Debut Author Lynda Rutledge Lets Ideas Simmer And Says A Good One Is Worth The Wait

My online friend Lynda Rutledge’s debut novel FAITH BASS DARLING’S LAST GARAGE SALE launches today and she’s here with us to celebrate — and wouldn’t you know — it’s her book’s birthday and she’s the one giving away virtual goody bags filled with amazing insights on writing and tidbits of her (and Faith’s) story.  I just love the cover – don’t you?

Please pass me a party hat and welcome Lynda to Women’s Fiction Writers!

Amy xo (Hey, it’s the 120th WFW post. Something else to celebrate!)

Amy: Happy Book Birthday, Lynda! Today is the day Faith Darling is born — or more precisely — today is the day FAITH BASS DARLING’S LAST GARAGE SALE — your debut novel is born! Can you give us a peek into the premise of the book?  

Lynda: I would LOVE to (Clearing throat…): On millennium New Year’s Eve, the reclusive richest old lady in tiny Bass, Texas—Faith Bass Darling—hears the voice of God tell her to have a garage sale of all her mansion’s incredibly expensive worldly possessions, because she believes it to be the last day of her life.  As the townspeople grab up the family’s heirlooms for pennies and those close to Faith hustle to try to stop it, chaos ensues, of course.  And the antiques of five generations of Faith’s founding family—a Civil War dragoon, a wedding ring, a French relic clock, a family bible, a roll-top desk, among others—begin to reveal their own roles in the family saga. Before Y2k midnight fireworks, almost everybody will be forced to think about some of life’s deepest questions, such as: Do our possessions possess us?  Who are we without our memories?  Is there life after death or second chances on earth? And, most important of all, is Faith Bass Darling REALLY selling an authentic Louis Comfort Tiffany Lamp for a $1?

Amy: Faith Bass Darling has a revelation from God ,and then has a yard sale.  Did Faith and Bass, Texas come to you in a revelation? How did this story and its characters evolve?

Lynda: I wish it were as simple as a revelation. I often say that a writer doesn’t have an idea, an idea has the writer. It’s all rather mystical, if you ask me, but therein lies the allure, right?  But this one’s been poking around in my head for years.   I think the germ came from what you’d expect—a garage sale. My mom, who lived in a rambling old two-story house busting with stuff that five kids left behind, started having garage sales a few years after the last of us finished college. I found this out, living thousands of miles away by that time in Chicago, when she called to tell me she’d sold my well-thumbed stash of Superman comic books I left in the back of one of the house’s closets.  (My dad owned a drugstore so I had hundreds.) She told me she’s sold them for a dime apiece, and asked if I wanted the money. “No, no, keep it, Mom,” I told her, but I remember feeling weirdly sad. I hadn’t thought about those comics in years, and now I felt sad? I laughed at myself. Why was I so attached to those old things? I didn’t quite know. (Of course, I soon heard about the first Superman comic book selling for a million dollars, and I was REALLY sad!) Then, about the same time, I began watching PBS’ Antiques Roadshow and after hearing dozens of spotlight stories of garage sale-found treasures, and I began to think not just of their value, but of their history and the meaning we imbue them with. And the ah-ha bolt of lightning struck: What if our antiques could talk? What if a town’s citizens were offered antiques for garage sale prices?  What would make something like that happen?   And that led to thoughts of what we can’t take with us, and what we truly want to leave behind. And I was suddenly off and writing.

Amy: What was the idea process like for you? Do you plan and outline or just wing it?  

Lynda: Both. I know that sounds all mystical again, but it’s the truth: The idea itself sort of simmers, and I let it decide if it’s a keeper by whether it sticks around, that is whether my mind wanders back to it.  I notice it will pop to the front of my mind during those times I need something to think about in order not to go nuts, such as waiting in line at the DMV or stuck in traffic.  When that happens, my mind plays around with creating a world for the idea to live in.  And if that lasts, this being all very passive (I try to get out of my own way), then I notice that characters emerge and begin to talk to each other, and that’s when I find a napkin or paper scrap to write down something/anything.

Then, if I feel my napkin scribbles are keepers, I open a file and put a heading at the top (i.e. Garage Sale Idea), and then begin to write down what these characters are saying to each other capturing characterization a little.   If I like their conversations even a little bit, then I begin to think about a possible opening.  And then I begin to think about a possible ending.  And if both of those come together, that’s when I get a little creative thrill. Because I realize that if I have a beginning and an ending then the middle will come, being aware that everything will probably change. It’s all just a way to start.  So, see?  I wing it, until the idea sprouts legs and decides to walk around. Whew, is that a right brain answer or what?

Amy: I know your journey to publication has been long — but HERE YOU ARE!!! Can you share a little with us about your road to today?

Lynda: Oh, geez, it will only depress you…or maybe it will inspire you. So let’s try it:  I just wrote a guest article for another writer friend for her blog “1^st Books” entitled “The Time I Broke Up with Fiction” that explains this painful but all-too-typical writer’s experience in detail.  Here is the short and less lyrical version:  I was a fulltime freelance journalist, writing nonfiction, but I harbored literary pretensions. (I blame that undergrad literature degree.)  So while I wrote nonfiction mostly for money, I wrote what ultimately were “practice” novels for love. The flirtation went on and on, residencies and awards kept my heart a’flutter.  Until one day I’d had it.  Into a drawer the last one went. A decade later, though, I began to re-imagine that last idea, or, rather, that idea began to stalk me. It would not let me go. It was an idea about a garage sale.  And I began to ask more than just a good time from it; I began to see it as a conceit that could be used to tell a meaningful tale. And all that practicing finally paid off. Those pesky literary pretensions seduced me once again, and voila!  Of course, as your writer readers may have heard, it’s not over when it’s sold.  There are revisions, and then months of editing and copywriting and blurb-soliciting, and even when it’s all finished, it is then positioned for publication which may be months more waiting—all, of course, for the novel’s good.  From manuscript to acceptance, my wait was about 20 months.  A bookseller I know who meets writers regularly said the wait’s usually even longer from what she’s been told. But like all good relationships, all that waiting is easily forgiven once the fun begins.

Amy: Your novel deals with serious subjects, yet does so with humor. I love that in a book because it strikes a balance for me.  How did you balance those elements of your storytelling?

Lynda: I don’t think I quite meant to; it’s just the way I view and cope with life. Early on, I found that dealing with life is easier with a sense of the absurd than without one. So the balance is really in my worldview.   And that has played out in my fiction, but it may have also held it back too, honestly. For a very, very long time, I could not resist a good one-liner, and if one is good, surely a dozen are even better. That often doesn’t work on the page (unless, of course, you’re writing sitcom scripts). So I learned to reign it in for my fiction, to make humor be in the service of the truth, since I now, more than not, seem to stray into the land of deep meaning.  This confuses some people, but it’s usually people who aren’t quite in touch with that same life-coping mechanism. But I believe seeing the absurd in the world and being able to laugh about it even as we want to cry about it is what keeps me sane and healthy through whatever life throws at me next.

But, you may ask, why not just stay with humor for publication and ditch the deep meaning?  While I’m not sure I agree with the famous quote by Socrates about the unexamined life not being worth living (after all, my dog seems to enjoy his life very much and he’s never given a second to the meaning of life), I do believe that a bit of examining helps us understand our place in the world, and offers us something in the examining.  Same goes for humor.  A little bit goes a long way in quality fiction. I find that if you make someone laugh, whatever you say next is probably going to be taken more seriously (which sounds like an oxymoron, but why else do speakers start off with a joke?)  I often quip that Faith Bass Darling’s Last Garage Sale is about death, God, and antiques, and not necessary in that order. It’s meant to be a joke but also mean to say, hey trust me, let’s tiptoe through some of life’s biggest mine fields together.

Amy: Your novel has male and female main characters and deals with universal issues — who do you see as your  main audience?  

Lynda: Well, I don’t really ask that question since the novel can be read on many levels.  After all, I read every type of writing myself and I can empathize with both male and female characters in all of them.  That, to me, is the mark of quality fiction. Amy Einhorn, my publisher/editor is known for choosing books that, as she puts it, are in the sweet spot between commercial and literary.  I think that is true for Faith Bass Darling’s Last Sale.  When it comes to characters and issues, as a teacher of writing I say never forget your audience, but don’t limit yourself, either.  My novel is heavy with women, all sorts of women, and I mean ALL sorts. (After all, we are at a garage sale) But it also offers strong and weak men who are hugely important in the plot’s development, and they are deeply three-dimensional, I hope, because we live in a world that’s made up of both sexes. And we live in a world that is made up of universal issues that affect us all, no matter what sex we are. We are swimming in them all, always. Faith Bass Darling’s Last Garage Sale is about both relationships and ideas, so in that sense it speaks broadly to any human who has both…and that’s all of us, right? So my main audience is anyone wanting a good read that makes them laugh, maybe cry, but more than anything think, long after the book’s ended–hopefully with a satisfied, knowing smile on his/her face.

Amy: I know the moniker “women’s fiction” is shunned by some, but to me, the label has breadth and depth and is really only the tip of a literary iceberg.  What is your definition of women’s fiction?

Lynda: If I understand the “labels,” correctly, there’s a certain type of book, slanted solely to women, focusing on relationships or problems, that might be called women’s fiction with the expectation that men won’t like it, although how do they really know? I am a deeply eclectic reader. I might read a book on mountain climbing by Jon Krakeuer, which seems very male, so who’s to say there isn’t a man out there somewhere reading something that seems very male?  But if I happened to love that certain type of writing and reading tagged “women’s fiction” above all others, then I’d say it loud and say it proud—as you just did. So, back to the original question: My personal definition of women’s fiction is anything that appeals to a woman just as my personal definition of men’s fiction is anything that appeals to men. But I’d much prefer if we’d all just decide on our own.  Pick up any book anywhere. Read the first page.  Does it hook you?  Well, then read on before someone mentions its “category.”

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

Lynda: Write what’s in your heart and your ear, but think broadly about your audience.  And then get prepared to change it all.  It’s called revision, and the truth is, learning to love revision is what separates the wannabes from the on-my-way-to-beings. Be prepared to put some years into honing your craft.  Watch yourself mature as a writer and a thinker, and let yourself do both. Write your practice novels. Don’t rush to publish.  Oh, and don’t foist your work on friends (unless they own publishing companies or literary agencies).  They love you; you want them to continue to love you.  A person can only be a “first reader” once, so save that moment for when it truly counts.  Do send out your work to agents in batches of 5 or so for feedback which you’ll take and use to revise…and grow. After that?  Consider it all a journey; like any good trip you will learn along the way, especially if you try new routes.  And if anybody had told me all that when I first began messing with words as a kid, I’d have taken that job at Burger King and forgotten the whole thing, being the impatient thing I am.  But my stubborn side won out over that impatient young writer who wanted it all and wanted it now.  And I’m so glad it did.   I hope yours does, too.

Lynda Rutledge has petted baby rhinos, snorkeled with endangered turtles, and dodged hurricanes as a freelance journalist, while wiinng award for her fiction.  She and her husband live outside Austin.  This is her debut novel.

 http://LyndaRutledge.com

Readers And Writers: When Did You Fall In Love With Books?

I am so happy to have Priscille Sibley here with us on Women’s Fiction Writers today.  I’ve known Priscille for years.  We were Backspace babies, in a way, cutting our teeth on the forums, sucking in information, learning to share, finding our way.  I read Priscille’s novel when it had a different title, before it went through more edits, before she had an agent and before THE PROMISE OF STARDUST sold to William Morrow.  Priscille’s debut will be published next year (I’ve heard January rumblings, but that’s unofficial, don’t say you heard it from me).  

Please welcome Priscille Sibley to Women’s Fiction Writers. Show her a little WFW love in the comments, would ya? 

Amy xo

When did you fall in love with books?

by Priscille Sibley

I was seven when my grandfather moved in with us. Dan Dan, as we called him, brought only a few things from his old house: a blue chair that went into our living room, an upright piano which he played in a speakeasy during Prohibition – and books. So many books! Beautiful books. There were over a thousand volumes he treasured enough to bring with him. Some were older than he was, a few from the 1800s. As we unloaded the crates, I felt like I’d moved into a library, and the sensation was elevating.

The books he brought were all well above my reading level at the time. They had titles like Les Miserables and Ulysses, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, and The Descent of Man. There were old bound National Geographics with maps from exotic parts of the world. He brought with him science and fiction and history. He brought with him his love of books.

His son, in other words my father, was an avid reader, too. When my father was a boy, he suffered from rheumatic fever and he spent an entire year in bed unable to stand the so much as the pressure of a sheet on his legs, missing school but not missing out on his education. He always had a stack of books, mostly ones he borrowed from the library, but books were not a luxury out of reach. They were a necessity and as important as food and clothing.

I grew up believing books were virtually sacred. So when I fell in love, it was no surprise I found a man who feels the same way I do about books. My husband and I have no spare bookshelf space in our house (and we have a load of bookshelves.) Each one is double stacked. And my kids have stuffed bookshelves in their rooms as well.

I think Emily Dickinson said it best: “There is no frigate like a book.” With a book and our imagination we can transport across time and space and into the heart of someone very different from ourselves. Isn’t the possibility of transporting a reader one of the most heady experiences of a writer has?

For me the two most enjoyable parts of writing are the research and the times when the characters come alive in my imagination. Suddenly I’m there with these people who are not real to anyone else but me.

When someone, your first reader, your beta reader, your agent, your editor, when someone else tells you your story swept them up, that you transported them to someplace else – that is an amazing feeling. One person told me she read my entire book in one sitting. Wow, I thought. My little inner world became someone else’s if only for a little while.

You see, that is the power of a book.

Neither my father or grandfather is still alive, but I believe each of them would have been thrilled that my novel will be published. And I am grateful to them for instilling a love of books in me.

So…when did you first fall in love with books?

Priscille Sibley is the author of the upcoming debut novel THE PROMISE OF STARDUST (William Morrow, 2013). THE PROMISE OF STARDUST is a love story about a family torn apart by a medical crisis and the ethical dilemma of keeping a pregnant woman with no chance of recovery on life support for months in an attempt to give her unborn baby a chance.

A few people always know what they want to do when they grow up. Priscille Sibley knew early on she would become a nurse. And a poet. Later, her love of words developed into a passion for storytelling.

Born and raised in Maine, Priscille has paddled down a few wild rivers, done a little rock climbing, and jumped out of airplanes. She currently lives in New Jersey where she works as a neonatal intensive care nurse and shares her life with her wonderful husband, three tall teenaged sons, and a mischievous Wheaton terrier.

You can visit Priscille’s website or follow her on Twitter @MarcilleSibley (no, that’s not a typo).

How Reading A Historical Thriller About A Nun Helped Me Write Women’s Fiction About A Jewish Family

We’ve talked a lot about reading widely, which is probably the most prevalent advice given by the published authors who’ve graced this blog.  I think one thing that makes it easier to go outside outside our (eh hem, my) comfort zone when reading is the fact that most of us are part of one or more writing communities.  When you know the author of a book that might not be your usual thang, you have another reason to read it.  I’m not saying you should read everything everyone you know writes, I know that’s impossible.  Delightful-sounding, but ambitious, considering most of us have, well, lives.

I digress.

In January I found myself compelled to read THE CROWN, written my fellow debut author Nancy Bilyeau, even though never in my 40-cough-cough (ok, maybe one more – cough) years, had I ever read — or had I ever considered reading — a historical thriller set in Tudor England.  That’s the 1500′s, folks.  Way before the olden days even.

I met Nancy Bilyeau in a debut author group called Book Pregnant.  She’s a social media lackey like me, so we had a lot in common.  Her book came out in January, it was one of the first Book Pregnant books to be published (our books are all being published in 2012 or 2013).  Since I’d just unofficially resolved to read books unlike those I’d read before, Nancy’s was the place to start.  Slowly.  I downloaded the sample.  I was hooked.  I finished the book in two days. I did not analyze the book while I read it (it’s a page-turner, breath-holder, nail-biter) but I realized afterward that not only did I want to read widely for pleasure, but for improving my own writing craft.

Taking myself away from a contemporary, literary-light, realistic work of character-driven fiction (which is what I most often read) allowed my mind to wander (when I was finished reading) the way it does when we’re doing something mindless like the dishes or when I forget my glasses at the gym and can’t read or watch TV.  The fact is — in this case — I was so removed from my own writing that I was actually able to see it more clearly.

So, while a young nun was chasing secrets all over England, and I was learning things about the Catholic Church, kings and nuns and monks, I was also internalizing a deft hand for setting, conflict, mystery and even a little bit of romantic tension.

I think we store our own work in pockets in our brain where we know they fit — and when we read something just like it — we tuck those other stories into the same pockets without paying much attention because the comparisons, lessons, conclusions are obvious. They’re important, those lessons are crucial, but they don’t stretch us in every direction.

When I read something that is nothing like The Glass Wives, my lessons are almost epiphanies. Reading about the monastery and abbey in Tudor England prompted me to enhance some of the setting descriptions in my book.  I loved the visual nature of Nancy’s book, and while my main character, Evie, is driving a mini-van in the suburbs, I was so taken with the images I saw in my head that I wanted to make sure that effect could happen for my readers too.  Nancy’s main character, Joanna, is a strong, driven 26-year-old woman with a strong head and a (mostly) sure heart.  Hey — sounds like Evie, although she’s 45. THE CROWN is steeped in history and the Catholic religion.  The Glass Wives is peppered with Jewish customs, holidays and Yiddish words and phrases.  It’s not the same as Catholic Tudor England, but the weight of its effect on the reader needs to be the same.

Even though I knew nothing about this time period, I easily fell into the rhythm of the cadence.  Context allowed me to derive meaning.  The writing enabled me to learn things without removing me from the story. All good, relatable, universal tools for writers.

There are 30 of us in Book Pregnant (it’s an invisible/secret/private FB group, but we also have a very public blog), and my plan is to read all the books eventually, but this experience has also opened my eyes to more great books out there that I normally might have — no, would have — ignored.  It’s true that the fact that I know Nancy made this even more fun.  I mean, really, what’s not fun about seeing your friend in your local paper — and then realizing it’s written by one of your neighbors, who has been a Chicago Trib reporter for years and also, you guessed it — knows Nancy!

Me in the Chicago suburbs holding The Chicago Tribune with an article about Nancy Bilyeau, my author-friend in NY, and the article was written by my neighbor and friend, Bonnie Miller Rubin. Say that ten-times, fast, I dare you.

This, my friends, is three degrees of writer-separation!  (Better than being Kevin Bacon I tell you.)

The point of all this is…give other writers a chance because you are going to want them to give YOU a chance and because you can and will learn from them.  Don’t know other writers?  Yes you do, you know me!  Just check out the comments section, follow folks on Twitter, leave a note on a thread on one of your favorite author’s FB pages.  I feel fortunate (as you know) to connect here at WFW with women’s fiction writers.  It’s what I do. I write stories and novels about families and friendships that revolve around women.  But — since January, in addition to the literary/women’s fiction that’s usually on my reading menu, I’ve read historical fiction, memoir, humor, Southern fiction and a paranormal romance. I have also read the lauded and laughed-at 50 Shades, but purely in the name of research about grey eyes.  And elevators.  We will not discuss the fact that there are neither grey eyes nor elevators in The Glass Wives.

And let’s just say I am glad my dining room is no longer painted red.

Consider those your spoilers for the day.

Amy xo

PS My opinion of that 50 Shades is that the writing is lackadaisical at best – but this isn’t a review blog – and I get the lure. A friend told me Ryan Gosseling is going to play Christian Grey in the movie. I’m more of a George Clooney gal, but whatever.  I may just have to see the movie too. You know.  For research.

I urge you to learn more about Nancy Bilyeau and THE CROWN by visiting Nancy’s website and by reading the interviews and articles listed here.  THE CHALICE, the much anticipated sequel to THE CROWN, will be published in the UK and Germany.  You can read about Nancy in the Chicago Tribune, the same article that I’m holding and subsequently mailed to Nancy.  Then it will be like zero degrees of separation for all of us!  Click here!  If you’d like to read a review of THE CROWN, click here.  Want an in-depth interview with Nancy? You’ll find that here. 

Top photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ladymixy-uk/

Women’s Fiction Author Amy Stolls Talks About Point of View (POV) and Chronology In Fiction

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Before I met author Amy Stolls in early March we’d emailed about a gazillion (or a dozen) times and had bonded over being Amy-authors.  We also bonded because I simply adored her book, THE NINTH WIFE, so much so that I invited Amy back to Women’s Fiction Writers to talk about POV and the non-linear structure of her book.  Amy Stolls is insightful and funny — and even more so in person.  We could have talked all day, I’m sure of it, and I can’t wait for her next trip to Chicago, where luckily she has family (and now me)!  

Please welcome back, my friend, Amy Stolls, to Women’s Fiction Writers!  

Amy xo

Amy: Welcome back to Women’s Fiction Writers, Amy!  You know how I feel about The Ninth Wife. I was intrigued by the premise and when I read it I was really captivated by Bess and Rory’s story together — and their separate stories.  Certainly I could remind the readers here about it — but you’re a great storyteller (on paper and in person). So would you do the honors? 

Amy Stolls: Thanks, Amy One. (I’ll be Amy Two.)  And thanks for having me back.  It’s great to be here.  (I always wanted to say those lines.  Makes me feel all TV-talk-showy.)  I love your blog.

The Ninth Wife is the story of Bess — a single woman in DC, folklorist, amateur martial artist –and Rory, an Irish fiddler and storyteller in his own right.  They fall in love and he asks her to marry him (cue violins).  Minutes later, he confesses he’s been married eight times before (smash violins, cue loud warning siren.)  She then takes off across the country in a minivan in part to find the ex-wives and figure out what to do.  Along for the ride are her bickering grandparents who’ve been married 65 years, her secretive friend Cricket, a Shar Pei named Stella, and a mannequin named Peace (intermingle siren with cuckoo clock, maniacal laughter and Yiddish insults).

Amy: Now that everyone is reacquainted with The Ninth Wife, I’ll share that I am a very linear thinker. I’m convinced it comes from being bad at math and puzzles.  (FYI, Amy Two is short for Amy 2.64 minus the square root of negative 43.)  I like things in straight lines.  But, when I read or write – and something is not chronological (not linear) and the points of view are what I’d think of as asymmetrical (not all the same all the time), I’m challenged and interested – and I like that.  Without giving away too much, part of your novel works on two timelines simultaneously – and the points of view shift throughout the book.  Was this how the story came to you or did it evolve over time?  

Amy Stolls: It evolved, absolutely.  Let me tackle the point-of-view question first.  I almost always start in 3^rd person.  It’s how we frame our stories in real life (unless we’re actors) so that seems most natural to me.  But the nice thing about a novel is there’s room to experiment.  So I put in a few emails and a drunken voicemail, and I also dabbled in 1^st person, which I kind of enjoyed so I kept doing it.  The thing with 1^st person, though, is that I had to think hard about which characters should speak directly to the reader and why.  Which is to say, which ones should speak and help clarify things (Bess; Cricket; Bess’s grandmother), which ones should speak and muddle things by speaking (Rory often), and which ones should remain silent and muddle things with their silence (Bess’s grandfather; Stella, the dog).  The question keeps coming up in the book: what can we truly know about what’s happened in the past?  So Point of View is important.  The mannequin Peace is a young African American beauty whose silent presence can say a lot given what Bess discovers about her grandparents.

With regard to the shape and chronology of the story, I did begin with a linear telling of Bess and Rory’s courtship.  But then things got messy, as they often do.  I don’t work with an outline, more like a general idea of the story and where it might go, knowing it probably will take me in surprising directions.  I think it was E.L. Doctorow who explained it once like driving on a country road at night.  You can see most clearly right in front of you, then it gets a little hazier at the edge of the headlights and then it’s dark beyond that but you have faith that all that darkness will come into the light eventually.  That’s what it was like for me with this book.

By the time I reached the proposal scene, however, I came to a screeching halt.  I knew I needed to explain how a 46-year-old man got to be married so many times.  And I had to make his story believable.  So I switched to 1^st person and let him tell it.  Fifty pages later I stepped back and thought, yikes!  What have I done?  I can’t take the reader out of the present for this long!  That’s when someone in my writer’s group suggested I alternate the current-day courtship chapters with chapters that go back in time and bring the ex-wives to life so that by the time Rory proposes, the reader has the back story and is well aware of what’s at stake.  Part two of the novel stays in the present but alternates Bess and Rory’s points of view, which helps with the book’s symmetry and the near misses and miscommunications that unfold. 

So you see, I start out easy and then I just keep making things more difficult for myself.  Story of my life.

Amy: I know this story was born out of some old family secrets.  How did you decide it was ok to mine your own life for fiction?  And where did you draw the line? Or didn’t you? 

Amy Stolls: That’s a tough one.  As a writer, I think it’s a good idea to get to that place where you feel raw and exposed.  Discoveries bubble up, creativity flows, all that.  Characters will have depth if you dig under the many surfaces, including your own, and expose secrets.  But to me it’s important to balance that with the effect that can have on loved ones.  Some writers don’t think that should stand in your way, and I get that, but I don’t just write in the here and now, I live in the here and now.  If it’s not my secret to tell, I won’t tell it (without permission).  But thankfully, I have enough issues and neuroses of my own to explore.  I was single a long time and it wasn’t easy, thus a novel asking questions about marriage.  (My grandparents were married 65 years and fought a lot, too, but they’re both gone.)  I had trouble getting pregnant and wouldn’t be surprised if that seeps into my next novel.  At some point I’ll probably feel the need to write about my addiction to scented chapstick.  It’s not normal, I know that.

Amy: You’re married, you work full-time and you have two sons – ages three and under.  Did you just hear a collective gasp?  How do you do it all?  Do you have a writing schedule/routine/extensive system of locks on an office door?

Amy Stolls: Locks!  Why didn’t I think of that?!  I sold my novel before my first son was born, so the truth is I really don’t have time to work on my next novel just yet (though I have an idea and am jotting down notes).  So … no schedule, no routine.  Just a dream and the occasional one-liner on Facebook and Twitter.  Unlike working on a novel – hairy beast that it is – FB and Twitter are great because I can write something silly and get an immediate response.  May I share with you one of my favorite exchanges?  I tweeted this: “You know how it’s cool to read Seventeen Magazine when you’re 12?  I’m going to start subscribing to AARP Magazine.”  And AARP wrote me back: “We’d love to have you!”  Of course they would, but still … how cool is that?

Amy: You’ve been to a few festivals and conferences lately, how did you find those experiences? I know they were family trips, but I also know you had time to yourself and with other writers.  On the whole was it a good combination?

Amy Stolls: Of course!  I met you, didn’t I?  Months ago you asked me how I might define women’s fiction.  It stumped me at the time.  But I’ve had the pleasure recently of meeting up and/or sharing the stage with awesome women writers at festivals and conferences around the country and now I get it (even though I can’t articulate it any better).  Writers like Eleanor Brown, Joshilyn Jackson, Tayari Jones, Eugenia Kim, Tiffany Baker.  They’re all smart and insightful and funny and honest.  Their voices are as varied as the American landscape, and yet I felt from them a real sense of community.  I did travel with my family, but they’re all boys.  What do they know.

Amy: What’s your favorite thing about The Ninth Wife? Don’t be shy (oh, right, I forgot who I’m talking to) because we all love something about our own work, even when we’re in the dregs of it.  Or hopefully we do!  

Amy Stolls: I love that it’s finished.  There, I said it.  I can’t obsess anymore about this change or that.  When Bess meets Rory he’s wearing Tevas.  What’s wrong with Tevas?  It takes place in 2005!  My editor would have none of it.  “I can’t be attracted to a man in Tevas,” she wrote in the margin.   (Oh yes, it got down to that level.  She didn’t like his Velcro watch, either.)  For days I obsessed about what shoes he’d be wearing.  I can’t even remember what I ended up with, I’ll have to go look.  

But okay, I’ll say this, too: a reader wrote me to say she loved that the novel was both funny and tender.  THAT made me smile.  It’s often my favorite thing about good books, how they can make me laugh, but also make me think and feel (good or bad).  I worked hard to try and do that with The Ninth Wife.

Amy: I can’t wait until it’s time for you to come back to Chicago.  I felt like we could’ve talked and walked all day — and maybe next time we will!

Amy Stolls: Indeed!  I would love that.  Along with the new lock on my office door I need to put up a sign that says, “Gone talkin’.”

Amy Stolls is the author of the novel The Ninth Wife, published by HarperCollins in May 2011, and the young adult novel Palms to the Ground (Farrar, Straus & Giroux), published in 2005 to critical acclaim and a Parents’ Choice Gold Award. She spent years as a journalist covering the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska before she received an MFA in creative writing from American University. Currently, she is the literature program officer for the National Endowment for the Arts, where she has worked since 1998, collaborating with thousands of writers, translators, editors, booksellers, publishers, educators, and presenters nationwide to keep literature a vital part of American society. She lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband and their two sons.

Thoughts On Editing My Debut Novel

“A woman is like a tea bag; you never know how strong it is until it’s in hot water.”  ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

I am steeped in editing. My eyes and brain are fried by day’s end, which, as writers, you know is a fabulous feeling.  I think the thing that has surprised me most about this time around, is not just the expertise of my editor Brenda Copeland (my agent, Jason Yarn, also has an adept editing hand) but the mindset that goes along with this round of revisions.

This is the final frontier — the changes I make are the ones that will end up on the shelf and in the e-readers. This version of my novel will determine how I am perceived, the first impression that I’ll make on the public as a published author of a debut novel.  It’s daunting, and it should be.  I feel a responsibility to readers to deliver a well-written, engaging, heartwarming and entertaining story.  I feel a responsibility to myself to make the book better than I ever thought I could.  I feel a responsibility to my editor and agent to do them proud because they put themselves on the line — for me.  As overwhelming as it all can be, it’s also exhilarating and I’m just at the forefront of what’s to come. And I am so totally up for every last bit of it.

The chance to publish traditionally has not only allowed me to reach a lifetime goal, but the whole experience has gently pushed me to new goals.

To pull from Eleanor Roosevelt’s quote above, I’ve been in enough hot water in my life to know how strong I am, and that would be — very.  But this hot water of publishing — is different.  It’s soothing.  I’m not being tested against my will or without my consent, the hot water is validating.  That in itself is motivating — and makes me stronger.  A different kind of stronger.

Thanks for sticking around for all the author-goodness here at Women’s Fiction Writers and for sharing my journey so far.

I think I need to go rest my eyes, and have a cup of tea. Oh hell, I don’t like tea. I’m having ice cream.

Amy xo

PS The blog is booked through September 2012 but if you ever want to throw names my way or offer a guest post, just email me!  The more Women’s Fiction Writers in one place, the merrier! 

PPS If you claimed your Mega-Giveaway prize by the deadline, it’s being mailed this week from either me or the author — or both — depending on the prize. They’ve been chosen randomly so no pouting. If you’ve read what you receive, be a mensch* and pass it on. 

*mensch = really good guy/gal

Author Kimberly Menozzi Says When It Comes To Publishing, She’s Taking The Long Way Around And That’s OK

Just when you think you’ve heard all the stories there are to hear about publishing — you find out you’re wrong. Again.  Kimberly Menozzi’s story is one of publishing perseverance and determination. And while I’m dedicated to featuring traditionally published authors on Women’s Fiction Writers, Kimberly’s story of how and why Ask Me If I’m Happy came to be self-published, is worth sharing with all of you — in my opinion.  I think you’ll agree.

Please welcome Kimberly Menozzi to Women’s Fiction Writers!

~ Amy

My name is Kimberly Menozzi, and my first novel, Ask Me if I’m Happy, was originally put out by a small publishing house in London in November of 2010. It probably won’t surprise you to know I was perfectly willing – and happy – to start out “small” as it were.

Even better was the fact the publishing house had found my work quite by chance. The publisher had initially spotted my work on the Authonomy website, run by Harper Collins, back in 2008. The day after the publishing house’s 2009 launch in London (which I attended), they asked if I would let them publish my book in 2010.

Of course, I said ‘Yes’. I was thrilled to be a part of the publishing world at last, even in this rather small way. That someone else had thought my work worth sharing with the world at large was a heady, wonderful feeling.

Soon afterward, I emailed one of their editors my full manuscript and he sent me his suggestions for edits a short while later. We worked online, doing rewrites and revisions. The release date was discussed and changed multiple times, to avoid conflict with other titles due in the spring, and then the summer. Finally we settled on a date in November, one month after the release of another title by the house.

Publicity was minimal. A few small adverts for my mid-week book launch were provided on free-to-the-public websites such as Time Out London. My publisher spared a few posts on their websites, too. However, aside from those posts, I was the only one who really seemed to make an effort to get the word out about my book.

To my delight, I was invited to read at two charity events in Oxford. My readings were well-received, and a few copies of my book were sold and signed. It was exciting and fun – even though no-one from my publisher attended the first event, and only stayed a very short while at the second.

Back in Italy, I continued doing everything I possibly could to raise awareness of my work. I did guest blogs and giveaways, wrote my own blogs, even sold books out of hand to teachers and students in the school where I worked.

In time, momentum began to build. I gained a small foothold on Amazon’s forums and had some lively conversations with people about subjects related to Ask Me if I’m Happy. Sales of the e-books picked up and a few copies of the paperback were sold.

And then, suddenly, my publisher decided they only wanted to publish Historical Fiction, which my work definitely wasn’t. They said my work would now be handled by the fledgling US division of their company. Unfortunately, the US division had no printer which could produce my novel for a reasonable price.

Production of my book reached a standstill. Without a paperback available, only the e-book was selling, and the publisher wasn’t actively promoting it. They earned a share what few sales there were yet did nothing to get the book in the public eye, because it wasn’t “their kind of book” any more.

To say I was troubled by this would be an understatement.

Worse yet, they weren’t answering questions about my book. I had friends, acquaintances, and even actual customers contacting me through my website. They asked why the paperback wasn’t available on Amazon any more. Could they get it at their local bookshop? Why not? When would it be out again?

You see, this is the part they don’t tell you about: After all your hard work, a publisher can drop you – just like that. This is why you need a contract, and why you need to read it very closely.

Believe it or not, in spite of everything that happened – or, rather, didn’t happen – I was quite lucky. It was easy enough to get my rights back once we’d determined they hadn’t fulfilled their side of the contract. Rights in hand, off I went in search of a new publisher or an agent to represent the work. What I hadn’t anticipated was the fact that no-one – publisher or agent – wanted anything to do with it since was now considered a “previously-published” work.

This was almost enough to convince me to give up. In spite of all my hard work, this was the end result?

After some heavy deliberation, desiring some sense of closure to the whole escapade, I opted to self-publish Ask Me if I’m Happy. After all, it had been vetted by an editor, and it had already gotten good reviews. Why not? With a new cover – including pull-quotes from writers I respect – I re-released my novel just six months after its first release.

I’m happy to say it’s selling modestly well. No, Stephen King and J.K. Rowling aren’t quaking in their shoes over my numbers. Nevertheless, the book is selling, and the majority of the reviews so far have been very positive.

My next go-round will likely follow the traditional path. I will write, revise, and submit dozens of queries to other publishers somewhere down the road. After all, my dream survived all this, didn’t it?

Trying to make it come true is the least I can do, even if it means taking the long way around.

An aspiring writer from the age of eight, Kimberly Menozzi began writing her first stories instead of paying attention in school. While her grades might have suffered, her imagination seldom did. She managed to keep most of her stories together for years, then lost them after a move when she left a trunk full of papers behind. (She meant to go back and get them, but circumstances prevented her from doing so.)

So, she started over again. And she lost those, too.

After a trip to England in 2002, she began work on A Marginal Life (Well-Lived), inspired by the music of Jarvis Cocker and Pulp. The novel was completed in 2003, and is undergoing rewrites with hopes of publication in the near future.

Also in 2003, she met and fell in love with an Italian accountant named Alessandro. She married him in 2004. This necessitated her arrival in Italy and she has lived there ever since. After several months of working for language schools and writing blog entries for her family in the US to read, new story ideas began to develop.

Finally, in 2007, she began work on a new project, inspired by her love/hate relationship with her new home. The novel Ask Me if I’m Happy was completed in 2009.

Ask Me if I’m Happy was first released November 15th, 2010 in the UK, and was re-released in the US on May 31st, 2011.

Kimberly is presently at work on her next project, 27 Stages.

In May of 2011, Kimberly also published a novella, “Alternate Rialto”, which is a prequel to Ask Me if I’m Happy.

Author Valerie Frankel Shares Where Her Book Ideas Come From And What Happens When You’re Lukewarm About Your Own Story

Whenever I find a new-to-me author who’s not really new — I am happy as well as a little embarrassed. I mean, really. How could I have missed Valerie Frankel? She now has sixteen novels to her name — she writes memoir, women’s fiction, chick-lit, YA and she’s a ghost writer for some really high profile celebrities. I’m not sure how she does it all, I can barely edit, write and get the dishwasher emptied on the same day.  Did I just write that and hit publish? Yes, yes I did. (My goal, as always, is to make you all feel incredibly capable in the face of your own writerly adversity!) 

Please welcome the busy, funny, talented, Valerie Frankel to Women’s Fiction Writers! 

Amy: FOUR OF A KIND (FOAK) is your latest novel.  Before we get into any more details about that — it is your 15th novel. Sweet!  And impressive. (I need to breathe, I’m just editing my first!) Can you share a little about FOAK and where the idea came from?

Valerie: Thanks, and congrats on your novel!

FOAK started with the idea of unexpected friendship. Friendship is something I think about a lot, in particular, how women with busy lives, family, jobs, can make new friends. It seems nearly impossible. But, since we do what they can for our kids, I thought harried Moms would carve out some time to attend a Diversity Committee meeting to support a good cause at their kids’ school. That got my characters—four completely different women—in the same room. Then I needed a way to get them to open up about their personal lives with complete strangers. That’s when the idea of having them play poker for secrets instead of money came in. It’s always easier to talk when your hands are busy. Cooking, quilting, whatever. As soon as the characters started shuffling, dealing, and sharing secrets, the plot just spooled out.

Amy: Now down to the the nitty gritty. How do you come up with ideas for so many books?  Is it a character that sparks you? A plot? A dream? Inquiring minds of aspiring authors want to know!

Valerie: Sometimes, it starts with an idea, like unexpected friendship. Othert times, a concept. The Girlfriend Curse came from the concept of being the last girlfriend, or the woman men date immediately before they marry. My teen series, Fringe Girl, came purely from the desire to write stories that my own daughters could read (my other books are too racy). In The Accidental Virgin, it began with a character who was so busy, she forgot to have sex for a year. When you get fixed on an idea, relationship, character or concept, and find that a plot start to unfold, run with it.

Amy: What tells you if the idea is a keeper?  

Valerie: Ha! Good question. I have four half-written novels on my computer that seemed like great ideas at the time, but always felt forced. I’ve had light bulb moments walking down the street and thought I’ve come up with a genius idea, only to realize that it’s just a scene in book, or a single line. What’s worth continuing (“keeper” as something you can keep writing until it’s done), is a story that holds my own interest and stays fun and surprising. If I’m lukewarm about writing it, who the hell is going to want to read it?

Amy: On your website I read that you are also a ghostwriter. Do you live in an alternate universe where there are more than 24 hours in a day?  Can I come in?  Seriously, do you have a set routine for writing different kinds of books or working on different projects? 

Valerie: I do a lot of ghostwriting—fiction and nonfiction—and love it. It’s a welcome break from being inside my own head and telling my own stories. It’s almost like journalism, which is how I got my start in publishing. I do different kinds of writing (memoirs, magazine articles, novels and ghostwriting) because they all inform and inspire each other. Magazine essays turn into chapters in memoirs. Memoirs reveal insights that I can use and play with in novels. Ghostwriting novels is a place to put all the lines and jokes that I couldn’t work into my own books. I have a short attention span, too. I’m amazed when people spend ten years writing one book. I’d get tired of it.

As far as scheduling goes, I like to alternate nonfiction and  fiction to stay limber. Ghostwriting projects are usually on very tight deadline, so I work on that that exclusively until it’s done. The timing can be fortuitous. My summer job for the last two years was writing beach novels for Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, literally, at the beach.

Amy: When it comes to fiction are you a plotter or do you just let your muse have her way with you? 

Valerie: Both. Depends on the book. That said, I think you have to have some idea where you want to go, even if you don’t know how you’ll get there.

Amy: How do you define women’s fiction?  Do you feel pigeonholed? And if so, does that bother you?

Valerie: Women’s fiction just means stories that women want to read. I place no value judgment on that. I love Christopher Moore. I’m a woman. That would make his stuff women’s fiction. Publishers have to categorize because booksellers need to put the product on a shelf, and marketers have to figure out a way to sell it. I’ve never felt pigeonholed, even when I wrote chick lit. Readers don’t care. Why should I? If I ever find myself placed in the category of Writers Who Suck, I’ll care.

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

Valerie: Get a cat. Don’t smoke. Invest in a quality trench coat. Call your mother. Have your taxes prepared by a professional. And be nice to people, unless they don’t deserve it. In that case, feel free to be a raging bitch.

VALERIE FRANKEL received critical acclaim for her bestselling memoir, Thin is the New Happy. She was Joan River’s co-writer on Men Are Stupid…and They Like Big Boobs and she collaborated with Nicole “Snookie” Polizzi on the New York Times bestselling novel A Shore Thing. Val is the author of fifteen novels, including The Accidental Virgin, and is a journalist much in demand. Her writing has appeared in O Magazine, Allure, Self, and The New York Times, among other publications. Her Q&A Love column in Mademoiselle was a popular favorite for many readers. She lives in Brooklyn Heights with her two daughters and husband, opera singer Stephen Quint.

You can visit Valerie’s website here.

Woo Hoo! 46 Women’s Fiction Writers Giveaway Winners Announced!

That’s right — 46 winners!!  I used ‘random.org’ to generate these names.  If your name is below please email me your snail mail address at womensfictionwriters@gmail.com with Giveaway Winner in the subject line. I’m going to copy/paste the address from the emails, so please send it to me the way it needs to appear on a mailing label. If I don’t hear from you by Monday, April 9, 2012, an alternate winner will be randomly chosen.

The books/gifts will also be randomly tucked into envelopes and then labels applied.  Some of you will receive e-gifts, also randomly chosen.  Books will come from me or from the author directly — whether in the mail or email.

If you do not receive your prize/book by April 21, 2012, please email me and let me know.

CONGRATULATIONS to these friends of Women’s Fiction Writers!

This is the order in which the names were plucked from the virtual hat.  My intention was to email everyone directly, but generating random numbers, matching them to corresponding comments, and listing the names here, has taken four cups of coffee — so in the interest of the rest of my day and the health of my innards, here you go: 

LISA LENKIEWICZ

SHARLA LOVELACE

MOBYJO CAFE

PRISILLE MARCILLE SIBLEY

LISAANN HAYES

SONNY

PATRICIA YAGER DELAGRANGE

CHRISTI CRAIG

LAUREN BARATZ-LOGSTED

MELISSA CRYTZER FRY

TINA ANN FORKNER

RENEE SAN GIACOMO

JUDY HUDSON

LORRIE THOMSON

DOT

SAMANTHA HOFFMAN

ERIN CASHMAN

TERRI BRUCE

LIZ FLAHERTY

MEREDITH JAEGER

CHLOE BLAIRE

ADDISONJWRITER

ANNIE

KAREN BOOTH

KATIE FLANAGAN

JUDITH SOSLOWSKY

JE TAYLOR

BONNIE TURNER

JULIE WU

BOOKLOVER

KYM LUCAS

GRACE

NICOLE BASARABA

FERN 

HOLLY ROBINSON

CINDY ANGELL KEELING

LISA CRON

ELLEN MARIE WISEMAN

RACHEL R. RESNICK

SHEILA SEABROOK

GILDA WEISSKOPF

LISARENEE CIANCIO FOGARTY

JULIA MONROE MARTIN

NINA BADZIN

PAMELA TOLER

DENSIE WEBB

Author Anne Clinard Barnhill on Writer’s Rejection, Otherwise Known As ‘A Sure Thing’

I met Anne Clinard Barnhill because we’re both pregnant — BOOK PREGNANT, that is.  We’re members of a small group of debut authors who yammer on and on all day in a undisclosed location and then post publicly on the Book Pregnant Blog, which you can find here. Anne’s such a diverse and talented author with published short stories, poetry, a memoir and a novel — I’m thrilled she is willing to spend time with us here today! 

Please give Anne a hearty WFW welcome — I’m sure in no time you’ll feel like she’s a good friend too!

I’ve been writing professionally for over twenty years. During that time, believe me, I’ve had my share of rejections–none of them were pretty but some hurt less than others. Those with hand-written notes to ‘send us something else’ or a quickly scribbled ‘love this story but it doesn’t fit our current needs’ feel a lot better than the usual form rejections that say ‘Never, and I do mean NEVER send to us again.’ Okay, I didn’t really get any that said that, but it feels just that lousy when those big ‘NO’s arrive. In twenty years, I’ve never met a rejection I actually liked.

But as every writer knows, rejections are part of the writing world. I want to share a couple of my favorite rejection stories–then, maybe you won’t feel so bad when you see that familiar-looking envelop plopped in your mailbox.

The first story takes place about ten years ago when I had an agent who loved my first novel (still in a box under the bed) and wanted to represent me. I eagerly signed the contract, expecting her to keep her promise–to make me a famous writer. I figured I would hear something from her fairly quickly.

No so. I waited And waited. And waited. Then waited some more.

Finally, the Christmas season was upon us and I was decorating the house in preparation for my children to come home for the holiday. About four days before Christmas, I saw a big UPS truck pull into our driveway and carry a fairly large box to the front door. He rang the bell, then retreated to his truck. I wondered who would be sending me a Christmas present. My parents always gave us money so it couldn’t be from them. My kids were coming home; it made no sense for them to have mailed anything. Who could have sent it and what in the world could it be?

I hurried down the steps and opened the front door, grabbed the box and took it into the kitchen where I quickly took a knife and opened it up. I had seen my agent’s name in the return address and was certain this box contained a publishing contract or something along those lines. It would be the happiest Christmas ever. Oh, innocence! Oh, youth!

On the top of a stack of manuscripts was a brief letter. It said, “I’ve tried to sell this to fifteen places. Here are all the rejection letters. Since I can’t sell this book and I don’t like your second one, I am no longer willing to represent you.” Then, stacked all in a row, fifteen rejection letters.

I won’t tell you how I curled into a fetal ball on the kitchen floor and cried for at least an hour. I won’t tell you put that manuscript away for at least five years. Nor will I mention what a lousy holiday we had. What I will say is that was the worst rejection I’ve faced and it took me a good long while to recover from it. Merry damn Christmas!

The second story starts off even worse. I sent a short story to a literary magazine and received my cover letter with “I HATE THIS STORY” scrawled in very black ink across the top. I was so furious, I immediately wrote the editor, thanking him for his no-pulled-punches approach, that every writer deserved that sort of response and some other stuff I fail to remember. I then printed out another story, stuffed it and the letter into an envelope and mailed it that very same day.

I was furious at this man who wrote so cavalierly about my work, as if I, the writer, had no feelings or investment in the story at all. I was surprised and a little frightened when, a week later, I got another missive from him. Only this time, there was a big ‘Yes’ written across the envelope and a check for $65.00. Who knew?

Bottom line, rejections happen and continue to happen. But then, suddenly, someone sees your work and gets it. Love blooms like daffodils in spring and before you can say ‘the hell with rejections’, your first baby is born and out in the world. And that is worth any rejection I’ve ever had.

Anne Cli­nard Barn­hill has been writ­ing or dream­ing of writ­ing for most of her life. For the past twenty years, she has pub­lished arti­cles, book and the­ater reviews, poetry, and short sto­ries. Her first book, AT HOME IN THE LAND OF OZ, recalls what it was like grow­ing up with an autis­tic sis­ter. Her work has won var­i­ous awards and grants. Barn­hill holds an M.F.A. in Cre­ative Writ­ing from the Uni­ver­sity of North Car­olina at Wilm­ing­ton. Besides writ­ing, Barn­hill also enjoys teach­ing, con­duct­ing writ­ing work­shops, and facil­i­tat­ing sem­i­nars to enhance cre­ativ­ity. She loves spend­ing time with her three grown sons and their fam­i­lies. For fun, she and her hus­band of thirty years, Frank, take long walks and play bridge. In rare moments, they dance. www.anneclinardbarnhill.com

AT THE MERCY OF THE QUEEN: A Novel of Anne Boleyn, St. Martin’s Press, January, 2012.

COAL, BABY, poetry chapbook forthcoming from Finishing Line Press

AT HOME IN THE LAND OF OZ: AUTISM, MY SISTER AND ME , a memoir, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2007

WHAT YOU LONG FOR, short story collection, Main Street Rag,  2009

Put On Your Fancy Hats! It’s Women’s Fiction Writers 1-Year Blogiversary Mega Book Giveaway!

About a year ago I wrote a little post about women’s fiction and launched this blog. I wanted to read about women’s fiction and connect with other women’s fiction writers and authors.  Who knew WFW would take on a life of its own? Who knew I’d start referring to it by initials? Not me!

Many of the published authors who keep this site going with their insightful, funny, honest, heartfelt interviews have become my friends.  Many of the aspiring (which keeps autocorrecting to aspirating, so please tell me if you prefer that and I’ll change it back) authors have become my friends as well. When you all chime in, email me, banter with me on FB and Twitter — I remember why I do all of this.  To connect with like-minded writers.

I must admit, it often leaves me a little verklempt.

It’s all been worth the late-night WordPress frenzies, the lost emails, the mixed up calendars.  (And I do love all the Amys who are now my friends!) I enjoy every bit of the behind-the-scenes of this blog.  I like nothing more than interviewing authors — and I hope that passion shows.  I was a Journalism major in college (when people still read newspapers). So go figure — I’m using my degree!

In honor of writers, readers, old friends, new friends and friends yet-to-be, I’m hosting this mega-giveaway.  Incredibly generous authors and friends-of-authors have DONATED a book (or quite a few books) or certificates or something else equally wonderful.  The books are varied, not all are women’s fiction — and that gibes with that advice we’re always given about reading widely!

Keep in mind that authors don’t get a lot of free books (sad but true).  Some of these authors purchased their own books to donate.  Others chose to use some of their private stash — each of their names is linked below so you can learn more about them.  Of course, I’ve thrown in a doodad or two as well (doodad = book).  These people are your supporters — so when you get a chance, check out their websites.  Give their books a go.  They’ve come together on our collective behalf to celebrate what we have in common — writing.  More specifically, writing under that broad umbrella of women’s fiction.

Our WFW Giveaway Contributors (in no particular order) with links ready to be clicked, are:

• Erika Marks 
• Melanie Thorne
• Meg Donohue 
• Marilyn Brant 
• Amy Hatvany 
• Shelly Bell
• Jenny Gardiner
• Kathryn Magendie
• Patricia Yeager Delagrange
• Kimberly Brock
• Renee Rosen
• Erica Orloff
• Holly Robinson Cookson
• Annemarie Lockhart
• Erin Cashman
• Valerie Frankel
• Mia March
• Randy Susan Meyers
• Erika Robuck
• Sandra Kring
• Wendy DelSol
• Holly Root
• Kristina Riggle
• Susan Schoenberger
• Brenda Janowitz
• Liz Michalski
• Terry DuLong
• Liz Flaherty
• Camille Noe Pagan
• Suzanne Anderson
• Therese Walsh
• Ann Weisgarber 
• Eleanor Brown
• Erica Bauermeister
• Allison Winn Scotch 
• Ellyn Bache
• Erin Blakemore
• Tina Ann Forkner
• Catherine McNamara

WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO ENTER?

ANYONE in the USA or Canada over the age of 18. If you are outside the USA or Canada and can/are willing to receive an e-prize, you’re welcome to enter, just note you’ll need to be able to download and/or use ebooks/e-giftcards etc.

HOW TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY:

Just leave a comment — one comment — say hi or tell me your favorite book or which fancy-hat lady you like best — or “like” my FB author page and tell me you like me!  Or just say you want to be entered. I’m easy (but that’s another post).

Leave your email address WITHIN the comment please, so I don’t have to track you down to give you a prize!

ONE ENTRY per person please — but if you spread the word about the giveaway I’ll be grateful and you’ll get like gazillion niceness points.

WHEN WILL THE WINNERS BE ANNOUNCED? 

MONDAY, APRIL 2. COMMENTS WILL REMAIN OPEN, AND ENTRIES ACCEPTED, UNTIL 11:59PM CENTRAL TIME, SUNDAY, APRIL 1.

HOW MANY WINNERS WILL THERE  BE?

Many.  When I’ve finished counting all the books and gifts and know how many entries there are, I’ll decide. I want to give away as much to as many as possible! Winners will be randomly chosen.  Perhaps by my dogs. Maybe by my daughter. They vie for my attention so it could be interesting. Books/Prizes will also be chosen for each winner randomly. 

OTHER STUFF:

If you don’t live in the USA you can’t win a book but you can win a gift card or an e-something, so keep that in mind, please.

Thank you all for your support of this blog and of me. Here’s to Year #2 for Women’s Fiction Writers!

NOW GO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY!!

Amy xo