Well, hello! Time for the year-end wrap-up and look ahead.
When I think back on 2022, writing-wise and life-wise, it feels like way more than one 365 day span. The high and low points were very high and very low, and overall, it was a rewarding year in which I learned a great deal about how to cope with setbacks, make strategic decisions, and be kinder to myself when I didn’t manage to get everything done all at once.
I end the year likely as I began it—a bit behind, but healthy, lucky, and looking forward to what’s to come.
Whenever I ask myself why this year felt like running to catch up, I remember, oh yeah, there was that whole business where the nonprofit I help volunteer lead burned overnight and we rallied and relaunched in record time. That explains that. Also, finally getting Covid, right when we were supposed to leave to teach Clarion (the week we did get to be there was tremendously rewarding and energizing—if not the ideal way to recover from Covid!). I’ve covered the fire and the Lexington Writer’s Room in great detail here, so that’s all I’m going to say about that.
Book Stuff - The Match Made in Hell Duology
I had one new book release this year, THE DATE FROM HELL, closing the Match Made in Hell duology. I’m very proud of this book, and I think it’s better than NOT YOUR AVERAGE HOT GUY.
Now, you live and you learn. We decided to ask for and St. Martin’s agreed for these books to be released six months from each other when we sold them. The practical effect of this could have been great, but…the decision was made pre-pandemic. I think you see where this is going. Readers are STILL finding NOT YOUR AVERAGE HOT GUY (which got another printing a couple of months ago, yay), which came out in October 2021. THE DATE FROM HELL came out in April of this year and it did not—as we euphemism in the biz—”meet expectations.” It got a starred review from Booklist, kind reactions from those who have read it, and I’m proud of it, not least because I wrote it in the first year of the pandemic and that. was. hard. And I wanted it to be a big, fun escape romance that would give Luke and Callie a real send-off, and I think it achieves that.
But I feel like, if I’m going to do this year-end report, hey, gotta be honest. Also, though, romance readers love backlist, and so I have hopes that these books—both of them—will continue to find their audience. If you haven’t read them and they seem like your cup of tea, definitely try them! If you have, leaving a review somewhere or recommending to someone you know is grand and makes you the best.
Book Stuff - Mr. & Mrs. Witch
I also finished writing MR & MRS WITCH, my witchy reinvention of Mr. & Mrs. Smith—which in some ways is my first intentional romance for adults. (I drafted NOT YOUR AVERAGE HOT GUY thinking it would be YA, but it ended up selling as adult and it’s definitely on that precipice that makes the series crossover between YA and adult, with 22-year-old protags). So far, people seem to be digging it! Some advance praise:
“This ‘lovers to enemies and back again’ story is a charming romantic comedy with a witchy twist. A highly enjoyable read that’s as much fun as a broomstick ride, it may make you wonder if your cat has a secret life!” —Jen DeLuca, USA Today bestselling author of WELL MATCHED
“Gwenda Bond puts a spell on you! Delightfully sexy and bewitchingly hilarious, Mr. & Mrs. Witch is the assassins-to-lovers you didn’t know you needed. I loved this book!” —Ashley Poston, New York Times bestselling author of The Dead Romantics
“Bond’s (The Date from Hell) unique take on the witch and hunter feud is fantastically imagined and makes for an exhilarating, modern paranormal romance.”—Library Journal
Did I mention there’s a capybara familiar? Again, I’m proud of this one, and I hope you’ll check it out. Speaking of which…
MR & MRS WITCH preorder campaign goodness! Preorder your copy of MR & MRS WITCH from my local indie Joseph-Beth Booksellers right here — choose whether you want them to ship it to you or pick up in store, add any personalization details in the comments, and voila! You will get a signed, personalized book AND an exclusive bonus sticker for your laptop or fridge or your enemy’s back — aka wherever you like! C.R.O.N.E. is the organization heroine Savvy is part of and it’s a whole mood for 2023. Make with the clicks! And if you’re local, I hope to see you at Joseph-Beth on March 7 for the launch party.
Book Stuff - Deals! Previews! What’s coming!
I’m extremely lucky to have a whole bunch of books in the works. I’ll be dead honest and tell you that it’s wild to me to have sold so many books in the past three years. For a long, long time, I had to write pretty much every book before my agent and I could sell it. I signed with my agent for adult books Kate McKean in early spring 2021, and Mr. & Mrs. Witch was the first book we sold together, almost immediately thereafter, on proposal.
This year, I got to announce two more deals I’m absolutely over-the-moon about. I JUST turned the revised version of The Frame-Up back in to my editor. A reminder, in case you forgot about this one:
This book was a huge challenge, as I knew it would be from the moment I started developing the idea. I don’t know if you’re aware, but heists have many moving parts. Which makes them complicated to write on every level, and to revise. I pushed myself hard on this one, and I think/hope/believe it is the best book I’ve written. Anne Groell has been a dream editor to work with on this, just as I expected, and absolutely crucial in helping me go the distance so my reach doesn’t exceed my grasp here. Again, I hope!
This year, I’ll be writing the second book in this contract, which I’m already deep in the nerdy, amazing research for. If you loved Suspicious Minds (which got a reissue with a new cover this year, btw) but aren’t sure about the rom-coms, I think you’ll dig these books. (If you love the rom-coms, I hope you’ll love these too. They are somewhat darker and moodier fantasies, though there are still touches of humor and romance.)
Much more to come on this.
And then there are these books that TOTALLY came from my editor at St. Martin’s Tiffany Shelton tossing me an idea ball and me going ARE YOU KIDDING LEMME RUN WITH THIS ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE REGENCY????
I’m working on book one of WAYWARD SISTERS as we speak and it is proving quite delicious. I can’t wait for you to meet these sisters and their beaus. It’s going to be epic. Expect book one in 2024. I’ll be finishing book one and writing book two of this one this year too.
Yes. My fingers are already tired. But I am NOT complaining.
ALSO! Coming in 2023, more info on when soon, at long last, is…
That’s right! Kami, Sam, and I have finished all three novellas and are about to get into the fun of casting and such. You’ll be getting ALL THREE this year as Audible Originals. More info on e and print editions when we figure it out. Much more to share when it’s shareable. I learned so much from both of these fabulous humans working on these together and we hope to write many more novellas as a trio. We wrote absolutely loathsome characters and made them as lovable as we possibly could.
State of the business? Like everyone, I worry about lots of things happening in publishing, but I would be a huge liar if I didn’t say that despite the ups and downs, I feel like I’m personally finally hitting my stride. I hope this isn’t tempting fate. But I do feel lucky to be where I am and get to write these books and work with all these amazing people and meet new amazing readers with every book. That’s really what it’s all about—telling stories and sharing them—and the garbage parts of the biz will hopefully never outweigh that for me. Anyone who is making firm predictions right now is full of it. Uncertainty is the name of the game.
This year, my focus is on delivering the absolute best on the books I’m committed to write. And—as if I could stop myself—come up with some new ideas too.
Wrap-Up
So, yeah, busy year, another one ahead. We lost our Puck, who I still expect to be at the foot of the bed whenever I wake up. We gained a Woofie, who just this afternoon discovered how to squeeze through the baby gate we got to keep him out of the litter boxes and found the cats’ feeding station. Still, he’s a good boy, fitting right in.
I’ve managed to not wax thoughtful about twitter’s gross new owner and his antics, at least not yet. Too busy. I loved Glass Onion. Benoit Blanc as the knowing middle finger to southern stereotypes is my love language. I really should do a whole post of stuff I loved this past year, and maybe I will.
I continued my habit of not reading the news first thing in the morning, and instead indulging my NYT games obsession. In fact…
So, I have never been a crossword person. I never thought I was capable of that kind of smartness. I just found them frustrating.
I started doing the mini. Then I got Christopher to do the Tuesday crossword with me. Then I slowly started doing the crossword—on top of my Spelling Bee, Mini, Wordle rotation—whenever I had extra time. And I’m getting better! Some days, I actually complete them. Without cheating! And funnily enough, I’m slower at Spelling Bee now. But I guess this is just to say that maybe you’ll find a small fun little habit that you assumed you would always suck at and slowly get better at it this year anyway. It’s nice.
I should also reveal here that at some point my friend and actual genius Karen Joy Fowler, who is known for her wisdom but not for her optimism, told me 2023 was going to be a great year. I know this, because I added it to my calendar at the time and the reminder popped up recently. I have no memory of what prompted this prediction, which was probably made a long time ago, but I’m holding the universe to it. Do as Karen says.
I also plan to be here at my newsletter more regularly. Thanks for coming along and sticking around.
And…don’t forget to preorder MR & MRS WITCH and get your amazing C.R.O.N.E. sticker!
The End Of The Year As I Know It
Here's to a happy, healthy, and productive 2023!
So much energy here - congrats on all the work in various stages!