Posted on May 9th, 2010 by Leah
In My Mailbox was created by The Story Siren and let’s us show off the books we’ve acquired this week (in the post, from the library, bought). We’ll post the titles of our books and, in brackets, where they’re from and we’ll post the picture below! All links go to Amazon, with summaries & things!
Leah’s books this week: Mother of the Bride by Kate Lawson (AVON), Hector & the Search for Happiness by Francois Lelord (Gallic).
Danielle’s books this week: Leaving Unknown by Kerry Reichs (TLC Book tours), The Lies We Told by Diane Chamberlain (Moss Media Relations), Love Match by Amy Bates (Amy herself), It Could Be Worse, You Could Be Me by Ariel Leve (Harper), Spoon Fed by Kim Severson, Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok, My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares, Imperfect Birds by Anne Lamott (all Penguin), Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Patillo, The Secret of Joy by Melissa Senate, Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris (all bought)
Chloe’s books this week: Rock Chicks by Ronni Cooper (Sphere), What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty (Penguin), Midnight Girls by Lulu Taylor (Arrow), If I Stay by Gayle Forman (Black Swan), Secrets of a Summer Night by Lisa Kleypas (Piatkus), Ten Things I Love About You by Julia Quinn (Piatkus).
Posted in In Our Mailbox | 4 Comments »
Posted on May 8th, 2010 by Danielle
Emily Benedict came to Mullaby, North Carolina, hoping to solve at least some of the riddles surrounding her mother’s life. Such as, why did Dulcie Shelby leave her hometown so suddenly? And why did she vow never to return? But the moment Emily enters the house where her mother grew up and meets the grandfather she never knew—a reclusive, real-life gentle giant—she realizes that mysteries aren’t solved in Mullaby, they’re a way of life: Here are rooms where the wallpaper changes to suit your mood. Unexplained lights skip across the yard at midnight. And a neighbor bakes hope in the form of cakes.
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Posted in 2010 releases, Book Reviews, Rating: 5/5 | 6 Comments »
Posted on May 8th, 2010 by Leah
The start of another month means one thing: Fiona Cassidy’s next installment about what it takes to become a published author. If you’ve missed Fiona’s previous entries you can read them here: Where It All Began and What’s The Story? and Agent Provocauthor and You’ve Got Mail. We now present to you the fifth article of twelve… enjoy! Our thanks, as ever, go to Fionnuala for writing this series for us!
Okay…so we’ve discussed how to begin writing, who to contact, what to send when submitting a manuscript and how to deal (badly and impatiently) with having to wait for a response. We’ve also talked about rejection and how soul destroying yet useful it can be in terms of learning from your mistakes and how it happens to us all (well nearly all apart from the selected chosen few…..What? Jealous? Me? Never!)
So….what happens when someone shows an interest in your work and asks to see the full manuscript?! It’s always a good sign to have an agent or publisher request your novel in its entirety as basically it means that they’ve read what you’ve sent them with interest, see potential in it and want to assess if the promise they’ve spotted in the first few chapters lasts throughout the book! This is usually why when submitting to an agent or publisher they will normally ask for the first three – six chapters as this is usually enough to help them decide whether or not the novel will be appealing to the public. For a book to be successful it needs to have a strong storyline that will instantly capture a reader’s attention and make them want to continue turning pages. As readers we can usually decide quite quickly if a book is good and keeping us hooked or whether we’re having a difficult time focussing and getting frustrated if it’s not moving fast enough for us (which is usually the part where I give up and throw it at the wall!)
Before submitting a full manuscript I would advise having it carefully edited and presented in exactly the way the publisher / agent requests. Some will want the full MS posted in hard copy whilst others will accept email submissions or submissions on disk. Take your time when editing. If asked, I’m sure they’d rather have high quality work as opposed to a quickly delivered MS that is full of mistakes or hard to follow. It’s important that your work is grammatically accurate with careful punctuation, a consistent storyline and correct timelines. Some people will say that grammar and punctuation are things that can be tidied up by an editor if it ever goes to print but I believe that if you’re going to do something you should take pride in doing it to the best of your ability whilst leaving as little as possible for someone else to do. I feel that it will also impress whoever is reading it and leave them confident in the knowledge that if they do decide to work with you at a later stage that you will always do your best in every aspect of your writing! (My parents were both teachers so it’s not my fault I’m as obsessed with grammar and punctuation as I am!)
Although it’s fantastic that an agent / publisher is showing an interest I would advise any writer in this position to view the fact that someone wants to see their full manuscript as simply ‘a step in the right direction’. Nothing more. Nothing less. Just because someone wants your full novel don’t be fooled and lulled into a false sense of security or go round telling everyone that you’ve landed yourself an agent or a publisher - because you haven’t. Keep the champagne on ice! The decision they will make very much depends on how much they like your work, whether or not they are taking on new writers and how marketable your book will be. You could be the best writer in the world but if the subject matter of your book is out of date, controversial or deals with a difficult topic then they may have to examine whether or not they would be able to sell it on your behalf.
In my own personal experience I’ve been so close to a publishing deal on several occasions that I felt I could taste it only to be let down at the last minute. I was also very nearly signed by a few different agents but again was to be disappointed. One agent told me that I was 98% of the way there but that I needed to find the missing 2% in order to be ready! I was gutted (and exhausted…where the hell was the elusive 2% hiding?!) I didn’t write for months afterwards as I tried to decide if a writing career was worth pursuing or not.
I look back now and remember how truly heartbroken and disillusioned I was (not to mention seething mad…voodoo doll at the ready) but now realise that the time wasn’t right for me. It was the best thing that could ever have happened! I needed to ‘grow’ as an author and alter my style of writing in order for my books to be ready for publication. It’s funny really….I spent about two years endlessly sending out manuscripts by the dozen to various agents and publishers whilst anxiously waiting for a response but to no avail. However, it was only after I had taken a break to re-evaluate (and recover from the bashing my self-esteem had taken) and decided to change my writing that things dramatically changed for the better! As I had been having no luck in getting an agent I decided to cut out the middle man (and stop adding to the growing pile of rejection letters I had collected) and try and approach a publisher on my own again. I sent a brand new book, in a different style with a storyline that I had never explored before to a publisher…and guess what…keep guessing…you’ll find out next month!
Posted in Author Article | 2 Comments »
Posted on May 7th, 2010 by Chloe
Susannah and Rob were childhood sweethearts. But as with most early love affairs, they broke up, moved on and now find themselves in very different places. And not entirely happy - who is? A chance meeting between them sends shockwaves through their lives. What happens when your first love makes a surprise reappearance? Is fate telling you it’s time for a second chance . . . or should you simply walk away and let the past become ancient history? But Susannah and Rob just aren’t able to forget the way they were . . . and the world is about to realize the consequences of their reunion.
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Posted in 2010 releases, Book Reviews, Rating: 3/5 | 1 Comment »
Posted on May 7th, 2010 by Chloe
Michelle Jackson, author of the fabulous Three Nights in New York, has her third book out this summer called One Kiss in Havana. Michelle posted the gorgeous cover to her Facebook page this week and I think it’s lovely, really summery looking and it’d definitely make me want to pick up the book! It’s due out on June 26th, and here’s the synopsis:
“Emma, Louise and Sophie are sisters. Talented, artistic and creative, they have a lot in common – especially when it comes to men.
When Emma receives two tickets to Cuba in the post from her late husband she is more than surprised. She decides to take her sister Sophie along – not realizing this was his exact intention.
Louise hankers for lost love – Jack Duggan. She trudges through her suburban life with husband Donal while her sister’s soak up the Caribbean sunshine. But a chance encounter with the love from her past means that she will have plenty to deal with back in Dublin.
Meanwhile, in Cuba, Emma meets Che Guevara lookalike Felipe and Sophie meets Greg – a Canadian art dealer. Set against the backdrop of Salsa music, rum cocktails and balmy tropical nights –the girls have no idea what One Kiss in Havana will lead to…”
Michelle is also part of a project called “What Women Know”, a book combining advice from women for women, and is working on it with her fellow author, Juliet Bressan. They are after opinions on everything from women, so if you think you have something to offer, you can join their Facebook page, or visit their blog.
Posted in 2010 releases, Book News | 3 Comments »
Posted on May 7th, 2010 by Leah
I’ve heard lots about Julie Buxbaum - so much so that I have her debut novel sitting on my shelf waiting to be read. Her second book After You is due out on August 19th and I’ll definitely be picking myself up a copy as I love the sound of it. I also love the simpleness of the cover. Here’s the synopsis:
On a random Thursday afternoon, Ellie Lerner’s life is turned upside when she learns the heartbreaking news that Lucy, her best friend since childhood, has been murdered on the tree-lined streets of Notting Hill. And, as best friends do, Ellie drops everything - her marriage, her job, her life in the Boston suburbs - to travel to London to pick up the pieces. While Lucy’s shell-shocked husband, Greg, seeks solace in work and the pub, her brilliant and traumatized child, Sophie, has simply stopped speaking. Desperate to help Sophie, Ellie turns to a book that gave her comfort as a child, The Secret Garden. As the two spend hours exploring the novel’s winding passageways, its story of hurt, magic, and healing blooms around them. But so, too, do the secrets Lucy kept hidden, even from her best friend. Over a summer in London, as Ellie peels back the layers of her friend’s life, she’s forced to confront her own as well. Suddenly her carefully constructed existence spins out of control in a chain of events that will transform her life o and the lives of those around her - forever.
Posted in 2010 releases, Book News | 2 Comments »
Posted on May 7th, 2010 by Leah
We would like to send our congratulations to Louise Bagshawe who has won the parliamentary seat and is the new MP for Corby. We all know how much Louise puts into her politics work and she also manages to produce a book each year for us fans of her writing which is fab!
Congrats Louise!
Posted in Admin | 8 Comments »
Posted on May 6th, 2010 by Leah
Chick Lit Classics is a new feature on Chick Lit Reviews where we highlight the books we feel are classics of the chick lit genre. Feel free to discuss our choices in the comments section!
This week I’ve picked one of Christina Jones’s older books Stealing The Show. It was a toss up between that and Running The Risk and I think Stealing The Show just shaded it! I’ve been a huge fan of Christina Jones’s earlier books and I think it’s a huge huge shame they aren’t still available to buy new. I truly think Christina’s publishers should re-publish her older books because they are classic reads and deserve re-designed and modern covers!
When Nell Bradley discovers a set of dilapidated gallopers - an antique roundabout with carved horses - for sale, she is delighted. She and her brothers, Danny and Sam, run a traditional fair which, so far, has afforded them a good living. But times are changing, and Danny and Sam are keen to expand by investing in more ambitious rides. Nell, more of a traditionalist, loathes the new technology. And she’s also having second thoughts about the man to whom she is unofficially engaged. So Nell buys the gallopers secretly and arranges to have them renovated. But what she hadn’t realised is that the horses come with their own very sexy restorer . . .
Posted in Chick Lit Classics | 1 Comment »
In My Mailbox was created by The Story Siren and let’s us show off the books we’ve acquired this week (in the post, from the library, bought). We’ll post the titles of our books and, in brackets, where they’re from and we’ll post the picture below! All links go to Amazon, with summaries & things!
