How Author Malena Lott Gets La Dolce Vita

Posted on November 6, 2008 by malenalott

First off, a hearty Midwestern thank you to authors Joanne Rendell, Jenny Gardiner and Jess Riley for taking the time to share their personal insights into “the sweet life” with our readers. These three authors are a big part of the reason I wanted to start Athena’s Bookshelf – to bring light to great books by great emerging authors. We’ll be back to more book reviews next week, including reviews for The Amend Sisters, Where Am I Wearing, And Never Stop Dancing and more historical romance.

And now, for my route to the sweet life, la dolce vita…

This is going to sound strange for an author to say, since stories live in our heads all the time, but the best way for me to experience the sweet life is to get out of my head once in awhile. I’ve always prided myself on being a thinker and my creative outlet is not only escape for me, but therapy. But what I realized last year, while reading The New Earth by Eckhart Tolle, is that my brain was pretty much controlling my life, and not in a good way.

Do you ever have too many thoughts going on at once? Catch yourself worrying about the past and fretting about the future? Conjuring up drastic scenarios that may never come to fruition? Yeah…I pretty much rock at that. And it’s all well and good if you’re creating those things for conflict for your characters, but something else entirely if it’s about your own life. The stress pool is a cesspool.

By practicing keeping myself in the present moment as much as possible, the past and the future melt away (unless the present is purposely planning for a future moment.) What’s left is the glorious present – whatever I happen to be doing at the moment. Making bacon for my 8 year old’s farmer’s breakfast this morning. Concentrating on the bacon and visiting with her, and not thinking about the dozen other things I need to do this morning. Getting ready for my launch party yesterday, I listened to Oprah’s Soul series, instead of worrying if anyone would show up at the launch party. (Thankfully many did!)

We’ve all heard the saying, “don’t worry, be happy,” yet it’s much harder to live it. But I’ve found when I do, then everything in life is sweeter. I really get to savor the small stuff and simply be present. Now I have to rush. Can’t take the kids to school in PJ’s, now can I?

Be sure and check out my web site to enter two great contests ending in November, for an Italian Cafe CD perfect for your next dinner party or a Sephora Makeup Kit for yourself or as a Christmas gift for a girlie girl on your list. Need some holiday baking and recipe ideas? You’ll find my favorites on the site, as well. Thanks for supporting Dating da Vinci, and I wish you the sweet life this holiday season and beyond!

Get the book on Amazon here.

Author Jess Riley Talks About La Dolce Vita

Posted on November 5, 2008 by malenalott

Our third author to help us celebrate the sweet life with the launch of Dating da Vinci by Malena Lott is Jess Riley, debut author of Driving Sideways. Ciao, Jess!

“It’s a Wonderful (Dolce) Vita”

When Malena graciously invited me to write a post celebrating “The sweet life,” my mind immediately jumped to two things: The Suite Life with Zack and Cody (don’t ask me how I know about that show, I don’t even have kids) and The Sweet Life by the lovely 2007 Deb Mia King. Once I got my first associations out of the way, I really started thinking about what makes life sweet.

For me, one of the best (and most unanticipated) side effects of having a novel released has been hearing from readers who were moved enough by actual words I wrote to send me … well, I guess I’ll just say it: fan mail. (I have to say it in a hushed voice, looking over my shoulder, so I don’t jinx myself and make it go away.) I still can’t believe that, and it will never stop thrilling me. Also, since the release of Driving Sideways, I have reconnected, and in some cases connected for the first time, with long-lost friends and relatives—aunts, uncles, cousins…I even reconnected with my ex-mother-in-law! I’ve exchanged emails with many of these people that I will save and print and treasure and read when I feel like singing “Nobody likes me, everybody hates me, guess I’ll just eat worms.” But mostly? I wander around some days feeling like George Bailey in the final scene of It’s a Wonderful Life.

I loved Joanne’s post on Monday about the vitality of dreams, and how central they are to a ‘sweet life.’ Absolutely…and to that, I would also add a creatively stimulating environment…the freedom to pursue one’s art…but especially, love and support for (and from) one’s family and friends. Because I’ve found that while it’s fun to make strangers blush, when your own mother-in-law blushes at your description of the ‘special area’ of a certain unfortunate individual? It’s bound to make Thanksgiving that much more entertaining.

Plus, the people who know you best will stick with you through times both good and bad: the sophomore slump, your triumphant return in book three, mood swings (from movie deal to cancelled contract to hara-kiri inducing PW review to gushing blurb from David Sedaris to experimental scratch n’ sniff cover to the book club member who told you that while she loved the book, did you have to use all that crass language?), and the fact that when you add up all the time you spend on blogs, Crackbook, Myspace, or checking your numbers on amazon plus taxes, postage, travel, and conference fees, your book has actually netted you only $53.76.

A labor of love, darlings. It’s a labor of love. But when writing lets me spend even a moment feeling like George Bailey in the final scene of my all-time favorite movie? Loved and buoyed and saved by all the people who make my life wonderful? Truly, to me, that is better than fresh-from-the-oven peanut butter cookies, better than sticky cinnamon-caramel rolls on Christmas morning, better than a fresh tube of chocolate chip cookie dough after too many glasses of wine. It’s the real dolce vita.

Visit Jess at www.jessriley.com.

Get her book at Amazon here.

Driving Sideways

Posted on August 28, 2008 by malenalott

Driving Sideways by Jess Riley

First line: “It’s strange how much you can change in just one year.”

Jess Riley had me at hello. Okay, on page one, the literary equivalent of hello. With lines like, “I feel as if I’ve just discovered that the cure for cancer is dark chocolate followed by two orgasms,” I knew I was in for a great ride. Driving Sideways follows recent kidney transplant recipient Leigh Fielding, a likable young woman who understandably hasn’t gotten out much. Except from hospitals.

Not only is her new zest for life attributed to better health brought on by a functioning donor kidney; Leigh believes it’s possibly from the zest of the kidney donor himself, Larry.

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