Off to the Pikes Peak Writers Conference!

I'm driving down to Colorado Springs today to attend my favorite writing conference, the Pikes Peak Writers Conference, at the Colorado Springs Marriott hotel. This is the 20th anniversary of the PPWC, so lots of special activities are planned. I'm really stoked about attending!

If you're attending the conference, I hope you'll stop in at my panel at 3:20 PM on Saturday, "Fooling the Reader Fairly" with fellow mystery authors Robert Spiller, Laura DiSilverio, and Donnell Bell. My topic is fishy smelling--red herrings! We'll all be signing our books in the bookstore after the panel. I'll also be hosting a table at the banquet and hanging around in the hallways and at the bar, hoping to chat with old writer friends and to make some new ones.

Sweet Success

I am a member of the Pikes Peak Writers multi-genre writing group that is located in Colorado Springs. Membership is FREE, and the organization hosts a number of events in the local area, including monthly "Write Brain" seminars, member meet-and-greet nights at the downtown Poor Richard's Bookstore, and the annual Pikes Peak Writers Conference in the spring. If you live in the area, are a writer and aren't already a member, I hope you'll join and become active in PPW.

Pikes Peak Writes also produces a blog, Writing From the Peak, where bloggers post articles on the craft and business of writing, and periodically post a "Sweet Success" article of members' writing successes. I am featured in today's article, along with fantasy writer, Carol Berg. I hope you'll check it out and leave a comment!

An Interview on Writing From the Peak

Today on my virtual book tour, I am interviewed by Fleur Bradley at Writing From the Peak, the blog for the Pikes Peak Writers (PPW), a writers organization to which I belong. Among other interesting topics, we discuss my Deadly Currents mystery, the first in my RM Outdoor Adventures series starring whitewater river ranger Mandy Tanner that is set in Salida, Colorado. I hope you'll read the post and leave a comment or question for me here as a result of reading it. You can't comment there, which is why I'm suggesting you comment here. Every comment will be an entry into my virtual book tour contest for a free copy of Deadly Currents.

You can find the schedule of my complete virtual book tour HERE. I hope you'll read each day's post, and leave a comment on each one. And I hope you'll spread the word about my book and my VBT to your mystery-reading friends. Good luck in the contest!

Fall Appearances at Writing Events

Since I don't have a book release this year, I've been concentrating more on writer events this year than reader events. That will reverse next year after Deadly Currents is released. If you live in Colorado and are a writer, you may want to come to one of the upcoming events that I've listed below. You're guaranteed to learn something useful, and as a bonus, we can meet and chat with each other. :)

Friday, September 24, 2010, 5-7 PM
Mountain & Plains Independent Booksellers Association Trade Show
Denver Marriott Tech Center
4900 South Syracuse, Denver, CO 80237
(I will be at the booth for the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers and the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America to talk about our authors and services.)

Saturday, October 2, 2010
Author Fest of the Rockies
The Cliff House
306 Canon Avenue, Manitou Springs, CO 80829
(From 2:45 - 3:30 pm, fellow mystery author Laura DiSilverio and I will present a workshop on "Getting Serious about Series Writing," then I will sign copies of my books at the Authors Showcase book signing from 4:30 - 5:30 pm.)

Saturday, October 23, 2010, 1-3 PM
"From Real-World Bookstores To E-Book Promotion In The Virtual Universe: Strategic Marketing In 2010" Panel
Arvada Public Library
7525 W. 57th Avenue, Arvada, CO 80002
(Fellow authors Patricia Stoltey and Ron Heimbecher and I will present this panel to the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers.)

Saturday, October 30, 2010, 9 AM - 2 PM
Book Promotion Workshop
Falcon Police Station
7850 Goddard Street, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80920
(I'll be presenting this workshop with other published authors for the Pikes Peak Writers.)