An inadequate thank you to book bloggers

I didn’t blog much in 2020 –I didn’t feel I had much to say, if I’m honest I still don’t.  We all know how terrible the year was. As a family, we’ve faced challenges the same as everybody else; illness, hospital admissions, bereavement, an accident, a decline in health, the list is endless. My creativity was non-existent, my productivity poor.

During the first lockdown I spent weeks wondering how I could write alongside home schooling and my husband working from home. This morphed into what I should write, my mind was too cluttered to think clearly. Pre-pandemic I’d been writing psychological thrillers in the morning and contemporary fiction in the afternoons but I knew I no longer had the mental capacity to do this. I had an idea for an Amelia Henley book but publishing my debut love story during a pandemic had been hugely challenging and I wasn’t certain there was a future for Amelia.

Finally I spent the last few months of the year contemplating whether I should write at all. Had I lost my love for it? 2020 was the longest stretch I hadn’t written anything in years. Perhaps it was time to do something else entirely. 

Then came the end of year blogs, the ‘Best Books of 2020’. It’s always so rewarding to see my books featured on these lists and to see multiple entries for ‘The Stolen Sisters’ was hugely gratifying.

But then came something unexpected. I checked my ‘Amelia Henley’ social media channels not expecting any notifications but there was. I was overwhelmed to see ‘The Life We Almost Had’ featured on numerous ‘Top Ten’ book blogs and even voted book of the year.

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I cried and then I replied to the posts I’d been tagged in on to say thank you but thank you doesn’t quite convey just how life affirming and life changing these blog posts have been. 

Today, I sat at my computer for the first time what feels like forever and wrote two small words I wasn’t sure I’d ever write again, ‘Chapter One’ and I feel nervous, excited and above all hopeful, to begin a fresh Amelia Henley story, to have new characters to get to know.

In this post I wanted to try and express, but fear I am failing the importance of book bloggers. How they have allowed me to regroup, refocus.

To try.

Thank you doesn’t quite cut it but I don’t know what else to say.

You really do make a difference. 

Book Clubs – The good, the bad & the boring… #reading

I love discussing books. All of my novels have book club questions at the back and writing questions that I know will spark interesting discussions is such a joy.

I’ve always been an avid reader. As a child I was the only one in my family who read, my friends didn’t seem to share the same intense love of books that I did and subsequently I always felt a little… odd.

After having children, some of the other mums at the school gate suggested forming a book club and I was overjoyed. Every fortnight, for three hours I’d be able to talk about plot, characters, twists. I couldn’t wait.

What actually happened was we met in a bar. Whoever chose the book would say ‘it was ok,’ most people hadn’t read it and then we’d drink and talk about our kids. We had some good nights but…

When I moved to a new area I googled ‘book clubs’ and much to my joy I found one. I emailed the organiser who, after asking me a lot of questions, invited me along to the next session. I immediately bought their current read and when it came curled up in an armchair determined to finish it before the meeting.

It. Was. A. Slog.

I’m all for broadening my horizons and reading outside my usual genres but on the first page alone I had to look up multiple words in the dictionary and that carried throughout the novel (I don’t use the word story here because I wasn’t convinced there was one).

I went along to the group, clutching my paperback, looking forward to meeting new people and hearing what they thought. They had A LOT of thoughts. I needed my dictionary again. I sat miserably nursing my cooling coffee (“we may meet in a pub but we don’t drink alcohol while we’re discussing literature, Louise”) and I felt out of my depth, stupid. Lonely. I never went back.

It’s taken years but finally I have found a book club full of members who are friendly, welcoming and love reading as much as I do. Surprisingly it’s online which I always thought would feel detached but, over time, I’ve got to know a lot of the members who I now class as friends. This Facebook group, The Fiction Café, is run by Wendy Clarke who is one of the nicest people I have met (and this group do physically get together for events when they can). I’m in awe of her and the admins who put in hours tirelessly running author live events and buddy read alongs. My only fault with this group is that every time I drop by I end up buying recommendations and my TBR pile is out of control!! If you’re a book lover of any genre do check them out here.

Also, a shout out to Book Connectors run by super blogger Anne Cater. This group is a mixture of bloggers, authors and readers and I love reading the bloggers book posts about forthcoming releases they have already had the chance to read. There’s also some interesting discussions about publishing in this group. Anne doesn’t stand for any nonsense and it feels like a very safe space to speak. You can find Book Connectors here.

My publisher HQ, Harper Collins, is currently hosting an online book club every Thursday afternoon. This Thursday I’m the featured author and will be talking about my newly published debut contemporary fiction book ‘The Life We Almost Had’ written under my penname Amelia Henley. With my research taking me from Lanzarote to Magdalen College in Oxford where I studied neuroscience there’s LOTS to talk about with this very unusual love story.

If you haven’t read the book yet you can buy it this week for 99p across all digital platforms – links below. If you buy the Kindle version (or have already bought it) you can add the audiobook for just £3.47.

Do give it a read and join my Thursday at 3pm GMT on my Facebook author page and I’ll be answering all your questions. Here’s a link to the prologue if you want a taster.

‘The Life We Almost Had‘ is currently 99p across all digital platforms during August. Download it from Amazon, iBooks, Kobo or Google.

You can preorder the paperback from Amazon or Waterstones prior to its 3rd September release or support your local bookstore. 

The Life We Almost Had – COVER REVEAL & NEWS

 

The cover reveal is one of the most exciting parts of publishing a book. Today, I’m revealing my new cover during these strange new times we have found ourselves in, not with my usual excitement, but nevertheless, I’m pleased to show you my beautiful cover for ‘The Life We Almost Had.’ (BIG shout out here not just to my publishers, but to ALL publishers for working so hard to still get books out there during challenging circumstances. Now, more than ever, we need the escapism that stories can bring).

‘The Life We Almost Had’ is being released under my pen name Amelia Henley and is a bit of a mixed genre, but at its heart it’s a love story. HQ are billing it as ‘the most romantic book you’ll read this year.’ This weekend the first three readers have read it (one man and two women) and ALL have cried. ‘Unusual and compelling’ ‘Beautifully heartwrenching’ ‘Such a strong story of courage, loyalty and hope’ is some of the feedback I have received so far.

The story of Anna and Adam which is partly set on a Spanish Island based on Lanzarote asks – How far will you go for a second chance at first love? The book club questions at the back of the novel will lead to some pretty interesting discussions (from a safe distance) around morality I hope.

It’s available to pre-order in the UK now via Amazon, iBooks, Google Books, Kobo or Waterstones and will be published on 23rd July in the UK with details of the US publication date to follow. Please also do support your local indie bookshops. Many are happy to take orders and post them out even if they aren’t physically open at the moment. In these incredibly testing times where many authors are currently unable to write due to homeschooling their children, and publishers are finding themselves with closed offices, printers, suppliers and retailers please do support the publishing industry so we can keep putting stories into the hands of readers.

Here’s the blurb: –

This is not a typical love story, but it’s our love story.

Anna wasn’t looking for love when Adam swept her off her feet but there was no denying their connection, and she believed they would be together forever.

Years later, cracks have appeared in their relationship. Anna is questioning whether their love can really be eternal when a cruel twist of fate delivers a crushing blow, and Anna and Adam are completely lost to one another. Now, Anna needs Adam more than ever, but the way back to him has life-changing consequences.
 
Is a second chance at first love really worth the sacrifice? Anna needs to decide and time is running out…

For book reviewers and bloggers, The Life We Almost Had will be available to request on Netgalley this week. Please do bear in mind that NetGalley requests might take a little more time than usual to be granted right now. Everyone is doing the best they can to keep things running smoothly.

Soon I’ll be sharing a little more about why I wrote this story, what it means to me and the details of the online launch where there will be giveaways. In the meantime, take care.

Amelia/Louise X

 

 

Harrogate 2019 – What’s Theakston Crime Festival REALLY like?

Harrogate is a festival I’ve always avoided, along with all the other festivals, partly because I’m such an introvert that the thought of walking into a throng of people & joining in random conversations is SO daunting, and partly because I have a chronic health condition and while I’m more mobile than I have been in years, standing is more painful than moving & not knowing if there are chairs available is always a worry.

Everything in my head is always a worry.

This year my new publisher HQ Stories, Harper Collins, invited me along to sign proof copies of my forthcoming psychological thriller, The Family.  Before the automatic ‘no’ sprung from my lips I hesitated. Each year I see everyone’s happy Harrogate posts and photos online and wish I’d have gone. Always promising myself that the next year I would, knowing that when it came around again I’d once more be at home regretting not taking the plunge.

My husband offered to drive me, knowing that I tire easily, particularly if I have to stand. Super blogger Emma Mitchell promised to look after me.

I said yes.

Emma met me at the entrance (once she’d peeled herself off the floor).

I met Emma after she’d read my debut, The Sister, and contacted me and she’s become one of my closest friends and definitely one of the best things to come out of being published. We speak most days, meet when we can despite the distance between us and the second I saw her I relaxed, knowing I’d have a good time.

And I did.

The first thing to know about Harrogate, particularly if you have limited mobility is that it is SMALL. Crowded, yes, but SMALL. Everything is based in, and around the grounds of, The Old Swan Hotel (the place where Agatha Christie disappeared in 1926). Inside there’s a bar area with sofas and chairs. A tuck shop with table and chairs, hot and cold drinks and food (sandwiches, salads, jacket potatoes – all reasonably priced). Outside is a larger bar, picnic tables and chairs, all undercover and various deckchairs and outdoor seating. There are also multiple tents with (surprise!) bookish things happening and giveaways.

The second thing to know, particularly if you have social anxiety, is that it’s friendly, and if you’re on social media you probably know more people than you think. It was great being with Emma, but plenty of people go alone and EVERYBODY is happy to chat. There’s a really chilled out, relaxed vibe.

The third thing to know is don’t rock up without tickets to the bigger events expecting to buy them there. You won’t. And with speakers like James Patterson, Harlan Coben, and Ian Rankin it’s no surprise everything sells out beforehand. That said, there are plenty of people who purely go to hang out and chat and don’t want to attend any talks or workshops and that’s perfectly okay. You don’t need a ticket to go.

Much to Granger’s delight dogs are very welcome in the grounds.

It was great to catch up with Kim Nash – the Head of Publicity – for Bookouture who did such a fabulous job with my first 4 titles. She was with Miranda Dickinson. I first met Miranda when I went to a blogger/author event before I was published. She came and sat next to me with a pile of her books that someone had asked her to sign. I had sat there, heart racing, palms sweaty – just say hello and tell her you’re a fan – playing over and over again in my head. I was too nervous to speak but now, as we share an editor,  I managed to squeak out an ‘I love your books!’ and after Miranda gave me a pep talk on confidence and being your own biggest cheerleader I now love her too.

It was lovely to finally meet Louise Beech who I’ve long been a fan of and she was just as lovely in person as she is online. It was great to say a ‘thank you’ in person to super bestseller Linda Green. I messaged Linda on Twitter a couple of years ago asking her advice relating to the industry and she immediately sent me her phone number and spent a long time chatting through my options and (many) concerns. (Refer to earlier – the writing community is SO friendly).

Meeting the book bloggers I haven’t met before was a definite highlight. I was a blogger long before I was an author so I think we rock… Emma Welton, along with Emma Mitchell, has been a great support since the beginning of my career, always kicking off my blog tours and it was a surprise to chat and find out it was the first time we had actually met – I felt like I knew her so well.

And of course meeting readers. Chris came all the way from Belgium with the Dutch editions of my books for me to sign.

The proof party was crazy. We ran out of copies within eight minutes. I was grateful to all the people who turned up and sorry that not everyone got to go home with a book.

I’m so pleased I went to Harrogate for the first time – it won’t be the last time. If you, like me, have ever sat at home, scrolling through photos, but finding the thought of going too daunting, give it a go. I think you’ll be pleased you did. Granger and I will be there in 2020 – see you next year!

My new book deal, book 5 blurb & an evening of crime!

I was over the moon yesterday to share the news that I’ve signed a three-book deal with the Harper Collins imprint, HQ. You can read the official announcement here. I’m very much looking forward to working with their dynamic, creative team.

HQ will be publishing my fifth psychological thriller, The Family, next year. The Family has characters I’ve become extraordinarily attached to whilst writing it. It’s the story of Laura who is grieving after the loss of her husband following his sudden death. She’s struggled to hold it together for her daughter, Tilly, and realises she needs help. When all seems lost, she turns to a group of apparently well-meaning strangers. But, as they settle into their new community, sinister things begin to happen and Tilly becomes enthralled by the ‘head’ of their new family, Alex. It soon becomes clear to Laura that she needs to get her daughter away from Alex, but is Tilly too far gone to be saved?

Tilly and her mum, Laura took me through the whole range of emotions whilst writing from fear for their safety to utter heartbreak. I can’t wait to share where the inspiration came from and to get it into the hands of readers when it’s published on 17th October 2019.

 

My first day with HQ kicked off to a brilliant start with their crime writer’s showcase event held in their swanky offices, with stunning views overlooking the Thames. It was a chance for authors, book bloggers and book sellers to connect over canapés and inevitably, plenty of booze.

It was lovely to put faces to twitter handles and meet those bloggers I hadn’t met before as well as authors and this is where I get ridiculously self-conscious, still unable to believe after a lifetime of loving stories that I’m mixing with actual writers – me!

I’m feeling incredibly grateful right now. A BIG thank you to all who have supported me. I’m so excited to see what the future holds.

Louise x

5 reasons why I LOVE book bloggers

 

It upset me greatly recently that there was a flurry of scathing posts on Twitter regarding book bloggers.  Partly because I loathe any kind of negativity (my Twitter bio states ‘In a world where you can be anything, BE KIND’) but mostly because I’ve got to know many book bloggers over the past couple of years and they are honestly amongst the nicest people I’ve met.

Here are five reasons why I LOVE book bloggers.

1) As a reader, I often found myself browsing book shops feeling confused and overwhelmed.  There are SO many books (and I’m incredibly indecisive) it was almost impossible to make a choice. I’m a slow reader, averaging two books a month and with such a low quantity, quality is imperative. I’ve a selection of book bloggers now I always turn to when looking for recommendations. They have similar tastes to me and I trust their judgement completely. If they say a book is brilliant, I buy it. I’ve never been disappointed.

2) Pre book-bloggers I was stuck in a bit of a reading rut. I knew the genre I most enjoyed and was hesitant to step outside of it. My trusted book bloggers have opened my eyes, raving about stories I’d never have found on my own. I now adore young adult fiction, historical and I’ve even read some dystopian books which I’d never have bought without such glowing reviews. I don’t think I even knew what dystopian was…

3) I’m a writer, so I’m going to be honest and say how much bloggers have helped me gain visibility. I signed a book deal for my debut with a small, but fast growing, publisher with a limited budget for marketing.  The publicity manager arranged a blog tour for me and soon, to my utter delight, my cover was prominent on all social media channels. Even if not everyone read the blog posts, although I know many do, seeing the same image over and over is hugely beneficial when a reader is scrolling through Amazon and instantly recognises a cover.  My sales grew through word of mouth. I really don’t think I’d have sold over a million books if it wasn’t for the support of book bloggers and for that I am hugely grateful.

4) Book bloggers have helped me improve my writing. I’ve never had much confidence in myself and I’d never been in a position where I could afford to do a writing course but I was so eager to learn my craft. Looking through some of the Amazon and Goodreads reviews can be soul destroying but I’ve found reviews from book bloggers to be really beneficial. Not everyone who blogs about one of my stories loves them, and that’s okay. What I’ve found is the majority of reviews are fair and constructive. I’ve welcomed that constructive criticism and used it to tighten my writing, develop my characters. To make each book better than the last.

5) Lastly, but by no means least, I love the sense of community and friendship there is within the blogging world. As a blogger myself, although I rarely now review books, I’ve made some life long friends, many of whom I’ve now met in real life (usually at a bar…) Most book bloggers don’t get paid for reviewing books, they give up massive amounts of time because they are passionate about stories. As a child I thought there was something wrong with me. I was the only one in my family who read. I was so utterly absorbed in stories the characters became my friends, their world became mine. To discover there are a multitude of readers who love stories as much as I do has made me feel I fit it. I have found my tribe. That tribe are book bloggers. Leave them alone!

Blogger & author shenanigans- it’s more than just drinking

Yesterday, I bid my husband goodbye & jumped on a train to Birmingham for a day of drinking hanging out with bookish peeps. Writing is absolutely my dream job. I wouldn’t change it for the world but sometimes even dreams can have cracks in them and I admit that going from a hustle-bustle-busy working environment, to spending long days talking to creating characters, can feel a tad isolating at times. 

It was fabulous to catch up with old friends and have the chance to make some new ones. The book bloggers I haven’t met before, but feel I already know, were just as warm in person as they are online. I’m now even more excited about The Surrogate Blog Tour next week (and receiving my toad in the hole recipe from Joanne Robertson!) 

For me, the chance to grill other writers about their approach to novel writing is invaluable and after a long conversation with the lovely Barbara Copperthwaite, I came away feeling much better about something that had been troubling me about my own approach to writing a first draft, which had felt quite slap-dash. Slowly, and largely due to events like these, I’m realising we all have our own way of doing things. There is no right and wrong.

It was wonderful to hear the news that several I’d met last year had finished their novels, some  were submitting and there were 2 book deals to celebrate. Each and every writerly success I hear of gives me a warm fuzzy feeling that had nothing to do with the wine. There can never be too many books.

On the journey home, I was exhausted but happy. Feeling incredibly grateful to be a part of such a friendly and supportive community. 

Huge thanks to Kim Nash & Holly Martin for organising the event.

Waiting for reviews – does it get easier?

After months and months of writing The Gift this morning it all came to an end. I signed off on the typesetting files, and at lunchtime it was uploaded to Netgalley and sent out to book reviewers, and it will be officially published in just two weeks.

It seems far longer than five months ago I was waiting anxiously for the first reviews to come in for The Sister, my debut novel, but I still remember that anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach as thoughts rushed in at me from all directions, and none of them were good. ‘What if no one likes it?’

With the second novel. I had hoped the process would be easier, but I find myself restless again, unable to settle.

As I look around I see a pile of laundry, books waiting to be read, admin to be caught up on, but I cannot concentrate. Instead I wait and I think about the highs and lows of becoming an author, and despite the gnawing anticipation, the nagging feeling that my second book might not be as well received as my first, I think about how lucky I am. Finally published. I am so glad I never gave up on my dream.

Why a book review changed my life

 

As a child, when the school reports were handed out, my stomach churned with anxiety. It’s not that I was a bad student, but I was very shy and this was something teachers were quick to point out. Every. Single. Year.

‘Louise has a good grasp of English but doesn’t join in the class debates, and needs to…’

‘Louise excels at maths but is very quiet in class, and needs to…’

‘Louise produces some excellent work but fails to put her hand up, and needs to….’

 But. But. But. And it didn’t matter how much I studied, the exams I passed, or the homework I always (nearly always) handed in on time. It was never enough. I was never enough. There was always a ‘but’ no matter how hard I tried. My results were good but my personality was always in question and my fragile confidence shrunk year after year, and the more I was told to speak up, the more insular I became.

Last month when my debut novel ‘The Sister,’ went out to Book Bloggers I was literally shaking with fear, and for days and days I couldn’t face seeing if there were reviews. I was writing my second novel and I knew I should look and take anything constructive and use it to improve my writing, so I took a deep breath, and logged on to Goodreads and clicked on a review which said: –

‘The Sister is Louise Jensen’s first novel but shows the maturity of a writer who is already very skilled at her craft.’ ‘Louise’s writing style captivated me instantly. I could hear and see each scene as it unfolded.’

So that was the good bit and I read on waiting for the ‘but….’ and ‘she needs to….’ but there wasn’t one and I’m not ashamed to admit I cried. Throughout this process I’d felt that if one person enjoyed reading Grace’s story it would all be worthwhile and suddenly it all was. Not everyone will like my story I know. Not all my reviews will be glowing, but that’s ok.

Publishers and authors talk about how important reviews are in terms of sales, of getting your name out there but I never thought they could have such an impact on the way I feel about myself.

The reviews have eradicated the memory of sitting, hands trembling, while my Mum sliced open the envelope containing my school report. That feeling of never being enough. I finally feel that I might be, just the way I am.

 

 

A day in the life of…Book Publicist Kim Nash

 

Kim Nash – aka Kim the Bookworm – is Publicity and Social Media Manager for fast growing publishers, Bookouture, a fairy godmother to the authors she represents, book blogger and all round Wonder Woman. On top of her daily commitments, Kim has just completed her annual charity walk for The Hibbs Lupus trust, with her son Ollie. So what does a book publicist do all day? Let’s find out…

 

I get up early, to try and squeeze in some work and social media activity before my 8 year old (Ollie) wakes up. We’re all early birds at Bookouture so from around 6am we’re checking Amazon rankings and sharing the news on our internal system.  Then I do the school run and get back to my desk.

Each day is different and I love that. Some days I have skype calls with my authors, some days I have to contact loads of press, some days I’ll be parceling books up to send out to press contacts, some days I’ll be contacting reviewers etc, organizing blog tours, organizing features and question and answer sessions.  There are days when we have cover reveals and NetGalley uploads to do and publicise so I have to prepare for those and then get chatting about in on social media so people know what to expect and when.

If I remember to eat during the day, I grab something quick and work through till it’s time to pick Ollie up from school or after school club. He normally sits at my desk with me and does his homework while I carry on and do a bit more work or if the weather is nice he makes me go outside and play football (he’s football mad!) He’s golden though and puts up with his mom working and constantly on the phone and only tells me off occasionally!

Then we cook tea together and settle down for the evening, me normally with my phone in my hand tweeting or facebooking one handed while watching a film before we settle down for bed with a story. Then I either get back to work after he’s in bed, or that’s my reading time.  I’m not a big TV watcher so am not one for sitting watching the soaps.  I find them a total waste of time and I have the attention span of Dory anyway!

I’m also an independent consultant for a skincare, make-up and health and well-being business too so I normally squeeze in a bit of contacting people about that, or watching podcasts or soundcloud audios and training for that, when Ollie is in bed.

I run a book club locally, so make sure that everyone knows about that and organise our guest authors. And I organise author and blogger meet ups in both London and Birmingham, so am busy with sorting stuff out for those too! All great fun though and keeps me busy and out of mischief.

 

Thanks so much for sharing Kim. You can listen to Kim speak more about her day on her Thankbookfor podcast and hear her unique way for teaching her son his left and right here, and find Kim’s blog here.