Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

Big congrats go out to holdenj! You've won a copy of Allison Winn Scotch's TIME OF MY LIFE. Just shoot me an email with your address (email me at brenda[at]brendajanowitz[dot]com) and Allison will sign a book and mail it out to you!

Thanks to everyone who entered! And just remember, the book is out today, so run out and get your copy today!!!

Author Interview and Book Giveaway: Allison Winn Scotch

Today we have got a real treat! New York Times bestselling author Allison Winn Scotch is here to chat! The paperback release of her NYT bestselling novel, TIME OF MY LIFE, comes out on August 4th, and she's offering readers a chance to win a signed copy!


Now, you may know Allison from her amazing blog, Ask Allison, or perhaps you remember her from my Publisher's Weekly Soapbox column about how important it is for authors to think high concept. Or you might have even seen her on the New York Times bestseller list for her second novel, TIME OF MY LIFE. (And no, we just can't say the New York Times bestseller thing enough. If I were Allison, I'd seriously consider getting a tattoo about it....)

Yes, well. Allison is busying writing bestselling novels, hitting the NYT Bestseller list and writing an influential blog, and yet she STILL has time to visit us and answer some questions!

AND give away a signed copy of the paperback release of TIME OF MY LIFE to boot! How great is that?! So, without further ado, let's hear from Allison:

Tell us about your most recent novel in 25 words or less.

Unhappy stay-at-home mom is haunted by her “what-ifs” and is granted the chance to go back in time and change the future. (If she wants to.) (Sorry, that’s 28 words!)

What are you working on right now?

Toiling on my next book, which is still untitled, or else I’d let you know the fancy name. It sort of flips Time of My Life on its head: a very happy, very fulfilled small-time guidance counselor is granted the unwelcome ability to see into the future and discovers that what she envisions to be the perfect life is actually anything but.

What are you reading right now?

I’m about to dive into Elin Hilderbrand’s newest book, The Castaways. She made a fan out of me with Barefoot, which is one of my all-time favorites, so I always buy her books the first week they come out. I also have Julie Klam’s Please Excuse My Daughter on my nightstand. She’s a friend (and an amazing Twitter-er – go follow her!), and I just know I’m going to love it.

How do you fight writer’s block?

Oh boy, I generally find about 100000000 other things to do rather than write. My ability to procrastinate is legendary. Honestly, I can waste an entire day on the internet doing nothing at all. That said, when I’m in the thick of writing, the only way that I can get around that dreaded blank brain space is...to write. I force myself to sit down and write, period, no matter how painful it is. Often times, once I get going, I discover that I DO have something to say, I just didn’t realize it. On a more technical front, whenever I find my characters up against a wall, I throw some action at them: screw up their lives in some way. The only way to propel a plot forward is to create conflict, so if things are stagnating (both in my imagination and in the book), this is the surest way to amp things back up again.

If your book were to become a movie, who would you cast?

Well, the good news is that Time of My Life actually is being made into a movie! :) The producers have been wonderful in soliciting my opinion and keeping me in the loop, and we’ve discussed probably about seven or so lead actresses. On our short list include Keri Russell, Reese Witherspoon, Jen Garner, Anne Hathaway and a few other wonderful actresses. I think, frankly, that there are a lot of actresses who would be incredible in the role, so I’m always hesitant to play favorites. As far as the guys, I think it depends a lot on who is cast as Jillian, but my personal call for Henry might be Michael Vartan, though again, Patrick Wilson, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Affleck...there’s a long list I could choose from. And for Jackson, you just need one of those hot late-20-something/early 30-something guys: Chris Pine, Bradley Cooper, Scott Speedman, Taylor Kitsch...hmmm, I could go on all day. :)

So could we, Allison. So could we! Thanks so much for stopping by today! We shall now all mentally debate Michael Vartan v. Patrick Wilson and Bradley Cooper v. Chris Pine for the rest of the day....

To enter to win a signed copy of TIME OF MY LIFE, just leave a comment at the bottom of this post. To get another entry, blog about it! OR, to get yet another entry, email five of your friends about this contest (and cc me on the email so that I can account for your extra entry- brenda[at]brendajanowitz[dot]com).

The lucky winners will be announced on August 4th.

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

Big congrats go out to Alison from alisons-bookmarks.blogspot.com and trishalynn0708 -- these lucky ladies have won copies of Saralee Rosenberg's DEAR NEIGHBOR, DROP DEAD!

Not a winner this time around? That's okay! Tomorrow, we'll be giving away a signed copy of the highly anticipated paperback release of Allison Winn Scotch's TIME OF MY LIFE. So, don't forget to check back here for a chance to win more books!

Another holiday book giveaway!

We had so much fun giving away books that we're going to do it again!

Since books are the perfect gift to give this holiday season, we're offering you another chance to win a box full of books. The winner will get signed copies of all of these fabulous reads:

THE ASTRO TWINS LOVE ZODIAC:

THE ESSENTIAL ASTROLOGY GUIDE FOR WOMEN

by Tali & Ophira Edut
JACK WITH A TWIST

by Brenda Janowitz

SCOT ON THE ROCKS
by Brenda Janowitz
MAGIC AND THE MODERN GIRL
by Mindy Klasky

WIFE GOES ON
by Leslie Lehr

CITY DOG
by Alison Pace

THE MEMORIST

by M.J. Rose

TIME OF MY LIFE

by Allison Winn Scotch

To enter, just email brenda@brendajanowitz.com and write “Another holiday book giveaway” in the subject line. You must be a subscriber of the www.brendajanowitz.com mailing list to enter.

Want extra entries? Post a blog entry about this giveaway and/or email five friends about it. For each blog entry and each email you send out, you'll get another entry to win!

Winners will be announced on December 16. So what are you waiting for? Enter today!

BIG time

First it started over at Trashionista, when the lovely ladies over there posted a video clip of the incomparable Meg Cabot. (Okay, how much do we love Meg Cabot?!)

Then, Allison Winn Scotch continued the discussion over on her blog, Ask Allison (and if you're not reading her blog, um, why not?!). Allison talked about having a BIG idea for your book (yes, all caps, please!) and why it's important to think about high concept ideas for your fiction (well, at least the fiction you're hoping to sell, anyway).

I broadened the discussion out to my Mediabistro class, and we talked about what makes an idea "high concept," or as Allison puts it: BIG! And, for me, there's no better example than Allison Winn Scotch's latest, TIME OF MY LIFE. TOML is the story of a woman who gets caught up in the what-ifs of her life, and finds herself seven years in the past, able to fully explore the what-ifs, and take the path not taken.

Talk about a BIG idea! First of all, it's easily explainable. Also, it's the sort of book that would be perfect for a book club-- it will generate lots of discussion and will bring up some really serious issues for people: What if I married someone else? What if I never quit that job?

And, most importantly, can't you just see the movie now?!

The book is really resonating with lots of people out there who can relate to the idea of having lots of what-ifs in their lives. I read the book and gobbled it up. I absolutely loved it and would recommend it to anyone-- even those of you out there who don't think about what-ifs (I personally don't-- I try to just look ahead). The writing is so smart and thoughtful, you can't help but fall in love with this book.

I guess that's why it just made the New York Times bestseller list!

Other writers who I think deal in BIG ideas are Jodi Piccoult, Emily Giffin, and Sophie Kinsella. What are some BIG books and what makes them high concept to you?