Great news! “Super Me” is now available at the Dexter District Library, in Dexter, Michigan!
I stopped by yesterday and snapped a few photos.
Don’t mind me, fellow library patrons…. just over here taking selfies with my book.
Pretty exciting to see it on the shelf and available for check out!
If you are in the area, and haven’t yet read “Super Me,” you can now literally check it out in the teen section.
I have officially completed the first draft of my middle grade novel, Marigold and Nox: The Wishing Well.
*Insert Confetti Here*
I’m so stoked!! Baby Boy will be here any day now –I’m actually due in two days–and I’d hoped to get this draft finished before his arrival.
P.S. I just came down with a cold! I’m throwing all the natural remedies I can at this and crossing my fingers that I’m not sick and or have a fever when I go into labor! I know this must happen sometimes, but it seems kind of like a cruel joke–as though pushing a baby out isn’t hard enough! Wish me luck!
While I stock up on all the fluids and rest I’m able . . . I’m also acknowledging that it’s time to take a deep breath and a big sigh of relief. This has been an ongoing project for a while now and I honestly can’t believe I just typed “The End.”
Marigold and Nox is a fantasy adventure series, aimed for 8-12 year olds.
In the first book, The Wishing Well, Marigold moves to the country where she meets Nox, the cat. Together they set out on a grand adventure in a unique land, seeking a coin in order to make a very important wish. Along the way they meet interesting and quirky characters, learn about each other, and themselves, and discover what truly matters most. Somewhere along the way, they become the very best of friends.
I’ll be putting this project on hold for a little while, but I’m looking forward to continuing the journey of bringing this story to publication. So that, ultimately, I can share it with you!
I’m past due announcing that Twenty-Five Hundred is now available on Amazon!
Paperback $4.99 and Kindle/Ebook 1.99
Also available on Kindle Unlimited.
20 short stories, 500 words each. A fun mix of humor, contemporary, fantasy, and magic.
These stories have been a work in progress for the last few years. I have loved the challenge of making them exactly 500 words and am so thrilled to have them available. If you haven’t gotten your copy yet, head on over and snag one!
In other news, I’ve reached the final month with baby #3 and am just so excited over here, it’s pretty much all I can think about.
Last week, I went to my 36 week appointment and confirmed that baby is head down. They had a little handheld ultrasound unit to check and we got to see his little profile (both my girls got to go with me!) I’m just so anxious to meet our little guy and can’t believe it’s going to be so very soon! Time to pack the hospital bag…
In the meantime, I’ve been working on getting to the end of the first draft in my middle grade adventure book, Marigold and Nox. I’d hoped to get this draft finished before baby gets here and I’m still hanging onto that–fitting in time here and there and when I can to try to make that happen. The story is progressing nicely, and I’m simply loving getting to know the characters, Marigold and kitty Nox as they go on their adventure together. The friendship that they create is really special to me, as is the fun characters they meet along the way. It’s been such a blast to write and I can’t wait to see it through to the end.
One last bit of news . . .
Sale coming up for Super Me! The majority of the story happens leading up to, and on, Valentine’s Day. So what better time to hold a book sale?
If you haven’t yet read Super Me, now’s your chance! Just .99 for the kindle version, starting Feb 14th and running for one week only.
Starting off the new year with some BIG NEWS.
The wait is nearly over. My short story collection, Twenty-Five Hundred, now has a release date! This book of stories will be available on January 17th. AND pre-orders for the kindle/e-book version are available now for 1.99!
I’ve been collecting these short stories for the last several years and I can’t even tell you how excited I am to finally be able to share them!
“A delightful mix of humorous, lighthearted, and more serious contemporary stories and those woven with fantasy and magic. Each piece is exactly 500 words.
Inside these pages . . . A woman resolves to begin a new year on the right foot, with the help of sticky notes … A poem in which a woman in red rushes through an airport to try to catch a plane . . . An excerpt from the novel “Super Me”: an unfortunate interaction with a crush at a coffee shop . . . Two workers of magic meet to perform a secret ritual . . . At a desert marketplace, a child is yanked aside by a mysterious man with an important message . . . While running solo on a trail in the mountains, a woman injures her ankle and thus reflects upon her life’s choices . . . While being held captive by frog-like creatures, a girl makes a high-staked impossible decision . . . A sneak peek at the novel “Run”: a teenage girl is trapped inside a neighbor’s house while zombies take over the world around her . . . and much more.”
Happy New Year! It’s going to be a great year.
I’m working on the first draft of a new novel.
This is an idea that has been kicking around in my head for years now. Caroline’s Baby is a contemporary drama about a couple suffering from infertility, something I have firsthand experience with. I decided to give myself the month of November to explore the idea and see if there’s something to this that’s worth pursuing further.
So far, it’s going really well! I wrote an unheard of (for me) five thousand words in one day last weekend and the story is progressing nicely. Every time I sit down to work on this draft, I feel like the story flows out and it becomes more real.
A promising start!
In other news, the short story collection I’ve been working on is getting close to publication. Twenty-Five Hundred needs a description and a couple of final touches and then it will be good to go. I’m so excited to share these stories!
In case you missed it, here’s a sneak peek at the cover.
I completed another 500 word piece this week. “Date Night” is about a teen whose life is turned upside down with an unexpected pregnancy. I’m planning to include this story in Twenty-Five Hundred, volume two.
A couple more of my short stores have been accepted for the local magazine, Prairie Times. “Scrambled” is a fun little piece that will be printed in the January issue. This story will also make an appearance in Twenty-Five Hundred, Volume I.
“Leo and the Carrot” was accepted for the March issue. It’s actually a true story about our sweet Australian Sheppard Mix from about 11 years ago, when Leo and I had a battle of the wills over a baby carrot. I’ll be posting the story here as well.
The Prairie Times also has a page up for books written by authors who have contributed to the magazine and “Super Me” is now included.
Yes, there’s kind of a theme here today. Pregnancy and babies are on the brain as I’m due with my baby #3 in February. I’m getting close to the third trimester and my two girls are looking forward to meeting their baby brother in a few short months!
During this month of gratitude, I am thankful for my busy and fulfilling days, creating stories in-between and around caring for, nurturing, and enjoying my family. I’m grateful for the opportunity to share my words with you and so happy that you are here to read them.
Thank you, always, for your support.
Oh, and if you’re on instagram, you can now find me there for the latest writing updates @jessica_dazzo_author
Wishing you a wonderful and joyous Thanksgiving filled with love and abundance <3
So, what’s happening with the zombie book I’ve been talking about? Is it done yet?
It’s time for an UPDATE!
I posted a few months back about “Run” my young adult zombie novel. I’m excited to announce that I finished the first draft near the end of June! The manuscript is currently simmering on the back burner, waiting to be molded into a second draft and reworked until it’s ready for publishing. The story is in three parts and, once it’s finished, the parts will be available for download in electronic (kindle) format and sold all together as a physical book as well. I’m pleased with how the story turned out! There’s action, suspense, a bit of romance… and of course zombies. And not the lumbering slow kind. Watch out, ’cause these zombies RUN.
Once the first draft of “Run” was completed, I immediately jumped into work on a new project that has been floating around my head for quite some time. This is a middle grade novel, meaning it’s geared toward the 8-12 year old range–between chapter books and young adult. The book will be part of a series called, “Marigold and Nox: The Magical Adventures of a Girl and Her Cat”. I am about a third of the way through the first draft of the first book, entitled “The Wishing Well”. In it, ten-year-old Marigold moves from the city to the country, where she meets Nox, the mysterious black cat, and discovers a magical doorway in her new bedroom. Adventure awaits.
I’m not sure how much I’m ready to talk about this yet, as it’s pretty new still. But I can say that this sweet and fun series was inspired by the strong bond between my nine-year-old daughter and her kitty, Mischief, a cat true to his name.
There will definitely be more on “Marigold and Nox” coming later.
In other not-related-to-writing news…
Yep, that’s a baby in there!
After six or more grueling weeks of all day morning sickness, I’ve finally made it to the second trimester and am beginning to feel better. THANK GOODNESS. Now I can get back to making paleo goodies!
And now that my oldest is back in school, that means my toddler’s nap time is all about writing time for me.
Have a great week!
My good friend, Amy Giaquinto, is an award winning filmmaker and screen writer. When she approached me about doing an interview on local TV channel 8 about writing and publishing Super Me, I thought it sounded like an amazing opportunity! I also was wary–was this something I could actually do? It was definitely outside my comfort zone…. I’m so much more comfortable writing than I am speaking!
Well, we did it. I took a big ‘ol step outside of my zone and went for it.
This morning, we filmed the interview at Channel 8.
Amy produced and directed. She asked me questions and I did my best to answer cohesively! I also read the end of chapter one of Super Me–the awkward-funny and devastating scene in the coffee shop where Faye’s journey begins.
Here I am… on set! I *think* it went pretty well. Of course, I haven’t watched it yet…
During the interview I had a BIG announcement and I’m just bursting to share the news!
I’m working with another talented friend of mine–local artist, Laura Somers, to put together a picture book. I wrote the manuscript several years ago and she is currently working on illustrations. Berries for Bruno is about a bear who’s stuck in his ways and is forced to step out of his comfort zone and try new things. (I guess that’s the current theme, isn’t it?)
We will be publishing Berries for Bruno this year. I can’t wait!
Check out Amy’s facebook page, Guiaquinto Productions, and catch her new trailer for her hilarious short film, “Date Night In”. And stay tuned for book release news!
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© 2024 Jessica Dazzo
