Jessica McCann's Blog, page 7

Peculiar Savage Beauty – Bonus Scenes

[image error]Writers compose many sentences, scenes and chapters that their readers never see. It may be lovely prose. Yet, for one reason or another, it simply doesn’t fit in the final work. Each writer handles this differently. Some click delete, and never look back. Others hold on to those snippets in the hope that someday, somehow, they might find them a home. I fall in the latter category.

The following unedited scenes are from an early draft of my second novel, Peculiar Savage Beauty. They offer a...

Peculiar Savage Beauty is 2018 Arizona Book of the Year

Jessica McCann's second historical novel, Peculiar Savage Beauty, was named 2018 Arizona Book of the Year in the Arizona Authors Association annual literary contest. The novel also placed first in the published fiction category. Peculiar Savage Beauty is the story of a headstrong and fiercely independent young woman who charges...

Peculiar Savage Beauty is 2018 Arizona Book of the Year

[image error]Jessica McCann’s second historical novel, Peculiar Savage Beauty, was named 2018 Arizona Book of the Year in the Arizona Authors Association annual literary contest. The novel also placed first in the published fiction category.

Peculiar Savage Beauty is the story of a headstrong and fiercely independent young woman who charges into the heart of the wind- and drought-ravaged Great Plains in the 1930s, intent on battling the dust and healing the land. As a geologist working for the U.S....

Upcoming 2019 Events with Novelist Jessica McCann

Phoenix Writers Club, monthly luncheon: 5 Critical Elements to Writing Historical Fiction When: March 16, 2019, 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. Where: Blue Water Grill, 1720 E. Camelback Road, Phoenix AZ What: I’ll share examples from my own writing, as well as from other authors, to show how setting, characterization, dialogue...

Upcoming 2018 Events with Novelist Jessica McCann

Friday Night Writes at Dog-Earred Pages book store. When: September 28 – 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Where: 16428 N. 32nd Street, Phoenix, AZ What: Presentation on how to get published and paid as a freelance writer. I’ll also be around to chat and sign books. Cost: $5.00 (Ticket may...

Win Signed Copy of Peculiar Savage Beauty by Jessica McCann

To celebrate the upcoming paperback release of Peculiar Savage Beauty and the beautiful new cover, I’m hosting a giveaway. Enter below for a chance to win a signed copy of the book Publishers Weekly calls a “gripping, atmospheric novel” or a book-themed charm bookmark. Ten winners will be selected at...

Publishers Weekly Review of Peculiar Savage Beauty

Publishers Weekly calls Jessica McCann’s Peculiar Savage Beauty a “gripping, atmospheric novel.” Having my novel reviewed by PW is a career milestone. I’m thrilled and grateful (also hugely relieved it’s a positive review!). “McCann’s Dust Bowl saga meshes a seminal event in American history with a suspenseful plot and insightfully...

Publishers Weekly Review of Peculiar Savage Beauty

[image error]Publishers Weekly calls Jessica McCann’s Peculiar Savage Beauty a “gripping, atmospheric novel.”

Having my novel reviewed by PW is a career milestone. I’m thrilled and grateful (also hugely relieved it’s a positive review!).

“McCann’s Dust Bowl saga meshes a seminal event in American history with a suspenseful plot and insightfully etched characters.”

Read the full review here.

Book Recommendation – The Power of Meaning

What is the meaning of life? Why I am I here? These are questions that have taunted mankind since the beginning of time. The Power of Meaning provides a straightforward and inspiring answer, based on extensive research and analysis. Simply put, the meaning of life is to find meaning in...

Writing at a Slow Simmer

Shortly after I was married, my husband's grandmother gave me her original Crock-Pot, which she'd had since the 1970s. I think of her every time I make a meal in it. I only hope my novels will have the same longevity as this beloved Crock-Pot, passed down for generations. Slow-cookers...