This week’s Bookshelf is about two book launches by local authors and an opportunity for writers to network and learn about the publishing industry from tried-and-true professionals.
Happy pub day: November is upon us and like it or not, that means holiday season is here. Kickstarting those holiday vibes is “A Bayou Christmas” (Tule Publishing, $17.99), a new novel from Atlanta author Susan Sands that publishes Nov. 1. As mentioned in Bookshelf last spring, 2022 has been a very big year for Sands. This is her fourth novel to publish this year, and it’s the third in her Louisiana series about the influential Bertrand family of Cypress Bayou.
The family saga was set into motion in book one, “Home to Cypress Bayou,” when cancer patient Allison Miers discovers she’s related to the Bertrands after her search for a bone marrow transplant leads her to a sister she never knew she had. In “A Bayou Christmas,” Allison is now cancer-free and has been offered a trust fund if she moves to Cypress Bayou and becomes a part of the family. She arrives in town during preparations for the annual Christmas Festival and, overwhelmed by her powerful new family, finds refuge in her friendship with the local mechanic who harbors a secret of his own.
Time travel: Atlanta author Tori Whitaker celebrates the launch of her second historical novel, “A Matter of Happiness” (Lake Union Press, $14.95), with an event at FoxTale Book Shoppe in Woodstock on publication day, Nov. 8.
Two very independent women fuel this dual-timeline story that switches back and forth from the 2010s to the 1920s. Starting in 2018, Melanie Barnett has ended her engagement and is embracing her single status as she climbs the corporate ladder at a bourbon distillery in Kentucky. When she discovers the diary of her beloved great-great-great aunt Violet, Melanie goes down a rabbit hole, learning about Violet’s exciting life during the Jazz Age, as well as the price she paid for some of the choices she made in her fiercely independent life.
Says author Patti Callahan Henry, “‘A Matter of Happiness’ is a thrill of a ride and a beautiful read. Violet and Melanie are connected across generations by blood, bourbon, cars and a great need for independence. Tori Whitaker unfolds the narrative with a deep sense of history imbuing every sensational page, weaving the women’s stories until the inspiring conclusion.”
For details about Whitaker’s book launch event, go to foxtalebookshoppe.com.
Attention aspiring authors: The Atlanta Writers Club (AWC) hosts its 27th annual Atlanta Writers Conference at the Westin Atlanta Airport Hotel Nov. 4-5. There will also be a virtual option for those who can’t attend in person.
Although the deadline has already passed for participation in the manuscript and first page critiques, a few events may remain open to last-minute registrants. And because registration is priced a la carte, you don’t have to pay for things you can’t do.
So what is still available? Registration deadline is 6 p.m. Nov. 3 for the Editor Q&A Panel on Friday and the Agent Q&A Panel on Saturday. The panels will feature the wisdom and practical know-how of 18 acquisition editors and literary agents. Among the participants are Katherine Odom-Tomchin, a literary agent with Folio Literary Management, and Taylor Rondestvedt, assistant editor of Gallery Books for Simon & Schuster.
The deadline is the same for writing workshops, the query letter critique and a pitch session with an agent or editor. But those events tend to book up early, so be prepared to get on a waiting list and hope for the best. Other events include a Friday night mixer and an awards ceremony on Saturday when the best manuscript will be announced.
Conference fees range from $50-$170, and participants must be a member of the Atlanta Writers Club, which costs $50 to join. For details go to atlantawritersconference.com.
Other upcoming AWC events include a Nov. 19 meeting on the campus of GSU-Dunwoody Perimeter College featuring two speakers. John Pruitt, former WSB news anchor and newly published author of “Tell It True,” will talk about writing historical fiction, and “Twenty Mile” author C. Matthew Smith will discuss publishing with a small press. On April 23, the club will host the Atlanta Self-Publishing Conference at Westin Atlanta Airport Hotel. For more information, go to atlantawritersclub.org.
Suzanne Van Atten is a book critic and contributing editor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Contact her at svanatten@ajc.com, and follow her on Twitter at @svanatten.
