AI SLOP AND LOL

 I'm in good company with authors getting AI-spammed offers of amazing promotional deals or co-authoring with James Patterson or Stephen King. This one made me laugh out loud. I did not write a Christian book. Nothing against books that hinge on religion or religious concepts, but getting this "offer" affirmed my decision to have my book cover of THE TROUBLES redesigned.

Hi Connie,

I'm Pastor *** with Kingdom Marketplace Shop and the Kingdom Marketplace Podcast. We sit down with Christian authors and Kingdom-minded business owners to shine a light on their work and the message God has placed on their heart. Each conversation runs 20-25 minutes and is recorded from wherever you are, so there's no travel involved.

I'd love to feature you as a guest.

We'd talk about your journey, the story behind your work, and how you're building it on Kingdom principles, then share it with listeners across the Kingdom Marketplace Podcast and the Kingdom Pastor's Heart Channel.

There's one more thing I'd like to put in front of you: the All Things Kingdom Conference on Saturday, November 14 at the Stafford Opera House in Columbus, Texas, presented by the Kingdom Marketplace Podcast. We have a limited number of vendor tables and sponsor packages available for Kingdom-minded businesses, and general admission tickets go on sale October 1.

If either opportunity interests you, just reply to this email and I'll send over the details and available recording times.

Be blessed,
Pastor ****
Kingdom Marketplace Shop

Here's the original cover. It served its usefulness in bringing attention to the book and The Jessica Trilogy series.

EVENTS FOR FALL 2026

I realize I've missed posting about some of my events earlier this year, but here are a few places you can find me this fall.

Desert Sleuths has a virtual conference and I'm moderating a panel on Sept. 19 on Criminology and writing. 

 

I'm In Conversation with Peter Swanson at the Ipswich Country Club on October 8. It's open to the public and registration is encouraged.

 

Crime Bake is November 6-9. Three days of craft. I'm not sure where else you could go to a conference and get three days of panels plus hotel for less than 1K. Sarah! Hubby and Son can prowl Boston while you sharpen your prose. You don't have to be writing crime to get a lot out of this. And Beth? It's in your backyard!

 

Then, on November 14, I'm in Rye with Edith Maxwell for a fundraiser. P.E.O. (Philanthropic Educational Organization) Chapter R-NH is part of a larger not for profit international organization providing scholarships, loans, and grants to women’s education. Info on the organization is here: peointernational.org 
It will be held at the Rye Congregational Church, Rye, NH.  From 11:00 to 1:30.

 

Oh, and October has me at Bouchercon in Calgary (panels and launch) then Banff then Lake Louise then....Well, you get the idea.

 

REDISCOVERING TERRIFIC REVIEWS

I'm luxuriating in a benefit small, independent publishers can offer: I'm updating the content and covers of my trilogy.

When I talk with friends who have had the privilege of being published by a large press, they are certainly thrilled at their success, but cringe at what's Out There in their name. One remarked that they felt like they were reading a first draft. Their writing chops had strengthened over the years, and although they still love their story and characters, they would love to revisit their writing and update how they unfolded their tale.

I really dug into my books, and a few surprises awaited me!

The Charity was my first endeavor in writing fiction and the first of The Jessica Trilogy. I had written pieces for Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Nature, and other outlets, and knew how to weave a narrative. But revisiting Charity, I realized how much I had grown as a writer. I have a lot more confidence in my abilities and in my readers. I was able to condense passages and add brush strokes of detail that made my story shine. Today's readers want their story to come at them at a faster clip, and I was happy to oblige them.

Readers of my first book asked me what happened to the characters. I had the answers, and their questions drove me to write The Troubles. 

I realized (huffs nails) that I had a pretty darn good story on my hands.

Even as I was renewing my writing, I noticed more five-star ratings on Goodreads. I guess that what irked me as an author didn't bother my readers at all!

I rediscovered reviews, too. One review in Horse Nation really took me by surprise as I'm not sure I ever saw it. It was published the same day my father died, so I forgive myself for not bird-dogging the blogs and reviews. It was for The Wake, the final installment of the trilogy. How could I not have remembered a review with the headline "A Thrilling Adventure, A Literary Bombshell."

I mean, COME ON!!

So, yeah. I'm super thrilled with this refreshed trilogy.

I think you will be, too.

The Author Ladder: Triumphs, Rejections, and the Real Climb to Publication

On my journey up the Author Ladder, I'm often asked about triumphs and mistakes, swings and misses.

The Author Ladder? 

Image by Pheladii of Pixabay

Yup. From the idea that pushes against the sides of your skull until you finally let it escape to the page, to the lofty heights of best-seller lists and movie deals, every accomplishment, no matter how small, is another rung upward. 

The trouble with that ladder is the very top can feel impossibly far away, shrouded in mist. Sometimes the rungs are so close together you hardly feel your progress. Other times the upward stretch feels too far, too hard to reach.

And then there are those slippery rungs that crash you back to earth.

So, when I'm asked about triumphs, I hesitate. Inside, I feel like I'm on a kitchen step stool and having a hard time managing even that. 

Then I take stock of my journey. I realize I am farther along than I thought and having a lot of fun along the way. I feel the progress in the questions people ask me, the outreach I get, the way others see what I sometimes can't see in myself.

I've been the invited moderator of literary festivals and conferences. I've interviewed NYT best-selling authors for fundraisers and major events. My books have received glowing reviews--maybe not from People Magazine or Publishers Weekly, but from respected publications that target a large segment of my readers. My stories appear in Anthony Award-winning anthologies, and my novels have won industry respect.

A recent guest appearance on a popular author blog has been getting a lot of attention, too. And I'm always thrilled when an emerging writer, someone with an idea buzzing in their head, asks me to take a look at their first chapters. 

I have a new novel on submission with publishers now. The rejections make gripping those rungs just a little harder, but they also let me know I'm on the right track. 

SERIOUSLY? LONG TIME, NO SEE

I was kinda shocked to see I haven't posted in over a year. 

Hiking in NH with a buddy

What's wrong with me? Am I okay? What's taken me so long?

Yes, I'm okay, and I'm just a human. And as far as what's taken me away from blogging?

I have no single answer for that.

I've not marked the moments of my Writing Life more frequently because, well, Life Life was a bit much at times.

To summarize in no particular order since my last post:

WRITING LIFE:

• I moderated two crime and mystery panels at the Newburyport Literary Festival,
• Two short stories were published,
• I have a novel on submissions with my agent,
• I interviewed a famous author for a fundraising event,
• I continue to be on the New England Crime Bake conference committee,
• I enjoyed getting tipsy with my writer peeps at said conference,
• Oh, and moderated a panel at the same,
• I have a major case of agent angst,
• I interviewed a lovely cozy author for her umpteenth book launch,
• I enjoyed participating in various author/book events,
• I've received many wonderful, detailed, heartfelt rejections from very big publishers,
• I contributed to a play about caregivers,
• Oh, and my author Facebook page mysteriously and completely disappeared,
• And I have no idea how or why I pissed off Zuckerberg,

LIFE LIFE:

• My mom passed away,
• My oldest son moved to Brazil,
• Said son married a lovely woman
• I realized learning Portuguese may be in my future,
• Daughter got engaged to a man we adore,
• When middle son says, "You won't have to care for the cat. It belongs to all the roommates," he doesn't mean it,
• I love hiking in VT and NH mountains and the seashores in MA,
• My garage is way, way too full of stuff I can't politely name,
• My husband grew to really love that ornery cat,
• I learned estate battles are ugly and have weirdly unhealthy histories,
• I have incredibly wonderful friends,
• And an amazing husband,
• I am slowly rekindling my socials. 

I may add or delete some posts, but it's just life in all of its glory. 

Overall, I'm good.

And I hope you are, too.

WHEN A LITTLE MEANS A LOT

 

It has been a while since I indulged in some arts and crafts but I finally found a worthy project*. Judging by the signs I've been seeing at recent marches and rallies, I'm not alone. Parents across the country are raiding their kids' construction paper and markers. Crayons too.

And many are putting those Amazon boxes to good use, too.

As a writer, I'm fortunate to have my time be my own, yet I want to make my limited time count. But I'm just one person---a speck in a very large world. In today's cyclone of news, how can I make a difference? How can I make my voice heard?

Is being a drop in the bucket a bad thing?

An Aesop Fable tells of a thirsty crow who dropped pebbles into a bucket to raise the level of the water. The twist here is that this is rooted in fact. Take a look at this video of a crow doing just that.

I get emotional at the marches and rallies I've gone to as each has evidenced an All Hands on Deck urgency. Save Our Medicare signs were carried by folks with gray hair. Ukranian flags were waved by young and old next to the Stars and Stripes. I've seen mothers bring their young children. A baby in a stroller held a sign that read, "Nine Months Old and Already Sick of this Shit." A boy in a Harry Potter scarf declared himself "Part of Dumbledor's Army Against Trump." 

Each person was a drop in the bucket. Each raised the level of awareness and each strengthened a building wall of resistance. The signs spanned a spectrum of issues. USAID. Veterans. Education.

It's a bit ironic that one truth out of all of this is that the man in office is turning into the "Unifier in Chief" as he once declared himself. I doubt he envisioned just how he's bringing people together.

I get emotional at these rallies because there is so much at stake. Hundreds of people attended a town hall for our US representative and hundreds more were turned away as the auditorium had reached capacity and overflowed.

And that's the thing about drops in the bucket. 

*Oh, and it's a writer's thing to know that punctuation matters. It's amazing the meanings a tiny apostrophe can give.

NEWBURYPORT LITERARY FESTIVAL 2025

 

I'm thrilled to be moderating a panel of prolific and distinguished mystery authors. Join me for a lively dishing of insider dirt. Learn about inspiration and process and their favorite ways to kill people and hide a body...all on the page of course!

The Newburyport Literary Festival is celebrating its 20th anniversary with three days filled with established and emerging authors. Specific sessions, venues and times can be found on their website.

DATE: APRIL 25-27, 2025

PLACE: NEWBURYPORT, MASSACHUSETTS 

WEBSITE: Newburyport Literary Festival