OK, it’s on! 

A couple of weeks ago, I announced that I was toying with the idea of rolling out the novel I have been working on sporadically for the past couple of years here on this platform. I took a poll, asking if my readers are definitely interested to see what I come up with, maybe interested, or not at all. 

The response has been overwhelmingly in favor of (75%), with a couple of maybes (25%), and 0 negatives! (Well, OK, a couple of people simply ended their subscriptions, but that’s how things go. The subscription “Irish exit.”) 

(Just so you know, I am notified when you leave.)

To everyone who’s stuck around past the elephants I thank you for your loyalty and support!

For those who missed the announcement—or for those joining for the first time—here is an update on the proposed format and more detail about the story:

The name of the novel is Perfect Manhattan. 

Before I go on, I should inform you that a couple of years ago, a few months after beginning to flesh it out with a full outline and sample chapters, I found out that there is another novel, published in 2005, called THE Perfect Manhattan.

It’s about a single, struggling screenwriter who becomes a bartender in the Hamptons. Even some of the format is similar to mine. The chapter titles correspond to different drinks.

That’s where the similarities end. That book reads like Coyote Ugly meets Cocktail. One of the chapters is entitled “Sex on a Beach.” 

The vibe is late 1990s/early 2000s thrumming party scene.

Also, I’ve never even been to the Hamptons. 

Still, when the title and setup was brought to my attention, it felt like I’d just guzzled five potent Cosmos in an hour with the Pussycat Dolls blaring uncontrollably in the background. My heart was broken. My head was pounding. I’m pretty sure my liver would have keened in sorrow if that was possible. And the hangover from the disappointment lasted almost a year. I stopped writing it.

But after conversations with a few publishing professionals and various friends, I was encouraged to keep going with my story because aside from a scarily similar title, and formatting idea, it couldn’t be more different. 

The message of The Perfect Manhattan is believing in yourself. The message of Perfect Manhattan (no “the”) is about achieving balance. This idea is a play not only on the theory of the Perfect Manhattan cocktail recipe (splitting the vermouth ratio to both sweet and dry for more balance of texture), but also the quest to find balance in the fight or flight reality of everyday life in New York City, professional fulfillment, staying healthy, finding and maintaining love. It’s about making it there when you don’t want to live just anywhere. 

The premise

The year is 2007. Eve, a Manhattanite in her early 30s, has a day job as a fact checker for Entertainment Weekly. When she’s not in the office, she is writing a cocktail blog called Amuse Booze, and it’s amassed a significant following for not adhering to the format of the polite, Martha Stewart-esque aspirational domesticity of similar blogs of the era. She presents entertaining, well-researched essays about wine, spirits, and cocktails with insights into the burgeoning New York City drinks culture. People come to AB for the beverage news and stay for the droll observations.

Why 2007? 

Because this is the year everything in this culture experienced a seismic shift: the release of the first iPhones, debut of Mad Men, launch of Facebook, the accelerating rebirth of the American whiskey industry, first wave of the new era of craft distilleries, popular mainstream focus on classic and neoclassic cocktail culture (especially in NYC), the re-legalization of absinthe in the U.S. It all happened within the span of a year! By 2008 the economy had collapsed and a bunch of people left their corporate jobs to start up craft distilleries and/or refocus their careers toward hospitality industries.

Go on… 

When her blog lands her a book deal, Eve is thrilled, but the realities of a tiny advance, mounting deadlines, and a demanding day job begin to shake her confidence. Yet her greatest challenge may lie in the story she’s trying to tell: the forgotten history of a 19th-century female cocktail writer whose legacy has all but vanished. To bring that story to life, Eve must reckon with her past, which means a possible reunion with the man who once broke her heart.

Served UP

Perfect Manhattan is about the, well, intoxicating search for creative purpose and personal clarity. Each chapter is named after an iconic cocktail—Old Fashioned, Martini, Dark ‘n Stormy (no Appletinis or Fuzzy Navels)—that correspond to the narrative of Eve’s emotional and professional journey in the span of a year. Alongside her ride-or-die friends Julian and Bhanu, Eve discovers that chasing your passion can be messy and muddied, but sometimes perfectly stirred. 

So what does this mean for the future of the Schudown? 

What I plan to do is present it here in serialized chunks or chapters. This means that it’s told in sequential order with a hook at the end of each one.

I’m hoping to publish new material every 2-3 weeks. There might be more frequent drops depending on how much I can write on my off hours, like Eve. 

As I mentioned before, most of it is going to be behind a paywall. It’s not a lot! $5 a month (you can cancel anytime) or $50 a year for volume discount. 

Without a paid subscription, you will only be able to see a preview of each Perfect Manhattan post. Non-related posts will be free.

Why am I charging you? 

Because this is really hard work! And also, because the paywall gives me added protection (though sadly probably not immunity) from scavengers. 

What does it get you?

Exclusive access to something new and different from an author previously known for writing only in the mainstream lifestyle space. 

And you are supporting an independent writer.

It makes you cool.

Why now? 

I really want to finish this book, and I see this format as the only path forward because I simply don’t have time to fulfill my professional duties and write the book AND maintain this newsletter in my spare time. 

Will you accept feedback?

Absolutely! Yes! Leave comments or send me messages! If you don’t want your comment to be public, you can simply reply directly to the emails.

But wait? Is this going to be The Schudown from now on? Like, that’s it? 

No. I plan to write other essays in between, but maybe not as many. 

Come with me? 

I hope so. 

I’m excited! 

I’ll drop the first part later this week! 

Cheers,

Amanda