“This is a really good book and reading experience, especially for those of us who are writers, for those of us who have attended this kind of conference or workshop... So true and accurate…” S.Rak  

 The world of traditional publishing has secrets…

Laura Belmont has finished writing her first novel. She enrolls in the Clymer Workshop, one of the oldest writers' conferences in the country. Her plan is to make a connection with one of the famous staff authors or a literary agent who will help her get a publishing contract.

Over two hundred people are attending the conference for the same reason Laura is there. The male writers on the staff are more interested in her body than in her manuscript. She goes to creative writing workshops unaware of the literary politics being played in the shadows by the famous authors teaching her—the favors made, the courtesies given, the grudges held. Even an author’s wife becomes fair game.

The only offer Laura gets comes with a veiled threat. Then something extraordinary happens...

“The twists of the plot are unexpected; there is so much information about the realities of the publishing world; and her characters' dark sides and hope breathe life into a well-constructed novel. A great read.”  Lillian Bloom

“I enjoyed every minute that I spent reading this excellent novel, and I was pleased to read so many reviews from writers who confirm that the description of the conference is quite accurate.” A. Rees

 Keywords: literary fiction, Story about writers, creative writing workshops, getting a literary agent, writers’ conferences, novels about writers, literary success, writers at work, writers on writing, inside publishing, aspiring writers

She’s spending more time with him now than she did when he was alive.

A year after her husband's suicide, Jenny impulsively moves from the Northeast to California. Her young children adjust to the move, but she does not. She has made only one friend, and she's finding it difficult being a single mother.

In a moment of deep frustration and loneliness, she begins writing to her dead husband, Richard, telling him about her daily life. She holds nothing back, even telling him when she begins a new romance.

Jenny also writes about the past. She looks back at their marriage and family life, and begins to see how it went wrong. As she gets closer to the truth and the past becomes threatening, she decides not to write to him anymore. But she finds it impossible to stop. The answer to their children's question-- "How-and why-did-Daddy-die?"-- is in the past, and she can't hide from the truth forever.

In this intimate, compelling novel, a young widow discovers her own strength and identity after the devastating loss of her husband. Realities was a selection of the Swedish Book-of-the-Month Club.

“The author endows Jenny and her circle with attributes that make them linger in one’s memory.” PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Keywords:  Fiction Contemporary women, young widow’s story, widow novels, starting over, widow with children, single mother, second chance, suicide’s wife, healing after suicide, mothers and children

Avery wants to marry Ginger.

Ginger is happily married to Buddy.

Buddy and Ginger have been happily married for 27 years. Avery is divorced. When he meets Ginger, he believes he has found the perfect mate. Determined to marry her, he offers her a job at an inflated salary.

Buddy is suspicious. He thinks the job is too good to be true and makes Ginger feel as though she isn't worth the offer. She goes to work for Avery to prove Buddy wrong.

Ginger saves Avery a fortune in the first real estate deal she handles for his company. Flush with success, she believes the problems she and Buddy had are over. But everything changes when they have an unexpected guest from the past…

"I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to experience an emotional, heartfelt read."   Norm Hamilton, author

Keywords: Contemporary Women’s Divorce and adultery stories, women’s fiction marriage, midlife marriage, women’s fiction divorce, another man’s wife, betrayal in marriage, infidelity, The Story of a Marriage