Summary From Goodreads: In the second book of the Quincy the Horse series, Quincy and his friend, Beau, leave the comforts of home and go on a big trip across the US on a huge horse van. Beau is in his element as Quincy’s tour guide. This is the story of Quincy’s journey of self-discovery. He has his doubts about the trip until Beau explains that they are going West where there are “Trails as far as a horse can see.” Quincy is soon soaking up the sights and to his amazement, he learns that “Horses are everywhere.” On the way he sees all the jobs horses can do and dreams about his own possibilities. By the time they reach the desert, he has learned something about himself. He is an American Quarterhorse, the breed that can do anything. Full of energy and imagination, the beautifully illustrated book includes a map of the US with nine highlighted states. Team Matthews and Black have provided a perfect sequel.

Author Guest Post

Write About What You Know: Advice with More than A Grain of Truth

“Write about what you know” is such a longstanding piece of advice to anyone who is interested in becoming a writer that it has definitely become a cliché. That being said, like many clichés, there is more than a grain of truth in the idea.

Here are 3 reasons that writing about what you know it great advice.

Passion

One of the most important ways to hook readers is by offering them an emotional connection. What do we know better than our passion? Writing about what you are passionate about whether it is characters engaged in a fictional adventure, an important political topic like protecting and saving the environment, an amazing trip or the challenges of parenting, is the way to offer readers an emotional connection. This is a path to finding readers who will share your passion and value your words.

Creating an Experience

Over and over readers say that what they want is characters they can care about. How do we as writers engage readers in this way? A great story is a complete experience that is more than the sum of its components because it is entered on the experiential level. Most great stories include a highly detailed description of the setting and scenes. Who can forget the experience of Scout and Jem looking down from the courthouse balcony to where Atticus and Tom sat at the defense table or the dewdrops shimmering on Charlotte’s Web? In order to create this kind of experience, one must truly know the situation in some way either through personal knowledge or careful research.

Authenticity

Some synonyms for the word authentic are real, genuine and valid. The glue that holds it all together is that readers come to believe. They trust that they are exploring and sharing something that is at heart truthful. Even if it is the most amazing adventure such as the Lord of the Rings trilogy, it feels more like history, a genuine description of a bygone era that one has the privilege to relive as a reader. That truth is the feeling of authenticity that writers can convey when writing about what they know. -Camille Matthews

Author’s Bio: Camille Matthews is a licensed clinical social worker and author of the Quincy the Horse Books for children ages K-4t.h. She notes that most children have empathy for animals and identify with Quincy and his adventures which involve every day challenges that children face such as loss and change, a family move, confronting a bully and sibling rivalry.