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In My Mailbox: Week of November 6

In My Mailbox: Week of November 6

Title: Thank You For Flying Air Zoe

Author: Erik Atwell

Received: From Erik Atwell via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fasten Seat Belt sign has been turned on, but feel free to ignore it, because sometimes life is best lived on its dizzy edges. Your cruising altitude today will be sky high, and you will be flying at staggering speeds as you travel alongside Zoe Tisdale, former Valley Girl and rock star turned bored butter saleswoman.
On the heels of a brush with mortality, Zoe concludes that she’s been letting time pass her by. Realizing she needs to awaken her life’s tired refrains, Zoe vows to recapture the one chapter of her life that truly mattered to her – her days as drummer for The Flip-Flops, a spirited, sassy all-girl garage band that almost hit the big time back in 1987. But reuniting the band won’t be easy. The girls who were once the whiz kid guitarist, the prom queen bass player, and the hippie lead singer grew up and became women who are now a reclusive dog trainer, a wealthy socialite, and a sociopathic environmentalist. Will Zoe bring the band back together and give The Flip-Flops a second chance at stardom? Is it possible to fully reclaim the urgent energy of youth?
As you follow this wild flight path, please know that your destination could be anywhere at all, complimentary oxygen is provided upon request, and baggage flies free. We hope you enjoy the ride, and Thank You For Flying Air Zoe.

Title: The Brenda Diaries

Author: Margo Candela

Received: From Margo Candela

Synopsis: Meet Brenda…A temp with a bad attitude, but an excellent work ethic.

Working assignments all around Los Angeles, Brenda was the official purse holder for a high powered event planner, has had an employer ask about her ovulation cycle, worked as a kiosk gypsy at an upscale mall and suffered as the reluctant muse for a frustrated architect who’d rather write screenplays on company time.

Off the clock, Brenda’s boyfriend and best friend compete for her attention while she spends a little too much time with guy she met on a job. Brenda’s positive she can handle it all, but sometimes work and life get to be a bit too much even for someone as organized as Brenda.

The Brenda Diaries. All the dirty details of Brenda’s not so tidy life.

Title: Home For Christmas

Author: Cally Taylor

Received: From Cally Taylor

Synopsis: Beth Prince has always loved fairytales and now, aged twenty-four, she feels like she’s finally on the verge of her own happily ever after. She lives by the seaside, works in the Picturebox – a charming but rundown independent cinema – and has a boyfriend who’s so debonair and charming she can’t believe her luck! There’s just one problem – none of her boyfriends have ever told her they love her and it doesn’t look like Aiden’s going to say it any time soon. Desperate to hear ‘I love you’ for the first time Beth takes matters into her own hands – and instantly wishes she hadn’t.
Just when it seems like her luck can’t get any worse, bad news arrives in the devilishly handsome shape of Matt Jones. Matt is the regional director of a multiplex cinema and he’s determined to get his hands on the Picturebox by Christmas. Can Beth keep her job, her man and her home or is her romantic-comedy life about to turn into a disaster movie?

Future Tour: Here by Denise Grover Swank

Denise will be on tour December 12-January 2 with her novel Here. Sixteen year old Julia Phillips buries herself in guilt after killing her best…

Last Night at Chateau Marmont by Lauren Weisberger

When I was asked to review Last Night at Chateau Marmont by Lauren Weisberger, I jumped at the chance. Who didn’t love The Devil Wears Prada? And I’m happy to report this book was just as great. The story follows happily married couple Julian and Brooke Alter. Brooke is working two jobs with the goal of starting her own nutrition business, and Julian is a struggling singer-songwriter hoping to hit it big. The couple’s world is rocked when Julian snags the attention of Hollywood big-wigs, and overnight becomes the “it” guy in town. Suddenly, Brooke and Julian are holding on tight while they ride the fame coaster, trying to stay grounded and sane. Brooke isn’t interested in celebrities, paparazzi, and the works of being famous. But Julian gets carried up in his new life––the money, publicity….the woman. Not only is Brooke having to deal with that train wreck, but her life, her career, everything she has worked so hard for, is slipping out of her reach thanks to her new high-profile life. Can Brooke and Julian’s marriage survive, or will the cost of fame tear them apart?
When I first started reading this book, I thought Julian was quite an ass-bag. I really thought he was just using Brooke to make ends meet and so he could keep working on getting discovered. As I kept reading, I realized that he did clearly love his wife, and she felt the same way. While their interests may have been different, the love and respect that should be in a marriage were there. It wasn’t hard to guess that something like an affair would be brought up, because come on––who in Hollywood isn’t accused of cheating? When I got to the end of the book, I was sure I was just going to hate what happened. I thought I could guess the ending, but I was wrong. While I won’t give anything away, I will say the ending made me think. It was more than just a typical fluffy let’s be happy ending. The roller coaster ride of emotions that Weisberger took me on, combined with a scandalous chick lit plot and some important lessons we learn from Brooke and Julian, earns this book a five star rating from me!
[Rating: 5]

On Tour: Dollars to Donuts by Kathleen Kole

Kathleen in on tour with Dollars to Donuts from November 7-28. Take one newspaper columnist; move her from the anonymity of her home city to…

Guest Post by Samantha March: Writing Goals

When I first decided to really buckle down and write a book, I didn’t have any idea what that would entail. I thought I would write a few chapters a day, clean it up/edit a bit, and boom! Published. That’s not really how it worked out for me. About three years ago, I started to get the itch to write. I had told myself that if I went to a “real” college, got a fancy degree, and still wanted to write, I would follow that path. But even before I slipped on my cap and gown and moved the tassel from the left to the right (or is it the right to the left) I had already begun to outline my plot and develop characters. I just couldn’t wait.
My ambition to write a few chapters a day quickly met the real world. Going to school, working three jobs (at a gym, hotel, and hospital) did not add up to chapters being written. I was lucky if I got in two hundred words a day. Some days, I was too exhausted to even look at a computer screen. And did I mention I didn’t own a computer as this time––I was using the computer lab at my school to get my writing done, and saving my work to flash drives. So that only added to the challenge. A year went by––a whole 365 days––and my book was just over halfway written. Something needed to change.

It took me some time, but I was able to figure out little plans and deadlines to help keep me on track. I realized that I write effectively in the morning as opposed to the afternoon or night (shocking, since I hate mornings). So I carved out pieces of time each morning to write. I didn’t give myself an impossible goal, I just told myself to write from 6:30-8:00 each morning. Nothing spectacular, nothing huge. But with that little goal, I found myself writing each morning, cracking my knuckles first thing and excited to dive back in. This plan has been working for me ever since. Sometimes, I add some new goals in here and there. Finish chapter 9 by Friday. Introduce Emily’s character by Wednesday. Finish all revisions by December 7. This bigger goals help keep me on track and help me maintain a look at the bigger picture. I’ll give an example of some deadlines I have imposed on myself for book number two:

November:

Monday-Friday: write 7:30-10:30
Introduce Henry/Kevin conflict by November 3
Figure out Carmen’s big secret by November 7
Finish Chapter 15 by November 15

*If you’re wondering what “figure out Carmen’s big secret” means, it literally means figure out what Carmen, one of my supporting characters, is hiding. I still haven’t figured this out. I hope she tells me soon.*

You may also be wondering why I only write three hours a day. It’s all I can do. Really. I work full-time, I run ChickLitPlus, CLP Blog Tours, freelance editing services, and have two more websites/businesses underway for launches next year. Oh, yes––and I also just published Destined to Fail and am feverishly trying to do my own marketing. Then I have a life on top of that. Sometimes. So, three hours is the best I can do. But, when you really put your mind to something and work hard, it doesn’t seem that bad. It isn’t unusual for me to write 3,000 words a day, which I think is great. I am hoping to have book #2 out by late spring of next year. Now that I have been through the process and know what works for me, the second time around has already been much easier.

My advice is to create your own goals. Keep in mind that you might have to tweak them along the way. Maybe you realize you write better at night. Switch it. Maybe you realize you work better by giving yourself word count goals. Shoot for what is feasible to you. Don’t make your goals based on someone else’s. We all lead different lives, have different jobs and families and responsibilities, so none of our goals and deadlines should look the same. But keep yourself motivated, and keep writing!

Blog Tour Sign Up: Mad About the Boy by Suzan …

Suzan will be on tour in January/February with her romance novel Mad About the Boy. This will be an eBook only tour. Please use the…

Guest Post by Bethany Ramos

3 Ways to Increase Your Odds of Getting Published

Every aspiring writer is dying to get published. But not every writer will be published. So what separates a published writer from a non-published writer?

The good news is that getting published can be simple if your work is polished, ready to submit, and what agents or publishers are looking for.

The world of publishing can seem daunting and overwhelming at first. But if you check out the following tips, it may shed some light on what it takes to get published successfully. At the very least, you can prevent wasted time from barking up the wrong tree, not to mention the heartache caused by rejection after rejection after rejection. We’ve all been there…

1. Don’t give up! This one may seem like a no-brainer, but you have to try and try again. And try again. And try again if you want any chance of getting published. When I sent out both of my manuscripts for my chick lit book and my children’s book, I literally e-mailed more than five hundred agents and publishing houses each.

That is over one thousand e-mails in total! You need to be seriously committed to sending out your work for representation. And as it always is in life, just when you start to give up hope, you’ll probably hear back from agent or publishing house with some good news. Don’t give up just yet.

2. Personalize your query letter. Of course, I didn’t write a thousand individual query letters because that just doesn’t make sense. I had a basic query letter that I sent out to agents and publishing houses, but I also did a little bit of homework on agent blogs and websites to see what work they represented.

At the beginning of your query letter, it is best to identify with an agent by mentioning the work that they represent or that you are a fan of one of their authors. I also made sure to personally connect with agents in Colorado since my chick lit book is set in Denver. Do whatever it takes to stand out.

3. Think outside of the box. Both publishing houses that I have worked with so far are small publishers that work one-on-one with writers. This was an excellent way for me to break into the industry.

I did e-mail hundreds of agents and publishing houses and received numerous rejections. I finally broke down and started searching deep in the recesses of Google to find publishing houses that published chick lit and children’s books. It was then and only then did I receive legitimate interest in my work from small publishers that were willing to walk me through the publishing process.

Bottom line? Getting that first publishing contract is one of the most rewarding moments of your life. But it doesn’t come instantly. Be prepared to receive rejection and keep forging ahead. Just at the moment when you think that your manuscript is totally worthless is probably when you will hear something positive back from a literary agent or publishing house!

Bethany Ramos is the author of the chick lit novel 5 Stages of Grief and is under contract to publish her children’s book Lions Can’t Eat Spaghetti. She also reviews chick lit books on her blog ChickLit-Books.com.

Challenge:Post Reviews:November

November Challenge Reviews January Reviews February Reviews March Reviews April Reviews May Review June Reviews July Reviews August Reviews September Reviews October Reviews Please note…

A Life That Fits by Heather Wardell

When Andrea returns home from a business trip, she is sure her boyfriend of fourteen years, Alex, is about to propose. Imagine her surprise when instead of diamond ring she gets her heartbroken. Alex has found someone else, and promptly moves out of their shared home. Andrea is devastated, in shock, and can only think of ways to get Alex back. She doesn’t care that he cheated––she just wants her first love back.
A Life That Fits is another superb novel from Heather Wardell. I didn’t want to give too much away in the synopsis, so I cut myself off short. But let me tell you––there were more than a few times that I gasped while reading. I just love the plot twists that are in there! Wardell shows off her writing and character development skills yet again, especially with her heroine. It could have been easy to view Andrea as a weak, pathetic woman who will gladly take her cheating boyfriend back, but that’s wasn’t how I felt at all. I understood Andrea’s pain and confusion, and even her plan to reinvent herself to try to get Alex back. It didn’t surprise the minute I closed this book that I knew I would give it 5 stars. Keep them coming Heather!
[Rating: 5]