Midlandia Press Announces Michael Scotto as its First Author

First novel for Press, Scotto will debut in November, with series to follow

BEAVER, Pa., July 25, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Midlandia Press, a new publishing company specializing in juvenile and middle-school fiction, is proud to announce local author Michael Scotto  as the Press' first author.

Scotto, of Pittsburgh, is an accomplished author and writer. A two-time recipient of the Schubert Fellowship at Carnegie Mellon University, he earned his M.A. in Literary and Cultural Studies there in 2005, and an M.F.A. in Dramatic Writing in 2007. He has written more than 20 picture books for young readers, and his adult fiction has been published in the journal Caketrain. In 2007, his Civil War screenplay, The Mortal Coil, won a $25,000 prize from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.  Currently, he serves as the Creative Writing Coordinator for the National Network of Digital Schools, a non-profit e-learning company.

Scotto's debut novel, Latasha and the Little Red Tornado, is forthcoming from Midlandia Press in November 2011. The novel will also be the debut release of Midlandia Press.

"I am thrilled to be getting my start alongside Midlandia Press. It's a wonderful opportunity to introduce Latasha to a national audience," said Scotto.

The mission of Midlandia Press is to release high quality juvenile fiction that is both broad in appeal and rich in theme.  Kellie Hamilton, Managing Editor at Midlandia Press, said Scotto and his forthcoming novel fit perfectly with that mission.

"Mike is an amazing storyteller and he weaves together stories of unique characters who are relatable, likeable, and have a great deal of depth. His stories are significant as they include a multitude of teachable moments about some of life's greatest lessons."

Latasha and the Little Red Tornado is set in Pittsburgh and tells the story of eight-year-old Latasha Gandy, who cannot wait to grow up while her puppy, Ella Fitzgerald, absolutely refuses to.  When Ella's antics push the Gandys' landlady to wits' end, Latasha realizes that she must turn her mischievous mutt into a model dog.  Both hilarious and heartbreaking, this is a tale of friendship and maturity that chronicles Latasha's efforts to train Ella as she struggles with school and her mother's demanding new job.

Both Hamilton and Scotto agree that Latasha has strong potential to become a series.

"We feel that Latasha is a character that our readers will enjoy growing up with, as she is going through many of the same things our young readers will be going through, namely growth and maturity in their everyday lives," said Hamilton.

Scotto is currently working on a second novel, Postcards from Pismo. Told entirely in letters, postcards, and emails, Postcards from Pismo follows the correspondence of a young boy in California writing to an American soldier stationed in Afghanistan.

In addition to juvenile fiction novels, Midlandia Press will be releasing a five book series of children's stories titled Tales from Midlandia. This series, written by Scotto and illustrated by Evette Gabriel, touch on subjects relevant to the lives of young readers.

"The books in this series tell compelling tales that teach and reinforce social skills and address topics with character building opportunities such as bullying, self-esteem, and honesty," said Hamilton. "We are thrilled to debut the first five titles in Tales of Midlandia and feel confident that young readers will relate to the timeless stories." Tales of Midlandia has a tentative release date of early 2012.

Midlandia Press has partnered with BookMasters Group to assist in printing and distribution of its products.

For more information, please contact [email protected].

To learn more about Midlandia Press, visit www.midlandiapress.com, "like" us on Facebook at facebook.com/MidlandiaPress, and follow us on twitter, @MidlandiaPress.

Contact: Toni Craig, Press & Publicity
724.544.3744 | [email protected]

SOURCE Midlandia Press