Because I have two books that will be appearing shortly, plus other publishing work—I’ve been going this way and that. It’s been important to try and prioritize, not always easy.

My next Rocky Bluff P.D. mystery is due out this month, I’ve seen the cover and approved it. I’ve a blog tour coming up starting in October—so I’ve spent lots of time gathering hosts and thinking up topics to write about.

The first of the blogs are:

October 26   http://jlgregerblog.blogspot.com/  Character Development

October 27  https://lornacollins-author.blogspot.com A Sane Person Would Have Given Up

October 28   https://www.susantuttlewriters.com  Why I Love Speaking Engagements

October 29   https:amymbennetbooks.blogspot.com Where Some of the Ideas Came From

October 30  https.www.jtzortman.wordpress.com/  Rocky Bluff the Setting for Tangled Webs

The short blurb for Tangled Webs is: Too many people are telling lies: The husband of the murder victim and his secretary, the victim’s boss and co-workers in the day care center, her stalker, and Detective Milligan’s daughter.

October is a month of public appearances too. October 1, I’ll be speaking with other authors in front of librarians. On the 13^th, I’ll be at the Great Valley Bookfest in Manteca, and I’ll be on a panel at 3 about Getting Published. On the 14^th, at 6 p.m. I’ll be over on the coast with other crime writers speaking to group of retirees.

That’s not all, there is a lot going on with my Deputy Tempe Crabtree series too. The next mystery will be coming out soon too—Spirit Wind. The publisher is redoing the first five books in the series, and they’ve been reedited too, so I’ve had to go over the galley proofs for them.

Here’s a sneak peak of the cover:

At the moment, I haven’t made any special plans for the debut of that book, though I certainly will when it comes closer to time.

And in the meantime, as if I didn’t have enough to do, I’ve been working on a plot for the next Rocky Bluff P.D. mystery.

One thing about being so busy, I am never bored.

Marilyn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Many of us can look back and remember that defining moment when a person, event or experience inspired us to do what we do best. For me, it was a high school English teacher and a college professor.

I wrote my first poem at the age of five, and for months my parents hung it on our refrigerator. That was great encouragement, but as much as they appreciated my creativity and were pleased when I brought home “A”s in English, they  looked at writing as something I could never turn into a career. You can’t earn a living that way was the message I got, but when my mother died last year at the age of 92, I found poems and short stories she had kept that I had given her for birthday presents along with books and articles I had written or edited.

When I was growing up, girls in my neighborhood were expected to go to college and major in something that, after we found ourselves husbands who would support us throughout our childbearing years, we could use as a fallback when our children were grown, or if our spouses died unexpectedly. That never made sense to me, and I chose to major in English. My parents were dismayed. I did it anyway, confident I would be able to support myself when the time came.

And yes, I’ve spent my entire adult years working in jobs that required me to write, and now I’m writing fiction. Recently I’ve been reflecting on the circumstances that inspired me. And what I realized is that, in some small measure, I do what I do today because of those two teachers who had faith in me.

The first was Mr. Oshry, my ninth grade English teacher. Relatively young, he was brilliant, creative, encouraging and fun. He demanded excellence and pushed his students, including me, to do our very best. Many years later our paths crossed, and I was able to tell him how much he had influenced me.

The second was Professor Taube. He criticized fairly, praised lavishly, and championed those of us who had a passion for the written word. He also was a hugely supportive. I was in my senior year, getting ready to graduate. I already had a job lined up when my advisor informed me that through a clerical error I was one credit short for graduation. I panicked.  He suggested I contact a professor who might be willing to work with me to get that credit. I contacted Dr. Taube, wrote a thesis on the themes in the collected works of D.H. Lawrence and passed with flying colors. And I graduated with my class!

So, think of what gives you pleasure, what you excel in, and try to remember what or who inspired you. Hopefully we can show our gratitude to those who cared by inspiring others.

The current Shandra Higheagle book I’m getting ready to publish has needed many different people to make it a realistic story, not only for plot and story line, but also setting and characters.

Book eleven revisits the Colville Reservation where Shandra’s paternal family live.  Because of the setting, I had to send the story off to my friend who lives on the reservation to make sure I gave a factual representation of the culture and the setting. Thankfully, she only found a couple of things I had to fix.

I also brought in the Seven Drums religion that is having a comeback with the Nez Perce. While I used information from a book written in 1997, the elder who was quoted in the book had spent time in sweat lodges with the elders who had been in the war of 1878. He told how the Indians were made to lose their heritage and become “white”. The clergymen back then and even the Indians who became Christians banned the Seven Drums religion because they didn’t believe you should pay homage to the animals and the world around you, only to the one God.

The elder had become a Christian and later in life, returned to his roots and became a shaman who presided over traditional funerals and ceremonies.

I enjoyed learning the bits and pieces I could find about the religion and adding elements I’d discovered and put my own spin on things. Thankfully, my friend okayed my spins. 😉

Logistics, modus operandi, and discerning the victim and why they should die were other factors that made this story a lot of fun to write. I love the discovery of things as I write as well as having laid a path that can take abrupt twists.

But my favorite part of writing any story is the interesting things I learn as I research and add to my story to not only make it believable but hopefully a learning experience.

Keep your eyes peeled for Dangerous Dance book 11 in the Shandra Higheagle Mystery series.

Jealousy… Drugs… Murder…

At the reservation to make final arrangements for her upcoming wedding, potter Shandra Higheagle gets caught up in the murder of a young woman about to turn her life around.

Having no jurisdiction on the reservation, Detective Ryan Greer pulls in favors from friends in the FBI to make sure there is no delay in their wedding.

However, the death occurs in a sacred place and could place the nuptials on hold. And following the clues may not only stop the wedding…

But separate Shandra and Ryan for life.