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Jim Cox Report: March 2025
Dear Publisher Folk, Friends & Family:
This month the subject is on the business of being a writer. It starts with my having been sent the following email PR leading off with a question:
Hi James,
What do you need to be a successful writer?
"I think the most important habit is to persist. It's true in writing, in business, and in life generally. Some of the projects I have worked on have taken multiple years to develop, and some of the writing I am publishing now has been produced from seeds that were sown decades ago. So, above all, never give up! Persevere, persist, however you want to say it. Just don't stop."
That's according to Businessman and now writer, Joe Hawke.
His debut novel American Justice, a contemporary satire parodying the justice system and political environment, came out in 2024 and its sequel, Redemption, will be published in early 2025. Also coming in early 2025, On Earth As It Is In Heaven, is a chronologically ordered collection of short stories published by Pegasus that explore the personal themes of Christianity & Islam, American & Pakistani culture, virtue & sin, family, and belonging.
Joe's tips to becoming a writer:
First and most important thing you need is a story to tell.
You need the time and inclination to write.
Pinpoint where you draw inspiration from. It can be other great writing, travel, a walk in the woods or an urban hike, playing a musical instrument or anything else that inspires you
Find your audience - You need readers!
Be a keen observer.
"The best writing gets you out of yourself, your own headspace so to speak, and allows you to imagine what it is like to be in someone else's head, or to be walking in someone else's shoes. The better you can do that, the more effective the character development will be, and the better the characters are developed, the more compelling the story telling will be."
Sleepletics
Additionally, here are some excellent resources I discovered while wandering around on the Internet:
6 Characteristics Every Great Writer Has In Common
https://www.inc.com/kaleigh-moore/the-6-most-important-qualities-of-an-effective-writer.html
How to Become a Successful Writer: 2025
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-become-a-successful-writer
16 Expert Tips to Help You Become a Successful Writer
https://writersanctuary.com/become-successful-writer
How to Become a Better Writer: 20 Hacks and Tips
https://blog.reedsy.com/how-to-become-a-better-writer
Quote of the Month
"Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like one about some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand." -- George Orwell
Website of the Month
The Writing Business & Becoming a Writer
https://llcattorney.com/starting-a-business/all-about-the-writing-business-and-becoming-an-author
Here are reviews of books that have a particular interest or value to authors and publishers:
How to Submit
Dennis James Sweeney
New World Library
www.newworldlibrary.com
9781608689361, $18.95, PB, 216pp
https://www.amazon.com/How-Submit-Publishing-Literary-Magazines/dp/1608689360
Synopsis: An essential and comprehensive instructional guide and 'how-to' manual, "How to Submit: Getting Your Writing Published with Literary Magazines and Small Presses" by Dennis James Sweeney is the first of its kind to chart a path to publication that is writer led, community based, and accessible to all.
"How to Submit" speaks to aspiring and seasoned writers alike who want to publish short stories, essays, or poems in literary magazines, as well as to those looking for a fresh route to publishing a full-length book. Whether you're a first-time submitter or you have experience sending out your work, :How to Submit" provides you with the tools and knowledge to successfully share your writing. It's also a manifesto for finding joy in the process, arguing that seeking publication should give writers energy, not take it from them.
Perfect for writers of any genre, "How to Submit" demystifies the independent publishing landscape for those seeking a place for their work that really feels like home.
Critique: Covering the Why, Where, When, and How aspects of getting your work published with a small or niche press, or a literary or niche magazine, "How to Submit: Getting Your Writing Published with Literary Magazines and Small Presses" is informatively enhanced for the reader's benefit with the incusion of a useful Introduction, two Appendices (Frequently Asked Questions & Directory of Additional Resources), a two page listing of Acknowledgments, and a ten page Index. "How to Submit: Getting Your Writing Published with Literary Magazines and Small Presses" is thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and presentation, making it the ideal resource for any and all writers seeking to have their work published, publicized and promoted. While especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library Writing/Publishing collections and writer workshop curriculum studies lists, it should be noted that this paperback edition of Dennis James Sweeney's "How to Submit: Getting Your Writing Published with Literary Magazines and Small Presses" from New World Library is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Dennis James Sweeney (www.dennisjamessweeney.com/) has been published with Autumn House Press, Essay Press, Ricochet Editions, and Stillhouse Press, among others. His writing has also appeared in outlets such as Ecotone, The Southern Review, Witness, and The New York Times. Sweeney lives, writes, and teaches in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Beyond the Science of Reading
Natalie Wexler
ASCD
www.ascd.org
9781416633563, $36.95, PB, 240pp
https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Science-Reading-Connecting-Instruction/dp/1416633561
Synopsis: The science of reading movement has done much to improve instruction in foundational skills. But that hard-won progress may be reversed unless we also help children acquire the knowledge and vocabulary they need to understand complex text.
At the same time, the science of learning movement has introduced many educators to evidence-based teaching principles that can be effective for all students. With the publication of "Beyond the Science of Reading: Connecting Literacy Instruction to the Science of Learning", Natalie Wexler addresses a missing piece of the conversation: the ways in which typical reading comprehension and writing instruction conflict with those principles.
Wexler also offers practical solutions for bringing science-informed literacy instruction to scale and reveals why
Teaching phonics isn't enough to create proficient readers.
Building knowledge is the key to unlocking reading comprehension.
Writing instruction holds untapped potential to boost literacy and learning.
Instruction grounded in cognitive science can narrow achievement gaps.
Current curriculum evaluation methods may be steering schools wrong.
"Beyond the Science of Reading" charts a bold path forward with a new way to equip all children to read with fluency, understanding, and joy. This is an essential resource for educators, policymakers, parents, and anyone who cares about the future of literacy and equity in the United States.
Critique: Exceptional, impressive, thought-provoking, and thoroughly 'reader friendly' in organization and presentation, "Beyond the Science of Reading: Connecting Literacy Instruction to the Science of Learning" by Natalie Wexler is enhanced for the reader's benefit with the inclusion of an informative six-age Introduction, a seventeen page listing of References, a six page Index, and a two page Study Guide. Of immense interest and value to readers concerned with promoting literacy, "Beyond the Science of Reading" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and college/university library Reading/Phonics educational curricula collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, reading specialists, and members of the publishing industry concerned with the impact of diminishing literacy levels on the use of books for recreation and instruction, that this paperback edition of "Beyond the Science of Reading" from ASCD is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $35.10).
Editorial Note: Natalie Wexler (www.nataliewexler.com) is an education writer and the author of The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America's Broken Education System–and How to Fix It. She is also the coauthor, with Judith C. Hochman, of The Writing Revolution 2.0: A Guide to Advancing Thinking Through Writing in All Subjects and Grades and host of "Reading Comprehension Revisited," a six-episode series for The Knowledge Matters Podcast.
And just for fun:
The Story Factory
Jam Dong, author/illustrator
Candlewick Press
www.candlewick.com
9781536230000, $18.99, HC, 32pp
https://www.amazon.com/Story-Factory-Jam-Dong/dp/1536230006
Synopsis: Once upon a time, all the books in the world were manufactured at one place calledthe Story Factory! But what happens when the factory that makes books stops working?
The workers at the story factory know exactly what it takes to make a book: characters, a plot, vocabulary, and punctuation. All the same elements are used over and over again, and everything has a precise order. Nothing new or original is ever added to the stories -- that is, until the day the factory suddenly stops producing books.
The workers must locate and remove the clog in the machinery, and what they find may just change the way they make books forever. With fun and wonderfully intricate illustrations, author and artist Jam Dong's charming picture book story is a joyful ode to the imagination and to what it is that makes books so special.
Critique: An original, whimsical, and charming celebration of creativity, bookmaking, and original storytelling, "The Story Factory" by author/illustrator Jam Dong is a fun read from start to finish. While especially and unreservedly recommended for family, daycare center, preschool, elementary school, and community library picture book collections for children ages 3-7, it should be noted for personal reading lists that this hardcover picture book edition of "The Story Factor" from Candlewick Press is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Jam Dong (https://jamdongart.com/) was born in Shanghai, China. She studied animation in London and received her MFA in illustration from the Maryland Institute College of Art. She is a regular contributor to the New York Times and PLANSPONSOR magazine, and she illustrated I Ship by Kelly Rice Schmitt. A Bologna Children's Book Fair selected illustrator in 2020–2021, Jam Dong currently lives in Boston.
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Terry Engel -- "Natchez at Sunset"
Lily Tessie Lamb -- "Niles Noodles"
Marion T. Bruno -- "The Exception"
Henry Guard -- "The Borealis Queen"
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Ehab Elgammal -- "The Gales of Alexandria"
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Betts Arney -- "Elusive Common Sense"
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Cheryl Olsten -- "Punctuation to the Rescue"
Kelly Torres -- "Saving the Lost Girl: A Memoir of Healing"
Kelly McCoy -- "Endure: A Memoir of Grief, Resilience, and Love"
Peggy Adler -- "Trilogy: Three True Stories of Scoundrels and Schemers"
Darryl Lindsay -- "(Not) Ready for Winter: A Journey from Anxiety to Inner Strength"
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So until next time -- goodbye, good luck, and good reading!
Jim Cox
Midwest Book Review
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James A. Cox
Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
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