Melissa Ann Goodwin

Writer, Author, Poet, Dreamer

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Book Signing at Copperfish Books

Thanks so much to all the lovely people who came to the reading and signing event at Copperfish Books in Punta Gorda, Florida. It was wonderful meeting and talking with you!



Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Listen to My BLOG RADIO INTERVIEW and reading from The Christmas Village

I had the best time today being interviewed and reading from The Christmas Village on author JD Holiday's Blog Radio program, THE AUTHOR'S WORDSBLOG RADIO has selected it as a STAFF PICK, so it will be featured on their site starting tomorrow at noon and running for 24 hours.

You can listen to it HERE

And here is the BLOG RADIO LINK.

JD is an author and illustrator with several books of her own, including Janoose the Goose and The Spy Game, which I reviewed here last year (loved it). This is the LINK to her BLOG. And this is the LINK to her AUTHOR PAGE on AMAZON.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, JD (Jan) for inviting me to be on your show. It was a ball!

Sunday, December 1, 2013

COVER REVEAL FOR RETURN TO CANTERBURY

SO EXCITED! 
I can finally share the COVER for 
RETURN TO CANTERBURY
sequel to 
THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE


TA DA!


I just love how it came out - very much in keeping with the spirit of THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE cover


RETURN TO CANTERBURY picks up the story of Jamie Reynolds, six months after his trip back in time to Canterbury in THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE. He's 13 years old now and he's on his way to visit friends for the July 4th holiday .... here's the story summary:


RETURN TO CANTERBURY

Things have settled down for thirteen-year-old Jamie Reynolds since last Christmas. That’s when he time-traveled to 1932 and wound up in the town of Canterbury, Vermont. There he met Kelly and Christopher Pennysworth, who quickly became his best friends. Back in his own time again, he misses them every day. But as the July 4th, 2008 holiday approaches, the biggest black cloud still hovering over Jamie’s life is the mystery of what happened to his dad, who has been missing for almost a year.


Little does Jamie know that he will soon reunite with Kelly and Christopher for an adventure even bigger than their last. Together they’ll uncover a secret plot that threatens to destroy Canterbury. But will they be able to stop it before it’s too late? And will Jamie finally solve the mystery of his father’s disappearance?  Return to Canterbury with us and find out!

Still looking at a mid-December release date, but in the meantime, you can enter the Goodreads Giveaway for a copy of the book. See the link off to the right. Good luck, and stay tuned for details of the release! 

Friday, November 22, 2013

RETURN TO CANTERBURY BOOK GIVEAWAY AND FIRST REVIEW!


So excited!! Today I gave final approval on both the cover and interior of 

RETURN TO CANTERBURY

so it won't be long before we have a REAL BOOK! I will let you know when it's up for sale on Amazon. 

In the meantime, 
MY BOOK GIVEAWAY EVENT

has gone LIVE on GOODREADS

so here is the link! HERE, RIGHT HERE, THIS IS IT! 

And, author Julie Flanders offered to review 


pre-release, and her review has also gone LIVE. 

You can read it HERE, RIGHT HERE, THIS IS IT!.

Sunday, October 27, 2013

BOOK LAUNCH FOR RETURN TO CANTERBURY!

I'll be LAUNCHING 
Return to Canterbury
the much-anticipated sequel to 
The Christmas Village
here in Punta Gorda, Florida this December. 

Proud to be an Indie Author supporting an Indie bookstore!

Here are the details:

BOOK LAUNCH, READING AND SIGNING
with Melissa Ann Goodwin, Author of
THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE and RETURN TO CANTERBURY
at
COPPERFISH BOOKS
1205 Elizabeth Street, Suite A
Punta Gorda, Florida, 33950
(941) 205-2560

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2013
5:30 - 6:30PM

I'll be reading from THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE and signing copies of both books.

I am donating $1/per book from the proceeds of copies of The Christmas Village and Return to Canterbury sold at Copperfish through year-end to the Yah Yah Girls, a local charity that provides meals to hungry children in Charlotte County.


Friday, October 4, 2013

RETURN TO CANTERBURY IS ON ITS WAY!

The manuscript for Return to Canterbury is with the publisher, and we are on our way to having a real book in our hands by early December! AND I saw the first cover sketch too and I'm SO excited! The illustrator really "gets me" ! A few tweaks and it will be perfect!

From here it's about eight weeks to release, and many of my writer/blogger friends have offered to support the launch with cover reveals, blog posts, reviews and other promotions.I'll keep you posted about those, and stay tuned for giveaways of both The Christmas Village and Return to Canterbury too.

Both books are geared toward readers ages 8 and up. But younger kids love having The Christmas Village read aloud to them. And don't forget the grown-ups! They love the nostalgic feelings, positive themes and vivid characters.

You'll find everything you love about The Christmas Village in Return to Canterbury - except for Christmas! This time our story takes place at the Fourth of July and ... I can't say much more than that!

Well, all right, I can tell you that dear friends are reunited and taken on another wild ride of adventure, with lots of action and plenty of surprises. All your favorite characters are back, and for those of you who read The Christmas Village, well, you remember that teensy-weensy mystery that remains at the end? Well, fear not! All your questions are answered in Return to Canterbury.

Tell your friends to get ready and stay tuned for more details on the release date !

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Ready to Go!

I'm excited to tell you that Return to Canterbury, the highly-anticipated sequel to The Christmas Village, is scheduled for release in December! The cover is underway while final revisions and edits are being done. Stay tuned for a firm release date ....

Friday, July 26, 2013

THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE WINS READER'S CHOICE AWARD

I'm delighted to announce that THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE is the winner of the Blogger Book Fair's 2013 Reader's Choice Award in its category.

Many, many thanks to all of you who love an support this book!

And ... an update on the sequel ... I'm currently working on Chapter 43 of RETURN TO CANTERBURY, the sequel to THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE. Still planning on a November, 2013 release!


Saturday, July 13, 2013

Click on the Review tab above for reviews from kids and grown-up kids. You can read more reviews of The Christmas Village on Amazon.com and Goodreads

But for now, here's one to whet your appetite:

"The author came to visit our school and spoke with our 4th and 5th grade classes. As a parent volunteer, I was present during her presentations. She selected passages from The Christmas Village to share with the children. As she was discussing how and why she wrote the passages, we all became hooked on the story. There was a mad dash to our school library to borrow the one copy of this book.

I purchased the printed copy of the book to read with my 8 year old - let's hope he does not give away the story when the author comes to visit again next year. We read the story together at night before bedtime. Each of us took turns reading out loud. My husband, who admittedly hates to read loved the story. While we were reading the book he kept telling that I had to let the author know how great the book is.

Not only is the story great, but the writing is vivid. The author's writing style has you caught up in the story, you feel like you are there. There is plenty of suspense in the story to make it hard to put the book down. The ending is wonderful. Another parent in the school asked me about this book her 4th grade daughter could not stop talking about. I loaned the girl my copy of the book. When we would see each other I would ask her if she was done because I wanted to know what she thought of the ending. When I saw her this week, she came running over to me excited to tell me she finished the book. She gave me a big hug and told me she loved the ending.

Initially I intended to read the book and donate it to our school library. I loved it so much that I changed my mind and decided to read it every year at Christmas. Well, after seeing my little friend so excited this week I had to donate my copy of the book to our school library. We still have several students on the waiting list. I will get another copy for our family."

Friday, April 12, 2013

REVIEW OF THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE

A wonderful new REVIEW on Amazon for THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE from a woman who coordinated a school visit for me last fall. She didn't read the book until later, and just now put up this review from herself, her 8-year-old son, and her husband -  a guy who doesn't really like to read, but loved the book.

Reviews like this are what makes us writers keep going!

I'm writing Chapter 26 of RETURN TO CANTERBURY, the sequel to THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE. It's coming along nicely! If you haven't read THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE, better get going, so you'll be up to date when the sequel comes out!

Pop over to my Inspiring Thoughts and Pictures Blog for a quote and photo to lift your spirits and inspire your creative juices.

Friday, April 5, 2013

Half-way Through!

I just finished writing Chapter 21 of Return to Canterbury, the sequel to The Christmas Village. It's really getting exciting! If you read The Christmas Village, then you know there is one teeny-weeny, itsy-bitsy mystery remaining - one we all want solved! I promise that Return to Canterbury will solve it!

Targeting a fall release for the book, so stay tuned for updates. Okay, I have to go write now, so I can find out what happens next!

Friday, March 1, 2013

Return to Canterbury is Underway!

I've just finished writing chapter 15 of Return to Canterbury, the sequel to The Christmas Village! I'm very excited about how the story is evolving. Stay tuned for progress reports through the next few months, and tell your friends to read The Christmas Village so they'll be up to speed when Return to Canterbury comes out.

Warmest regards,

Melissa

Friday, February 15, 2013

The Sequel to The Christmas Village is Underway!

I'm pleased to announce that there will be a sequel to The Christmas Village! And you are among the first to know it's title .....

Are you ready?

The sequel is called ... (drumroll please)


RETURN TO CANTERBURY


For all you fans of The Christmas Village, I hope that title gives you lots to think about!

I have written 11 chapters so far and expect the book to be about the same length as The Christmas Village. My hope is to complete the writing and editing by the end of June and to publish in the early fall. Let's keep our collective fingers crossed that it will all come together in that timeframe.

In the meantime, tell your friends to read The Christmas Village, because they will surely want to read that before the sequel!  Happy Reading everyone!