December 2009 Blog Posts (152)

Road to Paradise by Max Allan Collins

Over the last ten years or so, work, life in general, and work has required me to move around a lot, and sometimes, as you can imagine, things get lost in the shuffle. One of those things was a book I bought in 2005 and only recently discovered that I had never read. That book was the third in the "Road" series by Max Allan Collins, one of the prose sequels to the "Road to Perdition" saga that began with the famous graphic novel of the same name.

So I set aside other reading material… Continue

Added by Brian Drake on December 18, 2009 at 11:05am — No Comments

Book deal: Coffin rides again!

So, it looks like we've finally settled on a workable deal with SM/M to do the third Frank Coffin mystery--either Fire Season or Hurricane Season. It's a modest advance, but for a single book rather than two (good news for me: I was reluctant to tie up the next four years of my writing life in one contract), and with a deadline I'm pretty sure I can handle. It's great, too, because I won't have to teach freshman English for a whole year--woo hoo!

Added by Jon Loomis on December 18, 2009 at 9:26am — 19 Comments

Holiday viewing and writing

Check my blog to see how my favorite Christmas movie inspired a short story – Then tell me what YOUR favorite Christmas film is. - http://ascamacho.blogspot.com/

Added by Austin S. Camacho on December 18, 2009 at 6:09am — No Comments

I can't help it . . . but look at this new cover of mine.

Yeah, it's my fantasy series again. Book two entitled Roland of the High Crags: Treacherous Brethren. This is the artwork for it. Two brothers (Jesus and Javier Carmona) from Madrid, Spain are doing the artwork for me. My ideas--their talent. It's a great combination.

Yep, I'm paying for the artwork. Which is okay by me--these two are highly talented and highly affordable. So if you're into needing a cover design, I'd recommend these two.

Go to the Roland page on my… Continue

Added by B.R.Stateham on December 18, 2009 at 3:26am — 1 Comment

The Mighty Tiny Tim: In Praise of the Short Story

I guest-blogged on The Stiletto Gang's website on December 17, 2009:

Recently, I had the good fortune to have two short stories included in anthologies. So when The Stiletto Gang (I have to work that name into one of my mystery novels) offered me the chance to guest blog for them, I decided to try and write something in praise of the short story.

Considering the season, I was not surprised when the image of Dickens’ Tiny Tim came to mind during my brainstorming. Not… Continue

Added by Vincent O'Neil on December 18, 2009 at 3:20am — No Comments

Edited Highlights of 2009 - a busy and interesting year

At this time of the year I like to look back over the year's major writing achievements and activities (before looking forward to the coming year) so I thought I'd do a quick round up of all that has happened regarding my writing in 2009. I hope it doesn't bore you, but if it does you can always click off.

February 2009

The Suffocating Sea, the third Inspector Andy Horton marine mystery crime… Continue

Added by Pauline Rowson on December 18, 2009 at 12:51am — No Comments

My Own Personal Jesus

http://mitziszereto.com/blog/my-own-personal-jesus/

Added by Mitzi Szereto on December 17, 2009 at 11:30pm — No Comments

What is Your Physical Price?

Okay, here's a question: in what physical way do you pay for being a writer?

Me? Right now, two very irritated ulnar nerves, but it varies, and variety is, after all, the spice of life!

Added by Peg Herring on December 17, 2009 at 10:12pm — 2 Comments

Ny novella has been released!

My science fiction thriller novella, THE EPSILON ERIDANI ALTERNATIVE, has officially been released from Virtual Tales and is available for purchase. The short blurb is:

What would you do if you were confronted with a "kill or be-killed" scenario? What if that meant that you had to kill an infant of an alien species to save your own life? And what if the future of the human race depended on your decision?

paperback ISBN-13: 9781935460138, $9.95

eBook ISBN-13:… Continue

Added by Beth Groundwater on December 17, 2009 at 2:45pm — 2 Comments

Fantasy Book Giveaway - The Cry of the Marwing, K.S. Nikakis

Allen & Unwin have been incredibly generous giving us 3 copies of The Cry of the Marwing to give away.

No geographical restrictions on this one - but more details (and how you enter the draw) at:

http://www.austcrimefiction.org/feedback/The+Cry+of+the+Marwing

Added by Karen from AustCrime on December 17, 2009 at 10:48am — No Comments

Thriller writer Tom Grace on BLEEDER

"Bleeder is an intelligent, deftly written mystery that offers a skillful blend of reason and faith. John Desjarlais skillfully combines a wounded scholar, a stigmatic priest, and Aristotle himself in a fascinating tale of a death that's either a miracle or a murder."
Tom Grace, author of "The Secret Cardinal"

Added by John Desjarlais on December 17, 2009 at 4:35am — No Comments

Piling On

Okay, I'm griping about newscasters again, and I know it isn't fair. They're somewhat extemporaneous and we have our leisure to analyze their words. But didn't anybody take a class in public speaking?

The one that set me off last was "Minimally, he will receive a sentence of no less than ten years at the very least."

And maximally, I will be throwing up no more than ten times at the very most.

Added by Peg Herring on December 16, 2009 at 10:20pm — 1 Comment

Review - Forbidden Fruit, Kerry Greenwood

Book Title: FORBIDDEN FRUIT

Author: Kerry Greenwood

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Copyright: 2009

ISBN: 978-1-74175-982-2

No of Pages: 301

Book Synopsis:

Corinna Chapman, owner of Earthly Delights, detests Christmas. The shoppers are frantic and the heat oppressive. Neither of which this perfect size 20 with a genius for baking breads finds congenial. She's dreaming of quiet, air-conditioned comfort but instead finds herself dealing with a… Continue

Added by Karen from AustCrime on December 16, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

Flash Fiction Challenge

Dan O'Shea ia hosting Crash and Burn - The Steve Weddle Memorial Airport Flash Fiction Challenge over at his blog Going Ballistic. Links to all entries can be found there. It's a good group.

My entry, "Shoeless Joe" is on my blog.

Added by Dana King on December 16, 2009 at 6:30am — No Comments

The Kult optioned for film

From the Leucrota Press blog: "Gharial Productions has just optioned movie rights to Shaun Jeffrey's The Kult.

The screenplay, adapted from the novel by Danielle Kaheaku and Robert Hunter, went into negotiations in the middle of November with Gharial Productions and has finally come out with a solid contract offer and acceptance by Leucrota Press.

Gharial Productions is an emerging movie and film production company based in San Diego, California, and is currently working… Continue

Added by Shaun Jeffrey on December 16, 2009 at 1:50am — 4 Comments

HECTOR LASSITER SPEAKS

I've just posted an interview with actor Tom Stechschulte, the voice of Hector Lassiter in Recorded Books' unabridged versions of my ongoing series. Tom also reads the Cormac McCarthy books, and titles by James Lee Burke and James Ellroy, among many others. There's some interesting stuff on strategies for creating character voices, on dramatic reading and the recording… Continue

Added by Craig McDonald on December 15, 2009 at 11:00pm — No Comments

Who Loves Ya, Baby?

Jeff Marks' book, INTENT TO SELL, was my constant companion for several months when my first book was contracted. I'm sure there are other good tools out there, but that one, subtitled "Marketing the Genre Novel" was a good starting point for me, minimizing my newbie mistakes as much as possible. The most valuable thing I learned, (and the news is everywhere but I just needed to absorb it) is that nobody cares about your book more than you do.

A few more people care about HER… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on December 15, 2009 at 10:35pm — No Comments

Social Media and the Arts (with corrected link...)

Canadian Crimewriter Jill Edmondson (Debut novel: Blood And Groom) was gracious enough this week to host my guest-blog on the topic of social media and its effect on today's artistic community. Drop in, and please feel free to leave a comment!

Added by Donna Carrick on December 15, 2009 at 10:24pm — No Comments

Another Cool Review

I like to share feedback I get on my novels. Today I want to introduce you to Charlie Cook

Charlie is a retired college professor who read my first adventure novel, The Payback Assignment, and wrote to tell me how impressed he was with the research I’d done for the book. Much of the info on locations is from personal experience, but I appreciate a fan noticing the little details. He also said Felicity O’Brien reminded him of the blond thief in the show “Leverage”. While I see… Continue

Added by Austin S. Camacho on December 15, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments

Free Book Promotion & Marketing Websites

Check out my e-How article about online book promotion:
http://www.ehow.com/how_5550113_promote-book-online.html

You can also visit my blog for a list of free promotional websites:
http://onlinebookpromotion.blogspot.com/

Added by Katherine Angela Yeboah on December 15, 2009 at 5:32pm — No Comments