Out of Character has been given a new cover look and a bonus chapter for its smaller-sized paperback release this spring.

It’s a marked difference from the striking original cover - so if you prefer a subtler, softer look for your spring reading, this will do nicely and promises not to clash with your outfit.

Watch for it in the shops from the middle of May 2008. 

Vanessa was named as one of the National Post‘s ‘Worthy 30’ this weekend - a list compiled by the effervescent gossip columnist Shinan Govani.

The Worthy 30 is a list of the thirty most eligible bachelorettes in Toronto and is handy for bragging rights, if nothing else.

“Why she’s worthy: As a freelance lifestyle writer, based until recently in London, Craft has to be hip to the culture of the moment to keep working. Her recent novel, Out Of Character, is the much-hailed story of a female journalist writing an expose on London gentlemen’s club culture. Critics have eaten it up, hailing it as a fascinating comment on power politics and identity. Also, her book launch included a pole dancer (it wasn’t her).”

Read in full here: Shinan’s Worthy 30

Culture vultures will be congregating on July 25 for The Society’s third literary salon, Society Reads, featuring Out of Character. This promises to be a fantastic night of gossip, champagne swilling and misbehaving as lit lovers are wont to do.

Run by the super savvy divas Ashleigh Dempster and Amanda Blakley, The Society has made a name for itself in Toronto by shaking off the conventional and serving up a fresh and fierce approach to culture. Their events - like the Rockstar Hotel, The Damned and the Beautiful and Smoke & Mohitos - sell out frequently and are seen as some of the hottest tickets on the block. 

To purchase tickets for The Society Reads event and become a Society member, visit The Society.com

Link: Welcome to Society - Macleans Magazine

Book blog Eclectic Closet recently reviewed Out of Character, pegging it as a compelling choice for book clubs:

”...the questions raised will continue to engage readers and it is anticipated that Out of Character will provoke fascinating book group debates...”

“...Readers will be mesmerized by the journey Emma undergoes from a tourist of her own life to the birth of Phoenix, her seductive alter ego."

Read the full review at Eclectic Closet.

What’s in the calendar this holiday week?

July 4: Vanessa will be heading to Good Life Fitness for their premier Book Review evening.

This event will be a mix of fitness, dinner and a relaxed evening of chat with Vanessa about Out of Character and the themes of power, sex, money and family in the novel.  Can’t wait for this one!

July 5: Vanessa will be on 107.7 Mix FM at 8.35am, on the Jamie and Hayley in the morning show. 

To listen in live, head over to Stratford’s Mix 107.7, and don’t forget your coffee!

Big thanks to CHML Radio and Scott Thompson at the Afternoon Drive show for a truly entertaining and hilarious grilling on the behind the scenes secrets of Out of Character last week.  One of the best interviews yet!

Where are the night owls, late night clubbers and insomniacs? 

Vanessa will be spending her evening/early morning chatting with Peter Anthony Holder on CJAD 880 in Montreal tonight.

She’ll be on air from 1.00 am EST attempting to sound awake, intelligent and not in her pajamas.  Mix up a martini and join the party.  To listen live, visit the CJAD homepage. 

Vanessa will be chatting up a storm on Canadian radio this Thursday.  If you’re in your car, skiving off at work, or relaxing at home, please do tune in!

On June21st, at 9.45 EST, Vanessa will be interviewed on the London Morning Show with Joe Duchesne on CFPL 980.  Vanessa will be giving her two cents worth on the recent celebrity scandals with Alex Rodriguez and Prince Harry, and chatting about her new novel, Out of Character.

This Sunday, June 10th, from 1pm - 2pm, Vanessa will be doing a book signing at the Canadian Book Expo in Toronto.

The event is held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in the HB Fenn/Key Porter booth. 

Vanessa will be in some kind of cute outfit with her pen at the ready to sign copies of Out Of Character until her hand is a gnarled claw, so come on down!  It’s a big event with lots of good books and great authors.  Also signing with Vanessa will be her publisher-mate Chantel Simmons (author of the newly released, Stuck in Downward Dog). 

This Saturday’s Globe & Mail features a glowing review of Out of Character and names Vanessa as one of three Canadian authors that “powerfully demonstrate ways in which the arts, especially the art of the novel, are able to enlighten as they entertain us, by enlarging and enhancing our sense of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

It also calls Vanessa a “psychologically astute analyst of power politics.”

...as good as Out of Character (an inspired title of layered meaning) is in capturing exchanges between dancers and their Champagne Charlies, the rivalries between the big spenders, the dressing-room bitch sessions and cat fights, it’s even better at dramatizing the process by which Emma is seduced by the persona she creates, and is simultaneously liberated and corrupted by the games she plays with her identity.

Read more here.

Hey, west-coasters, listen up! 

Tune in to CFUN radio in Vancover on Friday at 10.15 PST (1.15 EST) to listen to Vanessa being interviewed on the Nik & Val show about her behind the scenes research for Out of Character, and the inside scoop about what the London scene is really like. 

www.cfun.com

Sunday’s Calgary Herald featured a review of Out of Character. 

"Craft gives Emma great depth and complexity through her mother’s abandonment, father’s narcissism and her own search for empowerment. That journey, interestingly, might not be the tidy, politically correct resolution you’d expect, which makes the book even more intriguing."

Read the full review here.

Vanessa recently teamed up with the London-based illustrator and graphic designer extrordinaire, Benjamin Wachenje, to create a sleek and sexy visual trip through the pages of Out of Character. 

Hope you enjoy the adventure!

Sweetspot.ca is giving away copies of Out of Character to the first 100 people to email info@keyporter.com. 

Here’s the drill: Write “Sweetspot” in the subject line and you could win both Out of Character, and Stuck in Downward Dog by Chantel Simmons, out on Key Porter books this month.

Today’s issue of METRO features a review of Out of Character in their entertainment section. 

Great timing - Out of Character is on sale across Canada today!

"This book gives insight to a world many people never experience..."

Read the full Metro review online

Out of Character has been reviewed by Charlene Martel at the Literary Word.

”...a wonderful tale of empowerment and independence… I loved that additionally the book is about family, bonding and learning to deal with the past and that all of this is mixed in with the grit and humour to make this an unforgettable journey."

To read the full review, go here.