Blank
A wife, mother, and frustrated writer faces an impossible deadline for turning her life around in a hilarious debut novel about family, friendship, success, and exhilarating self-(re)discovery.
Pippa Jones is a fortyish former literary sensation who fears she will be a one-hit wonder. After the follow-up book she was almost done writing, Podlusters, had to be tossed (it ended up sharing a plot and title with superstar author Ella Rankin's summer blockbuster!), she couldn't write a thing. Months of staring at a blank page made her confidence vanish like a one-night stand. When she finds out that she has only five days left to finish (or rather, start) or repay an advance she's already spent, Pippa has a brilliantly original idea. Okay, fine, her twelve-year-old son came up with it as a joke, but Pippa and her teenage daughter approved.
Pippa's not only going to make a bold statement, but she'll change the book world while she's at it! Can she pull it off? At this point, she doesn't have a choice.
When Pippa's publisher gets intimately involved, it unlocks a series of plot twists she never saw coming. From the courtyards of posh Beverly Hills hotels and Malibu mega-mansions to Brentwood and Santa Monica bookstores, Pippa races against time--in her used Volvo--and discovers more about her career, marriage, family, friends, and herself than she ever could have dreamed up.
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Zibby Owens is the author of Bookends: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Literature and the children's book Princess Charming and is the editor of two anthologies: Moms Don't Have Time to Have Kids: A Timeless Anthology and Moms Don't Have Time To: A Quarantine Anthology. Creator and host of the award-winning daily podcast Moms Don't Have Time to Read Books, Zibby is the founder and CEO of Zibby Media, dubbed "the Zibby-verse" by the Los Angeles Times. It includes publishing house Zibby Books, online magazine Zibby Mag, Zibby's Book Club, retreats, classes, and events. She also owns Zibby's Bookshop, an independent bookstore in Santa Monica, California. A regular contributor to Good Morning America and other outlets, she loves recommending books as "NYC's Most Powerful Book-fluencer" (Vulture). A graduate of Yale University and Harvard Business School, Zibby currently lives in New York (with frequent visits to LA) with her husband, Kyle Owens of Morning Moon Productions, and her four children ages nine to sixteen. Follow her on Instagram @zibbyowens and on Substack, where she tells it like it is.
"Owens clearly understands the publishing industry.... An enjoyable read full of book industry antics and plenty of dramatic surprises." --Kirkus Reviews
"Owens's depiction of Pippa's angst feels genuine, especially given the convincingly portrayed demands of marriage and motherhood..." --Publishers Weekly
"Owens' depiction of a neurotic writer on the brink is presented with comic zeal, but the plot elements focused on Pippa's personal life are likely to resonate most with readers." --Booklist
"A fun read from start to finish..." --Midwest Book Review
"Leave it to Zibby Owens to write a novel about a lovable woman single-handedly disrupting the publishing industry. Blank explores marriage, parenting, friendship, and the competitive high jinks of the book trade with the perfect amount of wit and light-touch humor. I devoured this book in a single sitting." --Annabel Monaghan, author of Nora Goes Off Script and Same Time Next Summer
"This is a sunny rom-com with a deep, dark heart--comedic and sad in equal measures. Yes, it's a meta-satire about the publishing industry, but it's also an authentically serious story about the pressure to be everything to everyone. Or, in other words, about what it means to be a woman." --Catherine Newman, author of We All Want Impossible Things
"Zibby Owens captures every writer's nightmare in her fiction debut: someone beats you to the bookshelves with basically the same book you are currently writing. Add to this some genuine home drama, financial worries, and trouble in paradise, and you have a book that you race through because you just want to know what is going to happen!" --Laurie Gelman, author of the Class Mom series
"A witty romp, Blank is the perfect addition to book lovers' bedside tables. An insider's view of the publishing industry and a wise and beautiful celebration of love, Blank kept me happily reading all night and left me bereft when I reached the end of my journey with Owens's wise and fabulous heroine Pippa." --Amanda Eyre Ward, author of The Lifeguards and The Jetsetters
"A delectable, engaging romp through the upper crust of the LA and New York literary worlds but refreshingly grounded and relatable, Blank is like sharing a cool glass of pinot gris with Zibby on a hot day, which is to say: a total treat." --Bess Kalb, author of Nobody Will Tell You This But Me
"Blank is full of wit, verve, and heart--a whirlwind ride with a heroine you can't help rooting for. Readers will laugh, wince, and cheer as Pippa writes the next (blank?) chapter of her career, navigates the pain of betrayal, and seizes the happiness she deserves." --Jane Roper, author of The Society of Shame
"Zibby Owens is a tremendous champion for writers, and it's thrilling to see her own storytelling shine in this smart debut novel about marriage, motherhood, and finding your purpose. Blank is a romp through the publishing world and a delightful gift to book lovers." --Carley Fortune, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Meet Me at the Lake and Every Summer After
