More Book Promo and Loving It!

I've been writing here a lot lately about blogging and otherwise promoting my work, especially since I've had two new books published during the last two months. 

The most recent is KNOCK ON WOOD, my second Superstition Mystery.  It's a cozy mystery published by Midnight Ink, and it's starting to appear in bookstores.  In September it was CANADIAN WOLF, a Harlequin Nocturne, which sometimes appears in bookstores in a two-in-one version with another author's paranormal romance included, but I've yet to see any of them on shelves in Southern California, where I live. 

Last weekend, I took a trip with my husband to visit some dear friends who are currently living in La Jolla in an apartment on cliffs overlooking the water, a wonderful place with a great view, including kayakers and water boarders, cormorants, sea gulls, and an osprey they've named Ozzie who lives on a tree just beyond their balcony.  It was a totally delightful visit--and I used it partly for promotion, too!  Yes, I missed our dogs but our younger son stayed with them, and they love him so all was well. 

On our way to La Jolla, while we were there, and on our way home we managed to stop in nine bookstores, mostly Barnes & Nobles and related Bookstars, but also an independent mystery bookstore, the wonderful Mysterious Galaxy.  Not many had KNOCK ON WOOD yet but some had books from my backlist of mysteries.  I left bookmarks and promised to stop by again next time I was in the area--which, since my friends may be in that area for a while, might even be soon! 

This weekend, on Saturday, I'm participating in the Burbank Library Author's Showcase, where I'll bring books and swag to introduce myself to local booklovers whom I may not yet have met.  And on Friday I'll be interviewed for an online radio broadcast.

And, yes, I'm still in the middle of my blog tour.  It's always fun to see the posts appear--mine as well as the hosts' reviews of KNOCK ON WOOD.  Plus, I'm working on some related online magazine articles. 

Will this slow down?  Probably.  I don't have another book scheduled for publication until May 2016, when my second Barkery & Biscuits Mystery, TO CATCH A TREAT, will be released.   

On the other hand, if I can keep up even a portion of this pace, I'll do it--as long as I can soon dive in more deeply to my actual writing.  After all, I still have deadlines!

Finishing A First Draft

I'm almost there!  This week, I hope to finish the first draft of my third Superstition Mystery.  The final manuscript is due on October 1--right around when book #2 in the series, KNOCK ON WOOD, will be published.  This draft is rough and needs work, but that's the way I write: get something written roughly, then take some time polishing it.  I'll hopefully get feedback from some writer friends first, too. 

Once again, I'm in the middle of a busy time.  CANADIAN WOLF, my seventh Alpha Force paranormal romance for Harlequin Nocturne is a September release, and, as I mentioned, my next mystery is an October release.  I've already got a lot of events scheduled, both online and in person, as well as blogs and other promotion.   

 

One good thing is that it's all fun!  I sometimes stare at the computer screen when I'm working on that first draft until my hands stretch onto the keyboard on their own and start typing.  Well, not entirely on their own.  My subconscious is telling them what to do.  Consciously, I probably have an idea of what comes next generally, but the specifics are all inside.  And that first draft always needs the polishing I mentioned, where I can sit down and savor what I've already done and figure out, hopefully, what'll make it even better.

 

I'll keep this blog post relatively brief.  Why?  Well, guess what I'll be up to when I stop writing this.  Yes!  First draft, here I come... again.

My Next Project

I did it!

If you happen to have read my Monday post at InkSpot, the blog for Midnight Ink writers, you'll know that I met my June 1 deadline for the manuscript for my second Barkery & Biscuits Mystery.  I still have some odds and ends to accomplish with it, including providing an acknowledgment, dedication, and recipes.  I've already received some great-sounding recipes for dog treats from some online friends, but I want to give them a try before sending them along for publication.  In any event, with all I had going on last month I'm really pleased that I was able to meet that deadline.

Right now, I have a looming deadline for the edits for the second Superstition Mystery, KNOCK ON WOOD, but don't anticipate any problems with it.

And my next writing deadline after that?  It's for my third Superstition Mystery.  I started thinking about that one evening as I was finishing the Barkery manuscript and my subconscious mind, as usual, started its routine as I took a bath.  I came up with a plot idea I really liked and wrote it down on a notecard before I went to bed.

But the next morning I checked my computer files and I already had jotted down an idea for book number three.  I still loved my idea from the night before, but thought that the one I'd previously come up with would work better for this particular slot. 

So, I now have to flesh it out... then write the story. 

And that other new idea?  As I said, the next one I need to write is number three in the Superstition Mystery series and it's the last there's a current commitment for.  But with that fourth idea, now I've got yet another reason to cross my fingers that the series continues!

What are your fingers crossed about this week?