And Now It's A New Year

I've got three different blogs posting today.  I wasn't paying attention when I scheduled one of them for a Wednesday that happened to be the 18th of the month, but that's what happened!  I'm here at Killer Hobbies on Wednesdays, and I'm at Killer Characters on the 18th of each month --or at least my characters are.  I also scheduled a Writerspace blog for today.  So... the contents of this blog are pretty much the contents of my Writerspace post.  I learned something while putting it together anyway: I've already got a lot on my schedule for 2017!

Here's some of what I said:

 

First, I anticipate the publication of two new books, in different genres, this year: BAD TO THE BONE, the third Barkery & Biscuits mystery, will be a May 2017 release, and PROTECTOR WOLF, the eighth paranormal romance in my Alpha Force miniseries for Harlequin Nocturne, about a covert military unit of shapeshifters, will be published in June. 

But that's not all I'm doing that's writing related.  Last weekend I attended an author event at the Santa Clarita, California, Library.  Soon I'll attend Mystery on the Menu at the Cerritos Library. 

In March is California Dreamin', a conference held by several Southern California chapters of Romance Writers of America.  In April I'll attend Malice Domestic, all about cozy mysteries, in Bethesda, Maryland.

First thing in May, I'll attend a couple of events held by the Ridge Writers, which is the East Sierra Branch of the 106-year-old California Writers Club.  In June is the California Crime Writers Conference, which is a joint event by the local Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime chapters.  Then, in August, I'll be giving a presentation to the new Santa Clarita Chapter of Romance Writers of America.

I think that's all I've scheduled so far, although I will attend meetings of local chapters of the organizations I belong to as well as get-togethers with writer friends. 

Gee, putting it all down in one spot like this really does demonstrate even to myself that 2017 is going to be a busy year. 

And have I described everything I'll be doing that's related to writing? 

Probably not!

Plus, there are time-consuming family-related things coming up as well.

And one other thing I didn't include at Writerspace: Cari!  My new puppy is a time sponge, especially since I'm giving Mystie a lot of extra attention, too.

So... oh, yes.  This year will be a busy one!

California Crime Writers Conference Retrospective

Last weekend I attended the California Crime Writers Conference 2015.  It's a conference jointly held by the Mystery Writers of America SoCal Chapter and Sisters in Crime LA, and it was great!

I commuted there both weekend days.  I'd been invited to participate in an event on Friday night that wasn't officially part of the conference but was nevertheless related, but I ultimately declined.  I didn't think a two minute reading of my work was worth the couple of hour commute I'd likely have to Culver City from the San Fernando Valley on a Friday evening in Los Angeles.  It was a demonstration of the differences between cozy mysteries and noir, and it did sound like a lot of fun.  But ultimately I figured I'd made the right decision.

I anticipated that traffic over the weekend would be a lot better and wasn't disappointed about that.  I arrived in plenty of time on Saturday morning to start attending the sessions I was most interested in, and Sunday's traffic was similarly light.

The conference was organized in tracks.  I mostly stuck to Marketing and Industry, since I'm at the stage of things in my writing career that marketing is vital, and it always helps to learn what's going on in the publishing industry.  The other two were Forensics and Craft.  Because I write cozy mysteries, my amateur sleuths and I don't get into a lot of detail about forensics matters so, as interesting as some sessions might be, they're not as helpful to me.  I especially avoided the session on the Forensics of Creepy Crawlers, presented by an entomologist.  I did, however, attend a session or two in the Craft track, including one on historical mysteries.

The panel I participated in was part of the Craft track: Mysteries of the Spirit.  It was a session dedicated mostly to paranormal or spiritual themes in mysteries and was definitely enjoyable.  I got to talk about my Alpha Force paranormal romances for Harlequin Nocturne that feature my covert military unit of shapeshifters.

I also talked about my Superstition Mysteries.  Are superstitions paranormal?  I really don't think so... but who knows?

The lunchtime keynote addresses were by Charlaine Harris and Anne Perry.  Amazing! And definitely inspirational.

Plus, I got to see authors who are long-time friends as well as make new friends among the writing community.  In addition, my delightful editor from Midnight Ink was present and I got the opportunity to chat with her now and then.

In case you can't tell, I really enjoyed CCWC!  It's a bi-annual conference... so I'll be looking forward to 2017.

Conferences, Conferences, Conferences!

This year is one full of conferences for me.  Fun, yes.  And time consuming!

As I've blogged about here before, I've already attended California Dreamin', the conference given by the four Southern California chapters of Romance Writers of America.  I've also attended the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, not exactly a conference but a writer and reader- related get-together.

This week I head to Bethesda, Maryland, for Malice Domestic.  It's for writers and readers of cozy mysteries, and I'll see some of my fellow Killer Hobbyists there!   Betty has already mentioned that her panel is on crafts.  Mine, as I commented on her post, is unsurprisingly about pets.

And I still have more conferences coming up soon.

The first is the California Crime Writers Conference, which is held sort of locally, in Culver City, California, in June.  I'm on a panel there, too, that's about paranormal stories.  My Superstition Mysteries aren't exactly paranormal, in my opinion, and I'll get to explain the differences there. 

Next comes the Romance Writers of America Conference, in New York City in July.  There, my panel is From White Collar to Red Herring, about using a white collar background in developing mysteries. 

I've unfortunately just turned down another invitation, this time to the second Surrey Mystery Writers Festival in August.  I hated to do so, but I just couldn't fit it into my schedule this year.  I hope to again someday soon, though. 

Is that all?  I think so and kind of hope so, since going to conferences does not make deadlines go away. 

So how about the rest of you?  Any conferences, writing or otherwise, coming up?  Will I see you at any of those I'm attending?

California Crime Writers Conference

Last weekend was the California Crime Writers Conference.  It was held at the Hilton Hotel in Pasadena.  It was great fun!

First of all, I always find it enjoyable to meet up with friends who also like to write mysteries, and a lot of those who live locally, and even at some distance, were there.

The worst part about the conference was to decide which workshop to attend.  There were four tracks: Craft, Business, Matters of Crime, and Nuts & Bolts.  Some talks I had no interest in because the topic seemed too basic for where I am in my career, but the presenters’ identities often made those sound appealing anyway.  I mostly attended sessions on law enforcement, such as Undercover Techniques--since I do have a lot of undercover protagonists in my Harlequin Romantic Suspense and Harlequin Nocturne books--plus the FBI and Homicide Investigations.  I attended one session on Contracts 101.  Yes, I’m a lawyer, but not only did I appreciate the refresher--particularly since I just received the contract to review for a new mystery series!--but I also wanted the perspective of the two lawyers on the panel regarding the latest changes in the publishing industry.

As to Nuts & Bolts, I also sat in on several sessions on self-promotion.  The more ideas I have, the better, although in the interests of time I do need to pick and choose which to try.

The keynote speakers were amazing: Sue Grafton and Elizabeth George.  Both gave highly inspirational talks, one each day after lunch.  Both mentioned keeping journals as they write.  I’ve kept journals in the past but am now considering starting one specifically geared to my writing career.

I again offer my thanks and kudos to those who put the amazing event together, all officers and/or members of the Sisters in Crime Los Angeles Chapter and the Mystery Writers of America, Southern California Chapter.  I’m delighted to say that I belong to both organizations.

CCWC is presented every other year, and I look forward to the next one.  It’s a good thing there isn’t one next year, though.  Left Coast Crime will be in Monterey, CA, which isn’t too far away, and Bouchercon will be in Long Beach, which is right next door!

And in case you’re wondering, yes, I’m a conference addict.  CCWC was my third conference this year, and I’m not done yet.

How about you--do you attend many conferences?  What kinds?

Let the Conferences Begin!

I never start out a year trying to figure out how many writing conferences I can squeeze in.  Nevertheless, this year there seem to be a lot.

The first one, California Dreamin’, is this weekend, in Santa Ana.  It’s being presented jointly by the four Southern California Chapters of Romance Writers of America.  I happen to belong to two of them, Los Angeles Romance Authors and the Orange County Chapter.  The other two are the East Valley Chapter, and the San Diego Chapter.  I’m not able to attend the whole thing, but one advantage of having a local conference is that I can come and go at will. 

Next will be Malice Domestic, in Bethesda, Maryland.  It’s an annual conference that applauds cozy mysteries, encouraging both fans and authors to attend.  I’ll be on a panel there called Lights, Camera, Murder: Mysteries Involving TV and Movies.  That’s because my latest Pet Rescue Mystery, OODLES OF POODLES, involves the film industry. 

After that is the California Crime Writers Conference, in Pasadena, California.  Again, it’s local to me and should provide lots of helpful research information as well as an opportunity to schmooze with other local mystery and suspense authors.

Then, I’ll be at the Romance Writers of America National Conference, in Atlanta, Georgia.  It’s a great way to get together with friends and other romance writers from all over the country and learn more about what’s going on in the publishing industry, particularly involving the romance genre.

Around all that, I still have deadlines and ideas to flesh out, local signings and library panels and talks to present, not to mention spending time with family.  Fortunately, my husband understands and he’s content to stay home and take care of our fur-kids while I’m gone.

How about you--do you enjoy attending conferences for writers, readers, or other vocations or avocations?

The Future of Publishing

I attended the fun and informational California Crime Writers Conference last weekend. The event was sponsored by Sisters in Crime/Los Angeles and SoCal Mystery Writers of America. I really enjoyed it.

Cops and others in law enforcement spoke on various aspects of their professions in the Matters of Crime track, and I attended some of those sessions. I also went to several talks on promoting one’s work.

But the thing that I really took away from the conference was how the future of publishing seems to be heading--e-publishing.

That’s a topic that writers see everywhere these days. It wasn’t new to me. I’ve heard other authors speak about it before.

What really brought it home to me, though, was the information provided by Lee Goldberg, a well-known, award-winning novelist and TV writer who has made some of his backlist available in e-form, and is also creating original work for the e-market. Lee’s talk was very convincing--including how much more money a writer can make on the sale of an e-book than one in print form. He also provided a handout that contained lots of helpful information on who to contact to get an existing backlist book or manuscript in the correct formats for the various e-publishing possibilities, including having a new cover prepared.

My most recent traditionally-published books are put into e-form by the publisher and sold both ways. My e-royalty rates are in keeping with the rates for the print-published ones. The idea of making more money per book is certainly appealing--assuming that people will buy them.

Am I running right out and starting to e-publish my backlist or new material? No, but I’m glad I have the rights back to some of my earliest works that came out in traditional form. One of these days, I may try to make one available in e-format just to see how it works out. I’ll probably have to update it, but that’s one of the advantages of e-publishing. You can always make changes.

I don’t intend to change my career to the e-direction. I love my current books and publishers. But I also won’t close any doors either now or in the future...

How about you? If you’re a writer, are you e-published? Would you consider making your backlist available in e-form, or have you already? If you’re a reader, do you buy e-format books, either an author’s backlist or new ones? What’s your opinion of the future?

Despite the Economy, Everything for My Pups

I’ve said often before that I’m most appreciative of being a member of the KillerHobbies blog crew, but I’m not sure I belong. The focus of my mysteries is pets, and they’re family, not hobbies.

That means, no matter what my financial situation, Lexie and Mystie, my Cavalier King Charles Spaniels come first!

Last week, I blogged about how scared I was when Lexie was shrieking because of some unidentified pain. Well, she’s doing great now. I took her to a specialist vet who put her on pain meds, and they worked. She’s off them now and seems fine. My only hesitation about taking her to the vet was concern about what was best for her and when. When it became clear she needed a vet visit, I took her.

On the other hand, I’ve used today’s economy as an excuse to put off some dental work I need. Maybe some other minor medical stuff for me, too. They can wait.

Mystie’s on prescription dog food. We keep her well supplied. No scrimping there, although fortunately the stuff isn’t overly expensive. As to feeding the humans in my family? Generally, I go with whatever has prices reduced, or is subject to a coupon.

Also, these days, I’m less likely to buy clothes or other items on a whim. Doggy toys, though? That’s a different story.

I’m also a bit more cautious this year about expending money on writing conferences and any related travel expenses--although I attended the California Crime Writers Conference in nearby Pasadena last weekend, and it was worth every penny! It was a joint conference presented by the local chapters of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime, and had several different tracks for people at different stages of writing, plus research into forensics and criminology. I loved almost every session I attended, and I learned a lot.

I’m off next to the Romance Writers of America conference next month, and although there were other conferences I’d love to attend this year, those may be the only ones.

But if my pups need to go somewhere, you can be sure we’ll be on our way!

Think they’re spoiled? Of course!

How about you--how do you spoil your pets?

--Linda