Kirkus Liked My Book!

It's happened. My first trade review. And with one of the toughest reviewers known to publishing. 

There are a lot of feelings that went through my head while anticipating this review. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, all of that. What happens if they hate it? Would it hurt my heart even though I'm mentally preparing for the negative? Would it keep people from buying it? But really ... you can't let that stuff freak you out because it will stunt your creativity. The only thing I have control over are the words I write. That's all I need to concern myself with.

But I won't lie. Getting a nice review is ... nice. The day before my birthday I got word that Kirkus, in fact, found my book to be "an ideal beach read." I'm really so very happy about this. I've been known to form very fond attachments to books I read on trips, so one of my hopes is that people will take it on their own vacations and perhaps read it on the beach! 

I'm also happy my love for Italy came through my words. "While Rae presents an appealing character in Pippa, her evident love of Italy dominates the narrative, making the story feel like an enthusiastic travelogue."

To see the full review of Wish You Were Italian, CLICKY HERE.  

Now Designing Swag

It's true. I got angry when I ran out of swag to design for myself. So after some encouragement from friends, I've decided to offer my services to other authors looking for a designer for their own bookmarks and other swaggy goodies!

Examples of my work can be found HERE, along with contact info and such!

Clearly Great at Follow-Through

I'm one pound heavier than I was January 1 of last year (also the heaviest I've ever been), so clearly I'm great at follow-through when it comes to goals I set for myself. I keep repeating all of these excuses as to WHY I'm a failure. 2013 sucked linty toes. It put me through the emotional ringer. I made bad eating choices. I was lazy too often. My body is still adjusting to what it's been through. I am predisposed to be thicker.

Blah blah blah. Cry me a river.

2013 is over, and we're not going to whine about how terrible it was anymore. We're moving forward, with fresh motivation. New goals. And this year, things will be different. They'll be great.

What I've got my sights on this year:

-Feel better about myself, which includes dropping at least 15lbs.
-Write two books (one YA, one MG--currently drafting both simultaneously GASP)
-Soak up every moment of the debut author experience
-Have a rockin' book launch party
-Meet lots of new writerly and readerly folks
-Read at least 30 books
-Get better at follow-through
-Talk less, love more

Wishing you and yours an amazingly fluffy squishy lovey 2014!!

Countdown Widget!

A BIG thanks to Aly at My Heart Hearts Books for making a countdown widget for 

WISH YOU WERE ITALIAN! 

If you would like to display this lovely on your own blog, just copy the code below.

<div align=“center”> <img src="//img2.blogblog.com/img/video_object.png" style="background-color: #b2b2b2; height: 324px; width: 206px; " class="BLOGGER-object-element tr_noresize tr_placeholder" id="countdown" data-original-id="countdown" /></div>  

 

My First Book Festival!!

I'm so thrilled to be on a panel at the Montgomery County Book Festival, February 15, 2014! I've attended this book festival for a couple years now, and to be invited to participate as an author is such an honor! They're still announcing the author lineup, but I've seen it, and it's exciting!

If you're local to Houston, come check it out. I'll have some ARCs to give away for the teens, and some swag to sign!

For more information, and to read my interview, CLICKY HERE.

In Which I Announce a BOOKISH THING

I've been getting questions about the little "If Only" heart logo in the corner of my book cover. If you don't know what it means, I'm here to tell you!

From my ARC: If only is "A new contemporary romance line centered around an impossible problem: you always want what you can't have!"

I'm super excited to be part of Bloomsbury's new venture, but what's even cooler, WISH YOU WERE ITALIAN releases on May 6, 2014 along with FOOL ME TWICE by Mandy Hubbard! Have you seen her cover yet?!

They look so cute next to each other, I can't stand it! And something else super fun: ITALIAN is teased in the ARC of FOOL ME TWICE, and Amy Finnegan's NOT IN THE SCRIPT (Fall '14) is teased in the back of ITALIAN's ARC. Love!

More official information coming in the new year!

BLOGFEST: Class of 2k14 is Thankful For...

This week, the Class of 2k14 is sharing what we're thankful for. Click the logo above to see links to posts from the other members!

I'm not going to lie, this has been a difficult year. I'm anxious for 2014 to start, hopeful the new year won't be quite so heart smashing. But despite the trials, there's still plenty to be thankful for.

• My husband. The best man in the world. 
• My parents. Supportive. Loving. Funny. 
• My husband's family. I couldn't have asked for better in-laws and nephews.
• My friends. A wide variety of personalities and interests. I love them all.
• My book deal with Bloomsbury. If it weren't for this amazing dream come true, I feel it's likely I'd be wallowing around in a black hole of sadness. This has been a bright spot that brings a smile to my face every day. And I'm so thankful for that. 
• My agent, Marietta Zacker. She's so great, y'all. I can't even believe I get to work with such a talented and kind person who also gets my stories.
• My editor, Caroline Abbey. Smart, sweet, similar interests. Couldn't have hand picked a better editor for my debut experience. 
• The Class of 2k14. I'm learning so much, and it's brought me a new close friend. 
• My boxers, Duke and Mylie. The personalities on these two! We're laughing every day. 
• My tastebuds. I'll be especially thankful these work on Thursday when I'm eating pumpkin crunch cake. 
• Books, and that people are still buying/reading them.  
• Television shows.
• Movies.
• Music. 
• Hair dye. 
• Tap shoes.
• Scarves.
• Airplanes that allow me to visit far away lands.
• Digital cameras, Photoshop, and that I sort of know how to use both of them.  
• Running water.
• Corrective eyewear.

There's plenty more, but I won't bore you. What are you thankful for this year?

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!