The Newport Ladies Book Club

The Series at a Glance: Infographic!

2012-03-05T10:52:00.003-08:00

Below is a great infographic created by Kelly, the great PR gal at Covenant, that sums up the series and shows the first two covers the are finalized, as well as the awesome new pictures we got taken together.

Click to "bigg-ify."

We're looking forward to getting the other two covers posted soon!

Cover Reveal for DAISY!

2012-02-27T17:16:00.003-08:00

We are excited to show you the cover for DAISY, the 2nd installment in The Newport Ladies Book Club series.

DAISY is written by Josi S. Kilpack and will be out May 2012. What do you think?

Spread the Word Winner

2012-02-21T08:15:00.001-08:00

A big thanks to everyone who helped spread the word about the launch for OLIVIA, the first book to be published in the Newport Ladies Book Club!

We'll post pictures from the launch soon, but in the meantime, congratulations to the Spread the Word winner:

Andrea!

Contest: Spread the Word!

2012-02-15T15:30:00.010-08:00

Help us spread the word about the OLIVIA launch party!

Party Details:
Come to the Fort Union Deseret Book store on Saturday, February 18, from 1:00 - 3:00 pm.

There will be (of course) books signed by Julie Wright, plus food and lots of awesome door prizes!

OLIVIA Spread the Word Contest

We need to spread the word! Help us out, and you have a chance to win SIX books by fellow Newport authors Josi S. Kilpack, Annette Lyon, and Heather Moore.

That's right: ONE lucky winner gets ALL SIX books. Not kidding here!

For each thing you do to help, you get an entry to win.

The winner receives the following SIX books:

You totally need to enter, right? (We know!)

Ways to enter:

—Facebook the event, linking to this post (use the permalink, not the generic blog URL: http://thenewportladiesbookclub.blogspot.com/2012/02/contest-spread-word.html), or to the Facebook event HERE. (One entry per day, up to four.)

—Tweet the event, using the permalink to this post or the Facebook event page at the link above. Be sure to use the hashtag #OLIVIAlaunch to help us track your tweets! (One entry per day, up to four.)

—Post about the launch on your blog, linking back to this post. (One post allowed, but it gives you four entries.)

Tip: Use a URL shortener like bit.ly to make the permalink fit in a tweet or FB status better.

That's it!

***

REMEMBER: LEAVE A COMMENT on this post for each thing you do to spread the word so we can verify and track each entry. Be sure we have an easy way to contact you: either leave your email address in your comments, or be sure your email is embedded in your Blogger profile.

The fine print:

Contest is open until noon on Saturday, February 18th. The winner will be announced by Monday, February 19th, and the winner will be notified at that time as well. Winner will be chosen using a random number generator. We are not held responsible for being unable to contact the winner. If the winner doesn't respond with their mailing address by Friday, February 24, the prize is forfeit. Open only in the US in the lower 48 states. The winner will receive Banana Split separately from the other five, after its release.

OLIVIA is here!

2012-02-04T09:10:00.000-08:00

Julie Wright's OLIVIA, the first published book in the Newport Ladies Book Club series, is now available. (Earlier than we were told, be we certainly aren't complaining!)

It's on shelves in stores, and it's also available for the Kindle HERE (seven bucks cheaper).

We'll post more soon about the upcoming launch for OLIVIA, but in the meantime, join the OLIVIA Launch Party Facebook page to be in the loop.

And after you read OLIVIA, be sure to read the excerpt from Josi's book, DAISY, in the back.

DAISY will be released next!

January 2012 Updates

2012-01-23T08:54:00.000-08:00

Things are moving right along . . .

1. We've received a huge response from reviewers. Thanks so much. We aren't seeking additional reviewers at this time, but if you happen to review any of our books, please let us know and we'll post it on the sidebar. OLIVIA will be out in February. It's available for pre-order in paperback and audio CD at Deseretbook.com

2. Josi Kilpack just announced on Twitter that she is working on galleys for DAISY. This means that the book is almost ready for press. Josi is doing a final review. Very exciting.

Speaking of Twitter, all of us are on it. If you'd like to follow:

Julie: @scatteredjules
Josi: @josiskilpack
Annette: @annettelyon
Heather: @heatherbmoore

3. Also, something fun:

In the back of each book, there will be the first chapter of the *next* book included.

In OLIVIA, you'll also get to read chapter one of DAISY.

In DAISY, you'll get to read chapter one of PAIGE.

Etc!

4. We've started drafting the next four books in the series, which will be about Ruby, Ilana, Shannon, and Victoria. On the side bar we've updated the books that the book club is reading.

Need Reviewers for OLIVIA!

2012-01-17T11:01:00.001-08:00

Yes, I'm looking for reviewers for Julie Wright's book OLIVIA, because she is my co-author in The Newport Ladies Book Club series. (big grin)

But this request is a bit different. I'd actually like to find 10-15 reviewers who are willing to review the WHOLE series. Every three months, a different book will be released. So I'll send you each book as it comes out.

Books will be:
OLIVIA by Julie Wright (Feb 2012)
DAISY by Josi S. Kilpack (May 2012)
PAIGE by Annette Lyon (Summer 2012)
ATHENA by Heather Moore (Fall/Winter)

For more information on what this series is about, read HERE.

Reviews need to be posted on your blog and review sites such as Amazon, Goodreads, Deseretbook.com, Seagullbook.com, etc. (it's really easy to cut & paste once the review is written).

Please let me know if you are interested, and I'll send you more details.

heather @ hbmoore (dot) com

Olivia Cover Preview!

2011-12-19T16:50:00.000-08:00

Here is the cover to the first book in the Newport Ladies Book Club series! As cold and shivery as I currently feel, I envy the model in the picture! It makes me want to truck on down to Newport and spend the day on the beach reading.

It's been such a neat process to work with other authors I admire and create something different and new. I signed the contract this afternoon and love how the managing editor at Covenant sends me a letter with the contracts telling me how excited she is for what I'm doing. Those letters are a huge boost to my fragile self confidence. They remind me that someone else loves what I wrote.

Olivia comes out in February. Daisy (by Josi Kilpack) will be coming next--out in either late April or early May. We will definitely be having a launch party for the release, and there will definitely be lots of fun, food and prizes involved.

In the mean time . . . YAY!

Covers coming soon . . .

2011-11-11T06:51:00.000-08:00

This morning we got a sneak peek at our covers! They are fun and bright . . . and will make you want to move to Newport! Thanks to awesome designer Christina Ashby :-) We should be able to show Olivia very soon.

In other news, Olivia will be out Feb 2012 now.

Stay tuned . . .

Latest Update: Not to Be Cruel . . .

2011-11-11T06:45:00.000-08:00

OLIVIA, by Julie Wright, is getting close to done and will be sent off to the press very soon. We hear it'll hit shelves sometimes in mid-to-late February, which will likely move the other books down the calender by a month. (We'll keep readers updated on confirmed release dates, for sure!)

In the meantime, this morning, our in-boxes held a delightful surprise: OUR COVERS!

They're all fun, similar enough to tie together, yet totally different.

And we can't show them to you. (Sorry! You'll have to wait in suspense.)

Here's a clue as to how awesome they are: The designer is the same gal as the one who designed my entire chocolate cookbook. (Yeah, that gorgeous thing. I know!)

We're lucky to have Christina on our team, and we're excited to unveil the covers as we're allowed, maybe one at a time, as the release dates solidify and we're closer to each book's release.

It's happening! The Newport Ladies Book Club is coming!

Release Dates & Book Clubs

2011-09-21T13:15:00.000-07:00

Julie Wright's book, OLIVIA, will be the debut of the series. Official release date is January 2012.

We have a general idea of when the next books will be out, but will let you know when it's more concrete. But the good news is that they'll ALL be out in 2012, and released about 3 months apart.

We're also looking for book clubs who would like to be featured on our blog. We don't have all the details yet, but if you are interested, please email one of the authors or our general account: newportbookclub (at) hotmail (dot) com

How Does the Series Work, Anyway?

2011-09-17T13:34:00.000-07:00

The four of us have had the idea of the Newport Ladies Book Club series in our minds for a long time now, coming on two years.

It all makes such perfect sense to us that sometimes we forget that others can't read our minds. At least, until we have interested readers asking questions, and we realize that maybe we haven't explained everything.

Here's the gist:

The Newport Ladies Book Club isn't a series in the typical sense of the word. The books are actually parallel novels. In other words, instead of taking place one at a time, with book 1, 2, 3, and then 4 chronologically, they all take place over the same period, and to the same characters.

But they're entirely different stories.

The title character in each book has her own story, with her personal set of problems and challenges. The other three women show up in each book, crossing paths and impacting one another's lives in various ways as their friendships grow.

You can read the books in any order, and one book doesn't ruin the end of another.

So you can read Olivia's story and meet Paige. You'll get to know Paige's character and what she's dealing with (at least, a little), but to see all of Paige's story (including how Olivia impacts her), you have to read Paige's book. And so on with Daisy and Athena.

To have a satisfying read, you do not need to read all four books. Each one stands alone as a complete story. Rather, each book supplements the others and enriches their stories.

On the other hand, if you do read all four, you'll see connections and stories that other readers will miss out on.

We didn't co-write the individual books, although we had to collaborate on characters, plots, time lines, geography, and a lot more so the four books would be seamless.

So each book will bear the name of one writer (this may be the release order of the books; we aren't sure yet):

Olivia by Julie Wright
Daisy by Josi Kilpack
Paige by Annette Lyon
Athena by Heather Moore

Between their lives and book club meetings, our characters interact enough that we've spent a lot of time getting to know one another's stories and the details behind them. We've collaborated on conflicts and back story and so much more as we figure out what works in one book and how that influences one story and then the other three.

We've spent weekends at hotels together hammering it all out (and having loads of fun, of course).

We have scenes where all four are present, and we have to be sure the dialogue and other details work. (Did Athena arrive at the October book club meeting before or after Daisy? How did Livvy phrase her commentary on Poisonwood? Wait, did Paige already eat her eclair?)

If you're a science fiction fan, you may be familiar with another parallel set of books: Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow. They're parallel novels in the same way: same characters, same time period, totally different stories.

Only, of course, this is women's fiction, not science fiction, and we have four writers instead of one.

Right now, the series has four books accepted for publication in 2012 (all in the same year, so no long waits for readers!). The first, Olivia, comes out in January. (Dates for the other three aren't finalized quite yet.)

We hope that if the series does well, we'll be able to do a second set of books with some of the other book club members already in the club. (We're already formulating back stories and plot lines for them--so fun!)

This kind of project would never work if we a) hadn't already worked together in many professional situations and b) if we weren't already fantastic friends. There's a level of trust and understanding among the four of us that is something special.

Wherever the series leads us, I can say it's been not only an honor to be part of, but an absolute and utter blast.

ACCEPTED!!!

2011-08-31T14:41:00.000-07:00

Today, August 31st, we received official word from our publisher today that our series has been accepted. We'll keep you posted on release dates & order of books!

Finished Olivia

2011-08-08T18:42:00.000-07:00

Today I finished going over Julie's OLIVIA. It's the last of the four for me to read, and can I say it was so much fun to see how the very same scenes I'd been over in three other books came across fresh and new, and with new new meaning yet again.

While reading OLIVIA, I laughed and teared up, and I finished the last page with a happy, contented sigh.

At one point I came to a detail that appears in all four books, and I couldn't for the life of me remember who had the idea for it originally.

I think this is how true collaboration should be. I count myself so lucky to be part of this project. This could only work with close writer friends who know one another well and think in similar ways.

Now I'm getting eager to hear back from our editors!

Finished reading OLIVIA

2011-08-01T19:01:00.000-07:00

by Heather Moore

I started reading/editing OLIVIA (by Julie Wright) this morning. And I just finished it about 7:00 p.m. I only took a break to go to a lunch meeting and to make sure my kids were where they were supposed to be. It is a fabulous read, full of emotional punch, and Livvy is a character who I wish I could go and help her spray paint "dragon lady" on her mother-in-law's house.

Now that I've read all four book in the series, I can't wait to hear the readers' response. But first, we have to get the official acceptance from our publisher/s, then minor details like editing/cover design/press deadlines . . . and THEN . . . it will be like one big book club.

Get ready . . . get set . . .!

Paige Submitted

2011-07-28T16:20:00.000-07:00

Probably should have posted this earlier . . .

I officially submitted Paige to my editor on Friday, July 22. It's now out to the evaluation people.

What that means: my stomach will be in knots until I get solid news!

That's 3 of the 4 series titles turned in, with the 4th getting really close.

Ruby?

2011-07-19T12:55:00.000-07:00

by Heather Moore

"If" we write the next set of books in the series, which I believe we definitely will, I've been given the character of Ruby. She is the Book Club "mom." When I was reading through PAIGE and DAISY, I started taking some characterization notes. It was a lot of fun and Ruby is already worming her way into my writer psyche.

Her story will have to wait a little while, but I'll keep jotting down notes in the interim.

ATHENA Edits

2011-07-06T20:46:00.000-07:00

Just sent Heather back her manuscript with my notes.

Gotta say, readers are going to LOVE the last line.

(How's that for torture? Teehee.)

Edits: Daisy Done, Starting Athena

2011-07-01T11:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I finished my edits on Josi's DAISY. I laughed and cried and came to totally love her character. It was extra fun to see how our joint scenes (the ones where both Daisy and Paige interact) fit into the whole of her book, since they serve different purposes in Paige's story.

Now I'm beginning edits on Heather's ATHENA. One chapter in, and already, it's a fresh, new character with an entirely different story. Can't wait to finish this one and then dive into Julie's OLIVIA!

Oh, and then go through the edits the others have done on PAIGE. It's hard to explain how cool it is to see how something that began as an idea become real!

ATHENA --submitted to publisher

2011-06-29T08:38:00.000-07:00

By Heather Moore

Well, it's done. Officially. Athena is submitted to my publisher, Covenant Communications. The editors were excited to receive it and said they were just recently wondering when the manuscripts were coming in.

Annette and Josi will be submitting as well any day now. Julie is still finalizing her draft.

I posted my submission letter HERE if you are interested in some of the details of the process.

Finished reading PAIGE

2011-06-28T09:23:00.001-07:00

by Heather Moore

I just finished reading PAIGE, by Annette. I loved the story because it focuses on relationships, and Paige is so different than DAISY that it was fun to see how both totally opposite women lived their lives and developed their friendships.

PAIGE has some heart-breaking moments in it, but it's so fulfilling in many many ways. I seriously want to go be a part of their book group!

Paige--Drafted!

2011-06-25T16:08:00.000-07:00

The final stretch of drafting PAIGE took much longer than anticipated. I had a lot little holes to fill, scenes I'd written notes for but hadn't written yet, and characters deciding to do different things at the last minute.

But it's DONE. At least, the drafting is. Now I get to send it out to my fellow Newport Ladies Book Club authors and let them do their editing magic.

I get to read ATHENA next, and then it's on to DAISY.

I haven't been this excited about a project in some time!

Editing . . .

2011-06-21T09:53:00.000-07:00

by Heather Moore

Josi sent me back her edit on ATHENA. So . . . today I'll start that process and hope that the road is not too bumpy :-)

Last week I read Josi's DAISY. It was such a pleasure to read--Josi has a knack for drawing us into her characters and feeling like they are someone we know personally. I told her that the readers are going to want a DAISY--part 2.

We are getting close to submitting. Probably in the next week or two, then we'll put fate into our publishers' hands.

ATHENA--ready to send to co-authors

2011-06-11T13:04:00.000-07:00

By Heather Moore

I just finished the 2nd draft stage of ATHENA. Yes, I cried at some parts (think the opening scene in Romancing the Stone, well, maybe not that dramatic).

I can't wait to get the feedback from Josi, Annette, and Julie. They are not only great writers, but incredible editors as well. So, it's really a privilege to work with them on this series. They all bring something great to the table.

It's strange when you finish a book, then read through it, and realize that you really know the character. You really care about that character. Even though the characters aren't "real" they represent all of us--our defeats and our hopes--and most importantly friendship between women. There is nothing like it.

Daisy--Final Draft Done

2011-06-10T14:43:00.000-07:00

By Josi S. Kilpack

Wahooo! I'm the first to finish my personal revisions! Not that it's a contest but I totally smoked the team!

Ahem, anyway, we'll be trading manuscripts here in a few days and start editing each others stuff to make sure it's all coordinating, it's been a really fun process having other people write parts of the story that I then change to my character's POV. And, this is the first book I've ever written in first person. I had a really hard time with it at first, but then eventually got the hang of it, although in my revision I would find paragraphs here and there where I'd flipped back into third person.

Exciting stuff!

My official Pitch for DAISY:

Since becoming a mother at the age of 17, Daisy has looked forward to the day when she could check "motherhood" off her list of things to do. At the age of 46 everything seems to be right on track, until she suddenly finds herself facing a very different future then she planned on and an uncomfortable evaluation of the past she thought she understood.

ATHENA--first draft is done!

2011-05-31T14:04:00.001-07:00

The first draft of ATHENA is done. She is one of the characters you'll come to know and love in our series.

Right now, I'm waiting for Josi, Annette, and Julie to "approve" some details, then I'll go through another revision. Then we'll all read each others' books, fine tuning along the way. Excited to officially submit.

My official pitch for ATHENA:

Athena is a self-proclaimed bachelorette—it’s better that way—no one gets hurt. But when tragedy strikes, Athena realizes friendship and love is the only way she can pull through, and she must, for the first time in her life, risk opening her heart.

Madly Writing

2011-05-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

Well, obviously we didn't secure a Spring 2011 release date.

There was some delay with agreements between our publishers, so we put our writing on hold--at least for this series. Everyone continued working on other books and between the 4 of us, we've had several 2010 and 2011 releases.

In January 2011 we decided to press forward and now we are all close to finishing up each of our books. We've met over several weekends and it's been a blast to brainstorm together.

We hope to turn in our manuscripts sometime in June.

Just hit page 200 in ATHENA yesterday . . .

Welcome!

2010-06-14T17:35:00.000-07:00

More information coming soon: the new women's fiction series

The ultimate Book Club book:

The Newport Ladies Book Club series

4 women, 4 books, 4 lives changed through friendship

Release Date: Spring 2011