Oh, but I have you covered. I’m doing a virtual event with Jennifer Snow and The New Romantics, a romance bookstore in Orlando. (Digression: aren’t all the romance bookstores popping up the BEST? I love them all.) It’ll be on October 8 at 6 p.m. EST. Registration is required, but it’s free. You can get all the details and reserve your spot here. I would love, love, love to see you there.
So I am doing my very first in-person reader event at Novel Grounds, a romance book in Chesapeake, Virginia, on October 12. You can reserve a ticket here, and the price includes a print copy of Bad Reputation—which I will happily sign for you.
Until now, I haven’t done any signings because I didn’t feel like a “real” author. I still don’t, to be honest. But I’m trying to fake it until I make it and to be more confident about promo. (Is my confession adding or detracting from the effect?) It would certainly help me own it if someone shows up for this event. So I would love, love, LOVE to see you there.
Firstly, Funny Guy—my friends-to-lovers romance featuring a chaos Muppet comedian realizing that he’s in love with his order Muppet BFF—is on sale for the month of July in North America only (sorry about that!). For just $1.99, this somewhat polarizing book can be yours. You can grab it at Amazon, and I hope you will.
Secondly, I have two items up for grabs in the Romancing the Vote auction, which opened TODAY and closes on July 5. Option A: you can bid on a signed ARC of Bad Reputation, and I’ll throw in a friendship bracelet that matches the cover. Or if you would prefer, Option B is a Backyard Chicken starter pack, which includes two guides on keeping chickens, plus a signed copy of Chick Magnet, and a 30-minute Zoom call with me. We can talk about chickens if you have them/are thinking about getting them, or we can talk books: seriously, ask me anything!
It’s been an age, and I’m so sorry about that! I have fun and exciting book news (!!!) that I cannot talk about yet. But as a result, I’ve been stuck in my writing cave since late May. I’m approaching the finish line on a draft though, and I hope to emerge–phoenix-like–from the ashes soon.
But on Thursday, July 13th, I’m going to stick my head out to be on Romance Happy Hour, and I would absolutely LOVE to see you there. You can join Shana Gray, Dawn Luedecke, Dylann Crush, and me on Facebook or YouTube at 8 p.m. CT. I’m going to read from Chick Magnet, and I’ll be giving away a print copy. I’m certain it’ll be a great time.
Friends, release week for Chick Magnet was BONKERS in the best way. I have done more promo for this book than for anything else I’ve written before. As a result, I wanted to put together a roundup post so that readers could find all those articles, podcasts, etc. in the future.
I’ll update this with more stuff as it drops–because not all of it is out in the world yet!–but here’s what I have so far. I am omitting reviews because I’ve been doing my best not to read those. ; )
I did a Q&A with Chick Lit Central. You may be especially interested in the link to my favorite ramen recipe.
I’m writing my year end posts, and trying to revise a book, and recording podcasts and writing promo columns for Chick Magnet‘s impending release, but let me just drop a quick post to tell you to enter this giveaway. The lovely folks at Amazon Publishing are going to give away 100 digital copies of Chick Magnet. All you have to do is click.
Also, while I have your attention, The One You Want (the book formerly known as Special Interests) is currently FREE at Amazon. So if you haven’t read it, or you want to recommend it to a friend who hasn’t, click fast. It will revert to regular price at the end of the day on December 27, 2022.
Yet again, months have gone by since you heard from me: I’m so sorry! The good news is that I can offer you one of my best-known and best-loved books for free. Yes, that’s right: Earth Bound is included in today’s RomanceBookworms.com promo, and can be yours for zero dollars. There are more than five hundred other books included, and so the browsing is incredible.
Earth Bound is about two intense engineers who stumble into a secret affair during the 60s space race. I co-wrote it with Genevieve Turner, and by a country mile, it’s book I’ve had the most reader emails about. So if you haven’t read it, or if you’ve been trying to get a friend to take a risk on a historical set in the 1960s, now is the time.
I’ve been just bonkers busy the last few months. I finished drafting the second book for Montlake (and everyone so far has LOVED it), and then I wrote a third of a secret project. For this, I will take any and all good vibes. I was like Leslie Caron in Gigi crooning, “Say a prayer for me tonight” as I clicked send on that email to my agent today.
And we’re getting into the swing of summer here, which somehow feels just as cram-jammed as the rest of the year. So if it’s the same for you, I do hope that Parsons and Charlie for free (did I mention free?) will help ease the sting.
Tomorrow evening, I’ll be moderating a panel on Love’s Sweet Arrow’s YouTube channel to celebrate the release of Olivia Dade’s Spoiler Alert, an absolutely delightful rom-com that riffs on You’ve Got Mail/The Shop Around the Corner and modern fandom. Olivia will be there, and so will the wonderful Mia Sosa, and it’s going to be AWESOME. For more information, check out the LSA page here, and you can register here.
Also, I forgot to mention this in advance, but the country’s other romance bookstore, The Ripped Bodice, teamed up with Besame Cosmetics to do a vintage 60s makeup tutorial for Star Dust. You can watch it here, and it’s super fun and interesting. I’ve actually been wearing eye shadow more as a result, though I’m not nearly this glamorous.
Finally, I’ve been writing. Like a lot. Like I might actually finish a full-length book again. It’s not done, so I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but it feels so good to be writing sort of consistently, to not hate every word I put on the page, and to generally feel like I might want to tell stories again. Just so, so good.
The authors from He’s Come Undone will be day drinking with Molly O’Keefe on her Facebook page on Monday at 4 pm EST. We’re going to donate to the Black Mental Health Alliance for each comment, so come join us and sip on Unravelers, and we’ll give a lot of money to a good cause!
After my big podcasts post back in March (OMG, remember March?), I appeared on another episode of Shelf Love talking about myths about romance. Specifically, I make the argument that romances are well written. It’s an all-around great episode, and you should listen.
Lastly, I’m now unagented. This reflects nothing about my former agent and everything about how I’m a dumpster fire disguised as a writer. I just need to power-cycle everything about how I work and my career and get myself back on track, and I needed a fresh start to do it.
If you’re on our mailing list, you’ve already seen these (and if not, sign up here!), but here are the covers for Free Fall and A Midnight Feast. The blurbs are after the break along with some FAQs.
Emma Barry 