I am many things: An improvisational cook, a skydiver, a bungee jumper, a hang-glider, a cliff-jumper, a cave explorer, a New Yorker, a reader, a dreamer, a critic, a coffee-lover, a person who can count to ten in four languages and, of course, an agent.

I am not, however, a runner.

But when my best friend and former college roommate, Katie, told me she signed up for an upcoming half marathon in Napa to raise money for Crohn’s Disease research (an often debilitating gastrointestinal disease from which Katie herself suffers), I couldn’t let her do it alone.

“I hope you’re not doing this just for me,” she said.
“I’m doing it for myself,” I said. (Lie).
“Good.”
“I want to get healthy.” (Half-lie).
“You have to get up at 7am Saturday mornings for training.”
“I don’t mind.” (lie so huge I even surprised myself). “But I am also doing it because I’ve seen how sick you can get and I want to support you. (The only truth). We’ll do it together.”

And I promised myself that throughout the training, I wasn’t going to complain. I didn’t complain when I had to wake up at 6am on Saturday mornings, or on the long taxi rides up to Central Park for running practice (yes, in NYC you take taxis to places in order to run), or even when our practice mileage went from 2 to 4 to 8 to 10 miles plus Harlem Hill.

On the day of the race we crossed the starting line at sunrise. Armed with a pocket Powerbar, I huffed my way through beautiful vineyards, up and down rolling hills and past red barns. In the end, it was an amazing experience, and that’s really why I did it. Writers, agents, editors—we’re all “experience addicts.” Every time I read a manuscript I’m looking to try on a new experience to satisfy my curiosity. In this case, I found out what it would be to call myself a runner. Though next time, I might just read a book about running….
-KP

I was honored to be invited to attend my neighborhood book club this month to discuss Lunch in Paris, a memoir by Elizabeth Bard (www.elizabethbard.com). My friend Eileen happened to notice that I was thanked in the acknowledgments (who knew anyone actually read the acknowledgements) and thought it would be fun to have me join in. Twelve smart women gathered on a breezy summer evening at the beach for French wine and home made goodies right out of the book, like stuffed zucchini flowers, tabbouleh, melon in port, and mini almond cakes. What could be bad about that? It felt a bit like getting together to hear your friends talk about your children. Again, what could be bad about that? Interesting to hear how everyone felt about different aspects of Elizabeth’s life story and about the recipes. The comparisons to Eat, Pray, Love and other books make for lively conversation. It was also fun to share some of the behind-the-scenes stories like how I first met Elizabeth and what's gone on in her life since the book came out earlier this year, including the sale of the film rights and how all that happens. The whole night was totally fun, prideful, and, I must admit, strangely narcissistic.

At the end of the evening I offered a quick pitch on some other WSA books. I came prepared with some books (everyone loves a little swag, right?) and am thrilled that Brigid Pasulka's (www.BrigidPasulka.com)stunning debut novel A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True was chosen for next month's selection. Happy reading...
-Wendy