Fascinating World War-era historical novels for your spring reading pleasure

March brought the release of two fascinating World War-era historical novels that have received stellar praise: The Empire of the Senses by Alexis Landau, a novel about passion and family in volatile Berlin, and Mademoiselle Chanel by C.W. Gortner, chronicling the turbulent life of the iconic fashion designer.

The Empire of the Senses (Pantheon) was one of Booklist's Top 10 Historical Fiction titles for 2015. In a starred review, Booklist called the novel a "top-notch literary saga with a gripping plotline" and wrote, "the characters’ actions and thoughts are so three-dimensionally human that readers may forget they’re reading fiction and not experiencing their real lives alongside them."

The book also received a full-page feature spread in Jewish Book World, complete with an interview with Landau and a glowing review.  Reviewer Becca Kantor called The Empire of the Senses a “riveting debut,” a “sweeping yet intimate portrait of pre-World War II Berlin,” full of “evocative prose, attention to detail, and meticulous research." She ended with the assertion, “The Empire of the Senses is sure to establish Alexis Landau as a masterful new literary voice.”

In her interview with Jewish Book World, Landau discusses the influence of art and Jewish identity on the book. She also offers some writerly tips. Below is a brief excerpt of Landau discussing how she honed the time period details so they were just right; read the full interview here.

One of my best friends, who is an editor, told me, "The most important thing is tone, and getting the tone right, and not having your contemporary voice barge in." When I was writing, especially in the beginning, I was really conscious of that. I can't write well unless I understand every aspect of a person. Not just what they're experiencing psychologically, but also their body in time and space."

Internationally bestselling author C.W. Gortner's Mademoiselle Chanel (William Morrow) recently made the ABA National Indie Bestseller list!

Gortner was also featured in Glamour as a Best New Novel out in March. The Glamour book editor offered glowing praise, saying, “Mademoiselle Chanel sucked me in by the pearls and never let go. Gortner’s imagining of the ultimate fashion icon is equal parts grit and glamour, painting a portrait of a woman who was hugely inspiring but by no means perfect. Oh, and if you can’t afford to visit Paris in peak springtime season, reading this book with a glass of wine is a decent substitute.”

Mademoiselle Chanel was also...

...featured in USA Today (#1 under “New and Noteworthy”)...

...named a March Book Club pick in Style Bistro (the editors paired the book with a little black dress as an inspired fashion find, and they assert that “Mademoiselle Chanel isn't like other things you've read” about Chanel; it “tell[s] Gabrielle Chanel's history in her own imagined voice and perspective”)...

...and chosen as the Editor's Choice Title from the Historical Novel Society (their review is brimming with praise: “Gortner giv[es] us a complex story in which Chanel shines through as human, understandably prideful, blind when it served her purpose, vulnerable, and always chic and elegant. Beyond the effortless and easy flow of the narrative, there's a lot to love about this story...This novel...breathes Chanel's style and panache in every sentence”).

Don't miss these amazing books for your spring reading!

LOST IN TRANSLATION inspires book lovers' sharing of #stacksofbooks

Last month, we decided to celebrate reading and JVNLA books with inspiration taken from Ella Frances Sanders's New York Times Travel section bestseller Lost in Translation (Ten Speed Press, September 2014).

The book is a compilation of breathtaking illustrations of words that can't be translated into English. One of our--and other book lovers'--favorite words is tsundoku,the Japanese word for “leaving a book unread after buying it, typically piled up together with other unread books.”

So, we put out a call to our authors to post their pictures of stacks of books they wanted to read in the new year that they had piled up in their homes or offices, on their ereaders and phones, etc, and to share them via social media using the #stacksofbooks hashtag. We asked other book lovers to respond with their own pictures, too!

The response was fantastic and full of fun insight into what people have on their to-read lists! Here's a sampling:

C.W. Gortner, author of Mademoiselle Chanel (William Morrow, March 2015) @CWGortner

M.D. Waters, author of Archetype (Dutton, 2014) @_MDWaters - M.D. Waters tweeted stacks of physical books, ebooks, and audio books!

JVNLA founder Jean Naggar, author of Sipping from the Nile (Lake Union, 2012) @twjnaggar - You can see some of our own books snuck in!: The Bridal Chair by Gloria Goldreich, Our Picnics in the Sun by Morag Joss, and The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters

Sandra Worth, author of Pale Rose of England (Berkley, 2011) @SandraWorth

JVNLA President Jennifer Weltz @JVNLA - You can see our own Lost in Translation nearby!

Nancy Springer, author of Drawn into Darkness (NAL, 2013) @NancySpringer

Bonnie MacDougal, author of Out of Order (Ballantine, 1999) @PovBonnie

JVNLA Literary Agent Elizabeth Evans @EMEvans11 - You can see Dirty Chick by Antonia Murphy peeking out!

Torre DeRoche, author of Love with a Chance of Drowning (Hachette, 2013) @FearfulGirl

Iza Trapani, author of Little Miss Muffet (Sky Pony Press, 2013) @IzaTrapani Iza on Facebook

JVNLA Literary Agent Laura Biagi @LauraJBiagi - You can see Archetype by M.D. Waters snuck in!

Candace Robb, author of A Triple Knot (pen name Emma Campion) (Broadway, 2014) @CandaceMRobb

JVNLA Contracts Manager Tara Hart @Tara_Hart28 - You can spot some JVNLA books, including Gilded Cages by Ellen Jones, Dark Lie by Nancy Springer, and Wait...What?!: Life Advice from a Ghetto Genius by J-Wunder

Doug Mack, author of Europe on Five Wrong Turns a Day (Perigee, 2012) @douglasmack

Brenda Marshall, author of Dakota, Or What's a Heaven For (Untreed Reads, 2010) Brenda on Facebook

JVNLA Assistant Ariana Philips @ArianaPhilips - You can see our client Sarai Walker's Dietland snuck in, and The Paying Guests!

And here's a selection of photos from other book lovers who shared their #stacksofbooks!

From @charissaweaks:

From @JamesCharlesC:

From @cgroga:

From @JL_Henry:

From @natalkaburian:

From @SimonReadBooks:

From @Kateywrites:

From @AngryHistory:

From @DonWinstonLA:

From @Jamie_Adams22:

From @colin_falconer:

How to Become an International Bestseller in 8 Steps!

1. Write novels about famous maligned women in history and Tudor spies.

C.W. Gortner tells the stories of famous historical figures as you've never heard them before. The Last Queen (Ballantine 2008) is about “Juana La Loca,” the last queen of Spanish blood to inherit her country's throne. The Confessions of Catherine de Medici (2010) is about the last legitimate descendant of the Medici line who became—according to some—a most ruthless queen of France. The Queen's Vow (2012) is about Isabella of Castile, the warrior-queen who sent Columbus to America. In 2016, Ballantine will publish a stunning, new Gortner novel about Lucrezia Borgia, daughter of Italy's first crime family.

Gortner's The Tudor Secret (St. Martin's Press 2011), The Tudor Conspiracy (2013), and The Tudor Vendetta (forthcoming October 2014) follow the story of a spy in the Tudor court during the reigns of Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I.

Gortner's next novel, coming from William Morrow in March 2015, imagines the life of the woman who revolutionized fashion, built an international empire, and become one of the most influential and controversial figures of the twentieth century—Coco Chanel! Look out for Mademoiselle Chanel in the spring!

2. Make them good.

Simply put, Gortner's “meticulously researched,”¹ “page-turner”² novels “spi[n] grand tale[s] of opulence and deception, privilege and destruction, madness and fragile love”³ that “captiv[ate] audiences with their complexity,”⁴ “com[ing] together with a beauty and passion that can't be found anywhere in the pages of history books”⁵; they are “masterwork[s] by a skilled craftsman...that will delight romantics and historians alike.”⁶

---

<sup>1. Publishers Weekly on The Confessions of Catherine de Medici
2. Historical Novel Society on The Tudor Conspiracy
3. Historical Novel Review on The Last Queen
4. Examiner.com on The Tudor Secret
5. Romantic Times Book Reviews on The Queen's Vow
6. New York Journal of Books on The Queen's Vow</sup>

3. Sell your novels in 23 countries and counting.

Bulgaria * China * Croatia * Czech Republic * Estonia * Germany * Hungary * Indonesia * Italy * Latvia * Lithuania * Norway * Poland * Portugal * Romania * Russia * Serbia * Slovenia * Spain * Sweden * Turkey * United Kingdom * United States

4. Get a great Polish publicist—and a great Polish publisher and Polish coagent, etc, etc.

Above is Gortner (right) pictured with his publicist (center) from Polish publisher Znak.

5. Get sent to Poland on an international tour.

6. While in Poland, appear on popular TV and radio programs; speak at major bookstores; and get reviewed and interviewed in newspapers, magazines, websites, and blogs.

Above, Gortner talks at Matras bookstore and answers reader questions about The Queen's Vow. Among many other places, he was interviewed at Newsweek Polska and NaTemat.pl!

And check out the gorgeous banner ad for The Queen's Vow!

7. Sign lots of people's books.

8. Congratulations, you are now an international bestseller!

The Queen's Vow rocketed up the bestseller list throughout Poland soon after its release, making individual bestseller lists at Matras bookstores, Empik bookstores, and many internet bookstore outlets.

Congratulations, C.W. Gortner!

Next Step: Repeat Steps 1 – 3 and look for another great opportunity!

Discoverability, Part II: How to use Goodreads to solve the discoverability problem

As we discussed in our last post, one of the most pressing problems currently facing publishers, booksellers, and authors is that of book discovery. Given the advancement of eBooks and the increasing numbers of self-published authors, the market has become inundated with content, leaving readers in a daze of titles and authors from which to choose. This trend has forced the publishing industry to question how consumers can find books at all, let alone their next favorite read.

Cue Goodreads, a social media site for finding and sharing books:

Goodreads' mission is to “help people find and share books they love” and, at the same time, “improve the process of reading and learning throughout the world.” With a growing community of over 14 million users, Goodreads enables avid readers and writers to share what they are reading, show how they are rating books, and recommend books to others. The site is quickly becoming one of the most popular platforms for readers to discover new authors and for authors to connect with new readers. By bringing together three important but simple components--authors, readers, and books--Goodreads believes it has found the answer to “discoverabilty.”

With publishers relying more and more on authors to market their books online, knowing how to navigate sites like Goodreads is crucial for anyone hoping to make his or her book successful. At JVNLA, we've met with Goodreads representatives to learn the best ways our authors can take advantage of the opportunities available. Below, we've compiled information about which aspects of the site can be the most useful for authors, along with examples of how our authors have used Goodreads in the past.

Build Your Author Platform

One of the first things to do when joining Goodreads is to claim your author profile and join the Author Program. Joining the Author Program allows you to personalize your profile, list the books you've written, share your favorite books with fans, publicize upcoming events, and write a blog on the site.

It is important to personalize your author profile as much as possible. Don't forget to add an author photo and bio. According to Goodreads, an author profile with a photo attracts more viewers and reviewers than an author profile without an image! On their profiles, authors can also post videos, eBook excerpts, polls, etc., all of which end up on the feeds of friends and fans.

Some great examples of how to best utilize your author profile include the profiles of our authors Lesley Livingston (here) and Christopher Gortner (here).

Promote Your Books

Giveaways: These are one of the easiest ways to make your books discoverable on Goodreads. Not only does a giveaway lend exposure to your book being given away, it also increases interest for any other books you may have written. Plus, readers who receive giveaway books are highly likely to write reviews for them. And the more people who review and rate your books, the more visibility your books will have. According to Goodreads, over 40,000 people enter a giveaway every day, and, on average, each giveaway has 850 entries.

Goodreads recommends running a giveaway for at least two weeks but no longer than a month. The site also recommend running two giveaways for a book over time: one a few months before publication to build buzz and reviews, and a second after publication to increase awareness that your book is purchasable.

One of the advantages of doing a giveaway before publication or during the galley stage is that many people entering the contest will add your book to their “To-Read” shelves. And once your book publishes, those who have added your book to their “To-Read” shelves will receive an email from Goodreads. That email might be just the nudge they need to go out and buy your book!

JVNLA hosted a giveaway for DARK LIE by Nancy Springer in the beginning of January, which you can view here. The giveaway lasted for a little over two weeks and garnered 2,384 entries. As a direct result of the giveaway, the number of people with DARK LIE on their “To-Read” shelves skyrocketed to over 1,180 people. The green in the image below shows that "To-Read" increase over time.

Wendy Webb, another JVNLA author, held a giveaway for her new novel THE FATE OF MERCY ALBAN in January, too, viewable here. Over 1,460 people entered the giveaway. Currently, over 1,090 people have THE FATE OF MERCY ALBAN on their “To-Read” shelves. The increase in "To-Read" adds, from mid-December through the giveaway period and then after the book's publication (in February), is shown in green below.

Join and Host Groups: Goodreads has numerous groups that members can join, from groups for author Q and As, to groups for book swaps, to groups for genre discussions, to book club groups. To lend you and your books more visibility, join a group that discusses a topic or subject related to you or your work. Don't forget that when you first join a group, you should slowly make your way into the conversation before mentioning your own work.

One example of a book club group is “Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy." Included among the book club reading list is Lesley Livingston's STARLING. An example of a group for genre discussions, on the other hand, is “A History of Royals.” C.W. Gortner, author of THE QUEEN'S VOW and many other novels revolving around historical queens, is a member.

Nancy Springer took part in another group, a featured author group, on January 24th, in which she discussed her new book DARK LIE and her past books, including the well-known ENOLA HOLMES series. Over the course of a day, over 70 people joined the group to talk with Nancy about what made her want to become a writer and what inspired her books. You can view the group discussion here.

Be an Active Goodreads Member

With any social media platform, your effectiveness is related to how much you interact with others. Authors should be active when using Goodreads by frequently adding and rating books on their shelves, updating their author profile, and interacting with other members on the site.

Remember, Goodreads is a place for readers, not solely a place for marketing purposes. You should not constantly promote your work on the site. However, if you join Goodreads and begin engaging with readers and different groups, you may be surprised to find out how much work you've done, without realizing it, that has made your book discoverable.