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Please take a moment to read about this author Patry Francis and her book, The Liar's Diary

I first 'met' author Patry Francis when I somehow stumbled onto a blog post of hers shortly after she'd sold her book, The Liar's Diary. I remember feeling so moved by it, because it reminded me of my own many years of waitressing and of my mother who had waitressed all her life, and as some of you may remember, had her life cut short by lung cancer when she was only 57.

Patry had chased her dream and was about to leave her waitressing days behind her. But then, very recently, I learned that only a month after her book was released, Patry was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of cancer. She has had two surgeries and is readying for a third, which is taking up most of her time and energy.  So, as an effort  to help with the book promotion that she cannot do herself right now, me and well over 300 others, many of them best selling authors themselves,  are blogging to bring her book some attention.

And this is a really good book! Patry's writing is truly exceptional. You get a sense of that when you read her blog as well, where she speaks candidly and eloquently and with humor  as she deals with the day to day of fighting this vicious disease.

Please, read more about Patry's book below, watch her great book trailer, and if you know someone who'd like her book, please pick it up.  Directly below is a bit of the post that introduced me to Patsy, and whether you've waitressed or not, I think you'll feel a bit of her excitement when she learns that her book has sold.  Hopefully Patry can kick this cancer, and will have many writing days ahead.

HOLY COW! WAITRESS GETS A BOOK DEAL!
originally posted: November 14, 2005

I bought these shoes a couple years ago on sale for $14.99. A deal! I called a few of my waitress friends who came out and bought two or three pairs. But not me. See, I didn't plan to wear those ugly black clunkers much longer. Back at home, I was writing my little heart out (mostly in secret, lest people think I'm crazier than they already do). But also in secret, I believed something great was going to happen to me. Something miraculous. I was going to find an agent who had faith in me; and somewhere, somehow I was going to get a book deal.

This summer, when the soles sprung their first official hole and rain or every gooey gross substance on the kitchen floor leaked through saturated my socks, I refused to buy another pair. Nor did I replace my yellowing tuxedo shirts. This, you see, was going to be my last season as a waitress. Those who had heard I found an agent, asked almost daily if I'd sold the book.

"We're revising," I said. "Maybe we'll go out with it in the fall."

People gave me the kind of looks reserved for escapees from the asylum. "Better get a new pair of shoes, hon," they said as they walked away.

Meanwhile, the holes in my shoes got bigger and the soles got thinner. But I was not buying another pair. Well, at least not till next spring. But worse than the problem with the shoes, my backaches required more ibupfrofen to quiet them, and my feet ached so much that sometimes I still felt them in the morning. Everything was telling me that the work I did was too physical for my ectomorph body, and that I'd been doing it for far too long. And yet the only Plan B I had was a miracle.

Then last Thursday around 11:30 a.m. the phone rang as I was wandering around the house with a coffee cup in my hand thinking about my work in progress. On the other end of the line, the most amazing literary agent in the known universe, Alice Tasman of JVNLA (Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency) greeted me cheerily.

"I have some very exciting news for you," she said. "Dutton has made an offer on your novel."

While she gave me the details of the offer, my eyes drifted toward my waitressing shoes which were sitting in a square of light in the middle of the floor.

"You mean I can hang up my waitress shoes?" I said.

"You can burn those babies," she replied.

Here's more about Patry and Liar's Diary:

"The new questions and revelations just keep coming…Readers will be heartily rewarded."—Ladies' Home Journal

     When new music teacher Ali Mather enters Jeanne Cross's quiet suburban life, she brings a jolt of energy that Jeanne never expected.   Ali has a magnetic personality and looks to match, drawing attention from all quarters.  Nonetheless, Jeanne and Ali develop a friendship based on their mutual vulnerabilities THE LIAR'S DIARY is the story of Ali and Jeanne's friendship, and the secrets they both keep.

.

     Jeanne's secrets are kept to herself; like her son's poor report card and husband's lack of interest in their marriage.  Ali's secrets are kept in her diary, which holds the key to something dark: her fear that someone has been entering her house when she is not at home.  While their secrets bring Jeanne and Ali together, it is this secret that will drive them apart.  Jeanne finds herself torn between her family and her dear friend in order to protect the people she loves.

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     A chilling tour of troubled minds, THE LIAR'S DIARY questions just how far you'll go for your family and what dark truths you'd be willing to admit—even to yourself.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Patry Francis is a three-time nominee for the Pushcart Prize whose work has appeared in the Tampa Review, Colorado Review, Ontario Review, and the American Poetry Review. She is also the author of the popular blogs, simplywait.blogspot.com, and waitresspoems.blogspot.com. This is her first novel.  Please visit her website at www.patryfrancis.com.

Praise for THE LIAR'S DIARY:

"Twists and turns but never lets go."—Jacquelyn Mitchard, bestselling author of The Deep End of the Ocean

"A quirky, well-written and well-constructed mystery with an edge."—Publishers Weekly

"Outright chilling."—New York Daily News

"Genuinely creepy…The unlikely friendship between a small-town school secretary and a flamboyant teacher proves deadly in this psychological murder mystery."—Kirkus Reviews

"A twisting ride full of dangerous curves and jaw-dropping surprises.  This is one of my favorite reads of the year!"—Tess Gerristen, bestselling author of The Mephisto Club

"Francis draws and tense and moody picture of the perfect home and family being peeled back secret by secret…Four Stars."—Romantic Times

THE LIAR'S DIARY

By Patry Francis

Plume Paperbacks / February 2008 / $14.00

ISBN: 978-0-452-28915-4

Readers Guide available at www.penguin.com

For more information or to schedule an interview with Patry Francis, please contact Laurie Connors, Plume Publicity

212-366-2222 / laurie.connors@us.penguingroup.com

Marley's 4 Book Deal!!!!!!

        I have to interrupt my regular programming here to announce that my very good friend Marley Gibson, SOLD FOUR BOOKS!!!!!!

        Marley and I joined our local RWA writer's chapter a few years ago at the same time.  While I've been dabbling, and dreaming about writing and talking about it, and starting and stopping several manuscripts, Marley has been 'just doing it'.  She has written and completed multiple manuscripts, in the chick lit, women's fiction and YA genres.  She's had a few really close calls, and rotten luck/timing with lines closing or changing focus.  But, she also has an amazing agent, Deidre Knight, of the Knight Agency, who loves Marley's writing voice, believes in her and has championed her work in the way one can only dream that an agent will do.

All of her hard work and persistence paid off this week when her YA proposal and sample chapters wowed the editors at Penguin's Puffin imprint, and they offered her a 4 book deal. Here's the official announcement from Publisher's Marketplace,

CHILDREN'S: YOUNG ADULT
Debut author Marley Gibson's four untitled books in a series about a group of collegiate sorority sisters, to Angelle Pilkington and Karen Chaplin at Puffin, in a nice deal, by Deidre Knight at The Knight Agency (world.)

I read these sample chapters, and the story is wonderful!  She is going to be busy writing for the rest of this year, as these books will be coming out close together, which should help launch the series and a fantastic writing career!

Yay Marley!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:) Pam, who is just giddy with excitement, and looking forward to celebrating tomorrow!

Books--The Great Blog Experiment

I'm taking a break from the food world today, for a very important cause, using blogs to generate awareness for great new authors/books. This idea is Nadia's, and I think it's a great one, a fun project I am excited to participate in. Details below,

From literary agent, Nadia Cornier's blog,
   

THE GREAT BLOG EXPERIMENT

Our Theory:
Our theory is that readers do have some power – how much, we're not
sure – but we like to think that if readers get really jazzed about
a book and "spread the word" that amazing things can happen for a
book. Since this is old news, we are also proposing that instead of
reading reviews via magazines or simply through amazon – that blogs
are the "review culture" of the future and that if you respect
someone's writing via a blog, you might also respect someone's
opinion of a book they read. What we hope to prove is that with
enough people creating buzz via their blogs (either positive or
negative – we don't care, we believe that all books will have some
of both) a book's sales will shoot up. If this proves to be true, we
will ascertain that not only should authors have blogs (in which to
share important information with readers and other writers) but that
all readers should blog about books they are currently reading –
either enjoying or otherwise – in order to promote books and the
industry as a whole. Bah on the people who say, "Nobody is reading
anymore." Bah! Bah! I say.

The Procedure:

1. I picked a book. Our "criteria" was that - first and foremost -
it wasn't connected in anyway to our agency. Our other criteria was
that it was a book that was poised as a break out novel, but didn't
quite make it -- that we could do a Q&A with the author and the
editor (perhaps even the agent involved) and that while it was a
book that I would heartily recommend (so you aren't going to waste
cash on buying it) it was a book that didn't receive a spot on the
best seller lists. Other, smaller criteria was that it had to be
published recently enough that it was available in bookstores but
long enough that it was no longer receiving "publisher" assistance
on marketing.

The book I picked was:

TEACH ME by R.A. Nelson
ISBN: 1595140840

I'll talk more (as the week goes by) about why I picked this book in
particular -- but suffice it to say that I enjoyed it. I recommend
it. I felt it got a bum wrap being compared to other,
more "sensational" books that came out at a similar time -- and
instead of being used as an example of difference - it was trounced
as being exactly like "all those bad books that parents of teenagers
should watch out for." First of all, that absolutely smacks
of "banning" books, second of all, I have NOTHING against bad
reviews. I have Nothing against saying a book was bad (you're
totally entitled to your opinion) but to do so without actually
READING the book is not only annoying but it is reckless in the
extreme. Don't ruin books for millions because of your ignorance.
And that's how I feel about that.

That said, there are so many different feelings about TEACH ME. I
think this would be a fun book to delve into. I mean, it's not the
kind of book you feel wishy-washy about. It's got a very sensitive
subject matter (about a girl who has an affair with her teacher),
it's got some good writing (which we can also argue about), and ...
well, let's just say that we'll find tons to talk about. I'm
interested in hearing YOUR opinions about this book. It'll teach me
something. No pun intended. Sort of.

2. To have an educated discussion about a book, we need to have
read the book. So -- I'm asking you to go and buy it. It's on
Amazon. It's in your local stores, so when you're doing your
Christmas shopping (and I KNOW your totally snogging the B&N on your
way) stop and pick up a copy and read it. Then come back and post a
comment here. I want LOTS of comments. I want A VIVID DISCUSSION. I
want to see FUR FLY! (heh.. sorry). Today is the 13th. If you plan
on joining in (and i hope you do) please buy it by the 20th of
December.

3. Not only a topic about what makes a book "worthy" or a "break out
novel" -- this is also an experiment to see what bloggers can do. So
I need your help. I need you to help SPREAD THE WORD. Cut & Paste
this info (or link to it) from your own blog -- post it to your
writer's groups. Spread the word and get other people involved. Link
them back here to :: www.livejournal.com/~agentobscura :: -- Once
you do, send me an email at blog[at]firebrandliterary[dot]com --
with your name & your URL and where you first heard about this
experiment.... and to thank you for helping I'll send you a cool
button for your blog that says you've participated and I'll also add
you to my list of "particpants" that I'll post at the end of the
experiment... so everyone can see their fellow particpants and can
go visit one another's sites. For anyone who receives a lot of
mentions in the "Where I first heard about this experiment" -- I'll
send you a special participant button to post on your website or
blog. Because then you'll be special ::wink::.

4. Come back here and lets rant and rave about the book.

5. I'll post more of the Q&As on break out novels (writing,
publishing and promoting them) -- as well as a Q&A about the process
THIS book went through from the author & editor.

6. I'll post the results of the experiment (how many people - we
believe - participated, how many copies sold during this time, if
there was a major spike, etc). And then we'll discuss what all this
data means.

So... I hope you get involved. I really need your help to make this
work. :) So, spread spread spread.... (the word, obviously).

Thanks for your help, in advance, I can't wait to see how this
goes!!! If it goes at all!!!

Additional thoughts from me on this,

I think this is a fantastic idea. I'm buying the book today, was curious about it anyway after hearing about it on Diana's blog, and even though this is not the slightest bit food related, I'm taking a break from my usual programming to post this today. I think it's such an important thing, and I feel very strongly that blogs, when used well, can sell books, and spread world of mouth like crazy.

If the sentiment is genuine. The blogs that sell me books....and lots of them, are the ones where the blogger says something like, "This book really moved me, or blew me away, or whatever, because...." and then there's a link to more on the book and author. This is how I've been introduced to many new authors/books, and if it sounds interesting, my next click is over to Amazon for an impulse purchase. That is how powerful blogs can be.

The blog posts that don't move me so much, the ones that just feel like generic re-posts, promos of pre-packaged interviews that are cut and pasted onto a series of blogs for a week or two when the book comes out. I just don't take these as seriously, because in most cases, they're ads. Sure, sometimes there's a nudge from the blogger, "check this book out, it's really great". But, that usually doesn't move me so much.

:) Pam

BLOGS, HOT TREND OR TIME WASTER?

Romance writer Joan Reeves has a very interesting article on blogs posted on her site.  It explains the history of blogging, and has interviews with writers on why they blog, and how it is working for them. I'm one of the writers she interviewed, which was exciting for me, but it was especially interesting to read about why others are blogging, and how they approach it. Cindy Smith, who writes one of my favorite guilty pleasure blogs, on celebrities, is another writer interviewed. Cindy is an aspiring chick lit writer, who is quickly building a substantial readership of her blog, something like 30,000 hits in her first month!