by Steven Belletto Buy NOW! I think this book should be titled “A Master of Character,” because that’s how superb the characters are who fill Steven Belletto’s latest book PAGEANT OF THE MASTERS. His dry, witty style, yet keen observation of the human condition feels so much like Raymond Carver. But unlike that great storyteller, who often chose New York or suburban New York settings in which the educated and middle- and well-to-do experienced their personal implosions throug

Buy NOW! More good news! Mary Donahue in SCATTERED LIGHT has pulled in yet another award, this one a Readers’ Favorite Silver Medal for Fiction - Drama! I’m don’t really like to announce this kind of thing on my behalf, but I love to give my characters the credit they deserve. So right on, Mary! And thank you to Readers' Favorite for being so supportive of writers. Lastly, congratulations to all of the other winners! ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and

Scammers are getting so good, and AI is only helping! I used to get the occasional lovely note from a reader via my website. Now 100% of the 20 emails I get each week are from writing marketers and scammers. I got the above inquiry last week. Unlike the unbelievable situations where the head of a major publishing house emailed to beg for my next manuscript, or writing service people who promise I’ll gain 5 million followers by tomorrow, this one shows all sorts of finesse. It

Hannah Larrew, Spellbound PR I'd never worked with a book public relations person before Hannah Larrew of Spellbound PR. But I'm glad I did for SCATTERED LIGHT! She got me signed up for the Sept. 9 Read & Run Chicago event where I got to chat with other runners while jogging around the beautiful Chicago lakefront, followed by a book discussion at the beautiful American Writers Museum in Chicago. She also lined me up for an interview on The Midwest Writers Room podcast, and th

Buy NOW! Madina in THE WIND THIEF led the way into my novel-writing life. Happy birthday to a quiet, very scrappy woman and her story. As I was writing this post, it occurred to me that climate change may make Madina’s prediction come true. Maybe it's time for a sequel… ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com. SCATTERED LIGHT, a novel, sequel to WINTER LIGHT THE FALCON, THE WOLF AND THE HUMMINGBIRD a his

Buy NOW! Tonight I’m running with the Chicago Read & Run group! We’ll be in the Loop and pass these locations: Printer’s Row: where Mary lives, a refurbished neighborhood that used to house printing and publishing businesses (the Printer's Row Lit Fest will be taking place this weekend) The Chicago Board of Trade: where Mary works, an art deco skyscraper built in 1930 The Chicago Art Institute: first stop on Mary and D’s marathon first date The last is my favorite! Have you b

Register NOW! Only 1 week to go! Here's the official deets! Kick off Printer’s Row Lit Fest weekend with Read & Run Tours and journalist Malissa Rodenburg with a special evening celebrating writers and books. Join us on Wednesday, September 9 at 6:00 PM at the American Writers Museum in Chicago for a casual three-mile run (12:00 minute per mile pace) with author Martha Engber through the Chicago streets that inspired her books’ settings, followed by the first-ever live taping

Listen NOW! Thank you so much Kenneth B. Humphrey and Luella Schmidt for hosting me on The Midwest Writing Room podcast and YouTube channel sponsored by the Wisconsin Writers Association! The episode is available via podcast and/or this YouTube link. I hope the above clip encourages you to check out the interview in which I talk about my latest novel, SCATTERED LIGHT (Mary Donahue Chronicles), my Chicago roots, my number 1 advice for writers, and why, for some of us, writing

I’m so happy Malissa Rodenburg will be interviewing me during the Read&Run Chicago event for SCATTERED LIGHT Sept. 9 in Chicago! You can register here. She’s an independent science journalist, editor and poet who’s interviewed dozens of writers for her Writers Who Run column. I’m going to be in good company! All of which has me wondering: how many writers also run? If that’s you, let me know! ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to h

Are you a word geek? If so, you’ll love Grammar Girl, a.k.a. author Mignon Fogarty, a former faculty member at the University of Nevada - Reno, who has a YouTube podcast about grammar. She includes a lot of fun history about the English language, including how indented paragraphs came to be and why detective novels routinely use the descriptive phrase “broad daylight.” Out of curiosity, how much do you notice proper grammar when reading a text, email or book, and do you get j

Buy NOW! For me, novels are all about the magic and internal strength and struggles of the main character, and in creating Ash Reilly in LOST IN SOUND (due out Aug. 11), Clifford Mae Henderson has conjured a complex sleuth of soft do-gooder heart and been-through-it-thick skin. When a clearly mentally ill homeless man known as Captain Eddie finds a murdered young man along a river in the coastal California town of Tres Ojos, the blood on his clothes initially ties him to the

To me, writing is like playing. Even when it’s rigorous and tough, the practice allows my mind to run wild, experiment, learn, and get lost in joy. Turns out, the same thing happens every week when I go to a drop-in Saturday improv class at led by Clifford Mae Henderson and Dixie Cox of The Fun Institute in Santa Cruz. Typically about thirty people show up at the tiny theater, and for the next few hours, Clifford and Dixie — who’ve been teaching improv since 1993 — have us p

May is typically Mental Health Awareness Month, but that’s not nearly enough promotion. I’m reminded daily of the need to assess my mental health and advocate for those who have mental illness. I experienced a lot of ups and down when writing BLISS ROAD, a memoir about my neurodiverse family. While the book helped me figure out that part of my life, I don’t discount the need to check my mental health often, and to take seriously people who are struggling. Mental Health Americ

So I have to tell you about this very fun gig I’ve got set up for Sept. 9: a "Read and Run Chicago." Yes, it is ALMOST like it sounds. I’m going to join a bunch of runners in the Windy City, my hometown. Rather than read while we’re running, however, we’ll instead run first past downtown locations featured in SCATTERED LIGHT (Art Institute, Board of Trade, etc.). We’ll end up at a venue (TBD) where I’ll get to know them, they’ll get to know me and we’ll talk about books. The

by Steve Zettler Buy NOW! Steve Zettler hits the ball out of the park with his hilarious forthcoming memoir, LEAVE THE KID ALONE! He writes from the viewpoint of his seven-year-old self grousing about having to operate the family’s inn and restaurant’s industrial dishwasher on an Easter Sunday in the 1950s in Bucks County Pennsylvania. The day dramatically changes, however, when the restaurant closes, the family finally sits down to eat, and the author goes upstairs to discov

I wrote GROWING GREAT CHARACTERS in 2007, but ever since then, I often revisit the idea about defining details: an itty, bitty, teensy, tiny detail that explains how a character rolls. One of my favorite characters is Alexandra Fuller, who wrote this memoir about her youth in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). Her defining detail? That photo! Like a little pirate girl. “Take no prisoners, arrr!” Check out this excerpt. It's hilarious and exactly matches her photo. Who’s your favorite c

My thanks goes out to Kara Infante for interviewing me about SCATTERED LIGHT on your podcast, Bookish Flights! The episode (#224) dropped today, so those who want to know about the books I’ve been reading lately and the ones that changed my life, check it out at BookishFlights podcast. What podcasts have you been listening to lately? Me: Advisory Opinions (about the Supreme Court), The Good Fight and Derate the Hate. ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and

Buy NOW! Ah, to open an email with this sunny message! And how appropriate that Independent Publisher Book Awards gives as much of a nod to my gutsy labor lawyer protagonist, Mary Donahue, as it does to Chicago, the location of the first book, WINTER LIGHT, and SCATTERED LIGHT, this second book in the Mary Donahue Chronicles. Woohoo for the Windy City, a rad place to grow up! ___ For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: Marth

Yes, I just finished typing those important words, because I’ve finally finished writing OCEAN LIGHT, the third book in the Mary Donahue Chronicles, which began with WINTER LIGHT and was followed last Thanksgiving by SCATTERED LIGHT. There’s still lots of rewriting and shaping until this unusual literary mystery — yes, mystery — turns into a book that’s worth your precious time (the tentative publication date is January 2028). But finishing that final chapter has left me usel

Part of me is always surprised when I learn about a service I take for granted that turns out to be a relatively new concept. That was the case when I learned the first tax-supported library in the US was established in 1833 in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Less than a hundred years ago! I would have been toast without a library, especially in my youth. Reading helped me deal with everything: my emotions, insights into human nature, curiosity about places I’d never been. More