Book Tour: Guest Post for Keep Dancing

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Today I’m glad to host a guest post for the book tour for “Keep Dancing”. I’d like to welcome the author to my blog, and thank her for writing the guest post! Also, if you’re interested, there’s a giveaway for a $2000 diamond ring during this tour (yeeep, pretty awesome, right?) Scroll down to participate!

Guest Post

First of all, a huge thank you to I Heart Reading for inviting me to guest post!

A lot of readers have really enjoyed the early 1980s setting of my novels, and they have asked me why I chose that time period for my novels, Come Dancing and Keep Dancing. I began writing the first book in 2009, on the thirtieth anniversary of my arrival in New York City. I wanted to describe what Manhattan was like when it was still rough along the edges; when SoHo was still the domain of artists and galleries, and the occasional local bar or cafe. And when nightclubs like the Palladium, the Roxy, Danceteria, and the Mudd Club attracted a huge mix of people from many different strata of society.

Back then, you could go out dancing and run into just about anyone: actors, politicians, rock musicians. Celebrities weren’t surrounded by bodyguards; the assumption was that if you were allowed into a club, you were cool. No one was going to harass anybody; after all, this was downtown. And there were no cell phones back then. People didn’t walk around with a camera in their pockets 24/7—so if you were famous, you didn’t have to worry about being photographed every time you turned around. That made for a much more open atmosphere, where regular people rubbed shoulders with the glitterati as everyone cut loose on the dance floor.

And since (like my character Julia) I work in book publishing, I wanted to write about what the businessw as like before the advent of e-readers and computers, when we were all lugging home 400-page manuscripts every night. As with the music biz, the changes have been seismic. Unfortunately the salaries are pretty much the same, especially for assistants (when you account for inflation). I really did find those lavender shoes (that I write about in the novel) on the street, and I wore them until they fell apart.

Another question that people often ask me is which authors have influenced me. I tried to make my books very funny—in fact, one reader just emailed me that she was laughing so hard over the scene where Julia and Jack have dinner with Julia’s mom, that she almost woke her roommates up. That made me feel great! So in that humorous vein,I like Lauren Weisberger’s The Devil Wears Prada and Jennifer Weiner’s Good In Bed, as well as Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary, Allison Pearson’s I Don’t Know How She Does It, and Alice Clayton’s Wallbanger. I really like fiction with a sense of humor! But I would never suggest that I’m as good a writer as these authors — I just admire their work.

 

About the Book

02_Keep Dancing Cover
Publication Date: February 5, 2015
Percambio Press
Formats: Print & ebook
256 pages

Series: Come Dancing, Book Two
Genre: Contemporary Romance/New Adult/Chick Lit

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Julia is a young book editor on the rise. Jack is a British rock star at the pinnacle of his fame.

Can they both get what they want—if what they need threatens to tear them apart?

It’s January, 1982. Twenty-four-year-old Julia Nash has just moved in with her boyfriend, rock and roll guitarist extraordinaire Jack Kipling. Their connection sizzles as Jack takes her to England to meet his mother, and then to a private Caribbean island for a sensual post-holiday retreat.

But back in New York, they hit a turbulent patch. Career-focused Julia is in the running for a new job, while Jack’s life becomes even more chaotic with an upcoming thirty-city tour. Although free-spirited Jack enjoys his partying lifestyle, he craves more support on the home front. But Julia doesn’t know if she can ever be a domestic goddess—or if her wild boyfriend can ever be domesticated.

On tour, Julia experiences private jets, mind-blowing concerts, shocking hotel room antics, and screaming headlines. Back home, she has to decide if their relationship can withstand the ravages of fame and conflicting interests—not to mention a suave bestselling author who seems to like more than her grammar sense.

Emotionally poignant, hilarious and steamy, Keep Dancing will delight brand-new readers as a stand-alone novel, and also serves as the perfect follow-up to Come Dancing.

Praise for Keep Dancing

“Set in the 80s and dripping with the excesses this time period excelled at, Julia and Jack have reached a point in their relationship where the hard work begins. Julia is working towards her own stardom, while Jack continues to play in the world that made him. As external forces do their best to force this unusual couple apart, Jack and Julia will need to decide if they should keep dancing or find new partners. Emotionally plump with laughter, love, and heartbreak…” —Smexy Book Reviews

“HOT”—“In book two of the Jack and Julia series, Wells once again titles chapters after hit songs, and finds even more ways to describe the excitement surrounding New York City as she did in the debut…” —Romance Times

“This is a 5 star series, and I recommend this as a wonderfully fun yet angsty read. I loved the chemistry between Jack and Julia and their crazy bad communication skills (they didn’t have cell phones, after all). The breakups were worth it, if only just so they could make up!” –Cindy Becker, The Book Enthusiast

Praise for the first novel about Jack and Julia: Come Dancing, an Amazon Bestseller and Apple iBooks Breakout Book

“Wells builds an emotionally poignant love story, abounding with romance and humor.” —Smexy Book Reviews

“Sometimes a book like this comes along and takes me out of the niche reading that I tend to find myself in…. I am in love… So very sex + the city.” —Must Read Books or Die

“It reads like a very, very good romantic comedy movie.” —Michelle & Leslie’s Book Picks

“Once you start, you are completely unable to put it down.” —Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews

“Like a well-oiled machine or a well-tuned guitar, Julia and friends work their way into your heart.” —Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers

“Hot, sexy, and combustible.” —Blushing Divas Book Reviews

“Come Dancing is brimming with both humor and heart.” —Flashlight Commentary

“It’s a fun romp, and the sparkling characters definitely made it worth the read.” —A Bookish Affair

“I enjoyed reading Come Dancing! It had a good story, fascinating characters, and a charming vibe.” —Julie Anne, Teacups & Book Love

Keep Dancing Available at Amazon

About the Author

03_Leslie Wells Credit © Leslie WellsLeslie Wells left her small Southern town in 1979 for graduate school in Manhattan, after which she got her first job in book publishing. She has edited forty-eight New York Times bestsellers in her over thirty-year career, including thirteen number one New York Times bestsellers. Leslie has worked with numerous internationally known authors, musicians, actors, actresses, television and radio personalities, athletes, and coaches. She lives on Long Island, New York.

Author Links

Website | Blog | Facebook | Google+ | Goodreads

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Keep Dancing Blog Tour Schedule

Friday, May 1
Review at Peeking Between the Pages

Saturday, May 2
Spotlight at The Never-Ending Book

Monday, May 4
Review at Red Hot Books

Thursday, May 7
Guest Post at I Heart Reading

Friday, May 8
Spotlight at Rainy Day Reviews

Monday, May 11
Review at Tea Cups and Book Love

Tuesday, May 12
Review at Room With Books

Wednesday, May 13
Spotlight at Susan Heim on Writing

Friday, May 15
Spotlight at Flashlight Commentary

Wednesday, May 20
Review & Guest Post at Must Read Books or Die

Thursday, May 21
Spotlight at Romance Junkies Blog

Monday, June 1
Review at The Life & Times of a Book Addict
Spotlight at Genre Queen

Tuesday, June 2
Spotlight at CelticLady’s Reviews

Wednesday, June 3
Review at Shelly’s Book Shelves

Thursday, June 4
Review at SOS Aloha

Friday, June 5
Spotlight at Just One More Chapter

Monday, June 8
Review at The Danish Bookaholic

Tuesday, June 9
Review & Excerpt at Reading in Pajamas

Wednesday, June 10
Review at Book Nerd

Thursday, June 18
Spotlight at A Literary Vacation

Monday, June 22
Review at Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers

Wednesday, June 24
Guest Post at Brooke Blogs

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