Happy Anniversary, CAKE: A Love Story

CAKE: A Love Story is celebrating its second-year anniversary release on Amazon Prime today. We are so grateful to everyone who worked on Misha Zubarev and Vera Zubarev’s lovely short film version of our romantic memoir It Had To Be Us -- and to the wonderful people who have supported it. We are also surprised and happy because of the following information:

Amazon views: 6272

Amazon Rating Average: 4.5 stars (out of 5)

IMDb Rating Average: 8.5 stars (out of 10)

Awards: First Place in Short Film Category at the NSAEN International Online Film Festival, Award of Merit at IndieFest, Official Selection of the Toronto Shorts International Film Festival
 
It’s like a dream come true for us. We will always remember the hard work and happiness involved in this labor of love.

A Lovely Review

I’m so happy that filmmaker Alexander Hanno has given us permission to use his comments below in any PR for CAKE: A Love Story!    

“I watched Cake: A Love Story and found it so bitter-sweet (figuratively bitter and a literally sweet). I can't believe that Elizabeth and Harry Lawrence came back together after so long apart and such independent journeys in the interim. It's a really beautiful story, peppered with some moments of true heart break and I'll tell you, it makes for great filmmaking. I was particularly smitten with the production design behind the two ‘documentary’ shots of the lead couple. I loved how the design in those shots helped paint a picture of each character before we ever got to know the pair throughout the story. Visual storytelling is so crucial and such a genuine breath of fresh air.” ---  Alexander Hanno, writer/director of Elephants

Congratulations again to Misha Zubarev, Vera Zubarev, and their terrific cast and crew for a wonderful transfer of IT HAD TO BE US -- the romantic memoir my husband and I co-wrote under the pen names of Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence -- to the screen! 

And thanks to Alexander Hanno for his encouraging review. 

A Whirlwind Renewed Romance!

Many thanks to Ronald Hull for his wonderful recent review of IT HAD TO BE US, the award-winning romantic memoir my husband and I wrote under the pen names of Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence. Hull calls our book “a whirlwind renewed romance with energy and adventure reminding one of The Graduate.”

We love that comment because it includes one of our favorite movies!

Hull concludes his review with the following recommendation:

“I highly recommend this short read -- with its gentle respect for love and sometimes wisecracking humor -- for those that wish they had a second chance at love, and anyone who is interested in a true romance story.”

Hull’s complete review is posted on Amazon.com in the Kindle E-book section as well as on the AuthorsDen site.

(Ronald W. Hull is the author of Hanging by a Thread, his autobiography, as well as six other books of fiction.)

Two Romantic Christmases

Showbiz stars George and Lizette Bettinger made two Christmases from the past come to life again on Movie Addict Headquarters yesterday. These talented actors read the first chapter of IT HAD TO BE US, a romantic memoir now in the early stages of film development. They play co-authors Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence in this special audio version of Chapter One, which deals with how two holiday seasons help the estranged Lawrences begin a journey back to each other after being divorced for almost twenty years.

IT HAD TO BE US won first place in the Ebook category at the Hollywood Book Festival for its potential to be transferred to other mediums such as film, radio and TV. With the help of BlogTalkRadio listeners during the launch of the Kinle version three years ago, the memoir hit Number One in the “Divorce” category for Kindle Ebooks,  and filmmaker Misha Zubarev has completed the screenplay.  

The Bettingers display their passion for bringing back the Golden Era of radio on their popular “Mom & Pop Shop Show” which airs on Dreamstream Radio each Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 4 p.m. Eastern Time. George is an actor, comedian, producer, writer and director. He’s won acclaim for his uncanny impressions including Groucho Marx, George Burns and the Three Stooges but may be best known as the voice of the red M&M. Lizette is a versatile actress and soprano singer with experience at the Metropolitan Opera. George and Lizette are truly Mr. & Mrs. Showbiz!

Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence donate their author royalties from IT HAD TO BE US (published by the Long Story Short Publishing Company) to the IMAGINATION LIBRARY, a children’s literacy program sponsored by the Dollywood Foundation.

FULL DISCLOSURE: Harry & Elizabeth Lawrences are the pen names my husband and I used in writing IT HAD TO BE US.

LINK TO LISTEN: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/movieaddictheadquarters/2015/12/01/remembering-two-romantic-christmases   

   

Another Rave Review

Thanks to film critic R.J. Smith for posting his enthusiastic reactions to It Had To Be Us,  the romantic memoir my husband and I wrote under the pen names of Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence, on Amazon.com. Below is an excerpt from his Five-Star review titled “The Stuff Love Is Made Of.”

A funny and original memoir, overflowing with detail from both sides of the love story. For this special romantic odyssey, Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence take turns illuminating events, often shedding light on little moments which the other person might have missed. From their initial encounter to scenes both light and heavy, it's a narrative bathed in the glow of Technicolor. The potential for a feature length motion picture is strong here. After this short love affair ends, we get some excellent appendices. Readers can indulge themselves in a tasty selection of movie treats, including well-written critiques of romantic fare such as “Music and Lyrics” and “Love Actually.”  You'll laugh and wish that all true stories could be this enchanting.

We are very happy that R.J. enjoyed our Kindle e-book! And, by the way, this month our publisher Denise Cassino has created an Anniversary Re-Launch for this novella, complete with bonus items. Just click on the link below for details and for how to access them.

www.bettyjotucker.com 

Funny Essay

Harry and Elizabeth, who knew each other slightly, were lucky to receive assigned seats across from each other at the end of two aisles in the back of their high school World History class. This enabled them to pass notes without the teacher knowing it, and Harry always went out of his way to make Elizabeth laugh. During one class session, the teacher asked the students to write a short essay about Scotland. So Harry very quickly wrote a short one, then passed it to Elizabeth.

SCOTLAND by Harry Lawrence

Scotland is a land filled with Scots. For example, many Scotch people live there. You can tell they are Scotch because even the men wear colorful skirts, which they call “kilts.”

It’s important to mention that Scotland can be found close to Great Britain. However, this land should not be confused with Ireland, which is also close to England (Great Britain). There are very few Scotch people in Ireland, which is the homeland for most Irish people and their leprechauns (tiny green men with pots of gold) instead.

Although Scotland can be considered part of Europe (a continent close to Asia), it does not appear connected to that particular continent. Anyone who wants to get to Europe from Scotland has to fly or travel by boat. But it’s well-known the Scotch people don’t like to spend much money. That’s probably why they don’t buy expensive tickets to Europe and prefer to stay at home in Scotland listening to their bagpipe music.

After learning all this about Scotland, I feel lucky to live in the United States of America.

Elizabeth couldn’t contain herself and laughed too loud at what Harry wrote, probably because of her Irish/Scottish roots. She didn’t give the piece of paper back to Harry fast enough, so both of them were chastised by the teacher, who smiled slyly when she read Harry’s SCOTLAND ESSAY. Happily, she didn’t change the seating arrangements, so Harry and Elizabeth continued communicating with each other and becoming friends during the class all that semester – but they were more careful after this incident.

(Find out more about HARRY AND ELIZABETH LAWRENCE by reading their award-winning romantic memoir, IT HAD TO BE US, available from Amazon’s Kindle Store.)

HAPPY ST. PAT'S DAY!

Pre-Valentine's Day Show

On February 12, Movie Addict Headquarters will present a special pre-Valentine’s Day episode focusing on romantic films reviewed in “It Had To Be Us,” the award-winning romantic memoir my hubby and I co-wrote under the pen names of Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence. Filmmaker Misha Zubarev, publisher Denise Cassino, Movie Mom Nell Minow and comedian Nancy Lombardo have been invited to join the discussion, and a book giveaway is also scheduled. Movies to be covered include such films as Return to Me, Love Actually, Tristan and Isolde, Music and Lyrics, Beyond Borders, The Fountain, and Moulin Rouge!

“A Romance with Movies” airs live on BlogTalkRadio at 4 p.m. Eastern Time (1 p.m. Pacific Time) on Tuesday, February 12, 2013. During the live show, listeners are invited to call in and to participate in a chat. An archived segment will also be available.

CALL-IN NUMBER: 646-478-5668

LINK TO LISTEN:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/movieaddictheadquarters/2013/02/12/a-romance-with-movies 

Hooray for Book Luvin' Babes!

My hubby and I greatly appreciate Dana Taylor’s recent comments about the award-winning romantic memoir we co-wrote under the pen names of Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence. Dana posted the following on the Book Luvin’ Babes website -- and even included an excerpt from our book:

Some books just stick with you. I read the short and wonderful romantic memoir IT HAD TO BE US by Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence several years ago and interviewed Elizabeth for my radio show. I still remember the charming he said/she said style of this true story of two people once married, once divorced, married to others, widowed, and how they came together again. Now available to the world as an ebook, it will surely make its way to the bestseller list. Enjoy this excerpt!

To read the entire post, just click on the link below:http://www.bookluvinbabes.com/it-had-to-be-us-unique-and-delightful

Our Valentine Book

Where can you find a heartfelt true love story, some yummy recipes and over 20 reviews of favorite romantic films -- all in one package? Only in the expanded KINDLE version of IT HAD TO BE US, the award-winning romantic memoir my husband and I co-wrote which is now available at the Amazon Kindle store. If you don't have a Kindle device, Amazon has free software you can download which enables you to read the book on your computer.

Nancy Lombardo, host of Comedy Concepts on BlogTalkRadio, calls our story "A Recipe for Love" in her recent rave review. She also says the book is "a wonderfully touching homage to love -- sweet, honest and filled with hope -- a great gift for Valentine's Day, so share it with someone you love."

Because I don't eat anything that once had a face, I added some delicious vegetarian recipes to our book, and that's probably why Nancy used "Recipe" in her review title. As a movie addict, I gave most of the recipes film-related monikers, such as "Oscar-Worthy Nachos." However, my hubby is still a carnivore, so he fries up a bit of hamburger and mixes it into his own servings of our "4-Star Chili" and "Thumbs-Up Spaghetti," which proves that vegetarians and carnivores can live together in harmony, at least in our house.

About those romantic films, I know many are highly predictable and not very entertaining, but my husband and I still have a lot of favorites, so we included reviews of several excellent ones, such as Love Actually, Pride & Prejudice and Kate & Leopold. It was fun compiling our list, even though we frequently disagreed while making the selections.

For more information about IT HAD TO BE US, click on the link below.

http://bit.ly/bjFCtr

Happy Valentine's Day!

A Lovely Message

My husband and I really appreciate hearing reactions to our bestseller Kindle edition of IT HAD TO BE US, the award-winning romantic memoir we co-wrote under the pen names of Harry and Elizabeth Lawrence.

The latest message we received means a great deal to us. Here’s what Mo Green sent our way:

Thank you so much for sharing your journey of love and discovery. I was truly inspired. While reading your book I was thinking that there was still hope for me to find true love. I shed a few tears, because your story is so touching. Oh! By the way, I really like your style of writing. Many Blessings.

We want to thank Mo, one of my favorite BlogTalkRadio hosts, for taking the time to read IT HAD TO BE US and for sending us such beautiful comments.

Mo’s popular -- and fun! -- BTR show, “Morning Coffee with Mo and Vic,” airs each Monday morning at 9 a.m. Eastern Time. For more information, go to the URL below:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/morning-coffee