Dear Readers,
Today, February 22nd, is the tenth anniversary of The Paris Wife! Can you believe it? I can't! It seems like just yesterday that I was first pulled into this story. Even though it brought me success beyond my wildest dreams – selling over 2 million copies and printing in 37 languages – what's most important is that it allowed me to become a full-time writer and introduced me to these characters that I still love and count as my dearest friends.
Do you want to know a secret? I didn't even like Hemingway for most of my life! His prose was too macho, too stripped down, so full bravado. But then I read A Moveable Feast and met the man Hadley did in 1920.
I was instantly fascinated by this little-known woman who followed this young aspiring writer to Paris, believing in his talent before anyone else even knew who he was. Once I realized I had a novel in the works, I quit my teaching job and wrote in a Starbucks near my house in Cleveland. All the dazzling places that the Hemingways went – from Paris to Pamplona, from the Cote D'Azur to the Swiss Alps – I had never been and couldn't afford to go for research. I had to read my way there and then project my imagination onto these places. Necessity begets ingenuity. In a whirlwind seven months I had a first draft that had to succeed because there was $600 in my bank account!
The publication of The Paris Wife was a real fairytale moment in my life, a gift that keeps on giving. And I owe it to you, my faithful readers, for loving this book and caring about these characters. Thank you, thank you, from the bottom of my heart.
I hope you enjoy this special anniversary edition of the newsletter and all the goodies it holds.
With Love,
Paula
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