PENELOPE HOLT
What made you want to be a writer?
Picture a kid armed with a pen, a stack of notebooks, and an overactive imagination—it started there. Writing has always been my playground. Later, as an advertising exec and business writer, I mastered the art of professional storytelling. But I craved the unfiltered joy of creating something for me. Enter Polly Wants a Lover, the first book in my “Women Who Want” series. Because really—what do women want? Oh, I have thoughts.
What inspired you to write your latest book?
After years of professional writing, I wanted to cut loose and dive into a story filled with passion, humor, and a whole lot of heart. Polly Wants a Lover gave me that opportunity. It’s all about a woman reclaiming her agency, her dreams, and her belief in love. Plus, who doesn’t love a good rollicking romance with a bit of soul-searching?
Are you a pantser or a plotter?
For clients? Plotter all the way—charts, outlines, and meticulous planning. For my own fiction? Full-blown pantser. I let my imagination run wild, guided only by intuition and a sprinkle of daydreams.
What’s your secret writing ritual?
Before falling asleep, I let the next chapter play out in my mind like a movie. By morning, I’m raring to go, ready to put those scenes on the page. It saves me from the dreaded blinking cursor of doom.
Which authors inspire you?
Where do I even start? The classics: Thomas Hardy, the Brontë sisters, Jane Austen, and Dickens. The Russians: Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy. The modern masters: Hemingway, John Irving, Amor Towles, and John le Carré. For romance? Catherine Bybee and Maeve Binchy. But if I were stranded on a desert island, Hardy would be my plus-one. Oh, and I enjoy psychology, physics, and metaphysics.
If you had to pick one genre for life, what would it be?
Women’s fiction with a mix of romance, emotional growth, spiritual journeys, and maybe a touch of the supernatural. It’s like the Swiss Army knife of genres.
Favorite character from your latest book?
Polly Sullivan, hands down. She’s brave, flawed, and real. When her life shatters, she doesn’t just wallow—she puts on her tap shoes (literally) and fights for a second chance at love, life, and herself.
Are your characters inspired by real people?
Oh, absolutely. But think of them as Frankenstein’s monsters: a little bit of me, a dash of people I know, and a generous dollop of my imaginary friends.
What was on your playlist while writing?
The soundtrack of Chicago. Polly plays Velma Kelly in a regional theater production, so it only felt right. Plus, it’s impossible not to feel fabulous when All That Jazz is blasting.
Morning person or grumpy bear?
Let’s call me a “recovering grumpy bear.” Progress is being made, but coffee helps.
What’s something surprising about you?
I love Argentine tango. I even went to Buenos Aires to dance at their legendary milongas, sip Malbec, and learn from the pros. There’s nothing like the passion, the music, or the dangerously gorgeous stilettos.
What’s next?
More books in my “Women Who Want” series! Polly Wants a Lover kicked things off, and Sadie Wants a Second Chance is next. Oh, and savoring life’s small joys—because every moment is a gift.
Do you have any unique skills?
I once crocheted an entire dress at eight years old. I’m a decent painter and have sold a few pieces. I can whip up a meal on a shoestring budget, and I’m a Trivial Pursuit savant. Random facts? I’m your girl.
If I were to look in your closet right now, would I find frills and lace or demin and tees?
You’d find it all and spanning several decades. I refuse to part with any garment I truly love. And I know those bell bottoms and lacy peasant tops are coming back around.
Picture a kid armed with a pen, a stack of notebooks, and an overactive imagination—it started there. Writing has always been my playground. Later, as an advertising exec and business writer, I mastered the art of professional storytelling. But I craved the unfiltered joy of creating something for me. Enter Polly Wants a Lover, the first book in my “Women Who Want” series. Because really—what do women want? Oh, I have thoughts.
What inspired you to write your latest book?
After years of professional writing, I wanted to cut loose and dive into a story filled with passion, humor, and a whole lot of heart. Polly Wants a Lover gave me that opportunity. It’s all about a woman reclaiming her agency, her dreams, and her belief in love. Plus, who doesn’t love a good rollicking romance with a bit of soul-searching?
Are you a pantser or a plotter?
For clients? Plotter all the way—charts, outlines, and meticulous planning. For my own fiction? Full-blown pantser. I let my imagination run wild, guided only by intuition and a sprinkle of daydreams.
What’s your secret writing ritual?
Before falling asleep, I let the next chapter play out in my mind like a movie. By morning, I’m raring to go, ready to put those scenes on the page. It saves me from the dreaded blinking cursor of doom.
Which authors inspire you?
Where do I even start? The classics: Thomas Hardy, the Brontë sisters, Jane Austen, and Dickens. The Russians: Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy. The modern masters: Hemingway, John Irving, Amor Towles, and John le Carré. For romance? Catherine Bybee and Maeve Binchy. But if I were stranded on a desert island, Hardy would be my plus-one. Oh, and I enjoy psychology, physics, and metaphysics.
If you had to pick one genre for life, what would it be?
Women’s fiction with a mix of romance, emotional growth, spiritual journeys, and maybe a touch of the supernatural. It’s like the Swiss Army knife of genres.
Favorite character from your latest book?
Polly Sullivan, hands down. She’s brave, flawed, and real. When her life shatters, she doesn’t just wallow—she puts on her tap shoes (literally) and fights for a second chance at love, life, and herself.
Are your characters inspired by real people?
Oh, absolutely. But think of them as Frankenstein’s monsters: a little bit of me, a dash of people I know, and a generous dollop of my imaginary friends.
What was on your playlist while writing?
The soundtrack of Chicago. Polly plays Velma Kelly in a regional theater production, so it only felt right. Plus, it’s impossible not to feel fabulous when All That Jazz is blasting.
Morning person or grumpy bear?
Let’s call me a “recovering grumpy bear.” Progress is being made, but coffee helps.
What’s something surprising about you?
I love Argentine tango. I even went to Buenos Aires to dance at their legendary milongas, sip Malbec, and learn from the pros. There’s nothing like the passion, the music, or the dangerously gorgeous stilettos.
What’s next?
More books in my “Women Who Want” series! Polly Wants a Lover kicked things off, and Sadie Wants a Second Chance is next. Oh, and savoring life’s small joys—because every moment is a gift.
Do you have any unique skills?
I once crocheted an entire dress at eight years old. I’m a decent painter and have sold a few pieces. I can whip up a meal on a shoestring budget, and I’m a Trivial Pursuit savant. Random facts? I’m your girl.
If I were to look in your closet right now, would I find frills and lace or demin and tees?
You’d find it all and spanning several decades. I refuse to part with any garment I truly love. And I know those bell bottoms and lacy peasant tops are coming back around.
BUY LINKS:
Amazon- https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DK7VXXLN
KOBO- https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/polly-wants-a-lover
BN- https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/polly-wants-a-lover-penelope-holt/1146435994
Apple- https://books.apple.com/us/book/polly-wants-a-lover/id6737128222
Blurb:
Polly wants a lover to outmatch her cheating husband and heal her broken heart.
From childhood, Polly Sullivan was obsessed with one thing—becoming a professional dancer, right up until the day Christian Caldwell strode into her life. A sexual magnet and force of nature, he seduced her with his irresistible lovemaking, taking over her life and undermining her ambition, until he alone was her sole obsession.
Six years later, and now Christian’s wife, Polly’s career and confidence are in tatters. As she tails her husband’s latest mistress through a parking lot, fate puts her on a collision course with love when she runs her Subaru into a pick-up truck. Its owner, Marcus Bell, is heir to the legendary Turner-Bell horse farm, although he is currently estranged from his family and slumming as the manager of a dive bar.
As she discovers just how many affairs lie in her cheating husband’s past, a shaken Polly longs to recover her confidence and the career she abandoned to become Christian’s wife. She yearns to rekindle passion with a man she can trust. But as her lithe dancer’s body cries out for Marcus Bell’s touch, her injured heart screams no. Is Marcus the devoted lover she craves, or is Polly dancing from one heartbreak to another?
POLLY WANTS A LOVER is a wonderful romp through one woman’s awakening. Author Penelope Holt tells it like it is, as Polly sets out to find herself after marriage makes her small. This story is a great read for fans of Catherine Bybee’s “When it Falls Apart” or Kerry Fisher’s “The Woman I Was Before”.
EXCERPT
Polly set her wine glass down on the bedroom dresser. Her lingering doubts and worries about her marriage had crushed her self-confidence. Once hot nights in bed with Christian were growing colder. They still had sex, and he was still hungry for her, but his desire seemed fleeting, and once satisfied, she could see how his thoughts turned elsewhere. Today, in the parking lot, she’d gotten an eyeful of his mistress, so at least she knew now why he was so distracted, and where his thoughts went when he had that distant look on his face.
She took the blue nightie from her dresser drawer and unfolded the sexy garment. Now it only mocked her naive notion that she could fix her marriage with a home-cooked meal and a night of smoldering sex in lacy lingerie. In the mirror, she caught sight of her frowning face and saw early signs of elevens, the two vertical worry lines between her eyes. She thought about the last few months and Christian’s guilty behavior. More than once, he’d come home in the early morning hours, claiming business meetings had kept him out late. He kept his phone on him at all times, clearly worried that she might get her hands on it and discover something damning. And he was throwing off a strange energy. Sometimes distant, and then, at other times, almost too affectionate, like he was compensating for something. “Penny for your thoughts,” she would say, when she caught him with a far-away look in his eye, but he would brush her off. “Just work stuff.”
Instead of acknowledging the signs that her husband was cheating, it had been easier to put the blame on herself and vow to work harder at fixing a marriage she hadn’t broken. She smoothed away the frown lines with her finger and talked to her reflection in the mirror. “You’re not a kid anymore, Polly. You’re coming up on thirty-three. You’ve given Christian six of your best years. Don’t waste any more on what can’t be saved.” But even as she said this, she was filled with insecurity. On what planet would she ever be able to walk away from Christian Caldwell? Handsome, successful, going places, with the world at his feet. He had captured her heart long ago, and she worried that now, even after he'd broken it, she wouldn’t be able to take it back from him. Balling up the nightie, she crushed the soft fabric and crammed it in the drawer.
Amazon- https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DK7VXXLN
KOBO- https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/polly-wants-a-lover
BN- https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/polly-wants-a-lover-penelope-holt/1146435994
Apple- https://books.apple.com/us/book/polly-wants-a-lover/id6737128222
Blurb:
Polly wants a lover to outmatch her cheating husband and heal her broken heart.
From childhood, Polly Sullivan was obsessed with one thing—becoming a professional dancer, right up until the day Christian Caldwell strode into her life. A sexual magnet and force of nature, he seduced her with his irresistible lovemaking, taking over her life and undermining her ambition, until he alone was her sole obsession.
Six years later, and now Christian’s wife, Polly’s career and confidence are in tatters. As she tails her husband’s latest mistress through a parking lot, fate puts her on a collision course with love when she runs her Subaru into a pick-up truck. Its owner, Marcus Bell, is heir to the legendary Turner-Bell horse farm, although he is currently estranged from his family and slumming as the manager of a dive bar.
As she discovers just how many affairs lie in her cheating husband’s past, a shaken Polly longs to recover her confidence and the career she abandoned to become Christian’s wife. She yearns to rekindle passion with a man she can trust. But as her lithe dancer’s body cries out for Marcus Bell’s touch, her injured heart screams no. Is Marcus the devoted lover she craves, or is Polly dancing from one heartbreak to another?
POLLY WANTS A LOVER is a wonderful romp through one woman’s awakening. Author Penelope Holt tells it like it is, as Polly sets out to find herself after marriage makes her small. This story is a great read for fans of Catherine Bybee’s “When it Falls Apart” or Kerry Fisher’s “The Woman I Was Before”.
EXCERPT
Polly set her wine glass down on the bedroom dresser. Her lingering doubts and worries about her marriage had crushed her self-confidence. Once hot nights in bed with Christian were growing colder. They still had sex, and he was still hungry for her, but his desire seemed fleeting, and once satisfied, she could see how his thoughts turned elsewhere. Today, in the parking lot, she’d gotten an eyeful of his mistress, so at least she knew now why he was so distracted, and where his thoughts went when he had that distant look on his face.
She took the blue nightie from her dresser drawer and unfolded the sexy garment. Now it only mocked her naive notion that she could fix her marriage with a home-cooked meal and a night of smoldering sex in lacy lingerie. In the mirror, she caught sight of her frowning face and saw early signs of elevens, the two vertical worry lines between her eyes. She thought about the last few months and Christian’s guilty behavior. More than once, he’d come home in the early morning hours, claiming business meetings had kept him out late. He kept his phone on him at all times, clearly worried that she might get her hands on it and discover something damning. And he was throwing off a strange energy. Sometimes distant, and then, at other times, almost too affectionate, like he was compensating for something. “Penny for your thoughts,” she would say, when she caught him with a far-away look in his eye, but he would brush her off. “Just work stuff.”
Instead of acknowledging the signs that her husband was cheating, it had been easier to put the blame on herself and vow to work harder at fixing a marriage she hadn’t broken. She smoothed away the frown lines with her finger and talked to her reflection in the mirror. “You’re not a kid anymore, Polly. You’re coming up on thirty-three. You’ve given Christian six of your best years. Don’t waste any more on what can’t be saved.” But even as she said this, she was filled with insecurity. On what planet would she ever be able to walk away from Christian Caldwell? Handsome, successful, going places, with the world at his feet. He had captured her heart long ago, and she worried that now, even after he'd broken it, she wouldn’t be able to take it back from him. Balling up the nightie, she crushed the soft fabric and crammed it in the drawer.
