I write stories about flawed female protagonists searching for belonging and love, and help writers translate their vision into manuscripts with emotional depth and meaning. I share personal reflections on writing, reading, and the inspiration behind my books in AT THE HEART OF THE STORY, and support writers working on meaninful fiction through THE EMOTIONAL DRAFT. After subscribing, you’ll receive a welcome email where you can choose the content you’d like to receive.
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Project Husband is coming next year!!
Published about 1 month ago • 6 min read • For Readers
Hi Reader,
I'm so excited to announce that my second book, Project Husband, will be published by Lake Union, with a tentative realease date of December 2027!
Technically, it's not official yet. I've accepted the offer but haven't signed a contract. Still, I wanted to share the news with you first, my core readers. Thank you for subscribing to this newsletter and following me on this journey. I skipped August's newsletter because I wasn't sure when to share this, but I can't keep it in any longer!
Me celebrating with an ice cream sundae!
Here's a timeline of what happened:
On July 24th, I received an email from my agent that an editor was interested in talking to me about Project Husband. Since the editor (Emily) was leaving on vacation and I also went on vacation, the call didn't take place until Tuesday, August 18th. You can imagine my impatience!
During the call, Emily gushed about my book and asked me to share the inspiration behind it. To hear someone talk about something I wrote in such a way made me so emotional. It was one of the best moments of my author career up to now. At the end of the call, Emily said she would be sending the offer by the end of the week. Neither me nor my agent could believe it! Since editors need the approval of the entire team before they make an offer, you never really know what to expect with these calls. My agent and I both talked afterward without Emily, and we were both emotional and ecstatic!
On Thursday, August 20th, I received the official offer by email!! It was everything I wanted and more!
Though I was ready to sign, we still had to inform the other editors about the offer and give them time to respond. We also had to inform my previous publisher since they have a right of first refusal (so more waiting, agh!!).
Finally, on September 2nd, we accepted the offer. The next day, I received an email from Emily and Lake Union officially welcoming me to their author family!
What's next:
I have to fill out some questionnaires about my book to help the marketing team develop the cover and the promotional text.
I'll probably spend the rest of the year working with Emily and the other editors on my manuscript and then beginning next year, we should expect the cover and the advanced reader copies. Stay tuned for that!
Scroll down to learn more about Project Husband, some additional news, some pics from my vacation in the Czech Republic, and book recommendations. See you next month!
Perfect for fans of STEM romances and Jane the Virgin
A 35-year-old virgin scientist designs “Project Husband” to find Mr. Right within a year—but when she falls for someone who breaks all her rules, she’ll have to decide if love is something she can measure … or a variable with too many unknown risks.
With her biological clock ticking, 35-year old Puerto Rican Amy González knows if she wants children, she better start ASAP. Going solo is not an option; she can’t have her children growing up without a father, as she did, or risk disappointing her conservative mother and grandmother. Using the research skills she has perfected through her job as a food scientist, she designs “Project Husband” to find a suitable partner within a year. As her deadline approaches, she receives a proposal—for a marriage of convenience that promises the stable family unit she’s always wanted. But after waiting so long for her telenovela ending, Amy isn’t sure she’s willing to give up on love just yet.
Enter Gerry O'Connor, who was never in her rigid experimental design. Dating him is reckless—meeting him outside her project parameters makes him an outlier—but she takes a calculated risk. If by three months he hasn’t met her requirements, she’ll accept the proposal. But love is unpredictable and hard to measure. Only when Amy stops trying to control the outcome will she be able to claim the life she’s always dreamed of.
More News!
My short story, The Spark, featuring Natalie from One Tough Cookie, will be part of a new anthology called Cuentos: The Best of LatineLit 2022-2025, set to be published in March 2027. LatineLit is a literary magazine that features fiction by and about Latinx people, and The Spark was part of their Summer 2023 Issue. I'm so honored that of the hundreds of stories that they've published in those years, they selected mine for this anthology! Stay tuned for more information on this soon!
Hasty Book List is celebrating 1,000 author interviews and I'm one of them! HBL is a literary lifestyle blog sharing book reviews, author interviews, themed reading lists, and more. I'm so happy to be a part of this landmark, so I'm sharing the interview I did with them back in 2023 right after One Tough Cookie came out. I hope you enjoy it!
Life Update
My family and I spent a week in the South Moravian region of the Czech Republic. This area has a similar landscape to Tuscany and is well-known for its wine. We visited the Punkva cave and loved their boat tour through its underground river. We also visited Castle Lednice, which is famous for an amazing wooden staircase made entirely without nails or any metal. It was fun to get away and have this new experience!
Once Upon a Time: The Captivating Life of Carolyn Besette-Kennedy by Elizabeth Beller - As I mentioned in my last newsletter, my current WIP, Pulling Me Back In, was inspired by the relationship between JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. After watching the show Love Story, I read the book it was based on, and I loved it. Carolyn sounds like an amazing person, very kind and loving, the type of friend everyone hopes to have. Her sister, Lauren, also gets mentioned in the book. It's such a tragedy that these three people were taken so soon.
When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole - this thriller is described as Get Out meets Rear Window. I was so invested in this, I couldn't put it down, though I have to admit the ending wasn't my favorite. I felt it left some loose ends and greatly departed from the groundedness of the rest of the book. But it was really entertaining, so I definitely recommend it. I think it's more of a romantic suspense than a thriller.
What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty - I read this book as inspiration for a future project I hope to write someday, and I loved it! What would you do if you lose the memory of the last 10 years? Would you be surprised at how your life has changed? These are the questions facing Alice. I loved the exploration of how we change as we age and the challenges of marriage and parenting.
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid - I heard this on audiobook and the narration was amazing! The voice actor really brought in the passion, and I even cried at times. This is a historical novel set in the NASA Space Program during the 1980's. Joan goes through a sort of coming-of-age as she proves to herself what she's made of and discovers the passionate person that exists within her. This is mostly a love story between Joan and fellow astronaut, Vanessa, the meaning of life, and an exploration of the challenges faced by women and homosexuals during that time period. Another great read by TJR!
One Tough Cookie is Out Now!
“A simply riveting, fun and funny read from first page to last, ONE TOUGH COOKIE is all the more impressive when considering that it is author Delise Torres’ debut as a novelist.”
If you've already read the book, please help me spread the word by leaving a review on Goodreads, Amazon, or on The Storygraph. Or simply recommend it to someone you know!
I write stories about flawed female protagonists searching for belonging and love, and help writers translate their vision into manuscripts with emotional depth and meaning. I share personal reflections on writing, reading, and the inspiration behind my books in AT THE HEART OF THE STORY, and support writers working on meaninful fiction through THE EMOTIONAL DRAFT. After subscribing, you’ll receive a welcome email where you can choose the content you’d like to receive.
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