Category: Paty Jager

Pesky little thing called research.

~ patyjag ~ 8 Comments

When I learned about an event that is held every year in the area where I set my Gabriel Hawke novels, I decided I would write a book around that event. How hard could it be to have my character, who is a Fish and Wildlife State Trooper, become involved with finding a person or a killer during a sled dog race competition?

Well… Let me tell you, now that I’ve been digging into the logistics, the multitude of volunteers, the less than 60 hours for the total of the 200 mile race, and that doesn’t even count the weather conditions, I’m starting to wonder if this was a good idea.

Map of the race

I’ve had my first interview with a person who has volunteered for this event for 20 years. She gave me some good insight into logistics and more people I will need to interview. This book won’t be ready to write for at least two more weeks as I talk to the head of technology, mushers, the race marshal, and judge.

What had started out as a “fun idea” has now blossomed into much more of a project. I can’t even start my suspect chart or decide how someone would be murdered or missing without doing all the research. There are so many uncertainties that I can’t even begin to fathom what the motive would be.

This is so out of the norm for what I normally do when writing a book in this series. By the time I’m ready to start writing the book, I have mulled over every aspect of the death, did the bit of research I needed and am ready to roll.

Now I sit, watching one more video, reading one more blog, and waiting to interview people so I can start this book. The next book my fans are waiting for me to publish. But as I dabble in the research, waiting to do the interviews, I may have to start working on the next Cuddle Farm Mystery book or even the next Spotted Pony Casino Mystery book, because my hands and imagination can’t sit idle for that long.

Depositphoto

I’ve already learned a lot that I didn’t know. Especially, about the dogs. A good mushing dog isn’t big and thick. It’s long and lean, like a marathon runner. They have high energy and stamina. The Alaskan Husky is nothing like the Siberian Husky. The Alaskan has been bred through the centuries to be fast and tough. They have a multitude of breeds in them that make them the marathoners that they are.

Now I need to learn more about the tracking of the participants during the race, the area where they sleep, and why someone, in a sport where you are dependent on one another to survive, would kill.

Chameleon

~ patyjag ~ 4 Comments

As an author, there are days I feel like a chameleon. I have to change my thoughts, my energy, and there are times it feels like my skin.

Because I’m a self-published or Indie author- I have many job descriptions.

  • Writing – The one I love and wish I could do and not worry about any of the others.
  • Editing – One that takes a different side of my brain but makes my work better.
  • Formatting – Making my story into formats for ebook and print books.
  • Producer – Getting the manuscript and pronunciations to my narrators and getting all of that set up to be produced. Then listening to the chapters to make sure the narrators didn’t miss words or used the right emotion.
  • Promoter – Finding the places that will best showcase my books and getting them out to these places as well as looking for authors who write the same type of story to try and do newsletter swaps, Oh and there’s the newsletter that needs to be written. Also making memes, (which I try to get a PA to do as much as possible.)
  • Marketing – Different bubble than promoting. Here I am figuring out what other books in my genre look like, looking for the best advertising for the book and the least amount of out-of-pocket.
  • Sending my stories to Beta Readers and Critique Partners to get feedback on the story and what I can tighten or make different to make it a better story.
  • Uploading – When the book is ready in ebook format, I upload to the various ebook vendors and aggregators. I also upload the print formats to Ingram Sparks. And I upload the audiobook to Findaway Voices/Spotify, Kobo, and Bookfunnel. I also upload the ebooks to Bookfunnel so I can add them to my website store.
  • Website store- While I enjoy having a place where readers can purchase my books directly from me with a bit of a discount to the other vendors, I made myself more work when each book comes out. But that’s okay. I want my readers to start purchasing direct. I like having the one-on-one interaction with them.

For each of these tasks there is a different mindset and there are days I can’t get up the energy to tackle some of them. I always have the energy and drive to write, but many of the other tasks, I drag my feet and reluctantly peel off my writing colors and daunt the dingy, grubby colors of making my brain work in a way, it isn’t accustom to do.

While my brain is constantly coming up with story ideas and working through the next scene or character encounter in my work in progress and the next book brewing in my head, it doesn’t like to switch over to the mundane side of being an author.

There are days I think I should just write for fun and not bother with selling it. But then I think of all the hours and years I’ve spent honing my craft, and know I need to make it a paying endeavor. Not to mention, I would have angry readers if I stopped putting out new books. I love that so many people let me know they enjoy my mysteries. They, the readers, are what keep me shedding my writing colors and doing the jobs necessary to get a book published.

Readers, you keep me writing and sharing! And makes my skin burst with bright, happy colors!

If you want to check out my books you can find them at https://www.patyjager.net

Left Coast Crime Conference

~ patyjag

This month is sneaking up on me! I thought I had all my blog posts and events for the month taken care of and “poof!” I realized I still had this post to write.

I ended last month with a book-selling event that rolled into a week at the beach with two of my best friends. It was supposed to be a working week to get the next Spotted Pony Casino book moving along. However, we ended up doing more playing than me working. But I needed it.

Agate Beach on the Oregon Coast

Then I started out the beginning of March with family things to deal with and now, in two days, I’m headed to Denver for the Left Coast Crime conference. It is one of my favorites because there are readers there and authors get to be on panels and talk about how our books fit into whatever the panel is about. Authors also get to host special events with readers. I signed up to do this, however, I noticed I’m not on the list, so they must have lost my email in the myriad of emails they get. I will host a table at the banquet with author friend Sheri Lewis Wohl. We are excited about our table decorations and giveaways!

this will be on the table I’m hosting

I was lucky to get on two panels this year. One is about Animal Sidekicks, which we all know plays into all of my mystery series. Every one of my main characters has a dog sidekick. I’m excited to talk about Sheba, Dog, and Mugshot during the panel and how they help their people. This panel is at 3:45 on Thursday. Friday at 2:45, I’m on a panel about crime in small towns. Again- spot on for my books since they are all set in small towns/rural areas. This will be another fun panel.

The conference always needs volunteers I’m helping by being a runner for a few of the panels. I did this at last year’s conference and found it an easy way to help out without having to do too much peopling.

As an introvert, these conferences take a lot out of me. I usually spend at least one session a day in my room, regrouping. Even though it makes the conference more expensive, I don’t have roommates. I need complete quiet when I go to my room at night. I feel like my ears ring for hours afterward. It takes a lot for me to put myself out there but I know that the more exposure I get, the more likely readers will pick up my books and try them.

I also enjoy talking to readers. When I can engage with them and talk about my books and what they like to read, I feel I’m gaining more perspective for what I write and how the reader perceives it. That is invaluable.

My bag is packed. I have 16 books to give away after my panels. They have either damaged covers or were printed wrong. And I have the mugs I’m giving to the people at my table, bundled in with the books and my clothes. My suitcase should be much lighter on the way home. I’m just counting down the days until my hubby takes me to the airport and I head for Denver.

If you’re at the Left Coast Crime conference, attend one of my panels and come say “hi!”

One of My Favorite Things About Writing

~ patyjag ~ 4 Comments

My favorite part about writing is learning. When I wrote historical western romance, I enjoyed visiting museums and libraries in the areas where the books were set to learn local history and to find maps of the towns. I read newspapers on microfiche to get a feel for the setting and the people. The small-town newspapers back in the 1800’s were as much gossip columns as they were filled with political news.

Writing historicals, I had to learn a lot, and I loved every minute of it. I was a nerd in school. I’d take my history, geography, and social science textbooks home even if my work was finished so I could read ahead and learn more.

Writing contemporary books, I always come across occupations or places I don’t know anything about and spend hours learning. Even if all that learning may only end up as one paragraph in the whole book.

When I write mysteries, I have to research causes of death, how law enforcement works, occupations, and settings. My horizons are always expanded when I start a new book. I’m currently researching for the next Spotted Pony Casino book, Crap Shoot. I know it will deal with MMIW (Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women) I have three articles that I’ve set aside until now to help me determine how I want to handle the subject and whether the character will be just missing or murdered. Whether it will be domestic or a stranger. So many possibilities and the research I’m doing will help me to see the direction of the story.

I’m also attending an event called- Winter Fishtrap: What is the West? Fishtrap is a gathering of writers from the West. The organization puts on several events throughout the year in the county where I grew up and where my Hawke books are set. This Winter Fishtrap has some great topics and many of the speakers are Indigenous. I’m hoping to get a better sense of that it means for them to be in Wallowa County and telling their stories from this event. To hopefully help me better articulate my character Gabriel Hawke and my character Heath Seaver from the Spotted Pony Casino Mysteries.

I first attended a Fishtrap event back in the 1980’s and quickly discovered it was more about literary writing than genre writing. that was the only multi-day event I attended. I have been in the county visiting family when they had readings and attended those with a family member, This will be the first multiday event since the 80s. I’m hoping it will be as good as it sounds.

Speaking of my Gabriel Hawke series… Wolverine Instincts is now available.

In the heart of the wilderness, the hunter becomes the hunted.

Gunshots shatter the quiet of Oregon’s Eagle Cap Wilderness, drawing Oregon State Trooper Gabriel Hawke into action. Following the sound, he stumbles upon a shredded cage, the sharp musk of a wolverine, and a dead hiker.

Tracking footprints through the rugged terrain, Hawke uncovers a second victim. It’s clear—he’s hunting a killer who’s hunting humans.

With Dog by his side, Hawke’s search leads to two brothers, one gravely injured. Enlisting the help of pilot Dani Singer, he gets the injured man to safety before returning to the wilderness.

Teaming up with a reclusive, disabled veteran who knows the Eagle Cap as well as he does, Hawke pieces together the killer’s twisted game. They suspect a poacher—one as ruthless and elusive as the wolverine he’s still chasing.

In a deadly wilderness where survival is the only rule, Hawke must outsmart a predator who knows no bounds.

Universal buy link: https://books2read.com/u/m2yARG

OR Purchase direct from the author in ebook and print from these links:

ebook link – https://www.patyjager.net/product/wolverine-instincts-ebook/  

print link- https://www.patyjager.net/product/wolverine-instincts/

First, Third, How do I choose?

~ patyjag ~ 10 Comments

I spent way too much time trying to decide if this new series should be written in first or third person. A lot of the cozy mysteries I’ve read are in first person. They stay in the main character’s point of view (POV) throughout the book.

In my other mystery books, I stay in third person for all the series. But the main character’s POV all the time in the Spotted Pony Casino books. Sometimes I add another POV character in my Gabriel Hawke books because the story needs that added POV. In my Shandra Higheagle Mysteries, I use Shandra and Ryan’s POV’s both.

This new series, I went back and forth between first person and third. So far the book has stayed in my main character’s POV. And I think I’ll keep it that way. It’s how most cozy mysteries are. But as I write, I find myself typing “I” and writing some sentences in first person. This makes me wonder if I need to go back to the beginning and start over, writing from the first-person POV.

Which do you feel is stronger?

Third Person

Andi Clark parked her van in front of the Auburn City Park where the first Christmas event of the year would kick off in an hour. People bustled around putting the finishing touches on craft and food booths. It was the Saturday after Thanksgiving and the whole county was excited to move from the doldrums of a rainy fall into preparations for Christmas.

She never arrived more than an hour before an event. Any earlier her crew of cuddles became bored and got into trouble. The committee had asked her to set up a small petting zoo where people would enter the event. She’d parked as close as she could get with the inflatable decorations and roped-off areas making the attendees follow a specific path through all the booths and over to where Santa would listen to children’s Christmas wishes.

“Come on, Cocoa, I can use your help carrying things.” Andi unbuckled her brown and white border collie from the seatbelt harness and listened to Lulu whine. Andi scratched the Chiweenie’s dapple head and black, long furry ears. “You’re too small to help me right now. You keep Athena company.” She patted the Golden Retriever/Pyrenees cross dog’s blonde head and followed Cocoa to the trailer behind the van.

 Lucky for her all her animals were small except for Athena. The large breed cross was larger than her mini donkey and pygmy goat. Andi pointed to the bucket full of the pins that held the panels together. Cocoa grabbed the handle in her mouth. Andi gathered the top two panels and carried them to the area with a sign, Cuddle Farm Animals.

First Person

Parking my van in front of the Auburn City Park, I watched people bustling around getting food and craft booths ready for the first Christmas event of the year to kick off in an hour. It was the Saturday after Thanksgiving and the whole county was excited to move from the doldrums of a rainy fall into preparations for Christmas and the possibility of snow.

I never arrive more than an hour before an event. Any earlier my crew of cuddles become bored and get into trouble. The committee asked me to set up a small petting zoo at the entrance to the event. I made my way by the inflatable decorations and roped-off areas funneling attendees down a specific path through all the booths and over to where Santa would listen to children’s Christmas wishes.

“Come on, Cocoa, I can use your help carrying things.” I unbuckled my brown and white border collie from the seatbelt harness and listened to Lulu whine. Scratching the dapple head and soft, black, long furry ears of my Chiweenie, I said, “You’re too small to help me right now. You keep Athena company.” I patted Athena, my Golden Retriever/Pyrenees’, blonde head and followed Cocoa to the trailer behind the van.

 Lucky for me, all my animals are small, except for Athena, and fairly easy to handle. Athena was larger than both my mini donkey and pygmy goat. At the trailer loaded with panels to set up a small pen, I pointed to the bucket full of pins that held the panels together. Cocoa grabbed the handle in her mouth and I gathered the top two panels and carried them to the area with a sign, Cuddle Farm Animals.

Which version makes you want to continue reading?

When I wrote my first mystery 30 years ago, it was in first person. then an agent I sent it to, told me that no one bought mystery books in first person. Which floored me because I had just read the first three Sue Grafton books that were in first person. Anyway, I moved from first person to third and on to a different genre. Now that I’m back writing mysteries, I wonder if I also need to switch to first person for this series. I encourage all thoughts and responses to this dilemma.

A fun new adventure for me, besides trying to decide which tense to use in this new series, is having my books available to readers and listeners from my website. Yes! You can now purchase my ebooks, audiobooks, and print books from my website.

The ebooks are the same price as at other vendors but if you are a subscriber to my newsletter you will be able to purchase my new releases in ebook format from my website for a $1 less and get it before it publishes to other vendors. So if you want to get my new releases at a reduced price and before they release anywhere else, you need to subscribe to my newsletter. https://bit.ly/2IhmWcm

Also available from my website are my audiobooks, which ARE priced lower than at other audiobook vendors. Because I don’t have to pay a middleman to get my audiobooks to you, you get the reward of a lower cost. Also watch my newsletter and website for audiobook deals. As part of the IAD- Independent Authors Direct- group, I will have specials on my audiobooks every two weeks.

My print books have been for sale on my website for a year now. If you purchase a print book directly from me, you get it autographed, some swag, and free shipping. You can’t beat that!

Happy New Year everyone!