COMING FEBRUARY 13TH FROM
PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE
A debut novel set against a background of hospital rounds and
life-or-death decisions that pulses with humor and empathy while
exploring the heart’s capacity for forgiveness… READ MORE
Pre-order The Queen of Hearts today from:
About the Author
Kimmery Martin is a doctor, mother, and professional book nerd, who is happiest lounging on a porch with something good to read. When not practicing medicine or romping with her three kids, she writes engaging book reviews and novels. Read Kimmery's Bio...
Latest Post
For a period of one year, Kimmery will be posting every Wednesday on TheDebutanteBall.com, a website for traditionally published debut female authors. Tune in to hear Kimmery's take on popular writerly topics. This week's issue: the process of writing first drafts.
Our topic this week is first drafts, and let’s be honest: I am not a trained writer. I don’t have an MFA or a background in journalism or even an English major. So it might amaze you that my novel (now titled The Queen of Hearts) was in near-flawless form when I finished its first draft. Revision? Ha! I had to look up the meaning of the word. I’m not saying I managed to hit every one of the guidelines listed below, y’all, but I came darn close. It takes a special kind of literary genius to accomplish so much right out of the gate, but I’m not selfish. To commemorate my foray into the novel-writing world, I have compiled a list of tips—based on my initial manuscript— for anyone out there who might be struggling with their own first draft. You’re welcome.
... Read more HERE
Anna Quinn: The Night Child
I met Anna Quinn through a Facebook group for debut authors and was immediately intrigued both by her background and her book. Anna, a bookstore owner in the glorious northwest corner of Washington state, has a life I might have over-romanticized in my imagination: I picture her ensconced in a cozy backroom in her shop, pecking away at an old-fashioned black typewriter, a steaming mug of coffee at hand as outside her window the gray Pacific surf pounds.
Or maybe that's not all that romanticized. Anna Quinn is already an accomplished writer, with material published in a slew of literary journals and anthologies. She also boasts thirty years of experience leading writer's workshops across the country. Her book, The Night Child, is the story of Nora Brown, a young mother and high-school English teacher, whose unremembered childhood trauma returns to threaten her sanity in the form of a
... MORE
Latest Book Review
Small Victories: The Off-Camera Life of an On-Camera Mom
Okay, first of all, for those of you who don’t know, Molly Grantham is an Emmy award winning anchor and investigative reporter who has been named TV News Reporter of the Year for both Carolinas, one of Charlotte's top "40 under 40" and one of Mecklenburg County's "50 Most Influential Women.” If all that isn’t enough, she’s now written a book based on a popular series of personal Facebook posts, Small Victories: The Off-Camera Life of an On-Camera Mom, in which she chronicles the first few years of her children’s lives.
It seems a little unfair that a person so genetically gifted with talent and beauty and wit is also able to write, but after having read her debut book, I have to admit she is, in fact, a terrific writer. By now you might be thinking Molly is one of those people overly burdened with accomplishments. You’re right. However, she balances all this achievement with ... MORE
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Latest Reads
December 2017:
The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds by Michael Lewis (Cognitive Psychology);
Righteous by Joe Ides (detective novel); Indecent by Corrine Sullivan (Women's Fiction)
November 2017:
IQ by Joe Ides (detective novel); Turtles All the Way Down by John Green (YA); Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan (historical literary fiction)
October 2017:
He's Gone: A Novel by Deb Caletti (women's fiction/suspense); The Stolen Marriage by Diane Chamberlin (historical fiction); Origin by Dan Brown (thriller); We Were Strangers Once by Betsy Carter (historical fiction).
About Kimmery
Kimmery Martin won her first short story contest in the first grade, and was awarded a red stuffed elephant and publication in the school newspaper. Her writing career then suffered an unfortunate dry spell, finally broken with the publication of the enthralling journal article Lymphatic Mapping and Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy in the Staging of Melanoma, followed by the equally riveting sequel Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy for Pelvic Malignancies, both during medical school.
Conscious readers remained elusive, however, prompting her to wait another decade or so before trying again. This time, spurred on by a dubious but loving husband and three constantly interfering children, she produced an entire novel. The Queen of Hearts, exploring the startling secrets in a friendship between a trauma surgeon and a pediatrician, became an instantly beloved classic amongst three of her friends. It will be published by Penguin Random House in 2018.
When not working on her next novel ... MORE
