Talli Roland's Blog, page 35

Letting Go

Once you publish a book, it no longer belongs to you. It becomes a commodity for people to love or hate; embrace or burn.

This is a hard, hard lesson to learn -- and one I struggle with. I've poured my wine-soaked blood and sweat into my novel. I've anguished over plot lines, character development and word choices. But once my creation is out in the marketplace, I no longer have a part to play: my work is done and I need to move on.

It's so easy to get caught up in review angst -- stories often circulate of authors who even post vitriolic responses to reviews. But as difficult as it is to accept not everyone likes our work, the reality is that it's inevitable. And in my humble opinion, it's not the author's place to comment. If someone bought my book, they have a right to review it however they like.

Of course I want people to love everything I write. Of course any hint of negativity stings. But if I want to continue to write other (and hopefully even better) novels, I need to learn to let my novel go. On Twitter the other day, I said that as a writer, you need to develop thick skin. The wonderful novelist Katie Fforde responded that as writers, we can't help but have thin skin -- it's what makes us who we are.

So... my thin skin may get a little bruised from time to time. But it's a small price to pay for setting my novel free!

Happy Wednesday!

Check out some great top picks at Authors for Japan.

Authors for Japan

Before I get to today's main post, I want to thank everyone who helped make last week's big book giveaway so amazing! I've emailed everyone whose address I've been able to hunt down, but there are still a few I'm missing: Corporate Girl, Amy Saia, Pam Reader, Saumya and Kate Johnson -- if you're reading this, can you email me (talliroland AT gmail.com). Thanks!

So, onto today. It's horrifying what's happened in Japan, and author Keris Stainton is doing something about it. Over the course of the past two days, she's set up Authors for Japan, an online auction where loads of authors are donating everything from signed books to query critiques. The auction goes lives tomorrow at 8 a.m. until this Saturday, so pop by and check it out!

I'll only be blogging M-W-F until the start of the A-Z Challenge on April 1 to give me time to plough into some work that's built up, so I'll see you on Wednesday. Happy Monday!

Last Day of the Big Book Giveaway!

Woo! It's Friday and it's been a great week (apart from the minor incident on Wednesday). There are few more fabulous books going today, so I'll get straight to it. If you're a donor or a winner, I'll be in touch shortly!


Mousetrapped by Catherine Ryan Howard goes to... BRIGID OF SORT OF WRITING!

The Hating Game (donated by Jen Daiker) goes to... JACKEE AT WINDED WORDS!

Brilliant, by Rachel Howard, donated by Jennifer Hoffine goes to... LYDIA KANG!

Love in the Present Tense, by Catherine Ryan Hyde, donated by Corinne goes to... JEMI!

The O Henry Prize Short Stories, donated by Ann Ormond goes to... ANGELA FELSTED!

Grab bag selection! donated by Deniz Bevan goes to... DEBS RICCIO (Debs, you're a tricky one, but I guarantee you can't have read each book in this selection!) :)

Choice of a Marian Keyes book (courtesy of Jessica Bell) goes to... AINE TIERNEY!


And the rest of this week's winners:

A Heart to Mend, by Myne Whitman... JEN DAIKER
Be Careful What You Wish For, by Alexandra Potter, donated by Len... JUDE FROM MAD ABOUT ROMANCE
Breakthough by Stephen Tremp... LEIGH MOORE
Breakthrough by Stephen Tremp... NAS DEAN
Choice of a Marian Keyes book (courtesy of Jessica Bell)... SUSAN MILLS
Circle of Friends, Book V: Heather, by L. Diane Wolfe... ALEXANDRA SHOSTAK
E2 by Matt... GODDESS OF BLAH
Follow the Cowherd Boy, by J.A. Joshi... MICHAEL DI GESU
From Notting Hill... with Love Actually... CORPORATE GIRL
Hands on the Hips, by Jhon Baker... MATT RUSH!
Like Bees to Honey... JILL KEMERER
Naked in Knightsbridge by Nicky Schmidt... KATIE WORKMAN
Notes from Nadir, by Lisa Maliga... PIEDMONT WRITER
Over You by Lucy Diamond... SALLY CLEMENTS
The Dresskeeper by Mary Naylus... LUCIE WHEELER
The Hating Game (donated by Laura Howard)... SUSAN FIELDS
The Leopard (courtesy of Hilary Melton-Butcher)... ANDREW CULTURE
The Nanny Diaries, donated by Theresa Milstein... AMY SAIA
The Rage of the New Ancestor (ebook, donated by JC Martin)... THE RED ANGEL
The Way of the Wizard:by Deepak Chopra (donated by Hilary)... ANITA DAVISON
This Perfect World (courtesy of Sangu)... PAM READER
Through the Eyes of a Hurricane, by Tracy A Spaine... SAUMYA
Wasted by Nicola Morgan... KATE JOHNSON
Without Alice by DJ Kirkby... JESSICA BELL
Without Alice by DJ Kirkby... KAREN GOWEN

Hope I haven't missed anyone! Thank you to everyone who donated books -- I heart you! Have a great weekend, everyone.

Big Book Giveaway: Day 4!

Thank you for all the comments yesterday! Every one was like a cupcake to my mouth. And speaking of cupcakes, my afternoon yesterday didn't exactly turn out as planned. I'd decided to take the afternoon off, trip down to nearby Portobello Road to Hummingbird (best cupcakes ever), stop off for champagne (at Tesco's, natch), then return to my warm cozy flat for an afternoon of napping and reading (and property shows).

I generally only care about the bit of me people can see. So when I threw on my trusty black Zara coat, I didn't bother changing out of my slobby sweatshirt -- or put on a bra. Ahem. With my black boots, a little lippy and skinny jeans, I was looking pretty damn good, if I did say so myself. I bought the cupcakes, got the champers, and was all set to settle on when... my key didn't work in the door. We'd been having some issues with our deadbolt, and it finally decided to give up the ghost, locking from the inside and refusing to open. I was locked out -- without a mobile, without a bra and without a telly! This is when Mr TR's constant admonishment that I should take my mobile with me wherever I went started ringing in my ears. Sigh.

So, after calling him and leaving a voice mail from my lovely downstairs neighbours, I did what any girl would do: I went shopping and eating! I'm sure the patrons of M&S were wondering why I was hunched over the table sweating in my black coat, but there was no way I was exposing what was underneath. Three hours, £120 and one locksmith later, and we were finally back in the flat. And you'll be happy to hear I did put on a bra.

So now that that's out of the way, here are today's winners! If you are are winner or a donor, I will be in touch (if I can find your email) over the weekend to try to get addresses and such.


50 Ways to Find Lover, by Lucy-Anne Holmes goes to DEBS RICCIO!

From Notting Hill... with Love Actually goes to CORPORATE GIRL!

Circle of Friends, Book V: Heather, by L. Diane Wolfe goes to ALEXANDRA SHOSTAK!

Notes from Nadir, by Lisa Maliga goes to PIEDMONT WRITER!

Hands on the Hips, by Jhon Baker goes to MATT RUSH!

Follow the Cowherd Boy, by J.A. Joshi goes to MICHAEL

A Heart to Mend, by Myne Whitman goes to JEN DAIKER!

Through the Eyes of a Hurricane, by Tracy A Spaine goes to SAUMYA

The Nanny Diaries, donated by Theresa Milstein goes to AMY SAIA!

Be Careful What You Wish For, by Alexandra Potter, donated by Len goes to JUDE FROM MAD ABOUT ROMANCE

More books to give away tomorrow! Happy Thursday, everyone.

Publication Day! And the Oscar Speech

Wooo! It's finally here! I've eaten eight Ferrero Rocher chocolates in one minute!

Before I calm down enough to deliver anything coherent, can I direct you to some places where I'm at today? At Sia McKye's, I'm talking how how to stay fit without leaving the flat. 'Coz who needs the great outdoors, anyway?

At the Minxes of Romances (these gals rawk!), I'm discussing romance and answering other fun questions.

On Chick Lit Reviews, I talk about how I came up with the concept for The Hating Game and how I celebrated when I found out I was going to be published. (I'll give you a hint: it begins with 'w'.)

And at Mel Sherratt's wonderful High Heels and Book Deals, there's the chance to win a copy of The Hating Game (UK only, sorry, but everyone who follows my blog is in the draw to win copies of my novel over the course of this week). All you need to do is answer one teeny question! Hehe! Pop over to have a look.

So on to the Oscar speech!

As isolating as writing can be, zillions of people have helped me out with this novel! It goes without saying that I never would have done this without Mr TR. Or, I would have done it, but it would have taken me much much longer! And a big thank you to my wonderful parents and friends who never once told me I was naive or silly (or just plain dumb) to give up a full-time PAYING job to try to get published.

I want to do a giant shout-out to India Drummond (her novel, Ordinary Angels, is out in April!). India and I "met" through my now-defunct blog a few years ago. She's read stuff of mine that will never see the light of day, offered fantastic suggestions, and just provided me with the general snark needed to make it through the publication maze. Although we've never met in real life, our lengthy telephone conversations are invaluable to my writerly well-being. Thank you, Snark Sister!

Lots of other writers helped, too, and I want to say thanks to Gemma Burgess, Colette Caddle and Miranda Dickinson who all read my ARC and gave me a massive boost of confidence when I was about to vom with pre-release nerves.

And finally (yes, finally!) -- YOU! For reading, interacting, supporting... just generally being the greatest and fantastic-ist group of people ever! You've made my release so much more special than it ever could have been.

THANK YOU!

*wipes tear*

Right, now on to today's giveaway!

The Hating Game (donated by Laura Howard) goes to... SUSAN FIELDS!
*Which is amazing, since Susan was my very first blog follower when I started this blog! Yay Susan!

Wasted by Nicola Morgan goes to... KATE JOHNSON

The Dresskeeper by Mary Naylus goes to... LUCIE WHEELER

Without Alice by DJ Kirkby goes to... JESSICA BALL

Like Bees to Honey (swapped from yesterday with Jess, who already won a copy) goes to... JILL KEMERER

From Notting Hill with Love... Actually by Ali McNamara goes to... DEBS RICCIO

Naked in Knightsbridge by Nicky Schmidt goes to... KATIE WORKMAN


Congrats, everyone. And thank you, again!

Day 2 of The Big Book Giveaway!

Books! Books! Boooookkkkks!

Just a little bit excited over here -- the sun is shining, spring has sprung (along with my hayfever, which I never actually experienced in North America but seems to be coming along nicely here in the UK) and there remains ONE MORE DAY before the launch of The Hating Game!

Would you like to win a signed copy? Head over to the wonderful blogorama of Sangu Mandanna and comment to be in with a chance. And at Catherine, Caffeinated, I'm talking about how social media can sell books. Because it can, it can! And yesterday, I got a lovely review from Chick Lit Reviews -- a fantastic way to kick off my launch week.

Now, on to today's winners! Five books to given away today:


The Way of the Wizard: 20 Spiritual Lessons for Getting the Life You Want by Deepak Chopra (donated by Hilary Melton-Butcher) goes to ANITA DAVISON!

The Rage of the New Ancestor (ebook, donated by JC Martin) goes to THE RED ANGEL!

Breakthough by Stephen Tremp goes to LEIGH MOORE!

Over You by Lucy Diamond goes to SALLY CLEMENTS!

Like Bees to Honey by Caroline Smailes goes to JESSICA BELL!

Congrats, winners! Please email me with your address (talliroland AT gmail.com). Hope you can all drop by tomorrow for the launch day, when yet more books will be given away (including The Hating Game!) and I'll be serving up lots of goodies!

Day 1 of the Big Book Giveaway!

It's here! This is my publication party week, to celebrate the launch of The Hating Game paperback on Wednesday! I'll be giving away 34 books over the week to say thanks for all the wonderful support I've received over the past few months.

A big thank you to JC Martin, who's donated two copies of The Rage of a New Ancestor ebook, and to Sangu Mandanna, who's donated a copy of This Perfect World by Suzanne Bugler.

Today, I'll be kicking this off by giving away six books! All you need to do to be in the draw for the remaining books this week is just follow my blog or comment on Facebook on my blog link.

So here we go!

Without Alice by DJ Kirkby goes to... KAREN GOWEN!

Breakthrough by Stephen Tremp goes to... NAS DEAN!

This Perfect World goes to... PAM READER!

Choice of a Marian Keyes book (courtesy of Jessica Bell) goes to... SUSAN MILLS!

The Leopard (courtesy of Hilary Melton-Butcher) goes to... ANDREW CULTURE!

E2 by Matt goes to... GODDESS OF BLAH!

Yay! If you could all email your address or email (in the case of ebooks) to me (talliroland AT gmail.com), I will make sure your prizes get sent out. Congrats to the winners!

A few people outside of the UK have asked where they can buy my book, since my publisher doesn't have a distributor in Canada or the US (so it won't be in the shops). It will be available on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca eventually, but for now the best place to get it from is The Book Depository, with free worldwide delivery.

Drop by tomorrow when I'll be giving away another crop of books! I'll also be on Catherine Ryan Howard's blog as well as Sangu Mandanna's (where she'll be giving away a signed copy of The Hating Game, too!).

Happy Monday!

Friday Fun!

Next week, starting Monday, I'll be giving away books books books for five days to celebrate the launch of The Hating Game paperback on March 9.
All you need to do is be a follower here, or comment on any blogpost link on Facebook next week! Simple. I just really want to say thank you to everyone in the blogosphere, Twitter, Facebook and beyond who has helped The Hating Game so far. There will also be virtual champers and one of my favourite treats each day.

And more lovely people have donated books!


Stephen Tremp has donated two e-books of the wonderful Breakthrough .
Catherine Ryan Howard has donated a copy of her fantastic auto-biographical account of her time in Disney-laden Orlando, Mousetrapped .

Laura Howard has donated a copy of The Hating Game! Yay!

Jessica Bell has donated two copies of lightly used Marian Keyes books - winner gets to choose!

Hilary Melton-Butcher has donated The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi and The Way of the Wizard: 20 Spiritual Lessons for Getting the Life You Want by Deepak Chopra.

DJ Kirkby has donated another copy of Without Alice!
And here is the rest of the list of books up for giveaway next week; thanks LOADS to everyone who donated!

The Dating Detox, by Gemma Burgess
eSquared, by Matt Beaumont
Over You, by Lucy Diamond
Like Bees to Honey, by Caroline Smailes
Wasted, by Nicola Morgan
The Dresskeeper, by Mary Naylus
Without Alice, by DJ Kirkby
From Notting Hill with Love... Actually, by Ali McNamara
Naked in Knightsbridge, by Nicky Schmidt
50 Ways to Find Lover, by Lucy-Anne Holmes
Circle of Friends, Book V: Heather, by L. Diane Wolfe.
Notes from Nadir, by Lisa Maliga
Hands on the Hips, by Jhon Baker
Follow the Cowherd Boy, by J.A. Joshi
A Heart to Mend, by Myne Whitman
Through the Eyes of a Hurricane, by Tracy A Spaine, by Tracy
The Nanny Diaries, donated by Theresa Milstein
Be Careful What You Wish For, by Alexandra Potter, donated by Len
Brilliant, by Rachel Howard, donated by Jennifer Hoffine
Love in the Present Tense, by Catherine Ryan Hyde, donated by Corinne
The O Henry Prize Short Stories, donated by Ann Ormond
TBD, donated by Deniz Bevan
Jen Daiker has donated a copy of The Hating Game!

Before I go, a big shout-out to Ann of Inkpots 'n Quills, who is holding a 300 followers contest and giving away copies of my book! Head over to check it out, and have a great weekend.

World Book Day!

I'm back, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed! I have not fallen off my chair today, nor flashed any builders, and the ick seems to have left the building. It's all up from here, baby!

Anyway, it's hard to be down on a day that celebrates books! Today is World Book Day (in the UK, at least, which seems to defeat the purpose of the word 'world', but I digress...).

I do love me some book. And I'd like to know:

If you could give any book, ever published, to your 13-year-old self, what would it be?

Sick from the Ick

On a day when I've got the ick from a sickly Mr TR, fallen off my chair (due only to a mixture of clumsiness and laziness), and flashed the builders (you're better off not knowing, believe me), I think it's only right that I ease away from the keyboard and hibernate in my 'don't come near me' cave.

So I'm off.

But before I go, thank you for the lovely comments yesterday! It's one more week until release day! And for those of you who've entered my Name That Character contest (too lazy to insert link), I haven't forgot. I've just been, well... (insert word of choice here).

Oh! And Trashionista is holding a giveaway of The Hating Game (UK only, sorry!). Head over for the chance to win your copy.

Goodbye until tomorrow, when I shall return bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Or, at least, return.