Penny Watson's Blog, page 16

Reading and Reception at 13FOREST Gallery, June 5, 7-9 pm...Don't Miss It!

LOCAL BOSTON/NEW ENGLAND READERS....
DON'T MISS THE READING/RECEPTION 13FOREST GALLERYArlington, MA
THURSDAY JUNE 5
7-9 PM
✮
CB Anderson, award-winning author and journalist, and Penny Watson (that's me!), will be reading from our recent releases at 13FOREST Gallery on Thursday evening. I'm bringing apple wine, apple cider, apple desserts, and other apple goodies. Also, we'll be selling our books after the reading. Anderson's collection of short stories, RIVER TALK, is a wonderful, beautifu...

It Is What It Is -- Who Dictates The Book?

I've been thinking about this a lot lately: industry-driven and reader-driven publications vs. author-driven work.

Here's how I see the break-down...


1. Industry-Driven

This is NOT the "book of your heart."

This is the book--you/your editor, publisher, agent--anticipate will SELL.

Many professional authors write this way, trying to anticipate/predict what will sell, what is hot, what is the latest trend.

This is why so many authors "jump on the bandwagon" (writing billionaires, NA, BDSM, serials, a...

Review for WAKING THE MERROW by Heather Rigney

Let me just get this right out there from the get-go.

This is without a doubt the coolest debut novel I've ever read.

Heather Rigney, who the hell are you? And where did you come from?

WAKING THE MERROW is a cross-genre, horrifying twist on the mermaid legend. Rigney has seamlessly woven a story that combines horror, comedy, colonial history, fantasy world-building, flawless writing, and the most unappealing yet strangely mesmerizing "heroine" I've ever read. Evie is a short, fat, self-loathing...

Stuff We've Been Doing

1. Shopping for plants.

2. Shopping for seeds.

 
3. Planting stuff.


4. Sowing seeds in veggie garden. (Hubby put up fence to keep out bunnies!)
 
5. Hubby went fishing in New Brunswick.


 6. Reading some books.
WINNERLAND--intense story of survival, just started...LOVE it!
A CONVENIENT ARRANGEMENT--Loved The Italian Wife, The Spanish Groom was not my fav.
BUSHWHACKED--cute novella set in Alaska with beardy hermit hero!

7. Listening to some music. From Pitch Perfect.

Happy Spring,Penny...

How Romance Is Like Lacrosse

How Romance Is Like Lacrosse
Bear with me. I know these two things seem totally unrelated, but based on my personal history, they're actually quite similar.

I coached girl's lacrosse for fifteen years. It was my favorite sport in high school, I started the club team in college, and then after I graduated I coached. When I started playing we had wooden sticks, no headgear, no sidelines, and set offense and defense. It was an elegant, skilled, exciting game.

I coached "old-school." I taught the gi...

The End Of An Era

About six years ago, I started my book blog Penelope's Romance Reviews. I was a super enthusiastic romance reader who loved to chat about books.

I still am a super enthusiastic reader who loves to chat about books.

Unfortunately, the other part of the book blogging community--the part that is essentially an industry-driven business--is not really my cuppa tea. And the associated ruckus and melodrama that's going on constantly--about plagiarism, badly behaving authors, reviewers, publishers, etc...

Off The Beaten Trail

1. Living Plant Jewelry...how cool is this? Check out



2. Looking for something new to read? Check out this debut collection of stories by CB Anderson--RIVER TALK. I love this quote, from Monica Wood...

"I adored these stories, every one of which engaged my mind and my heart. Anderson writes with wisdom, generosity, and beauty about people we don't see often enough in contemporary literature. She g...

When Setting Comes To Life

There is nothing quite as exciting as reading a book when the setting comes to life.

Suddenly, you are right in the middle of a bitterly cold Canadian street. Where you can feel the icicles on your skin, the numbness in your fingertips, the bleakness and despair of the winter freeze. (Thank you, Louise Penny).

This is one of my favorite things, and I have the utmost respect for authors who are able to bring their settings to life.

Over the past few days, I enjoyed two books with this lovely tale...

Heading To The Burgh!

Heading off to the BURGH...aka Pittsburgh, my hometown.

I have a girl's weekend planned with my mom and sister, which hopefully will include watching Pitch Perfect and checking out the spring flower show at Phipps.

My Kindle is fully loaded with...

The Pirate's Secret Baby by Darlene Marshall

Second Chances by PJ Fiala

Bewitching by Jill Barnett

The Chocolate Thief by Laura Florand

That should keep me busy!

Hope everyone has a great weekend,
Penny

The Four Seasons Of A Romance Author

There are four seasons in New England...

Spring


Summer

Fall

 Winter

There are, however, four very different seasons for the romance author. At least as reflected by social media activity on Twitter and Facebook...


1. BEGGING FOR VOTES SEASON
 
Forget about book release promotion. The biggest spam-happy, I'm-begging-you-please, all-in-good-fun season of the year is BEGGING FOR VOTES SEASON.
Too bad the winner doesn't get a tiara.


2. TAKING PICTURES WITH HALF-NAKED GUYS SEASON

Coz nothing says...