Learning As You Go Through Your Author Career: Guest Post by Author Marzieh Abbas and Aarzu All Around Giveaway

 Happy Monday Everyone! Today I’m excited to have author Marzieh Abbas here to share a guest post to celebrate the release of her MG novel in verse Aarzu All Around. I haven’t read a book about Pakistani culture, and I’m excited to read her new book. 

Here’s a blurb from Goodreads:

 

A cricket-loving Pakistani girl stifled by patriarchal expectations disguises herself as a boy to get a job to pay her sister’s medical bills in this empowering middle grade novel-in-verse.

Living with her aunt and patriarchal uncle in Karachi, Pakistan, recently orphaned twelve-year-old Aarzu detests the way she and her younger sister get treated like extras and excluded from all the fun stuff. Aarzu dreams of playing cricket, just like her male cousins and the neighborhood boys in the streets, but her uncle will hear nothing of it. According to him, girls ought to master the art of making round rotis, not play sports.

When her sister requires urgent medical treatment but finances are tight, Aarzu decides to earn money herself. She hears of a part-time job at a bungalow near her school—but it’s only open to boys. Aarzu has no choice but to disguise herself as a turban-wearing boy to get the gig.

Now, Aarzu must find a way to balance school, work, chores, and secret cricket practices—all without burning out or getting caught by her uncle—or else her dreams of making the girls cricket team and her quest to save her sister will crumble around her. 

It’s been two years since my debut picture book, A DUPATTA IS…, was published by Feiwel & Friends, Macmillan. I have since had the pleasure of birthing five more picture book babies and two board book babies. And this July, my debut novel, Aarzu All Around, a novel in verse, comes out with Simon & Schuster. I’ve also written eighteen books in the Nadia & Nadir early reader series and about twelve books for various publishers in the educational  market. I’m also learning to illustrate and maybe someday I’ll make the art to go with my words *fingers crossed*. Over the years I’ve learnt a thing or two about the publishing industry and my own process that I would love to share with fellow creators. 

Now here’s Marzieh!

Learning As You Go Through Your Author Career

1.     Write Across Genres: The publishing industry is slow (from writing to revising, and then even once a manuscript is acquired to the time the book releases). The main advice I got at the start of my career was to start work on my next manuscript. But with limiting option clauses and the slow pace of the industry, it became apparent that selling more work in the picture book market was going to take a while. That’s when I began working on longer form manuscripts and reading and writing across several genres. 

2.     Lean on Street Teams: In case you aren’t familiar with the term (I wasn’t when I started off), a street team is a group of enthusiastic supporters—often volunteers or superfans—who help promote a book, product, event, or artist, usually at the grassroots level. In the publishing world, a street team typically:

o   Spreads the word about a new book through social media, word of mouth, or local events

o   Posts early reviews on platforms like Goodreads, Amazon, or blogs

o   Shares promotional materials like graphics, giveaways, or bookmarks

o   Creates buzz before and after launch day

I’m part of Kidlit Works, PB Pros, and PBSpree and each street team feels like one big happy family where everyone hypes each other up and helps promote every new title that releases.

3.              Go with your gut: When I was writing Aarzu All Around, I got a lot of feedback from writers and editors about a book that centered around cricket, the sport. Since it isn't a very popular sport in the U.S. they wondered if the book would have mass appeal. I wanted to write about a girl passionate about sports (especially a one I knew well and which is slowly but surely making its way into the US)  and my own experience growing up in Pakistan. I persevered and, after a load of rejections, we found the right home for Aarzu and her love for cricket and I can’t wait to see what readers think!

4.              Feel free to step away from critique groups that aren’t serving you: over the years, I’ve found the best way to share my work is with CPs whom I choose intentionally, rather than larger critique groups. There are some fellow writers who write lyrically and I prefer them for my more poetic pieces. There are some writer friends who are great with humor, and I prefer them for my funny stories and so on. I sometimes reach out on FB groups like KIDLIT Manuscript Swap when I need a fresh pair of eyes on my work. I also always share a pitch and ask anyone I’m swapping manuscripts with to share a pitch, too. I need to make sure I’m the right person to be critiquing a story and the person critiquing my story is interested in, and feels confident/ interested in my submitted subject matter.

5.              In your writing, be specific, but universal: that sounds contradictory... 

Let me explain: all my books are about my culture, Pakistan, and my faith, Islam. This is what I know, and this is what I love, and because of that, I’m able to give others a peek into very specific spaces and experiences I’ve had. In my book, Awe-samosas!, Noor, the main character, wants to recreate her grandma’s scrumptious samosas, but runs into all kinds of problems. The problems are super specific and so is the solution– it isn’t something I could’ve come up with if I wasn’t hands-on in the kitchen, and an experimental chef, like Noor, myself. That’s how I can imbue the text with sensory details and draw the reader in. And where’s the universality in that, you ask? Well, Noor has a burning desire to achieve something, she’s over-zealous and excited, but runs into all sorts of problems. She needs to come up with a Plan-B because she’s running short on time. She needs to improvise and rise above self-doubt. Haven’t we all run into similar situations at some point in time? Similarly, in Aarzu All Around, I chose to go with a game that isn’t widely understood by Americans, but I made sure to explain terms in context. The universality lies in Aarzu’s love for sports, that makes it relatable to many middle schoolers.  

6.              Don’t be stingy with your knowledge: It’s honestly so tough to break into the publishing industry and it doesn’t get any easier with every book you publish, but what truly brings me joy, during all the waiting, is sharing all I have learned along the way and helping fellow authors polish their work and get it ready for querying agents and editors. I’ve conducted several writing workshops and delivered writing webinars through The Writing Barn and the 12x12 forum and also offer classes through my own website. I’ve also served as a mentor for three years through the PB Rising Stars mentorship program (my first mentee is now agented and soon-to-be-published) and have been critiquing and mentoring aspiring authors through a newly launched service via my website (https://marziehabbas.com/critiques/)

Thanks for all your advice, Marzieh! You can find Marzieh at:

Buy Links:

Aarzu All Around: 

https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Aarzu-All-Around/Marzieh-Abbas/9781665970419  

Marzieh’s Board Book Series:

https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Marzieh-Abbas/227834565 

The Camel Library, A True Story from Pakistan:

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250322029/thecamellibraryatruestoryfrompakistan/  

Henna Is…

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250862662/hennais/

A Dupatta Is…

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250820945/adupattais/  

Awe-samosas!

https://www.harpercollins.com/products/awe-samosas-marzieh-abbas  

Yasmeen Lari, Green Architect

https://www.harpercollins.com/products/yasmeen-lari-green-architect-marzieh-abbas?variant=41472750616610  

Marzieh’s Socials: 

Website: www.marziehabbas.com 

IG: https://www.instagram.com/marziehabbas_author/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/marziehabbas

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19824634.Marzieh_Abbas_Marzieh_A_Ali

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/marziehabbas.bsky.social

Twitter: https://x.com/MarziehAbbas 

Giveaway Details 

Marzieh’s publisher is generously offering an ARC of Aarzu All Around for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower of my blog (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment by August 9th. If I do not have your email (I can no longer get it from your Google Profile), you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. Please be sure I have your email address. 

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites and/or follow me on Twitter or Bluesky or follow Marzieh on her social media sites, mention this in the comments, and I'll give you an extra entry for each. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. This ARDC giveaway is U.S. and Canada.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday is hosted by Greg Pattridge. You can find the participating blogs on his blog.

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops

Wednesday, July 30th I have an agent spotlight interview with Taj McCoy and a query critique giveaway 

Friday, August 1st I’m participating in the Apple a Day Giveaway Hop 

Monday, August 4th I have a guest post by debut author Isabel Knight and a giveaway of the first book in her Enchantria series 

Wednesday, August 6th I have an interview with author Lillie Vale and a giveaway of her YA Hit Me With Your Best Charm 

Monday, August 11th I have an agent spotlight interview with Krista Van Dolzer and a query critique giveaway 

Saturday, August 16th I’m participating in the Old School Giveaway Hop 

Monday, August 18th I have an interview with debut author Ryan James Black and a giveaway of his MG The Dark Times of Nimble Nottingham 

Wednesday, August 20th I have an agent spotlight interview with Shelly Romero and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, August 25th I have an interview with author James Ponti and a giveaway of his MG Hurricane Heist 

I hope to see you on Wednesday!