Every time I think the wind's died down another gust threatens to blow my apartment windows in. It's definitely a good day to be indoors, staring askance at the outside world which actually looks surprisingly bright considering the strength of those blasts of air. Still, I'm half-expecting Mary Poppins to rocket by clinging to an out-of-control umbrella or The Wizard of Oz's Miss Gulch to cycle past in mid-air. I hope the weather's calmer wherever you're reading this from and if, like me, you're in Southern Ontario, hold on to your hat!
But I didn't really hop onto the blog to talk about the weather. Yesterday I learned Just Like You Said It Would Be was accepted into Library Journal's curated SELF-e Select collection of best indie books. This means readers will be able to check-out the e-book from participating Canadian, American and international library systems with their library card.
I'm very happy that this could potentially expose the book to more readers. As I've mentioned often since releasing Just Like You Said It Would Be, it's truly the book of my heart, a novel I spent eighteen years with, something I doubt will ever happen again. It's also a book I was given a Canada Council grant to write, an enormous honour which makes me doubly pleased JLYSIWB's availability in more libraries could bring it additional Canadian readers. Recent Library Journal post "A Coming-of-Age Summer" highlighted a number of SELF-e Select books about teens having exceptional summers including Just Like You Set It Would Be.
Like Just Like You Said It Would Be, my middle-grade sci-fi novel Stricken (due out in the U.S. next month) is also set in Ireland. If you're curious about it CM Magazine has a cool review of the book up. Here's a snippet: "Martin also does an excellent job capturing both the voice and viewpoint of the teenage characters. The voices are authentic, never forced, and carry the story along in a very engaging way. The plot, itself, is tight, with enough mystery to keep the pages turning without feeling like you’re being toyed with – for the most part."
I hope to jump back into Naomi's world and continue her story, if fortune is in my favour!
