to make me feel uncomfortable.

Newport Beach Public Library ~ November 17

I’m really excited to be part of the Newport Beach Public Library’s local author lecture series. This will be my first time doing an event here. I was so excited to see myself on the same flyer as Janelle Brown (if you haven’t read her book, you should).

The post Upcoming events appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.

Short story news

Since I’ve had my baby (almost a year ago–wow), I haven’t had the time, energy, or mental focus to tackle writing a new novel. Hell, I’ve been struggling to read novels lately; I fall asleep after 5 pages.

Anyway, I have been able to write some short stories. One that’s especially near and dear to my heart received an honorable mention in the Gemini Magazine short story contest and was just published online. You can read it here.

This particular story is more nonfiction than fiction. My husband and I had quite the journey to having our daughter, and this story was written while I was pregnant with her, terrified of another loss. For all those out there who have lost a baby (or several babies), I understand your pain and I am so sorry you have to go through it. It’s something I’m still not “over,” even though my daughter is here. Grief is a lingering force to be reckoned with, for sure. Grief is a big part of Cherry Blossoms, and it’s a big part of the novel coming after Cherry Blossoms (details soon, I promise). This is why I don’t think fiction is ever completely fiction. The feelings and themes often run true to the author’s life (for me, at least).

The post Short story news appeared first on Fiction Writing Blog.