Friday, March 25, 2011

Friday Update 3/25/11

Here's the latest ...

• I'm giving away an audiobook over on my Facebook author page. To enter, click here and "like" the page. The rest is self-explanatory.

• THE OTHER LIFE got a sweet shout-out in the Columbus Dispatch.

• And also in the industry trade, Shelf Awareness.

• If you've been on the fence about reading THE OTHER LIFE, please click here to read the prologue and first chapter. I hope it wins you over!

• A new interview was just posted a blog called In the Next Room. Some cool questions about chick lit, HBO and more.

• I'm going to stop here because I have too much work to do, and am just plain cranky over being the object of someone's misdirected right wing rage.

Enjoy your weekend ...

Friday, March 18, 2011

Is it Friday already? The 3/18/11 update ...

Wow. Last Sunday my NPR interview aired and the response knocked me out. I got wonderful emails from friends, family and strangers. Tweeters, bloggers and other kind folks linked the NPR podcast all over the Internet.  And it looks like sales got a big boost. On Sunday morning, THE OTHER LIFE's Amazon ranking was in the 38,000s; by late afternoon it was in the 500s.

Also, I was shocked to discover that Nook sales took off like a rocket. At one point in the day THE OTHER LIFE was the #1 ranked Nook on B&N's "Flying Off the Shelves" page!

Of course, the rest of the week was anticlimactic in comparison, but I'm still thrilled about the interview and the outcome. Huge thanks to NPR's Liane Hansen for the thoughtful, probing questions ... and for the chance to be on her acclaimed Weekend Edition show.

A few other highlights this week ...

• THE OTHER LIFE got an intense and outstanding review from BookPage, a popular industry publication. Here's a sample: "The choices in this novel are heartbreaking, and thoughtfully show the value of a mother’s support, guidance, steadfast love and sacrifices. How Quinn decides she’ll live at the novel’s close and with whom is never obvious, making for a riveting tale of love and choices."  Read the rest here.

• I'm extremely grateful to the Robin Kall for the terrific interview on her Saturday morning radio program, Reading with Robin, broadcast on WHJJ in Rhode Island, and streaming live everywhere. Robin is smart, down-to-earth and a great champion of books. And she has a way of making you feel like an old friend right from the start. I really enjoyed our chat, and will post a link to the podcast when it's available.

• Warmth and thanks to Liz and Lisa at chicklitisnotdead.com for the fun feature, which included a suitably ridiculous photo of me. And a special shout-out to all the wonderful folks who entered the drawing for a free book!

• Hugs and thanks to my sweet and supportive friend, Jill Thomas, for posting a review of THE OTHER LIFE on her blog.

• LonelyFriday.org posted a review that I loved from start of finish. One of my faves! You can read it here.

• Some nice quotes this week. From The Midwest Book Review: "The Other Life" is an exciting and suspenseful novel of choosing ones path in life, highly recommended."  And from the San Francisco Book Review: "This is a gripping tale about choices and self discovery."

• I also love this quote from a blog called Debbie's Book Bag: ""This was an amazing book! Ellen Meister has given readers a book that will touch them to their core ... great for book clubs, mothers and daughters and for those who have issues with their own choices in life. I recommend this one to my readers whole-heartedly. It's contemporary fiction at it's best!"

• I got some kind of a shout-out on the Indie Bestseller List. No, THE OTHER LIFE is not actually ON the list, but it's near it. Sweet to be a "favorite." Click here and scroll down.

• By now even I'm getting sick of myself, so I can only imagine how you must feel. Time to switch gears and give a few shouts for friends ...

     ♦ I don't read much nonfiction, but I'm DYING to read Laura Snyder's THE PHILOSOPHICAL  BREAKFAST CLUB, which is getting outstanding reviews everywhere.

     ♦ Susan Henderson is the featured author at Smith Magazine. Click it and read those few sentences and you'll immediately understand why I adore her so.

     ♦ So thrilled that my pal Michael Palmer is burning up the bestseller lists (again!) with his newest thriller, A HEARTBEAT AWAY.

Monday, March 14, 2011

As heard on NPR ...

Big day yesterday, as my NPR interview with Liane Hansen aired on The Morning Edition. I'm a huge NPR fan, so this was a dream come true.

If you missed it, click here to listen to the podcast.

Friday, March 11, 2011

Friday Update 3/11/11

Whoa ... crazy schedule today. Here's a real fast Friday update:

• RADIO DAYS - It's a big radio weekend for me. Check it out ...

Sunday on NPR
I'm a huge NPR fan and I'm thrilled that you'll get to hear me answer Liane Hansen's probing questions about THE OTHER LIFE this Sunday morning on The Weekend Edition. Click here to find your local station and time.

Or, to hear the program online from 8am - 10am (Eastern time) click here to access a live stream from WNYC.

Saturday on WHJJ
I'm going to be interviewed live on the air by Robin Kall, host of Reading with Robin on WHJJ in Providence, RI. To listen online from anywhere, click here at 7:30 am Eastern time.

Right Now on Texas Public Radio
You can hear me talk about THE OTHER LIFE right now via podcast on Texas Public Radio.

• REVIEWS
Some great reviews of THE OTHER LIFE appeared this week, and I'm thrilled to share them ...

     Reviews from the Heart: 5 out of 5 stars!

    BookNAround "The themes of love and loss are well-drawn and realistic and the ending of the story is really quite perfectly written ... This book would be a fantastic choice for reading groups given its premise and all the issues Meister raises."


    That's What She Read "The Other Life is beautifully written, presenting Quinn's agony with care and accuracy. Ms. Meister does a great job ... "

• OTHER NEWS

Big thanks to The Book End Babes for making THE OTHER LIFE a March pick!

Very excited that my essay on writing appears on the Back Page Column of The San Francisco Book Review. Read it here.



Have a great weekend ... and please don't forget to tune into NPR on Sunday morning!

Tuesday, March 08, 2011

Essay in San Francisco Book Review

Happy and honored that my essay about writing goals now appears on The Back Page of the San Francisco Book Review.



If you’re like most writers, you spend a lot of time thinking about some elusive writing goal. Whether it’s landing a literary agent, finishing your memoir, publishing a novel or getting your first short story acceptance, it looms like a magnificent finish line. And beyond it, bliss.
Eight years ago, after months of soul-crushing rejections, I got the call writers dream about ...
Read more

Friday, March 04, 2011

Friday Update 3/4

Big thanks to everyone who came to my Barnes & Noble/Carle Place event last night! Great crowd, and though I'm sorry some of you had to stand, I have to admit that SRO is kind of gratifying ... especially since I was worried that no one would show up.

Here's more news ...

• Looks like my NPR interview will air on Sunday, 3/13. More on that soon.

• Nice feature on Newsday.com yesterday. Click here to read the article. (Click here if you can't view it the entire story.)

• Huge thanks to the Girls Just Reading blog for the insightful and interesting interview questions! Please click here to read it.

• Savvy Verse & Wit posted this very thoughtful (and positive) review of THE OTHER LIFE.

• Also thrilled with this wonderful review from Raging Bibliomania.

• Sweet surprise--Sherryl Connelly of the New York Daily News did a roundup of books with a local setting and included THE OTHER LIFE:

click image for larger view


• I loved this feature about the cover art for THE OTHER LIFE on a B&N blog.

• Extra-special Goodreads review from JoAnn Jordan this week, in which she says, "[THE OTHER LIFE] is the most beautiful book I have read in years. "  Read the rest here.

• In Colloquium, Janie Hickok Siess gives an impressively thoughtful and in-depth review of THE OTHER LIFE, saying "It is impossible to put the book down because the story is so unique and the issues Meister explores so multi-layered and fascinating you are compelled to keep reading to see what Quinn will do next .... ‎The exploration of Quinn Braverman's journey to that place of empowerment over her own life is an exhilarating and thoughtful one that lovers of women's fiction should not miss." 


• Debbi Honorof did a wonderful interview with Jodi Picoult in the March issue of Long Island Woman. Check it out!


Great local coverage in the Syosset Jericho Tribune! Huge thanks to all my friends and relatives who reached out after seeing this. Really appreciate the support. xo


• Overzealous spam filters seem to be snatching my emails from the inboxes of my subscribers, and I can't seem to find a way around that. Frustrating! But you can click here to see my latest newsletter.


Have a great weekend!