Debut Author Tiffany Hawk Talks About Writing What You Know And Making It Work For Fiction

Debut author Tiffany Hawk turns the cliche, “write what you know,” upside down in her novel, LOVE ME ANYWAY. Tiffany worked as a flight attendant, and her book is about, you guessed it, flight attendants (and much more).  In her interview you can read about how Tiffany writes her book so as NOT to implicate anyone she knows (too much), what she thinks of the Women’s Fiction label (hint: she’s torn), and you can view her awesome book trailer at the end of the interview, and learn more about LOVE ME ANYWAY! 

Please welcome debut author Tiffany Hawk to Women’s Fiction Writers!

Amy xo

Amy: Congratulations on your forthcoming debut novel LOVE ME ANYWAY! I’m a debut author too (as you know). What’s your favorite part of the time leading up to your novel being available “everywhere books are sold?”

Tiffany: Thank you, Amy. I can’t wait to read The Glass Wives! I’m glad you asked me that question because it reminded me to take a step back and enjoy this moment. Launching a book is a bit like planning a wedding – it’s a life-long dream, but then you start obsessing about making everything perfect, and that can kind of take over. It really is exciting to be talking about publicity and events and to be working so closely with my agent, whom I adore. Writing can be incredibly solitary, so working as a team now is just such great fun. And nothing beats the occasional trip up to New York to meet with her and the publishing staff. As a military wife, I move around a lot and never know where we’ll end up, so I feel tremendously lucky to have spent the last couple of years near New York.

Amy: Tell us a little about the story—but no spoilers!

Tiffany: It’s a book about two young flight attendants who take to the skies to escape their troubled pasts. Most of us have dreamed of running away to a far off land, but these two actually did it. Of course, they get more than they bargained for, and along with exotic destinations, they get tangled up in some unhealthy situations and disastrous relationships. One of the things I wanted to explore was what happens when good people give in to passion and do things they’re not proud of. Can you see yourself as a good person again? What if you can’t let go of the things you shouldn’t want?

Amy: When it comes to writing a novel, are you a plotter or do you write by the seat of your pants (making you a pantser)?

Tiffany: Oh, I’m a big time seat-of-my-pantser.  I’ve drawn up all kinds of outlines and I’ll get super excited about a plot I’ve got cooking only to find that when I actually start writing the big scenes, none of those ideas feel right. I like having an idea of where I’m going, and sometimes the end is the one thing I do know, but plotting out the whole course is something I do better after I have wrangled the first draft into something somewhat resembling a storyline. Obviously, I spend a ton of time revising and will never be called efficient.

Amy: In LOVE ME ANYWAY, you took what you knew—your area of expertise being travel—and turned it into fiction.  Any worries that people will think this is in some way about you or people you know? Have you fielded any questions or concerns about this?

Tiffany: Yes and yes. In fact, that’s usually the first question I get. When it comes to all the little details about the job and the planes and the passengers, more than 99% is true. I had to fabricate maybe two or three things for logistical purposes, such as a route that didn’t exist at that time, but any craziness that seems hard to believe, it’s entirely real.

When it comes to the larger storylines, it’s much murkier. A lot of what I wrote about actually happened, at least in part, to me or someone I know. But I’ve taken things so much further that I do sometimes fear hurting someone. For example, Emily and KC’s relationship is quite similar to my relationship with my best friend. Like Emily and KC, we met on the first day of flight attendant training and were opposites in many ways. She definitely brought me out of my shell, but she’s nowhere near as wild as KC and thankfully, her “ending” isn’t complicated like KC’s. Fortunately, she is one of my biggest supporters and one of the bravest people I know. She happily reads a scene we both recognize and then rolls with it when it turns into something more scandalous. Even when the story makes “her” look bad or crazy or desperate or whatever, she gets a kick out of it. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but if you were her, you would probably be like, “you made me do WHAT?!” She’s amazing.

Amy:  What does the term/label/genre “women’s fiction” mean to you?  

Tiffany: That’s a tough one. I love women’s fiction and yet at times, I have found myself dodging the label, which is so often used as an insult. That really is confounding, though, especially when you consider that female readers account for 80% of the fiction market. I mean, how can such a simple word -  “women” – be used to devalue something? How sexist is that!? I’m getting worked into a lather now. Part of me thinks I should start proudly announcing that I write women’s fiction. But I immediately fear being dismissed. We, I, all of us, have a long way to go.

Amy: What’s your best advice for aspiring authors of women’s fiction?

Tiffany: Write from the heart. Not what the market wants, not what you think sells, not what a plot formula tells you to, not what rejection letters suggest. Take all of those things seriously, let them inform you and make you think critically about your work, but don’t write to them. Find your own vision. At one point when my manuscript was being rejected by publishers and it was abundantly clear that the draft wasn’t working, my agent and I had very different ideas on how to revise. I didn’t like her suggestion AT ALL. In fact, it made me cry, and that forced me to rethink the book entirely. There was a heated phone call, well, heated on my end anyway. I was so incensed that I didn’t care if I pissed her off. To my surprise, she was absolutely thrilled that I’d had such an emotional reaction and had found my true vision. For the first time in a long time, I wrote what I wanted, not what my grad school instructors would want, not what publishers would want, not what my agent would want, but what I really wanted. Not only did my agent love the revision, she sold it.

TIFFANY HAWK is a former flight attendant and a graduate of the MFA program at UC Riverside. Her essays and stories have appeared in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, CNN, National Geographic Traveler, The Potomac Review, StoryQuarterly, and NPR’s “All Things Considered.” A few years ago, she did the one thing flight attendants aren’t supposed to do and married a pilot. Together with their son, she and her husband now live wherever the Air Force sends them. At the moment, that’s Washington, D.C.

Visit Tiffany at tiffanyhawk.com, or for a comical two-minute sneak preview, watch Love Me Anyway the Short Film on Youtube.

Website http://www.tiffanyhawk.com

Twitter Wisdom For Writers From Author Lisette Brodey

This is the part where the internet gets crazy-cool. Cue the Twilight Zone music!

On Twitter one day I noticed Lisette Brodey. She was tweeting about writing, writers, She was tweeting to people I knew. And her name rang that proverbial bell. Brodey. I had a college professor, my Journalism/PR advisor named Brodey. But no, Lisette Brodey lived in LA.  I went to college at Temple University in Philadelphia and knew, by memory, that Dr. Brodey—my Dr. Brodey— had been from Philadelphia. 

I asked anyway and guess what? Lisette Brodey is indeed the daughter of my college professor and advisor, Dr. Jean Brodey.  I found out news about her mother (who she says remembers me!), Tweeted back and forth with Lisette, and of course, followed her on Twitter. 

Please welcome Lisette Brodey to Women’s Fiction Writers! 

Amy xo

Twitter Wisdom For Writers

By Author Lisette Brodey (@LisetteBrodey) http://www.lisettebrodey.com

I’ve been on Twitter for about three and a half years. I’ve met some of the most amazing, wonderful people there. As a writer, Twitter gives me superb access to interesting people all over the world.

A lot of people I know find Twitter very daunting, mostly because they’ve never really tried to use it. It can be intimidating to some to have only 140 characters to make a statement. But it works, and it works well. The more you do it, the more you’ll probably appreciate the way this micro-blogging site works.

Twitter can both be great or not-so-great depending on what you hope to get from it. I’m going to share with you the reasons I follow/follow back, don’t follow back, or unfollow.

WHY I WILL OR WON’T FOLLOW/FOLLOW BACK

1. I consider several things when deciding to follow or follow back. Does this person engage with others? If she is actively having conversations with other tweeters, I’m more inclined to like this person. For one, it shows that she realizes that there are other people on Twitter. And I’m much more inclined to like people who have a photo of themselves for an avatar.

2. There’s nothing wrong with promoting your own work in moderation, but I am a strong believer in cross-promotion. Does this person take a moment to recognize the works of others from time to time? To tweet content of interest?

3. Does the person’s follower/following ratio make any kind of sense? If someone follows me and I see that he is following well over 1,000 people, but only 132 people are following back, there is always a reason. A quick look will tell me that every tweet is virtually the same: they’re all about that person’s book, for example, or the tweets make little to no sense. If the person has 40,000 followers and is following only 2,000 back, I’m not going to assume that he’s found me to be a part of the scintillating minority. Rather, I’m going to think that he’s followed me to get the follow and will unfollow me soon after.

4. Did this person actually follow me or did a bot follow me? For example, I have a novel called Squalor, New Mexico that has nothing whatsoever to do with New Mexico, but often I’ll be followed by businesses such as a real estate company or an auto repair facility in Santa Fe. Nothing against these fine businesses, of course, but it’s clear how they found me and we likely are not tweeting about any common interests.

5. Does the person tweet original content or does she just quote? There are people on Twitter who do nothing but tweet the quotes of others. Once in a blue moon, if I see a great quote, I’m happy to pass it on, but in most cases I have little interest in following someone who merely tweets quotes.

WHY I UNFOLLOW

6. I know that I am not alone in my loathing of people who send DMs (direct messages) to strangers upon following with links to their products or services. Just don’t do it. Really, do NOT do this! If there’s one way to guarantee that I will never check out your book or product, just send me a link about it. To quote my friend author Stuart Ross McCallum, @writer99 on Twitter: “e-converse before e-commerce.”

Some people may ask: If I don’t send you a link, how will you ever know about my new novel, The Vampire and the Hound Dog Get Married? My answer: Engage with people on Twitter as you would in person. Join conversations, start conversations, pay attention to others, retweet what others have to say, be polite, and follow the golden rule. Once you do that, you’ll find that people will click on your bio because they like you. They’ll want to learn more about you. And what do you know, they may even download a copy of your book to their e-reader.

One woman, upon following, sent me a DM that said, “Enjoy the ABC series.” Hello? I only agreed to follow her on Twitter, but now she’s assuming I’m going to read all three books in her series? On what planet?

Then, there are those who send a message saying, “Don’t forget to ‘like’ my FB page?” Hey, I have no idea who you are. We’ve just met. Do NOT assume I’m going to support you at hello. Okay, so how can you ask people to ‘like’ your FB page without being obnoxious? Try a general tweet like this: “Would appreciate ‘likes’ on my FB page. Happy to reciprocate. Just DM or tweet me the link.” Isn’t that better? You’re asking for something but simultaneously offering to help others.

Upon following, I often get a DM saying, “Let’s keep in touch on Facebook, too.” But this person doesn’t want a mutual friendship; she wants you to “like” her page. I am not a fan of this deceitful practice.

7. I’ve just spoken about sending inappropriate direct messages to people. The same goes for tweeting links at people. Not only do people do this, but they do it to people who are not even following them. When I have a new blog, I tweet it to the general public. I do NOT tweet links AT people unless someone specifically asks me to do so. Tweeting links at people is, in a word, spam. There are exceptions when good friends tweet links to me; I have no issue in these cases.

8. I’m much more interested in interesting people than I am in numbers. Some fantastic people who have been on Twitter for a while, just happen to have high numbers of followers, very high, and they actually engage with as many as possible. It’s easy to figure out who cares and who doesn’t. Then there are those who merely want the numbers. They think that if they spend all day and night amassing 30K followers, they’ll be more likely to sell their product. As I see it, the number of followers has nothing to do with sales. YOU are the product first, and if people don’t care about you, they won’t care what you are selling. And, please, don’t boast about how many followers you have. It just tells me that you couldn’t care less about anything but a number.

9. Many people use certain sites to find out who is following back and who is not. I use these sites, too. I won’t necessarily unfollow people who aren’t following me back, but these sites do help me to clean up my lists. These sites often offer people the option to tweet out the IDs of those who have unfollowed them. Maybe it’s just me, but I find this to be very childish, like calling someone out on the playground. If people unfollow me, that’s okay. But I do not tweet about it. That’s just silly. And when I see people who do this, it’s just a turnoff to me.

10. Politics and religion: For many, these are two subjects to simply avoid. While I do choose not to tweet about either, I am very interested in and most appreciative of the political tweets of others. But tweeting politics is always risky. Many people who do not agree with you will unfollow you. And I am one of them. So, while it’s fine to tweet politics or religion, just understand that you will alienate some people. If you’re okay with that, go for it.

To sum it up, our experiences, good or bad, are what we make of them. Behind the avatars are real people who, like ourselves, deserve to be treated with respect. Enjoy your time tweeting, and I look forward to seeing you in my stream.

And please, tell me about your experiences with Twitter. What are the reasons that you follow, don’t follow, or unfollow?

Lisette Brodey was born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia. After high school, she moved to New York City where she attended Pace University and studied drama. After 10 years in New York, several of them spent working in the radio industry, she moved to Los Angeles, where she held various positions at Paramount Studios in Hollywood and CBS Studio Center in Studio City.

She returned to the East Coast and worked for several years as a freelance writer specializing in the entertainment industry. In May 2010 she relocated permanently back to Los Angeles.

In 2008 Lisette published Crooked Moon, a story about childhood best friends whose lives come crashing back together after 23 years apart. In 2009 she published Squalor, New Mexico, a coming-of-age story shrouded in family mystery. (And just for the record, the book has nothing to do with New Mexico. It takes place in East Coast suburbia in the 1970s.)

Lisette’s third novel, Molly Hacker Is Too Picky!, was published in December 2011. In this romantic comedy, picky Molly Hacker sets out to find Mr. Right, juggling four “men of interest” and fighting off matchmaking efforts by the town’s most visible (and manipulative) socialite. Lisette has both blogged as Molly Hacker and interviewed her creative peers as Molly at www.mollyhacker.com.

She is currently working on a YA paranormal novel and other projects.

For detailed information on all of Lisette’s books, click on the BOOKS tab on her website or go directly to Amazon.com.

Author Jennie Shortridge says: Writing For Women Is One Of The Most Powerful Ways To Change The World

There’s much ado about women’s fiction, women authors, and women in general these days. On one hand, reports that confirm how many fewer books by women get reviewed in major publications and some women writers putting down other women writers is horrible. Okay, on two hands it’s horrible. But on that imaginary third hand, it’s bringing a lot of amazing women writers together. A band of brothers has nothing on a band of women writers. 

Author Jennie Shortridge shares her thoughts today, in a show of camaraderie with other women writers, and in celebration of her new novel, LOVE WATER MEMORY.

Please welcome Jennie to Women’s Fiction Writers!

Amy xo

In the year 2013, “women’s fiction” is still believed by some to be a pejorative term. The “chick lit” craze certainly didn’t help. Some early books in that category were as deeply revelatory as Catcher in the Rye, but got bedazzled in the marketing machine to scream: “Only buy me if you are female!” And begat a generation of pastel-covered books meant to categorize the stories of women’s lives as fluff, even when the messages inside might be strong as steel.

The novels I write are categorized as women’s fiction, even though my latest, Love Water Memory, has both a male protagonist and a female protagonist, and is the story of a harrowing brain disorder and its aftermath. You could imagine John Irving or Nick Hornby or Garth Stein writing about such a thing (in fact they’ve written about very similar things).

And yet, I’ve decided to come down on this issue exactly where novelist Elizabeth Berg does. To paraphrase Ms. Berg, when asked if she minded her work being categorized as women’s fiction, she said something like, “I love women! I love writing for women. Why would I mind?” (Why indeed, when women buy the vast majority of books?)

But here’s the real reason why I love writing books for women (and men, because plenty of men read my books): Writing for women is one of the most powerful ways to change the world.

Scientific studies show that college students who read fiction develop more empathy toward others than their counterparts. Those of us who’ve always read fiction know this innately. Our sensibilities, values, and core beliefs are formed and informed by the novels we read as teens, young adults, and even now.

In this new society of hardwired, head-phoned technoids tuned in electronically alone at their devices, actual human connection is eerily on the decline. We may tweet or text characters on a screen, but we can’t feel the impact of what we say or don’t say unless we can look into the other person’s eyes.

Women are biologically engineered for empathy, and yet we often get subtle (or not so subtle) messages that empathy and compassion are not as important as power and might. Don’t believe it. If more leaders of corporations, governments and religious institutions were women, integrating compassion into decision and policy making, our people and our planet would be far better off.

When women write women’s stories, we share ideas and experiences and revelations about solving problems, about surviving and thriving through difficulties, about love and the power of compassion and understanding.

And that changes the world, one reader—female or male—at a time.

Love Water Memory and four other acclaimed novels, as well as a writing teacher and avid volunteer. She is co-founder of Seattle7Writers, a nonprofit collective of over sixty published authors in the Northwest who work to give back to their community. Find her on Facebook, Twitter, her blog JennieSez, and at www.jennieshortridge.com.

Sarah Pekkanen’s Fourth Novel, THE BEST OF US, Hit Stores This Week!

I’m honored to have Sarah Pekkanen here today sharing the story surrounding her fourth novel, THE BEST OF US.  Because of a dispute between Barnes & Noble and S&S, many authors’ books aren’t being featured in their stores, if they’re even being sold at all. 

This is where the writer and reader community must come together. Sure, publishing is a business, but for the next few minutes, as you read about Sarah and her book, remember that she’s just like you. Someone whose words and stories are meant to be read; someone who just wants to share her book with you. Please give her a shout-out, buy the book if you can, talk about it, and keep talking! 

Please welcome Sarah Pekkanen to Women’s Fiction Writers! 

Amy xo

Before I gave birth, I imagined how things would go: An effective epidural, a gently encouraging doctor (obviously he’d look a little like George Clooney), me panting heroically while my husband watched in awe….. Suffice to say things didn’t exactly go according to plan: My water broke at 2 a.m., my epidural failed, my doctor was grumpy – and female! – and my husband was so nervous he kept shoveling ice chips I didn’t want into my mouth.

It’s been kind of the same way with my latest book launch. THE BEST OF US, my fourth novel, hit stores yesterday. I envisioned strolling through the front doors of Barnes & Noble in Bethesda, where I actually wrote part of the book, and hovering around the new releases table at the front of the store, bursting with all the pride and anxiety of a new mother. I figured I’d hold a launch event at B&N, and sign a gloriously tall stack of books for friends and family members.

Unfortunately, my book isn’t at the front of B&N along with all the other new releases, because I’m one of a number of authors caught in a dispute between my publisher, Simon & Schuster, and the nation’s largest retail chain.

There’s much I don’t understand about this corporate stand-off, and I don’t blame either side. Publishing is a tough business. Everyone is struggling – big publishers, agents, booksellers, bookstores, authors….B&N and S&S are both trying to stay afloat in a constantly changing, volatile industry.

While I hold no ill will, it is tough to accept that I’m not able to do any readings or signings at B&N stores. I admit that I cried a little when I learned B&N had cut its order for my book by 75 percent. And I’m saddened to think my novel will be back in the stacks, with my older books, if it is in stores at all. It’ll be impossible for people to give my book a chance if they can’t even find it.

Still, I’m trying to think of the positives. This book has gotten the best reviews of anything I’ve ever written. Publisher’s Weekly gave it a starred and boxed review. People magazine awarded it three and a half out of four stars. Marie Claire and Glamour magazine both recommended it.

I wrote The Best of Us in a little coffeeshop around the corner from my son’s nursery school. I loved those quiet, dreamy hours, when fueled by a latte and a croissant, I delved into the complicated worlds of my main characters. I interviewed experts in both severe weather patterns and genetic diseases so I could develop story lines. I jotted notes on scraps of paper, on my iPhone, and even on my hand when inspiration struck. I wrote and rewrote, cut and pasted, trimmed and shaped, and then I read through my manuscript and did it all over again.

After a painful, agonizing birth, I finally got to hold my son. And though this process has also been painful, I can pick up a copy of The Best of Us, and remember all the care and hard work I poured into it. And I can feel proud.

Sarah Pekkanen is the internationally-bestselling author of the novels THE BEST OF US, THESE GIRLS, SKIPPING A BEAT and THE OPPOSITE OF ME. Please find her on Facebook and twitter @sarahpekkanen!

Sarah is the mother of three young boys, which explains why she wrote part of her novel at Chuck E. Cheese. Seriously. Sarah penned her first book, Miscellaneous Tales and Poems, at the age of 10. When publishers failed to jump upon this literary masterpiece (hey, all the poems rhymed!) Sarah followed up by sending them a sternly-worded letter on Raggedy Ann stationery. Sarah still has that letter, and carries it to New York every time she has meetings with her publisher, as a reminder that dreams do come true. At least some dreams – Brad Pitt has yet to show up on her doorstep wearing nothing but a toolbelt and asking if she needs anything fixed. So maybe it’s only G-rated dreams that come true. Please visit http://www.sarahpekkanen.com

Author Patti Callahan Henry Doesn’t Think About Labels, She Focuses On Her Stories And The Craft Of Writing

How was I lucky enough to read an advance copy of AND THEN I FOUND YOU by Patti Callahan Henry? We share an editor—the wonderful Brenda Copeland at St. Martin’s! And then, as luck would also have it, not only did Patti write a work of fiction laden with truths that hit all the right notes for me—family history, a little romance, a hopeful ending—but she is a very kind and generous author. Our paths and lives have criss-crossed without us knowing, which is what I like to think of as more than a coincidence— perhaps a wink or  reminder from the universe that there are always new wonderful people (and new books) right around the corner. And maybe they’re not completely new after all.  It’s inspirational for me to get to know an author who has NINE published novels to her name. Did you read that? NINE!  One of the best parts of this blog is that we get to learn from others. You’ll learn a lot about writing, women’s fiction, and what Patti thinks of labels, below. 

Please welcome Patti Callahan Henry to Women’s Fiction Writers!

Amy xo

Amy:  Congratulations, Patti! Today is publication day for AND THEN I FOUND YOU, your NINTH novel! I read an advance copy of your book, as well as posts and your essay, written with your sister, about the origin of this novel, which is based in truth.  It’s about a woman who is found on Facebook by the daughter she placed for adoption.  Did you have any qualms about bringing real life into your fiction in such an intimate way?

Patti: Thanks, Amy! Pub day is always exciting no matter how many times we have one. This book was the most personal I’ve ever written, and yes, I had many qualms about writing it. But in the end, it has been the most satisfying journey. I started trying to write the True (with a capital T) story and found it nearly impossible. It was my sister’s intimate story to tell. So what I did was sit down with my sister and tell her how the novel wasn’t working, how I thought she needed to write it as a memoir. And together we decided that what I would do was take the emotional truths of the story, the synchronicities and the reunion, but change the names, states, ages and facts. After that discussion, I started over. And as a novelist, Amy, you know how hard it is to begin-again just when you think you’ve finished. But begin-again I did. And then thirteen-year-old Katie fell in love with Jack on the first day of spring and the novel started there….

Amy:  The idea of writing nine novels, for me, is not only exciting, but daunting.  How does it make you feel? Did you know when you wrote your first book that you’d be prolific?

Patti: No! I had no idea I would take my story/book/reading obsession this far! I had a goal: to write a novel. And when that goal was accomplished, and the novel wasn’t published, I decided to try again. After my first novel (but the second book I wrote) was published, I understood that I wouldn’t stop writing. I had no idea if I would keep being published, but the writing would continue. It still does. I know I won’t stop. I can’t.

Amy: Is there a particular character or characters from any of your novels that hold an extra special place in your heart and memory?

Patti: They are all like family, which sounds hokey, but isn’t. For varied reasons, some characters won’t leave me alone. Amy and Nick Lowry in Losing the Moon seem to be a fan favorite and people write to me about them, and I often wonder how they are doing! Catherine in Between The Tides comes to mind because she was right next to me for the seven years it took to write, rewrite and mend that book (this was the first book I wrote, but the fourth published). But my main character, Katie, in And Then I Found You has settled herself directly in the middle of my heart. Her bravery and kindness far surpass my own qualities and I adore her.

Amy: Can you tell us what you’re working on now?

Patti: I don’t have a title. Or let me rephrase that—I have about sixteen titles for the new work. It is about a woman (artist, wife and mother) who must find the truth between two stories about the same event in a single night….

Amy: The term “women’s fiction” comes up against a lot opposition, of and its writers can take a lot of slack. What’s your definition of women’s fiction, and does that label bother you?

Patti: I mostly don’t think about these labels, but focus on my stories and the craft of writing. I don’t look under “category” when choosing my reading or even my own writing subject. I choose a book when the storyline sounds interesting, no matter the genre. But if I must define “women’s fiction” I would say that it is a genre with a “female protagonist who must make choices in her life that will forever alter her life.” In my novels, those choices are emotional, internal and come with great struggle. For me, love is an integral part of every story, and not just romantic love, but sister, child, best friend, etc…  I have no idea if this definition is accurate, but it works for me. The label, whatever it is, doesn’t bother me. I write to tell a story, not find a “good enough” label.

Amy: What is your best advice for aspiring authors of women’s fiction? (Or, let’s say, for about-to-be-published authors of women’s fiction?)

Patti: My advice for aspiring authors of any kind is always the same: Read. Write. Read. Write. Take classes on story structure, writing and publishing. Read On Writing by Stephen King and Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott. Read all genres. Write every day. Read. Write. Go to writing conferences. Meet authors and editors and agents. Follow authors, editors and agents on twitter and Facebook. Read. Write. Read. Write. Go to author readings and ask questions. Read. Write. Read. Write.

Amy, it is so fun talking to you. And I so look forward to your new novel THE GLASS WIVES.

All Best

Patti Callahan Henry

New York Times bestselling author Patti Callahan Henry has published nine novels: Losing the Moon, Where the River Runs, When Light Breaks,Between the Tides, The Art of Keeping Secrets, Driftwood Summer, The Perfect Love Song, Coming up for Air and the upcoming And Then I FoundYou—which will be released by St. Martin’s Press in April 2013. Hailed as a fresh new voice in southern fiction, Henry has been shortlisted for the Townsend Prize for Fiction, and nominated four different times for the Southeastern Independent Booksellers Novel of the Year. Her work is published in five languages and in audiobook by Brilliance Audio.

Henry has appeared in numerous magazines including Good Housekeeping, skirt! magazine, South magazine, and Southern Living. Two of her novels were Okra Picks and Coming up For Air was selected for the August 2011 Indie Next List. She is a frequent speaker at fundraisers, library events and book festivals. A full time writer, wife, and mother of three—Henry lives in Mountain Brook, Alabama.

Patti Callahan Henry grew up in Philadelphia, the daughter of an Irish minister, and moved south with her family when she was 12 years old. With the idea that being a novelist was “unrealistic,” she set her sights on becoming a pediatric nurse, graduating from Auburn University with a degree in nursing, and from Georgia State with a Master’s degree in Child Health. She left nursing to raise her first child, Meagan, and not long after having her third child, Rusk, she began writing down the stories that had always been in her head. Henry wrote early in the mornings, before her children woke for the day, but it wasn’t until Meagan, then six, told her mother that she wanted “to be a writer of books” when she grew up, that Henry realized that writing was her own dream as well. She began taking writing classes at Emory University, attending weekend writers’ conferences, and educating herself about the publishing industry, rising at 4:30 AM to write. Her first book, Losing the Moon, was published in 2004.

You can find Patti on her website, on Facebook, and on Twitter.

A Promise, A Win, And A Beach Read

I’m not a competitive person. I met one of my closest friends about twelve years ago during my short-lived attempt at golf, when we were both taking group lessons at a local country club. We’d met before, so when we were paired up for the morning, nothing seemed amiss. Except, this was a competition. Someone had to win. Someone should have wanted to win.

“You can win,” I said. “I don’t really care about winning.”

“Me either!”

We’ve been friends ever since.

I do compete with myself, with assumptions, and with naysayers.

That was, until this morning when I started feeling like a politician. You know, the imaginary honest kind.

THE GLASS WIVES is listed as a Best Beach Read for 2013 on Goodreads and OMG I want to win. I don’t even know if there is a way to win. But I find myself on social media asking for votes.

If you are on Goodreads and so inclined, here’s the link: http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/35381.Best_Beach_Reads_2013

If you’re not on Goodreads or not inclined, that’s fine too. I hope you’ll read THE GLASS WIVES and pass the word the old fashioned way.  You know, on Twitter.

Debut authors like me need help from readers. Word of mouth = help. Voting will increase the visibility of THE GLASS WIVES on Goodreads where a gazillion (precise number) of readers gather to learn about books. Learning about an unknown author opens up readers to the possibility of giving the book a try.  And that’s all we can ask for right?

So, while I promise, promise, promise NOT to fill your in-box with daily travails of a debut author, as you can see, there’s a lot going on and sharing the journey makes it more fun.

Yep, even more fun than winning.

A Debut Author’s Target Practice

If you’re a writer like me, and you are trying to get published like I was (and am, because there are always more books to write and sell), then you know that publishing comes, free of charge, with a barrel full of waiting and disappointments.

But while we’re waiting, and even while we’re waiting to be disappointed, we must get on with our lives.  So I did.

One day while THE GLASS WIVES was out on submission with editors, even though I knew I might hear from my agent that day, I headed to Target. What better way to pass the time than to look at dog beds, towels, socks, shampoo, and depending on the store, fresh veggies? Truly! It’s all my divergent dreams within the same four walls (nail polish, lawn art, small, colorful appliances, and hot popcorn), which serve as a procrastinator’s writer’s best coping mechanism.

So there I was, walking the aisles of one of my Target stores (I have three), and my phone rang like I knew it would the way you know that you’ll find the missing ingredient in your cabinet as soon as you buy a new one pound bag. I stopped in the middle of the decorative/throw pillow aisle, off to one side, and answered.

Bad news. An editor had passed on the book. Along with the no came comments that were inconsistent with other things we’d heard from interested and non-interested editors. Was this editor the ONE who was right? Or was this editor the ONE who was wrong? The fact that authors know in their heads that acquisitions are subjective has no bearing on the emotional upheaval that comes with someone telling you your work isn’t good enough for them.

My agent and I chatted.  There were kind words and consolation.  We were sallying forth. I hung up the phone, checked my list, checked the time, checked around me—and burst into tears.

I wasn’t simply teary. It was rejection waterworks. Unstoppable. Unconscionable. Unbelievable. Then I started coughing to mask the crying. I mean, coughing up a lung is much more preferrable to crying hysterically when you’re in Target. My literary life passed before my eyes, lost in the cotton and silk, embroidery and tassels.  I couldn’t see a future amidst the fluff.

I don’t remember what was in my cart (no throw pillows, they now give me nightmares) but know I went straight for the check out and drove home.  Lesson learned. When waiting for a call from your agent, my best advice is to renege on your responsibilities and stay the hell home. Or at least carry tissues so you don’t have to open the rolls of Charmin and say, “Oh, it’s allergies, really,” to every shopping, staring stranger.

Needless to say, not long after my “unfortunate Target incident,” that same novel sold to the right editor at the right publishing house—Brenda Copeland at St. Martin’s Press.

And on May 14th, THE GLASS WIVES will be available, DRUMROLL PLEASE…in Target stores.

Bullseye.