Sunday Signing in Breckenridge and a 5-Star Review!

Along with my two appearances on Saturday in Monument, Colorado, and Glendale, Colorado tomorrow (see post below), I will be signing copies of my latest release, A Basket of Trouble, and my other books, at The French Kiss boutique in Breckenridge, Colorado on Sunday. I'll also be handing out my sleuth Claire Hanover's "Tips for Making Perfect Gift Baskets." The full details are:

Sunday, December 1, 2013, Noon – 2PM
Signing by Local Mystery Author Beth Groundwater
The French Kiss
226 South Main Street, Breckenridge, CO 80424  

And, I just received a wonderful 5-star review for A Basket of Trouble from Lori Caswell on her Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book blog. Read it HERE!

Past and Future Events

On Wednesday, November 13th, I visited the Briargate Library branch of the PPLD (Pikes Peak Library District) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I met with about a dozen members of the Mystery Book Club there to discuss Deadly Currents, the first book in my RM Outdoor Adventures series starring whitewater river ranger Mandy Tanner, which they selected to read this month. We also talked about my writing life and my other mystery series, the Claire Hanover gift basket designer series, specifically the third book, A Basket of Trouble, which was officially released on November 8th.

I had a great time with the group and it's moderator, librarian Missy Hernandez, as you can see from the photos below (Missy is in the first one with me). I love talking to book clubs, and if you would like to invite me to visit yours, in-person or remotely via technology, take a look at the Book Clubs page of my website and contact me to arrange a visit.

This coming Saturday, November 30th, I will make two more appearances along the front range of Colorado. If you live nearby, I hope you will stop by and say hi! The first appearance at Covered Treasures is part of IndieBound's nationwide "Indies First Small Business Saturday" event in which over 500 independent bookstores are hosting more than 1000 authors to encourage book readers to support their local bookstores.

Saturday, November 30, 2013, 10:30 AM – 12:30 PM
Signing during Small Business Saturday with Michael Madigan
Covered Treasures Bookstore
105 Second Street, Monument, CO 80132-1066

Sunday, November 30, 2013, 3:00 – 4:00 PM
Panel Signing with fellow Midnight Ink authors
Barnes and Noble Booksellers
900 S Colorado Blvd, Glendale, CO 80246

On-line and In-person Events for the Release of A BASKET OF TROUBLE!

Today I am appearing both on-line and in-person to promote the release of A Basket of Trouble, the third book in my Claire Hanover gift basket designer mystery series. My on-line appearance is at the Savvy Authors blog, with an article about "Engineering a Mystery," that I hope will be informative for both mystery writers and readers. Please check it out!

My in-person appearances are taking place in Colorado Springs, CO, today, the setting for the book. Here's where I'll be:

Wednesday, November 13, 2013, 10:00 – 12:00 AM
Visit with Mystery Book Club, public welcome
Briargate Community Library
9475 Briar Village Point, Suite 100, Colorado Springs, CO 80920

Wednesday, November 13, 2013, 3:00 – 6:00 PM
Signing
Barnes & Noble Booksellers
795 Citadel Drive East, Colorado Springs, CO 80909 

I hope to see some Colorado Springs friends and readers at these events!

Lamenting the Loss of Colorado's Independent Bookstores

On November 8th, the third book in my Claire Hanover gift basket designer series, A Basket of Trouble, will be released. Normally around two-three months before a book release (about now), I start planning quite a few bookstore appearances in my home state of Colorado, so I can meet readers, talk about me and my books, and autograph a few copies.

I've developed strong relationships with independent Colorado bookstore owners who have hosted me over the years. Sadly though, many of them have closed their stores or are in the process of closing their stores. These include Reader's Cove in Fort Collins, High Crimes Mystery Bookstore in Boulder, Murder By the Book in Denver (which still has an on-line presence HERE), Beth Anne's Book Corner and Book Sleuth Mystery Bookstore in Colorado Springs, Black Cat Books in Manitou Springs, and Weber's Books and Drawings and Hamlet's Bookshoppe in my hometown of Breckenridge.

I will be contacting those Colorado bookstores that are still open where I have signed in the past to see if they want to host an event, but the numbers are dwindling. That means the number of appearances I'm making is dwindling, too. In 2007, when the hardcover edition of the first book in the Claire Hanover series, A Real Basket Case, was released, I made about 25 personal appearances, not including book club visits. For Fatal Descent, my most recent release in June of this year, I made about 12 personal appearances. I really would like to do more!

 If you live in Colorado, do you have a favorite local bookstore that you think I should visit? If so, please give me the name of the store, a point of contact, and the store's location in a comment on this post, and I'll follow-up. Thanks!

An Early Review, A Signing, and A Galley Proof to Work On

Advanced Review Copies (ARCs) of my November release, A Basket of Trouble, the third book in my Claire Hanover gift basket designer series, are apparently going out to reviewers, because one reviewer has already published her 5-star review of the book! You can read Lynn Farris's review in her Mystery Books Examiner on-line column HERE. I'm thrilled with what she had to say about A Basket of Trouble, especially, "This aspect of the book makes it a great option for book clubs to consider"!

As for my RM Outdoor Adventures series, I finished up my Colorado book signings for the newly-released third book in it, Fatal Descent, with a signing at the Broadway Book Mall in Denver this past Sunday. I teamed up with fellow Colorado mystery author Bonnie Biafore, and you can see us both in the photo below.

And lastly, I just received the galley proofs for A Basket of Trouble, so I will be hard at work over the next couple of weeks, picking through it for any errors. Wish me luck!

Another Denver Book Signing and Denver and Breckenridge Signing Photos

I have another signing event scheduled this coming weekend for Fatal Descent, the third book in my RM Outdoor Adventures series that was released to good reviews on June 8th. If you are in the Denver area, I hope you'll join me at this event. Bonnie Biafore is a hoot and not to be missed. Also, the store owners, Ron and Nina Else, are two of my favorite booksellers, and they're very supportive of Colorado authors. So, I'd like to see Colorado readers come out and support them!

Sunday, July 14, 3:00 – 5:00 PM
Signing with Bonnie Biafore during "Mystery Weekend"
Who Else Books, Broadway Book Mall
200 S. Broadway, Denver, CO 80209

Below are some photos from recent booksigning events. The first one is of Lauri Ver Schure, owner of Murder By the Book, and me (I'm in the shades) at our booth at the South Pearl Street Farmer's Market Sunday, June 30th. It was a beautiful day to be outside and sales were brisk. Lauri has some signed copies of all of my titles still, if any of her customers see this and want to grab one.

The next two photos are from my July 4th signing at The French Kiss, a cute boutique on Main Street in Breckenridge. The signing went very well there, too, and I even had a line at times! Anita, the store owner, also has signed copies of all of my titles, if you missed the event and want to pick one up from her.

Happy Fourth of July and Happy Book Signing!!

I hope all of my readers who live in the United States or are US citizens living abroad are having a great time observing our nation's birthday on the Fourth of July. I will be both playing and working today. First, I'll watch the July 4th parade on Main Street in my hometown of Breckenridge, Colorado. It's a typical small town parade with fire trucks, kids on decorated bikes, floats by local businesses, and more. But, it also includes a crowd of bicyclists who will be taking off on the Firecracker 50 Mountain Bike Race, which is always run here in town on the Fourth.

Right after the parade, though, I go to work. I'm conducting a book signing from 11 AM – 1 PM at
The French Kiss, 226 South Main Street, Breckenridge, CO 80424. The store will provide refreshments, so we can continue the party atmosphere of the parade.

After that, it's back to play. My husband and I will drive to Denver and meet up with friends to watch the Colorado Rockies play the Dodgers in a 6 PM baseball game at Coors Field that will be followed by fireworks. What a day! May your Fourth of July be just as much fun as I plan on having!

Book Signings

I will be in the Colorado Springs area today through Saturday for three signings for my June 8th release, Fatal Descent, the third book in my RM Outdoor Adventures series. If you are in the area, I hope you'll join me at one of these events:

Thursday, June 20, 2013, 5 – 8 PM
Signing during Art Walk
Covered Treasures Bookstore
105 Second Street , Monument, CO 80132-1066

Friday, June 21, 2013, 5 – 7 PM
Wine and Cheese Signing during Art Walk
Black Cat Books
inside the Business of Art Center
513 Manitou Avenue, Manitou Springs, CO 80829

Saturday, June 22, 2013, 1 – 3 PM
Barnes and Noble Booksellers
795 Citadel Drive East, Colorado Springs, CO 80909

And here are some photos from recent past signings for the book! The first photo is from my June 8th fundraiser signing for Trout Unlimited at The Next Page Bookstore in Frisco. Corky Ramey from Trout Unlimited is on the left, I'm on the right and Karen Berg, the store owner, is next to me.

The next photo is from my signing at The Book Haven in Salida during FIBArk on June 15th. On the left is Lisa Marvel, store owner, and I'm on the right.

The last photo below is from my June 16th signing at the Breckenridge Welcome Center during Kingdom Days.

A Booksigning, A Review, and Two Interviews

Today I am at the Socrates' Book Review blog, where Yvonne reviewed my new release, Fatal Descent and interviewed me, posing some interesting questions. I hope you'll stop by there and leave a comment or a question of your own for me!

Also, a feature article/interview with me appears in Scene section of the Summit Daily News today. You can read the article on-line as well as in the print newspaper.

Tomorrow, Saturday, June 8th, I will have my first book signing for Fatal Descent, the third book in my RM Outdoor Adventures mystery series starring whitewater river ranger/rafting guide Mandy Tanner. The signing will be from 3 - 5 PM at the Next Page Bookstore, 409 Main Street, #101, Frisco, CO 80443. It will take place during the Ten Mile Creek whitewater races weekend and 10% of the proceeds will be donated to the Gore Range chapter of Trout Unlimited. I hope to see many readers there!

Preparing for a Book Signing

Fatal Descent, the third book in my RM Outdoor Adventures mystery series starring whitewater river ranger/rafting guide Mandy Tanner, will be released on June 8th. I have scheduled eight book signings to occur in the six weeks after the release date. I have a busy summer coming up!

The first signing will actually be on Saturday, June 8th, at the Next Page Bookstore in Frisco, Colorado, from 3 to 5 PM. (Hint: if you want to order an autographed copy to be mailed to you, place an order with Next Page before the event or with Black Cat Books (click on the Fatal Descent link above for info), my official bookstore supplier for autographed copies.)

Scheduling a signing, though, is not all there is to it! First comes the selection of an ideal date and time for that venue. In the case of Next Page Bookstore, this signing will take place on the same weekend as the Ten Mile Creek whitewater kayaking events in Frisco, Colorado, including a One Mile Race, Rodeo, and Best Trick competitions. And, the signing is timed to end well before the first kayaking event. Coincidence? Nope!

Second task is inviting a whole gang of folks to come. In the case of this event, it will be a fundraiser for the Gore Range chapter of Trout Unlimited, with the store donating 10% of the proceeds to the chapter. That means the event will be included in the chapter newsletter going out to all of the members. Also, I will create a virtual event for the booksigning on Facebook and Goodreads and invite all of my virtual friends on those sites who live nearby to come. I'll also send a special mailing to my email newsletter subscribers who live nearby, asking them to come.

Third is arranging for local media coverage. Both a Trout Unlimited representative and I have contacted the local newspaper, the Summit Daily News, and the Midnight Ink publicist has mailed a review copy of the book to the Arts and Entertainment editor. A feature article to appear in the newspaper the day before the event is planned.

Fourth is doing whatever else you can to assure the success of the event. I will email an invite to my book club. Also, I've arranged for a copy of the book to be given out as a door prize at the Breckenridge Resort Chamber mixer tonight, and the details of the June 8th signing will be announced along with that.

So, you can see that a "simple" book signing is not as simple as it seems and actually entails a lot of work on many people's part!

Two Denver, Colorado Signings

Tomorrow, Sunday, June 24th, I will be spending the day in the Denver area, signing copies of Wicked Eddies at two locations:

10 AM – noon
in the Murder By the Book booth
South Pearl Street Farmers Market
1500 block of South Pearl Street, Denver, CO 80209

2 – 3:30 PM
Who Else Books, Broadway Book Mall
200 S. Broadway, Denver, CO 80209

I hope to see some Denver friends and readers at both events!

Signing in Monument, Colorado

Today from 5 - 8 PM, I will sign copies of Wicked Eddies, the second book in my RM Outdoor Adventures mystery series, at the Covered Treasures Bookstore, 105 Second Street, Monument, CO 80132 during the town's monthly Art Walk. I hope to see some friendly faces there!

Salida, Colorado, Signing

Today I will appear at the First in Boating on the Arkansas (FIBArk) whitewater festival in Salida, Colorado, the locale for my RM Outdoor Adventures mystery series. I will sign copies of the recently released second book in the series, Wicked Eddies, at The Book Haven, 135 F Street, from 10:30 - noon after the conclusion of the parade. In the afternoon, I will sign copies at The Book Haven booth in front of the Boathouse Cantina near the FIBArk festival grounds from 1:30 - 4 PM. I hope to see some friendly faces there!

I'm in the News!

I've got two bits of good news to share today:

A 4-star review in The Mystery Reader for Wicked Eddies:

http://www.themysteryreader.com/cozy.html  (shows the date & # of stars)
http://www.themysteryreader.com/groundwater-wicked.html  (the review itself)

Also, I have a fundraiser signing today at the Next Page Bookstore in Frisco, Colorado. Ten percent of the store's proceeds will support the Gore Range Chapter of Colorado Trout Unlimited. Please take a look at an article about the event, me and Wicked Eddies in the Summit Daily News.

Road Trip!

Today marks the first day of an eight-day book tour that I'm conducting in the state of Colorado with Ann Parker, author of the Silver Rush historical mystery series set in 1880s Colorado that features saloon owner Inez Stannert. She'll be promoting her November release, the fourth in the series, Mercury's Rise, and I'm be promoting the re-release in trade paperback and ebook of the first book in my Claire Hanover gift basket designer mystery series, A Real Basket Case.

If you live in Colorado, I hope you'll be able to make it one of our events:

Friday, November 11, 6 – 8 PM
Wine, Cheese and Chocolate Signing
Black Cat Books
720 Manitou Avenue, Manitou Springs, CO 80829

Saturday, November 12, 4 – 6 PM
Pikes Peak Writers Fundraiser Signing
Barnes & Noble Booksellers
1565 Briargate Boulevard, Colorado Springs, CO 80920

Sunday, November 13, 2 – 4:30 PM
“Constructing a Mystery” workshop followed by signing
The Book Haven
128 F Street, Salida, Colorado 81201

Tuesday, November 15, 6:30 – 8 PM
Joint Signing
Old Firehouse Books
232 Walnut Street, Fort Collins, CO 80524

Wednesday, November 16, 7 – 9 PM
Presentation and Signing
Highlands Ranch Public Library
9292 Ridgeline Blvd., Highlands Ranch, CO 80129

Thursday, November 17, 7 – 9 PM
Panel Signing with Michelle Black for High Crimes Mystery Bookshop
at The Oriental & Navajo Rug Gallery
927 Main Street, Longmont, CO 80501

Friday, November 18, 2 – 3:30 PM
“Constructing a Mystery” Workshop
Lake County Library
1115 Harrison Avenue, Leadville, CO 80461

Friday, November 18, 5 – 7 PM
Joint Signing
The Book Mine
522 Harrison Avenue, Leadville, CO 80461

Now, here's a special request for all of my blog readers, regardless of where you live. Please pray/hope that it doesn't snow on us during our travels and that the roads remain dry and safe. Thanks!

Final Stops on my East Coast Book Tour

After my Tuesday stop in Charlottesville, Virginia, last week to visit my sister and sign at the Barnes & Noble store there, I drove down to Hampton, Virginia to spend four days with my parents. I used their home as a base of operations for various events in the Tidewater area of Virginia. The photo below was taken at the William & Mary Bookstore. They are excellent hosts to alumni who have published books!



The next photo is of participants in my workshop to the Hampton Roads Writers on "Realistic and Effective Dialogue in Fiction." I'm goofing off taking their photo while they're hard at work on an exercise. It was a great group, with lots of interesting and intelligent questions.



This last photo was taken of my parents' good friends, Bill & Judy, at the Newport News Barnes & Noble store. Unfortunately we caught Judy with her eyes closed, but I like her smile.



I arrived home just before dinner on Mother's Day. My wonderful husband cooked me a filet mignon dinner while I sat with my feet up and sipping limoncello. Yes, I'm keeping him and you can't have him!

Today, it's back to reality, with laundry, grocery shopping, and piles of mail and email to catch up on. My next event is a signing at the Chapel Hills Barnes & Noble store in Colorado Springs on Saturday, from 2-4 PM. But I have no promotion events scheduled for the next weekend, because that's when my son is graduating from college. I'll be too busy celebrating that happy milestone to think about writing or promoting.

A Charlottesville, Virgina Booksigning

After the Festival of Mystery in Oakmont, Pennsylvania on Monday, I drove down to Charlottesville, Virginia for a signing at the Barnes & Noble bookstore there. I stayed with my sister that evening. The next photo shows me with her, between my former sister-in-law and her daughter. The next two photos show me with women who bought copies of my books. It was a busy event, with lots of chatting, and I enjoyed catching up with my sister afterward.




The last few days of my tour will be in the Tidewater area of Virgina, and I'll post photos of those events most likely after I return home on Sunday. It will be nice to be back home on Mother's Day!

A Fundraiser Booksigning

Thursday, April 28th, on the first day of my 9-events-in-10-days book tour, One More Page Books in Arlington, Virginia, hosted me for a fundraiser booksigning for American Rivers, a river conservation nonprofit. The first photo below shows me with store owner Eileen.


It was a fun event with a mix of conservationists, river paddlers, mystery writers and readers, friends of mine from when I used to live in Northern Virginia, and a niece and her boyfriend who attend nearby George Mason University.

Wilke Nelson, the Deputy VP of Resource Development at American Rivers, began the evening with a brief overview of American Rivers and what they do (he's with me in the first photo below). Then I talked about my former days as a "river rat," the research I did for Deadly Currents, and what the book was about (second photo below).



After that, we opened the floor for a free-ranging Q&A discussion that ranged from my writing process to the water rights subplot in the book, to characteristics of the paddling community.

After the Q&A session, we socialized over coffee and snacks and I signed books. What an interesting evening! It was a great kick-off for my tour, the store donated 10% of their sales that evening to American Rivers, and I bought some local Virginia wine and gourmet chocolates to give as bread-and-butter gifts to my future hosts on the trip.

My niece and her boyfriend are in the first photo below. followed by other attendees in the next two photos.




Here's the friendly staff of One More Page Books.


And here's a view of the bookstore, as the event wound down.

An Evening in Salida, Colorado

Salida, Colorado is the setting for Deadly Currents, the first book in my Rocky Mountain Outdoor Adventures mystery series. Yesterday, I spent a lovely evening there. It began with a 4:30 - 5:30 PM book signing at The Book Haven downtown, a wonderful independent bookstore with a very friendly owner and staff.

The next two photos are from that event. The first shows two local outdoorsmen on the left and Stew Pappenfort, the Senior Ranger for the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area, on the right. Stew is my go-to expert for the series. Note his ranger uniform and the radio mike slung over his shoulder. The second photo is of a woman who was traveling in Colorado and whose Kindle broke on the air flight. So, she was in the bookstore looking for something to read and picked up a copy of Deadly Currents. She and her husband were going on to Colorado Springs, so I gave them some advice about touring the Garden of the Gods Park there.



After the signing was a lively exchange with the store's bookclub, from 5:30 - 7:00 PM. They had picked Deadly Currents for their monthly discussion and had lots of interesting questions for me. The next two photos are of most of the members of the group. Note the yummy treats!



Finally at 7:00, five of us headed over to The Fritz tapas bar to share some delicious small plates and conversation about Salida and books before I jumped in my car and headed up to Breckenridge, Colorado. I'm joining my husband and son in celebrating the last weekend of the ski resort being open for the phenomenal 2010-2011 season, with over 500 inches of snow total.

Meet the Faces Behind the Books

Last Sunday, April 17th, I participated in Englewood Library's annual "Meet the Faces Behind the Books" event. About sixty Colorado authors descended on the library to talk to patrons about their books, which covered the complete gamut from fiction to nonfiction, children's to adult. A hoard of library staff and volunteers worked behind and in front of the scenes to make the event a success, and I want to shout out a big thank-you to all of them, but especially to the Event Coordinator, Deb Parker.

After an entertaining carpool ride from Colorado Springs to Englewood with Cicily Janus, author of The New Face of Jazz, we checked in at the library at 11:30 AM. The next half hour was spent filling out paperwork, consigning extra books into the bookstore, setting up our table displays, and exchanging "how-do's" with fellow authors. Some of those whom I already knew I hadn't seen in months and others I'd just seen two weeks ago at the Pikes Peak Library District's "Mountain of Authors" program.

I managed to get two photos (see below). The first is of me with Carolyn Jennings, author of Hunger Speaks, Deb Parker, and Jeanne Stein, author of the Anna Strong Vampire Chronicles. The second is of me with Deborah Coonts, author of Lucky Stiff, and Cicily Janus.



At noon, the authors, volunteers, and staff were invited to a sumptuous reception, which is shown in the photo below. As we snacked on the goodies, the library staff welcomed us and thanked the authors for coming. Then all of the authors took a turn stating their name and what they write.


At one, the doors opened to the public, and I was too busy to take any more photos until the event came to an end at three. I handed out lots of postcards and chatted with many mystery readers. I even signed a few books! I was glad I brought consignment copies because the store sold out of theirs and needed to dip into my stash. After the ride home with Cicily, I plopped into my easy chair and fell asleep halfway through the Sunday crossword puzzle.