Whatever Wednesday: Wanna Sports Job Someday?

January 19th, 2011

Hey, everyone!

Whew.. The dust is finally settling after a whirlwind HEAD GAMES release. Thank you for your support, emails, and messages. Here is one of my favorite pics I received last week, from Grace – a Pretty Tough Jersey girl. She’s enjoying both HEAD GAMES and SCREWBALL. Thanks for sending the pic, Jules!

Today, I stumbled upon this amazing article. The President of WISE – Los Angeles and college professor, Alex Madden, shares valuable advice and insight on how to break into a sports career. If you’ve ever dreamed of a career in athletics, don’t miss the full article here.

Speaking of a sports career, soccer superstar Kristine Lilly retired earlier this month. Lilly’s phenomenal professional career included playing in five FIFA cups and three Olympic games. She’s also the second leading goal scorer in both United States and world history. Wow! Congratulations and thank you for sharing your talents with the world, Kristine!

Back to work…

Happy Wednesday!

Whatever Wednesday: HEAD GAMES Blog Tour

January 12th, 2011

Hey, everyone!

The amazing Kelsey, AKA The Book Scout, was kind enough to host the HEAD GAMES Book Tour over the The Teen Book Scene. Check out the reviews, interviews, playlists, and enter to win gift cards to Barnes and Nobles, Blockbuster, ITunes, Amazon, and more!

Bunches of thanks goes out to Kelsey, Kari, Erica, Katie, and Jordyn! You guys rock!

Happy Wednesday!

Happy Birthday, HEAD GAMES!!!

January 5th, 2011

Yay!!! HEAD GAMES is here! Click here to order your copy today!

Here’s what people are saying about HEAD GAMES.

“My students adore HEAD GAMES and so do I. Finally, a sports series for girls!”

– Sandra Poulton, 7^th grade teacher, Mount Laurel School District

“HEAD GAMES is hilarious– Finally a humorous, romantic, fun book for girls who live to play sports!”

– Cyn Balog, Author of Fairy Tale and Sleepless

“A sweet …… story.”

-       Kirkus Review

“Keri really writes the best in this genre. Head Games is just a fabulous book for every teen girl who love sports.”

-       Marjolein’s Book Blog

“HEAD GAMES was absolutely awesome!! I adore Taylor and could relate to every part!”

-       Lauren Lesser, High School Student

“The sport of basketball was written well. I like reading all the sports talk and enjoying how it entwined with Taylor’s life. Ms. Mikulski made all the sports talk easy to know. I for one, did not know much about basketball, but after reading this, I think I can go to game and finally get it. This book is totally sweet, enduring, and full of great literature. I look forward to reading the rest of the series and learning more about sports!

I give it 5 BITES!”

-       Savy, Books with Bite Book Blog

“This fun and engaging novel would appeal to reluctant readers and to sporty girls ages 10-14 years. Even a non-basketball player like me (I’m 5 foot 3 inches) could understand the plays and appreciate the drama. Keri Mikulski is on top of her game.”

-       Sarah Laurence, artist, author, and blogger

Happy Wednesday!

Whatever Wednesday: Best Gift

December 29th, 2010

HEAD GAMES COUNTDOWN – 8 days!!!!

What was my favorite gift this year?

This year’s best gift is the opportunity to live my dream.

With the book launch, a new year, and my birthday a week away, I’ve been doing a ton of reflecting and thinking about a question I get asked a lot.

Why do you write sports fiction for girls?

1. I love sports.
2. I love to write.
3. I became a reluctant reader because I could not connect with books. I strive to write believable characters sporty girls relate to. Girls whose lives revolve around sports, but still have a life.

I write for girls like me.

I write for girls like this amazing seven-year-old.

And I write for girls like my daughter.

Speaking of my daughter. Below is her favorite gift.

And here’s her reaction when she opened her Pillow Pet.

I had the same reaction after I signed my contract.

Happy New Year!

Whatever Wednesday: Happy Holidays!

December 22nd, 2010

Enjoy!

Whatever Wednesday: Go Go Sports Girls, Reviews, & Interviews

December 15th, 2010

Wow! I can’t believe HEAD GAMES is almost here!

As I’m gearing up for the release and my first signing (on my Bday – yay!), I received my first ‘official’ book blogger review for HEAD GAMES. Read Marjolein’s entire review here. But, just in case you’re short on time (tis the holiday season), I’ll summarize…

“Keri really writes the best in this genre. Head Games is just a fabulous book for every teen girl who love sports.”

-       Marjolein’s Book Blog

THANKS MARJOLEIN!!!

Speaking of HEAD GAMES news, the CENTRAL RECORD kindly interviewed me about the Pretty Tough series and my teaching career. Check out the entire article and video here. Thanks, Dubravka!

This week, I stumbled across the best dolls ever. If you have a sporty girl on your Christmas list, check out Go Go Sports Girls. There is a doll for each sport!! Below are my faves – Kate, Cassie, and Sam. Too cute!

Cliff Lee is back in Philly. Jeter signed with the Yankees for three more years. And the Notre Dame women’s college soccer team won the National Championship. Life is good.

Happy Wednesday!

Rally for Girls’ Sports Day

December 8th, 2010

What did I win by playing sports?

My writing career! Participating in soccer, basketball, and softball for twenty-five years prepared me to tackle the tough business of writing.

Believe it or not, writing and athletics are very similar. Every day, I find myself referring to my sporty days.

Rejections are like striking out. I’ll always have another chance to step up to the plate as long as I keep working hard.

Reviews are like game write-ups. As long as I gave it my all, the article is only an opinion.

Tight Deadlines are like prepping for a big game. I must put in the time and effort until I reach the ultimate goal – a finished manuscript.

Editors, publishers, agents, and fellow authors are like teammates. We’re working together to achieve the same goal.

Writing is my newest sport. I continuously practice and practice until I get it right. Like athletics, there is no perfection. The only thing I can control is my effort.

My life is enriched because I played sports. Athletics gave me the confidence to tackle all of my aspirations, including writing books for girls who love sports. Once I set out to achieve a goal and I accomplished it on the field, diamond, or court, I learned that I could do anything.

Happy Rally for Girls’ Sports Day!

Find out more about Rally for Girls’ Sports Day here.

Whatever Wednesday: Superheroes

December 1st, 2010

Did you see the new Spider Girl? If not, check her out here.

It’s all about the superheroes here at the Mikulski house.

I love superheroes. In fact, I went through quite a superhero stage in my day.

Isn’t Wonder Woman amazing? And yes, I dressed up too.

I need a new superhero to idolize. Like a Wonder Writer. Wonder Writer could have super speedy writing skills. Or how about a super ability to ignore negativity? Or better yet, he or she could be a super multi-tasker? Perfect.

Who is your favorite superhero?

Happy Wednesday!

Whatever Wednesday: Happy Thanksgiving!

November 23rd, 2010

Hope everyone has a holiday filled with lots of friends, family, and food.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Whatever Wednesday: Book Review Club

November 2nd, 2010

The first Wednesday of the month means another edition of The Book Review Club hosted by Barrie Summy, author of the I So Don’t Do Mysteries series. Today, I’m featuring one of the best sporty books I’ve read in a long time, Alfred C. Martino’s Pinned.

Alfred was kind enough to send me a signed copy of Pinned after we connected and chatted sports via email. I cracked open Pinned on a Friday night and finished the entire three-hundred plus pages by Sunday. It was that good.

Here are five reasons why I loved Pinned…

1. Plot – Pinned is not your typical sporty story. In fact, the novel follows two polar opposite wrestlers throughout the course of their senior wrestling season. Although both characters are dealing with diverse issues, Ivan and Bobby love of the sport of wrestling and dream of winning a state title.
2. Voice – Alfred nails the voice of Bobby and Ivan. I’ve been surrounded by wrestlers for the past twenty years or so and both characters are spot on.
3. Characters – Not only did I feel empathy for both Bobby and Ivan, I couldn’t shake them. When I was away from the novel, I thought about the characters and their story. So much so, I couldn’t wait to crack open the book again.
4. Fearless Writing – Without giving away too much, Alfred’s writing is raw and real. Martino tackles teenage issues head on. His honesty is commendable.
5. Sensational Sports Action – Following both wrestlers who could end up going head-to-head at the end of the novel is genius – a perfect recipe for a page-turning action packed ‘can’t put down’ novel.

If you ever wondered what it’s like to compete in the grueling sport of wrestling or if you just want to crack open an amazing sports story, Pinned is your book. Good stuff.

For more middle grade, young adult, and adult book reviews and recommendations, click here.

Happy Wednesday! 

Disclosure: I often receive ARCs and/or books for reviews (most of the time due to my Chick Lit column for South Jersey Mom magazine and sometimes because I’m an author and other times because I beg). However, I do not blog about every book I receive, only the ones I absolutely adore or feel the need to recommend to fans of sporty lit.