November is National Novel Writing Month– who knew?  So, I find it apropos that this month is the one year anniversary of True North having arrived on my doorstep in ACTUAL book form courtesy of our fabulous UPS man, Ted Russell, and AuthorHouse Publishing.  Four times of year, I receive a report from their marketing people, very little of which I understand, but the cool part are the reviews I can read on Goodreads, Amazon, and even AuthorHouse itself.  This lady above is not a family member nor someone I actually know, and she would like to read another book I write.  And November is National Novel Writing Month, so I should be writing another book.  But here’s the thing.  I really need enough people to read True North so that I get a phone call or an email from a reputable publisher or agent saying, “We would like to represent your next book.”  That’s really all they would have to say.  It’s not even the financial part which motivates me, although it should, I’ve sort of always known money would not be my strong suit in life; it’s the notoriety– again, I don’t need to be famous.  I just want a million people to read True North.  Too much to ask?  I think not.

And like the lady above says, there are not a lot of books about in vitro fertilization yet thousands and thousands and thousands (about 70,000) people have been born this way.  In my immediate friendship circle of people living in northern NH, I know 11 IVF babies.  Furthermore there are not a lot of books written with someone with a disability as a primary character.  Side note: I’m trying to coin this genre of literature because right now these books (those about people with disabilities) are simply called books which have characters with disabilities.  Certainly not very catchy.    But, fear not, I’m working on it.

What much of the world doesn’t know yet is that True North is actually very cutting edge.  This is modern day medical science, innovative technologies, and progressive thinking about gay adoption rolled into a crossover realistic fiction novel for teens and adults alike.  True North is a timeless, universal classic for our contemporary world.  Embryos are being donated and released in real time.  There is a little something for everyone in this book. Straight and LGBTQ moms, dads, teenagers, grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, alien life forms, etc.  For you pro choice and pro-lifers out there, you should want to read my book.  For you gay marriage/ gay adoption folks out there, you also should want to read my book.  For those of you questioning your religion or are devout in your Catholic/Protestant/Methodist/Jewish/ Muslim/ Jehovah/Buddhist belief structure, you, too, should want to read True North.  Not to get political here given tomorrow’s presidential election, I’m pretty sure Democrats, Republicans, and Independents would actually agree True North is a catalyst for great conversations across generations–and would make a great school-wide summer read in fact.

I’ve reached out to schools and libraries across our state, and oddly not heard back from some, including the library in my hometown in Merrimack, NH– so please tell them, “I knew this girl growing up, a former Tomahawk student athlete, and she wrote this awesome book.  We should bring her here.”  Or, even, my college English department hasn’t replied to me yet, so I may have to contact the department who knew me best while at Conn College.  Financial aid, of course.  Those ladies would bring me back in a heartbeat.

But the bottom line is that I’m relying on you, my friends, my family, my new blogging followers to dig in those new winter boots, pull up those boot straps, (insert other motivational cliches here), and purchase NEW paperback or hardcover copies of True North to give as gifts this holiday season.  This is the only way an agent or publisher will discover me– or if Ellen DeGeneres finally reads the copy I sent to her last spring.  Obviously, I have a full time career as an English teacher and two small children and an often traveling husband, so I won’t be flying out to California to produce the screen play just yet, but we have a lot of work to do still, and I need your help.  This is down- home, grass roots effort to find me an agent.  Go team!