NEW BOOK ALERT: The Camellia Thief & Other Tales Is HERE!
Whelp, friends and freaks, the deed is done.
After months of editorial surgery, several drafts, and a few tantrums, The Camellia Thief & Other Tales is alive….ALIVE!
Here’s the official description:
“A new collection of essays from award-winning columnist, adopted Southerner, and camellia thief Jessica Leigh Lebos. Picking up several years where the first Savannah Sideways book left off, this intrepid storyteller explores post-pandemic life in a small city that might be getting too big for its britches.”
Like its predecessor Savannah Sideways, The Camellia Thief & Other Tales is 100% independently published. You will notice that I did not say “self-published,” since there are very few things I can do without help. My ingenious and endlessly patient homegirl Molly Hayden, who designed and uploaded the first book in its entirety, did the same this time around, only she did it from South Korea. All our meetings took place just as one of us was waking up and the other was going to bed, making it a labor of love as well as a heroic toil of sleep deprivation.
Self-promotion tends to make me feel a bit icky, but that’s the name of the game in today’s world. So I’mma lean in with some big ol’ brags from the back cover:
“A master storyteller”—George Dawes Green, bestselling author and creator of The Moth storytelling series
“Reflects the bigger truths of life in Savannah”—Amy Paige Condon, author and founder of the Refinery Writing Studio
“This book is a gift to humankind!”—Bri Halverson, founder of Front Porch Improv
Now, some of you might want to hold out and purchase The Camellia Thief from your favorite independent bookstore or directly from the trunk of my old Mercedes when the big shipment arrives in a week or two, and that’s cool. But if you’re planning to buy more than one copy or you just can’t wait to get your happy little possum hands on it, you can literally buy it RIGHT. FREAKING. NOW. (Yes, on Kindle, too.)
Either way, thank you for your patronage and please leave a review on Amazon within a week or two, because that is how this baby grows up to be a successful, contributing member of the global bookshelf.
***NOTE***: When I say “please leave a review,” I’m actually staring at you with feral cat laser eyes and pursed lips, willing your fingers to clickity-click back to The Camellia Thief Amazon page where your perfectly capable opposable thumbs will scroll down to the “Reviews” section and tipptety-type out something nice and keyword-ish like “This book made Savannah seem like a delightful, terrifying paradise; loved it” or “I read these stories to my Southern grandmother and she clutched her pearls so tight they exploded.”
If you don’t, I will haunt you like a River Street ghost with acid reflux carrying around a cloud of sand gnats.
(While you’re there, it would help tremendously if you left a review for its sister book Savannah Sideways if you haven’t already.)
May I also suggest that you upgrade your subscription to the Savannah Sideways Substack at this time? Paid subscribers will receive an invitation to an exclusive book launch party in a fabulous location taking place in a few weeks, and I promise it’s going to be a rip-roaring good time with some of the finest weirdos in the city.
Ick, so this is a lot of self-promotion for one post, but we only get one chance to launch this book into the stratosphere. All of your supportive words, shares on your socials, extra books for your favorite people, and gluten-free snacks are deeply appreciated.
Most of all, thank you for reading. These stories mean little without sharp minds and open hearts for them to land upon. As all of us twirl through space and time on this spinning blue ball, I hope you feel adored and appreciated today.
But make sure you leave a review or I’ll sic the raccoons on your garbage.
1-2-3-LAUNCH! ~ JLL
congrats on so much work realized!
I’m laughing and I haven’t even seen the book…😁