Books for kids, teens, & those who are young at heart

Category: Cover Reveal (Page 1 of 5)

ONLY DARK EDGES Pre-Order and Summer Author Updates

The mom side of me is deep in summer mode here. The family has taken a day trip to a heavenly-scented lavender farm, we have a small vacation coming up, and we’ve been engaging in all the usual summer activities like swimming and sprinklers.

But that doesn’t mean things are quiet on the author side. Quite the opposite with my next book ONLY DARK EDGES coming out on July 25! The cover has an interesting story that I talked about on TikTok, and the main image was created by darksouls1 on Pixabay.

You can pre-order ONLY DARK EDGES on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Kobo, Google Play, Apple Books, and Smashwords.

Hamlet meets You’ve Reached Sam in this YA psychological thriller that is both heart-pounding and heart-wrenching.

Delta’s spent the summer navigating the treacherous waters of losing her older sister, Gemma. Determined to brave junior year of high school without her sister, Delta finds solace in the arms of a new girlfriend. But grief takes a twisted turn when Gemma’s tortured ghost appears with a dire warning.

Beware the storm.

Plagued by the haunting suspicion that Gemma’s death involved foul play, Delta is plunged into a downward spiral of grief and paranoia. No one can be trusted—not her girlfriend, their friends, or her sister’s once-loyal boyfriend. Not even Delta’s own mind.

With a hurricane bearing down, two tempests collide at the abandoned Sea Glass Lodge. Accusations fly. Secrets unravel. And everyone is a target of the storm.

Next month, I’m teaching the breakout session “What to Expect When You’re Self-Publishing” at the SCBWI Summer Virtual Conference 2023. This is a blockbuster event in the children’s publishing world, and every attendee will have access to all 50 sessions for a month after the conference.

Keep an eye out on my Events page or subscribe to my newsletter to stay up to date on all my author events. I have some great fall events I’ll be adding in soon!

I’ve become very passionate about sharing my knowledge about self-publishing children’s books with writers. My conference sessions and workshops are packed full of good information, but if the self-publishing bug has hit you and you find yourself wanting more personalized guidance, I’m now offering one-on-one Self-Publishing Consultations. You get me for a whole hour to ask all things self-publishing and to come up with a plan for the next steps in your indie author career.

How is your summer (or winter if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere) shaping up?

Signed Books, SELFIES FROM MARS Pre-order, & Self-Publishing Workshop

Since it’s that gift-giving time of year, a reminder that signed copies of my books are available to be shipped right to you on my Purchase Books page. If you want those goodies to arrive by Christmas, you should get your orders in now. And a reminder that you can also purchase them on all the usual online book retailers or order them from your local indie bookstore.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with my books, my award-winning YA fantasies, Elixir Bound and Elixir Saved, are great for teens or adults who love epic fantasy with cozy vibes. Pirate Island and Witch Test are contemporary middle grade with a hint of the supernatural, great for the 8 and up crowd but particularly perfect for 10-14 year-olds.

The Bedtime Knight is an imaginative, interactive picture book that’s a fun read aloud. And finally, Mommy’s Night Before Christmas is a modern take on the classic Christmas poem that is just as much for the adults as it is for the kids. This one is a great stocking stuffer for all the moms in your life.

Speaking of books (as if I talk about so many other things here!), I have a new one coming your way February 13, 2023, and it’s up for pre-order now. Meet Selfies From Mars: The True Story of Mars Rover Opportunity! It’s STEM with heart. This has been a passion project of mine that I’m so excited to bring to readers. It’s my first nonfiction children’s book, and I have loved working on it, particularly using all the amazing NASA images from Opportunity’s mission. I also navigated the tricky world of music licensing for this book.

At Indie Author Day at the Norwalk Public Library, there was a lot of interest from other authors to learn more about self-publishing children’s books. So I’ve been convinced to offer up my self-publishing workshop “What to Expect When Self-Publishing” in January. This is digital workshop, so you can attend from anywhere (details and sign up here)!

Yes, I’ve been very busy! I wouldn’t want it any other way. What have you all been up to this fall?

MOMMY’S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS Cover Reveal

There’s so much going on right now as I prepare for my two fall releases and work on revisions for my Hamlet-inspired YA psychological thriller that’s coming out next year! Plus, it’s summer, so that means adventures and vacations with the family.

Today, though, I’m focusing on my upcoming picture book MOMMY’S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS. Consider this a reason to have a Christmas in July celebration because I’m revealing the gorgeous cover and one of my favorite spreads in the book. There is something so magical about seeing the words come to life through illustrations!

I was so happy to work with illustrator Phoebe Cho. Her vision for the characters and setting matched up with mine and more. She brought a really beautiful mix of classic Christmas nostalgia and a modern, realistic twist. So here it is!

Do you love it as much as I do?

Some of you long-time readers may remember my take on Clement C. Moore’s classic poem “A Visit From St. Nicholas” that I shared each year at Christmastime. This version is quite similar (I did make a few edits to the text), but the illustrations take it to a whole new level.

It definitely can be read to kids (I’ve read it to mine a bunch of times and it always makes them laugh), but it’s truly a picture book for parents. One of my favorite spreads really demonstrates the kind of humor I was going for and shows you Santa himself!

I hissed, “Get off my roof, your reindeer too.”
With a shake of my hands, waved off his crew.
He grinned. “Don’t end up on my naughty list.”
Clearly this guy wasn’t getting my gist.

Mommy’s night before christmas

I can’t wait for you to meet the rest of the family! The book comes out October 25 and is starting to pop up on retailers for pre-order. I’m working with a marketing firm and am looking for a few published picture book authors to read it early and provide blurbs. If that’s you and you’re interested in MOMMY’S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, let me know at katielcarroll @ yahoo.com.

About MOMMY’S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS:

‘Twas the night before Christmas…

In this humorous take on the classic Christmas poem by Clement C. Moore, the concept of the serene night before Christmas is turned on its head. Instead of visions of sugar plums, the children are teething and playing loudly. There are presents to be wrapped and ornaments to be mended. Just when Mommy and Daddy take a moment to relax, a noise outside alerts them to a surprise visitor. But Mommy’s determined not to let anyone–not even Santa Claus himself–disturb the sleeping children on Christmas Eve.

Children and parents alike will be entertained and delighted by this new classic Christmas story! The perfect gift for all the moms who make Christmas so special.

 Pre-order now from Bookshop, Amazon (hardcover or ebook), Barnes & NobleIndieBound, or Book Depository (for international folks).

WITCH TEST Cover Reveal & ARCs

It’s here! The cover for my upcoming middle grade WITCH TEST is such a mood. I love Liza’s stance and the glowing moon reflecting off of everything. It’s got the corn maze and the crows, which are so important to Liza’s story. Big shout-out to MiblArt for creating the cover!

WITCH TEST will be out on September 13, 2022. I’m working on getting it up for pre-order on all the usual book retail sites and scheduling events for the fall. In the meantime, ARCs (advanced reader copies) will be going out in the next few weeks. If you’re interested in receiving an early copy to read and review, you can fill out the ARC form here.

WITCH TEST blurb:

Liza is sinking in a bubbling cauldron of middle school rumors.

When the entire eighth grade begins studying the Salem witch trials, it seems everyone is on a witch hunt…with Liza as target number one. Worst of all, her ex-best friend is the one who started a rumor that Liza bewitched a boy with a love potion.

As the bullying intensifies, Liza’s loneliness grows. More than ever, she wishes her mother were still alive. A glimmer of hope arrives when Liza finds her mother’s diary…until she actually reads it. Turns out Liza’s family connection to witches goes back for centuries. So much for the witch stuff being rumors!

If Liza can channel her inner witch at the Halloween night corn maze, she might find the strength to stand up for herself. If not, she risks losing a piece of herself to a growing depression and any hope of happiness.

WITCH TEST is an upper middle grade Mean Girls meets The Craft novel for pre-teens and young teens.

Doesn’t it look so pretty next to PIRATE ISLAND? I love how my two middle grade book babies complement each other.

Picture Book Recommendations for Adults

I’ve been doing a series of videos on TikTok (find me @katielcarrollauthor) where I recommend picture books for adults, even if they don’t have children to read to. I truly believe that picture books are for all ages. They have such a unique way of presenting the world to us, and the illustrations can be beautiful works of art.

I mentioned in my post “What Nonfiction Picture Books Teach Us About How Rich A Billionaire Is” how I often turn to nonfiction picture books when I want to begin learning about a new topic. They have a way of breaking down information into clear, concise explanations.

Sneak peek of the cover of MOMMY’S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS!

In my videos, I’ve been focusing on fiction, mostly because my upcoming picture book MOMMY’S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, illustrated by Phoebe Cho, is fiction. This book truly is geared more toward adults—think GO THE F*** TO SLEEP without any swearing—though it is fun for kids as well…my kiddos like it!

So here are five picture books I think adults should read and a short video about each: IN A JAR by Deborah Marcero; BEEKLE by Dan Santat; WHEN A DRAGON MOVES IN AGAIN by Jodi Moore, illustrated by Howard McWilliam; THE DIGGER AND THE FLOWER by Joseph Kuefler; and SOAKED! by Abi Cushman.

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZTdV5f5RT/

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