Today, I would like to welcome Shelly Hickman, author of the Fortytude Series to share why she loves chick lit. (I absolutely agree with her favorite movies, by the way.)

All About the Chick Lit

I suppose my love of chick lit stems from my love of humor in movies—namely romantic or family comedies. And by family comedies, I don’t necessarily mean suitable for families, but stories that may or may not be appropriate for young viewers that center on family relationships. (This is 40 comes to mind. Definitely not appropriate for young viewers!)

Some of my favorites, to name just a few: When Harry Met Sally (obviously), Notting Hill, It’s Complicated, About Time, Parenthood, As Good As it Gets, and as already mentioned, This is 40.

I do prefer the more light-hearted stories that are purely meant to entertain and uplift. However, I can also appreciate stories that can get a bit heavy-handed with the drama while also throwing in some laughs. My husband didn’t care for This is 40 at all. He thought it was too close to real life and pretty much a downer.

Though I can understand his feelings, I liked it because it was so real, yet it allowed us to laugh at all the heartache life can throw our way. Parenthood was the same way. There were some serious issues going down in that movie and we were not only permitted—but encouraged—to laugh about them.

In a way, such stories are unifying. So often it’s easy to feel isolated, like we’re the only person who’s going through something, or that our family is. When you’re in a crowded theater and dozens of people laugh at something you wouldn’t typically find funny in real life, there’s a sense of, “Hey, I bet these people have been there, too. And it’s okay to look back and laugh about it. That’s just life, baby!” (Sorry. Somehow in my head I heard Austin Powers saying that.)

Let’s face it. Life can deal us some pretty harsh blows. Becoming immersed in a story filled with characters we care about and watching them deal with their hardships with a sense of humor definitely has its appeal. At least for me, it does. I consider chick lit the literary equivalent to romantic comedies in the theaters. Okay, admittedly some of the conflicts in chick lit aren’t earth shattering, and we enjoy the lighthearted read. But I’ve also read chick lit that tackles some tough life circumstances (I try to do it in my own), and still maintains its humorous voice. Given my love for such stories in the cinema, it’s no surprise that these are the stories I most enjoy writing.

Quite simply, I must have humor thrown in with my angst. Without it, life’s just too damn exhausting!

NOVELISTA GIRL – January 6, 2016

Readers first met sassy Kimberly Long in Blogger Girl, and now the feisty New Yorker is back in a sequel packed with quick wit, friendship, heartache, and, of course, romance.

Kim runs the most popular chick lit book blog on the web, loves playing house with her sexy lawyer boyfriend, Nicholas, and is finally pursuing her lifelong dream to become a published author. At first glance, her life is five-pink-champagne-flutes worthy. 

But is there more to the story than meets the eye?

After hearing the phrase “chick lit is dead” more times than she’s read Bridget Jones’s Diary, Kim is driven to desperate measures, seeking advice from up-and-coming chick lit author, Hannah Marshak, her high school nemesis and resident “mean girl.” As if Kim doesn’t have enough on her plate balancing her secretarial duties with her blog Pastel Is the New Black, shrugging off the growing pile of agent rejections, and keeping her best friend from turning green over Kim’s budding friendship with Hannah, Nicholas is so blinded by his career ambitions, he doesn’t see that their home sweet home could use more than a dash of sugar. 

This is the year when all of Kim’s dreams—professional and romantic—are supposed to come true, but will the story have a happily ever after, or will Kim end up unpublished and all alone?

This novel can be read as a sequel or as a standalone and is best accompanied by a cocktail, preferably a pink one.