S.M. Stevens's Blog, page 6

Second Edition of Horseshoes and Hand Grenades Published

I’m very excited to announce that a second edition of my adult contemporary novel Horseshoes and Hand Grenades has been published!

It’s the same story, with minor updates, that has been winning accolades like the following:

“A novel that will likely stick in my mind for years to come.” — The Audiobook Review

“A beautifully written tale told sympathetically and honestly.” – The Bookwormery

“Thought-provoking and entertaining, and the perfect balance of both.” — A Little Book Problem

“A powerful and timely written novel.” — Allieereads

“An insightful and compelling tale showing the strength of the female psyche.” – Chicklit Club

Second Edition Changes

So what exactly changed? Not a heck of a lot. First, you’ll notice a slightly different cover on the second edition, plus a new back cover. But the book still features that stupendous artwork by Natalie Simone on the cover!

Second, a few typos were corrected. (And if you think a typo here and there reflects poorly on a book, think again! Every book, no matter how meticulous the editing, has at least a few errors. I just read Home Again by Kristin Hannah and spotted at least four errors.)

Where to Buy

Pick up your copy in paperback, ebook or audiobook format today.

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My 3 Favorite Reads for 2023

Shepherd, as my regular readers know, is a relatively new site for finding your next book, but with a twist: the book recommendations are from authors. I am one of 884 authors asked to name our 3 favorite reads for 2023. Choosing was tough, of course, and stopping at three was even tougher. But here’s my list if you want to have a look, with an explanation of why I loved each story.

And click here to see the 100 best books of 2023 so far, based on recommendations from all 884 authors. I enjoyed scrolling through to see how many I have read.

My Other Shepherd Lists

Since Shepherd was started, I’ve put together three other lists for them besides the 3 Favorite Reads one. Choosing the themes was a blast, since we can be creative and very specific with our ideas. Here are my three lists, if you’re looking for a read in any of these categories:

The Best Middle Grade Adventure Stories with Talking Animals and a Dash of MagicThe Best Novels for Tweens, Teens and Young Adults Who Love TheaterThe Best, Ultimately Uplifting Stories About Sexual Abuse and Harassment

Sometimes I’d already done the reading when I sat down to compile a list. Sometimes, I had to search out more books on the theme and expose myself to more great stories! Either way, a good time was had by all…meaning me, and maybe my dog sitting next to me.

How Shepherd Works

Shepherd’s concept is simple and elegant: If you like an author’s book(s), you might also like the 5 books the author recommends on topics related to their own work.

The days of relying solely on friends and librarians for book suggestions are long gone, of course. While that’s not good for human interaction, it is good if you want tons of new ideas at your fingertips. Goodreads and Amazon are of course the big guys when it comes to searching for new best reads. But there are also now many smaller sites offering quality recommendations, like Shepherd.

No Registration Required

Unlike some book recommendation sites, no registration (or fee) is required to view lists on Shepherd. Just hop on over to their site and dig around using the search function if you want, until you find something you like.

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Chanticleer/CIBA Recognizes “The Wallace House of Pain”

My little novelette, The Wallace House of Pain, is having a good month! Three weeks ago, I announced that this story of family strife and personal identity won an American Fiction Award in the novelette category. Today, I am thrilled to announce that The Wallace House of Pain has made it onto the “long list” for the 2023 Shorts Book Awards competition sponsored by Chanticleer International Book Awards (CIBA).

The Wallace House of Pain is one of 22 short reads that made the long list. Some of those will be selected for the “short list” and from that, finalists and winners will be chosen. I’m humbled to be in such august company; see the list of long listers here.

More on Chanticleer (CIBA)

CIBA has been recognizing excellence in writing since 2011 through a plethora of competitions. As its website says: “The Chanticleer International Book Awards program discovers today’s best works. The Short Story Awards discover the Best New Shorts in Fiction and Narrative Non-Fiction.”

More specifically, “The Short Story Awards recognize emerging talent and outstanding works in Short Stories, Essays, Novelettes, Novellas, Short Story Collections and Anthologies.”

More on The Wallace House of Pain

This 45-minute read offers “a great study in character and relationships” according to book review blog A Little Book Problem.

An Amazon reviewer wrote that the story is “Disheartening. Familiar. It will ring true to many. Subtext and subtleties that keep you thinking.”

Pick up your ebook or paperback today, on Amazon or Bookshop.org. Libraries and bookstores, it is also available through Ingram.

More to Come

Xander, Terrance, Sunny, Jess, Charley and Buwan, who you’ll meet in The Wallace House of Pain, are also the main characters in my forthcoming, full-length novel Beautiful and Terrible Things. Black Rose Writing will publish Beautiful and Terrible Things in July 2024. So check out The Wallace House of Pain and if you want to spend more time with the characters, watch for the full novel (which is a different story; it does not encapsulate The Wallace House of Pain). To be notified of the book’s release, sign up on the right to receive my very occasional e-newsletter.

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“The Wallace House of Pain” Wins American Fiction Award

I don’t usually post twice in a week — that’s why I call this blog a space for “semi-occasional” news. But it’s been a good week for my novelette/play The Wallace House of Pain. A few days ago, I announced that the script for the play has been published in a literary journal. Today, I can announce that the book won highest honors in the 2023 American Fiction Awards in the novelette category!

About the American Fiction Awards

American Book Fest sponsors the American Fiction Awards, one of the largest book award competitions in the country. The contest aims to honor excellence in fiction. As their website says, they “celebrate the written word in all genres, fiction and non-fiction”.

More Information

For more information including a description and reviews of The Wallace House of Pain, click here.

For more information on the play, click here.

For more on the 2023 American Fiction Awards, click here to read the official press release and here for a complete list of winners.

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Script Version of “Wallace House of Pain” Available Now

The script for the play version of The Wallace House of Pain has been published and is now available in the autumn 2023 edition of Rushing Thru the Dark from Choeofpleirn Press!

Here’s my previous post from the day I got the exciting news that the script would be published, ICYMI.

And if any community theatre or high school or college drama department is seeking a one-act play for their stage, one that delves into modern social justice issues along with issues of personal identity and family strife, then the stage version of The Wallace House of Pain may be just what you’re looking for.

Where to Buy

Choeofpleirn Press distributes its magazine in print and digital formats.

Print: Look for the magazine in your local bookstore. (Price may vary by store.) This is a very large magazine — 264 pages to be exact — and coffee-table-worthy. It’s published on high-quality paper so you get the most out of the artwork. To give you an idea of the scope of the contents, here’s what the autumn issue includes:

23 original works of artwork / photography (some of which are stunning!)10 original dramatic scripts27 original poems.

Digital: The digital version of the magazine is sold on Choeofpleirn’s website for $6. Buy it here.

The Paperback & Ebook Versions

For those who prefer prose to script, The Wallace House of Pain is available as a “novelette” — about a 45-minute read — in both paperback and ebook formats. In fact, that was the original format for my story, before I decided it would also work as a play.

Learn more here.

Photo by Sam Moghadam Khamseh on Unsplash

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My Play Will Be Published by Choeofpleirn Press

I love writing fiction, but drama has always been my first love. Hence my Young Adult series, Bit Players, which is set in a high school drama club.

On the suggestion of a good friend, I turned my novelette The Wallace House of Pain into a stage script. And, to my sheer delight, I can announce today that Choeofpleirn Press will be publishing that script in its Autumn 2023 issue entitled Rushing Thru the Dark.

Who knows? This may be the start of a drama career for me!

About Choeofpleirn Press

Choeofpleirn Press is a unique company founded by two very well-established literary figures, who wanted to showcase “the best poetry, short fiction, nonfiction, drama, and art” in one magazine, and to have that magazine be large-format and full-color and beautiful — the type of book you see on coffee tables.

You can read about their philosophy here.

The Wallace House of Pain

To read more about The Wallace House of Pain, click here.

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Fun Friday Photo: Chicken Feed for Thought

Here’s a little chicken-related food for thought…or should I say “chicken feed”….

(Thanks to Friendly Farm in Dublin, NH, which displays this sign in their chicken coop.)

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Wallace House of Pain $1 This Week

I’m overstating: Actually, The Wallace House of Pain — my novelette about troubled family relations, modern social justice issues and deeply personal choices — is being offered as a special promotion this week for only $0.99, starting at 5 PM tonight! Buy it here.

The Wallace House of Pain is about a 45-minute read, and an introduction to the characters in my forthcoming novel, Beautiful and Terrible Things (Black Rose Writing, July 2024).

Reviews

Here’s what some reviewers and readers have said about the novelette:

“Stevens has done a wonderful and respectful job of bringing across a positive message of acceptance and love that any person who has ever struggled with that would love to read. I’m excited to read any future novels by this author and see what impact she has on the world today!” — Readers’ Favorite

“A must read!….It’s desperately sad that so many live a lie for fear of being made to feel they’re somehow less worthy of love and acceptance. This book sends out a powerful message to all. I think many will be comforted by it.” — Chat About Books

Details of the Promotion

The special promotional price of $0.99 is for the ebook version on Amazon. The regular retail price is $2.99. Buy it here.

The sale runs from today, Monday, Sept. 11 at 5 PM through Sunday, Sept. 17 at 5 PM.

If you subscribe to BookBub, BuckBooks or BookSends, watch for The Wallace House of Pain in their e-newsletters this week. (And if you don’t, but like free and discounted books, check them out. They are free to join.)

More on The Wallace House of Pain

In The Wallace House of Pain, activist Xander Wallace and his straitlaced father do not have an easy relationship. Jim’s views on race, immigration, gender, sexuality and even millennials alienate his son no matter how hard Xander tries to find common ground.

Toss in Jim’s second marriage ten months after Xander’s mother died and it’s a volatile cocktail.

How, against this backdrop, will Xander dare to bare his soul and reveal his greatest secret?

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Book Deal Update: Beautiful and Terrible Things

Maybe I should have called this post: Book Deal, Take 2: Beautiful and Terrible Things.

Beautiful and Terrible Things is my next novel — the story of six friends who remind us that friendship has the power to validate, destroy, transform and save lives.

I have bad news and good news. And the bad news is now water under the bridge, so we won’t dwell on it, except to say that the publisher that originally bought the rights to Beautiful and Terrible Things, almost two years ago, was unable to release the book on schedule, due to various issues.

So instead of celebrating a spring or summer release of the book, I spent the past few months querying new publishers and crossing my fingers the book would find a home.

The good news: It has. I have just signed a contract with Black Rose Writing, which will release Beautiful and Terrible Things in the summer of 2024!!!

Yes, waiting another year will be hard. But I’m so grateful to Black Rose Writing for giving this story life, when all looked lost. (As all but the biggest-name authors know, securing a publisher is HARD; securing two publishers even harder.)

I know several authors who are published by Black Rose, including my Writers Group cohort Tina O’Hailey (check out her amazing psychological thriller Dark Drink), and all are very happy. In particular, their team does a bang-up job of marketing, so I look forward to all of that fun when the time comes.

Teaser for Beautiful and Terrible Things

So, what is Beautiful and Terrible Things about? Here’s a description:

Charley Byrne isn’t really living. At age 29, she hunkers down in her apartment above the bookstore she manages. Then quirky activist Xander Wallace lures her out of social exile with the prospect of friendship and romance. Charley joins Xander’s circle of friends diverse in their heritage, race, gender and sexual orientation. She thrives—even leaving her comfort zone to join protests in a city grappling with social justice ills.

But the new friendships bring back-to-back betrayals that threaten the bookstore—Charley’s haven—and propel her into a dangerous depression. Can her friends save the store? And Charley?

How to Fill the Next 11 Months

While waiting for the book to be released, spend some quality time with the six friends in The Wallace House of Pain, my novelette featuring the cast of Beautiful and Terrible Things. In The Wallace House of Pain, activist Xander clashes with his conservative father in the course of a series of dinners. Each of the other five friends accompanies him to one of the meals.

For another preview of sorts, you can read my short story Two Kinds of People, which was published in Smoky Quartz. Two Kinds of People focuses on Sunny and Buwan, two of the six friends in Beautiful and Terrible Things.

And be sure to subscribe to my blog using the box at the right, so I can keep you posted on the novel’s progress. Blog subscribers will have access to oodles of bonus materials like extra scenes in the lead-up to the book’s release.

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It’s a Pitch Party in the 603

Time to report in on two recent writing events I attended.

NHWP 603 Writers’ Conference

I was thrilled to be one of five finalists in the “Pitch Party” competition at the 2023 603 Writers’ Conference sponsored by the New Hampshire Writers’ Project (NHWP) on June 3rd. My submission was for my work-in-progress, a novel entitled 101 Ways to Screw Up a Kid. That’s me at the podium fielding questions from the expert panel.

Here’s how NHWP reported on the event:

The signature 603 event, the “Pitch Party,” saw five nervous finalists competing for the best book pitch written to secure an agent or publisher. Professional actor, Colin Malette read each of the pitches out loud for the panel of judges to critique and ask the authors follow up questions. The five finalists were Dwen Chester, Sarah Hoffschwelle, Sandra Mucci, S.M. Stevens and Judith Howe.

The conference was excellent and I’ve been to over a hundred conferences in my career as an author and a PR/marketing professional. The pace was perfect and all the sessions informative, and that’s saying something! The conference was also a chance to spend time with author friends and to make new ones.

Fuller Public Library Author Meet & GreetSusie Spikol and S.M. Stevens

On June 17th, the Fuller Public Library in Hillsborough, New Hampshire, hosted its annual Author Meet & Greet, a chance for its patrons to mingle with local authors and perhaps purchase a book or two. I raffled off three free copies of my novel Horseshoes and Hand Grenades.

This event was also a chance to mingle with local authors and friends, including Susie Spikol (pictured with me in photo), who is knocking it out of the park with her Animal Adventurer’s Guide, and Karen Coulters, whose books include the newly released, contemporary romance Patchwork to Healing.

The star of the show though, if I’m being honest, was the library itself. Fuller Public Library is housed in the mansion of former New Hampshire Governor John B. Smith. It dates to the late 1800’s and features woodwork galore, pastoral tapestries, intricately carved railings, 12-foot-high painted ceilings, archways, chandeliers and stained glass. Read more here.

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