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Just in Time for Thanksgiving

If you're like me, Thanksgiving is your favorite holiday. I love everything about it: the surrounding Fall beauty, the delicious smells of food cooking, and family and friends gathered around.

Once in that mindset, it wasn't much of a stretch to take all of the things I love and use them as the backdrop for a story. An Unexpected Blessing made its debut at The Wild Rose Press yesterday. It's a story about an ex-con, a single mom, and the small town gossip that stands in their way. It's also available in Kindle format at Amazon.

Blurb:

Single Mom Katy Roth thinks life can't get any worse. In the past six months she's been let go at work, had to move back home with her parents, and found out her ex is cutting his child support payment. As Thanksgiving approaches, she finds little to be thankful for in a life that is quickly spinning out of control.

Joe Mason is the town's bad boy. Literally. He's just returned from a four year stint in prison. He wants nothing more than to put the past behind him and get on with his life. He’s had a secret crush on Katy since grade school, but when Katy’s parents hire him to be their handyman, she’s less than thrilled to have him around.

But soon, through her young son’s eyes, Katy discovers the good in Joe. As their feelings for one another deepen, small town gossip and prejudice threaten to ruin everything. Will Joe’s past come between them, or will they be able to get beyond it and hold onto a love neither expected?

Excerpt:

“Are you going to dance with me or not?”

“Yes, ma’am, I am.” He stood and offered his hand.

She slid hers into his warm grasp. As always, his touch caused a little shock in her heart. The weight of a hundred pairs of eyes followed them out onto the floor. The dirt was packed smooth, and a ring of hay bales marked the area. Her tummy quivered with a combination of nerves and anticipation.

He found an open spot, which wasn’t difficult with the other couples affording them a wide berth, and then curved his arm around her waist to draw her close. Her body fit perfectly against him. A shiver tingled through her. She rested her free hand on his shoulder.

His thigh brushed hers as he rhythmically shuffled his feet to the music. His gaze captured and held hers. The rest of the room faded as she stared into the warm, melted-chocolate brown of his eyes.

She didn’t care that people whispered. Snuck glances. Or outright gaped. All she cared about was swaying to a soft, slow beat. The quicker thud of her heart. Strong arms wrapped around her. And the desire to stay right where she was. Maybe forever.

I hope you'll enjoy reading Katy and Joe's story as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Debra St. John
www.debrastjohnromance.com

The Next Big Thing

By: Susan Furlong Bolliger

The Next Big Thing is a blog chain in which participating authors answer ten questions about their current work in progress or upcoming publications. One of my favorite authors, B.K. Stevens tagged me in this ongoing blog chain. You can stop by the Untreed Reads Blog at http://bit.ly/dl4tCm and learn about her forthcoming story “No Good Deed” to be released in the anthology titled TO HELL IN A FAST CAR, edited by John L. French. You can also read more about B.K.’s writing and check out her other stories on her website at http://www.bkstevensmysteries.com/ .

So, thank you B.K., for including me in your line-up of tagged authors. I’m happy to get the chance to talk a bit about my writing and one of my current projects, a cozy mystery novel titled MURDER FOR BID.

Here are my answers about my Next Big Thing:

What is the title of your work?

MURDER FOR BID

Where did the idea come from for the book?

My characters are always inspired by people I observe and it just so happens that the main character of this book, Pippi O’Brien, was inspired by a close friend.

What genre does your book fall under?

MURDER FOR BID is a cozy mystery with a bit of an edge.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

The lead actress to portray the main character, Pippi, would have to be red-headed (or willing to go red) and able to pull off Pippi’s personality—adventurous, spunky and a bit quirky.punky, and a bit quirky.

George Clooney could definitely pinch-hit for Sean Panelli, Pippi’s main love interest. Or, maybe since Panelli is an Italian name, a modern day Sinatra or Valentino could be found. I’d be happy to act as the casting agent!

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Dumpster-diving red-head leaves a lucrative but stressful job to start a new career refurbishing and selling other people’s junk … and solving mysteries.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I’m currently in submission with a couple of small/independent presses. So, keep your fingers, and toes, crossed for me.

How long did it take to write the first draft of your manuscript?

MURDER FOR BID took six months to write and another three months to edit. I’ve already penned a sequel which took less time to plot. I feel connected to the characters and could easily see myself writing more books in the series.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Just combine the crafty ingenuity of Lois Winton’s Anastasia Pollack; the adventurous edge of Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum; and the fun spirit of Sue Ann Jaffarian’s Odelia Grey. A crazy mash up; but one heck of a fun read!

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Like I said earlier, a friend of mine inspired the main character of this story. She's one of those incredibly talented people that could pretty much pick and choose her career path, but has chosen to leave a lucrative marketing job to stay home with her children, much like my protagonist chooses to leave her over-the-top stressful job and pursue a simpler, slower-paced lifestyle. My friend is also someone that can take any old piece of trash she finds and turn it into something beautiful and useful. I swear she puts a new spin on the word “up-cycle” and … so does my main character, Pippi O’Brien. In fact, Pippi is almost as successful at reselling other people’s castoffs as she is at solving mysteries.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

There’s something for everyone in MURDER FOR BID. The story line will please discriminating mystery readers, the characters will intrigue and the humor will bring a smile to your face. And, for those of you who are on a budget … well, you’ll definitely appreciate Pippi’s panache for turning trash into treasure.

Here’s some information about the talented writers I’ve invited to participate in The Next Big Thing blog chain.  Watch for their post next week—November 25^th through December 2^nd.

Terry Ambrose, author of PHOTO FINISH, a humorous mystery set in Hawaii, will be posting about his forthcoming publication on his blog, Mysteries with Character.  http://terryambrose.com/

Derek Flynn, a talented writer, blogger and musician, will post about his latest musical release, DO YOU DREAM AT ALL? Be sure to stop by his blog, Rant with Occasional Music, and find out what it takes to write and produce a successful album. http://derekflynn.wordpress.com/

Morgan Mandel, prolific writer of short and novel-length fiction, posted her Next Big Thing on the Make Mine Mystery blog. You can read about her intriguing new mystery FOREVER YOUNG: A BLESSING OR A CURSE at http://bit.ly/XxeHMt .

Denise Weeks, award-winning novelist of NICE WORK, will be posting on her blog at http://www.deniseweeks.blogspot.com/   Be sure to stop by and see what will be Denise’s Next Big Thing!

Susan writes from the Midwest where she lives with her husband and four children. Her articles and stories have appeared in national magazines such as Country magazine and Woman's World. To find out more about her work, visit www.sfurlongbolliger.com

New for Me and Angel

 Tomorrow night will be my first time to stand before a group and talk about my first fiction book, Angel Sometimes. And I'm a little bit nervous. Which is odd since I have a Master's in Public Speaking. I've spoken before at conferences and meetings, but this is the first time to talk about my own book and about Angel herself. It's a new-to-me experience.

How about you? As the author, are you ever a bit nervous about standing up and talking about your book? As a reader, has it ever occurred to you that the author may be nervous?

As the author, how do you plan what you'll talk about? For this talk, the moderator has already sent five questions/expectations that she has:

1. What is your elevator speech for your book?

2. What did you use in your personal background to bring your characters to life?

3. What inspired you to write this book?

4. What was the most challenging thing about getting your book published?

5. What else is in store for your readers?

After that, then it'll be open for me and the second author to throw out what we want to add. Once we're through talking,  I'd like to open it up to questions from the audience.

What else would you want to hear from the author of a book you're thinking of buying?

Passion in Your Writing

How does passion fit into your writing, be it birds, wildlife conservation, baseball, opera, peanut butter, running Marathons, Egyptology, cooking, or cycling? In a recent presentation I gave about my nonfiction book, The Man Who Saved the Whooping Crane: The Robert Porter Allen Story, I was asked, "why whooping crane?" A good question, but one that gave me pause. Why did I spend six years writing a book about a giant bird that migrates from Canada to Texas? Why was I mesmerized by my first sighting of a family of whoopers feeding in the shallows on the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge twenty years ago? And why was I so compelled to tell Bob Allen's story?

Released on 9/16 by
University Press of Florida

I also began pondering the writing of my Sydney Lockhart mysteries and noticed bits and pieces of things I'm passionate about show up in my fiction as well. I realized that childhood experiences, exploring the woods around my grandparents' farm, watching baseball with my dad on the old black and white TV, eating peanut butter out of the jar, helping my mom bake kolaches, riding my bike all over creation, led to my passions as an adult. Opera, running, and Egyptology? well, I'm not sure where those came from, but they keep life interesting.

Here's something to think about: everyone is passionate about something, but not everyone writes about it. What are your thoughts?

New Mystery Out Today!

It's official. On the Nickel is out on Kindle today for a whopping $2.99.

Previously released in hardcover for the library market, this ebook cozy mystery is sure to please.

Mama's car killed the church lady, but who was behind the wheel?

Check it out at Amazon.com. There are two chapters on the look inside link that I know you'll enjoy.

Here's the link:

Amazon.com

While you're there, be sure to LIKE and tag the book!

Have a great week, Maggie Toussaint
www.maggietoussaint.com
http://mudpiesandmagnolias.blogspot.com

It's an EBook, Yes it Is!

I figured after all my complaining about how hard it is to do all this stuff--and it still is for me--here's the book and yes, it's available on Kindle.

My friend's angel husband did the whole thing for me--not write it of course--but he formatted it for Kindle and downloaded it. I did pay him and it was worth every penny or I'd still be fiddling around trying to figure out what I had to do.

I had already contacted someone to do the cover, but he took care of the process so fast we had to wait for the cover to be designed. The wait wasn't long as the artist came through quickly too.

And the book is there on Kindle http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009R7DZ1S just waiting for readers.

The Devil's Foothold is a supernatural mystery.

While jogging, Deputy Jessica McGuire discovers a baby’s grave in an old family graveyard has been desecrated and the skeleton stolen. Pastor David Tanner calls to report a hand carved redwood cross has been stolen from his church. A beloved kid (baby goat) has disappeared.  When one of Pastor Tanner’s cows is mutilated, he is convinced Satan worshiping is going on in the mountain community. Though not completely convinced, Jessica teams up with David to investigate. She stumbles upon a robed and hooded group having a ceremony in the woods and they all scatter when she makes herself known. The more she learns, the more she wonders if her teenaged son might be involved. 

Marilyn