Archives: Books I Love

FINDING IMOGENE by Teri Case: New Novel Launch!

Since releasing my own children’s picture books in 2016 and 2019, I’ve had the privilege of helping several writer friends get their books out into the world as well. Today, I’m excited to announce the launch for Teri Case’s newest novel, “Finding Imogene.” Order any time, but if you order a copy on Amazon today (Sunday Jan. 7), it will help her algorithms quite a bit, and algorithms are the name of the game in getting the most mileage possible in terms of marketing and advertising. It’ll pop up on Barnes & Noble pretty soon, and a large-print version is also about to become available. Here’s a link to make buying easy: https://a.co/d/5qxiRbU

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Frances Jerome has been tormented by the disappearance of her childhood best friend, Imogene, for decades. Despite her best efforts, Frances hasn’t built honest or intimate relationships with anyone since, including her son and daughter, and she’ll never forgive her father for the role he played in Imogene’s disappearance. Worst of all, she blames herself for turning her back on her best friend when she needed her most. After 43 years of remission, Frances’s cancer returns with a vengeance, and she knows she doesn’t deserve to rest in peace until Imogene can too. Frances enlists the help of her daughter Jean, who is struggling with her identity as a mother and a wife, and Griffin, a burned-out private detective whose father was haunted by this case before his death. Together, they try to find Imogene before Frances’s time runs out. But will finding Imogene offer the answers, justice, and peace they each long for? Or will the truth expose far more than they can imagine?

So, how did I get involved in Teri’s most recent book launch? Well, many years ago, I was in a Mastermind group, hosted by Dan Blank. It was a community of like-minded writers—a place for us to exchange ideas, inspire each other, and offer support through our writing journeys. In that group, I was fortunate to virtually “meet” Teri Case, and the rest is history! We initially bonded (still virtually) over a shared love of writing books, and, over time, we began to trust one another as beta readers, advisers, and critique partners. She became one of my best friends, and we never run out of things to say. The funny thing is, we didn’t meet face-to-face for many years! In fact, we’ve only seen each other in person one time since becoming friends in 2016. I’ll share a photo from that 2023 meeting, as it was a really fun in-person get-together in California. I was at a writer’s conference, and she just happened to be visiting relatives in the area, so we met up; we shut the restaurant down (seriously, the waiter kicked us out!), and we could’ve talked all night. I guess that’s the power of the internet, phone calls, texts, e-mails, social media, FaceTime, and Zoom meetings—because that’s the only way we had communicated up until our October visit on the West Coast.

But back to business … Teri’s newest novel, Finding Imogene, would make a great gift for your avid-reader friends and yourself. It would also be a fantastic suggestion for your Book Club(s) that you might be a part of; as a domestic suspense novel, it offers many talking points, conversations and questions about family dysfunction, family dynamics, and keeping secrets. Here’s the blurb I wrote about “Finding Imogene,” which is printed on the back of the book (And yes, I do feel famous!): “A can’t-put-it-down story of a missing girl, a fractured family, and one woman’s quest to unravel a lifetime of secrets before it’s too late.“

By the way, Teri has two other novels that I love just as much as “Finding Imogene.” They are called “Tiger Drive” and “In the Doghouse,” so if you’re looking for a lot of new reading material, try those out as well. Tell your friends, because word of mouth means everything, and it will help so much in Teri’s book sales. You can also go online and find your local library to suggest it as a book purchase for their shelves. Or ask your favorite indie bookstore to stock it; they’re always looking for ideas about what to sell. If you like the book, write a review on Amazon after you read it; post about it on your social media sites. Authors, like Teri and I, appreciate everything you do to help us out in these ways.

Thank you for taking time to read this newsletter! I don’t send out very many (hey, aren’t you glad?!), but when I do, it’s because it feels like something important enough to share. As for me, my literary agent, Keely Boeving, is still trying to sell my middle-grade children’s novel for kids ages 8-12; it’s called A NIGHT WITHOUT LIGHT, and I hope it enters the world someday. I’m also drafting a new novel called GHOST ZOO (working title), and I hope to be sending it to Keely in a few months. My writing life is busy, and I continue to do Author Visits at elementary schools where I speak to students about writing, publishing, creativity, and inspiration. What’s really fun about my presentations is that I always invite a real art car to come along; the students hear me speak, and then they go outside to experience the very thing that inspired my first story, Arthur Zarr’s Amazing Art Car. So, if you know a school who would be interested, please send them my way; they can reach me through the Contact tab on this website or email me at catheynickell AT gmail DOT com.

Have a wonderful day and continue to Be Amazing! And don’t forget to order Finding Imogene by Teri Case!

That’s Right, I’m Sixty.

Holy Moly, I’ve just celebrated sixty trips around the sun! And … um … I’m not sure how I feel about it. I mean, thirty was flirty; and forty was “the new twenty,” right? Fifty was pretty nifty. But 60? Sixty is mixty … giving me mixed emotions, that is. (I made “mixty” up, but it fits. Feel free to use my new word!)

A lot happened over the last couple of years. There was the Covid chaos, and we all know how awful that felt. But some good things came about too: I finished a middle grade novel, and I became agented by Keely Boeving of WordServe Literary. She and I went out on submission with the novel, and we’re in the process of looking for a publishing home for my manuscript—fingers crossed. Then, my husband and I spent a full year renovating our home that we’ve lived in for over twenty years. And I threw myself a fun birthday party for several close friends.

For a birthday gift, my husband Kevin surprised me with a bottle of 1963 port wine. It has aged as long as I have, except it lived most of its life fermenting inside an oak wood cask. (I’m hoping to stay out of all wooden caskets for a few more decades, lol). I read my new wine bottle’s description online as follows: A pale tawny wine; an assortment of spices combining into a tuned symphony; full-bodied; a long delicious aftertaste. Honestly? That sounds a bit like ME! Pale, spicy, full-bodied … and if I’m your friend, I’ll stick around for a really long time. 😉

There are more words that struck me. “Fresh and surprisingly clean and youthful for its age,” the description reads. Youthful for its age? Hey, I’ll take that explanation! Continuing, “It lingers nicely”—well, so do I! And, “Sexy yet ultimately crisp”—yes and yes, me too (well, my hubby thinks so?). All jokes aside, here’s something even cooler: “The 1963 Colheita Port is an old vines field blend bottled in 2014.” That phrase made me remember what I was doing in 2014, when my birthday bottle of wine was coming out of an old oak cask, finally being bottled into its perfect glass home. That’s the exact year that I came up with the idea for my first children’s picture book, Arthur Zarr’s Amazing Art Car. (The wine and I were doing some special work that year!)

Some of you remember the story. I don’t drive an art car myself, but the concept came to me one morning during rush hour while driving my then-teenage son to school. I used to keep the back of my old SUV covered with various bumper stickers. I joked with my son, Will, that I needed to be a polite driver and obey the laws of the road because my car is so incredibly recognizable. He laughed at me, insisting that no one ever notices me and certainly not my car. During the drive, Will’s comment got me pondering what else—besides bumper stickers—might make a car memorable? That question triggered me to think about art cars, and by the time I finished my morning carpool, the concept for the picture book was born.

I went on to publish Arthur Zarr’s Amazing Art Car, followed by a second picture book, Yazzy’s Amazing Yarn. Those two books have offered me the opportunity to speak to students at over 100 schools (and counting) about writing, publishing, inspiration and creativity. Additionally, I always invite a REAL art car to accompany me, which brings the publishing process—from inspiration to an actual hardcover book—full circle for the children. What began in 2014 as just a little seed turned into my passion business; similar to when my birthday wine left its oak cask, gradually becoming a delicious port wine over the years.

I don’t know when Kevin and I will uncork that pale, tawny 1963 port. I don’t know when (or if) my middle grade novel will be published. But I do know one thing—fine wine takes many years of “mixty-ness” to reach its full potential. So maybe sixty is a little bit mixty for me, too, but I think I’m okay with that.

~ Be Amazing!

Yazzy’s Amazing Yarn: We have a launch!

When I discovered yarn bombing a few years ago, the idea grabbed me so much that it inspired a children’s book. Fast forward to today … and YAZZY’S AMAZING YARN has hit the shelves! Yarn bombing is a craze that you may (or may not!) have heard of in which knitters and crocheters decorate everyday outdoor objects with their soft and fuzzy creations. For example, you might see a telephone pole wrapped in yarn or a statue wearing a playful, knitted cap. I guess outsider art—which is art produced by self-taught artists who are not part of the mainstream artistic establishment—is something that draws me in. Isn’t it cool? I must think so, because this is my second children’s book that focuses on this kind of outside-the-box artistic endeavor.

My first outsider-art-type book, ARTHUR ZARR’S AMAZING ART CAR, won First Place for Children’s Picture Books-All Ages in 2017, from the Texas Association of Authors. It also was a winner in the 10th Annual National Indie Excellence Award competition for Picture Books-Ages 4 to 8; and it was a finalist for Book Cover Design, also from the NIEA that same year. It’s about a man who builds an art car and makes friends along the way. I was inspired by the art cars I see around Houston and at my city’s annual Art Car Parade (hosted by The Orange Show). The book, which is illustrated by Bill Megenhardt, sold so well that I’m now in my second printing of sweet Arthur’s whimsical story.

But let’s get back to YAZZY’S AMAZING YARN. The story is about a creative girl who loves yarn and loves to knit. Her mother taught her the craft, and then Yazzy goes on to teach her two best friends—Kayla and Isabel. Yazzy’s neighborhood park is dull and rusty, but she has a grand plan. The three friends transform Penny Park into a fuzzy rainbow of warmth and color. Visitors to the vibrant playground love it more than ever! The story ends by asking: What yarn-tastic idea will Yazzy think of next? My illustrator, Emily Calimlim, brought it all to life with her beautiful watercolor images, and I couldn’t be happier with the results.

So much has happened since the book released this month in August 2019. First of all, the reviews! I’m getting the most wonderful feedback from readers, and I appreciate every single mention. One really cute reviewer wrote: “This book has definitely inspired my crafty daughter to create some yarn bombing of her own. It would make a great birthday present to accompany a knitting kit.” And I need more reviews! So, if you don’t mind posting one on Amazon, I would really appreciate it. It’s easy, and I can explain how: Log into your personal Amazon account, search for my book, click on it, scroll down until you see “Write a Customer Review” in a box, choose a certain number of stars, and then write something. Voila! It’s fairly simple and helps me so much. Even a short review is beneficial, because it’s all based on the number of reviews, not on the length of each one.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• I’m currently part of a virtual book blogging tour with Lone Star Literary Life! So you might be seeing posts about my book, including a drawing for a free autographed book. I’m giving three away! Google the LSLL website to find out more.
• I’ll be signing books from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, Saturday, September 14, at the Texas Word Wrangler Book Festival, 276 N Orange Street, Giddings, Texas. Open to the public so drop by if you’re in the area.
• I’ll be signing books from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, Saturday, October 12, at the Galveston Book Festival, 5600 Seawall Blvd. Open to the public so please stop by if it’s a beach day for you and your family.
• I’ll be signing books from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm, Saturday, October 19, at Tomfoolery Toys and Books, 4844 Beechnut Street in Houston (in the Meyer Park Shopping Center across from Meyerland Plaza). Please come out to this fun event that is open to the public!
• I’ll be doing quite a few school author visits, which even includes a bit of travel outside of Houston.

I hope you will take a minute to check out YAZZY’S AMAZING YARN. It’s been so much fun to write, create, and now … to launch! Follow me on Instagram (@catheynickell) and Facebook. Thank you for all your support and remember to …

BE AMAZING! xoxo