Showing posts with label Death By Library. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Death By Library. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Writer's Wednesday: NaNo Update #1

 

I like to do a weekly update during November when I'm doing NaNoWriMo (it's another way to procrastinate, right?), to say how I'm doing and see how those of you who are swotting along with me are coming along. By the way, if you want to be buddies on NaNo, I do it under my own name :)

So how's my NaNo going, after 12 days?

Stats: 23,922 words as of 7 p.m. last night (really hoping as I write this, at 7 p.m. last night, that I can up that before bed).
Consistency: Yup. Every day.
Average output: around 2000 words, which is my minimum goal (2K/day gets me an 80K draft in 40 days...)
Most words in one day: 2967
Fewest, excluding yesterday because of hopefulness: 1069

Less numerically, I'm in the mid-book doldrums. Like my sleuth, JJ MacGregor, I'm flailing around looking for clues as to where all this is going. So, you ask, what about the extensive notes and outline? Still more or less on, and still helpful, but the holes in it you could drive a train through! Time for a time-honored cure: throw something nasty at poor JJ.

And what else is going on? 

Well, I was up late Monday night finishing the Kindle and paperback MSS of Death By Library. The proof is on it's way to me, so I should be able to get the paperback out at the same time as the ebooks go live, i.e. Dec. 6. The ebook is available for pre-order on Amazon, Smashwords, Kobo, Apple Books, and Barnes & Noble, and probably some other places I don't know about. Unfortunately, the paperback can't be pre-ordered--except on this blog! Which means that updating that page is another task that needs doing ASAP.

Got the edits back on the special novella, The Christmas Question (Pismawallops PTA #4.5), and I'm working on final tweaks and polish. There's still time to sign up for my newsletter and get a free ebook of it in my December newsletter! Sign up before Dec. 15 to be sure you're there before I hit "send." Right now, it's the only way to get a copy.

Looking at all that, which leaves out the personal stuff (like finally getting to start PT for my plantar fasciitis!), I think I know why I'm busy and tired!

Drop me a note in the comments and tell me how it's going for you!


Wednesday, September 4, 2019

IWSG and Cover Reveal!

It's the first Wednesday of the month, and that means IWSG post! But before I get to that, I have a real treat: not one, but TWO cover reveals! One is mine, one for fellow blogger and IWSG member, Jemima Pett.

The 9th book of Jemima's Princelings of the East series is coming Nov. 14, and as usual, Danielle English has made a gorgeous cover:
The book is currently on schedule for release on November 14th. Pre-order at  iTunes , Kobo, and B&N right now.

The Princelings of the East are now King Fred and Prince Engineer George. Gone are the years of innocence when they travelled for adventure and uncovered time tunnels and pirate plots. Now Fred, assisted by his queen, Kira, has the responsibility for his people, his lands, and for persuading the lords and kings of the Realms to act together for the common good. George just has to work on his inventions, always thinking of a final goal: to fulfil the promises made to Lord Mariusz so long ago.
Neither has an easy task.

Fred decides to write a history of his reign, starting with the joy of his inheritance, and documenting how technological progress is not necessarily the key to communal good.

Chronicles of Marsh is book 9 of the Princelings of the East series, and fills a gap between previous books and the final one, Princelings Revolution. It takes us from Fred’s first days as king, to the loss of the latest and most promising flying machine, a period of 8 years. The pressures of modern life will be familiar to readers, even if the princelings world doesn’t have the internet or mobile communications… yet.

Lovers of the series will enjoy these adventures, but newcomers may find it easier to start with book 1, book 5, even at book 7. It’s a fantasy sociological and technological adventure in a world not quite like ours, suitable for age 10 and upwards.

###
And the second cover reveal? My own! Death By Library, Book 4 in the Pismawallops PTA series, is scheduled for release Dec. 6. My cover is also by the talented Danielle English, and I couldn't be more excited about how it turned out!
E-books available for pre-order at Smashwords, Kobo, iTunes (Apple Books, and I can't figure out how to find a link), and B&N right now. And now on Amazon, too!


JJ McGregor and the Pismawallops PTA are back in action! JJ has a new job at the library, which allows her to pay her bills. That ought to make her happy, but with all those books to shelve, the PTA to run, and a 16-year-old son to raise, there’s never enough time to spend with her sweetheart, police chief Ron Karlson. That’s especially true with Thanksgiving on the horizon and her mother coming to visit, not to mention the PTA’s Holiday Bazaar looming ahead.

The PTA has to swing into action in a hurry when a grumpy member of the school board threatens plans to build a badly-needed swimming pool on the island. His objections turn out to be nothing compared to the claims of a stranger who says the land the pool would be built on is actually hers. The board meeting dissolves into chaos, and JJ leaps into action in an effort to get to the bottom of the incipient land war.

Before JJ can find what she needs in the reference section, things turn deadly in the library stacks. Now JJ needs some answers fast, before she loses her job—or her life. She’s determined to find out everything about the victim, and for once the library doesn’t hold all the answers. JJ and Kitty may have to face the ultimate peril: a visit to Mrs. Halsey, the oldest—and crankiest—person on the island, where they may learn more than they bargained for.

Whew! Now for the IWSG post.

Picture
 

The first Wednesday of every month is the Insecure Writer's Support Group. Posts go up the 1st Wednesday of every month. Check it out here and join if you need support with your writing. Don't forget to stop by and say hello to the co-hosts: Gwen Gardner, Doreen McGettigan, Tyrean Martinson, Chemist Ken, and Cathrina Constantiner!

This month's question is: ​If you could pick one place in the world to sit and write your next story, where would it be and why? Remember, the question is optional!

I've been having a pretty good month as a writer. The final word-smithing on Death By Library  has been going well, and I feel like sometimes I'm even reaching a new level of quality prose :)  A release date has been set, and I've booked a blog tour. I've also kind of come to peace with not blogging as regularly as I've done for the last 5 or 6 years. I just don't have the time, and I'm not as interested in writing reviews, which was starting to feel like both a rut and a chore.

I even got the nicest note from a reader last week (she knows my Mom, but she didn't have to say anything, so I'll take it as sincere), saying that she read Death By Ice Cream in 2 days, putting it down only for the essentials of life! Now, that's praise worth having.

With one book almost done, my mind has turned (without waiting for permission) to the next book, with ideas for the story bubbling up and me scribbling notes as fast as I can. I shouldn't really start the next book in the series so soon--I have too many other projects clamoring to be started/finished. But it's the book that's yelling loudest, so it'll probably happen.

Now for the question: I am rather appreciating being able to sit at my own lovely big desk-top computer and write at home, after doing it in make-shift places all over the world for the last year. Fantastic settings don't make me want to write--they make me want to hike. So I'll say either home, or a nice coffee shop (there's a decent one around the corner from us--that'll do). 

How about you? Write at home, or head to an exotic locale to tickle your brain waves?
 
  


 

Tuesday, April 2, 2019

IWSG: On the Road Again




Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting! Be sure to link to the IWSG page and display the badge in your post. And please be sure your avatar links back to your blog! If it links to Google+, be sure your blog is listed there. Otherwise, when you leave a comment, people can't find you to comment back.

 This month's fantastic co-hosts:  J.H. Moncrieff, Natalie Aguirre, Patsy Collins, and Chemist Ken! 
IWSG: On the Road Again

OPTIONAL IWSG Day Question: If you could use a wish to help you write just one scene/chapter of your book, which one would it be?

Before I get to the IWSG question—which is kind of a fun one—let’s play catch-up on the news. First and beyond all expectations (though I hoped for it), I have beaten the draft of Death By Library into a shape I’m willing to share with beta readers.
If you’d like to give the book a read, let me know! It is Book 4 of the series, but will stand alone (and it’s always good to have readers who haven’t read the previous books). I really need at least 2 more readers, and the schedule is lax—I don’t even want to see it again until June!
Here’s the gist of the matter, since that effort hasn’t left me time to polish a blurb:

JJ has a new job at the library, and everything is looking peachy. But when things in the stacks turn deadly, she has to figure out who might have killed the local gadfly. It’s not like she has a lot of spare time. Her personal life just keeps getting more chaotic, and there’s never enough time to spend with her sweetheart, police chief Ron Karlson. That’s especially true with Thanksgiving on the horizon and her mother coming to visit!

This is unquestionably the fastest turn-around I’ve ever done from first draft to something I can share (of course, that’s because usually I alternate, and in January I edit the book drafted a full year earlier; this time I ploughed straight through). I like the continuity this provides, and may try to keep it up.

On other fronts: after 2 months of semi-settled life in Christchurch, NZ, we have gone back on the road/trail. In fact, this is posting automatically while we are kayaking and hiking in Abel Tasman National Park. I’ll respond to comments and make visits as soon as I can! This is kicking off 2 full months of travel—I don’t expect to be settled again until  June. The thought is kind of daunting—especially when I consider that we aren’t 100% sure how things will work when we finally get back to California.

Now for the question: if I could use a wish to help me write just one scene (of the book just finished, I’ll say), I’d pick the one where we unravel the mystery. That gave me trouble, and I’m hoping my beta-readers won’t tell me I failed :) That’s a good scene to pick anyway, since so much depends on that moment being convincing and reasonable, but not visible from a mile away.


How about you? Share your news, or tell me what part of a story is the hardest for you to write!