10.30.16 - Sunday Smatterings

Hello, friends, and welcome to All Hallows' Eve Eve! Do you have your candy ready for the trick-or-treaters? Have a big party planned? What's your costume going to be?? I think it'll be a quiet night for the Ellison house, though I should probably get last-minute costumes for the Thrillerkittens... after all, All Souls is our 3 year cataversary. How cute would that be?

I went to Canada this week, and met with my publisher. It was awesome. More on that later in the week, when I can do it justice. I am beavering away on the last pass on THE DEVIL'S TRIANGLE, so no more fun for me until that's complete. 

Anywho...

 

Here's what happened on the Internets this week:
 

I adore my A Word on Words co-host, Mary Laura Philpott. A brilliant mind with a wit to match, she wrote this piece in The Washington Post this week. Y'all. Read it to your kids today—it's so important to teach our girls they can save themselves, no matter who and where they are.

Need a last-minute Halloween costume idea? I've got 10 creepy costumes from books, ready and waiting for you to recreate them! 👻

Speaking of books, here are 11 of the greatest parties in literature! Which one would you like to go to the most? Hmm...

Y'all know I'm a sucker for office supplies. Which is why I love these desk accessories for book lovers! Be still, my heart.

Heads up: 50+ paranormal romance novels, PLUS a Kindle Fire (!) are up for grabs! Click here to enter.

"I can’t stress enough the importance of getting away. It doesn’t have to be fancy or expensive, but changing your location, taking some time off, and unplugging does wonders in the long run." YES!!! I couldn't agree more. A change of scenery is a good thing when you're stuck in a rut, and this is why it's good to get away every once in a while.

And closer to home:

The Wine Vixen found 12 spooky wines for Halloween!

If you've been waiting for the NO ONE KNOWS paperback, now's your chance—it comes out on Tuesday! Paperbacks make a great stocking stuffer, I'm just sayin'.

Deal Alert: What Lies Behind is .99 on Kindle today only! What a bargain!

That's it from me! Have SO MUCH FUN tomorrow, be nice to your trick-or-treaters, and we'll talk again soon!

xoxo,
J.T.

10.23.16 - Sunday Smatterings

Hello, my lovelies. How are you today? I hope you're having a lovely Sunday, sitting out on the porch with something nice to sip and something nice to read. I've been enjoying some cooler porch weather here in Tennessee. I relish the days when I step into a crisp morning instead of a muggy cloud (blech!). The ThrillerKittens are loving it, too—I couldn't keep them inside even I wanted to; it'd be like... well, herding cats!

I know, I know—you come for the links, but you stay for the jokes!

Anyway...

 

Here's what happened on the Internets this week:

Is there a better feeling than browsing a beautiful bookstore? Hardly. At lease one of these bookstores in Buzzfeed's 19 most beautiful bookstores in America is sure to appear on your next road trip itinerary. 

"Unlike books, tablets do not offer an opportunity to display taste or refinement. Books will never go out of fashion." This article from Aeon is a lovely defense of print, and gives a history of books as a status symbol.

Is social media toxic to writing? In a word, YES.

Looking for a Halloween costume? Take a page out of Scout Finch's book.

Y'all know I'm a sucker for notebooks and journals. Here are 11 journals that readers will love using to record their TBR lists.

Last call for this Romantic Suspense 50-book/Kindle Fire sweepstakes! There are some good ones in here, y'all—don't miss out!

OK, stop what you're doing right now and read "I used to be a human being" an article from writer Andrew Sullivan. I'm serious—go do it. And I challenge you to read the entire thing without picking up your phone. A nugget of goodness here:

 This new epidemic of distraction is our civilization’s specific weakness. And its threat is not so much to our minds, even as they shape-shift under the pressure. The threat is to our souls. At this rate, if the noise does not relent, we might even forget we have any.

It's so good stuff, I promise you. You'll thank yourself later.

 

And closer to home:

If you haven't grabbed a copy of my newest book, THE FIRST DECADE, now's the time! (psst: it's only $4.99 on ebook!)

And if you're been saving your pennies and waiting for the NO ONE KNOWS paperback, it's up for pre-order! 

That's it for today, y'all. Don't get into trouble, snack on candy corn, and we'll talk again soon!

xoxo,
J.T.

10.16.16 - Sunday Smatterings: Southern Festival of Books edition

Welcome to another Sunday! It's been a special weekend in Nashville--Southern Festival of Books time!  Three days packed with books, authors, panels, food, and friends... really, what more can you ask for? Here are a few shots of my weekend, starring, in order: my panel, with Jaden Terrell and I cutting up (photo courtesy of Genny Carter), the awesome Megan Abbott, my buddy Laura Hill from Reading Rock Books, Paul from NPT in my favorite shirt ever, the divine Victoria Schwab, snacks at the Oak Bar, my housewife crush, Helen Ellis, the adorable Meg Mitchell Moore, comrade-in-arms Ariel Lawhon, pointing and in hat, ghostly hands in the men's room at the Hermitage and a pile of housewives (photos courtesy of Helen Ellis), and my book haul. 

A good time was had by all.

Now, on to the links!

A most fascinating story that backs up something I've always believed: The Secret Life of Trees: The Astonishing Science of What Trees Feel and How They Communicate 

Solid productivity advice: To take control of your email inbox, think about it like your IRL mailbox.

From Bustle: 11 Desk Accessories Every Book-Lover Needs In Their Working Space

One of my favorite series is Deborah Harkness's All Souls Trilogy. I've been rereading A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES this week, and say this awesome short video: Yoga and The All Souls Trilogy (cc @DebHarkness)

In case you didn't already know this, LitHub edifies Why Calvin and Hobbes is Great Literature.

This is a fantastic piece for my fellow writers. I don't mean to provoke any sort of existential crisis, but deciding "What Kind of Writer Are You?" if a great exercise. 

And closer to home: We Made A Book! 

Here are all the details you need to purchase THE FIRST DECADE in PRINT!!!!

And a little piece I wrote about it on the Tao,  Plus a short piece about friendship and books on the divine Laura Benedict's blog

Thanks for being here. We'll see you next time. Have a great week, and #keepreading!

XOXO,

JT

10.11.16 - SURPRISE! I have a new book out today!

My anniversary as a published author is just around the corner. My very first novel, ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS, released into the world for the first time October 23, 2007. 

But 2006 was when everything started really happening for me. It was a huge year, very exciting, very scary. My awesome agent (the brilliant Scott Miller) was shopping my novel to New York publishers. I placed a couple of short stories. I was part of a stellar line-up on an award-winning blog called Murderati. 

It’s amazing to look back on that year. I’m so glad I was a regular blogger, because I’m not much of a journaler, and the blog gives me a week-by-week snapshot of all the exciting things that happened those first couple of years. 

Now, I have 18 novels under my belt, and a wad of short stories. I co-write with Catherine Coulter, and co-host a literary television show. I’m writing standalones on my own—my ultimate goal—and I’ve started a publishing house for my fiction that doesn’t fit in with my traditionally published work.

Which is why I’m writing this post. 

Over the years, many people have asked if they could have a print version of my shorts. I’m so thrilled to be able to offer this option at last.

Today, my very first print novel through Two Tales Press is available. It’s aptly named THE FIRST DECADE, and represents my most popular and personal favorite short stories written over the past ten years.

It also has two brand-new, never-before-seen stories that I wrote expressly for this collection. Plus, it’s a delight to have my best work over the past ten years in one place, in a tangible, physical book. Because we all love that new book smell, right?

THE FIRST DECADE is available through all your favorite retailers, and with any luck, your local independent bookstore as well.

(though you will have to ask them to order it for you) We are partnering with several stores where you’ll be able to get copies (more on that later). 

I hope you’ll grab this one today, and spread the news to your friends as well.

Buy the Print Book

Download the ebook

Thank you for always supporting me and my writing. You mean the world to me!

10.9.16 - Sunday Smatterings

Y'all, it has been a crazy couple of weeks. We've known for months that the second half of the year was going to be busy, what with the regularly scheduled deadlines and book tours and conferences supplemented by parental joint replacement surgery and multiple tapings for Season 2 (!) of A Word on Words. And then Mother Nature decides to send a hurricane right at our beloved beach? It's the perfect metaphor, isn't it? Happily, the joint-replacee is doing great, the show is great, the deadlines were met, the hurricane did superficial damage, and I'm home of the foreseeable future (at least until November, LOL). Half of me is so sad we're heading into the second week of October, and the other half keeps saying "only 8 more weeks and things calm down!"

These are the blessings of my life, and trust me, blessings they are. Though I am looking forward to a quieter 2017. 💤

So. Here's what happened on the Internets this week:

First things first: if you'd like to help those who were devastated by Hurricane Matthew, here are some organizations you can look into for spreading the relief effort. Your help is so greatly appreciated!

Ever dreamed at working at a bookstore, or at least being Kathleen Kelly in You've Got Mail? Then you're gonna love these 17 behind-the-scenes secrets of working at a bookstore. I worked at a mall Waldenbooks for a while, and it was a blast.

A headline I know you didn't think you'd see today: Charles Dickens was a real-life Ghostbuster. Yes, we're getting into that time of year, people! 👻
 

If you're not reading the Bliss House series by Laura Benedict, you are missing OUT! Laura's prequel to the series, THE ABANDONED HEART, comes out Tuesday, and you need to go get it!!!! It's perfect reading for the Halloween season.

Looking to update your fall wine fridge? Here are 6 varietals to stock as the weather gets cooler.

 

And closer to home:

Would you look at this beauty!!!! Last week, the cover for Nick & Mike #4, THE DEVIL'S TRIANGLE, made its debut and I don't think Catherine and I could be more thrilled with how it turned out! Mark your calendars for 3/14/2017, y'all, and pre-order it here.

The final episode of A WORD ON WORDS Season 1 just aired, and my guest couldn't have been a lovelier person: the wonderful Ariel Lawhon!!! If you're into historical fiction, you've got to check out Ariel's newest book, a masterful work on the Hindenburg's final flight—appropriately titled FLIGHT OF DREAMS.

That's it from me! Y'all be good, deck your porch with the trapping of fall (send pics, I'd love to see your decorations!) and I'll talk to you again soon!

xoxo,
J.T.