Melanie Bell

Author, Writer, Editor

Tag Archives: Read Furiously


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Happy One-Year Anniversary to Chasing Harmony!

My first novel, Chasing Harmony, has been out for a year now! It’s now available in ebook format as well as in paperback, which I’m excited about because it means more people can read it. It took 10 years for this strange, literary, bisexual YA coming-of-age story to find a publisher, and I’m grateful it has a good home.  

My publisher, Read Furiously, has been wonderful to work with. One reason I chose them is that they donate a portion of royalties to charity, primarily literacy charities. Some of you might remember that my first foray into publication was self-publishing two poetry books as a teenager to raise money for charities… back in the pre-digital era of the early 2000s, when self-publishing meant applying for a grant, giving your files to the printer, and having them print the books out! I got extra “imperfect” copies of my first book, Tears for the World, to sell, because a hair got stuck in the printing press. 

Tears for the World raised money for Farmers Helping Farmers, a Prince Edward Island-based organization which helps farmers in Kenya, while Fire in the Sky raised money for a local literacy organization. With Chasing Harmony helping a similar cause, I feel like things have come full circle. 

In this whirlwind of a year, Chasing Harmony has been featured in an Autostraddle interview, on Reads Rainbow’s lists of July-December 2022 LGBT releases and Contemporary releases, and on CLMP’s end of year list for children’s and YA books of 2022. I’ve written craft articles for DIY MFA on what I’ve learned from the novel: how to write a coming of age story and how to craft a novel with alternating timelines. And at the Conscious Living Center, I shared my process of facing personal shadows as I wrote.

Chasing Harmony has a Spotify playlist and a book trailer:

It always makes me happy when I hear from someone who’s read Chasing Harmony, especially if they connected with the characters. I poured my heart into this story.

Read Furiously has scheduled a virtual book tour to celebrate Chasing Harmony’s anniversary, and if you’d like a review copy to feature a review, guest post, or interview on your blog, you can request one from Goddess Fish Promotions here. There will also be gift card giveaways! Stay tuned for more on the tour which is happening from August 28 – September 22! 

Here are Read Furiously’s kind words on my book’s anniversary:

“Last July we introduced a wonderful young adult novel filled with music, vulnerability, and lost love. One year later, we are still haunted and inspired by Anna Stern’s search for her authentic self.

Happy one year anniversary to CHASING HARMONY by Melanie Bell. If you haven’t experienced the magic of Anna’s musical talent, or haven’t fallen in love with Liss, or danced with Ay-a in a forest kingdom, we recommend making CHASING HARMONY a must read this summer.

We have big plans to celebrate one year – stay tuned!

CHASING HARMONY is available wherever books are sold.”


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Chasing Harmony Playlist, Trailer, and Publication

Chasing Harmony, my YA novel about a musical prodigy, is now out in paperback! Here I am with my box of author copies.

My publisher, Read Furiously, did a wonderful job putting the book together, including little music-related details in the design. They are also donating a portion of proceeds to literacy organizations.

It was a pleasant and delightful shock to open a book and read lines I’ve pored over on screen for years, available in a new context for readers to enjoy.

My book has a Spotify playlist! If you want to listen to many of the songs mentioned in Chasing Harmony, from the characters’ classical performance pieces to 90s tunes they hear on the radio, it’s all here (sadly, the imaginary songs from imaginary bands couldn’t be included).

There’s also a book trailer where I talk about the inspiration behind the title. You can check it out below.

Chasing Harmony is available wherever books are sold. Here are some up-to-date purchase links:

Read Furiously 
Bookshop.org
Barnes & Noble
Amazon
Waterstones

In less happy news, Dream Signs’ publisher is no longer in business and the book is currently out of stock. I am waiting on the files and hope to republish it down the line.

As with Anna’s story in Chasing Harmony, writing and publishing is full of successes and failures, and one often goes along with the other. Anna discovers that it’s one thing to love an art form, but the real challenge comes from being human and living your life.

Here’s to life! And here’s to new books!


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My Novel Chasing Harmony Is Out July 19!

In 2009, I started writing a novel while traveling across Canada. I was thinking about art and failure and how life seldom meets our expectations. I finished the manuscript while studying Creative Writing at Concordia University in Montreal, went through several drafts, and over a decade later, I’m delighted that the book found a home.

My YA novel, Chasing Harmony, is available for pre-order now and releases on July 19! The publisher is Read Furiously, a small press which donates a substantial portion of proceeds to literacy charities. They have shown a wonderful level of care for my book. Take a look at the cover and layout and you’ll see what I mean.

I’m honored that Reads Rainbow has featured Chasing Harmony on their list of Contemporary LGBTQ+ releases this July. (The main character is bisexual.)

Here’s what the book is about.

“What happens when the music stops?

Since she was a child, piano prodigy Anna Stern has always stood out. As she becomes a teenager, Anna struggles to find her identity without the soundtrack of sonatas and concertos. There’s also the worry that comes with the crushing expectations of her musical gift and her parents’ imploding marriage.

Anna finds refuge in her best friend Liss, who is full of magic and escape plans, and the mysterious new boy at school… which becomes more complicated when she develops feelings for both of them. Most importantly, Anna has concerts to perform that will determine the course of her future as the haunting spectre of burnout lurks close by. As everything builds to a crescendo, what follows is an authentic life in the making.

Melanie Bell has created a compelling coming-of-age story for those that can relate to the search for untapped potential. Told in alternating timelines, Chasing Harmony reminds us of the exhilarating feeling that comes with hearing your heart’s song.”

And here are some places it’s available for pre-order:

The Furious Reader – https://readfuriously.com/products/chasing-harmony
Bookshop – https://bookshop.org/a/3392/9781737175896
Barnes & Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/chasing-harmony-melanie-bell/1141640134?ean=9781737175896
Amazon – https://amzn.to/3nKS1rK

You can find Chasing Harmony wherever books are sold. Soon the physical copies will be in bookstores too!

In other publishing news this month, I have a poem in the Spoon Knife 6: Rest Stop anthology, and a story (about a woman who inherits a family home in England – but it comes with a chilling catch) in Cossmass Infinities, Issue 9.

I can’t wait for readers to pick up Chasing Harmony, and I hope some of you will see yourselves reflected in Anna’s journey!