The Accidental Bestseller

by Wendy Wax

Jove

Literature and Fiction: Women's Fiction

May 25, 2010

ISBN-10: 0515148075

ISBN-13: 9780515148077

Available in: Paperback (reprint)

The Accidental Bestseller
by Wendy Wax

Who knew the truth would make such great fiction?

Once upon a time four aspiring authors met at a writers’ conference. Ten years later they’re still friends, veterans of the dog-eat-dog New York publishing world.

Mallory St. James is a workaholic whose novels support her and her husband’s lavish lifestyle. Tanya Mason juggles two jobs, two kids, and a difficult mother. Faye Truett is the wife of a famous televangelist and the author of bestselling inspirational romances; no one would ever guess her explosive secret. Kendall Aims’s once-promising career is on the skids—as is her marriage. Her sales have fallen, her new editor can barely feign interest in her work—and her husband is cheating.

Under pressure to meet her next deadline, Kendall holes up in a mountain cabin to confront a blank page and a blanker future. But her friends won’t let her face this struggle alone. They collaborate on a novel none of them could write by herself, using their own lives as fodder, assuming no one will discover the truth behind their words.

No one is more surprised than they are when the book becomes a runaway bestseller. But with success comes scrutiny and scandal. Now all bets are off....as these four best friends suddenly realize how little they’ve truly known each other.



Wendy Wax's Bio

I was born in St. Petersburg, Florida and grew up on St. Pete Beach within spitting distance of the Gulf of Mexico. I went, appropriately enough, to Sunshine Elementary School where recess and art class sometimes took place on the beach, and the highlight of every school year was the annual fish broil.

It's hard to be a type-A personality when you grow up in such a laid back environment, but I managed. Convinced that you were expected to know how to read BEFORE you showed up for school, I forced a neighbor friend to teach me to read at the age of five. I've been reading ever since.

Books, in all forms, are one of my greatest pleasures and best forms of escape. And they've had a major impact on my life.

I went to the University of Georgia after reading Gone with the Wind one too many times. For a while I re-read Margaret Mitchell's classic yearly, saw the movie whenever it played within twenty miles, and could quote large passages from memory. Today I have a growing GWTW collection, and one of my sons is reading my original copy.

After college I worked in radio, television, and film. I've done live talk radio. I hosted a show in the eighties called Desperate & Dateless. I fell in love and happily, the man who swept me off my feet consults with financial types and understands the bottom line. We live in Atlanta with our two sons.

I'd love to hear from you. You can email me at [email protected]. It's always great to hear from readers.