Book Review: You Had Me at Hello

By Becky Gulc

You Had Me at Hello is the debut novel by former journalist Mhairi McFarlane. It has a stand-out cover and let’s face it, a great title....evoking an image of Tom Cruise in Jerry Maguire is never a bad thing in my opinion! Before I started reading this book I’d seen so many people talking about it on Twitter I couldn’t wait to get started and see what all the (positive) fuss was about. So what’s it all about?

What happens when the one that got away comes back? Find out in this sparkling debut from Mhairi McFarlane.

‘Think of the great duos of history. We're just like them.’
‘You mean like Kylie and Jason? Torvill and Dean? Sonny and Cher?’
‘I think you’ve missed the point, Rachel.’

Rachel and Ben. Ben and Rachel. It was them against the world. Until it all fell apart. It’s been a decade since they last spoke, but when Rachel bumps into Ben one rainy day, the years melt away.
They’d been partners in crime and the best of friends. But life has moved on: Ben is married. Rachel is not. Yet in that split second, Rachel feels the old friendship return. And along with it, the broken heart she’s never been able to mend.

Hilarious, heartbreaking and everything in between, you’ll be hooked from their first ‘hello’.
(Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.co.uk)

I loved this book. It delivered everything I could want from a ‘chick-lit’ novel. I thought the characters were all very likeable and what made them likeable for me was they were realistic, just like people you know, each with their flaws, each just trying to get on with their lives. The pace of the story worked well, with the narrative drifting between the present and past (all through Rachel’s viewpoint) until we fully understand Rachel and Ben’s relationship at University.

Rachel’s circle of friends were all great and each brought an extra element to the story that the reader comes to care about. Rachel is a very three-dimensional character, you really feel for her and the mistakes she’s made (staying in a relationship with the wrong person too long just because it’s easier!), she’s likeable because she accepts the mistakes are part of her life and doesn’t overly dwell on them. She’s the kind of character you wish you could be friends with in real life (and the rest of the core characters, they’re definitely a package!).

The book is very witty and Mhairi has come up with some great modern day similes and metaphors that just made me laugh out loud throughout. One of the best aspects of the book for me was how Mhairi keeps the book suspenseful and it was a rollercoaster ride of emotions at some points, you think ‘really?’, not just a tokenistic and predictable twist that can sometimes be found…not a ‘ah this is the obligatory twist bit’ but a ‘REALLY’? We’re going here?’ It really did keep me on the edge of my seat to see how the book would finish, that was the stand out part of the book for me, it made it fresh.

This is a new author to be excited by, I definitely look forward to reading more from Mhairi.

Thanks to Avon for the book in exchange for an honest review. Check out this fun and light-hearted video on how You Had Me at Hello was published. You Had Me at Hello is $2.99 for Kindle.

We are "Starstruck" with Yael Levy...plus a book giveaway

***Giveaway is now closed***

Introduction and Interview by Tracey Meyers

One of the things I love about what I do at Chick Lit Central is that I have the opportunity to expose our readers, and cyberspace, to fresh new authors they may not have otherwise heard of.

Today, I get the pleasure of introducing you to Yael Levy.  There are several things I love about Yael's work.  Amongst these reasons is that it shows that women from all walks of life truly are united in the struggles they face and the things they want.  In the case of Yael's writing, her characters look at these ideas from the Orthodox Jewish point of view - a view point I have come to believe is misunderstood and stereotyped too often.

Yael is a freelance illustrator and journalist who has been published in numerous publications including The Jerusalem Post, and currently writes for The Times of Israel on her experiences as a Jewish mother living in Atlanta.  She holds a degree in Illustration from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City.  Her debut novel novel Brooklyn Love was published in September 2012, and she recently released her second novel, Starstruck.

I hope you enjoy getting to know Yael, and her novels, better, as much as I have. You can find her at her website, Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks to Crimson Romance, we have ONE ebook copy of Yael's latest novel, Starstuck, for a lucky reader located anywhere in the world!


Tell us about the differences you experienced between writing Brooklyn Love (your first novel) and your recently published second novel, Starstruck:
Writing Brooklyn Love was a process full of angst and rumination which at times left me feeling numb, while Starstruck had me laughing as I wrote-- it was a lot of fun. I had a great time with my quirky characters and their dramas!

Is there a particular writing schedule (time of day, number of hours a day you write, etc.) that you keep when developing your work or is it just whenever you are most inspired?
I tend to write late into the night. I get into a zone of deep concentration where time stops and any interruption is painful, so if somebody might need me or something must be done, I won't even attempt to write. I can, however work on non-creative writing, editing or other related tasks, which I tend to take care of during the day.

Do you feel it's been more difficult for you to build a readership since your work is based upon characters that are Orthodox Jewish?
I don't feel it's been more difficult building a readership with Orthodox Jewish characters. Many readers enjoy different perspectives!

What reaction has the Orthodox Jewish community had to your work?
I have found the reaction to my work in the Orthodox Jewish community to be extremely supportive and many people have asked me for sequels.

Which season makes you feel the most alive?
I love the Fall: New beginnings, surrounded by beautiful colors as the leaves blanket the earth...In my tradition it is the start of the new year and birthday of the world...so I tend to feel the most alive, then.

If I could pick it, my last meal ever would be:
Does chocolate qualify as a meal? Hershey's with almonds works for me!

What is one thing no one would ever guess about you by just looking at you or briefly interacting with you?
I tend to be very shy.

Love and passion are prominent themes in your stories. How do you define these concepts?
Love and passion are prominent themes in all of my work. I believe feelings wax and wane like the waves of the ocean, so I don't put much weight in them in terms of loving someone (or not.) In my tradition, love means giving-- the more one gives to another, the more one will love the recipient of their kindness. Yet, a romantic relationship must entail both logic and emotion in order to thrive-- only one (feelings of passion) or the other (being with that person makes sense) will ultimately doom the relationship. That said, I think it is good for people to carefully asses their "deal breakers" so that they don't discount a good match, or leave a relationship solely because they "are no longer feeling that spark."
 
Thanks to Yael for visiting with us and to Crimson Romance for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win Starstuck:

Please comment below with your e-mail address. (Please note: Entries without an e-mail address will NOT be counted. You can use AT and DOT to avoid spam. Or provide a link to your facebook page or blog if you can receive messages there.)

Bonus entries (can be listed all in one post):
1. Please tell us: What is ONE thing people would never guess about you just by looking at you?
2. Follow this blog and post a comment saying you are a follower (if you already follow, that's fine too).
3. Post this contest on Facebook or Twitter or in your blog, and leave a comment saying where you've posted it.
4. Join Chick Lit Central on Facebook. Edit settings if you don't want to receive a lot of messages at your e-mail account. Please read our posting guidelines as well. (If you're already a member, let us know that too.)
5. Follow us on Twitter and/or Pinterest.
6. Add a friend to our Facebook group. (Tell us who you added.) Be sure to remind them to edit their settings.


Open worldwide.  Giveaway ends April 21st at midnight EST.

Guest post: What’s the big deal about being in love?

By Michele Gorman

Do you have to be in love for a relationship to last a lifetime? Or is loving your best friend enough?

That’s not a question I expected to ask when I moved to Hong Kong on sabbatical four years ago to research my second book, Misfortune Cookie. I certainly didn’t expect to end up trying to answer it.

You see, I can count on just three fingers the number of times I’ve been “in love”. When I say in love, I mean head-over-heels, floating on cloud nine, superciliously, insufferably in love. I was a teenager when it first happened. I was at the sensible end of my twenties the second time. Before, after, and in between, I went out with men that I liked very much. Several I even quite loved.

But I wasn’t in love.

Did that matter? For years it didn’t. And then I went to Hong Kong. Maybe it was the jetlag. Maybe it was because I’d stepped out of my normal, comfortable life. I still don’t know why, exactly. But the question hit me. And just as quickly, so did the answer. Yes. To me, it mattered very much.

So when I returned from Hong Kong I disassembled my old life, and set about building a new one. It wasn’t easy. It was uncomfortable and scary. I had no idea whether what I wanted even existed. And it was in those months that the idea for Bella Summer Takes a Chance began to form, centred around the question: how much is enough in our lives? At what point should be we content with what we have in love, and life and work, and how much are we willing to lose in pursuit of our ideal? Bella didn’t know the answers when the book began. Neither did I. She and her three friends figured out their answers before I did.

But then, when the dust had settled and my new life was solidly in place, I met a man. He wasn’t like anyone I’d ever gone out with before. He didn’t tick the boxes on the list of criteria I’d held in such high regard. He was unexpected, and I fell in love with him. Head-over-heels, floating on cloud nine, superciliously, insufferably in love. On our three-year anniversary, with the snow falling outside as we napped on a four-poster bed in a 16th century stately home, he asked me to marry him.

So do you have to be in love for a relationship to last a lifetime? I don’t know – I haven’t yet lived a lifetime with my fiancée – but I’d like to believe that when you take a chance and walk down an unfamiliar road to see what’s around that next corner, though it might not be what you expect, it’s exactly what you’ve been looking for.

Bella Summer Takes a Chance (reviewed here) is out now in paperback and all eBook formats.

When is enough not enough?
Bella's career and relationship are her life's foundationwear: not glamorous and perhaps a bit binding, but supportive enough... until she realizes that they are not enough. Her life is sagging badly. She's never been in love with her boyfriend, despite a decade together. And somehow she stopped being a musician-with-a-day-job and became a consultant-who-was-musical. So she takes a terrifying leap of faith, leaving her relationship and resolving to follow her musical dreams no matter what.

But the life you walk away from doesn't always let you walk away.

With a wonderfully warm and witty cast of friends, all navigating between their ideals and the realities they face, together they'll find out what love and compromise really mean in this empowering tale about grasping life with both hands.


Michele Gorman is the best-selling author of Single in the City, Misfortune Cookie, and Bella Summer Takes a Chance. Her holiday novella, The Twelve Days to Christmas, is part of her Single in the City series. Born and raised in the US, Michele has lived in London for 15 years. You can find her on Twitter, Facebook or her website. If you'd like her to sign an eBook for yourself or as a gift, just pop a request through on Kindlegraph.

Sarah Pekkanen shares her favorite books for FridayReads!

TGIF! We are honored and thrilled that FridayReads has chosen us to host Sarah Pekkanen for their chick lit feature this week. Her fourth novel, The Best of Us, was published on April 9th. 

Sarah has been a strong supporter of CLC since its inception almost three years ago. Not only is she a great writer, but also a warm and friendly individual. She's here today to talk about books. (What else, right?!?)



Not only that, but there are THREE ways to win The Best of Us:

*FridayReads on Facebook, open worldwide and ends April 18th.

*At our review, open to US readers and ends April 14th at midnight EST.

*From Booking with Manic, open to readers in US and Canada, ends around April 14th.


Five books that changed my life:

Photo by Hilary Schwab

In Her Shoes by Jennifer Weiner. I felt electrified when I read this book, because it was exactly the kind of novel I hoped to write some day. Years later, I signed with Jennifer's editor, which was - and still is - a dream.  

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. This book taught me that it's possible to take a real event - in this case the horrific murder of a Kansas farm family - and write a non-fiction book that is as fluid and gripping as the best fiction. As a newspaper reporter, I used the narrative style developed by Capote as a model for the stories I reported, and it was terrific training for becoming a novelist.

Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell. When I turned in my first manuscript to my agent, she gently pointed out that I was lacking ... a plot. Which isn't something you want missing from a book you're trying to sell to a publishing house. I bought every book on plotting I could find, and Bell's tome was the one that helped me overcome my weakness. I still rely on it today.

Judy Blume's Are You There God? It's Me Margaret. A friend passed me this book in elementary school, and I still vividly remember how real and true the words felt. Blume wrote about kids who seemed like me - and that made me feel less alone as a nervous, awkward pre-teen.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Every chapter, every scene, every word is perfection. I re-read this book recently, and it moved me to tears. I think a mark of a great book is that you learn something new every time you read it, and your appreciation for the work increases. It's a shame that she only wrote one book, but what a book to have written!

Learn more about Sarah by visiting her at her website, Facebook and Twitter

Go-To-Gay: Planting Dreams

Introduction by Tracey Meyers

Last spring, I took the first step to realizing a dream of mine.  For some time I had talked about writing a book, but always added that it was "silly" when I talked about it.  Then, it was suggested I go to one of Wade Rouse's writing retreats which, on this particular occasion, was taking place in Saugatuck, MI (a mere three hour drive - or so - for me).  Since I hadn't been on a vacation in a very long time I figured why not.  It would be something different and a way to get away from reality for a few days.  After that weekend I no longer used the word "silly" when I talked about writing a book.

This spring, I am feverishly trying to finish the first 50 pages (at least) of my book so I can have them ready for my next visit with Wade and his partner Gary.  Over the past months, I have gotten to know Gary better (thank you e-mail and Facebook).  If you ever need someone to give you an extra boost of confidecne or keep you on the path towards achieving your goal, Gary is your man!  As I work on these 50 pages, I am also in the process of nurturing a few other dreams of mine.  Dreams, that like writing a book, scare me because I'm not quite sure they will have the intended outcome I would like to see.  However, I keep pressing forward because even though I am scared to death of the unknown, in the back of my mind I know if there is ever a time for dream to blossom, springtime is the time to make it happen!

It is with that thought I leave you, and let Chick Lit Central's Go-To-Gay, Wade Rouse, tell you why he loves this time of year so much.



“Planting Dreams”

I don’t just love April.

I adore April.

As much as, even, caffeine, good wine and Hugo Boss shirts.

This means major props for April.

April marks that moment of the year – especially in Michigan – when I can finally walk outside without screaming, “I’m going to lose an earlobe!”

It’s that time when I can inhale deeply and breathe in that memorable scent of spring. I can close my eyes and hear the birds chirp, the earth reawaken.

I also love spring, especially this year, because it marks an important anniversary in my life.
Some eight years ago, I quit my job to pursue my passion.

At the time, I had just finished my first memoir, America’s Boy, after waking for years at 4:30 in the morning while working fulltime and living in the city. I had just landed an agent. My book was within a few months of being published. And, Gary and I had just quit our high-paying jobs with benefits and moved 400 miles to take up residence in a knotty-pine cottage in the woods where I was going to try to become the offspring of Erma Bombeck, David Sedaris and Henry David Thoreau.
We didn’t just leap off a bridge. We leapt without parachutes.

The landing hurt.

Two weeks after uprooting our world and taking the biggest risks of our lives – and just weeks before America’s Boy was set to publish – my editor quit to take a job at another publishing house.

I was alone in the literary ocean without a paddle. Alone in the woods without a compass.

Although my first book was critically acclaimed, it came and went quickly, like a Kevin Costner movie.

I didn’t know if I would write another book, sell another book, survive. Actually, I didn’t know if I could even write another book. That’s how shaken I was.

So, Gary took me into our garden one April afternoon and pointed at his just-blooming tulips, flowers of peach, red, purple, and yellow, swaying like crayons in the wind.

“I planted these bulbs last fall,” he said, bending down to touch the tender petals. “I didn’t know if they all would bloom, but I was compelled to do the work, to take that risk. And just look at the result. It was worth all the effort and belief, wasn’t it?”
I remember plucking a creamy peach tulip and putting it in a McCoy vase on my writing desk that crisp, sunny April day. I made a promise to myself, staring at the tulip: You will achieve your dream, Wade, if you just believe and work hard. I also promised myself that if I could make it five years, then I could make it the rest of my life as a writer.

I started in earnest that April day and finished my second memoir a few months later. It sold just after that to a new editor and publishing house.

It is now eight years – and a total of five books – later. It hasn’t always been easy. But dreams never are.

I am now working on my first novel. A new dreams begins. One also filled with great risk and uncertainty.

I am again wandering into the unknown, just like many of the heroes and heroines from our favorite books. Most of our beloved protagonists from our most beloved books take great risks in their lives. They follow their dreams. They risk their hearts. They understand that life is all about pursuing passion, be it in romance or career.

That, too, is a theme for the women in my first novel: Risks they took, ones they didn’t, and the impact that had on their lives.

I continue to take great risks in my writing and life, and I always will. And even when things get thorny, I still consider life to be abloom.

I continue to work hard and believe even harder, though I may not always be able to see the petals when my face is to the ground.

But it comes down to believing in your dreams – and hard work – if you want life’s garden to be ablaze in color. 

This April, I urge Chick Lit Central readers to remember to take a moment to stop, breathe in the spring air, and believe in your dreams.

Gardeners aren’t the only ones who can begin to see the fruits of their labor in April.

We all can.

But we must first plant the seeds.




The writings of bestselling humorist Wade Rouse – called “wise, witty and wicked” by USA Today and the lovechild of Erma Bombeck and David Sedaris – have been featured multiple times on NBC’s Today Show as well as on Chelsea Lately on E! and People.com. His latest memoir, It’s All Relative: Two Families, Three Dogs, 34 Holidays and 50 Boxes of Wine (reviewed here) launched in paperback February 1st from Broadway, and he is creator and editor of the humorous dog anthology, I’m Not the Biggest Bitch in This Relationship: Hilarious, Heartwarming Tales about Man’s Best from America’s Favorite Humorists (NAL). The book features a Foreword by Chelsea Handler’s dog, Chunk, essays by such beloved chick lit authors as Jane Green, and 50 percent of the book’s net royalties go to the Humane Society of the United States. His first memoir, America's Boy, has been re-published by Magnus Books for paperback and Kindle. For more, visit his website, or friend him on Facebook or Twitter.

Having a ball with Katie Schnack....plus a book giveaway

Introduction and interview by Melissa Amster

**Giveaway is now closed**

You may not already know this about me, but I used to work in the restaurant business. I started out in Chinese take-out and eventually became a server at a well known breakfast-themed establishment. (I'm probably the only person who has a 17 year boycott going against this restaurant.) The concept of the customer always being right can be a thorn in the side of someone who has served food in any capacity. I remember a customer who got mad at ME because she brought her own fancy teabag and didn't check if the cup was clean (to her standards) before dipping it. There happened to be a lipstick stain on it that just gets embedded through many dishwashing cycles. But to her, I RUINED her precious teabag. Oh, the agony!

Katie Schnack has dealt with her share of crazy customers, as she became a waitress to support herself through higher education in the field of journalism. It wasn't just your average diner though. Katie worked at one of the most expensive and renowned hotels in the country, on the most wealth concentrated island in the country....Palm Beach, Florida. Excessive wealth does funny things to people sometimes, and lets just say...work was never boring. She lived to tell about it, and has a book to show for her wild and strange customer stories, Ballrooms and Ugly Poodles: Semi-Tall Tales of a Palm Beach Waitress.

Since that time, she has relocated to Austin, Texas so her husband can focus on his education. She is a literary publicist at Shelton Interactive, and her past freelance work has been featured in Redbook, Austin Lifestyle, Thrillist.com and more. 

We're glad to have Katie here today, as she is a lot of fun and has a great sense of humor. She has TWO copies of her book for some lucky readers anywhere in the world!

You can visit Katie at her website (where she features pictures of ugly poodles every Friday), Facebook (I love her cover photo) and Twitter.

As a waitress, what is the strangest request you ever received?
The one that I think of right away --and this is in the book, of course-- is when I asked a guest if he would like a drink from the bar. He ordered a Bud Light, however, the party was being sponsored by Miller. I politely told him, and offered to get him a Miller Lite. He just stared me right in the eyes and said sternly "I want a Bud Light." I was terrified. I had to take about a 10 minute walk into the hotel's dungeon basement to get him his gross, warm and slightly dusty beer from storage. It was so weird. Also people would always request a black napkin and I thought it was so odd. I get it, but I still think it is weird to ask for one.

Where do you find all the pictures for "Ugly Poodle Friday" on your blog? Do people send them to you or do you find them randomly online?
I find the pictures by just asking the ever-great oracle known as Google. But if someone were to send me one, I would be happy to post it! My family and friends basically send me every poodle they come across now – online, ones on the street. I guess I am now “the poodle lady.” I don’t know how I feel about that.

What was the easiest thing about writing Ballrooms and Ugly Poodles? Most difficult?
The easiest thing was the very early stages of writing it. Those terrible first drafts that just pour out of you. To me, this is the absolute best part of writing. I would hole up on a Saturday, drink way too much coffee and write write write. It felt great. The most difficult - editing. I had the book professionally edited a few times, but wanted my husband to give it a read though before I called it finished. He knows me, he knows the stories and he is a really, really careful reader, so he tore it apart. It was SO PAINFUL for me, as I am defiantly more of an all over the place, crazy creative soul. Combing through my work one sentence was like some sick, twisted mind torture. But, in the end I am so glad we did that and forever grateful to my overly patient husband for all the time he put in.

What did you do to celebrate when Ballrooms and Ugly Poodles was first published?
In a way it has been a slow, random process of celebration. There are little victories that were celebrated, like finally being done with edits, finalizing the cover art or getting my first good review. When I first put the e-book online, my husband sent me flowers and cookies at work. Then, after work there may have been some celebratory drinks consumed, of course. When the print version came out, I celebrated with good friends at The Alexis Hotel in Seattle. It was a half my birthday, half my book’s birthday shindig, and it was perfect.

Which authors have been inspirations to you during the writing process?
When I first realized that I really, really wanted to make this writing thing a reality, there were a few books I read that still stick with me.

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
On Writing by Stephen King
Cold Tangerines by Shauna Niequist

Also, the Juicy Pens Thirsty Paper by SARK. She writes her manuscripts by hand in different colored makers, pens and paints and doodles everywhere. When I first opened that book up, it looked so much like my journal it was weird. I was comforted knowing there was another multi-colored crazy living out there in the universe who also loved words and drawing and the Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris. Also once she re-tweeted me. I just had to brag about that. #bigdeal.

What is the most important advice you've ever been given?
I guess it is in a way self-imposed advice, if that is possible. My best friend died in a car crash when she was 19. Everyday, when I feel like giving up, or not chasing dreams or loving people or doing anything worthy with my life, I think about her. I think of what she would say to me, what she would do. What I wish she could have had the chance to do. She was, and continues to be an amazing inspiration in how I live life daily. Her memory is my advice, and I am determined to juice every drop out of these years that she was never able to experience.

If Ballrooms and Ugly Poodles were to become a movie, what actress would you want to portray you?
Meryl Streep, duh.

What is your favorite thing about living in Austin, Texas?
Queso + tequila. Everywhere. It is amazing.

Thanks to Katie for chatting with us and for sharing her book with our readers.

How to win Ballrooms and Ugly Poodles:
Please comment below with your e-mail address. (Please note: Entries without an e-mail address will NOT be counted. You can use AT and DOT to avoid spam. Or provide a link to your Facebook page or blog if you can receive messages there.)

Bonus entries (can be listed all in one post):
1. Find a picture of an ugly poodle and post a link to it. (Maybe Katie will use it on her blog sometime and credit you for it!)
2. Follow this blog and post a comment saying you are a follower (if you already follow, that's fine too).
3. Post this contest on Facebook or Twitter or in your blog, and leave a comment saying where you've posted it.
4. Join Chick Lit Central on Facebook. Edit settings if you don't want to receive a lot of messages at your e-mail account. Please read our posting guidelines as well. (If you're already a member, let us know that too.)
5. Follow us on Twitter and/or Pinterest.
6. Add a friend to our Facebook group. (Tell us who you added.) Be sure to remind them to edit their settings.

Giveaway ends April 16th at midnight EST.

Writing is the EASY part!

By Cindy Roesel

Happy Anniversary VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED! We're celebrating my baby novel's one-year anniversary! She officially went live on Amazon March 22, 2012. VDA had her publication party at the Miami Bookstore, Books & Books April 19th and the kindle edition went hot April 29th. Today we're smack in the middle of the one-year anniversary festivities and celebrating with key lime pie and martinis. (Or a combination of both in one!)

What have we learned over the past year? First thing I want to share is something I didn't want to believe is true. Writing the book is the easy part! Not in easy-easy, of course, it takes a lot of work to write a novel. But I thought with my personality and so-called "connections" in media, I'd know how to "sell" my novel. Yes, it's true, some of us writers admittedly want people to buy our books and hopefully read them. Turns out, it's a whole unique paradigm, a different landscape out there in the publishing world. But it's fun and it's about the writing and the journey, too.

I had been blessed to be part of the Chick Lit Central team for over a year, when I told Melissa A. that I was self-publishing my novel and soon they were behind me promoting it. I was a lucky girl/author! We did a lot of blogging, I was able to get some guest blog spots and we held some contests. I am so grateful to The Melissas, Amy and all my friends at CLC.

In addition to reviews for CLC, I'm writing weekly reviews for my fellow Chick-lit Central/Goddess/Chicks-Authors on my blog. It started when eight of the gals posted their novels for 99 cents on Valentine's Day! I thought that was very generous, so why not review their books. Eventually, I hope to get around to reviewing everyone who has ever written a chick-lit novel. Of course, if someone wants to read and write a review for VDA, that's always appreciated. I also hope to finish writing my sequel and second novel soon, but that's another post discussion.

When I first launched VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED, I hired a publicist who got VDA placement on Miami television and in the newspapers. After that I, I went on a national blog tour and did interviews and appearances at local bookstores. I keep my website fresh with new photos on the slide show and updated with the search engine optimization/SEO (I'm still learning about that :-) ). FYI: I was lucky to have the lovely Dina Silver stop by my publication party. She's pictured at the Miami, Books & Books signing and "The Situation" is at one of my Miami Airport book signings. He was on his way to see the girls at The View.  I gave him a book and I still wonder if he ever passed it on!

 

I have book signings at Miami International Airport at least once a month. It makes sense to go where I know I will have people show up rather than a local bookstore where no one may come in. I end up meeting many people and selling and signing books that travel around the world.

When it comes to social media, Facebook is number one for target audience penetration followed by twitter. I'm constantly trying to add interesting information to my page, along with pictures to attract followers. That's where I spend most of my time networking online.

When it comes down to it I would have done several things differently when I published VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED, but I'm proud of how we created BluePointPress and published VDA. Kirkus Reviews gave VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED a very good review and I'm extremely humbled by that. It was our first time in the publishing world and it could have gone another way. Next time, we'll create buzz BEFORE the book comes, unlike this time, when we worried so much about having the book ready and in our hands first. 

I'm attending a publishing seminar in June at the Graduate school of my Alma Mater, CUNY, Hunter College. Take a peek at who will be there. It's a who's-who of the publishing world. Less than a dozen of us have been accepted. I plan on doing much better with my next publishing project.

Thank you everyone for your support, especially Melissa A. and the chicks at Chick Lit Central who have been there for me "in good times and in bad" and all my other on-line chickies! It not only takes a village, it takes megabites! I really love you and support you in all your ventures! xoxoxo