Today is US publication day for my novel Whiskey & Charlie (published in Australia as Whisky Charlie Foxtrot). The process of writing, editing and finally publishing a book is an incredibly long one (or so it feels to me) and so the moment when your book is finally released into the wild is cause for great celebration.
I’d like to thank the brilliant team at Sourcebooks, especially Shana Drehs, Anna Michels and Lathea Williams for believing so wholeheartedly in my book, and being so delightful to work with on the publication journey.
In a very exciting development, which honestly nearly made me pee my pants in excitement, Whiskey & Charlie was selected by Target as their book club pick for April. I wish I could be there to see those GIANT STACKS of my very own book in every one of their 1800 stores – wooh! (If any of you happen to be passing through a Target and happen upon the aforementioned, it would mean the world to me if you’d send me a snap). The Target print run includes five thousand signed copies, a task I worked through in a series of two-hour stints over the course of a long weekend. I never thought writing could be such hard labour!
Of course, Whiskey & Charlie will also be available at your favourite local book shop, and it’s absolutely essential that we support those too.
Buy from Target | Buy direct from Sourcebooks | Buy from Amazon
Whiskey & Charlie is also available as an audiobook. It is read by a guy with the most fantastically dramatic voice. In the extract, you can hear him say, completely deadpan,
‘it was a well-known fact that France was a land of sex maniacs’
Hearing the words you’ve written read aloud by someone else is really quite a disconcerting experience – especially when you are foolish enough to write lines like that!
I have already had several lovely emails from readers who’ve read and enjoyed advance copies, telling me how the book has touched them, which is absolutely one of my favourite parts of being a writer. And my first US review was in the Chicago Review of Books:
Smith is an expert in saying a lot while writing little. The most emotionally charged moments of the novel—some of the most important, integral moments—are illustrated simply: two grown men holding each other by a hospital bed, a young boy bowing to and walking away from his first love. The simplicity of the prose and the scenes it describe allow the reader to feel the full emotional weight of the moments without gravity being forced upon them. The same is true for the novel’s funnier moments; Smith knows exactly how much to write, when to zoom in, and when to pull back and sit by as the scene unfolds.
I am so excited to see what stateside readers think of my flawed hero Charlie and his journey.
I am still so thrilled about this. Congratulations again! And good to see your gorgeous cat.
That is Jalfrezi – usually shy, but clearly a closet-limelight seeker!
so handsome!
We think he’s rather special!
Congratulations, it must be such a relief to have finished all that hard work – now for the rewards. I love how your cat helped you sign all those pages. My cat regularly helps me on the computer. His favourite place to sit is on my intray (when he can fit)!
My cat is definitely too fat to fit in my in-tray! I love it when he keeps me company in my office though.
Congratulations on giving birth to Charlie and Whiskey again! And the Target news is unbelievably fantastic! I hope it sells by the truckload, and everyone in the US enjoys it as much as I did! (Also, when are you doing your US book tour? I hope you get to meet lots of fantastic American authors, and a Hollywood hunk or two, while you’re there.) x
Thanks Louise. I think it is a bit of a stretch to call it a ‘book tour’. It is more of a holiday with a couple of bookish bits thrown in. But I’m very excited about it – it’s in June/July.
FANTASTIC NEWS. Love the time lapse. Could you ever imagine…
Congratulations Annabel.
R x
I really did not ever imagine Robyn! It has been most unexpected, and very welcome x
I’m really pleased about the success of WCF, Annabel. I enjoyed it so much a year or so ago!
Thanks Steve. I’m thrilled about it.
Hello Annabel,
I have struggled to get through another book since I read Unbroken several months ago. I absolutely loved your book and read it in two days. I love how you developed the characters especially Charlie. Also, I would love to be friends with all the other smart and strong women in the book. I will recommend this book to all my strong intelligent women friends as one of the best books for forgiveness and family relations.
Thank you:)
Lori
I’m so pleased to hear my book cured your Unbroken ‘hangover’, and that you related to the female characters: Rosa has been a favourite with many readers.