Sunday Smatterings
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Hello, lovelies. How are you? While it's been a wild ride this week, I have to admit I've been following Irma reports quite closely. Many friends and loved ones in the storm's path, so while I'm still on tour today, my heart is with you, beloved Florida. Y'all stay strong and safe. ❤️
LIE TO ME touring has made me quite the road warrior—it's been so much fun seeing so many of you in person, and saying hi to new faces. Today I'm in the Bay Area, teaching at the Book Passage Mystery Conference. I prefer to think of it as corrupting the young writers of America, but YMMV...
I'm off to Seattle tonight, signing tomorrow at the wonderful Seattle Mystery Bookshop, then off to my Colorado stomping grounds, where I'll be talking with the brilliant Chris Goff at Tattered Cover – Aspen Grove on Tuesday night. Then a little break. Whew!
Without further ado...
Here's what happened on the Internets this week:
The Best Places to See Fall Foliage in the United States. It's the most wonderful time of the year! 🍂 Even more fun: Sutton and Ethan Montclair's Franklin, TN, is on the list.
The Greatest Goths in Literary History. I've always been a little punk rock and enjoyed the darker side of things—heck, I'm even putting out a Southern Gothic collection later this month! Here's to the darker writers who came before us.
White Shoes After Labor Day: Can You Do It? What say you, dear reader? Can you do it? Full disclosure, I have never owned a pair of white shoes (see punk rocker, above), so I'm doubly fascinated.
Book Review: The Perfect Pencil. Y'all know how much I love a good pencil. That is why the nerd in me wants to read this book.
Ian McEwan's Enchanted Garden. Excuse me while I pick up my jaw from the floor. 😮 WANT!!!!! (The house ain't bad, either...)
Sidekicks People Like Better Than the Main Character. Do you agree?
A Book to Watch Out For: I WAS ANASTASIA by Ariel Lawhon. Historical fiction fans, and history fans in general, don't walk—run—to get a copy of this book. I WAS ANASTASIA comes out next March, but those of you with NetGalley access can request it now. I got my hands on an advanced copy, and it's INCREDIBLE.
[video] New A Word on Words episode: Chemical Reaction with Weike Wang. This week's episode of AWOW finds my cohost Mary Laura Philpott chatting with CHEMISTRY author Weike Wang about her debut book, a coming-of-age novel about a young (unnamed) female scientist who must recalibrate her life when her academic career goes off track. Interesting!
And closer to home:
It's here: LIE TO ME is out! If you've been living under a rock (or missed the banner at the top of the page), you may not know that my newest standalone novel, LIE TO ME, came out this week. And oh, has it been a week. I've been overwhelmed by the flood of well wishes and love from all of you. LIE TO ME is stocked in stores across the land in all formats. Even The Washington Post ran a review that said I've crafted a "compelling story" (let the angels rejoice!). It's been quite a ride—thank you for making all of this happen. ❤️
A few pieces that have run during LIE TO ME release week:
- Pushing Boundaries. If you're looking for ways to level up your writing, I give you 6 ways to do just that.
- Libro.fm's Books We Love. This sampling of HarperCollins new releases popular in independent bookstores is perfect for your audiophiles.
- Instagram Tour of Franklin, TN. The settings in my novels are, to me, characters unto themselves. I love the verisimilitude of writing a place I know so well. LIE TO ME is set in the beautiful, idyllic town of Franklin, twenty miles south of Nashville. If you'd like to see if the settings in LIE TO ME match your imagination, take a peek at my Instagram.
That's it from me! Y'all be good, be safe, read a good book, take a walk in the cooler evenings, and we'll talk again soon.
xo,
J.T.
