Kindle Edition of the WGTP is Finally Here!

The Kindle version of The Writer's Guide to Psychology is finally available!!  If you prefer a hard copy, of course, you can also get one of those!

Writer Stina Lindenblatt posted a wonderful review of the WGTP this morning -- she called it brilliant! You can check it out here.

In other news, my latest Psychology Today post, What You Think You Know About Psychology May Be Wrong, was selected to be an Essential Read in PT's Creativity area, and was also recognized in a CNN Health blog.  The post is essentially a reiteration of the WGTP's premise, so if you like the post, you'll love the book!

Finally, don't forget the upcoming book signing in Columbus, Ohio: Saturday, January 22nd @ 2pm at the Borders on Kenny Road.

Book Signing 1/22/11 Columbus, Ohio

Book Signing!
Where: Borders Books and Music, 4545 Kenny Road, Columbus Ohio
When: Saturday, January 22, 2011 @ 2pm
I'd love to see you there!


TV Appearance
Where: Good Day Columbus! (WTTE Fox 28, Columbus, Ohio)
Why: To talk about THE WRITER’S GUIDE TO PSYCHOLOGY and the upcoming book signing!
When: Thursday, January 13, 2011 @ 7:45 am
Not a morning person? Set your DVR!

New Review from LJ.com - WGTP Recommended!

Library Journal, a top publication for librarians, gave The Writer's Guide to Psychology a thumbs-up! My favorite line is the last one, because having a corner on a market is a big deal in publishing: "Because the guide is directed toward writers with general knowledge rather than experts in the field, it is the only book of its kind."

Here's the review, but you can find the original on LibraryJournal.com's December 17th First Looks (you need to scroll down to Nonfiction).

Clinical psychologist and writing coach Kaufman (psychology, Columbus State Community Coll.) aims to assist fiction writers in portraying psychological disorders, clinical treatment, and sociopathic villains with more accuracy. She begins by dispelling some common mistakes authors make when portraying psychological problems. Boxes feature easily accessible bulleted tips and examples of what not to do, with references to well-known books, films, and authors. Realistic portrayals of treatments, differentiations within the profession, and disorders grouped by symptoms are included. Readers will be best served by checking the table of contents for what they are interested in rather than reading the book straight through; cross-references refer to other chapters to help them find what they need.

Verdict: At times, Kaufman gets a bit too clinical for the average reader, but her language is often user-friendly. Because the guide is directed toward writers with general knowledge rather than experts in the field, it is the only book of its kind. Recommended.
—Karen McCoy, Fort Lewis Coll. Lib., Durango, CO

Guest Posts & WGTP Giveaway Winner

Be sure to stop by Murder by 4 for a guest post today (Friday) about mistakes writers make in thriller/suspense fiction, including misconceptions about the Not Guilty By Reason of Insanity plea and The Ambiguously Insane (But Often Brilliant) Villain.  On Monday, stop by Mary Lindsey's delightful Purposeful, Deliberate Waffling blog for a guest post on what I've learned (and wanted to pass on to you) about publishing a book.

Winner!

Thanks to everyone who posted comments over on my Archetype Writing blog, through the Facebook feeds, and through email!  I threw all the names in a hat and the winner of the signed book and the fab mug is....Deb Salisbury!  Congratulations!  Deb, could you email me with your snail mail addy, please?  (My email address is here if you need it.)

Thank you too to everyone who participated in the blog tour, whether as a reader, a host, or a commenter! If you didn't win a signed copy to keep for yourself or give as a gift (or both!), Amazon has a great price -- and I've been promised that a Kindle edition is coming very soon! I will be sure to post again here when that happens.

Psychology Today Blog

In the meantime, if you haven't had a chance yet to check out out my Psychology Today blog, Psychology for Writers, please stop by!  So far we've talked about haunted asylums, what makes a good villain, The Vampire Diaries, and what to do when your personal issues show up in your stories!

Writer's Guide to Psychology Release and Blog Tour!

Today is the day!  The day every writer waits for and dreams about -- the day her first book hits shelves.

For me, that book is THE WRITER'S GUIDE TO PSYCHOLOGY: How to Write Accurately About Psychological Disorders, Clinical Treatment and Human Behavior.

If you haven't ordered a copy yet, you can visit my WGTP website for more information including the media kit (which includes review excerpts) and a detailed table of contents, follow me on Facebook, visit my new YouTube channel.  And you can always send me your psychology and writing question over at Archetype Writing.


I am also thrilled to announce that in addition to enthusiastic blurbs from novelists like Jonathan Kellerman, Jilliane Hoffman, and Roberta Isleib, my first reviews are in from the New York Journal of Books, and they're  excellent. Please read a brief review from the NYJB here and a much more extensive one (by a different reviewer) here.

Blog Tour & Giveaways

In the meantime, please celebrate my book release with me!  Over the next two weeks, I will be doing a blog tour.  Several of the stops will include giveaways of autographed books!

This week:
Dec 1: QueryTracker Blog
Dec 2: Shooting Stars
Dec 3: Murder by Four

Next week:
Dec 6: Danyelle Leafty/Myth-Stakes
Dec 7: Imperfect Clarity
Dec 8: Christine Fonseca
Dec 9: Elana Johnson -
          Also, Christine Fonseca is also going to review the book this day.
Dec 10: Mary Lindsey

Archetype Book and Mug Giveaway!

I'll be keeping you posted on the various giveaways here.  I'm also going to be doing one over on the Archetype Writing blog.  Post a comment on my Archetype blog between now and next Thursday, December 9th, and you'll be entered to win not only an autographed copy of the book, but also a very special, very rare Writer's Guide to Psychology mug!  I'll announce the winner both here and there on Friday, December 10th.

Blogging for Psychology Today

I'm excited to announce something I've had under my hat for about a week and a half now: Psychology Today asked me to join their illustrious group of bloggers!  My little corner of the Psychology Today universe is Psychology for Writers: Insights for the Writer and the Writing.

I just published my first post, which tackles the controversial issue of haunted asylums--controversial because mental health advocacy groups like NAMI strongly disagree with them.

Why should writers care?

Because they may be tempted to use stereotypes like the ones used for haunted asylums...when there's a trick to finding fresher (and even creepier) ideas.  Read more here and leave a comment behind to let me know you visited!

Edit: Psychology Today quoted me in their rotating header for the day, an honor only 5 people get a day. Pretty exciting for Day 1 of posting!

Official Media Kit Now Up!

Been dying for a preview of THE WRITER'S GUIDE TO PSYCHOLOGY?  Check out the official media kit, now available on the Writer's Guide to Psychology book website in either high  (print quality) or low (screen quality) resolution versions.  Feel free to point interested friends in that direction!

The official media kit includes:

• Book overview
• Book publication details
• About the author
• Advance praise
• Excerpts:
• Don't Let This Happen to You! samples
• What Messages Are Your Characters Sending?
• Heroes vs. Villains
• The Truth About Dissociative Identity Disorder

The book will be available December 1, 2010 at your favorite online or brick-and-mortar bookstore!  Want to be sure you get yours as soon as it comes out? You can pre-order now!