Cinda Jo Bauman: Children's Book Writer & Illustrator, Cut-Paper Artist, and More!

Archive for the ‘Book promotion’ Category

Introducing Eli and Tucker Tenacious From My Upcoming Book Titled GALLOP (to be published by Editor-911 Books)

What I’ve Learned Creating the Book Cover Art for GALLOP

A thrilling ride on an untamed horse gives Eli a moment of peace from the anger over his parents’ divorce, especially with the setting sun on his face and the rising moon at his back. I gotta admit, I’m in love with this piece I created with cut-paper for the cover of GALLOP!

This is your sneak peek. I’ve edited the final photo to remove blemishes from glue specks and unwanted paper seams. I can’t wait for you to see the finished cover. The title will be on top and the series name on the right side!

Here are some things I’ve learned creating this piece:

  • The background composition is the hardest part and it takes me forever to decide what I want. Once I get that part figured out, I love creating the main characters. In this case, they are the boy and the horse.
  • I learned not to be afraid to play. If I trim something too small, or glue on the wrong color, I can just go over it. I’m learning not to make everything so precious!
  • It’s okay to ask for help and advice! This is SO necessary, I’m not sure why I get embarrassed asking.
      • My daughter, Brittany, has a GREAT eye. She can instantly tell me when something is off with a proportion or angle.
      • My husband, Greg, will come hang out on the giant beanbag in the art room while I work. Once in a while he’ll say, “That looks funny…” Eventually, I see what he meant and I can correct it.
      • My cousin, Teresa, was an art teacher. She has helped me with all three cover pieces. She gets to see the very rough and usually very ugly first sketches. She always has tips and suggestions that are spot on.
      • My friend, Jill, from my old illustrator’s group is a watercolor artist. She helped so much with improving contrast and suggesting changing lines that were causing confusion.
      • My friend, Martie, has owned horses and raced horses for years. The knowledge she’s shared with me has made such a difference in the final details. She has been surrounded by horses and can tell me things like, “maybe a skoosh wider at the forearm/knee junction.” This is information I can’t always get from reference photos.
    • I can use whatever colors I want and like! The colors don’t have to match what they would be in real life. Actually, I like it better when they don’t! That realization is what is making me an artist.
    • And lastly, few things compare to the feeling I get when I finish an art piece.

    You’ll be hearing more about GALLOP in future posts. Thanks for reading!

    Category:

    Book promotion, cut paper art, Middle-grade novel, News, Writing for children

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    Shy? Nervous? Anxious?

    As a 13-year-old everything is changing. Feelings are more intense, and there are new daily challenges. It becomes obvious that the things most kids find simple are not simple for you.
    Going for a walk or entering someplace you’ve never been to makes your heart pound. It’s embarrassing when your hands and voice shake when meeting people. If you finally get the nerve to talk with someone, later you replay everything in your mind, all night long. You might like having friends, but that would require doing things.
    Why can’t your family understand you don’t want to be this way and quit pushing you so hard to be like other kids?
    If this just described you, then you will be able to relate to my book titled, FETCH, because it also describes Frankie.

    The first review posted for FETCH, and I LOVE it!

     “Fetch:Hope & Horses” is a great read.Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2024

    I was almost immediately able to identify with Frankie. Her story is filled with real life ups and downs of a teenager who suffers from panic attacks. She is likeable and her association with the horse , Fetch, is incredible. I enjoyed the entirety of her journey with her friends, family, and Fetch. The author brings the characters to life in an easy flowing manner that makes reading the book very enjoyable. There is always another exciting event in Frankie’s life that adds to the story. I cannot wait for the next book.

    And here is part of another reader’s WONDERFUL review that captures Frankie’s dilemma:

    Frankie Learns How to Cope With Anxiety — One Breath at a Time Reviewed in the United States on June 27, 2024

    “Fetch” is a story about 13-year-old Frankie who was hoping for a new start when her family moved from Tennessee to Montana. But Frankie finds she has taken her anxieties with her — along with the memories of the worst day of her life.


    The reader is not made aware of what happened that day until much later in the book, leaving us wondering and affording us just a little bit of the same angst that Frankie feels constantly in her life. For Frankie, everything in her life is overwhelming. Everything in her life is simply too hard. Every day she just wants to be left alone because life is too hard around other people. Frankie is sure she is different from everybody else and that there is no place in the world where she fits.


    But throughout the book, Frankie is introduced to other people, some who also have to overcome their fears and loneliness — a horse, new friends, kind neighbors, mentors, and the constant of every 13-year-old girl’s life — a boy she like-likes. And Frankie begins to believe that maybe, just maybe, she will learn to fit in.


    FETCH is for sale now on Amazon and other online bookstores like Barnes and Noble, along with SHUFFLE (book 1 in the series, previously titled ONLY MY HORSES KNOW)

    If you read them, please share an online review to help others find my books.

    Category:

    Book promotion, Middle-grade novel, News

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    Check out Margo Dill’s blog, the Editor and Publisher of Editor-911 Books

    Please click the link below to enjoy Margo’s blog post about rebranding and retitling books along with the article I wrote.

    https://editor-911.com/blog/f/retitling-and-rebranding-a-book-series-how-do-you-do-it

    Category:

    Book promotion, Middle-grade novel

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    4 DAYS UNTIL FETCH IS RELEASED

    The author’s copies of “Fetch,” the second book in the Hope and Horses series, will arrive in a week. I should be thrilled, but instead, I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed about the need to promote my books. I searched “self-promotion for middle-grade horse novels,” and now I’m even more stressed out! There are so many great ideas, but honestly, I’m not comfortable with most of them. Despite that, I’ve been brainstorming to come up with a list of goals:

    1. Learn to talk about my books without freezing up.
    2. Make appointments with the local libraries to donate a copy of each book. I might even create bookmarks or stickers to leave at their check-out desks.
    3. Update the YouTube videos for “Shuffle” and create a new one for “Fetch.” I think it’d be cool to be with horses when I talk about my horse books. Something funny might even happen, but hopefully not that I step in something or get bitten! Then I need to figure out how to get the videos to schools and librarians.
    4. Compile a list of small boutique bookstores or gift shops to contact about selling my books.

    This all takes a lot of courage, and I’m still working on gathering it. I’ll keep you posted on how it’s going! If you have any tips for a shy introvert like me to market independently published books, I’d love to hear them. Thanks for listening!

    Shuffle (previously Only My Horses Know) Available now

    Fetch: Available June 18th

    Category:

    Book promotion, Middle-grade novel, Writing for children

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