1 month out
watch this potato make her debut upon the literary scene
It’s a new year, and it is also finally the year that my book is coming out. Less than a month to go!!! I feel like I have been talking about this thing for ages, and all my friends must be tired of hearing about it. Someone said somewhere that our books are basically time capsules because so much time passes between the time it comes to be in our brains and when it actually publishes, and I wholeheartedly agree. It feels like the Sophie who wrote WOMEN was a completely separate person. She was getting back pain bent over her picnic-style dining table, churning out reams of dialogue about a place that was completely inaccessible to her at that moment in time. The new Sophie still has back pain but at least now she has a sort-of office where she can write with the glorious soundtrack of road construction and the occasional fire alarm.
This newsletter is all about Women of Good Fortune. I would love for you to buy the book, to read it, to talk about it. Those of you who read my newsletter know about the swirl of doubt, overanalyzing, and opacity that publication is, and how much can ride on a debut novel. Anything you can do means the world to me.
Here are some ways you can support me!
Pre-order the book: Bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you get your books. Pre-orders count towards the first week of sales and can signal strong interest in a book to a publisher.
Attend my launch event: it’ll be March 21st at the Philly Barnes & Noble and you can register now!
Talk about it on social media: tag me if it’s nice. If you write mean things and then force me to read the mean thing, I will be sad.
For those who are in it for the writing advice and the insider look at publication, I’ll be writing a later installment about the publicity and marketing efforts that went into Women of Good Fortune and what the timeline looks like.
WOMEN OF GOOD FORTUNE LAUNCH EVENT: 3/21/24, 6pm
I do get a launch event, and it is in the beautiful new Philadelphia Barnes & Noble near Rittenhouse Square. I have been to this bookstore many times, and I love the tall bookshelves and the way they display books here. It truly is choice overload in the best way. You can register to attend on Eventbrite. I’ll be in conversation with Jo Piazza, whose book The Sicilian Inheritance is out this year. This is exciting and a relief because I doubt I can just carry on a talk by myself. If you want your book signed, you can order a copy for pick-up at Barnes & Noble or bring your pre-ordered B&N copy to the event.
This event is happening after the book officially releases, which brings an additional fun element of meeting people who’ve already read it. I’m ready to talk weddings, familial expectations, badass women, Shanghai shenanigans. Bring on the questions, which I may reward with fun treats!
WOMEN OF GOOD FORTUNE COVERAGE
Since January, coverage of Women of Good Fortune has picked up. One thing I was warned out when starting on this treacherous journey is that you will notice all the lists you don’t end up on, and no matter how irrelevant they may be to your book, it will rankle you anyway. I can confirm this is true, but that I am also so thrilled by the places that have picked up this book and so honored by the company I’ve been in.
A list of places where she’s been spotted:
NPR’s WHYY Studio 2 Jan 25th episode
Crimereads Most Anticipated Crime Fiction of 2024
BookBub’s 16 Uplifting Books Coming Out in 2024
Goodreads’s 87 New Debut Novels to Check Out This Season
Goodreads’s 96 On-Trend Mysteries and Thrillers for You to Read
GenTwenty’s 60+ Can’t Miss Books to Read in 2024
Beyond the Bookends 98 Fantastic New Winter 2024 Book Releases
Zibby Mag’s Most Anticipated Debuts of 2024
SHARING ABOUT WOMEN OF GOOD FORTUNE
I’m starting to see WOGF show up in people’s Instagram stories and it makes my heart so, so full to see people reading it and connecting with the characters. I am an avid reader, but I also know how many books are published at any given time, so I know how special it is for someone to choose to give WOGF the time of day. Among the things people have said that have made me incredibly happy:
The whole idea and execution feels like something straight out of an Ocean’s Eleven movie.
Perfect for fans of books about strong, clever women who work hard to make their own happiness no matter the cost.
Combine hot women with heists that subtly go against patriarchal values and I am sold.
Some amazing romance side plots that had me swooning.
When you receive the next installment of this newsletter, I will be a published author. I am so excited for this book to finally be available to readers. And thank you, my newsletter readers, for being along for the ride.
Something I wrote today:
“Will you take a vacation when this is over?” Maggie asks him.
He laughs as if she’s told a particularly funny joke. “Now’s when the real work begins.”