Author Sherry Howard has a new book titled, ROCK & ROLL WOODS hit bookshelves today. She has agreed to share a book with one lucky winner. All you have to do to get in the running is to leave a comment. Reblog, tweet, or talk about it on Facebook with a link and you will get additional chances to win. Just let me know the other things you do to share the good news, so I can put in the right amount of tickets in my basket for you.
Sharing on Facebook, Twitter, reblogging really helps spread the word for a new book. Thanks for helping Sherry!
BOOK’S DESCRIPTION:
Kuda is a bit of a grump who doesn’t like change. So when he wakes up to new neighbors and loud, strange noises in his woods, he is not happy. Will his desire to be with his friends overcome his objections to loud sounds? And might Kuda’s courage help him discover that new things and rock and roll music can be pretty great? Featuring helpful backmatter about Sensory Integration and insider jokes for parents with autistic kids.
BOOK’S JOURNEY
In the fall of 2016 I brainstormed with my favorite picture book collaborator, Kamora, then eight years old. It was her inspiration to write a story about a bear named Kuda who lived in the woods. We had the whole family thinking about noises that might disturb a grumpy bear in the woods. My entire family is often subjected to brainstorming, critiquing, and beta reading. When I first sent “Kuda’s Band” to a critique partner, I told her it was a granddaughter request and I wasn’t sure “it has any legs.” Her enthusiastic response encouraged me to keep working with it.
Unlike other manuscripts that require blood, sweat, and tears, this one oozed out fully formed, and stayed true to my vision even through revisions. And there were revisions. My close critique partners gave lots of valuable feedback. Heather Ayris Burnell did a thoughtful critique in an exchange on SubItClub. And, Mira Reisberg is a dream editor, and I was blessed to have her edit AND art direct this manuscript for Clear Fork. I’d been in one of her classes and reached out to her when I heard the news of her joining Clear Fork, and was thrilled when she became directly involved!
From the beginning, I wanted two things to happen with this book. I wanted a double layer: a fun fictional story of a grumpy bear AND a subtle nod to the “bear” who is afraid and bothered by new things and change. And, I wanted my poetry to be embedded with lyrical word choices, and onomatopoeia.
I only queried this manuscript a few times. When one agent informed me it was too commercial for his tastes, I chose to be encouraged by that. In the meantime I’d sent a different manuscript to Callie Metler-Smith at Clear Fork in fall of 2016, and she didn’t take that one, but enjoyed my writing. So, I sent ROCK AND ROLL WOODS in late January 2017 when she invited me to send more. By then I’d already grown to love Callie—we bonded over shared experiences with autism. I nudged Callie in February to clarify that she wasn’t interested. Only, it turned out that she was interested if I’d be willing to make the ending more explicit, and by March she’d committed, and we signed the contract.
One of the most exciting moments in the journey was seeing Kuda brought to life by the brilliant illustrator, Anika A. Wolf. In August 2017 I saw her vision of Kuda on the drums! That astonished and delighted me. It has inspired me to keep writing, hanging on my inspiration board ever since. If someone can use my words to bring something that adorable to life, then I’m happy to write.
Callie, Mira, and Anika focused much attention to detail, including a string of over thirty emails, many of which focused on one facial expression. Every single word, every single placement, every single expression was evaluated! From an email in March 2017 with “lol, then you have yourself a publisher,” until September 2018, when I got my electronic ARC, there were bursts of activity and long periods of silence.
This manuscript had a short journey in publishing terms. From birth to holding it in my hands will be less than two years. That doesn’t take into account the many manuscripts where I did hundreds of revisions, learning the process for a successful picture book.
SHERRY’S BIO
Sherry Howard lives with her children and wild dogs in Middletown, Kentucky, a stone’s throw from the beautiful horse farms Kentucky is always bragging about. Sherry loves to read, write, cook, and sit in the sand watching the waves when she can. She credits her ability to write a complete sentence in English to her training in classical Latin. ROCK AND ROLL WOODS is her debut picture book. Her love of children with special needs inspired her throughout the development of this book. She’s seen her poetry and prose published over the years, and is excited about her journey with picture books. She also writes non-fiction for middle grade and young adults for the educational market, as well as fiction for that age group.
Thank you Sherry for sharing your book and journey with us. I can’t wait to read it. Looks like this will be another big seller. Good luck!
Talk tomorrow,
Kathy
this looks like a wonderful book that i could share with my kinders and grandies, both )
LikeLiked by 1 person
By: ksbeth on September 24, 2018
at 5:50 am
My daughter is on the autism spectrum, too. I applaud Sherry and Callie and Mira for publishing this book! Good luck to you all!
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By: Lynne Marie on September 24, 2018
at 7:51 am
Such a pleasure to visit Kathy, and all y’all, here today! I’m excited to put Kuda out in the world! Thanks for hosting us, Kathy!
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By: Sherry Howard on September 24, 2018
at 11:00 am
Looks like an amazing book! Congrats. Looks like great character development.
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By: lydialukidis on September 24, 2018
at 12:34 pm
What a great looking new boo. It reminds me of some of the rock-&-roll neighbors I’ve had too. Thanks for the chance to win a copy!
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By: carlrscott on September 24, 2018
at 1:35 pm
*book
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By: carlrscott on September 24, 2018
at 1:35 pm
I’ve tweeted a link to this post: https://twitter.com/carlrscott/status/1044279395370692610, and pinned an image on Pinterest too: https://www.pinterest.es/pin/336573772147691699/. Thanks again!!
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By: carlrscott on September 24, 2018
at 1:38 pm
I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS!!!! Sherry is a fabulous CP, and I’m so proud of her. 🙂
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By: shannonstocker on September 24, 2018
at 1:45 pm
Congratulations, Sherry! So happy for you and excited about Kuda!!! xox
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By: Melissa Stoller on September 24, 2018
at 2:52 pm
Congratulations Sherry…! This is so exciting. I’m super happy for you. And I loved reading about your journey to publication. YAY you!
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By: Melanie Sue Bowles on September 24, 2018
at 3:19 pm
Loved the story behind the story.
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By: Sue (Susan Uhlig) (@susanuhlig) on September 24, 2018
at 3:31 pm
Love it!
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By: Lennon Faris on September 24, 2018
at 4:21 pm
Congratulations! I enjoyed reading your backstory & I love that you kept to your vision of a multi-layered #PB.
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By: ptnozell on September 24, 2018
at 4:21 pm
Congrats, Sherry! Your book looks wonderful!
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By: Claire W Bobrow on September 24, 2018
at 6:18 pm
I can relate to Kuda – not that I’m a grumpy bear – but change is hard! This is a great theme for a children’s book and the illustrations look lovely. Congratulations, Sherry – you are in excellent company with the ClearFork Publishing group!
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By: doreenrobinson on September 24, 2018
at 10:10 pm
This book looks wonderful. I can’t wait to read it. And, the story behind the story wasn’t bad either! Thanks for sharing.
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By: Linda Staszak on September 25, 2018
at 8:07 am
So happy for you, Sherry! 😀
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By: brookemcintyre on September 25, 2018
at 9:11 am
I have already fallen in love with the main character, Kuda, in ROCK AND ROLL WOODS.
Thank you for sharing your debut picture book and journey, Sherry, inspired by your granddaughter, Kamora.
I shared this post on Twitter and Facebook.
@SuzyK5 FB Suzy Leopold
Suzy Leopold
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By: Prairie Garden Girl on September 25, 2018
at 7:28 pm
Congratulations to Sherry on her debut PB! This looks so fun and I appreciate the underlying thread, since I have friends with children on the autism spectrum. Good luck!
Also posted to FB and Twitter.
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By: Nancy Riley on September 26, 2018
at 7:45 am
This is a very special book that is needed out in the world!! ❤️🐻📚 Congratulations Sherry! And thank you Kathy for the giveaway! Here’s the link to my tweet: https://twitter.com/sadcampanita025/status/1046068159315406848?s=21
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By: Sandra Delgado on September 29, 2018
at 12:08 pm
What a great idea and inspiring path to publication! Congrats, Sherry.
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By: theauntsavant on October 6, 2018
at 2:51 pm
Thanks for sharing your story about your path to publication! I can so relate to Kuda’s problems with noise! in my case they are not so easily overcome, but i’m fortunate to live in quiet woods!
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By: Yvona Fast on October 9, 2018
at 8:48 pm