The topic of child welfare looms large in my novel Our Orbit, which tells the story of an Appalachian girl who crosses the tracks to become a foster daughter in an educated family. In gratitude to those who helped me learn about the many demands and great rewards of foster care, I continue to share information & perspectives […]
Jul 13 2015
Do You #LitFic? Does Anyone, Anymore?
As you would expect, I believe literary fiction is still vibrant and important because those are the books I like to read. Still less surprising in light of my convictions: it’s the type of book I do my best to write. My new novel, Our Orbit, may not be philosophical, contains no elaborate symbols, and […]
Jul 11 2015
Adolescents, Alcohol, and Alienation – Part 2
Today I’m honored to present more thoughtful information in the series Issues in OUR ORBIT: Substance Abuse & Recovery. This guest post is by Gregory K. from his website Suchness: A Mental & Spiritual Health Blog. Gregory K. holds a Masters of Divinity degree and is working toward a graduate degree in counseling. His goal is to help Christians […]
Jul 7 2015
Cover Unveiled: THE SILENT TREATMENT
New Mystery Novel from BOOKTROPE by Melani Surani About THE SILENT TREATMENT — Twenty-eight year old Katrina Jaitley is rebuilding her life after escaping an abusive boyfriend. The last thing she needs is the mystery she stumbles on during a bout of retail therapy. But she can’t ignore the coil of film — a piece […]
Jul 5 2015
A Letter To Christians In Indiana, From Jesus
Several topics drive the story of my novel Our Orbit. Discrimination and religious issues play a major role in the plot. To open the way for conversation on these matters, I offer the following guest post from the blog of John Pavlovitz, Stuff That Needs to Be Said, first published on March 28, 2015. John wrote […]