It's almost time...oh wait, it IS time!

So funny thing. My book is all set to come out June 4. That's Tuesday. Yeah. Tuesday. Then you can all read CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE  and wish River was real just like I do. But I digress.

I've been preparing for Tuesday to be the day I Squee all day long. The day I freak out with my friends. The day I either yell, Yes I did it! or I rock in the corner due to my huge, epic and very public failure.

As it turns out, you can't micromanage this stuff as well as I'd like and it went live in the Kindle store last night and up for pre-sale on Kobo this morning. Holy cow.

I did the squeeing. I did the freak out. I did the flailing. Then I woke this morning and thought was that a dream. So I checked my Kindle stats and sure enough, I have sales. Seriously, I feel like Jimmy Buffett and truly understand his "I have been drunk now for over two weeks" words of wisdom. Clearly he wrote about that feeling when his book came out.

I'm flat out giddy. Now needless to say, sales are going to have to pick up or I will be rocking in the corner, but that fact that I have sales and support from my gorgeous and wonderful friends and family BEFORE my release day, it makes you redefine success, and I've achieved it.

I used to think (and by used to I mean yesterday morning) success would be when I sold 1000 copies. Or 10, 000. Or put out a second book. Or put out five. But honestly success is finishing what you started. Being proud of what you put out there. And having amazing people surround you to say, "You did it!" "I knew you could!" and "I'm so proud of you!"

That's the best success anyone can ask for.

Find CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE on Kindle now.
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                                                              Obligatory hot guy gif:

Cover reveal: CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE

Hey there my lovely followers and friends. Today's the day and I'm just flailing about, but not too much because I don't want to spill  my coffee! Oh who am I kidding? I'm literally twirling from room to room.

Why?

IT'S COVER REVEAL DAY!!!

I'm completely in love with this cover. It really captures Ellie and River and their spirit. So without further ado - TA_DAH!!!

Isn't it pretty? I'm just going to sit here and weep and swoon over it and the fact that my name is on there.

Here's what it's about:

College life is a breath of fresh air for 20 year old Ellie Baylor, a painfully shy but beautiful art major. She has her canvas and charcoal and that's more than enough. Her choice to go to school far from home and the watchful eye of her strict parents seems like the perfect thing for smooth sailing into a easy life. But when River Daniels,  a charming artist with eyes the color of hot chocolate, asks her to join him in a project for class, Ellie may get more than just an A. She might find out how to live.

CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE releases June 4th and you can add it here on GoodReads. 

The clock is ticking...

Hey friends. So I'm doing a bit of a freak out today. Here's why:

                                         One week until cover reveal.

                                           One month until the book goes live.

                                  One month. One week. One very loud OHMYGODITSREAL!!!!

I just got back from a writer's conference and met so many people. Right now, are you trying to figure out if you met me or not? I went as myself, obviously. But as I'm not good at the sneaky, I blabbed my pen name to most people.

But back to the point. As I walked around and worked (I intern for an amazing agent) and talked to other authors, it became real. This was really happening. I sat with new friends and they would introduce me as an author who has a book coming out June fourth. Commence daily freak out.

But the most interesting thing about the whole experience is that the readers I met and the authors who had thirty books under their belt had the same look on their face. The look said good for you, good luck, and I can't wait to read all at once. No matter what part of the journey we're in, the writing and reading community is so unbelievably supportive. Everyone goes through it and wants to help the next person have an easier time because we love books, and stories, and all the words!

So, make sure you take some time to read today and tomorrow and everyday after that. The people putting out those books you love from the writer, the critique partners, the publicist, the editor, the agent, the indie, the cover designer - they are just as excited as you. They all work hard to make it worth your time.

I'll see you back in a week for the cover reveal. Spoiler: I'm in love with it.

Step one: Leap of Faith

In this journey to self-publishing, I'm learning all kinds of things. The first and biggest thing is...you get nowhere without a good and strong support group around you.

I have someone behind the scenes holding my hand saying do this next, then this, then this.

I have another (or five) someones I call and cry to. I can't do this. I'll never get it done. My book sucks. No one will buy it.

I call those same five someones plus the first one and say OMG, I'm a genius. This book will make eleventy million dollars! 

To all of those phone calls these result is the same - Keep on working. You will succeed. You are brilliant but get a hold of yourself. (Actually they say, Of course it will make all the money! Then they hand me a sedative.)

But at the end of all that, even with all your troops rallied around you, arms linked like you're in an epic game of Red Rover, there comes a moment when you're alone at your computer and it's time for the next step and you have to do something...take a leap of faith.

Just like Indiana Jones in The Last Crusade, you take a step then scatter pebbles to find your path...only a thousand times more scary.

You must hit send. You story goes whizzing off into cyberspace and it is what it is. There's no more tweaking, there's no more editing, there's no more making your characters change. It is done. It is out there. And at the end is your own Holy Grail. 

I sent the first half off of my novel to my copy editor yesterday. My stomach instantly tied in a ball and I thought of at least four things I should do differently in the book. I shouldn't. It's been through the wringer. It's been read and edited and read and revised and read again. Then gone through and revisededitedread again.

But still, the moment I sent it crushing panic and terror set in. I can't ever make it better than what it is now.

Why do writers have that voice in their heads telling them it's not good enough? That no one will love it? That their story will fail? It should be the opposite. I think people will connect with Ellie and River and Sam and Connor. I think I have crafted a good narrative. I think the sweet kisses and sexytimes will leave people...um, happy. So why the doubt? Why the fear?

Because being a writer is being an artist. Some will love it, some will hate it, and while it's your work they are judging it feels as if they are judging you. It's personal. Even if you write a story about aliens that communicate through messages written in Nutella on the Planet Shrinky Dink, it's personal. If it isn't, you didn't write the right story.

So here's to all of us taking that leap of faith every single day we sit down and let the characters in our heads come to life. Here's to the days we give them to our friends to read. And most of all, here's to the day we share them with the rest of the world.

Irene Rose will release her debut novel CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE, June 4th, 2013.

Things change but only for the better.

Hey friends. If you're not in the world of publishing then you might think it goes like this.

1. Write a book.
2. Send in book.
3. Get huge check for all the money.
4. Live on the beach because your job as a writer is glamorous.

Hold on while I laugh/cry.

It's not even close to that.

First you write a story. You tell a couple people.  They ask you these questions.

1. How many pages is that? Then this conversation follows. Me: I don't know... how many it takes to hold 70 thousand words? Them:What? OMG. I can barely write a grocery list. Me: You could do it. Them: So it's easy? Me: *Kicks self repeatedly* No.. Um, it's not.. it's just... *drinks all the wine*

2. So when's your book coming out? I want to buy it. You sent it out to three agents last week and haven't heard back yet? Sorry you failed. You should do it this way. I read on the internet this is how it's done.

I wish I could say who I had this exact conversation with, but I'm guessing they read my blog, but dear person, just shut up, okay? Love ya. Mean it.

The thing is, it doesn't work like that. There are things to do. And for me, who is self-publishing, there is still so much do to and coordinate and if I had an agent they would be doing all that for me. But I don't, so it's me and my unbelievable support team. Seriously, my writer family can rally! But bottom line... A has to happen before B before C. And if it doesn't? Derail.

3. What's your book about?

I'm not sure how it is that I can write tens of thousands of words, breathe my characters night and day, wrestle over the tiniest plot details, know what shade of lipstick Ellie prefers even though it isn't in the book, write a query, a synopsis, and a tagline and still get blank face in a moment of white hot terror when someone asks me this question.

What is that about? My answer usually starts off something like, "It's about Ellie and River and they're art students and they fall in love but it's complicated and their parents and they're in college and she has two best friends... Then I finish up with the ever impressive... and you'll just have to read it.

Okay, no. That's not the right answer.

The right answer is: Ellie and River have finally found someone who gets them, each other. They are awkward art kids who should fit among the pretty people, but don't. Ellie and River have completely different upbringings which have defined who they are today. Is their new found college romance strong enough to make it, or will tragedy and hardships get in the way, putting Ellie right back in her shell and River back to being alone.

See? I can articulate.

My point is writing is scary. Publishing is scary. But oh so delicious. And I'm so excited to have a real book in my hands. In. My. Hands!

But there's so much to do to get from typing Chapter One to Ta-dah! It's a book! 

So here's the real reason for this blog. I have to change my publishing date.  You remember how all the letters had to be in place before the next one could happen? There's a hold up on aisle five. But I can promise you this, it will be worth the wait.

New pub date for CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE is June 4th, 2013.

Introducing Author Irene Rose and the great big announcement!

Hello readers of the world! Welcome to the beautiful world of New Adult, a place to read about those moments that happen after high school but before your insurance rates drop at 25, basically when your brand new adult life begins. 

I'm Irene Rose and thanks for stopping by. I write all the words and I write them quickly, because you need things to read. I'm only thinking of you. See? Giver. That's me.

I'm so pleased (read: excited, elated, bouncing off the walls) to announce that my first novel CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE will be available on June 4th, 2013.

                                                   Pardon me while I take a minute to do this:

                                                                    
                                                                          And this:

                                                           
                                                              And probably a little of this:

                                            CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE:

College life is a breath of fresh air for 20 year old Ellie Baylor, a painfully shy but beautiful art major. She has her canvas and charcoal and that's more than enough. Her choice to go to school far from home and the watchful eye of her strict parents seems like the perfect thing for smooth sailing into a easy life. But when River Daniels,  a charming artist with eyes the color of hot chocolate, asks her to join him in a project for class, Ellie may get more than just an A. She might find out how to live.

This is the place where I want to tell you how swoony and dreamy (yes, he's both) River is. But I'll just put a picture of the inspiration for the character.

                           Swoony and dreamy, right? It's a young Jared Padalecki., Um, yes please.

But here's what you want to know. No, there's no agent. No, there's no big fat book deal. But there is a great story dying to be read and shared. So I'm self-publishing. Why you ask? Because I love this story. I want to write words, and more words, and even more after that. In the real world (instead of my secret identity here), I'm still working on making things happen, but in the meantime, I couldn't keep River all to myself. Giver, remember? 

CHARCOAL AND HOT CHOCOLATE will be available for Kindle, iBooks, and Nook. Also at Amazon. I'll have links and Goodreads ready for adds in a couple days(It's currently being difficult!)!