My (nearly) 1 year update
Its been nearly one year since my debut novel, Parallel Lines, published and its been one hell of a year – on every level.
Firstly, I will admit that I have been lazy in keeping up this blog. So much has been going on over the past 11 months – especially since Oct. 7 – that it’s been almost impossible to follow a strict writing routine for my fiction projects.
I have also been lax about updating you simply because there have been so many wonderful things to update you about!
In the first few months, following Parallel Lines’ publication last June, I received an overwhelming response from people all over the world telling me they had read and loved the stories about Tamar, Nour and Rivki. (And no, not all were my immediate family and friends)
I saw my ratings on GoodReads, Amazon and other platforms rising quickly and there was even a handful of professional reviews of the book, which you can read here.
You can also read about my wonderful book launch with former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides.
In addition, I was really busy being interviewed by so many media outlets, which, I admit, was a weird experience for someone who is used to being the one asking questions.
Still, I will admit that I enjoyed talking about my journey from writing fact to writing fiction and novelizing the conflict in a way that would make people better understand what is happening here.
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You can read some of the feature stories about Parallel Lines, as well as my own opinion pieces and some podcast interviews on the ‘In the Press’ page on my website.
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Anyway, the reason that I decided to update everything right now and send out this particular post is because I have some really exciting news:
Finally….. after 11 months of waiting, waiting and waiting… the audio version of Parallel Lines is out!
I know this is welcomed news for all my non-native English-speaking friends and family who really wanted to read Parallel Lines, but who struggle with reading in English.
So, now there is no excuse!!!
Download Parallel Lines from Audible NOW and listen to the stories of Tamar, Nour and Rivki!
And…. If you have already finished Parallel Lines, please, please, please go to Amazon or GoodReads and share your thoughts about it. Reviews really help to boost the book's ratings and that will give my hard work even more exposure.
God bless you all
Ruth xxx
Happy Book Birthday!
Happy Book Birthday to me!
It's finally here, today is the official publication day of Parallel Lines!
After five years of grueling work, tears, threatening to give up, and a whole year where I literally abandoned this project, Parallel Lines is released out into the world.
I am so grateful to all of you who pre-ordered Parallel Lines. When I woke up this morning, I checked Amazon and was delighted to see that it was already listed as number 1 in the website's Middle East Young Adult genre. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Now the hard work begins!
If you have purchased Parallel Lines, as soon as you have read it please pop a review on the Amazon page and on the website GoodReads, this boosts the book's rankings and helps it get even more attention.
Those of you who have not yet ordered it, please, please do… I really want as many people as possible to read this book, nothing gives me greater pleasure than knowing people are reading, and hopefully enjoying my insights, thoughts, and words.
Getting Parallel Lines out into the world has been hard work. Not only the three years that I spent physically writing it but also the past few months making sure that the “small” details were accounted for from the cover artwork, which I partially created myself, to the creation of this website to my Facebook author page and building my followings on other social media platforms.
In addition, I have been pushing the media to write about Parallel Lines and I am delighted to say that I’ve had excellent results so far.
From yesterday’s article in my own outlet, Jewish Insider (cleverly titled 'Ode to Jerusalem') to forthcoming articles in U.K.’s Jewish Chronicle, the Times of Israel, and The Jerusalem Post (I will post links on my website and Facebook page as soon as each one publishes), I feel truly blessed that my fellow journalists have taken an interest in my work.
Thank you again to everyone for your support and please read, review, and give me your feedback.
Waiting to hear from you all,
Love
Ruth
Confessions of a writing addict
Hello and welcome to my second blog post!
For those of you who signed up after I sent out my first message, welcome and if you want to read a little more about my forthcoming debut novel, Parallel Lines, you can check out the previous post on my website: www.rutheglash.com
Before I go on, I really want to say a massive thank you to all of you who signed up for this blog and an even bigger thanks to those of you who have already pre-ordered Parallel Lines! Your support means the world to me, thank you, thank you!
And, if you haven’t yet ordered your copy, those based in the U.S. can preorder it with a 15% discount straight from the website of my publisher, Black Rose Writing. It is also now available for preorder on Amazon (Kindle format for those who like reading that way) and from Barnes & Noble. It will soon be available for preorder worldwide.
Here are the links:
Black Rose Writing (use code: PREORDER2023)
Amazon - available for preorder in Kindle format!
Anyway, now its confession time:
First rejection letter from Corgi Books and original version of 'Humphrey Smith and the School Bully.'
It might sound cliche but being a writer has been my dream ever since I can remember. I really don’t think I ever wanted to be anything else. I remember reading books by children’s authors like Enid Blyton or reciting the poetry from Robert Lewis Stevenson’s A Child’s Garden of Verses and thinking I want to create that feeling too, that rush you get from words.
I think I was around eight or nine years old when I begged my parents to buy me a typewriter, yep one of those clicking, pinging mechanical ones where you needed to make sure the ribbon is correctly positioned above the keys and use a special eraser to correct mistakes.
This typewriter was my favorite possession, it even had a case with a handle so that I could carry it around with me. I spent hours with my fingers tapping on those keys and still have the disintegrating copies of stories and poems that I wrote back then.
Perhaps my crowning achievement, however, was completing my first novel at the age of 12. Yes, not a lot of people know this about me, but the first book I ever wrote was called Humphrey Smith and the School Bully. And, when I say wrote it, I actually wrote it all out by hand in my very best handwriting, using a smart new fountain pen, and sent it off to one of the top children’s publishers in London.
A few weeks later – and unlike today’s publishing world – I got a deliciously personal and polite reply thanking me for sending in my work and telling me how much they enjoyed it (see image). Unfortunately, they added, it wasn't quite right for their publishing list but, anyway, they wished me luck in my future writing endeavors.
I was so proud of that rejection letter, and it was one of the motivators that pushed me to keep on writing stories. While as a journalist, I veered away from fiction and poetry, I have always kept up writing creatively to some degree and I am still pinching myself that this particular dream is now coming true for me.
I guess my message is that you should never give up on your dreams, even if people tell you no. Stay focused and keep moving forward, you never know what might happen.
Before I say farewell, I want to ask a small favor of you, please help me get the word out about my work. Share this post with your friends, encourage them to sign up for my blog, and to preorder Parallel Lines now!
Thank you!
Lots of love,
Ruth
Some stories are better told in fiction
Hello!
Welcome to the first post about my upcoming debut novel, Parallel Lines!!!!
If you are receiving this, then you are one of the lovely people who signed up via my website – or maybe you are just one of lucky people that I’ve decided need to join me on my author journey.
Either way, I’m so happy you’re reading this and hopefully you're as excited as I am at seeing my first efforts at being an author turn into a reality.
For me, having a novel published is a lifelong dream and Parallel Lines has been a real labor of love. As most of you probably know, I have been a journalist in Israel for almost as long as I’ve lived here – more than 25 years – and writing stories about the people that live in this great land has long been my passion.
Parallel Lines is a culmination of my time as the correspondent for The Washington Post, where I spent eight years intensely covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Thanks to my dual identity as a British citizen, with a crisp London accent, and an Israeli citizen, with not too bad Hebrew, as well as my unique status as a reporter, I had privileged access to wide range of communities that live here.
Through my work, I have seen up close the impact division, violence and war has everyone and I also gained incredible insight into how individuals can be pulled into nationalism, or worse, militancy and extremism, and how hate grows. At the same time, however, I have also met those who have somehow managed to hold on to their humanity and their humility through it all.
It is this theme I explore in Parallel Lines, which tells the story of three teenage girls coming of age in Jerusalem. I really hope my novel gives readers an insight into the reality of life in the holy city and opens eyes to some of the dreams and aspirations that still exist here, especially among young people.
Anyway, I don't want to make this too long (or give too much away) but before I sign off, I will just add that although all the characters in Parallel Lines are 100% fictional, I did spend a great deal of time meeting with and talking to young people in Jerusalem – from all the different communities and hearing their views of life, each other and the conflict.
While some of the events included in this story did actually take place, I never reported on them because some stories are just better told in fiction.
For those of you interested in pre-ordering a copy of Parallel Lines as soon as possible, you can do so now via the website of my publisher, Black Rose Writing, and if you enter the promo code PREORDER2023 prior to my publication date of June 15, 2023, then you will get a 15% discount. (It will be available on Amazon sometime in the next few weeks).
https://www.blackrosewriting.com/youngadult/parallellines
That’s all for now and thanks again for your support!
Best
Ruth