To celebrate the upcoming release of my next novel, The Tenth Plague, I’m holding a book giveaway contest (open to residents of the US and Canada). This month I’m giving away a copy of False Pretenses by Kathy Herman. I enjoyed reading this novel, and I think you will too. Kathy Herman does a great job balancing suspense, fully developed characters, and a good spiritual message. To participate in the contest, you must take at least one of the following steps (get an additional entry for each additional step): 1. Post about my contest at Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, or your blog. (Simply use the services available at the top left corner.) 2. Sign up one new (willing) person to my e-mail list. I could use help growing my list! 3. Become my fan at Goodreads, the new cool place to talk about books. 4. Leave a comment below, provide your e-mail address, and…
Read moreBlood in the Snow
It is nose-numbing winter near Flint, Michigan. There’s a reason why it’s been called one of the murder capitals of the world. More murders are committed there than even Baghdad. I zip up, push my way through double doors, and leave the elementary school behind, carefully guiding my booted feet down ice-slick steps. The subzero wind chafes my cheeks and stings my eyes until they swim. If had looked at myself in a mirror, rosy cheeks would have glowed back at me. But I don’t seek a mirror. I’m not really sure what I’m looking for. Or where I’m going. Maybe I’m not really going anywhere. Wait. Yes, I am. I turn right and head toward . . . Snow. Dunes of it everywhere. All across the playground. Remnants of the latest storm. I come up short. Staining the snow at my feet pools red Kool-Aid. Lot of it. Something tells…
Read more10 Common Misconceptions of the Wannabe Novelist, #7
See Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, and Part 6. #7: Once I publish my novel, I’ll just be able to keep cranking them out. Oh, if only it were that simple, especially in today’s economic climate. The fact is, publishing a well-crafted novel is no guarantee of future publication. Oh, if only novels could be published based on their own merits. Stepping into publication, I had a lot to learn. I naively thought getting my first novel published basically guaranteed long-term publication. After all, if my first novel was good enough to be accepted, why not future books? Being a Salesperson What I learned is that getting a novel published is only a small part of the equation. The other part is the almighty dollar. Publishers take a big financial risk on first-time novelists. They spend a lot of money on editing, graphic design, and printing. They put their necks…
Read moreMy Hardy Boys Fixation
When I look back at my childhood and evaluate what ignited the first spark of interest in writing mystery/suspense fiction, Hardy Boys books come to mind. In fact, for quite a while, those hardcover books were practically an obsession for me. They are so closely connected to the biggest joys of my childhood that I can’t even look at one without a lump forming in my throat. During the seventies I found them at Toys “R” Us and our Hudson’s department store for $2.50 each. I’d save up my allowance from weeding the garden and study the list of books inside the back cover, wanting to buy just the right one. I was never disappointed. I remember lying on my back at one end of our pop-up camper, engrossed in the latest caper. There I’d read for hours. Lost in another world. Trying to guess what the ending might be.…
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