The Cat is Out of the Bag

So, since it's now public knowledge via press release, I thought I'd share some news with you, dear reader.

My life has turned a teensy bit upside-down this week...to say the least.

I've made the official decision to leave my current day job at Penguin to go out on my own full-time. I'll be launching a new company in the new year for my own editorial services (though continuing to freelance until then, of course--just not under an incorporated business yet!). When I'm ready to announce the actual company specifically, you'll be the first to know! ;)

I've also accepted a consulting gig as a senior editor and editorial director of two adult single-title romance imprints at Entangled Publishing:

Entangled Publishing continues to attract top-tier publishing veterans to its highly qualified editorial team.  The newest addition, Danielle Poiesz, comes to Entangled after a storied career with Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, and Penguin.

Danielle Poiesz comes on board as the editorial director of the new digital-first romance imprint, Entangled Edge, as well as taking over the helm of the successful print romance imprint, Entangled Select, unifying Entangled’s single-title adult romance division. “I’ve always believed that the romance genre reaches out to all kinds of hearts,” says Danielle. “I’m thrilled to be joining Entangled at a time where the adult market is so open and enthusiastic about romance—in any format. There are so many stories out there to be told and no better time to tell them.”

Danielle’s publishing experience runs the gamut: sales and editorial, to business development, digital/online, and self-publishing, to strategic innovations and tech. Now, as an Entangled editorial director and senior editor—and a continued freelance editorial specialist and blogger—Danielle brings a wealth of expertise to her new position with Entangled and is even more poised to help fill the world with eye-opening, meaningful, and, of course, entertaining literature.

“I know Danielle Poiesz is the perfect fit to grow and mold our adult imprints,” says Executive Editorial Director Stacy Cantor Abrams, echoing the entire team’s sentiments. “We all heartily welcome her to the Entangled family!”

Stacy Cantor Abrams, former Editorial Director of Entangled Select, has followed her passion for the young adult genre from Walker/Bloomsbury to her new position at Entangled as Executive Editorial Director over the company’s acclaimed Entangled TEEN print imprint as well as the newly announced digital-first young adult imprint, Entangled digiTEEN.

Entangled Publishing’s incredible growth and success stems from its utilization of a bold new business model to bridge the gap between traditional and indie publishing. Giving their authors the best of both worlds, Entangled offers quality editing, commercially appealing cover art, and an unequalled marketing department coupled with some of the highest author royalties in the industry. Entangled Edge and Entangled digiTEEN are positioned to capitalize on the fast-paced and growing success of e-books as well as round out Entangled’s complement of imprints for every romance reader.

See the original press release HERE

For the next month, I will be juggling all three roles--keep those balls in the air, Danielle!--and then in early January will be entirely self-employed, freelancing for individual clients and publishers, as well as Entangled.

As you can see, it's a very big, crazy day!

Whee!

I went in a bit of a circle, but I've found my way back to my true love: editorial. Very excited!

It's all about the books, after all.

And the love. Don't forget the love.

A Different Kind of Happily Ever After

One of the things I struggled with when I worked in editorial at a traditional publisher was the fact that I couldn't always help the writers who I felt had potential. Sometimes the book in question just wasn't there yet; sometimes it wasn't right for the publisher's list; and sometimes it just couldn't get enough in-house support to warrant an acquisition.

Occasionally those books would get picked up by other houses, but more often than not, they'd fade back into the hoard of writers who just can't catch a break. But some writers choose a different path when traditional publishing isn't going their way and they'll publish the book on their own.

When I heard from author Carole Bellacera that she took this path with her novel Lily of the Springs--which I'd read numerous times, given notes on, and saw so much potential in--I was ecstatic for her. She even was so kind as to send me a print copy of the book as a thank you for my support. I'm super excited to see what she ended up doing with the manuscript!

It makes me so happy to see people making their own dreams come true, even if the rest of the universe isn't necessarily being helpful. So, in honor of her bravery--and her courageous and complex main character, Lily Ray Foster--I'll be giving away a Lily of the Springs bookmark this week, and Carole herself has offered to provide one lucky reader with a print or digital copy of the book! Just comment on this post by Friday at 3 pm to get your name tossed in the hat!

The 50’s…Drive-in Movies, Doo-wop Music…and Love in the Back Seat of a ’51 Plymouth In 1952 Kentucky, 18-year-old Lily Foster, the daughter of strict Southern Baptist parents, becomes pregnant by the town “bad boy”—and just like that, she finds herself married to a man who doesn’t want to be a husband. Jake has no intention of letting the inconvenience of marriage stop him from what he believes is his due. In actuality, Lily is the one who is trapped. She loves Jake—always has, since they were children playing in the woods on adjoining properties--and she’s convinced she can eventually make him love her. All it will take is desire and patience. Once the baby arrives, they will be the perfect little family.

From Lily’s home on Opal Springs Ridge to a four-year stint at an army base in New Boston, Texas, and finally, to life on their own in Bowling Green, Kentucky, Lily struggles to maintain a rocky marriage with a moody, immature husband while raising two daughters. Set during the “American Dream” period of the ‘50s and into the turbulent ‘60’s, LILY OF THE SPRINGS is a story of a woman’s indomitable spirit and her fight for independence and identity in an “Ozzie & Harriet” society.

The book has even gotten some great praise from fellow authors, including the historical romance and women's fiction New York Times bestseller Teresa Medeiros:

"LILY OF THE SPRINGS is like a slow dance to a Patsy Cline song in the arms of your one true love. From the very first page, it draws you back to another time and place and makes you want to stay there forever. Carole Bellacera is a master storyteller."

Congratulations, Carole! I'm so thrilled for you!

A Long-Awaited Apology...and Promises of Change

I know it's been a while, dear readers. I'm sorry for that. Things over this way have been a whirlwind, for a variety of reasons really. But one in particular stands out from the others: Tomorrow is my last day at my current job.

It's the nature of the business, really. In the publishing world people bounce from house to house, zig-zagging their way up the ladder. It's a small industry and often you find yourself working again with someone you worked with years before or in the very same office you left several years prior.

In my case, though, it's more of a lateral move, a judgmental call that was not easy to make. I'm leaving Pocket for Penguin, but more than that, I'm leaving editorial for business development.

Trust me, that's a fact I'd never thought I'd ever face. I came into publishing with one goal: to be an editor and as such make a difference through books. And four years in, I find myself going down a new path, not one I looked for but one that found me, one that is exciting and scary and that holds great opportunity and potential reward.

I won't try for a second to claim I'm not sad about leaving because I am. I'm going to miss my bosses, my co-workers, and of course, my wonderful authors tremendously. Heck, I have one more day and I miss them all already. But as we all know, publishing is ever-changing and quickly evolving--just as we are as individuals. It's a change and adventure that, despite my tendency to stay put and hide from anything unfamiliar, for whatever reason the universe compelled me to attempt.

So, as you can probably imagine, it's been an emotional and difficult few weeks making this decision and then trying to accept the decision I made. Don't get me wrong, I'm incredibly excited about this new venture, working on the digital side of things and being at the forefront of some innovative an exciting new projects (one in particular of which I was hired on for but it's top secret at the moment...you know I'll tell you the moment I'm allowed!) is going to be such a new and different experience for me, and all the signs point to it being a great move.

But it's a biiiig life change. So it's had a little tied up in knots, hence my absence. One thing this new will allow though, is for me to have my free time back, to have a little more motivation and energy to get back into doing some of the things I love--pleasure reading, writing, and chatting with all of you.

So, get ready. Because RBtL is gonna be kicking it back into gear pretty damn soon.

I have two book reviews on deck, a couple of guest bloggers in the works, and some new article topics percolating up in that crazy-full-of-emotion brain of mine.

Can't wait to share it all with you!

In the meantime, enjoy this adorable book trailer for my dear friend and fantastic author Jill Myles's upcoming release, My Fair Succubi. Her artist husband--who seems to be the sweetest man on earth minus his chosen NHL team allegiance *wink*--actually made it for her, which just makes it even more awesome.