Panel Discussion: The Challenges & Rewards of Being a Debut Author

We're thrilled to be collaborating with a multitude of MA Libraries to bring this program to our communities.

We had such a great experience last year with our debut author panel (and learned so much!) that we had to do it again! This time, we welcome authors Lauren J. A. Bear, Rita Chang-Eppig, and Nishita Parekh to our virtual stage. We'll be talking all about getting into publishing, the pitfalls, challenges, and roadblocks as well as the excitement, fulfillment, and reader enthusiasm that makes it all worthwhile. Bring your questions as this will be in a Q&A format.

We are also celebrating a book birthday! Nishita's book, The Night of the Storm, just came out on January 16th. Feel free to bring your own b'day cake! 

Our authors:

Lauren J. A. Bear:

Lauren J.A. Bear is a reader and writer, an educator, a troublemaker, and a fierce mama bear.

Lauren was born in Boston and raised in Long Beach, CA. After studying English at UCLA and Education at LMU, she taught middle-school Humanities for over a decade — and survived! She is a teaching fellow for the Holocaust Center for Humanity, and lives in Seattle with her husband and three young children. She likes crossword puzzles and being on or near the water without getting wet.

Her debut novel, released in August 2023, is Medusa's Sisters, a vivid and moving reimagining of the myth of Medusa and the sisters who loved her.

Rita Chang-Eppig:

Rita Chang-Eppig received her MFA in fiction from NYU. Her novel about an infamous Chinese pirate queen, Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea, was a Barnes & Noble Discover, Indie Next, Indies Introduce, and Good Morning America Buzz pick. Her stories have appeared in The Best American Short Stories 2021, McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern, Conjunctions, Clarkesworld, Virginia Quarterly Review, One Story, and elsewhere. She has received fellowships from the Rona Jaffe Foundation, the Vermont Studio Center, the Writers Grotto, the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and the Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies at San Jose State University. 

Rita's debut novel, released June 2023, is Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea, a riveting, roaring adventure novel about a legendary Chinese pirate queen, her fight to save her fleet from the forces allied against them, and the dangerous price of power.

Nishita Parekh: 

Nishita Parekh was born and raised in Mumbai and now lives in Texas with her husband and toddler. She is a software programmer but a writer at heart, and loves writing about her experiences as a woman and an immigrant. She is an active member of International Thriller Writers, Crime Writers of Color, and Sisters in Crime, and is a #RevPit contest winner. 

Nishita's just released debut novel, The Night of the Storm, is a fresh take on the classic locked-room thriller that follows a multigenerational Indian American family who find themselves marooned in the house with a murderer during Hurricane Harvey.

Please register for this event and you'll receive the link in the confirmation and reminder emails - make sure to check your spam folder for them, the email will be coming from ashlandprograms@minlib.net.

This program is sponsored by the Friends of the Ashland Public Library and in partnership with the Medway Public Library.