So, I’ve decided I need some sort of award to give out when I stumble across something or someone meritorious I want to call to my readers’ attention. In keeping with the theme of the blog, I tried out the golden cafe au lait bowl award, the silver madelaine award, the golden croissant–but none of them came close except the golden croissant. Problem is, I don’t really eat croissants, especially in the US, where just looking at a croissant makes my arteries harden and my hips expand by two inches. I do, however, eat baguettes, I even bake them myself on a regular basis (recipe coming up in a future post). Hence, the debut of wordamour’s Gold Baguette award.

And who will be receiving this first award? None other than Writer-Mama Christina Katz, whose various books and websites are a boon to struggling writers everywhere. Check out Writer-Mama and Get Known Before the Book Deal for tons of great content about writing that’s fun to read! Word has it that Ms. Katz will even accept your offer of friendship on Facebook if it’s made in the spirit of writerly comraderie.

But here I want to highlight her books. First, there’s Writer-Mama: How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids, a lively guide to making a writing life even if the road is littered with just as many sippy cups as coffee cups. Sure, Writer-Mama is witty and fun but it’s also exceedingly wise and practical. I’ve already recommended it to several friends. And it makes a great gift.

But wait–there’s more. When I saw Get Known Before the Book Deal on the shelf at the bookstore with Katz’s name on it, I knew I had to have it. GKBTBD came home with me that day and I read it straight through. A “writer’s reference” kind of gal, just like Katz herself, I knew a book on “grow[ing] an author’s platform” might be kind of a yawn, just like the laundry list of books I’ve read on subjects like guerilla publicity and the proper care and feeding of agents. Somehow, though, in Katz’ hands, the subject roars to life and you find yourself enjoying learning to create your own professional niche. Heck the chapter exercises are so much fun to do, they hardly seem like work. Yet each one helps you move closer to your goal–writing success, however you define it.

So Christina Katz gets the first Gold Baguette–because she’s a true friend to writers everywhere!