I actually read a lot.

Hey Charlotte.

Phew. Okay, South Africa is not so much exotic as confused. A beautiful but fractured place with a cancerous past that impacts on the present every day. The nicest people and the coldest, capable of kindness and cruelty, of sadness and joy. A place with unbelievable potential, a first world/third world fusion that could as easily fall into the chaos of its Northern neighbour as become an idyllic example to the world. Only time will tell which.

As for my hatred of law - I hated the pettiness of it all. I hated the stream of paperwork. I hated the one-upmanship of so many of the practitioners. And don't worry, I didn't practice long enough to specialise in anything, so expressing your distaste for defence attorneys ain't no problem to me.

Hi Charlotte,
Hertford, NC is in the Northeastern corner of the state here. We're an hour away from the ocean and an hour away from the Va border. I've lived here for almost 11 years now, but my parents had moved here about 11 years before me. My kids were used to visiting their Nana and Papaw out here, and now my grandkids are used to visiting Grammy, Grandpa-pa, Nana and Papaw.

I'm actually in Va as I type this even. My middle daughter recently moved to a house out here in Chesapeake, so I'm giving her a hand with her 2 year old son Ryan, and giving her regular babysitter a break. Both my girls make sure to keep internet and computer ready for my visits. :-)

Thanks for the invite.

Not New England, New York! nice hometowns, I love the South. almost settled there, but marriage brought me here. good for you on your book successes! HOpewell? was the guy an aviator? or can't you fess up?! you gave me hope. I'm working on a novel--1/3 finished. I am basically positive, but then I can get shot down and feel i'll never get it published. what's the coping advice Charlotte? can you give me some? thanks!

You're not alone in feeling all alone in promoting your work. For many authors, their publishers are distributors and little more. I think I'm going to have to write a Novelist's Boot Camp - type article on Mission Essential Promotion.

We normally have both agents and acquisition editors (and current and former cops as well) attend LIMCON. C'mon up for the conference-- Chicago in February will make you appreciate why you live in Florida, hurricanes or no hurricanes!

Thanks for that. with success I guess comes that sort of stuff(you never thought of before)! i understand what you mean. it's a very complicated thing this publishing business--even after you make it--there's bills and expenses. wow. but book signings! you go girl!

I will out of town 13th - 16th doing what writers do. (promotion) Be back in service on the 17th.

Hell, Charlotte, we've just about reached the end of the lonnnnnnngest winter I can recall. I mean, it's not winter in the sense of snowdrifts up to the eaves and such, and the temp doesn't get much below 8 centigrade. But the rain...holy potted plants, batman, has it but rained. Still it seems we're over the worst, the sun's shining and the mood's lifting. Light out of the grey at last.

As regards the scriptwriting - I've worked on everything from sitcom to sci-fi, from straight drama to police procedurals. Nothing you'd've seen in the States (a sci-fi show I wrote on – Charlie Jade – aired in Canada (as well as various European and Asian countries) but was apparently considered to avant-garde for the American market). The South African shows are far more amateurish than most international fare and given our limited budgets and such, that’s not surprising. But several shows I’ve worked on have won/been finalists in the International Emmies, at BANFF and the Rose D’Or in Switzerland, so we’re getting there. I still dream of making it internationally, of course. But for most, success is not an overnight thing. So there’s still time…tick-tock, tick-tock…

How could I have over looked you were a sheriff? Holy moly! Have you made yourself your own heroine? A southern belle who solves mysteries? that sounds so cool.

I see thanks! If I knew what you did, though I'd have my hero a heroine! actually, I'm biased because the novel i'm working on my private eye, circa 1940's is a lady. no southern Belle she, however, this is a tough (if cultured) New York City babe!

Hi Charlotte,
Yes, it's beginning to show signs of fall here already, and I'm really enjoying the lack of noise from the AC being OFF finally. The bill was getting unreal, and I am so READY to stop being a feeding treat for these monster mosquito's around here. *OUCH* We live right between the Perquimans River and the Albemarle Sound (less than a mile in 3 directions from my front door), so they can really be right violent at times. Just trying to get the mail from my box can be a chore, if I don't add some blocking agents.

I haven't gotten up to the Q on Sue Grafton's latest book yet. Sad to say, but I lagged for so long on J, that I haven't begun "K is for Killer" yet. I've bought it, with the N and O, Might be missing the M, and not sure on P either, but I'll get there.

I went to your site again tonight, to see if I'd been there before or not. I did remember checking it out earlier. I have clients that do their sites with the Front Page Extensions, but it's not a tool I'd ever want to mess with myself. You did really well with getting quite a bit done with it though.

How was your flight back? Hopefully you didn't have any problems with the storms that passed recently. We had a lot of wind today, but it wasn't near as bad as the rains and winds we were having for a few days before today.

Phew! Coming back from the airport on Sunday, the 16th, we drove right into the middle of a tornado. My husband and I saw it form in the sky and come to earth. (In southwest Florida, the land is so flat, you can see forever) Tired to miss it by going around it, but still managed to catch the edge. I'm still trying to get over Hurricane Charlie. Would someone please tell me why I continue to live here?

*WOW* Charlotte,
Sounds like you had a really intesting homecoming with witnessing that storm so close. I used to hate the ones we saw in Texas when growing up on visits there. Tornados can be so unpredictable, and don't always offer any warning. Living here with the hurricane threats, isn't always exciting, but at least we usually have some kind of warning, and can get get out of harms way.

It's surprising to me, to find as many people that fear the cost of getting a site designed, compared to the quick-fix tools on the web. Kind of like opting for me to repair my car b y buying the manual and trying to understand the lingo used in there. I know where the gas goes, and can usually find the dip stick and oil tank (if it's marked with the word on top), but the rest is pretty much greek to me. *HA*

The point being, that some people can take the manual and do the work fine, and others (myelf included), would get totally lost and frustrated. You've done really good with putting together plenty of content, that's easy to navigate and find the various pages.

I'd been online for several years using the computer to communicate with people online, and it was a blessing during the time I was going through my separation and divorce. I'd been married for 23 1/2 years by the time it was over, and still had 3 teens between Va and NC at the time.

I took a trip up to Ohio with my daughters for a couple of weeks, and returned to find my newly enhanced-rebuilt computer, printer, tv, vcr, and everything else of material value had been stolen the day before. No insurance to fall back on, so everything was completely lost.

The thieves were caught, but not before they'd pawned or sold everything. They opted for jail time to avoid repaying what they took, so I had to start over. For three months, I went over to my parents and used their Mac, then took out a loan for another PC. But during those months, I used the time to learn how to create sites, so I wouldn't be dependant on any one computer ever again. Mom's Mac didn't have much space, and she only had 1 phone line for the dial up connection.

I started out wih a free account, then did tech support for other companies for several years before becoming a Sole Proprietorship and opening my own designing business. I had so much problems with hosting the site at various companies on the web, so a close friend suggesting I open my own web hosting, so I'd have a place I could trust and know how my designed sites, as well as my clients sites were handled.

Now I handle the design, hosting, and domains through different parts of my business and each has their own domains. Those are the 3 parts of any site, and the cost depends on the many choices people have on the web.

L.A.'s not a scary place, but you do need a healthy dose of street smarts to get around. The cities here have been changing. These urban pedestrian communities are all the rage and I live in one of them. I walk to the bank, grocery store, department store, coffee houses, and bookstores. The light-rail train station is not too far away but inconvenient enough that I still drive long distances. But if the traffic keeps get worse, I'll probably be found more on the train.

What's wonderful here is the food. Just this past weekend I had fresh, fresh fish tacos, authentic Kansas City barbecue, and Japanese-Peruvian food. You can find everything here.

Have you tried www.agentquery.com? It's free. keep trying and then either do it yourself or create your own press at LuLu.

Hi Charlotte! Thanks for stopping by! And you're right--I should stop obsessing about weight, but it's wonderful fodder for my mystery series character, lol!

Kathryn,
Can't wait to read one of your books. Where can I pick one up?

Thanks for adding me! I'm going to look for your books eight now.

I put your name in the search at Amazon and there is Vehicle Maintenance For Women written by Charlotte Williamson. Is that you, too? I found the others. They're in my cart waiting for the next time I order something.

Yeah, I suppose I am a deep thinker . . .

Takes one to know one.

RE: my name
"Pari" is Farsi. You were right about Noskin; it is Russian. And "Taichert" is German. I'm one confused broad.

Charlotte, my books have been out in ebook format for several years, with a small publisher based in Lake Tahoe. He's made a deal with an audiobook producer/distributor as of late. The audiobook process goes like this; in a studio, someone with a resonant voice--an actor or professional announcer, one supposes, reads the book, and the taping is converted into *.mp3 format (as far as my own works go, in this instance) and are packaged in attractive CD format, somewhat like a movie DVD. They retail for $15-20.00, so royalties are rather larger than for a book or ebook, which is nifty. Audiobooks are currently 25% of the reading market, I have learned, so yes it is quite an exciting time for this to be happening.

I have no agent; my publisher and I discuss everything, mano a mano, albeit long distance--via telephone or email; he's great, and yes he does all this without being asked.

Hi there, Charlotte,
I'm not an agent; I just interview them -- and editors -- for The Third Degree. I've had three agents (the third is a charm, I think) and there's much debate about whether they're necessary. For me, right now, I'm glad to have one.

Charlotte...Nice to meet you. I have to say, per your initial comments, I never thought of George Pelecanos, Walter Mosley, Ruth Rendell, Dennis Lehane, James Lee Burke, etc. as "sorta cozy," but to each his or her own interpretation, I guess.

Hi Charlotte. I'll do my best to explain, being fairly new also. Blog carnivals are, in general, blogs that collect articles (or other types of contributions) from a wide variety of sources, typically devoted to a common theme. Some of the carnivals are "traveling", meaning that they are hosted by different people each time (or at least some of the time), and these people pick the entries to be included each month (or whatever the interval is).

There is actually a site called blogcarnival.com that lists many carnivals (and how to contribute to them), but it is a general term and carnivals can be found all over the place (stlboggers.com, a St. Louis group, has one a month). I still can find these things a little confusing, but I've had a few articles posted successfully. It is another way of identifying people of similar interests (as CrimeSpace does very nicely).

Here is the text from the latest St. Louis carnival solicitation (St. Louis bloggers only, but it may give you a feel for the process; the permalink is the link to the specific post you are contributing from your own blog rather than to your blog's main page):

STLBloggers Blog Carnival #4. Thanks to TransylvanianDutch for hosting Carnival #3. The Carnival Rules:

Interested STL Bloggers should write a new post on the stated theme by the specified deadline. They should then email the host at the provided email address with the following information:

1) Name of Blogger
2) Permalink URL of blog post
3) Title of Blog Post
4) URL of Blog
5) Title of Blog
6) Would you be interested in volunteering to be the next host? Yes/No
6a) If Yes – what would your theme be?

The host will then take all the submissions that meet the simple requirements of addressing the specified theme, and having been posted between the announcement and the deadline – and link to them from one post, with some annotative comments for each. This post shall be posted at StlBloggers.com, and if the host wishes, at their own blog. Participants should expect a delay of a few days between the deadline and this post.

The host will also choose the next host from the volunteers in any fashion they desire.

STLBloggers Blog Carnival #4

Host: Tara at Two Lines On a Stick

Contact: sigkap30180 at mail dot com

Deadline: Oct 31st- midnight. Email should be dated in the month of October.
Theme: Halloween- no specific question, but my "rule" for this carnival is that you must include a picture!

[posted for Tara at her request due to technical difficulties]

Posted by John at 10/9/2007 2:14:59 PM, 0 comments

Carnival of the Criminal Minds, No. 2

Charlotte, see: Started by Barbara Fister 2 hours ago here on crimespace!

Come one, come all, the second carnival is being hosted over at The Rap Sheet. with fun and adventure for all ages. See the historical noir covers! Watch Mankell the Magnificent find ways to empty

As they say, different strokes for different folks, etc. It's nice that there's something out there to suit so many varied personalities and tastes. Wouldn't life be boring if it were otherwise?

Hi Charlotte- so impressed with your publishing output!
Greetings: Just to let you know that my New Orleans noir mystery, The
Beatitudes, has received 5 starred reviews! I am donating all royalties to the New Orleans Public Library Foundation to help rebuild the public libraries. I have posted Chapter I on my blog www.beatitudesinneworleans.blogspot.com. Please read and if you like it, help rebuild a library for NOLA. Thank you Lyn LeJeune

Hi Charlotte--I've done drawings in various ways, but usually I have a certain number of books to give away and invite people to contact me. If I have more requests than books, I draw names out of a hat. It's a good way to get new readers and new friends.

I think you've got the right approach. Announce the contest on your blog. Refer them to your website. If you're a member of email groups such as DorothyL you can announce the contest on them also.

Hi - obviously I haven't visited my own profile for a while, so hadn't seen your question. Library Thing is a social network for books. People catalog the books they own (or read) and see who else has them. You can post reviews as well. I don't know how well it aids publicity - there are several million books on it - but it's addictive and fun.

LOL...not sure any of us can say 'we made it' but I sure got off to a good start thanks to a whole bunch of people. The writing community can be very generous. I've got a great first sale story on my website under the FOR WRITERS page. Thanks so much for extending your friendship. And I wish you a boatload of luck and fun with your writing.

It's always good to hear from a comrade in arms. I see that you are retired from the job...I guess I'm a glutton for punishment since I plan to work another seventeen years. That will give me forty years on the job! Unless, of course, if I can figure out a way to make a living writing books. Ha!

Charlotte, so nice to meet another sister in blue (or khaki, as the case may be) here on CrimeSpace! Thanks for the invite!

DC has more taxis driven by Iraqis than Baghdad. I guess we have freed at least some Iraqis, to be taxi drivers in the land of their choice.

Actually, I've got a cush job right now. I'm the senior investigator in line for the Deputy Chief position. I only investigate fraud and high-profile cases that involve Medicaid money in nursing homes and developmentally disabled homes. If it wasn't for the mistakes by the newer agents, I could so another seventeen years standing on my head.

If you lived here and saw the 'attitude' your sense of power might change to an awareness of sleaze. Sometimes it gets so deep you need scuba gear to survive. The town is like any town. It has its problems. Take the police. In LA the cruisers say, "To Protect and Serve" in New York they say "CPR, for Courtesy Professionalism and Respect." In DC they say "Police" Subtext; do what I say or I bust your head.

Hey Charlotte--I've been out of town doing various speaking gigs and promo stuff, neck deep in copy edits for my first 3 books and trying to finish book #4 by deadline--so I've been offline--but I appreciate your notes on my page. As for tips on writing, I always have a section on my webpage FOR WRITERS that has all my latest discoveries to share. You should ck that out at www.jordandane.com. And the biggest pressure for me never really comes from external sources. It's always inside me. But who can complain about the good fortune I've had. Writing is my passion and I love it. Sending you my best wishes, girl.

I don't really travel to sell my books. I like meeting new people and to talk about writing. I much prefer to listen, rather than talk. And I get much more out of helping others to achieve their goals. I'm blessed with the fact that my promo will come from my publisher. That leaves me with all the fun stuff. Take care and have a great holiday week. :)

Im not talking out of school, and...am. The current National Security Advisor was a fraternity brother of mine. I put him through hell week. I think it bent his mind, which happens only when a mind is bendable, as he has shown. This demonstrates that there is no correlation of intelligence with integrity, and reisistance to temptation is essential unless you want to be sucked down by the company you keep.

Charlotte, I know exactly what you are saying. Several years ago, while searching for a bad guy with an arrest warrant, the search led me to an old soccer field next to a muddy river. The banks of the river were covered with tall brush and weeds. I had just exited my police car when a bullet crashed into a chicken-wire fence that had been peviously used to keep the soccer balls from going into the river. I dropped my flashlight (it was starting to get dark and, as you know, a cop never knows where the trail will lead him or her) and rolled into a ditch. The next bullet that came from across the river struck my light exactly where I was standing! I crawled to the edge of the river and saw my guy aiming a long rifle in my direction, or at least the direction he thought I might be. I couldn't return fire because my handgun did not the the range and the weeds blocked my vision. I called for support and minutes later a Tulsa police helicopter came to my rescue. The bad guy was arrested for the warrant and attempted murder. On the witness stand the defense attorney tried to bully me. Little did he know I was very seasoned iofficer having spent many house tesifying, and I was able to turn the cross testimony around and started asking him questions about how could he possibly represent such a scumbag. The DA stepped in as well as the judge before I really got going, but it was still sweet during the brief moment. My bad guy got life without parole. In the hall after the jury trial, the defense attorney actually apologized to me and told me he followed the money. When I asked him about his morals and integrity, he said there wasn't any money in morals. I don't resent attorneys, but some should learn to develop socialistic manners and do what is right. I think they would still be able to financially support themselves, even by taking the cases that are more morally correct.

Charlotte,
Thanks for sustaining an ongoing exchange rather than an episodic, interruptable one. Better that what. Twas more than a few nights before Christmas but very busy. Finishing an ongoing novel, trying to promote "Sharshooter" now out on CDROM, chasing film producers and screenwriters for "Little Gods" and wetting my feet on op eds. Former NY Times reporter Susan Ferraro and I have a similarly cautious feeling about Hillary that seems increasingly justified. More later when the seasonal fog of frenzy lifts or freezes.
All Best,

David

David,
Ditto on the ongoing exchange. I like listening and conversing with intelligent people. Improves my vocabulary. And it sounds like you're a really busy man, too. I get out of breath just reading about your schedule.
Keep up the good work, and don't forget our stimulating conversations.

Hi, Charlotte, thanks for the comment -- I like writing 'older' heroes and heroines, I can SO identify with them 8)

Right now I'd change my weather for yours, we're due to get more snow today which means a challenging commute home for me. We've had about 10" of snow in 4 days and I'm getting bit peeved about it ....

I made a snowball for you and lobbed it at the mailbox. We've got 10" of snow on the ground and the wild turkeys in the back yard are scratching at the ground like crazy, trying to find the seeds they know are buried there. Looks like we'll have a white Christmas!

Hey there! It got to 5 above today and I thought about you 8)

The Brownie Book ("Brownies, Bodies, and Breaking the Code") is available on Amazon. My other book, "Your Saving Grace" will be available next year in print.

My other books come out first in download and then in print. If you're not familiar with ebooks, check out my web page: http://www.jayellwilson.com/efaq.htm -- I've got a whole section on ebooks and how they work, etc.

I've been pleased with my e-sales. It's like getting a bit of a bump before the books go to print. And it's helped me build a bit of an audience base, very quickly.

Wll, our cold spell got colder than expected. It got down into the forties at night. I actually have had to put on a jacket every morning to go to work. (at least for the last two mornings) I can't imagine it getting so cold as you described. It gets in the teens in north Georgia sometimes, but that's rare. The temps here in southwest Florida lately have been record settings. I have to turn on the hat once in a blue moon, but mostly we leave our AC on all year round.
I've been reading more and more about ebooks. You think that's the way to go? I'm checking out your website now, to get more information.