Launch day for THE LOST SISTER

So, today THE LOST SISTER (sequel to Sisters of Misery) officially launched. I don't know if this means that they are currently available in your local Barnes & Noble, Borders or Indie store, but Amazon says that it's available and what Amazon says goes.

Last night was pretty intense. Here was my Facebook update.

45 minutes until THE LOST SISTER goes on sale. I know that you're all out there waiting in line dressed up like...um...really mean girls and um...witches? or not...Hey, doesn't everybody get a midnight book launch party? Why do Meyer and Rowling get all the hoopla? Get my agent on the phone! Heads are gonna roll! ;)

So shortly after that was posted, thousands of fans descended upon bookstores across the country dressed like Maddie, Cordelia and even a few Kate Endicotts. It was exhausting! I don't know how Stephenie Meyer and J.K. Rowling do it. But, you gotta do what you gotta do. It's a business, you know?

I mean, it wasn't like I was sitting home in my PJs anxiously Googling myself to see if any early reviews were in...that would be so lame. I mean, acceptable and understandable, given it's only my second book...but....whatever.

My FB friends (we're super tight, almost like family, really) were giving me ideas on what drink I should have to celebrate. But, as you all know, you are NOT allowed to drink alcohol in bookstores. It's a rule. I'm pretty sure. So, then I realized that the whole crowd control thing was getting a little crazy and I decided to call the whole thing off. And I didn't want to pull a Britney and be totally surrounded by bodyguards and not be able to mingle with my fans. I know a lot of you were disappointed, and I apologize. I'm truly and deeply sorry. Some of you put a lot of work into your "mean girl" costumes, and I really appreciate that.

So, I went home and considered the list of drinks that my FBFs (Facebook Friends--they're the new BFFs -- keep up, okay?) suggested and decided that while dirty martinis, malbec and dark chocolate, pomegranite margaritas(?) were enticing, I went for the more low key Fiji neat (no ice), not shaken, not stirred.

Sitting at my computer while my husband and daughter slept in the next rooms, I realized that I was doing a disservice to my tens of fans out there. I decided that my next book will have a huge coast-to-coast launch party. Even if it's just online--it will be a party to remember! People can dress up like characters while sitting at their computers. There can be role playing, give-aways, silent auctions, you name it.

Then today, the day of the book launch was just exhausting. Here's my FB update from the actual day.

Just a typical launch day for my second novel, THE LOST SISTER. Fielded phone calls from Clooney, Pitt, Johnny Depp--you know, the usual. Paparazzi at my doorstep. Hounded by the press (enough is enough--I'm just a person, you know.). Robert Pattinson, stop calling and begging to be in the movie version of my book already! Please! I'll let you know, okay? My people will call your people. We'll do lunch. *sigh*

Again, it's hard for people to understand that I'm a person just like everybody else. I don't like to live my life on a stage. I'm a writer. I prefer to be behind the scenes. And Johnny, Brad, George, Tom, Leo, Toby, Ashton, Jonai (that's what I call the brothers, it's just easier that way), I'm sorry that I couldn't take all of your calls, but you know how it is. Everyone wants a piece of you. Your life isn't your own anymore. I just wish people would understand how hard it is to keep fans happy, because that's what it's really all about---the people, the fans. Not the jets, the parties, the trips to the French Riviera, the swag, the premieres, the money, the luxury vacations. That's meaningless.

It's about the book. And that's what today was about. The launch of my book. Which is why I chose to spend it at home with my daughter (after her gymnastics camp) cleaning my house in the insane humidity and working on my next novel. Because the work comes first, people. That's what it's all about. Everything else is just distractions.

In any case, I hope you all go out and purchase THE LOST SISTER at your local bookstore or on Amazon.com. Amazon.com purchases will help me achieve my goal of getting into the under 100,000 rank. I think we've all had quite enough of Stephenie Meyer taking up the top spots in the Amazon ranking system. Time to give it up, Ms. Meyer. Move along, now. You've had your time in the spotlight.

I wanted to take this time to thank everyone for making this day possible. And also a quick disclaimer ** (please see below).

**Any and all persons mentioned in this post have not approved being mentioned here and may or may not have actually contacted the author of this post, so let's just keep this between you and me, because I really don't want to end up on Oprah getting yelled at. This isn't a memoir or anything. It's a blog post. A blog post of a fiction writer at that. So anything I have said cannot be used against me in a court of law. It could all be purely a work of fiction--or not. Either way, I take no responsibility for any of the things posted above and will not be held accountable if anyone gets their feelings hurt by said post.

***Additional disclaimer: Johnny Depp, I was kidding. Feel free to call me anytime you want. I'm never too busy to talk to you.

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GCC Tours Jennifer Banash's SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE

I am so excited to tour one of my FAVORITE authors of the hot NY teen society, Jennifer Banash, who doesn't fail to deliver on her third and final book in The Elite series. You simply cannot help but fall in love with SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE--it's the perfect summer read. Don't waste your time watching the overpriviliged and uber-annoying kids on Bravo's NYC Prep (P.C., seriously? do you really think you're God's gift to the world?), and instead dive into the world of Casey McCloy, Madison Macallister, Meadowlark Academy, The Bramsford and the rest of NY's Upper East Side as deftly described by Banash. Coincidentally, reality television is exactly what comes into Casey and Madison's lives, creating even more delicious drama, tensions, and scandal! So much more fun than "real" reality shows, SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE takes the reader into a world that cannot be captured more accurately than by someone who's been there.

What writers do you consider your “sisters”? Are there any published writers that you hang out or tour with a lot? Call? Email? IM?

Yes! I just had lunch with Robin Benway, who is an amazingly awesome writer, and a great girl to boot, and I talk to Alexa Young quite a bit. And, of course, I like to think that you and I are virtual buddies as well (MKH NOTE: OF COURSE!! XOXO) ! I've exchanged emails with Alyson Noel, and we've talked about meeting for lunch, but haven't had time to set something up a of yet.

Who do you find yourself being compared to or are often put together with in reading lists or book clubs?

Gossip Girl. The Luxe. Anyone who writes about the rich and privileged set or anyone who writes about NYC.

What writers do you wish would be in your “clique”? (It doesn’t have to be in your genre….doesn’t even have to be living! For example, I’d pick Alice Hoffman, Jodi Picoult, Sarah Dessen, Oscar Wilde, Stephenie Meyer, Meg Cabot, Stephen King and Joan Didion).

Oscar Wilde, because every girl needs a fabulously witty, gay best friend, Roberto Bolano, Joan Didion, Bret Easton Ellis, Sarah Dessen, and JD Salinger (MKH NOTE: Just don't suggest a sequel to Catcher in the Rye!).

If someone was going to join your book club, what would be a “must read” in order to join?

Lolita. It is a modern masterpiece.

What was your “initiation” to writing?

I started writing poems when I was around 12, and wanted to be a serious poet for a long time. I still read poetry, I just don't write it anymore.

When did you first feel that you’d officially joined the “published writers’ club”?

Er . . . I still don't feel like I'm there! (MKH: Of course you're there!! You're one of the coolest!)

What was your best/worst memory of high school?

I was a club kid, so I went to school pretty sporadically. Suffice to say, I don't have many clear memories of that time, or none I can really talk about here!

In SISTERS OF MISERY, the last place new members want to go to is Misery Island. But if you had the choice, what island would you go to and what would you take with you?

Anywhere with a white sand beach, clear blue water, and copious amounts of frothy blender drinks. I'd take an enormous stack of paperbacks, my Trina Turk bikini, and my boyfriend!

Finally, what can you tell me about your book? Give me a quick run-down about why I’d want to pick it for my own book club.

Third and last in The Elite book series – brings more adventures from the spoiled, rich teens in Manhattan who nearly ate Casey McCloy alive when she first arrived in the Big Apple from her small town of Normal, Illinois. Casey learned very quickly after she moved in with her grandmother at The Bramford, the most exclusive luxury apartment building on New York’s Upper East Side and got into the prestigious Meadowlark Academy on a full scholarship, that it’s not who you are but who you know!


More about SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE:

Simply Irresistible (Penguin) brings us a whole new set of adventures now that Casey has had a big city-haute makeover, courtesy of her classmate and neighbor Madison Macallister – part teen icon and part queen diva-bitch. Wearing the right clothes, saying the right things, and meeting the right people, has given Casey the look and the attitude – she’s “in” and loving it!

Much to Madison’s dismay, her rival is climbing up the social ladder in a big way and could end up just as popular as Madison now that the two are set to star in their own TV reality show, “De-Luxe.” Yes, showbiz came knocking on two of The Bramford’s most illustrious doors and, as much as Madison thrives on the attention the show brings, she’s not thrilled about having every bit of her life of privilege caught on tape. However, fame comes at a price and Madison is one chick who is willing to pay anything…especially if it means becoming the next reality “it girl.” Casey, on the other hand, is realizing that Reality TV can sometimes beunreal, causing her to wonder if she even knows who she is anymore.

With her relationship with Drew, Madison’s ex, currently more off than on, she can’t help wondering if everything in her life is really just an illusion – and how much longer the illusion can last….

Although The Elite series is obsessed with fashion and glamour, Branash does an impressive job of examining real issues that teens face, such as cutting, divorce, infidelity, and drug addiction. Having personally attended high school on the Upper East Side of Manhattan provided the author with the background for her ample insight and imagination portrayed in The Elite Series.

Praise for The Elite Series:

"If you love all the drama, scandal, and high-end fashion of Gossip

Girl...you'll want to check out...The Elite!"--Seventeen.com

"The Elite is Pretty in Pink for the millennium generation."--Romance

Reviews Today

"An awesome tale of friendship and betrayal with just the right amount

of humor and heart. Seriously irresistible, and impossible to put

down."-Alexa Young, author of Frenemies and Faketastic


About the Author: Jennifer Banash
Jennifer Banash attended high school on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and currently divides her time between Paris and the Midwest—where she lives with her Beagle, Sigmund, and her vast designer shoe collection. She is the co-founder and co-publisher of Impetus Press, an independent publishing house that champions serious literary fiction with a pop edge.
For more info, check out her website at http://www.theelitebooks.com/

SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE
by Jennifer Banash
Publisher: Berkley Trade (July 7, 2009
ISBN-10: 0425227839
ISBN-13: 978-042522783

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