Episode 30: Author Devin Joubert + an eBook GIVEAWAY


 

 On this week’s dose of book recommendations, library love, and literary enthusiasm, our guest is Devin Joubert. She is an author, reader, and writing coach living in North Dakota. Devin and I met (virtually) several years ago and connected over the fact that we both were in long distance dating relationships before we got married. It was delightful to talk with her about books, reading, and writing today. Devin is also doing a special giveaway of 5 copies of her ebooks on Instagram as part of today’s episode. Make sure you check that out! 

Show notes links: 

Follow Devin on Instagram: @devinberglundjoubert

Devin's website and Patreon

Devin's books: Across The Distance and Creating the Best Me (affiliate link)

Books from today's episode (affiliate link) 

@library.laura

Here is the Instagram post where you can enter our giveaway until Sunday, November 1, 2020 at 7 pm Central Time! 

(Many of the links below are affiliate links to either Bookshop or Amazon, which means I may be compensated by purchases through these links. Thanks for your support!)

Author Devin Berglund Joubert with her first physical copy of Across The Distance: A Collection of Long-Distance Relationship Love Stories

Links to non-book items and resources we talked about during the podcast episode: 

Scrivener: Get your words out.

The writing software that Devin likes to use is called Scrivener

What's in your mug? 

Devin is preparing to write a story in the month of November, which is National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo. You can find out more about that here. Devin has some writing resources for NaNoWriMo available on her Patreon website as well. 

One of my other favorite authors/podcasters/bloggers, Anne Bogel, posted this list of "Essential Books On Writing for NaNoWriMo" shortly after Devin and I recorded about NaNoWriMo and so I'll share that with you as well! 

Devin's husband has a sign that says "Home is on Both Sides of the River" which is appropriate both for their states of North Dakota and Minnesota, and also for Laura's metro which has Kansas and Missouri. I found links to the signs for both locations! 

Books Devin Recommended to Laura: 

 Story Genius by Lisa Cron  - a fantastic resource for planning and plotting your story (instead of going by the seat of your pants) 

The Miracle Morning (for Writers) by Hal Elrod and Steve Scott - Devin read recently and has been applying to her reading life

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr - historical fiction about WWII set in France 

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton - Laura and Devin have both read and enjoyed this book! 

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs (And the sequel which I kept seeing in the LFL down the street, but was gone when I went back to get it after talking to Devin! Just my luck!) 

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott - Laura just read this summer after watching the movie, and Devin has read and re-read. 

Books Laura Recommended to Devin:

Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti Callahan - since Devin loves C.S. Lewis, why not read the story of the woman who fell in love with him? I fell in love with him myself while reading. (And here's an interview with his son Douglas Gresham from an episode of Read Aloud Revival

Boundaries for Your Soul by Dr. Allison Cook and and Kimberly Miller - a book that I had just finished reading when I talked to Devin. I've been recommending it a lot because I love the way it talks about emotions. 

Throw Like a Girl by Sarah Henning (who also uses Scrivener to write!) - bonus for being set in Kansas City! A cute YA romance with a fast-paced sports fiction plot line. 

A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett - Devin has already read and very much enjoyed. 

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See - a moving novel about tradition, tea farming, and the bonds between mothers and daughters.

Katie O'neill's Tea Dragon series: The Tea Dragon Society ; The Tea Dragon Festival; The Tea Dragon Tapestry  (coming Jan 2021)

The Lager Queen of Minnesota  by J. Ryan Stradal - even though I don't drink Lager, I loved this intergenerational family story set deep in Minnesota culture. It's tender, and laugh-out-loud funny. 

Code Name Hélène by Ariel Lawhon - fantastic historical fiction about a real female spy during WWII who did everything while wearing bright red lipstick. 

We Were the Lucky Ones  by Georgia Hunter - a family story during WWII, shockingly a large number of this family survived, but were scattered across the world. Based on the author's own family history. 

Susan Meissner's historical fiction: The Last Year of the War (German/Japanese detainment in Crystal City during WWII), A Fall of Marigolds (Ellis Island/post-9/11), and As Bright as Heaven (1918 spanish flu epidemic) 

Lovely War by Julie Berry - one of my current favorites in the Historical Fiction genre. I think Devin will especially enjoy this given the fact that she enjoys historical fiction AND that she's currently reading Percy Jackson. This is the story of two couples during WWI, but it's narrated from the perspective of a handful of Greek gods. So fascinating. 

Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine - A YA sci-fi/fantasy set in a world where private ownership of books is illegal and information is controlled by The Great Library. 

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern 

The Liturgy of the Ordinary by Tish Harrison Warren - a lovely book about incorporating spiritual practices into everyday life. 

Don't Overthink It  by Anne Bogel - one of my current favorite non-fiction books, about using mental energy on joyful things instead of unproductive overthinking. 

Other books discussed on the episode: 

Devin is currently reading the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan 

Devin just finished reading The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah 

Devin loved The Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis as a young reader and it was one of the things that made her want to become a writer. She's checked many a wardrobe and closet for a portal into Narnia thanks to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Devin plans on reading The Eye of the World next! 

A great book on the Enneagram is The Road Back to You, which is on Devin's TBR. 

While talking about reading the classics, we discussed: Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion, as well as Gone with the Wind and Uncle Tom's Cabin. 

Here's my post from when I read and reviewed one of the short-stories that now is in Across The Distance (Devin's short story collection) 

View this post on Instagram

Author @devinberglundjoubert writes a short and sweet love story from the depths of her own experience. I enjoyed the cute and creative way Emma decided to correspond with her long-distance boyfriend Callum by sending him pieces of a puzzle that eventually formed a message. Written with heart, Joubert accurately depicts the joys and struggles of long distance love. This story was super relatable to me because my husband and I were also long distance dating for 4 years before we got married. We weren’t across an ocean, but any distance is huge when you’re not together. Short and sweet! Go read it! Also, pretty sure it’s still #freeonkindle right now, so don’t wait. #longdistancedating #longdistanceromance #shortstories #romance #kindlereads #newauthor #bookish #reading

A post shared by Laura Miller 📚 (@library.laura) on

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Laura is an avid reader who is happiest when surrounded by books, tea, blankets and/or friends. Host of the Library Laura Podcast.

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