ACTRESS & AUTHOR MARA PURL IS AMAZON BESTSELLER
– Best Selling Author Mara Purl’s novel soared to top of the charts –
Mara Purl’s “What the Heart Knows” Sold 15,000 copies in one day
(Los Angeles – August 14, 2012) – When an author hits the fast track, you can go from being just a writer to a best-selling author overnight. Mara Purl’s critically acclaimed, award-winning novel, What the Heart Knows, went to Bestseller status with over 15,000 orders in one day. The first novel in the Milford-Haven Series also hit the top of the 100 Contemporary Fiction List and climbed to Best Sellers in Family Saga Fiction. Even Purl’s short stories appeared in "Movers and Shakers" while the novel climbed the charts
When Amazon searched through its vast list of books for the perfect pre-Mother’s Day selection, they chose Mara Purl’s What the Heart Knows. Accurately predicting that their readers might choose it as a gift, or for themselves, even Amazon couldn’t have forecast these results. The first novel in Purl’s Milford-Haven saga (Women’s Fiction) rocketed to number 5.
“It was quite a day,” Purl said. “At six a.m. the book was ranked #927 - by noon it was at #20. A couple of hours later, when it topped out at number five, my publishers called me from New York with the great news. I had a bestseller on my hands. I could hear a lot of whooping in the background!”
“In the book business, competition for positions on any Amazon.com top-ten list is keen. The list is almost always occupied by block-buster authors, or by super-hot trending phenomena,” said Margot Atwell, associate publisher of Bellekeep Books in New York City.
Atwell explained further that Family Saga is one of the most interesting categories. It has always existed, but it’s now recognized as a valid story structure unto itself.
“Today printed books can be ordered immediately by online booksellers and physical bookstores, and e-books can be delivered in seconds,” Atwell stated. “Serial storytelling now is leaping forward. So after a couple of decades as an author, Mara Purl has discovered what it feels like to be an ‘overnight success’.”
“Readers have always enjoyed this form of story. The great thing is, now the marketplace can deliver what readers want. As an author engaged in creating an ongoing saga, this is certainly working in my favor,” added Purl.
In addition to its overall ranking, Amazon also does break-out rankings in genres. Again, What the Heart Knows achieved outstanding performance, reaching #5 in Romance and #1 in Contemporary Fiction.
“It was startling to rank higher than Hunger Games and be in the top-five with Fifty Shades,” Purl gasped. “I was honored to be playing a close game of tag with Nora Roberts in the Romance category, and utterly amazed to have reached #1 in Contemporary Fiction with James Patterson’s latest book actually behind mine. I mean, What the Heart Knows was at #1 in Family Saga with John Grisham at #2. Good ranking is one important part of the publishing equation, and I am very grateful.”
2012 AWARDS for What the Heart Knows
ForeWord Book Of the Year Award – Finalist – Fiction: Romance
https://botya.forewordreviews.com/finalists/2011/romance/
Indie Excellence Award – Winner – Fiction: Romance
http://www.indieexcellence.com/mediaroom.htm
VIDEO INTERVIEWS WITH MARA PURL ACTRESS (DAYS OF OUR LIVES) AND AUTHOR
- Feature Interview NBC Phoenix: http://youtu.be/GSqRbr8Wew0
- Feature Interview NBC Albuquerque: http://youtu.be/RSLJbKNkKkw
- Feature Interview on The Morning Scramble – features the Mara Purl Interview on The Today Show with Jane Pauley and Tom Brokaw - http://youtu.be/ASZItEDVUYY
REVIEWS for What the Heart Knows
"Former Days of Our Lives star Purl presents the first novel in her Milford-Haven series, which, like most women's fiction, features a setting of unadulterated beauty--the small coastal town of Milford-Haven, CA in the prosperous mid-90s--and a cast of successful, sexy, sometimes quirkily independent characters. Protagonist Miranda Jones--a young, beautiful artist nearing the end of her "struggling" phase--has recently escaped from city life. The town and community provide many possible future story lines, and Purl introduces 26 characters here. Readers will find details galore--simple activities or outfits get a whole paragraph--and the novel's many inner monologues reveal scheming, secretly confused, or flawed personalities. Thus far, Milford-Haven offers depictions of daily life, hints of possible future romance, the threat of scandal, and carefully parsed out mystery. Considering all of the problems and questions so cleverly left unanswered, the novel is poised to convince readers to continue with the series."
“Former Days of Our Lives actress Purl imbues her soap opera finesse into the fictional setting of Milford-Haven, a sleep California coastal town where a cast of characters balance matters of the head and heart. This may be Apple Pie, USA, but hearts are on the line, professions are at stake and a possible murder has tainted the landscape. Ending each plot line in a cliffhanger, Purl closes the saga with a peek at the next installment in the Milford-Haven series … a whirlwind of juicy drama with dangling-carrot closure.”
About the Author Mara Purl
Mara Purl is the national award-winning author of the Milford-Haven Novels, a Women's Fiction saga set on California's majestic Central Coast. Also a performer on-camera and on-stage, her regular character in Days of Our Lives was her starting point for soap opera. Purl created the first American radio serial drama ever broadcast by the BBC, where Milford-Haven USA won a following of 4.5 million listeners. She began her writing career as a journalist for the Associated Press, Rolling Stone, The Financial Times of London, Working Woman Magazine, and The Christian Science Monitor. A prolific fiction author, she also has written a play and several non-fiction books including Act Right: A Manual for the On-Camera Actor with actress Erin Gray. Besides for her books, other Awards include: for radio, the New York Festivals Award; for her play Mary Shelley: In Her Own Words, the Peak Award; and for public service, Woman of the Year 2002 by the Los Angeles County Commission for Women.
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