Jo Piazza
Verified- Journalist, Freelance
- Host, Committed (Podcast)
- Host, Under the Influence with Jo Piazza
Philadelphia
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Podcast host of UNDER THE INFLUENCE & COMMITTED Author: CHARLOTTE WALSH LIKES TO WIN & WE ARE NOT LIKE THEM. Journalist, mom, doing life with @NickAster
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Articles by Jo Piazza
Is Nara Smith Lying About Her Age? AND Do Influencers Need Better Pre-Nups?
Tell a friend about The Parisian Heist to keep the word of mouth going today and leave an Amazon review! Let’s hit 1,000 reviews by the end of the month. When we were kids, were there this many colors of pumpkins? I just remember orange. But we went to the pumpkin patch over the weekend and the farmer announced on the hayride, “we’ve got them all, pink, white, blue, green, yellow!” There was a whole ROYGBIV of pumpkins. I’m an overachiever. I got them all.
“Nobody Does It All”: Emma Grede Gets Real About Help
Tell a friend about The Parisian Heist to keep the word of mouth going today and leave an Amazon review! Let’s hit 1,000 reviews by the end of the month. My friend Lisa who owns the wonderful Bookshelf on Church bookstore is trying to send 500 books to children in Ukraine by the end of the month. I LOVE this initiative. Learn more about it here. I am going to have the founders on the pod soon. People keep forwarding me this essay on the death of hosting in America.
I Never Knew You At All
I NEVER KNEW YOU AT ALL is a poignant novel with complex themes that include interracial marriage, the disappearance of a young Black teen in the ’60s, missed possibilities and justice denied. Simone marries Alex Hartwell, the heir to the Hartwell grocery store chain, after being jilted by Kwame Walker, the man with whom she thought she would spend her life. Now Simone and Alex have a son, Langston. Alex's grandfather, Lawrence, raised him after Alex’s parents died when he was four.
what i read, what I watched, what I love
Heyo! Happy nearly end of the week. The kittens are really settling in. They even want to be with a hoard of boys playing MineCraft. Geoff the cat does this on my lap while I write every morning too. Also he fell into the toilet this morning and stole the baby’s underwear. I think he might be a dog. I had to take my six year old to get her eyes checked yesterday and this sign made me giggle. Also she needs glasses and couldn’t be more excited about her new purple glasses.
Today in Loose and Soft Pants (Part One)
I was planning on posting an ode to my favorite soft pants yesterday but then I had to go write about yet another douchebag being douchey. Now we’re back on track. I lived in my Rag and Bone racer stripe sweatpant jeans during our recent trip to San Francisco. I wore them on the plane. I wore them while we were camping. I wore them to brunch the day after we went camping. When I wasn’t wearing those I was in these wonderful Quince dupes.
Whore Shortin’: Fighting Back Against the Shane Gillis of it All
Plus the time my editors made me wear whore shorts for a story I had a whole different newsletter planned for today, and then I watched Shane Gillis’s monologue on SNL and I had no choice but to write about it because there’s something new to enrage us every single time we turn on our phones. I just really wanted to write a post about my favorite loose pants. But now that has to wait.
How to Sell Books: What I Learned from Jo van Gogh
Book Club Advice that is pretty useful for selling anything from the woman who sold art no one wanted Tell a friend about The Parisian Heist to keep the word of mouth going today and leave an Amazon review! Let’s hit 1,000 reviews by the end of the month. This is a post about being better, smarter and more efficient about selling the things you create. I get asked all the time to pick my brain on this topic so here is one of my brain dumps on it.
Make Flying With Kids Better For You
Travel The reframe that works for me Quick notes. The Sicilian Inheritance is still on Kindle sale for $1.99! Grab it now if you haven’t read it. And don’t forget to tell a friend about The Parisian Heist and leave her an Amazon review! Let’s hit 1,000 reviews by the end of the month. I’m coming to the DC/Virginia area soon. Come shoot the shit and craft with me at BIRCHTREE Books in Leeburg on Oct. 25. RSVP here.
How to Have a Maintenance-Date
Essays not every date night involves dinner and drinks Quick notes. The Sicilian Inheritance is currently on Kindle sale for $1.99! Grab it now if you haven’t read it yet. And don’t forget to tell a friend about The Parisian Heist to keep the word of mouth going and leave her an Amazon review! Let’s hit 1,000 reviews by the end of the month. Also did you read that GoodReads now allows for half stars!!! The Internet is apparently very divided about it.
things i love, what to read and watch
Essays my makeup routine, a killer bralette and a nasty divorce Quick notes. The Sicilian Inheritance is still on Kindle sale for $1.99! Grab it now if you haven’t read it. And don’t forget to tell a friend about The Parisian Heist and leave her an Amazon review! Let’s hit 1,000 reviews by the end of the month. I’m coming to the DC/Virginia area soon. Come shoot the shit and craft with me at BIRCHTREE Books in Leeburg on Oct. 25. RSVP here. Thank you to everyone who named our cowboys for The Last Ride.
Name My Sexy Cowboy
Book Club And my ranch horses, dogs and sweet little goats Heyyyyyyyy from Virginia. We popped by two bookstores outside Richmond this weekend for a little Nick and I escape while I finished editing The Last Ride. I have to say that this new book is still making me laugh out loud, which is a damn good sign. It is also very murdery and thrillery. But the laughing is what I think we all need right now.
Know her name: Happy Birthday Jo van Gogh
Essays I’m giving away some Parisian Heists to spread the word!!! Quick notes. The Sicilian Inheritance is currently on Kindle sale for $1.99! Grab it now if you haven’t read it. And don’t forget to tell a friend about The Parisian Heist and leave her an Amazon review! I’m coming to the DC/Virginia area soon. Come shoot the shit and craft with me at BIRCHTREE Books in Leeburg on Oct. 25. RSVP here. Today is JVG day.
Gifts I Give New Parents and Kids (Part One)
Quick notes. The Sicilian Inheritance is currently on Kindle sale for $1.99! Grab it now if you haven’t read it. And don’t forget to tell a friend about The Parisian Heist and leave her an Amazon review! I’ll be at The Bookshelf on Church bookstore in Kilnarock, VA tonight. Come hang. Info here. AND I’m coming to the DC/Virginia area soon. Come shoot the…
We Got Kittens!
Quick notes. The Sicilian Inheritance is currently on Kindle sale for $1.99! Grab it now if you haven’t read it. And don’t forget to tell a friend about The Parisian Heist and leave her an Amazon review! I’m so sick of both waking up and falling asleep enraged. You know what’s helping? Kittens. I have a thousand things I wanted to write about today. I have projects to promote. There is news breaking that I should dissect. But I just don’t want to.
It May Not Be ALL Men...But It’s TOO MANY F*cking Men
We are not OK. And that’s OK. For the past couple of days I’ve found myself having random conversations and arguments in my head about consent and rape and toxic male culture. I’ve been running through scenarios of how to talk to my children about all of this. I’ve been imagining the mothers of the Cornell 7 and drafting lists of questions I want to ask them. I’m snapping at any man, mostly Nick Aster, about how fucking terrible all of this is.
Read the Whole Cornell 7 Complaint
I had big plans to write about and podcast about other things today. Now I can’t even remember what they were. The Cornell 7 storyhas truly taken over my brain and I don’t even know how to begin to process it. As a woman who attended a lot of fraternity parties at fancy ass colleges in the early 2000s nothing about the conduct surprises me and yet everything still surprises me.
what to read and watch right now
Fun news! Our pop-up bookstore The Bookcase is now shipping my signed and personalized books. Want a Hot Sicilian, a Parisian, a Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, an Everyone is Lying to You? We’ve got em. Just let us know what you want me to write inside (makes a GREAT gift for you, a loved one, or someone you are dying to become friends with). Today is the last day of the Rag & Bone sale. You want some sweatpant jeans?
Wear Things That Bring You Joy
Is today the day you leave your five-star Amazon or GoodReads review of The Parisian Heist? It definitely could be! The world is your damn oyster and you are a goddess. I discovered something amazing last night when I was riding on Amtrak and scrolling and replacing my favorite Heirloom Tomato candle from Flamingo Estate. I discovered that they also make house cleaner spray and hand soap that also smell like heirloom tomatoes!!!! I have never smashed an order button so hard.
The Best Parenting Advice I Got Early On
Is today the day you leave your five-star Amazon or GoodReads review of The Parisian Heist? It definitely could be! The world is your damn oyster. I’m resurfacing this old post because I just found it in my archives and it was a good reminder to me, so I thought it might be to some of you too. A new mom wrote to me at three in the morning last night and said she needed to delete Instagram because it was making her feel so bad about her own parenting. I get dozens of these emails a week.
How You Can Fight for Paid Leave
Is today the day you leave your five-star Amazon or GoodReads review of The Parisian Heist? It definitely could be! The world is your damn oyster. Very important reminder that Fat Bear Week is here. Will Chunk keep his crown? I’m here for Marshmallow (see below). Get those votes in. Now onto other voting topics. The midterms will be here before we know it. I know how easy it is to check out of the news cycle right now. I am very guilty of it myself.
Wife School, Fake Tradwives Target ICE, More Nara Smith Rebrand
Is today the day you leave your five-star Amazon or GoodReads review of The Parisian Heist? It definitely could be! The world is your damn oyster. Hiiii from the late Amtrak train from NYC to Philly. I had a book event tonight during Climate Week and had Nick drop me off on the way back from the Catskills. On the drive my six-year-old burst into tears when we told her this plan since I’ve been away so much. I made a command decision. I just brought her with me.
The Most Gorgeous Riad in Marrakesh
I need more people reading this incredible ProPublica piece on the oligarch who funded Donald Trump’s wedding. The best profile of Mark Zuckerberg I’ve read yet. NPR published my piece about Jo van Gogh being the ultimate influencer and genius on their home page (I originally wrote it for WBUR in Boston). Give it a read and a share if you’re so inclined.
My New Power Move
Quick reminder to leave Parisian Heist a 5-star review on Amazon or GoodReads OR buy yourself a copy if you haven’t gotten it yet. Smooches. I’ve come to realize that my typical passive aggressive maneuver for getting my family to take their shit upstairs is failing. In the past I’ve neatly stacked things on the stairs that need to go up. If it is on the stairs it always must go up! That feels like such an easy rule. It is not.
The woman who made Vincent van Gogh famous
A few years ago, I was reading my 6-year-old a picture book about Vincent van Gogh. It was fairly detailed (maybe overly so) for an early reader and didn’t gloss over Vincent slicing off his ear or his death by gunfire. It explained that Vincent died penniless and sold virtually nothing in his lifetime, but went on to say his family preserved his legacy. But there was no mention of who that family was.
All the Bathrooms I’ve Loved in Paris
Hellllllo from the Paris airport. I’m heading back to the feral kids and husband today to go to a barn dance, an actual barn dance, in the Catskills. But I still have so much Paris and Marrakesh content to come. Last night’s book party at the Red Wheelbarrow went even better than I expected and I can’t wait to show you all the pics. But first I need to share something a little less glamorous. Because that is always my goal—let’s talk about what we don’t see on the Instagram.
46 bits of advice on my 46th birthday!
Happy birthday to me from Marrakech. It’s our last day in this wild and wonderful city and I’m spending the morning on the roof deck of Riad Yasmine doing my morning words for The Bone Crew and starting some words for my new novel. Some people disconnect when they travel. I’ve found that I want less of some things (less emails and less busy work) and more of others (more book writing in particular). I’m a sucker for a shirt that looks like a beach umbrella. Grabbed this one in the souk.
A Gorgeous Hotel in the Atlas Mountains
We’re launching The Parisian Heist in Paris next Thursday with a glorious talk about wine reception (with SOULEIL VIN DE BONTÉ LE ROSÉ and Billecart-Salmon Le Sous Bois) at my favorite English language book store The Red Wheelbarrow. I’ll be in conversation with my friend Lindsay Tramuta, the author of The New Parisienne and The Eater Guide to Paris. The event is open to everyone and I would love to see you.
Let’s Cast The Parisian Heist Movie!!!!
I’m writing this on the plane en route to Marrakesh for my birthday trip! If you want to get me a birthday present buy a copy of The Parisian Heist for a friend today and then tell them it’s MY birthday present! Thank you, love you! I get asked in every book club meeting who I would cast in a Parisian Heist movie. It’s a really hard question for me to answer for two reasons. 1. I don’t really know any young stars in Hollywood anymore.
Get These YouTubers Off My Netflix
Have you left your review for The Parisian Heist on the Amazon and GoodReads yet? Today feels like an amazing day to do it. Love you. WTF NETFLIX. I can’t tell you how many times in the past month I’ve walked past my kids watching TV and said, “get off the YouTube!” We are a screen-forward house. I’m not going to pretend we aren’t. I’m am a person who loves movies and television and we watch a lot of both together and frankly I think my kids are funnier for it.
Everything I’m Packing for Morocco
I am attempting to pack light for Morocco and Paris next week so that I can do all the shopping. Don’t worry, I’m also bringing an extra bag. I use this Away suitcase (which appears to be $75 off this week). I just stocked up on seven new pairs of these high-waisted Harper Wilde briefs. They’re my new faves and they are on sale. I like taking brand new underwear on a trip. It feels like a little luxury. Also packing two of these bralettes since I plan to buy bras in Paris.
Why Are We So Obsessed With Tradwives?
I’ve seen women making homemade butter. I’ve watched hours of videos of sourdough rising. In the middle of the night, I saw one self-declared stay-at-homesteader quartering a hog. She was wearing a floor-length dress that looked expensive. I think it was Dôen. When I clicked on it, I found that it retailed for more than $400, and that if I bought it she would make a 15% commission.
Remembering and Honoring Gloria Steinem
Walking into Gloria Steinem’s house was like walking into a fever dream. A delightful one. People’s houses aren’t usually what you expect them to be, but this one completely suited her. It was warm and cozy and the couch was the kind of couch you’d want to sit on for hours and shit talk the president. I was nervous. I’ve met my heroes before and it didn’t always go well. Spending time with Gloria was even better than I ever could have expected.
things i love, things i hate
Hey all! Quick reminder that if you loved Parisian Heist and want it to be a pick for your book club I will send you a bunch of personalized nameplates for the club, make a Zoom appearance or shoot you a fun video! And keep leaving those five star reviews. Smooches. I went to New York yesterday to film some content with my co-writer Christine Pride to promote our novel I Never Knew You at All. It was delightful.
I'm a Crappy Wife
Have you ordered The Parisian Heist yet? What are you waiting for? And if you have thank you!! Make sure to leave it a five star review on Amazon and Goodreads so people can keep discovering it and recommend it today to one person you adore. My waxer just ordered it! This post is something of an ode to my lovely husband. Because to be honest, I’ve been a less than stellar wife this summer.
Change Your Algorithm With Me
Tomorrow morning I’ll be doing a slow trot with the Philly Slow Girls running club to celebrate the Philly-ness of The Parisian Heist. We’ll start with a Rocky run up the art museum steps and then the along the river to an adorable little French cafe near my house, Maison Jaune. Meet us at the art museum at 9 if you want to join. I’ll have Parisians on sale from The Bookcase. AND don’t forget to leave those five star reviews on the Amazon and the Good Reads. Do it now. It will take like ten seconds.
Pour Yourselves a Cup of Ambition
Quick reminder to keep leaving those five-star reviews for Parisian Heist if you loved it on Amazon or Goodreads (it doesn’t have to be long, a sentence is fab). And tell everyone you know to order it! We shall keep this book going and going and going until EVERYONE KNOWS JO VAN GOGH. The world is a little less sparkly today. In losing Dolly Parton lost a legend and a force of nature. Before you continue reading it’s probably best that you watch Dolly singing Nine to Five on Jimmy Fallon.
The Very Sweet Thing My Husband Did For Me
Quick reminder to keep leaving those five-star reviews for Parisian Heist if you loved it on Amazon or Goodreads (it doesn’t have to be long, a sentence is fab). And tell everyone you know to order it! We shall keep this book going and going and going until EVERYONE KNOWS JO VAN GOGH. I dropped the big kids off at school this morning. I am a person again. Last night I did a spa bath with my six-year-old to celebrate going back to school (at the suggestion of a wonderful reader).
A Day in the Life: An Author and Mother on Book Tour
My friend Jennifer Herrera is a force of nature. She’s a mom of two little kids, a book agent and the author of two books. Her latest novel, SIREN SAYS, a gorgeous witchy delight of a book that I can’t stop recommending just came out this week. Diana Gabaldon (of OUTLANDER) said this about it: “Mysterious, beautiful, and enchanting in the true and sinister sense of the word.
A Maternity Ward for a Monarch
First, a favor. THE PARISIAN HEIST has been out since Bastille Day and it’s finding new readers every day. THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE ORDERED IT. If you liked it, the three things that actually move the needle for it are a review on Amazon or Goodreads (it doesn’t have to be long, a sentence is fab), requesting it at your library, and telling one person about it in a very persuasive way. If you’re in a book club, I do Zoom visits and I love them.
Postcard from the Catskills Book Festival
Guys I am so, so giddy to tell you all about the inaugural Catskills Book Festival. What started as a whimsical idea after drinking a couple of Kaaterskills, and buying the domain, CatskillsBook Festival.com brought more than a hundred readers out to Westskill Brewing to build community around books this month. There were author talks, book sales, literary tattoos from Thorn Tattoo (someone got the Goosebumps G!), live music, and craft beer from my favorite brewery in the entire world.
things i love right now
Steven Weinberg and I will be in Kingston at the wonderful magical Rough Draft Books tomorrow at 11. Come for the Farmers Market and stay to have Steven doodle in your books. Even though I’m still doing events, I’m finally starting to relax after the Parisian Heist launch. It was a whirlwind and my brain and body were going at about 210%. But I’m starting to slow down a little. It takes me a beat. I’m not a particularly slow living person even though sometimes I would like to be.
Guest post: We need to totally rethink how we launch new books
That’s right, it’s a guest post! Because I don’t actually know everything, I’m excited to share from-the-trenches pieces by authors and publishing professionals. This galvanizing one is from Substack favorite Jo Piazza, whose sweeping literary thriller, The Parisian Heist, is out now. (Be sure to check out the giveaway at the end.) Enjoy! I launched a new novel last month! Whooo hoo! Yay me. So why am I so depressed about it just four weeks later? And what can I do to recover from it?
Is Staring at Our Face So Much Bad For Us?
Hiiii from the Great Northern Catskills. Our very first Catskills Book Festival was a success and I can’t wait to tell you more about it. More to come. I hope you all are love, love, loving The Parisian Heist. If so please leave it a review on the Amazons. It’s so dumb that they help, but they help. And if you didn’t love it, don’t bother. They’re silly…
Why Finding a Village is so Hard
Weekly reminder to spread the word about The Parisian Heist. What sells books? Word of mouth. How does that happen? No one knows! So tell two friends about it today. I had my first baby in San Francisco and I had exactly one friend at the time and she had no interest in babies (I love you Amy and you’re a great mom now). One day when I was visibly pregnant, eating Ethiopian food at a dive bar by our house called Club Waziema a woman walked over to my table.
We Want You Lucky Blue
At this point I think all of you wonderful and magical subscribers have bought the book of the summer, the book everyone is taking to Paris, THE PARISIAN HEIST. And now we must spread the word. Tell five friends today that you loved this book and they should order it so you can all talk about it and then go to Paris. Also leave those five star reviews. Last week we talked about Nara Smith’s interview on Call Her Daddy, where she claimed she was never a tradwife.
Announcing the Catskills Book Festival
We’ve created a Book Festival! You’ve read about our vintage trailer bookstore, also known as Bookcase Books. We’ve now fully broken it in all over the Catskills. Over the past few months, we’ve discovered that our favorite part of being booksellers actually isn’t selling books. It’s helping readers find their next favorite one.
Was Nara Smith Lying to You The Whole Time?
Hellllllo from a car ferry on the Long Island Sound. Car ferries are truly a civilized way to travel and I wish I had more of them in my life. I have my second to last stop of the summer leg of the Parisian tour tonight in Plainville, Mass at An Unlikely Story. Come see me!!!! I’ll sign all the things. If you don’t see me in person then I can’t write something absurd or filthy in your book! And I want to. And keep sharing the word about Parisian Heist with friends.
UPDATE: A Male-Box For Insecure Men
You may have already gotten this, but it sent too soon because I am on the road. I have three events today and my brain is broken. Alas. This is real life. Hey Boston, Providence and Massachusetts friends. Come hang out with me tomorrow night at An Unlikely Story bookstore at 6:30. RSVP here or just show up. I ate bacon gelato last night. It was just a tiny dollop on the side of my carbonara at Gran Caffè L’Aquila in Philadelphia, right next to the Barnes & Noble where I had my Philly book event.
All the Recs: What to Read, Watch and Listen to Right Now
If you’re one of the few who hasn’t ordered The Parisian Heist yet, you are missing out. Folks are loving this book and finishing it in a couple of nights. Grab it so we can all talk about it. I’ll open up the reading thread for any and all questions. AND I WILL BE IN PHILLY TONIGHT. Come see me at the Center City Barnes and Noble. Tickets here. You can probably also just pop in. I’m also extending the offer for one year of this substack free when you order Parisian Heist.
An Introvert's Guide to an Extroverted Book Tour
If you’re one of the few who hasn’t ordered The Parisian Heist yet, you are missing out. Folks are loving this book and finishing it in a couple of nights. Grab it so we can all talk about it. I’ll open up the reading thread for any and all questions. AND I WILL BE IN PHILLY TOMORROW NIGHT. Come see me at the Center City Barnes and Noble. Tickets here. I’m also extending the offer for one year of this substack free when you order Parisian Heist. Just order The Parisian Heistand drop your email here.
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