Following the “write what you know” edict a little too closely
I can’t really be bothered to go through the whole history of Jessica “The Washingtonienne” Cutler for those not up to speed, but this article from last summer should provide enough backstory. (or just search Wonkette’s archives.) Now that a few months have passed and everyone’s forgotten, Hyperion, who’ll be publishing her roman a clef, is doing its best to make sure people won’t forget. They prepare their catalogs early, and galleys as well. Who knows? They could be floating around right this moment (but I kind of doubt it.)
Thing is, based on the jacket copy, I wonder why anyone would bother shelling out $24 when it seems fairly likely that everything’s already available online:
In a witty, unapologetic voice, the novel’s narrator Jackie tells the story of her failed engagement, her decision to move from New York to Washington, and the mischief she immediately starts getting into upon arrival. From the married, Bush-appointed bureaucrat who gives her $400 for a lunchtime tryst, to the staff counsel whose taste for spanking she “accidentally” leaks to the office, Jackie’s loosely fictionalized exploits serve up large portions of D.C. dish and prove that Washington’s taste for sexy extramarital relationships is by no means limited to the Oval Office.
Of course, it’s not like her publishers really wanted something drastically different than the events that made Cutler notorious. So I suspect it’s unlikely the followup will be titled The Plot Against Jessica. Unless the book doesn’t sell….