About Josie
Novelist, journalist, and playwright Josie Brown is the author of
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23-novel Housewife Assassin’s Handbook series (Signal Press; previously optioned for television);
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​8-novel Totlandia episodic series (Signal Press); ​
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3-novel Extracurricular episodic series
(Signal Press); and -
2-novel True Hollywood Lies series (HarperCollins); as well as -
Stand-alone novels The Candidate and The Baby Planner (Simon & Schuster)
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Her novel, Secret Lives of Husbands and Wives (Simon & Schuster), was optioned by producer Jerry Bruckheimer for television.
“This book is wonderfully written and has more than just drama. There are touching moments, parts that made me laugh out loud, and
as I read the story I felt like I was reading
a television show!”
Divine Secrets of a Domestic Goddess
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"I can’t wait for the next in the series.”
LuxuryReading.com
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Brown takes baby mania to its illogical, hysterical extreme in this bubbly romp.Still, the message from the somber realities is one full of hope: love makes a family, commitment keeps it together.”
Publishers Weekly
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"The tone is confessional, the writing laced with venomous humor."
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Wall Street Journal
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"A fine piece of
literary work."
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—New York Post
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Laugh-out-loud funny
and sometimes touching, the Totlandia novellas serve as the perfect quick read for busy moms or
anyone looking to
escape with some
gossipy fun.”
Examiner.com
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Already touted as the perfect summer beach read, this character-driven can best be described as the offspring of an affair between Desperate Housewives and a
Jennifer Weiner novel. Light and fluffy with some excellent dialogue.
Good Housekeeping
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A well-paced,
entertaining story.”
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Publisher's Weekly
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“The last book that made me laugh: The Housewife Assassin's Handbook by Josie Brown—a book I taught in a class about comic novels. Brown's unorthodox surprises did make me laugh."
—Jane Smiley,
Pulitzer Prize-winning author,
A Thousand Acres
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“Master storyteller of the competitively elite, Totlandia's Josie Brown graduates from strollers and playgroups to the high stakes game of college admissions in this captivating tale of trickery, deceit, and unrequited love. A page-turning premise to carry us forward:. A++ for Extracurricular!”
—Julie Valerie, author,
Holly Banks Full of Angst
“Josie Brown's writing is whip-smart as well as wickedly funny, and just as you are enjoying the ride she takes you on, she shatters your heart with her insight into modern lives.”
—Tatjana Soli,
New York Times bestselling author and 2011 recipient of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction for
The Lotus Eater
“Josie Brown brings it, in this ripped-from-the-headlines romp of a novel set in the world of academia and its shadow world – extracurricular activities that may not be legal. It has romance and intrigue, and a pace that doesn't let up. Highly entertaining. Sure to delight Brown's legions of fans.”
—Eileen Goudge,
New York Times bestselling author of
Garden of Lies
Josie's Non-Fiction Works
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Last Night I Dreamt of Cosmopolitans – A Modern Girl's Dream Dictionary (St. Martin's Griffin);
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The Complete Idiot's Guide to Finding Mr. Right (co-written with Martin Brown; PenguinRandomHouse/Alpha);
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Marriage Confidential: 102 Honest Answers to the Questions Every Husband Wants to Hear, and Every Wife Needs to Know (Signal Press)
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As a Freelance Journalist
Josie has interviewed Maya Angelou, Brenda Blethyn, Julian Bond, Kenneth Branagh, Jackie Collins, Costa-Gavras, Craig Ferguson, John Gray, Derek Jacobi, Debbie Reynolds, and John Woo. Her celebrity interviews and relationship trends articles have been featured in Los Angeles Times Syndicate International, Redbook, and Complete Woman, as well as AOL, Yahoo, AskMen.com, Divorce360.com, and SingleMindedWomen.com, where she serves as the Relationships Channel editor.
Josie's interviews for her podcast, Author Provocateur, and for the International Thriller Writers magazine, The Big Thrill, include such notable authors as Samantha M. Bailey, David Baldacci, C.J. Box, Allison Brennan, Lee Child, Deborah Coonts, Robert Dugoni, Barry Eisler, JT Ellison, Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke, Tess Gerritsen, Andrew Gross, Kristan Higgins, Jon Land, John Lescroart, John Lutz, James Rollins, Jason Pinter, Daniel Pyne, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Brad Thor, and Debra Webb.
“Sharp, smart, and sexy, Brown's timely series about the cut-throat world of college admissions is a must-read. Brown's cast of characters is a delicious mix of sweethearts, scoundrels, and the just plain morally corrupt.
Never predictable, and immensely enjoyable."
—Jen Tucker, author,
The Day I Wore My Panties Inside Out
“Josie Brown's writing is whip-smart as well as wickedly funny, and just as you are enjoying the ride she takes you on, she shatters your heart with her insight into modern lives.”
—Meredith Schorr,
Author,
As Seen on TV
and the Blogger Girl
series
“Delicious, hilarious, and addictive, Extracurricular has all the hallmarks of a classic Josie Brown book: fleshed-out, juicy characters, a to-die-for plot, and a ripped-from-the headlines premise. I absolutely loved it and must read the entire series!”
—Samantha M. Bailey,
Toronto Sun
bestselling author of
Woman on the Edge
“Filled with twists and turns and complicated emotions that lead to decisions that play pivotal moments in the characters' lives, this story will reach out and grab your attention from page one and not let go until the end. Josie Brown has
hit it out of the ballpark.”
—Gail Chianese,
author,
Love Runs Deep
MORE ABOUT JOSIE
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Pride and Prejudice - The Musical
In collaboration with Emmy Award-winning composer/lyricist Rita Abrams, Josie is also the librettist of this musical adaptation of Jane Austen's treasured novel. Pride and Prejudice. Its premiere took place in the United Kingdom. Since then, the musical has won a San Francisco Bay Area Theater Critics' award for “Best Original Musical."
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Member Organizations​
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International Thriller Writers
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Authors Guild
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Novelists Inc.
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Bookish Road Trip Facebook Group
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Author Talk Network
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Women's Fiction Writers Association
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Sisters in Crime (US + NorCal)
Previous Speaking Engagements
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University of Wisconsin/Madison: Writers Institute
(Workshops on plotting, first pages, character development, and how to find the action in the paragraph) -
University of the Pacific: Creative Writing Conference ( Workshops on plotting, first pages, and writer’s voice)
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Romance Writers of America / Sacramento (plotting workshop)
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Romance Writers of America / San Francisco (“Last Author Standing” workshop)
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Why There are Words (Literary Salon)
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Screenwriters World Conference Boot Camp (“Anatomy of a Novel Becoming a TV Pilot”)
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Jane Austen Society of North America - National Conference ("The Making of Pride & Prejudice - The Musical")
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Events Produced by Josie​
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Between the Pages" Live fundraising Event for Kitsap Regional Library with Josie, Jane Smiley, Tatjana Soli, Eileen Goudge, and Joshilyn Jackson.
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"Happily Ever After Happy Hour" 15-City live tour event, co-hosted by regional authors.
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