Archive for March, 2010

Sold another book! ROMAN CIRCUS – a humorous mystery

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

Yup, I signed a contract yesterday for ROMAN CIRCUS - book number ten! This is another humorous mystery with sprinkles of romance. I wrote this one about three years ago and have been TRYING to get an agent for over two years! No, it’s not easy. Matter of fact, it damn near impossible. I got the full to Hilary Sares when she was still an editor at Kensington, and she loved the book but didn’t take in on because it’s humor and, she said, humor is hard to sell! HUH? I don’t know about you, but I love to laugh.

Of course humor is subjective. What one person thinks is hysterical, another may scoff at. Well, one way or another, I manage to get my work out. This book will be published by Noble Romance and, as always, I’ll let you know when it’s out. Here’s a teaser blurb.

“When Harmony Jane Jones loses her cat, her car, her job and her boyfriend all within the space of a week, she does what any 20-something woman would do – she runs away and joins the circus.”

So keep watching this site and I’ll keep you updated. Meanwhile I have eight books available for purchase. Look at previous posts here for blurbs and ordering information.

FINDER gets a good review!!!!!

Friday, March 12th, 2010

Just got a very nice review from Coffee Time Romance – check it out!

http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/BookReviews/finder.html

FINDER is basically a humorous mystery but it does have a little romance thrown in the mix. I thought of my friend, Chris Keys when I got this good review because Chris keep telling everyone, that persistence is the most important trait of a writer. And he’s right because….I wrote FINDER over 10 years ago. I took it to critique groups, and changed it. I showed it to friends – and changed it again. Yes, I tried to sell it but…it was no go, so I put it under the bed and went on to my next masterpiece.

But,you know what? I always loved that book! No matter how many times I read and re-read it, parts of FINDER made me laugh. So, I took it out again and wrote the book I wanted to write. I didn’t ask for opinions, I didn’t waffle, I wrote my book I sold it! Here’s a little blurb to pique your curiosity

FINDER Blurb

All her life, Carol Reston has wanted to be a published author. She’s looking for a dynamite idea for a novel that will sell when her husband, David suggests she look into a series of women missing from their small town of Oakdale, a suburb of San Diego. Carol decides to investigate the disappearances and write a fictionalize account. David takes their overweight dog, Chauncy for a walk but soon blasts through the front door telling Carol he found a dead body. Her response? Cool, that might just work. But David’s not kidding.

Carol is both horrified and fascinated by the thought of a dead body, and as a lover of mysteries, she’s thrilled to be so close to the police action. Whose body is it, and more importantly, what did she die from? The police aren’t talking. Carol sets out to follow clues determined to track down the women. She becomes so involved with her search she doesn’t realize her husband is acting strangely until it’s almost too late. Could David be having an affair? What about her best friend, Elizabeth? Carol hasn’t seen her friend in a long time and fears the dead body might be hers.

With the help of her thrice-divorced, martini-drinking, Jaguar-driving, world-traveling Aunt Sissy Montgomery, Carol locates all the women and discovers the identity and cause of death of the body in the hills. In the end, Carol has a book contract, Chauncy has a new playmate, David has his dream job and Sissy has found a new calling. She’s a Finder.

FINDER is available at: www.wildchildpublishing

Goodbye, California!

Sunday, March 7th, 2010

Okay, you may think I’m nuts (many people do)  but…after living in sunny San Diego, California for almost 24 years, my husband and I are selling our home, two of our three cars, packing up the dogs and moving to Southern California.

Yes, Yes, I can hear you all now, “It rains there – a lot!” So? I’m a writer. I work from home – I don’t have to go outside! Neat, huh? I’m hoping to come up with a whole new series of books based in a little town in Southern Oregon.

Why are we leaving the land of sun and sin? First of all, it’s too damn crowded here – really. When we moved here from Central Massachusetts to start a business, it wasn’t that bad. BUT, over the years, more and more people have moved in, reproduced or something to the point that it’s just not fun to live here anymore. The stores are crowded, restaurants have long lines and don’t even get me started on the freeways. That’s reason one.

Reason two is even more compelling. We can’t afford to live here. The price for living in paradise had gone thought the roof. Want an example? My last water bill was for $320.00! Yes, that’s for two months, but….its’ also for two people! Granted we care clean, but we do not shower several times a day. We don’t have a swimming pool. We water our tiny patch of grass for a few minutes twice a week. We cut back to conserve water and guess what happened? The water company raised their rates because they weren’t making enough money!

We’re getting out now because California is basically broke so we know things will get worse. When we started telling friends a few months ago that we were leaving, we figured they’d be aghast and try to change our minds. Nope, most of them are leaving too. They’re dispersing to Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma and…coming with us to Oregon. Its’ too bad because California used to be a nice place to live. Heck, I’ve lived here twice previously and figured they take me out of my San Diego home toes up. But, that’s not to be.

Wish us luck – we’ll be hitting the road in a bout a month. You’ll be able to follow my adventures on this post. I just hope the last person out of California remember to turn off the lights – if they’re still burning.