I Wrote a Book, Y'all!

Tuesday, September 15th was a big day for the Gersons. As we woke to the typical sounds of grumpy preschoolers and the enticing aroma of our morning coffee ready to help us tackle another day... there was much more brewing!

My first novel, Let Me Let You Go, was officially live for promotion on Amazon in Kindle and paperback versions and it was seriously the most exciting morning. It also turned into one of the most amazing days of my life when we shot up to such ranks on Amazon as #168 in Women's Friendship Fiction, #417 in Women's Contemporary Fiction, and the top 4,800 out of all EIGHT MILLION BOOKS on Amazon. What! #pinchingmyself

I thought I would give my readers, friends, and followers a little insight into our story and my writing process. Feel free to drop your questions as comments on this post or via our direct message "Let's Chat!" feature that pops up in red at the bottom of your screen.

Let Me Let You Go follows a young woman named Dolly in both her late 20's living her best and most polished professional life in New York City and at 16 when she was coming of age in small-town Texas, USA. It is a hopeful, at times heart wrenching story that unfolds back-and-forth between the now and the then, revealing Dolly's inner conflicts, and watching her figure out her next steps.

A lot of people who've started reading the book have asked me, "Are you Dolly?" or, "Did you base this on your own experiences?" Well... yes and no. Or better yet, no and yes! No, I am not Dolly. I did not grow up in Texas (though I was raised in a small town on Long Island!) and I did not have an ex-love slide into my DM's and complicate my life at any point during my engagement! But...

Here's a picture of me at around Dolly's age, taken in Paris, that I thought you might enjoy. A lot has changed since then, but I see much of that glow of hope in my eyes that you will feel in Dolly's development throughout the book!

Much of Dolly's New York life was inspired by the years I spent young and single in NYC. Feeling like an imposter at times working with A-listers and celebrities then going home to warm up canned soup for dinner in my tiny studio apartment. I never reached the point of financial success in the fashion world that Dolly did because I got married earlier and left New York for (you guessed it!) Texas, where I became a wife and mom.

But a lot of the friendship connections, the coming-of-age struggles, and the connection with her parents was inspired by my own experiences or those of the people close to me.

In the months ahead I plan to answer more of your questions and dive deeper into my writing process with this book (and give you some hints at what's next)! For now, I hope you will order and spread the word about Let Me Let You Go, a story I poured my heart into and one I thoroughly enjoyed writing. No lie: I have cried at certain points on every single read-through of this book. Consider that your warning to keep a tissue nearby once you're at the halfway mark if not sooner.

Thank you for all your love and support!

XOXO Jenny