My First Review from a Plain Ole' Reader

Friends and relatives who preordered my book online are receiving their copies and have started reading it. How cool is that? Anyway, this afternoon I received my first review from one of those friends who just finished the book. He's not a professional reviewer, an author, or anyone else connected with the world of writing. He's just someone who likes to read fiction. Here's what he had to say:

"Read the book through. Every time I thought about laying it down, I'd get caught up in it again. You needed a diagram to keep everyone straight.

That second chapter is a teaser."

Hee, hee, hee! We authors LOVE it when we make a reader miss their bedtime!! JB, thanks so much for the praise, and I'm so glad you enjoyed A REAL BASKET CASE.

Life After 50

For those readers who live in Colorado Springs, pick up the April issue of the "Life After 50" local monthly newspaper. There's a most excellent interview article with fellow mystery author Bob Spiller and myself about writing fiction as a second career after you turn fifty. I managed to get a plug in for the Pikes Peak Writers Conference and upcoming monthly Write Brain meetings in my portion of the interview. I'm very pleased with how my photo turned out and interviewer Jeanne Davant's prose.

Conference Panels

For those of you who are attending a mystery or writing conference this year, I thought I'd let you know what my panel or workshop assignments are so far for the ones I'm attending.

April 20-22 Pikes Peak Writers Conference, Colorado Springs, CO
Saturday, 4:50 PM, What are Niche Mysteries and What is their Appeal panel
Sunday, 8:30 AM, After the Call workshop

May 4-6 Malice Domestic Conference, Crystal City, VA
Saturday, 9:00 AM, Not to Old to Tangle panel

May 25-26 Mayhem in the Midlands, Omaha, NE
Saturday, 1:30 PM, In the Bedroom with Colonel Mustard: Sex and the Traditional Mystery panel
Saturday, 3:00 PM, Light at the End of the Tunnel--And It's Not a Train! The Lighter Side of Mystery panel

June 8-9, Murder in the Grove, Boise, ID
Saturday, 3:00 PM, Mysteries in Brief: Short Stories panel

and more to come...

Jeannette Cezanne's World of Publishing

I just got off the phone after a lovely Internet radio interview with Jeannette Cezanne on her World of Publishing show on the World Wide Artist Internet broadcasting site. She made me feel so comfortable and at ease that the hour just flew by. We talked not only about my debut mystery book, A Real Basket Case, but also about writing and marketing short stories. If you're interested in listening to the interview, go to worldwideartist.net, click on "Sound Gallery" then on "World of Publishing" in the little box that appears. Scan down the list of recorded shows until you see my name. Since we just finished the interview, the show hasn't been posted to the "Past Shows" page yet, but it should be up there in a day or two.

Doing an Internet interview was a way for me to ease into the live interview process before trying to break into the "big time" of on-air radio or even, horrors, TV! I asked Jeannette for feedback, so I can learn from the process and hopefully improve my "stage presence" for the next time.

An Interview and a Review

On a variation of the "four weddings and a funeral" theme, the editor of Spinetingler Magazine sent me a notice that the spring issue is online, and it contains an interview with me and a review of my mystery, A REAL BASKET CASE. Go to http://www.spinetinglermag.com/spring2007contents.htm to read them both.

This leads to the topic of ezine promotion. When you're trying to find places to review your book or run an interview with you, check out online magazines and the popular blogs. I've been able to get reviews in four ezines so far and have been interviewed in two ezines and a blog. All I had to do was ask--politely, of course, then respond quickly with ARCs or answers to interview questions when the editors responded.

Locally, the Thursday "Your Hub" section of the Colorado Springs Gazette newspaper included an article written by me about how an author promotes her book. And I was interviewed by a reporter of the local monthly newspaper, Life After 50, for an article about writing as a
second career that will appear in the April issue. The promotion engine is chugging along...

Books in Hand!

After a lovely, physically exhausting, fun week of skiing in Breckenridge with my family, we came home today to a pile of boxes nicely hidden on our back porch by our friendly UPS man. Three of the boxes contained my own copies of A REAL BASKET CASE. It was such a thrill to smell, touch, and see my own books. To flip the pages and read my words in print. To see the photo of the author - Me! - on the inside flap. To re-read my acknowledgements to fellow writers who helped me along the way. Wow!

And to add to the excitement was a box holding my "I'm a Real Basket Case" buttons that will go to people who buy the book from me. Also there was a box holding my Book Launch invitations that I'll be passing out and mailing to neighbors and friends. A red-letter mail day!

Official Release Date

Well, this is it. Today is the official release date of A REAL BASKET CASE. When I signed my book contract, I expected this to be a big day, that the earth would move or some such, but it's been a pretty ordinary day so far, filled with promotion and writing activities--and laundry. :) The release date just turns out to be a "line in the sand" when the publisher starts shipping the book to people and places who preordered it. Like me. I don't have my author copies yet.

When the box(es) of my books actually arrive, and I can hold them in my hands and smell them and turn the pages, THAT'S when I'll feel the excitement. So, I sit at my computer with my ear tuned for the USPS/UPS/FedEx trucks. (I don't know how Five Star is shipping the books to me.) It's a competition between the dog and me as to who gets more excited when the trucks come up the street. ;)

Today, my hubby and I have been working on my email newsletter and my "I'm A Real Basket Case" buttons (idea courtesy of Diane Mott Davidson). I also made an appointment for a luncheon interview tomorrow with a reporter for the local "Life After 50" monthly newspaper, sent information about my book for the Great Manhattan Mystery Conclave newsletter, and sent a blog update to the Mystery Lovers Corner blog.