Lawrence author Amanda Sellet will celebrate her forthcoming, rib-tickling romantic comedy novel with a film screening and book signing at Liberty Hall. She hopes that Lawrence readers and writers will be there to laugh alongside her.
After all, Lawrence is a city teeming with authors and hopeful storytellers — Sellet, whose next book will be the fourth novel-length publication under her belt, can attest.
“I just can’t believe how many writers there are,” she said. “… I went into the post office in Lawrence to mail something, and just out of the blue, the person was like, ‘Oh, is that a book? Are you one of the writers in town?’”
For Sellet, who has lately specialized in rom-coms with a screwball bent, those writers have ensured the stories in her head make it to the shelves.
“I’m not sure I would have been able to sustain this career or stayed in it long enough to get over that line of getting my first book published without the support of other writers in the area who are going through similar things,” she said.
For her, a fellow author confirming that her draft should be “an actual book” is like being told “That’ll do, pig.”
The next “actual book” is “The Odds of Getting Even,” a retelling of the 1941 film “The Lady Eve,” coming out July 15. Sellet has teamed up with Liberty Hall to celebrate the release with a screening of the film, replete with themed cocktails and an onsite book signing hosted by the Raven Book Store.
Sellet has a soft spot for classic romantic comedy films, and she fawned over Barbara Stanwyck’s performance in “The Lady Eve” — “she’s just like this ballsy, brassy dame” — and laughed at the male lead’s gullible nature — “super young, beautiful, sweet, naïve Henry Fonda.”
Launching the book alongside the film is an ideal marriage, and Sellet said she is “excited to hear people laugh in realtime.” She is similarly attached to her zany characters modeled after Stanwyck and Fonda’s portrayals, whom she called “these sweet little chaos monsters.”
Enthusiasm for her characters and stories writ large can be traced to multiple sources, like a children’s librarian mother or the inspiring surge of young adult fiction in the 2000s. Still, Sellet articulated her authorial motivations in a single sentence.
“I want to write something that makes me feel the way that I feel when I read a book I love, you know, just like lit up from the inside,” she said.
“The Odds of Getting Even” is the second installment in Sellet’s trilogy of classic romantic comedy film retellings. “Hate to Fake It to You,” her first title for adults, kicked off the project as a retelling of “Christmas in Connecticut” in 2024. This recent foray into adult fiction bloomed from her stint as a young adult author, following a multidecade career in journalism.
“I think I’m always looking for the space where you can just go all in and not hold anything back, and so I thought, ‘OK, well, maybe in adult I can do that,’” Sellet said. “And it’s funny, because I think usually people by that, they mean like, ‘I can have some super explicit sex on the page.’ And for me, I’m like, ‘I mean, I can be silly.’”
In a literary market where romance novels are often adorned with cartoon covers and generalized as comedies, regardless of their comedic content, Sellet wanted to go all in with cowboy poetry, snake chaos, and a cross-ocean pursuit to make readers swoon and laugh.
“It is that thing where we just have these innate things that appeal to us,” she said. “It’s (comedy in writing) what I always aspired to, and it’s what I naturally gravitate toward … In the same way, if you walked into a bakery, you’d be like, ‘Well, I’m having the cherry one, not the blueberry one.’”
Local author titles Sellet recommends
• “The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam” by Megan Bannen: The third standalone fantasy rom-com in the “Hart & Mercy” series, dedicated to Sellet — “to be clear, I loved it before I knew it was dedicated to me,” Sellet said. Coming July 8.
• “The Mercy Makers” by Tessa Gratton: Read more about the book in this article.
• A series of mystery short stories written by Julie Tollefson, published in various outlets. Find them all at this link.
• “Such a Witch” by Sarah Henning: A YA rom-com described as “‘Wednesday’ meets ‘Clueless,’” coming summer 2026.
Those who likewise gravitate toward the comical can support Sellet’s work by attending the launch event. However, pulling out the pocketbook is not the only option.
“I think people always think that they have to spend money to be supportive, and really — request a book from the library,” she says. “Check it out from the library, maybe if you like it, review it somewhere, post about it online.”
Sellet has particularly enjoyed guest-starring in book clubs around the community.
“All my neighbors had me at their book clubs, and I was like, ‘Wow, I barely have to cook for myself.’ It’s just like, cheese and crackers and wine all around.”
The book launch kicks off Tuesday, July 15 with a screening of “The Lady Eve” at Liberty Hall at 6:30 p.m. Tickets for the film are $12.50, with themed cocktails available for an additional cost.
The book signing begins at 8 p.m. Copies of the book cost $19 and are available for preorder.
Follow progress on Sellet’s upcoming titles — including a YA mystery in 2026 and an adult rom-com retelling of “His Girl Friday” — by joining her newsletter or following her on Instagram, @amandajsellet.
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Wulfe Wulfemeyer (they/them), community reporter, has worked with The Lawrence Times since May 2025. They can be reached at wulfe@lawrencekstimes.com.
Read their complete bio here. Read their work for the Times here.
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August Rudisell/Lawrence Times
August Rudisell/Lawrence Times
