On Hiatus: Happy Holidays!

I am taking a couple of weeks off from blogging to celebrate Christmas and New Year's with family and friends. I hope whatever winter holiday you celebrate, be it Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or something else, that you are able to spend it with people you love and who love you. So peace and happiness be with you and happy holidays!

I'll return to blogging on New Year's Day, with a teaser for a guest who will appear on January 2nd.

Two Free Book Contests on Goodreads

To share some holiday cheer with my readers, I'm hosting two book giveaway contests on Goodreads. One is open to all Goodreads members, and the other is a secret contest for a select few that requires a little extra work, so the odds of winning are MUCH higher.

Here's a link to the first contest for a free autographed copy of a trade paperback edition of To Hell in a Handbasket, the second book in my Claire Hanover gift basket designer series. Hurry, because this contest ends on December 21st!

HERE

Now for the second contest. To enter, you must not only be a Goodreads member, you must join my Q&A group there: Q&A with Beth Groundwater.

Then, as stated in the "Book Review Contest Instructions," topic, you need to post a review on one of my books on Goodreads.

Lastly, under the "Reviews from Group Members" topic in the group, post a link to your review. You can enter multiple times by posting a review for each one of my books. And if you've already reviewed one of my books, you can enter that old review, too.

To get the link for your review, click on the book in your "read" book list, then click on "My review" on the book's page, then copy the link that shows in your browser window when your review comes up. That's it! I'll accept entries in this second secret contest until December 31st.

If you have any questions about either contest, feel free to ask me here or in my Q&A group. And, if you want to share these contest with mystery-reading friends, feel free to tell them! Good luck!

A Great Review for To Hell in a Handbasket

I recently found a great review from a mystery reader/reviewer for the second book in my Claire Hanover gift basket designer series, To Hell in a Handbasket. The Mysteries and My Musings blog said: "This was a great adventure murder mystery that will be hard to top." Read the full review HERE. Featuring winter sports such as skiing, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling, To Hell in a Handbasket makes for a great winter holiday read! Amazon and Barnes & Noble both still have the book on sale for 21-33% off list price, depending on format. Got any mystery readers on your holiday gift list?

Author Visits to Book Clubs

Today I'm blogging at Inkspot, the blog for Midnight Ink authors, about author visits to book clubs. I give tips for arranging for an author to visit your book club either in-person or via speakerphone or Skype. I hope you'll read the post, and if you are in a book club, I hope the post will motivate you to ask an author to visit!

Wishing, and Oprah, and Movie Rights

The holiday season is one for making and fulfilling wishes. As you wish upon a star this holiday season, what are you wishing for? Are you aiming high?

My wish is for my mystery novels, all of them of course, to hit the New York Times bestseller list. I'm not picky, a top ten spot for each of them will do. ;-)

Then, I wish for Oprah Winfrey to pick one of my titles to feature in her O Magazine.  Then I want her to interview me on her Oprah's Next Chapter show on her OWN TV network. Then I wish for the resulting furor over my writing to result in movie rights offers to come rolling into my literary agent's office. Am I wishing for too much?

I don't think so. It's only by aiming high and turning those wishes into goals that you can start working to achieve those aims.

For example, a cousin of mine wanted to be an astronaut when she was growing up. She decided that science was the path for reaching that goal and earned her Phd in Biology. She was never selected for the space program, but she became a leader of the research team at the Marucci Center for Blueberry Cranberry Research at Rutgers University that discovered the active compounds in cranberries that prevented urinary tract infections. When the work went public, she became an instant celebrity.

Would she have gone that far in her biology career without the goal of becoming an astronaut? I don't think so!

So, what are you wishing for this holiday season, and how can you turn that wish into a goal?

I'm in the Rotation!

This is just a quick news flash that the cover art for my November re-release of To Hell in a Handbasket, the second Claire Hanover gift basket designer mystery, is now featured in the rotating books banner at the bottom of the National Sisters in Crime website. Go on over and take a look, and see what other great mysteries fellow members have published lately!

Also, my acquisition editor at Midnight Ink, Terri Bischoff, is interviewed today at the Chiseled in Rock blog of Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers. I love that her photo there shows her fishing. She could be an advertisement for my Wicked Eddies release!

Information About A New Mystery Publisher

From one of the principals, Pat Dennis. I'm just passing along the information. I know nothing about the press myself.

Adventure Publications, an award-winning publisher of outdoor guides (www.adventurepublications.net), is accepting fiction manuscripts for its new series of outdoor/wilderness mysteries. We are looking for mystery fiction that will appeal to both the mystery reader and the outdoor enthusiast. The books will be produced in both print and e-book format. Example of authors we love are: Nevada Barr, Victoria Houston, C.J. Box, William Kent Krueger and Beth Groundwater. Currently, we are seeking novels set in the Midwest, Southwest, Northwest, Northeast and Rocky Mountains.

Email your submission to: fiction@adventurepublications.net. Email queries sent to any other address will not be read. We do not open email attachments, unless we request them. Your entire submission must appear in the body of the email and not as an attachment. The subject line should be “QUERY” along with the title of your manuscript. Please email the first chapter and a synopsis along with a cover letter. Also, in your email, please include the number of words in your completed manuscript, as well as a bio, and pertinent writing and/or outdoor wilderness experience. If you prefer, you may snail-mail your query, along with your first chapter and bio to Fiction, Adventure Publications, 820 Cleveland St S, Cambridge, MN 55008.

I am kind of stoked that they included my name in that list, along with some of my favorite authors!

Review for A Real Basket Case

I just ran across a lovely review from a mystery reader/reviewer for the first book in my Claire Hanover gift basket designer series, A Real Basket Case. Read it HERE. Amazon and Barnes & Noble have both books in the series on sale for 21-33% off list price, depending on format. Got any cozy mystery readers on your holiday gift list?