Allison Winn Scotch's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

We love Allison Winn Scotch. Plain and simple. She's definitely our girl. Loves mindless TV. Admits to wearing not just acid washed jeans but high-waisted acid washed jeans. And she writes damn good novels. Her third, The One That I Want, was just released in paperback and it's the perfect summer read. If you haven't yet devoured it (or even if you have) we suggest you immediately treat yourself to a copy (avail everywhere from Amazon to Target to Costco), sit back (preferably poolside with a cocktail in hand) and enjoy. Because you will. The One That I Want is the story of Tilly Farmer, a girl who’s seemingly perfect life begins to fall apart after an old childhood friend gives her the gift to see into the future. Doesn't it sound juicy? Well if you leave a comment, you'll be entered to win one of five copies! We'll randomly select the winner on Friday, July 1 after 6pm EST.

And now just another reason we love Allison. Her Do's and Do-over list...

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...ALLISON WINN SCOTCH'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER.

DO'S

1) DO let yourself feel nostalgic. One of the questions I’m most often asked, when discussing my books, is if I relate to my characters, who often get tangled up in their past memories. And my answer is always the same: of course. I love tugging out old photos, laughing at people’s ridiculous ‘80s (and ‘90s) hair on Facebook, hearing a song on the radio and remembering an old love. I think there’s a lot of value in honoring your past and preserving the good memories that came out of it. But that’s about where it ends. Allowing yourself to feel those twinges, and then taking them and finding a way to make your current life more fulfilled. Stalking your exes on Facebook isn’t going to get you anywhere other than on the road to unhappiness.

2) DO find someone who accepts you for you. I wrote an essay recently about an old boyfriend, for whom I tried to change everything about myself. And what struck me most about it was how grateful I am to have found someone for whom I haven’t had to change one iota. I sing as loudly as I want in the car (it indeed annoys him, but he lets me do it), I look like all hell broke loose in the morning and he doesn’t care. More importantly, he’s never made me doubt who I am, what my instincts are, or what I’d like to do with my life. It’s not that our marriage is perfect, but certainly, when it comes to criteria that should top the list of a healthy relationship, I’ve learned that acceptance has to be number one (or at least top three).

3) DO embrace your light side. In other words, if you watch the Bachelorette and other insipid reality shows, raise your hand and be proud! Damn proud! Okay, maybe not that proud. Maybe let’s just whisper it to each other. But still *quiet voice*: I love mindless TV, and I’m not afraid to tweet about it. Here’s the thing: I work really hard, I take care of my family, I read A LOT. And if at the end of the day, I want some escapism, I say, bring it on! And if, even after that, I want to read every single thread on Television Without Pity, analyzing all the ridiculous antics and sure-to-disappoint spoilers, well, bring that on to. Why? Because I’m worth it.

4) DO let yourself screw-up. I bet I’m not the first person to say this here, and I certainly hope I’m not the last. One of the most valuable lessons in my career has come from failure – the first book I wrote (which in hindsight was just totally and completely wretched) never sold, and it forced me to either step up and suck it up and do the work to write a better one, or quit. You know which one I chose. And ditto this for all of my relationships: all of my break-ups lead to where I am now, and sure, those break-ups were fraught with emotion and anxiety and certainly pain, but each was a valuable lesson for who I was becoming and who, eventually, I’d become.

5) DO go with the flow. For those of you who know me as an author, this one might surprise you because I am very, very anal about my job, but when it comes to everything else, I’m actually pretty laid-back. I’ve found that stressing out over things that I can’t control just leaves me...more stressed, and that not being flexible or able to accommodate life’s changes also just leaves me...more stressed. What’s the purpose? There isn’t any. I try to let the little stuff slide. There is, after all, a reason that they call it “the little stuff.” It’s easy to forget that when you’re in the thick of it, but at the end of the day, I promise, none of the smaller (albeit annoying) obstacles matter nearly as much as the big picture. So I’ll end with that one, actually. DO think big. Always.

DO-OVER: Gosh, I’m pretty comfortable with my life choices, even when they were total catastrophes (because, to be clear, there have been plenty of catastrophes), but we do probably need to discuss my fashion choices in my younger years. The 8th grade perm. The ill-advised double-dose of Sun-In that summer at camp. The acid washed jeans that were pulled (and belted!) just under my boob line. Oh dear. With all due respect to Esprit and Benetton and Guess...really? You couldn’t have made me look at least semi-okay during my formative years? I guess not. Oh well. Back to my first DO: I guess the good news is that I can reminisce, but then, I can also log off and try to pretend that (fashion) period never existed in the first place.

To find out more about the fabulous Allison Winn Scotch, visit her website and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks, Allison!

xoxo,

L&L

Elin Hilderbrand's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

I'm sure you're not surprised to hear that our close friends and family come to us for most of their book recommendations.  Anyone who has stepped foot in either of our houses knows that we read A LOT of books. (And we have the overflowing bookshelves to prove it!)  And we have a few picky readers on our hands that we only recommend the VERY best books.  Liz has someone in particular that she always really want to impress with her awesome book choosing prowess.....her Mom. So after she ate up Elin Hilderbrand's Silver Girl in eight hours flat over Memorial Day weekend, she felt totally comfortable giving it a double thumbs up to her Mom. And she thinks that you'll love it also!

That's why we're totally stoked to have the fabulous Elin sharing her 5 Do's and a Do-Over today.  We're huge fans of all her fantastic books and think that Silver Girl should be on your MUST-READ list this summer.

In Silver Girl, Meredith Martin Delinn just lost everything: her friends, her homes, her social standing - because her husband Freddy cheated rich investors out of billions of dollars.

Desperate and facing homelessness, Meredith receives a call from her old best friend, Constance Flute. Connie's had recent worries of her own, and the two depart for a summer on Nantucket in an attempt to heal. But the island can't offer complete escape, and they're plagued by new and old troubles alike. When Connie's brother Toby - Meredith's high school boyfriend - arrives, Meredith must reconcile the differences between the life she is leading and the life she could have had.

Set against the backdrop of a Nantucket summer, Elin Hilderbrand delivers a suspenseful story of the power of friendship, the pull of love, and the beauty of forgiveness.

You're dying to read it now, right?  Well, good thing we have FIVE copies to give away!  Just leave a comment and you'll be entered.  We'll choose the winners after 6pm PST on Sunday June 26th.

And now for Elin's 5 Do's and a Do-Over.  We are lovin' her vices!

CHICK LIT S NOT DEAD PRESENTS...ELIN HILDERBRAND'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

1. Do read the best fiction available. I always say that reading is as much a part of my job as writing.  I am a very "nerdy" reader in that I have a list of books I plan to read and I do not deviate.  I also read from beginning to end and I never give up on a book, no matter how difficult or dull I'm finding it.  I get my book recommendations from magazines, just like everyone else, but I also have a few very close and trusted reader friends who feed me must-read titles.  I go back and read the classics as well.  This spring, I read The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald

2. Do travel. I've traveled on six continents.  Being in another country, and especially a country where the citizens are not thinking about your country, is a very elucidating experience.  My favorite countries are Vietnam and South Africa.  The place I've been where America and American culture is completely irrelevant was Chile.  The Chilenos have their own fabulous thing going on, and it has nothing to do with us.

3. Do have a vice. Mine is sitting in the sun.  It's as bad for me as smoking two packs of cigarettes a day, and I'm sure I look like I'm a hundred years old even though I'm only forty-one, but I love the beach, the ocean, and the sun and I'm not giving it up.

4. Do have two vices. My second vice is French champagne.  I drink Veuve Clicquot.  It's expensive and it gives me a headache, but I wouldn't want to live without it.  Best enjoyed very very cold, preferably with some fresh oysters while wearing very high heels.

5. Do listen. We're only put on this earth once, and for a short time.  The most important thing we can do is to connect with other human beings and to connect in a meaningful way, we have to listen to one another.  This is especially crucial if you're a doctor, a divorce lawyer, or, like me, a writer who is constantly trying to emulate true human interaction on the page.

DO-OVER

If I could do one thing over it would be to learn to say no.  My thirties especially were marked by me saying yes to everything and everyone, and running around like a crazy chicken because I was overcommitted and overextended.  At one point, I was writing novels, raising three children, and sitting on three boards and two committees.  Now when I think someone is going to ask me to do something or join something where I will have to do something, I just offer to donate money, and that usually accomplishes the dual goal of shutting the asker up and saving me time.

Thanks Elin!  xoxo, L&L

To read more about Elin, find her on Facebook and Twitter!

Liz & Lisa's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

So we're quickly figuring out that writing these features is a lot harder than we'd thought it would be- but it's been a lot of fun! Don't forget that it's not too late to enter The D Word HUGE ASS giveaway! .

Here's how the contest will work-It's simple!

• Buy The D Word(only 2.99!) and email us the receipt at  Lizandlisa@chicklitisnotdead.com to receive an entry to the contest. There is no limit on the number of entries. Every copy of The D Word purchased= one entry.

• And as a bonus to those who've purchased The D Word, if you also purchase a copy of I'll Have Who She's Having (only .99!!!) you will receive an additional entry.

• Just email your receipt(s) to Lizandlisa@chicklitisnotdead.com and put "launch contest" in the subject line.

All receipts must be received by TUESDAY JUNE 21st at MIDNIGHT PST and this contest open to US/Canada only.

Click HERE to see all the FAB prizes you could win. (Hint: IPAD2!)

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...LIZ & LISA'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO-Liz

DO treat yourself to good spray tan every once in a while. Besides the fact that I think the super-hot spray tan girl was totally judging my boobs, this was a great experience! It gave me a little more swagger in my step for the next 7-10 days.   Maybe your indulgence is a hot-stone massage, keratin hair treatment or a mani-pedi with extra massage.  Whatever it is, just remember to take time out of your incredibly busy life to do something nice for yourself every once in a while.

DO forgive others and yourself often. Being angry takes so much energy!  People often tease me that I never stay mad for long and it's true-forgiving the people you're upset with and moving on is the best gift you can give yourself.  Holding on to it is unhealthy and can be destructive.  And don't forget to forgive yourself too!  We all make mistakes, some small, some HUGE, but just remember that tomorrow is a new day.

DO-Lisa

DO realize the power of a teammate in friendships, in partners, in business, in life. I am so lucky to be able to write books with my BFF. But our working relationship would never be a success if we weren't a team. And the same can be said for my marriage. And with my other close relationships. Because, let's face it, we don't always get along and we don't always agree, but we should always be willing to hear each other out, give each other the benefit of the doubt and have each other's back. Bottom line: you don't always have to be on the same page, but you DO have to be on the same side.  That's being a teammate. And if you can get that part down, the rest is smooth sailing.

DO live in the moment. DO appreciate what you have. DO be present. DO be happy. This is probably what I have to work on the most. Constantly doing what I call "pushing the re-set button" and promising myself yet again that I'll stay present, that I won't get caught up in negativity and won't let toxic people and frustrating situations get the best of me. And instead of letting my mind wander to what's wrong, keeping it focused on the positive that's right in front of me. There's a magnet on my refrigerator with a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt: Yesterday is history, Tomorrow is mystery, Today is a gift.

DO-Liz & Lisa Do remember it's never too late to pursue your dream We may have talked for TEN years about writing a book, but we finally did it. It may have taken one of us threatening the other and there may have been some man-handling involved but once we put finger to keyboard, the words flowed and we wondered why we'd waited as long as we did.  So never think that you can't.  Because you can!

LIZ AND LISA'S DO-OVER

This one is tough.  We'd love to say that we have no regrets, but c'mon, let's face it, we grew up in some fashionably unforgiving times.  In fact, we think we'll just present photographic evidence of what should NEVER be repeated.  And yes, that is US in the pictures.

xoxo, Liz & Lisa

Amy Hatvany's 5 Do's and a Do-over

As much as we love us some light, fluffy reading to escape from the week, we also really appreciate when a book tackles heavier issues with just the right tone.  In fact, it's usually those books that resonate with us for long after we read the last page. That's why we're pleased as punch to feature the lovely  and talented Amy Hatvany and her latest novel, Best Kept Secret today.  It's a story about a mother struggling with alcoholism and trying to put her life back together after her world falls apart-it's a summer must-read!

Cadence's drinking snuck up on her - as a way to sleep, to help her relax after a long day, to relieve some of the stress of the painful divorce that’s left her struggling to make ends meet with her five-year old son, Charlie.

It wasn’t always like this. Just a few years ago, Cadence seemed to have it all—a successful husband, an adorable son, and a promising career as a freelance journalist.  But with the demise of her marriage, her carefully constructed life begins to spiral out of control.  Suddenly she is all alone trying to juggle the demands of work and motherhood.

Logically, Cadence knows that she is drinking too much, and every day begins with renewed promises to herself that she will stop.  But within a few hours, driven by something she doesn’t understand, she is reaching for the bottle - even when it means not playing with her son because she is too tired, or dropping him off at preschool late, again.  And even when one calamitous night it means leaving him alone to pick up more wine at the grocery store.  It’s only when her ex-husband shows up at her door to take Charlie away that Cadence realizes her best kept secret has been discovered….

Sound good?  Well, we have five copies to giveaway-just leave a comment and we'll choose the winners on Sunday June 12th after 6pm PST.  Good luck!

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...AMY HATVANY'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

5 DO'S

1.  Do make a gratitude list. I used to snark at this idea, but after practicing it for a while, it has literally become impossible for me to feel grateful and irritated at the same time. In moments of stress, shifting my focus to all the wonderful things in my life lessens the weight of the negative and reminds me how blessed I actually am.

2.  Do wear red. It’s a power color! I always feel so confident and strong when I slip a red piece of clothing on. I even got married (ahem – the second time) in a blood red dress (Go figure: the only person not wearing white in the wedding party was me.) Find the shade that works for you and embrace your inner sassy minx!

3.  Do help someone else out when you’re having a bad day. It can be something as simple as telling a co-worker how great she looks in a particular outfit, or even making surprise dinner for a friend and delivering it to her house. Helping others lifts my spirits so much, and gets my mind off my own “stuff,” even if it’s just for a little while.

4.  Do get to bed early one night a week. Whether you’re single or have a partner, the extra rest or additional “quality” time is a must. In our busy, busy lives, moments filled with wonderful conversation, or just snuggling beneath the covers alone and reading a book in peace and quiet – pure bliss!

5.  Do speak kindly to yourself. Negative self-talk has been so damaging to me in the past. I would NEVER speak to someone I care about with the same judgment and disdain I have used on myself. Several years back, I made a commitment to knock it off, and wow, what a difference! No one deserves your love and compassion more than you.

DO-OVER

If I could, I’d convince the little girl I used to be that exercise is pleasurable, not punishing. That way, it wouldn’t feel like I’m being forced to walk the plank on my way to the gym!

Other than that, there is very little I would change about my life. I’ve had a few wishes for “do-betters” for mistakes I’ve made along the way – a few hairstyles come to mind (anyone else have the 1980’s Wall O’Bangs?) - but overall, I believe everything  I’ve done, mistakes included, has led me to the woman I am today. And I’m pretty okay with her.

Thanks Amy!  xoxo, L&L

To read more about Amy, head on over to her website or find her on Facebook and Twitter.

Claire Cook's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

Crack open the bubbly! Because one of our favorite authors and people is in da house. Claire Cook is back to partay with us at Chick Lit Is Not Dead because her eighth book- Best Staged Plans- is out TODAY! (Has it already been a year since we celebrated the release of Seven Year Switch?) Where did the time go? And speaking of time...where does Claire find the time to write so many darn novels? (*She recently revealed the answer to that question over at International Chick Lit Month. Hint: It starts with waking up and ends with at the crack of dawn!) Anywhoo, back to the partay!  Best Staged Plans synopsis: Sandy Sullivan is a professional home stager who lives and works in the Boston suburbs. So getting rid of her own house and downsizing should be a breeze, right? Well, best staged plans and all, Sandy’s husband, Greg, is dragging his feet and their son, Luke, has returned home and moved into the “bat cave” in the basement.

Sandy reads them both the riot act and takes a job staging a boutique hotel recently acquired by her best friend’s boyfriend. The good news is that she can spend time in Atlanta with her recently married daughter, Shannon. The bad news is that Shannon soon receives a promotion and heads back up to Boston for training, leaving Sandy and her Southern son-in-law, Chance, as reluctant roommates. And then Sandy suspects her best friend’s boyfriend may be seeing another woman on the side. Fixing up houses may turn out to be easier than fixing up lives.

And if you leave a comment, you'll be entered to win one of five copies of Best Staged Plans. We'll randomly select the winner after 6pm EST on Thursday, June 9th.

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...CLAIRE COOK'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

5 DO'S

1. Do rise above the negativity. People will tell you why you can’t or shouldn’t do whatever it is you want to do. Sometimes seeing you go after your dream reminds them of what they’re not doing in their own lives. Sometimes it’s simply jealousy. But whatever the motive, don’t let it hold you back. You have to decide you’re just going to do it anyway. You might want to protect yourself a bit in the beginning, too. I didn’t tell anyone about my first novel until it was finished. You don’t need anyone’s permission – as Nike famously said, just do it!

Long shots happen every day. Believe in them. Believe in yourself. And if there are people in your life who aren't supportive of your dreams, dump them if you can. Or at least stop sharing your dreams with them.

2. Do work your butt off. It’s tough out there, so make it a point to always do more than the situation requires. I did this when I was trying to break in to the publishing biz, and I continue to do it on a daily basis. I meet every deadline. I dive back into a manuscript again and again and again - whatever it takes to make the novel I’m working on as good as it can be.

3. Do decide to be who you really are. The buzz word these days is branding, but I think of it as authenticity.  Being a novelist is the first job I’ve ever had where I wasn’t pretending, or at least trying to pretend, to be a slightly different person. Who I am and what I write are totally in synch. There’s tremendous power in that!

And remember, if everybody’s doing it, it’s already been done. Put a little surprise in everything you do. Originality counts!

4. Do remember karma is a boomerang. This is the truest thing one of my characters has ever said. So do something nice for someone and set that boomerang in motion.

It’s easy to get needy when you’re struggling to figure out what’s next, or you hit a low point in the rollercoaster of your life, but many of the fabulous things that have happened to me (including the Must Love Dogs movie and a Today Show feature!) were triggered by something nice I did for someone else. People talk; your actions determine what they say.

5. Do make friends with the Internet. Whatever your goal, the Internet can help you get there. Learn everything you can about the world you want to conquer – it’s all online if you take the time to look for it, including an ehow video on just about everything! Get your computer and social networking skills up to speed and start connecting – new readers are discovering my books through Facebook and Twitter every day. I’ve also learned to design my own website and taught myself iMovie and Photoshop – so helpful for putting my own stamp on things and interacting with my amazing readers.

DO-OVER

Don’t wait around for someone else to make it happen for you. “Nobody gives you power. You just take it,” Roseanne Barr once said. Boyohboy, do I wish I’d learned that one earlier. Here’s the truth: you’re only the center of your own universe. Everybody else thinks of you as a far lesser planet – and that’s if you’re lucky – most people aren’t even thinking about you at all! I think I spent far too much time waiting around politely for other people to give me my power, when, to mix metaphors, I was like Dorothy and those ruby slippers – I had it all along.

So whatever it is you want in your life, figure out how to make it happen yourself. You’ve got the power

Thanks, Claire!

xoxo, Liz & Lisa

Claire Cook wrote her first novel in her minivan in the parking lot outside her daughter’s swim practice when she was 45. At 50, she walked the red carpet at the Hollywood premiere of the adaptation of her second novel, MUST LOVE DOGS, starring Diane Lane and John Cusack. Midlife rocks! Her seventh novel SEVEN YEAR SWITCH has just gone into paperback, and her eighth, BEST STAGED PLANS, will be published today! And make sure you connect with Claire on Facebook and Twitter, too!

Alison Pace's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

It's FINALLY here! A Pug's Tale by Alison Pace (well it will officially be here tomorrow but what's one more day, right?). It's a sequel we've been waiting for since we fell for Alison's completely lovable novel, Pug Hill. And ever since we discovered this gem of an author, we've been in love. Because there's no one quite like her. Her writing is smart and funny and even a little bit quirky- in a good way! And she writes about pugs- what's not to love about that? They're like the cutest dogs evuh! A Pug's Tale Synopsis: There are pugs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art!

Hope McNeill has worked at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for years, but this is the first time she's been able to bring along her pug, Max. (Officially at least. Previously she's had to smuggle him in inside her tote bag.)

The occasion: a special "Pug Night" party in honor of a deep-pocketed donor. Max and his friends are having a ball stalking the hors d'oeuvres and getting rambunctious, and making Hope wonder if this is also the last time she gets to bring Max to the museum.

But when a prized painting goes missing, the Met needs Hope's--and Max's--help. In her quest for the culprit, Hope searches for answers with an enigmatic detective, a larger-than-life society heiress, a lady with a shih tzu in a stroller, and her arguably intuitive canine. With luck, she'll find some inspiration on her trips to Pug Hill before the investigation starts going downhill...

Sound like a fun read? We think so! And if you agree, just leave a comment and you'll be entered to win one of five copies of A Pug's Tale. We'll randomly select the winners after 6PM EST on Wednesday, June 8.

And now Alison entertains us even more with her fabulous list of Do's (love the perfect schmerfect reference!) and a very important Do-over.

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...ALISON PACE'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO'S

1. Let Yourself Say Hokey, Cliched Things Like, Perfect Schmerfect (though, present moment excepted. try not to write them). Always with writing, I believe in putting one foot in front of the other and in not trying to be perfect.  I believe in this with most other things, too.

2. Get a Dog!  This is not just for writers who'd like to write books about dogs.  Really.  Other than solo submarine pilot, writing, the day-to-day routine of it, is one of the loneliest pursuits I can think of (er, um, of which I can think?)  Having a dog with you as you're writing can be not only company but oftentimes inspiring, and always calming.  And I'm a big, huge, tremendous believer in the fact that dogs connect people to the world --from the walks you must take them on, to the people you meet because of them, dogs bring you out into the exterior.  That's a big thing if you're hoping for a career that is so interior.  And I get a lot of thinking done, sorting out of plots and characters and the likes when I'm walking my dog, too.  In my mind, it's win-win-win :)

3. Go Elsewheres! At some point in your life, try to live somewhere where you don't know anyone.  First, you get a lot of writing done at first because you don't know anyone and have no plans.  Bonus!  But also, being in a strange place lets you get to know yourself better and I think, scary as it can at times be, a bit of introspection makes for a *much* better writer.

4. Give Bad Books a Second Chance. About three years ago, I started an essay collection and the first draft was very, very far from what we could call "working." I put it aside and felt tremendously insecure about going back to it.  I started other projects, finished other projects (namely A PUG'S TALE which I hope you enjoyed!) avoiding the unfinished essays. About six months ago I was pretty sure I'd have to scrap the whole project but told myself I'd give it one more no-holds-barred try.  I *just* finished a new first draft of that book and I'm so happy with it and I'm super grateful I dusted it off.

5. But Not a Third.  Let doors close.  I think in writing and in life, it's important to know when something just isn't going to work out.  Listen to the inner voice, and if it's really not going to work out, move on.  There will be other things to write.  There will always be other things to write.

DO-OVER

My Do-Over: I wonder what it says about my commitment to my convictions that I'm needing to mull this one over for a bit?  One thing I'd do over would be not to make staying at home and writing all the time such a big career goal.  I've had a bunch of part-time jobs (teaching, lots of administrative assisting, blogging for a doggy site, which was writing but different) over the course of my writing life and the times when I'm writing and working at something else simultaneously are always, hands down, my most productive and happy writing times.  It took me a little bit to figure that out, so if I could go back I'd learn that sooner.

To find out more about the lovely and talented Alison Pace and her other novels including City Dog and If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend, head over to her website and be sure to follow her on Facebook and Twitter!

Thanks so much, Alison!

xoxo,

Liz & Lisa

Andrea Bonior's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

We love our friends.  In fact, nothing makes us happier than sharing a glass of wine (or two, or three...) with our favorite girls.  One hour with them can melt away any frustration caused by works, kids, husbands, traffic, bad hair days or carb bloat! That's why we're excited to have Dr. Andrea Bonior sharing her 5 Do's and a Do-Over today!  Her new book, The Friendship Fix is all about how to keep your relationships with your besties healthy.

It's also the first pick in BookSparksPR Summer reading challenge-have you signed up yet?  What are you waiting for?  (hint...The D Word is a pick later this Summer...)

Here's the scoop on The Friendship Fix: Had enough of that bridezilla? Feeling alone in a new city? Dealing with the trauma of the worst breakup ever—with someone you never even made out with?

We’ve heard the path to fulfillment has much to do with relationships. But while it’s often thought that for young women, it's all about finding the right man, real women beg to differ: It's friendships that are at the heart of happiness. Unfortunately, they’re also at the heart of drama, stress, and sometimes not-so-great escapades after that fifth martini. And, technology, from texting to Facebook, has made all friendships more complicated than ever.

At last comes The Friendship Fix, jam-packed with practical ways to improve your life by improving your circle. From dealing with friends-with-benefits to coworkers from the dark side, from feeling alone to being desperate to defriend a few dozen people, Andrea Bonior, Ph.D. helps you make the most of your friendships, whether they be old, new, online, or in person.

Sound fabulous?  Then leave a comment to be entered to win one of FIVE copies!  We'll choose the winners Sunday June 5th after 6pm PST.

AND...there's an awesome giveaway if you buy a copy!  Check it out here! LOTS of cool gift cards(Banana Republic, SpaFinder, etc) and MORE!

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS....ANDREA BONIOR'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

5 DO'S

1.  DO take a risk, to connect with someone awesome. In my early days as a Mom, sometimes I’d get to talking with another mother at a playground and we’d connect really well. But when it was time to leave, I’d be terrified to take any next step in keeping things going.  In fact, even contemplating it made me feel like some sort of stalker, or the platonic equivalent of the slovenly guy at the bar who winks at everyone with breasts. But as The Friendship Fix lays out, there are ways to take the next step without coming on too strong, though it still requires a leap of faith! Thank goodness I finally learned to stick my neck out when it counted, though, as I now have some wonderful friendships that would never have begun if I hadn’t done so (since they were scared too!).

2.  DO step up when you’ve screwed up. For years I’ve been notorious about not hearing my phone. I either don’t notice that it’s switched to silent mode (thank you, poorly-designed iphone cover) or am a victim of the fact that my house’s decent cell service is limited to a shoebox-sized area of our bathtub. Once, I saw a message three weeks after the fact, and it was an old friend needing support. I felt so horrible that I wanted to crawl into a hole and forget the whole thing, and I could only imagine that she had moved on not only from hoping for my help, but from counting on me as a friend as well. I forced myself to own right up to it, though, and to try to make things right, and I’d like to think that we’ve been back on track ever since. As the book discusses, the majority of times that a screwup ends a friendship, it’s the aftermath that does it, not the original mistake. So, face the awkwardness and correct it sooner rather than later. Too often, you might let your embarrassment harden into a polar freeze, and it’s the latter that really ends the friendship.

3.  DO follow your instincts when things feel off. Sometimes your gut is dead-on about a friendship that’s not right for you, but often we feel too guilty to heed it. Years ago, my relationship with a person who I really felt I should be compatible with—we had a lot in common, and she was an admirable person— just seemed to have a lot of trouble getting out of first gear. I found myself not that excited about our interactions, and didn’t really feel like my best self around her, despite us spending an increasing amount of time together. Keeping up with her felt like something to be checked off a list rather than something I was drawn to, and I left our outings feeling drained and irritable. Finally, I faced the fact that we just weren’t a good match, and she had a certain edge to her that just rubbed me the wrong way. Though I felt really guilty at first, I backed off the friendship gently—and ended up feeling much freer as a result.

4.  DO plan a trip with your closest friends. I just got back from a weekend bachelorette party with some of my dearest college girlfriends, at a cabin so remote that the phrase “Make a left on the third dirt road, past the abandoned van that’s been overgrown by weeds” was actually part of the directions to get there. It was quite a difference from the bachelorette parties of our previous decade (other than the reappearance of a certain prank inflatable item named “Willie”—he’s become an heirloom!). But it couldn’t have been more enjoyable, just being alone together again. Whether it’s a Caribbean cruise or a night at a local hotel, going away with your friends is one of the best things you can do for your relationship. And the anticipation of the trip, plus the recollecting of the memories, give you even more bang for your buck.

5.  DO give yourself permission to prioritize your friendships. Life gets busy. Jobs and school and marriage and kids and pets and just general grownup existence—even if all you take care of is a pot of peonies-- can easily take the place of time with friends. It’s so common to feel guilty going to a brunch, for instance, when your daughter has a stomach bug. Or maybe you’ve gotten into a rut of automatically saying no to every happy hour because it’s so much trouble to make alternate arrangements for the evening rush. But you’re a better spouse, coworker, and Mom when you make time for your friends. Prioritizing your friend relationships—which lengthen your lifespan, help ward off depression, and leave you more fulfilled and less stressed—benefits not just you, but everyone in your life as well.

DO-OVER

Do be mindful of casting such a wide net on Facebook. Social networking has obviously revolutionized the way we communicate, and The Friendship Fix discusses in detail many of the pros and cons of its proliferation. One embarrassing example of its shortcomings: it’s easy to get overzealous in your collecting of friends at the expense of actual connecting. A few months after I first got on Facebook, I found myself randomly thinking about an old high school friend of mine—a phenomenal individual who I remembered fondly. I thought about how great it would be to be in touch, how much I wondered what she was up to, how sure I was she was doing something amazing with her life. And then…. I remembered that we were already Facebook friends, and had “reconnected” in the rather superficial, frenzied way that came with the first 200 friend requests when you first join. (“Your kids are gorgeous!” “Your jobs sounds awesome!” “It’s so great to be back in touch!”) I was horrified. Had I been more mindful in my Facebook behavior, I would never have forgotten that reconnection, and would have had a better chance of turning it into an actual emotional reconnection that stood the test of time, rather than that Facebook “friend” that isn’t quite back in my life in the truest sense of the term. There’s room for all levels of friendship in your life, but make sure you’re not fooling yourself about their quality and succumbing to a numbers game.

Thanks Andrea! xoxo, L&L

To read more about Andres, head on over to her website or find her on Facebook and Twitter.

Amanda Goldberg & Ruthanna Khalighi Hopper's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

We don't know about you, but it's been a crazy month over here at CLIND!  SO many new books and authors that we can hardly find the time to post about all of them.  And today is no exception-we have lovely NYT bestselling authors Amanda Goldberg and Ruthanna Khalighi Hopper.  They burst onto the scene with Celebutantes and their latest, Beneath A Starlet Sky, is another fantabulous good time! In BENEATH A STARLET SKY, Lola Santisi—CEO of a struggling fashion line and daughter of Hollywood royalty—is swinging between the fashion world in New York and the real world with her doctor-boyfriend in Los Angeles. Lola is trying to launch designer Julian Tennant’s new dress line, and it looks like they’re about to get their next big break: his wedding dresses have been chosen to feature in the top film at the Cannes Film Festival. They better make a big splash in the sunny Cannes crowds, or else…

For Kate Woods, Lola’s BFF and CAA’s rising star agent, Cannes is all work and no play. Having recently endured a disastrous break-up with Lola’s brother Christopher, Kate is newly single, and focused solely on her clients.

The only thing worse than thinking it was a good idea for Kate to date Lola’s brother, is thinking it was a good idea for Kate to put one of her most loose-cannon clients, Nic Knight, in Lola’s father’s movie. Among Kate’s other mega star clients is Saffron Sykes whose appearance on the cover of Vogue in Julian Tennant could be the difference between Julian Tennant, Inc. weathering the economy or going bust. But when someone throws a wrench in their plans, everyone stands to lose, especially Lola. With her father and brother vying for the same prize, her mother starring in hew new reality show, and one heartbroken girlfriend about to declare motherhood, it’s all on Lola to come up with the answers.

Sound good?  Then leave a comment to be entered to win one of FIVE copies!  We'll choose the winners on Sunday night after 6pm EST. Good luck!

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...AMANDA GOLDBERG & RUTHANNA KHALIGHI HOPPER'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO

1. Do cherish and protect friendships with the girlfriends who knew you when you wore that really bad prom dress, had the bad perm and wore the bad blue eye shadow.  These are the women who will feed you when you’re busy feeding the newborn you just brought home from the hospital, when you’ve forgotten to eat because you’ve been at the hospital tending to an ailing parent, and when you’ve lost your appetite because your husband (or boyfriend) decides they’re “going through something”.  These are the women who are the mirrors that make any accomplishment worth celebrating with a good glass of wine, a hug or a good cry.  These are the women who make it worth it.

2. Do find your own voice: it’s been incredibly meaningful for us to find our own mode of expression; a place where we can go that allows us to feel creatively fulfilled.  We come from families of strong personalities.  And it’s been significant for us to be able to stand on our own two feet as women.  Ruthanna: My hope for my daughter, who’s now a toddler, is that she feels the song of her own soul and doesn’t feel the need to impersonate anyone, or get swept away by some of the alienating and superficial images presented by the media.  As Tina Fey said in her “Prayer for a Daughter”: “May she play the Drums to the fiery rhythm of her Own Heart with the sinewy strength of her Own Arms, so she need Not Lie With Drummers.” Which leads us to…

3. Do get your heartbroken: let it get shattered, busted, tossed to and fro, so that you learn how to expand, put the pieces back together and stretch, so that you figure out who you are, what’s important to you and that ultimately, the love you have for yourself is the one worth fighting for. Which leads us to….

4. Do have a commitment ceremony for yourself! We throw one in our new novel when one of the characters loses her way and loses her truth.  She vows to cherish, honor and love herself, until death do you part!  Which leads us to…

5. Do forgive easily and often. Because life is precious and short and holding onto resentment, as the great Pema Chodron says, is like eating poison and waiting for the other person to die.  Far too much energy is wasted on war, on anger, on waiting for the other person to change or apologize.  Look deep, ask yourself who’s suffering and how in your own way can you help to alleviate pain in the world.  Often this means starting with our own, often this means starting with forgiveness.  Which brings us to…

DO-OVER

Don’t live with regret. We tend to be pretty hard on ourselves.  And what woman’s not?! The beauty of life is that each moment gives us the opportunity to begin again, which means we can go through each of the above Do’s and in each moment treat ourselves to them, make our lives simpler because of them, and become stronger, more fulfilled women through them.  And when we forget, we can begin again, and again, and again.

Thanks ladies! xoxo, L&L

To read more about Amanda and Ruthanna, head over to Facebook or find them on Twitter!

L B Gschwandtner & Karen Cantwell's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

It probably won't surprise you that we have a soft spot in our hearts for writing teams of two who author books together. Because we feel if a couple of people can work together to get a novel on paper without killing each other, they've survived half the battle. (We managed to get through both of our novels with only one cat fight! But it was a good one! Meow!) And majuh bonus points if they are also funny! So when we discovered L B Gschwandtner and Karen Cantwell, co-authors of Foxy's Tale, we fell for them because they made us seriously LOL our asses off when we read their novel. And you know how we like a good LOL! Synopsis of Foxy's Tale: A comic, chick lit tale wherein former beauty queen Foxy Anders, who's fallen on hard times, rents an apartment to mysterious, bumbling Myron Standlish who’s arrived in the city looking for a long lost trunk containing who knows what. When Foxy’s teenage daughter, Amanda hooks up with Nick, a cute guy at school, while getting cooking lessons from Foxy's new assistant Knot, they’re all in for some romance with a dash of suspense and a sprinkle of supernatural.

And if you leave a comment, you'll be entered to win one of three eBook or print (up to you!) copies of Foxy's Tale. We'll randomly select the winner after 6pm EST on Thursday, May 19th.

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...L B GSCHWANDTNER AND KAREN CANTWELL'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER 

DO'S

1.  Karen: Always wear a bra. If you’re knocked unconscious in an accident, you don’t want your very personal friends, Teensy and Eensy (in my case) or Jumbo and Whopper (in Dolly Parton’s case) to be exposed to the world.

LB: You may also want to consider your panty style of choice. Only a few of us can get away with a string bikini on an emergency room gurney. Just sayin’.

2. Karen: Wash your hands in a public restroom. They might have hidden cameras and you don’t want to wind up on a Today Show segment dedicated to health and hygiene.

LB: Double tie your trash bags. You’d be surprised what can leap right out at you. Eeeewwww.

3. Karen: Clean UNDER the toaster when Aunt Gertrude visits from Niceville, FL. She looks under everything and she’s not so NICE when she spreads the news to relatives about your housekeeping deficiencies.

LB: Take anything out of your closet that you haven’t worn in 2 years and give it to Goodwill. No regrets.

4. Karen:. Tell your children you love them every day. Make sure you keep video footage as well -- you’ll want evidence when they’re adults and say it’s your fault they’re seeing a therapist.

LB: Ignore the impulse to ask anyone: “Do these jeans make me look fat?” Really, that’s between you and your mirror.

5. Karen: Laugh at your own foibles. And laugh at the word "foibles," because let’s face it -- it’s a funny word.

LB: I don’t even know if a foible is good to suggest doing.

DO-OVER

Karen: I would do-over the time I obsessed on things I wanted to do-over. What a waste that was.

LB: I’ve had some hair cuts I would definitely DO over and, looking back at some old pictures, wish I had. Now I wish I could do-over looking back at those pictures.

To find out more about the lovely and talented LB Gschwandtner, visit her website, check out her blog and be sure to follow her on Facebook. To find out more about the equally lovely and talented Karen Cantwell, visit her website and follow her on Facebook.

Thanks, L B & Karen!

xoxo,

L&L

Laura Dave's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

There really are no words left to describe our deep love for Laura Dave. We'll simply say she's the best and that her writing is some of the very best out there. And that we will always look forward to her next book with child-like anticipation. She's just that damn good. So first order of business? Don't even think. Just get your hands on her latest fabulous, insightful, emotional, nail biting, passionate, fantastic novel, The First Husband.(Officially out today!) And if for some crazy reason (because you'd just have to be crazy) you haven't read her other books yet, you must immediately buy, download, check out, whatever your method my be, her debut novel, London is the best City in America and her second book, The Divorce Party. (Both uh-mazing and each optioned to be made into movies by some serious A-listers. Um, can we say Reese Witherspoon & Jennifer Aniston respectively?) Synopsis of The First Husband: Annie Adams thinks she has it all. Her longtime boyfriend, Nick, is on the verge of becoming a successful film director, her travel column is nationally syndicated, and they've got a great dog. Her life finally feels like it is falling into place. Until, out of nowhere, Nick announces that he's reconnected with a woman from his past and he's moving out.

Reeling from Nick's exit, Annie stumbles into her neighborhood bar and finds Griffin, a down to earth chef who seems to be everything she didn't know she wanted. Three months later, they're married. And Annie finds herself in a small Massachusetts town -- completely unmoored and wondering if she's picked a life on the rebound. When Nick returns, wanting a second chance, Annie's stuck: truly torn between her husband and the man she may have been meant to marry.

Sound like your kind of book? Hells yeah it does! Well you know the drill...just leave a comment here and be entered to win one of five copies of The First Husband. We'll randomly select the winners after 6pm EST on Wednesday, May 18th.

And we're lovin' Laura even more after reading her 5 Do's and Do-Over (especially after discovering we have a mutual soft spot for that show from the late nineties, Felicity! How hot was Ben???)

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...LAURA DAVE'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO

1.     DO Take a Road Trip

I will grant you: The world is full of incredible places to explore. But my favorite kind of trip is one where I never have to see an airport.  My greatest adventures have involved getting behind the wheel of my car (or a friend’s car—I’m not picky!), putting on some great music (recently I’ve found it’s hard to beat The Avett Brothers), and seeing where I end up.  I’ve driven the California coast a dozen times since moving to Los Angeles three years ago.  And one of the most awe-inspiring moments of my life remains driving into Moab, Utah for the first time—and finding myself surrounded by all that orange mountain rock.  There is just something about seeing the world while driving through it. It is a great way to explore somewhere new—and the absolute best way to revisit a place that matters to you. And a person that matters to you.  The great windfall of a road trip is often all those borrowed hours with the person riding shotgun.

Just make sure to establish beforehand that you’re in charge of the soundtrack.

2.      DO Cook For The People You Love.

I came to this lesson late: Cooking can be an act of total and complete joy.  I’m not talking about dishing out six course gourmet dinners every night—unless you are so inspired, in which case, do you want a new friend?

But I’m sincerely saying that I’ve found making something wonderful and nourishing for the people that matter most to me has added a serious contentment to my life.  From heading down to the farmers market for an early-morning run to navigating a new pasta sauce (may I highly recommend this yummy number from Jessica Seinfeld, I feel a huge sense of accomplishment putting a healthy and comforting meal on the table. Added bonus: This contentment often results in someone pouring me a glass of wine.

(Oh, and this is a side DO: when you cook, someone else better clean.)

3.       DO Walk It Off

During a pilot episode of a TV show that will remain nameless (Felicity! Don’t hold it against me—it was a great show!), the main character offered a piece of wisdom that has always stayed with me.  She said: I'm learning little by little that we decide what our lives are gonna be. Things happen to us. But it's our reactions that matter.

I think this is beyond true.  We often face adversity—sometimes in small ways, sometimes in larger ones—but it is how we handle what is in front of us that determines our happiness.  As much as possible, I try to enjoy the good.  And, when the tough comes breaking in, I remind myself: this too shall pass. And it often passes faster (or at least it feels like it is passing faster) if I find a way to walk it off.  Actually taking a walk—tying up some soft sneakers, breathing in the fresh air—is often the best start I find.

4.   Do Make New Mistakes

For a long time I thought if I played my cards just right, I could avoid making mistakes: No more keeping my mouth closed when it matters most, no longer saying yes when I mean no.  No more unnecessary parking tickets because me and quarters apparently have issues.  But the hard lesson to learn is that if you are going to be involved in your life, you’re going to make mistakes. You simply can’t avoid it, at least some of the time.  But I’ve tried to follow a mantra I recently learned: since you’re going to make mistakes the key is to make new ones.  Learn and explore and forgive in an entirely new ways.  (As an example: just yesterday, instead of the keeping my mouth closed, I spoke up and said the exact wrong thing!)  In all seriousness, this is what I try to do now, as much as possible: I try to learn from what’s happened, truly learn from it.

And then go screw up in brand new ways.

5. DO Agree With Each Other Whenever Possible

One of the greatest things about writing the kind of books I do is that I get a chance to sit down and talk to so many amazing people about their relationships and families.  When I started working on The First Husband, I visited with a couple who I’d first met years ago while finishing my first novel.  I knew this couple was special from the start.  Not only had they been married for forty years, but they still loved and enjoyed each other so much.  I asked them what their secret was.  The wife told me very simply: “Well I listen very carefully and whenever possible, I look for reasons to agree with him.”  Then her husband said: “I do the same.”

In honor of them, this is my final DO.  Agree with each other whenever you can.   Not only does it make the world a little easier, it makes it a whole lot better.

DO-OVER

Don’t Expect One Size To Fit All

I don’t mean this in terms of clothing.  When I was younger, I used to think that there was a right way to go—a safe college, a safe path.  It was just a matter of picking correctly.  But, I’ve learned that what is right for one person can be completely wrong for another.  It isn’t about what makes sense on paper, or makes sense to the group at large, it’s what makes sense to you.

So, for my do-over, I’d tell my teenage self this in a way she could hear it.  (I’d probably have to get her on the phone.)  And, when I did, I’d tell her to trust herself more.  She could make a decision—or several—that might be confusing to the outside world—but, if it felt right, she should be brave enough to follow it freely.

Oh, and while I had her, I’d also tell her not to buy that enormous striped sweater just because the saleslady promised her it only came in one size.  Even if she was telling the truth, she also wasn’t. So I guess I also do mean this in terms of clothing.

To find out more about the incredibly talented Laura Dave, head over to her website, follow her on Facebook and Twitter. And don't forget to BUY HER BOOK.

Thanks so much, Laura!

xoxo

L&L

Jennifer Belle's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

The Seven Year Bitch is back bitches! This time in paperback! And if you didn't read it the first time 'round (or even if you did), it's time to snatch up a copy and dive in. We loved, loved, loved this sassy novel. And we thought our favorite magazine, EW, summed it up perfectly: “A fun ride...The heroines of Jennifer Belle’s wry comic novels often feel like a cockeyed cross between Cosmo girl and Woody Allen muse, and...Isolde Brilliant is no different. [Isolde] flirts with infidelity and navigates satiric set pieces (fertility-challenged nannies, bad playdate mommies) like a Baby Bjorne-toting Alice in a kook-infested Wonderland.” —Entertainment Weekly

Synopsis: What’s a fabulous New York City girl supposed to do when she finds herself fantasizing about the grim reaper more than she fantasizes about her husband? When she can’t help but give him the finger on the set of Sesame Street? And when she doesn’t exactly hope for a safe landing when he goes away on business?

No, ex-hedge fund manager and new mom Isolde Brilliant hasn’t got the seven-year itch — taking care of her baby and husband and having a growing suspicion that she’s living life in captivity has turned her into a seven year bitch.

That’s New York author Jennifer Belle’s deliciously provocative phrase for the boredom, anger, and hurt that can creep into even the best of marriages — and affect even the most saintly of wives. Belle delivers a dead-on, raw, and hilarious novel about motherhood and marriage, and discovering the life you have is exactly the one you wanted.

Want to win a copy? Well you know the drill by now. Just leave a comment and you'll be entered to win one of five copies of The Seven Year Bitch. We'll randomly select the winners after 6pm on Monday, May 16th.

We love Jennifer- the way she writes and the way she thinks. Like coming up with the ingenious idea to create buzz for her book by paying actresses to read her book in public! Check out the video here. And the way she approached her 5 Do's and a Do-Over which, just like her books, are a must-read. (Liz can especially relate to #4! You might recall her post entitled, birthday blunder.)

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...JENNIFER BELLE'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO

"I will never understand people who say they have no regrets. I have a million regrets. I would have rather written Five Do-overs and one Do, but here is what I’ve come up with"- Jennifer Belle

1.      DO travel as much as you possibly can and put yourself in as many miserable, uncomfortable and even dangerous situations as possible. Along the same lines, but having nothing to do with travel, DO date at least one sociopath for the great sex, but don’t let it last more than a year.

2.      DO something you’ve never done like learn to drive or learn to ski. I never did either and I’m constantly made to feel guilty about it. Every single time I go to a party my husband finds a way to tell people that I don’t know how to drive.

3.      DO try never to hold a grudge. I personally am a terrible grudge-holder, and can’t forgive or forget anything sometimes for years. In fact, an old boyfriend gave me the Indian name “Chief Holds-A-Grudge.” I have also let go of friendships I should have fought harder to keep. Recently I was on a radio show with Alex McCord from the TV show Real Housewives of New York and she said the key to her great marriage was never going to bed angry. I said, “Really? I go to bed angry almost every single night.”

4.      Along those lines, DO tell your husband or boyfriend exactly what you want for your birthday or anniversary. I always ask for a night alone in a hotel. I mean, alone without him. On my last anniversary, we couldn’t afford a hotel, so I made my two sons sleep in bed with my husband, and I slept in my son’s bed all by myself with the door closed. Heaven!

5.      DO save your money and don’t waste it on restaurants and clothes and cabs. I have absolutely no money in the bank because I spend it as soon as I get it. DO however invest in a great Norma Kamali bathing suit and LuluLemon workout clothes so you’ll feel good on the off-chance you decide to go to the beach or work out.

DO-OVER

DON’T let your dog sleep in bed with you. My husband can’t even give me a two-second backrub without my dog thoroughly investigating what’s going on in his bed. This is why my dog plays an unfortunate part in all of the sex scenes in my new book.

Watch the book trailer for The Seven Year Bitch here. And to find out more about the hilarious and very talented Jennifer Belle, visit her website and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

Sarah Dessen's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

In case you haven't noticed, May has been a HUGE month for great books. (Which is appropriate considering it's also International Chick Lit Month-head on over to that site if you haven't already for tons of giveaways!)  So it's understandable that we are crushin' on a TON of writers right now! One of them is the wonderfully fantastic NYT bestselling author Sarah Dessen-her latest novel What Happened to Goodbye(her first in two years!) just came out and we have a feeling it's going to shoot up the bestseller list faster than Lindsay Lohan's next stint in jail.  We LOVED it and have a feeling that y'all will too.  It's the kind of YA that us old people(ie people over 18) like too!  And the fact that she's a fellow Fanilow and reality TV addict?  Totally. Awesome.

In What Happened to Goodbye, Dessen tells the story of Mclean, a high school senior who has taken up the practice of assuming a new identity in each of the four towns she's lived in since her parents' bitter divorce. Living with her Dad and estranged from her mother and her mother's new family, McLean has followed her dad in leaving the unhappy past behind. And each new place gives her a chance to try out a new persona: from cheerleader to drama diva. But now, for the first time, McLean discovers a desire to stay in one place and just be herself, whoever that is. Perhaps Dave, the guy next door, can help her find out.

Want to win a copy for yourself? Then just leave a comment and be entered to win!  So freakin' easy, right?  We'll choose the winners on Monday May 16th after 6pm PST.  Good luck!

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...SARAH DESSEN'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

"When I first got this assignment, I immediately went all neurotic. (This isn’t hard for me, as my default setting is partially neurotic.) Five Dos and One do-over sounds simple, but I am more full of things I wish I hadn’t done than those that I have. Maybe this is because I am so neurotic?

Anyway. Despite my issues, I love a challenge. So here we go…" - Sarah Dessen

DO'S

1.  DO trust your gut. While I often waffle with indecisiveness about everything from what to eat for breakfast to which shoes to wear, when it comes to the Big Stuff I’ve learned to listen hard to that one, true inner voice. When I was eighteen, I was a hot mess in so many ways. High school was not a good time for me, which is probably why I’m still writing about it. All I wanted was to get out of my hometown as fast as possible, so I accepted the first college admission I received and headed off to a state school forty-five minutes away, where I promptly decided to be an advertising major. Within a week or two, I knew I’d made a mistake. I was miserable, hated my classes, and yet I knew that leaving would signal the biggest failure of my life. (It’s bad enough to drop out of college, worse when your parents are academics. The shame! I can still taste it.) In the end, though, I decided that admitting I’d made the wrong choice was better than wasting a year of my life, so I returned home. There, my parents insisted I sign up for a class at the local university. I’d always liked to write, so I picked creative writing. From the moment I sat down in that class, that first day, and looked at my professor, Doris Betts, I knew I was in the right place. Finally. It just took a detour---and being quiet---to realize it.

2. If you really want something and fail the first time getting it, DO try again, even if it scares you. This is a huge one for me. A few years ago, after much thought, my husband and I decided to try for a baby. Like most people who had spent a bulk of their lives worrying about preventing pregnancy, I figured this would require very little effort on my part. I was wrong. A year later, we’d had no luck, and I started making the rounds of specialists. Eventually, I got a little help from a fertility drug and got the little plus sign on the stick. Success! I was so happy, I immediately told all my friends and family and began making preparations. At eight weeks, I went for my first ultrasound. I peered at the screen, so excited but there was…nothing. The pregnancy hadn’t progressed past the first couple of weeks. I was devastated. It seemed so unfair to try to hard for something and finally get it, only to immediately have it slip away. It was almost embarrassing, although I know that doesn’t make sense. Anyway, I swore I wasn’t going to try again, that I didn’t have the strength for another disappointment. But then, as the weeks passed, I couldn’t shake this image of me with a baby in my arms. I wanted it so much, enough to---just barely, sometimes---outweigh the fear. Two months later I got pregnant again. And while it often felt like I was holding my breath the entire nine months, the day my daughter was born was hands-down my happiest. I cannot imagine my life without her, and I’m grateful every day that I faced down everything that scared me to get her here.

3.  DO have boundaries. Although my parents are from New York and Baltimore, respectively, I was raised in the South. Somehow---although clearly not genetically---I ended up with the Disease to Please that is very common around these parts. You know the symptoms, even if you are from the Arctic Circle: you have trouble saying no, want everyone to like you, and thus often resemble a doormat. This wasn’t a huge problem for me until my late twenties, when I began teaching undergraduates at my alma mater. Don’t get me wrong, I loved my students. But I needed to be an authority figure, not a friend, something I figured out too late once they started interrupting me in class, handing in everything late, and sobbing on my office couch about their boyfriend problems. When it comes to teaching, you can come in hard and then soften up, but if you start soft, you never recover. It look me a few semesters---and a few verbal smack downs---to realize this, but once I did, I think we were all better off. I will admit, though, that even at age forty (gulp!) this is one I still struggle with. It is one thing to draw a clear line between myself and a class full of students, another to do it with friends, family and work colleagues. Each time I waffle, however, I think of the chaos of my classroom that first semester and know the alternative is much, much worse.

4.  DO take pride in the things you love. I’ve spent a lot of my life---or maybe it just seems that way---feeling like I have to justify my various guilty pleasures. One example: television. I love it. I have a weakness not only for really good shows, like Friday Night Lights, Modern Family and 30 Rock, but also for morning TV (I’m a Good Morning America junkie) and just about every franchise of the Real Housewives on Bravo. And don’t even get me started on America’s Next Top Model and Jersey Shore. (Really: I could go on for DAYS.) For a long time, I felt like I had to keep all of this quiet, since Real Writers and Serious People only watch PBS, if they even have a TV at all. They are certainly not on the treadmill, talking back to some woman in Orange County who is all blinged out, driving her Range Rover. But what I have learned, over time, is that life is short. If something makes you happy, don’t question it: just be glad it’s there and soak it up. This same thinking allowed me to finally expose my iTunes music library, which I had always hidden from my music hipster friends when they came over. “Is that Barry Manilow?” they say, and while I used to die a little inside, now I proudly nod and crank up “I Write the Songs” even louder. We can’t all like the same things. How boring would that be? So give me my Housewives and Barry, and you can have Masterpiece Theatre and Bright Eyes. Everyone wins!

5.  DO embrace your flaws. For years now, I’ve been embarrassed about my teeth, which are slightly crooked. They’re not awful, but not perfect like most of my friends who, unlike me, had braces. For years, I was so self conscious that I never showed my teeth when I smiled, opting instead for a close-mouthed look that always made me look both smirky and like the Hamburgler. It was worse than my crooked teeth, not that I was willing to admit this. In fact, it took my officemate at UNC, Phyllis, a straight-shooter from West Virginia, to set me straight. After a photographer came to take my picture for a campus magazine, she shook her finger at me. “Smile!” she said. “Really smile! You look so much better when you do!” I did not want to believe her, but she insisted, even taking some shots of her own when I wasn’t posing to try and prove her point. My insecurity about my teeth persisted, though, to the point that I even went for consultations about getting adult braces. But when they pushed the paperwork at me, all I could think of was Phyllis, who by then had passed from breast cancer. The last time I’d seen her, she pointed at me with that same finger and said, “You keep smiling.” So I do. With my mouth open, crooked teeth out there for the world to see. Do I love them? No. But they are part of me, and will stay just as they are.

DO-OVER

Whew! Okay, that wasn’t so hard. Now for the Do-over. I have a lot to choose from, but top of my list is this: I wish I’d traveled more. I’ve always been a homebody---I still live in my hometown---and for years I was afraid to fly, which limited where I could go even when I did get up the nerve or money to leave. But I wish, WISH I had done study abroad when I was in college, backpacked across Europe, or drove across the country with my girlfriends. I wasted so much time being afraid of anything other than what I knew! It makes me crazy.

I know, I know. I can still do all of that, and most likely I will, when my daughter is older. But I’m a mom now, I have a career, a mortgage, responsibilities. I missed that window when all I needed was a passport, a duffle bag and courage. If I could go back, I’d shake my finger at myself just like Phyllis, insisting I go to Italy, Rome, Greece, see all the places I’ve only visited in movies and books. Maybe I’m able to say that because I am older, and have forty years behind me now. But I believe that given the chance, I’d take that other path, the one that led over an ocean to somewhere far, far away. At least, I like to think so.

Want to read more about Sarah?  Then head on over to her website or find her on Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks Sarah! xoxo, L&L

Beth Kendrick's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

Seriously you guys, we are drooling over all these books about food!  We don't know if it's because we've both been practically starving ourselves for Liz's vow renewal in Vegas later this month or if we just have a major food book fettish, but some of our faves in the last year have been delectably delicious to read! And The Bake-Off by Beth Kendrick is no exception. We fell in love with her last year when she sent us Second Time Around and couldn't wait to get our hand on her latest.  It's yummy fun that we highly recommend you indulge in! (It's fat free too!)  Run, don't walk to your nearest bookstore and pick up a copy today for your next weekend getaway.

And the best part?  Beth has written a ton of books so if you are just discovering her, you'll have lots to choose from to read next!

Suburban soccer mom Amy has always wanted to stand out from the crowd. Former child prodigy Linnie just wants to fit in. The two sisters have been estranged for years, but thanks to a series of personal crises and their wily grandmother, they've teamed up to enter a national bake-off in the hopes of winning some serious cash. Armed with the top-secret recipe for Grammy's apple pie, they should be unstoppable. Sure, neither one of them has ever baked anything more complicated than brownie mix, but it's just pie-how hard could it be?

Want a copy?  Then leave a comment and you'll be entered to win.  We'll choose the winners randomly on Monday May 16th after Noon PST.

And we think you'll love her Do's and a Do-over.  And having had the pleasure of meeting her, we can attest that despite what she claims in her Do-over, she is a VERY cool girl.

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS: BETH KENDRICK'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

Do:

1. Try making a cake from scratch. Break out the eggs, butter, flour, and channel your inner confectionista. I could barely boil water when I started writing The Bake-Off, and by the time I handed in the manuscript, I was making apple pies that could rival Martha Stewart’s. If I can do it, anyone can—trust and believe! Plus, you can tell yourself it’s “more healthful” than store-bought pastry or cake from a mix because there are no artificial flavors, colors, or unpronounceable ingredients, and therefore, you should feel no guilt about helping yourself to a second piece. Bon appétit! (Cookbook suggestions for beginners: Rose Levy Beranbaum’s The Cake Bible, Cindy Mushet’s The Art and Soul of Baking.)

2. Host theme parties. Suggestions to get you started: “fashion victims”, “hideous holiday sweaters”, “famous couples from cinema”. This takes the pressure off guests feeling like they have to look red-carpet ready, plus the themes encourage mingling. And it’s a great excuse to force your significant other to don a trenchcoat and re-enact the Lloyd Dobler boom box scene from “Say Anything”.

3. Find something to nurture. A garden, a dog, a child, a friend in need, an elderly relative…anything that clicks with your personality. Caring for and tending to another living being benefits you both in so many ways.

4. Spend a day being a tourist in your hometown. Put on some comfortable shoes and hit the museums, landmark restaurants, and tourist traps. (And don’t forget the souvenirs. You can always host a “tacky shot glass party” later.)

5. Cultivate weird holiday traditions. When my husband and I first got engaged, we would spend Christmas and Easter dashing around to 4 or 5 different family celebrations. By the end of the day, we’d be frazzled and hungry, so we’d hit a fast-food drive-through on our way home. Our holiday schedule has changed over the years, but we still like to cap off the festivities with French fries. (And nothing says Mother’s Day like a chocolate milkshake!) Holidays are all about rituals, so go ahead and create your own—even if they make no sense to anyone outside your family.

Do Over: When I was a sophomore in college, I got my bellybutton pierced. (This was during the height of the late 1990’s piercing and tattoo craze.) For reasons that remain unclear, I thought poking a little hole through my flesh would somehow transform me into a cool girl. My roommate had hers pierced, and she was the last word in cool, so I figured I’d follow her lead. Except, my roommate was also the kind of girl who could get away with wearing black leather pants and furry leopard-print jackets to her 8:30 a.m. geology seminar, and I…was not. I was the kind of girl who spent her Friday nights doing statistics homework in the library. But somehow, I got it into my head that a little steel ring would imbue me with irresistible magnetism and mystery. I had to take out the ring when I was in grad school, because I was working in a neuropsychology lab doing MRI studies, and you can’t wear any metal near the MRI machine. (Again, not a problem an actual cool girl would have.) The hole in my skin never closed up. But I’ve come to love it, because it reminds me to be true to myself. Leather pants and leopard print is just not who I am. I wasn’t a cool girl in college, I’m still not cool today, and you know what? I’m cool with that.

To read more about Beth, check out her website or find her on Facebook and Twitter!

Thanks Beth!  xoxo, L&L

Wendy Wax's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

Can we just pat ourselves on the back for a second and say that we're really lovin on our 5 Do's and Do-Over feature? It's been uhmazing to get such great advice from some of our favorite authors including Sarah Pekkanen, Kristin Hannah and Jen Lancaster. And now we get to add the immensely talented Wendy Wax to that list! (And she has some powerful advice- more on that in a minute.) But first...since The Accidental Bestseller, we've been hooked on Wendy's writing and are always giddy with anticipation as we wait to see what she comes up with next. And with Ten Beach Road she wowed us again. First of all, when we look at the cover of Ten Beach Road it makes us think of Summer- in a good way! Not in the OMG, we have to sqeeze our booties into bikinis way, but in an I'm excited to lounge by the pool with a cocktail and pretend I don't have a spare tire (Lisa) kind of way.  And then when we read Ten Beach Road, a powerful novel about friendship, trust and love, we were inspired and excited to tell y'all all about it.

Synopsis: Madeline, Avery and Nikki are strangers to one another, but they have one thing in common.  They each wake up one morning to discover that their life savings have vanished, along with their trusted financial manager…leaving them with nothing but co-ownership of a ramshackle beachfront house.

Madeline Singer is a homemaker coping with empty-nest syndrome and an unemployed husband. Avery Lawford is an architect—or was, until she somehow became the sidekick on her ex-husband’s TV show.   And professional matchmaker Nikki Grant is trying to recover from her biggest mistake…

No on is going to save them but themselves. Determined to fight back, they throw their lots in together and take on the challenge of restoring the historic beach house to its former glory. But just as they begin to reinvent themselves and discover the power of friendship, their secrets threaten to tear down their trust, and destroy their lives a second time…

And if you leave a comment, you'll be entered to win one of FIVE copies of Ten Beach Road. We'll randomly select the winners after 6pm on Wednesday, May 11.

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...WENDY WAX'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO'S

1.      Do try to see the positive. I didn’t come wired this way, but my goal is to become a ‘glass is half full’ person instead of a ‘half empty’, or ‘always-holding-a- dribble-glass’ kind of person. I’m drawn to positive people, and I’d like to be one of them!

2.      Do study or travel abroad if you get the chance. My six months in Florence as a college student were filled with constant challenges, but I learned a lot, much of it about myself. And if you’re single, go ahead and date that Italian guy that you need a dictionary to communicate with. I still remember my Italian boyfriend, Umberto, with fondness and, frankly, sometimes not knowing what they’re saying is a plus.

3.      Do embrace change. Life is too short to settle for less than you want or deserve in either your professional or personal life.

Albert Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Albert was right! After years of being attracted to ‘bad boys’ I finally said yes when a ‘nice’ guy asked me out. We just celebrated our 25^th wedding anniversary and based on my father-in -law’s maxim that ‘the first forty years are the most difficult’ we’re only fifteen years away from Nirvana.

4.      Do listen to your mother – at least on occasion. I spent a lot of my life rebelling and, in fact, when my entirely suitable husband asked me to marry him, right after I said yes I may have actually added that I hated to make my mother that happy.

It’s amazing how much smarter your mother seems after you become one.

5.      Do open your mind. Step outside your comfort zone. Find new things that interest you. It sounds so obvious, but it can be hard to do. I doubt I’ll ever take up wildlife medicine or hang gliding, but I’m thinking about finally learning golf (one of the many things I rebelled against as a teenager) or rowing, or... I don’t know, but just thinking about what I might try next is invigorating.

DO-OVER

For me, this ties in to becoming a ‘glass is half full’ person. I think we all need to be able to appreciate and accept ourselves right now, in the moment. This photo was taken on Pass-a-Grille beach (where Ten Beach Road is set) about 25 years ago. Today I think, hmmm, not bad. (Okay, actually I would kill to look like this now!) At the time I was wishing my thighs weren’t so fat.

To find out more about the lovely and talented Wendy Wax, visit her website and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks, Wendy! xoxo,

L&L

Rachel Gibson's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

Today we're ecstatic to have New York Times bestselling author Rachel Gibson.  Her latest novel, Any Man of Mine is the perfect book to throw in your tote the next time you go on vacay or staycay. Think beachside on Memorial Day Weekend or while lounging on your own lanai (a.k.a. your back porch!). It's sassy, fun and the perfect book for anyone craving a little romance. Synopsis: What happens in Vegas...doesn’t always stay there...Autumn Haven’s Las Vegas “to-do” list said to catch a show and play the slots-not wake up married to a sexy jerk like Sam Leclaire. The first moment she saw him eyeing her like a luscious piece of the dessert buffet, her usually responsible self told her run. And she did-right into the wildest fantasy weekend of her life. But Monday morning jolted her back to reality and before she could say “pass the coffee” Sam was gone.

Now a successful wedding planner, Autumn hasn’t clapped eyes on the heart-breaking hockey superstar for over two years… until she organizes his teammate’s “Special Day,” where Sam makes a BIG play to pick up where he left off! But she has vowed any man of her plays for keeps. Is Sam the man for her or does she banish him to the sin bin forever? Read an excerpt of this juicy novel here. And also check out her THIRTEEN other novels here.

And if you leave a comment, you'll be entered to win one of five copies of Any Man of Mine! We'll randomly select the winners after 6pm EST on Friday, May 6th.

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...RACHEL GIBSON'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO

1. Do drive with the top down and the music up. Driving on a country road with the top of the car down and the music cranked up feels like freedom to me.

2. Do take time to celebrate.  Some times when life hands me a gift, I am so wrapped up in my day to day life that I forget to stop and celebrate.  A month or two passes before I realize that I forgot a milestone.

3. Do remember the camera and snap a lot of photos. I love to look at old photographs, and a forgotten camera is a missed opportunity to relive great memories. An opportunity that you can never get back . Snapping a lot of photos is equally important because if you’re like me, you only look good in one out of ten pictures.

4. Do splurge on shoes.  I am a shoe-a-holic and love beautiful shoes.  My weight might fluctuate. My jean size might go up and down, but my shoes always look good on me and never make my butt look big.

5. Do fill your home with flowers. Filling my house with deliciously fragrant flowers makes me happy.

DO-OVER

The zebra print dress, fishnet stockings, anklets, and five-inch pumps I wore in the eighties.  I thought I was hot, but sadly I was not. One of the few  times I wish I’d forgotten the camera.

To find out more about Rachel Gibson, visit her website and follow her on Facebook.

Thanks, Rachel!

xoxo, Liz & Lisa

Jen Lancaster's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

There's a reason why the fabulous Jen Lancaster has a bazillon-million Facebook fans.  She. Rocks!  And we're as giddy as little schoolgirls at a Justin Bieber concert about the fact that she's sharing her Do's and a Do-Over today here at CLIND! Jen's bestselling memoirs are freakin' hilarious.  Now, with If You Were Here, she makes her fiction debut and we couldn't be happier about it.  In fact, when we discovered that If You Were Herehad more John Hughes's references than a VH1 special-we were SOLD.  Because nothing makes us happier than waxing nostalgic over the movies we grew up with.  And we gotta love anyone that, like us, drooled over Jake and that damn Porsche in the movie Sixteen Candles.  Too bad our "Jake Complex" led us to make some very unfortunate dating choices growing up!  But hey, we don't know about you, but there's still a spot for him and his Porsche on our short list. *wink wink*

And we loved If You Were Here-it's a fun read that will have you LOLing in every chapter!  A perfect pick-me-up after a long week!

If You Were Here follows Amish-zombie-teen- romance author Mia and her husband Mac (and their pets) through the alternately frustrating, exciting, terrifying-but always funny-process of buying and renovating their first home in the Chicago suburbs that John Hughes's movies made famous. Along their harrowing renovation journey, Mia and Mac get caught up in various wars with the homeowners' association, meet some less-than-friendly neighbors, and are joined by a hilarious cast of supporting characters, including a celebutard ex- landlady. As they struggle to adapt to their new surroundings- with Mac taking on the renovations himself- Mia and Mac will discover if their marriage is strong enough to survive months of DIY renovations.

Sounds fun, right?  We have FIVE copies to give away!  Just leave a comment and you'll be entered to win.  Doesn't get much easier than that, people.  We'll choose the winners on Friday May 6th after 6pm PST.  Good Luck!

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...JEN LANCASTER'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

5 DO'S

1. Be prepared. No one will fight harder for what you want than you.  Doing your homework gives you the confidence to fight.  Take job hunting, for example.  When people are asked to come interview, most applicants read the employer’s website and can parrot back the company’s mission statement if asked.  But if you want this job, dig deeper.  Work harder than your competition.  Research the organization in-depth.  Read trade journals.  Gain some perspective on how this employer has the competitive advantage, or what they might need to improve it.  Become well-versed in how legislation/lobbyists are changing the corporate landscape.  Take inventory of your personal strengths and practice explaining how these skills dovetail into the organization’s very specific needs.  Yes, it’s a lot of extra effort.  But if you’re properly prepared, the employer will snap you up if for no reason other than to keep their competitors from hiring you.

2.  Be charming. The above only works if you can do it all with a genuine smile on your face.  Life is a lot like one of my favorite reality shows - Survivor.  Yeah, it’s important to excel at challenges and carry your own weight around camp, but ultimately positive social interactions win the game.  Boston Rob always goes far because he’s smart and he’s strong, but being funny and cute has been of equal importance.  (Maybe he hasn’t won the million yet, but his charm is what keeps CBS asking him back.)

3.  Embrace failure. Despite your best efforts to be both prepared and charming, bad things still happen.  Learn that failure doesn’t define you; recovering from failure does.  When I was laid off from my executive job, I thought my life was over.  Yet during my jobless tenure, I discovered that I didn’t actually like working a boring corporate desk job.  If I hadn’t failed at being an executive, I’d never have had the opportunity to pursue a more creative line of work.  To pass the long, empty days home alone, I wrote scathing blog posts about being unemployed, only to discover that the act of writing fueled me.  Documenting the story of my failure turned into writing Bitter Is the New Black and the rest is history.

4.  More Ferris, Less Cameron.  Ferris Bueller said it best – sometimes you need to take the day off.  Life does move pretty fast sometimes, and if you don’t, say, steal your dad’s vintage Ferrari to cruise around the city on occasion, you might miss it.  Goof off once in a while.  Spend a long, leisurely afternoon with Real Housewives on the TiVo and some Ben & Jerry’s.  You might be surprised at how productive you’ll be if you allow yourself a minute to recharge your batteries.

5.  Charlie Sheen is not #winning.  Ever. Despite Sheen’s deplorable behavior, there are still women out there – clever, confident, capable women – who honestly believe they can change him.  And yet his string of unhappy ex-wives and girlfriends begs to differ.  Sure, it’s always exhilarating to date the Charlies of the world, but ultimately the stress of loving a bad boy is going to break your heart and make you wrinkle prematurely.  A nice guy will give you a happily ever after whereas a bad boy will make a few unhappy months feel like an eternity.  Choose wisely – there’s only so much Botox can fix.

THE DO-OVER

Do not do it yourself. You know how your hairdresser makes a simple bang-trim look effortless?  Like, so easy that anyone could do it?  Including yourself?  And so you tried?  And had to wear a hat for a month?  You see, your stylist is a trained professional and she cuts bangs all day, every day, for fifty-plus weeks a year.  You cannot replicate this.  Do not try.  A while ago, my husband and I took this lesson to heart, only instead of cutting our own hair, we wanted to rehab a house after watching HGTV.  We rationalized, “Hey!  That’s not so hard!  We could rehab a house!  And I could write a memoir about it!”  And then I remembered the last time I cut my own bangs and those were the longest eight weeks of my life, so we didn’t buy the fixer-upper.  Instead, I let my character Mia give home renovations a whirl in my novel If You Were Here.  And when the first toilet came crashing through the ceiling in her office, I bet Mia wished she’d heeded my advice.  Leave it to the professionals.  You’ll thank me later.

To read more about the hilarious Jen Lancaster, head on over to her website or find her on Twitter and Facebook!

Thanks Jen!  xoxo, Liz & Lisa

Daphne Uviller's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

We love a good mystery.  In fact, Lisa's secret nickname is PI Spice!  Don't even try to get one past her-her ability to sniff out when something's fishy is, in the words of Barney Stinson, legendary! (And can be somewhat annoying if you are the fishy-havin' person...) So we're thrilled to have Daphne Uviller sharing her Do's and a Do-Over on the site today!  She burst onto the scene with Super in the City and her heroine from that novel, Zephyr returns in her second sassy mystery,Hotel No Tell. It's a lot of fun! Perfect  to read while you're laying out at the pool and relaxing.

The smart and sassy detective Zephyr Zuckerman is now armed and undercover in a Greenwich Village hotel where mysteries—from garbage-grabbing guests to the reservation system—lurk around every corner. Now working as a junior detective with the New York City Special Investigations Commission, Zephyr’s gone incognito as a concierge to find out who laundered a hundred grand off the hotel books—and why. But the discovery of a prone, flush-faced guest gasping for air in room 502 only hints at the sinister goings-on inside this funky establishment. While the rapid response of the fire department leads to a sweaty date with a smooth-talking, rock-climbing rescue worker, Zephyr finds herself even more hot and bothered by an attempted murder on her watch. Could the smart-mouthed Japanese yenta across the hall know more than she’s telling? How are cryptic phone calls from a mysterious corporation linked to the victim in 502?  Under pressure and overwhelmed, Zephyr soon finds that a concierge cover is no protection in a place where crime, like the city itself, never sleeps.

Sound fun?  Um, YEAH it does!  And there's no "mystery" about how to get your own copy. Just leave a comment and you'll entered to win one of FIVE copies!  We'll choose the winners on Sunday May 1st after 6pm PST.

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS: DAPHNE UVILLER'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO'S

1.  Take a break from the books. I took a leave of absence in college, a full year off between sophomore and junior years, and lived in London. I was lonely and depressed and have never before or since turned to art for comfort the way I did that year. Museums, theater – both were cheap for students, and I immersed myself completely. Then I’d return to my cold flat and spew the worst nonsense into one journal after another. But it was the first time in my life I was writing without worrying about being graded or edited. Which is exactly what a writer needs to do to in order to create the essential lousy first draft. Thank you, London!

2.  Follow the fun. When I could swing it financially, I took whatever job sounded interesting, even if it didn’t seem part of an overarching plan. Three years in law enforcement? Really fun, and fifteen years later it turned into fodder for Hotel No Tell. The unpaid internship at The Paris Review? I learned that I wasn’t yet ready to write fiction professionally, and turned to journalism.

3. Sleep around. Okay, that’s a bit of steamy overstatement, but I made the most of the three years between the end of a long-term relationship and meeting my husband. Those dating adventures gave me great stories, taught me loads about adult emotion and relationships – essential for a storyteller – and made it crystal clear to me that there is no other man out there who makes me as happy as my beloved does.

4. Honor the umbilical cord. In my twenties, I was sorely tempted to move to L.A. and pursue television writing, a potential career I was passionate about. I made a difficult and  conscious decision to pass up Hollywood in order to stay east, to be near my parents. Not just near – downstairs. I chose to be a low-paid print writer and remain in the city I love with two of the best people I’ve ever known. And then, whaddya know – the result of that decision became fodder for Super in the City, my first novel. (Nothing and no one is spared.)

5. Pay it forward. I met and befriended Elizabeth Gilbert while I was at The Paris Review (see Follow the Fun, above). I tentatively asked her about a career in writing and by way of answer, she invited me to her upstate home for the day, made a stew, and took me hiking. “There’s plenty of work to go around,” she assured me, and proceeded to share half a dozen professional contacts. Ever since, I have tried my best to be equally kind to aspiring writers.

DO-OVER

Turn up the music. I played the flute for ten years, and I kept at it mainly so that I could continue to return to my summer music camp, a place I adored. But I stopped playing in college and it is one of my few but big regrets. I sorely wish I’d kept it up. Playing a musical instrument makes the world a bigger, more beautiful place.

To read more about Daphne, head on over to her website or find her on Facebook and Twitter!

Thanks Daphne!  xoxo, L&L

Diana Spechler's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

We're giddy with excitement. Our cheeks are flushed with joy. Our hearts are beating faster. Because we've fallen in love- yet again. Diana Spechler is our latest crush. When we read her latest novel, Skinny (out today!) we were beyond impressed. And we're not alone. Some of our favorite authors, Allison Winn Scotch, Laura Dave and Janelle Brown have all given Skinny majuh praise! What especially intrigued us about Skinny is it's loosely based on Diana's real life experiences making it an even juicier read. Synopsis: In the aftermath of her Orthodox Jewish father's death, twenty-six-year-old Gray Lachmann finds herself compulsively eating. Desperate to stop bingeing, she abandons her life in New York City for a job at a southern weight-loss camp. There, caught among the warring egos of her devious co-counselor Sheena, the self-aggrandizing camp director Lewis, his attractive assistant Bennett, and a throng of combative teenage campers, she is confronted by a captivating mystery: her teenage half-sister Eden, whom Gray never knew existed. Now, while unraveling her father's lies, Gray must tackle her own self-deceptions and take control of her body and her life.

Watch the book trailer here.

And if you leave a comment, you'll be entered to win one of five copies of Skinny! We'll randomly select the winners after 6pm PST on Thursday, April 28th.

We're thrilled to have Diana on the site today and love her 5 Do's- especially #3. Neither of us ever thought we'd be ever see the inside of a yoga studio but Lisa started yoga when she was pregnant and has fallen in love with it and Liz has recently started getting her downward dog on and isn't lookin' back!

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS....DIANA SPECHLER'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER DON'T

DO

1. DO change things up. At 31, I’ve lived in more than ten towns and cities, sometimes just for brief stretches. My mother, who, despite infinite electronic alternatives, still keeps a Roll-A-Dex, has a dozen “Diana’s address” cards.

I’ve loved the adventures—traversing the country, living for days on gas station snacks and Subway veggie six-inchers, learning that one region’s rummage sale is another region’s garage sale is another region’s yard sale, and turning every place into my comfort zone. And then leaving.

Recently, I was shocked to open my mailbox and find a jury duty summons. I pressed a palm to my chest and whispered, “How did they find me?” as if I were a Wild West outlaw on the lam. I wondered if it was time to move again.

2.  DO give yourself permission to do the art you want to do. So many of us, yearning to be creative, take jobs that promise “opportunities for creativity,” when what that really means is that you’ll write memos.

If you want to dance, dance. If you want to do a leaf rubbing, grab a leaf. If you think you have a book in you, take a writing class at night and get started. Everyone’s entitled to create freely. The nicest thing I do for myself is ignore the voices in my head that yell, “You suck! Get a job! No…a real job!”

3.  Do yoga. I used to think that yoga was for wimps, that if I didn’t bench-press, I wasn’t worth my salt. Okay, I never bench-pressed. But I must have fancied myself some kind of jock, running for miles and miles as my bunion grew and whined and protested. Yoga is a sanity-saver. A bunion-saver, too. Also, it’s not for wimps.

4.  DO own red high heels. I just got a pair. Peep-toe. They make life better. (Don’t lecture me about my bunion.)

5.  DO buy books. If you are a voracious reader (yay for voracious readers!), I understand that you might not be able to afford three new books a week, but at least buy one every month or two. Books are my go-to gifts for birthdays and holidays. Even when there’s no occasion, if I love a book, I buy a few copies and give them to friends. If I feel like doing something nice for myself, I buy a guilty-pleasure book—one of those I have no business reading if I still haven’t read Mrs. Dalloway or Crime and Punishment.

Just buy books. We can’t let television win!

DON'T

DON’T go through your twenties without learning how to properly apply makeup. I made this mistake, and now I don’t have the patience to learn. Old dog, new tricks, or something like that. I have no idea what to do with my face, except stare at it in the mirror and wish I were married to a makeup artist.

For more information about the lovely and talented Diana Spechler, visit her website and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks, Diana!

xoxo,

L&L



Beth Orsoff's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

It's Earth Day! Woo hoo! You don't have to be a Leonardo Dicaprio-esque die-hard environmentalist, but we do hope you're doing your part to give Mother Earth some lovin' today. So c'mon, get your green on and take a shorter shower (we know it's hard because that hot water feels soooo good- but every minute does help) or recycle or reuse something-anything! Anywhoo...we thought today would be perfect to tell you about a book that we absolutely love because it has an environmental theme- How I Learned to Love the Walrus by Beth Orsoff. It's fun, funny (a definite LOL'er) and smartly written. It's one of those books that just makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside!

Synopsis: When Los Angeles publicist Sydney Green convinces her boss to let her produce a documentary for the Save the Walrus Foundation, the only one Sydney Green is interested in saving is herself. The walruses are merely a means to improving her career and her love life, and not necessarily in that order. Sydney would’ve killed the project the second she learned she’d be the one having to spend a month in rural Alaska if it had been for any other client. But for rising star and sometimes boyfriend Blake McKinley, no sacrifice is ever too great.

Yet a funny thing happens on the way to the Arctic. A gregarious walrus pup, a cantankerous scientist, an Australian sex goddess, a Star Wars obsessed six-year-old, and friends and nemeses both past and present rock Sydney Green’s well-ordered world. Soon Sydney must choose between doing what’s easy and doing what’s right.

And if you leave a comment, you can be entered to win one of five e-book copies of How I Learned to Love the Walrus. Click here to read chapter one.

We don't know about you, but we are loving on e-books- especially lately! We both have Nooks and the more e-books we download, the more addicted we become. (And don't worry, we're still loving regular books too- we always will. We're just not willing to be monogamous anymore!) And we've already downloaded Beth's other novels, Romantically Challenged and Honeymoon for One and you should too!

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS...BETH ORSOFF'S FIVE DO'S AND A DO-OVER

DO

1. Do Accept That You’re Not Going to be Good at EVERYTHING. I suck at cooking. There, I’ve said it, and on the internet no less (so now it’s forever and I’ll never be able to take it back)! I tried for years to be a good cook, or at least an okay cook. I bought cook books, studied recipes, watched cooking shows. I even considered signing up for a class once (although I never could get myself to pull the trigger). And everything I tried to bake, broil, or fry turned out terrible. I’ve finally accepted that although I’m good at many things (you should see me organize a closet!), cooking is not one of them and never will be. And I’m okay with that. Between my husband’s grilling skills, those really convenient meal-in-a-bags they sell in the freezer section of the grocery store, frozen pizza, salad in a bag, and several nearby take-out restaurants, no one in my family is going to starve because of my lack of culinary abilities.

2. Do be Persistent. Some people lead a charmed life and everything comes easily to them. Then there are the rest of us. I really do believe if you want it badly enough, and you are persistent, you will find a way to make it happen. Although sometimes you may have to scale back your expectations. Hillary Clinton really wanted to be President of the United States. And whether you love her or hate her, you have to acknowledge that the woman is persistent. But hey, she’s Secretary of State. It’s not the top job, but it’s still a pretty good gig. And if the President, Vice President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and President Pro Tempore of the Senate all died, she would be President of the United States.

3. Do Ignore the Haters. You know those people. They’re the ones who bitch about everyone and complain about everything. And they’re everywhere—online, at work, at school, down the block, they may even be in your own family. You can’t always avoid them, but you can choose to ignore them. Doing so will improve the quality of your life immeasurably.

4. Do Travel. I know travel, especially air travel, is a huge hassle these days. Long security lines, embarrassing pat downs, trying to fit all your toiletries into a 1-quart Ziploc bag, and paying extra for everything, including the seat where you can’t move your legs because the passenger in front of you decided to recline. I even almost got arrested in Customs on my last flight home from London (don’t ask!) I realize I’m not making a trip abroad (or anywhere for that matter) sound enticing, but I am telling you to go anyway. Because no matter what disaster (natural or manmade) has befallen me on vacation, I’ve never come home wishing I hadn’t gone. Travel expands your horizons, both literally and figuratively.

5. Do Treat Yourself to a Really Good Massage. Next to an orgasm and a really decadent dessert, nothing beats a good massage. Trust me on this. If you’ve never had a really good one, keep searching.

DO-OVER

I wish I had begun writing when I was younger. Then I could be embarking on my tenth novel now instead of my fifth!

To learn more about the lovely and talented and hilarious Beth Orsoff, check out her website and follow her on Facebook.

Thanks, Beth!

xoxo,

L&L

Megan McCafferty's 5 Do's and a Do-Over

Although we're alike in so many ways(Love Barry Manilow!  Hate tequila!) we're also complete opposites in so many others.  Like reading.  Lisa likes to take her time and savor each books she's reading while Liz likes to devour the book like's she a contestant on Survivor who hasn't eaten in four days.  For Liz, the faster she reads the book, the more she likes it.  Some of her faves have been read in mere hours!  Sure, she may be speed-reading just a tad, but when she finds uninterrupted time to dive into the incredibly growing TBR list, she doesn't have time to F around and stop and smell the roses! So you'll be happy to know that she finished NYT bestselling YA author Megan McCafferty's latest,Bumped(out on April 26th) in less than a day.  Intriguing and thought-provoking, this YA novel proves that it's not just for teenagers. We highly recommend it!

When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. Girls sport fake baby bumps and the school cafeteria stocks folic-acid-infused food.

Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and have never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Up to now, the twins have followed completely opposite paths. Melody has scored an enviable conception contract with a couple called the Jaydens. While they are searching for the perfect partner for Melody to bump with, she is fighting her attraction to her best friend, Zen, who is way too short for the job.

Harmony has spent her whole life in Goodside, a religious community, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to convince Melody that pregging for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.

When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common.

Sound good?  IT IS!!!  And you have FIVE chances to win a copy!  Just leave a comment here and you'll be entered.  We'll chosse the winner on Sunday April 24th after 6pm PST.

CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS: MEGAN McCAFFERTY'S 5 DO'S AND A DO-OVER

5 DO'S

1. Transfer colleges. I knew before the end of first-year orientation week (I believe I had my epiphany at BYOB--Bring Your Own Banana--Ice Cream Sunday Social) that the small college in Virginia was NOT for me. But I was afraid that if I left, I'd look like a loser to everyone back home. I stuck it out for two tumultuous years before realizing I had so much more to lose by settling. (LIFE LESSON ALERT: That's also true of colleges, jobs, boyfriends...) So I applied--and got into--a bigger, more liberal university in New York City where I didn't know anyone. It was the most transformative decision of my young adult life. Which brings me to #2...

2. Move somewhere no one knows you. True, it's harder to reinvent yourself in the Facebook era. But I found it incredibly liberating to start over in a city where I could be anyone...maybe even myself. And this leads to #3...

3. Embrace your inner dork. Recently I blogged about My Top 40 Songs of All Time. This is not a list carefully crafted to impress music snobs with its coolness. At all. But a close friend pointed out it may the only list of its kind that includes both Captain and Tennille and The Smiths. It's uniquely *me* in its uncoolness, which sort of makes it cool. This seques into #4...

4. Like what you like without guilt. I've worn the same scent (Colors de Benetton) since I was 13. DVF wrap dresses always flatter my figure. I re-watch the entire run of Freaks and Geeks every other year. I order the same spicy chicken in lettuce leaves when we get Chinese take-out. I research vacations all over the world and inevitably end up booking a trip somewhere in the Caribbean. These are things I like and I'm going to keep liking them because they make me happy. I've been cultivating these tastes for 38 years and with so much of life that's out of my control, there's a certain comfort to be found in what's familiar. Then again...

5. Embrace what's new too. It's so easy to get stuck in a life rut. But a negative attitude about newness would have stopped me from transferring to a different college seventeen years ago or dancing my ass off with college students half my age at the LCD Soundsystem show a few weeks ago (a transcendent not-to-be-missed experience). I never want to be one of those cranks who gets stubbornly stuck in a certain mindset and goes around complaining about how much everything else sucks. Because you know what? It's just not true. And it's no way to enjoy the richness of life either.

DO-OVER I don't dwell on regrets. Learning from my mistakes has made me who I am today. That said, I shouldn't have gotten that home perm in eighth grade. No one should get a home perm. Under any circumstances. I mean, have you ever heard a *positive* home perm story? I rest my case.

Thanks Megan!  xoxo, L&L

To read more about Megan, head on over to her website or find her on Facebook and Twitter.