Today we’re celebrating the release of Amy Impellizzeri’s second novel, Secrets of Worry Dolls. Here’s a bit about the book (isn’t that cover gorgeous?!):

According to Mayan tradition, if you whisper your troubles to the Worry Dolls, they will do the worrying instead of you–therefore, it follows that Worry Dolls are the keepers of a great many secrets . . .

On the eve of the end of the world–according to the Mayan calendar–Mari Guarez Roselli’s secrets are being unraveled by her daughter, Lu.

Lu’s worry dolls are at-capacity as she tries to outrun the ghosts from her past–including loved ones stolen on 9/11–by traveling through her mother’s homeland of Guatemala, to discover the painful reasons behind her own dysfunctional childhood, and why she must trust in the magic of the legend

Amy shared her thoughts on release day … 

I’m Not Looking Forward to Tomorrow. And Here’s Why.

As I write this, my upcoming Release Day for my sophomore novel, Secrets of Worry Dolls, is less than a week away, and I’m already enormously excited for that day. This post is scheduled to run on Release Day itself, December 1, so know that today I am feeling all of the feels and pinching myself a little at the chance to do this all again. Today I am so very happy.

But I already know that I’ll hate tomorrow.

When my debut novel, Lemongrass Hope, released into the world in the fall of 2014, I really didn’t know what to expect.  I felt like a new mother sending her child off to school for the first time. I hoped my book would find friends and prayed it wouldn’t embarrass me. I scheduled meetings and phone conferences on release day to promote the book. I had already learned that even though I was finished the writing part, the universe had no plans to just take over from there. I readied myself to promote my book alongside more writing. (At the time, I was writing my first non-fiction book, Lawyer Interrupted, under deadline, and had only the earliest idea of a story that would become Secrets of Worry Dolls.)

When the release day of Lemongrass Hope arrived, there were so many details I hadn’t expected – book clubs started contacting me right away, and my caterer for the launch party needed final numbers. I was invited to give a talk at the local library that night and a packed house showed up along with the local news (television and radio). It was exciting and heady and I teared up as my newsfeed clogged with photos of my debut’s cover on readers’ nightstands, beach chairs, and coffee tables. The day flew by, and I tried to soak in as much of the joy and hope of the day that I could. Which was a good thing. Because the next day was EXCRUCIATING.

The next day was when many of those who had bought my book started reading … all went silent.

The silence was nerve-wracking and distracting and felt nothing like the sweet buzz of release day. There were even a few moments of panic as I realized, “Wait! I forgot about this part. The part where people would be READING MY BOOK.”

Silly, right?

Maybe.

This whole journey is so very personal for me. I want you to read my books, yes, but more than that, I want you to connect with something in them. And then I want to hear back from you about what you thought – for good or for bad – I want to know.

When you finally do let me know, I’ll be thrilled to hear from you. If you invite me to come to or Skype into your Book Club to talk more, to challenge me on what you read, and/or to voice your strong opinions about the characters and the story and the resolution – I will be over the moon.

But while I’m waiting to hear back from you? Sigh. I just hate that part.

I will be so grateful and joyful on release day.

I will be equally grateful and joyful when I hear from you again.

But tomorrow?

Well, that’s a whole other story.

Talk soon (I hope!) 🙂
Xo
Amy

Amy Impellizeri is a reformed corporate litigator, former start-up executive, and award-winning author. Amy’s first novel, Lemongrass Hope (Wyatt-MacKenzie 2014) , was a 2014 INDIEFAB Book of the Year Bronze Winner (Romance) and a National Indie Excellence Awards Finalist. A favorite with bloggers and book clubs, Lemongrass Hope was named the #1 reviewed book in 2014 by blogger, The Literary Connoisseur, and topped several bloggers’ “Best of” Lists in 2015. Amy is also the author of the non-fiction book, Lawyer Interrupted (ABA Publishing 2015), and is a Tall Poppy Writer and President of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association. Amy currently lives in rural Pennsylvania with her husband, three kids, and one energetic weimaraner, where she keeps up on all of the latest research confirming that caffeine is, in fact, good for you.

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