Lia’s next adventure features a pair of retired greyhounds, a decrepit cemetery, and a crime spree that defies logic.
Meet Connie and Nati, two sweet girls subject to a custody dispute in the breakup from hell.
This is Wesleyan Cemetery.
As for the crime, You’ll have to wait to find out. But it all adds up to murder.
Coming in 2023
Coco and Pom Pom – In Mike’s Words:
Coco loves to be chased, and Pom Pom loves to chase. They tear after each other, running up the stairs in less than a second, and flying down the hall in a flash. Every now and then the tables will be turned, and Coco will suddenly be chasing Pom Pom. Kitty and I have so much fun just watching our little boys romp through the house. Sometimes we will pour ourselves a glass of wine and sit together on our sofa, watching Coco and Pom Pom chase each other, wrestle, play tug-of-war, suddenly pounce on one another, and playfully stalk each other. Kitty and I have the best entertainment ever, watching the boys at play. They make us feel good, and they make us laugh.
Michael Meyer
A writer of international suspense stories, Michael has also published a memoir about his journey with Coco, Pom Pom and Kitty.
EXCERPT
It is amazing how time helps. In time, I have learned to overcome my own albatross. I have learned to live again, to love again. Life is a gift reads a plaque on our dining room wall, and that sums up what I have gained from the three kitties that saved my life. From Coco, I learned to care again. From Kitty, I learned to love again. From Pom Pom, I have learned how to cope with my own demons, the effects of aging being one of these. Pom Pom has taught me to accept what is and then to move onward. Yes, I have learned plenty from my three kitties.
Find out more about Michael Meyer at: http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Meyer/e/B005E7M8CW/
Sierra and Dakota – In Sharon’s Words:
Meet two dogs that nobody wanted: Sierra, a Catahoula Leopard Dog, and Dakota, an Australian Cattle Dog/Husky mix. The Big Man Upstairs led us to them, and they now have a happy forever home. I’m not sure who is happier, us or them, because they are the best friends ever for their Humans.
I’ve got to give a lot of credit to the pet stores that host pet adoption days, because it works. We’d gone to buy dog food for our elderly dog, and the homeless dogs were positioned right outside the front door. One look at Dakota and we were hooked. She was gorgeous, calm, friendly, and did really well on the test walk that they allow you. Little did we know the havoc she was about to bring into our lives.
Her misdeeds were many, and we realized early on that this dog needed to run. Walking just wasn’t going to cut it for her breed, so we spent $4,000 to install a six-foot fence. The trouble was that the fence was only on three sides, because the fourth side was a pond.
It was her first day out in the yard, running free, and she was overjoyed. No dog could have been happier than Dakota that day. Then the neighbor came out, on the other side of the fence with his dogs, and that’s where the trouble started to brew.
His habit was to throw a tennis ball far out into the pond for his dogs to fetch. Dakota hadn’t paid any attention to the pond until she saw dogs swimming out there, and the light bulb of brilliance shined over her head.
“Hey, those are dogs out there! And I’m a dog… and they’re in the water… so… here goes nothin’!”
Before we could stop her, Dakota jumped into the water. Startled by the unexpected texture, she jumped immediately out again. We were relieved. Crisis averted. We reached out to grab her collar.
But no, once she realized that the water wasn’t half bad, and those other dogs were having FUN, she jumped backed in.
Dogs are a LOT faster than people, so if they aren’t on a leash and decide to take off, that’s it. Dog gone.
She went around the fence and up into the neighbor’s yard, where all hell broke loose. We heard dogs screeching and yowling like they were having a big dog fight. We couldn’t see through the six-foot wooden fence, and it was a long way around in the other direction. We ran as fast as we could, scared to death that we’d find her in a bloody heap on the other side.
Our neighbor had two big dogs, each of which outweighed her by double. I don’t know what happened, but when we got to her, all three dogs were okay, and the neighbor had put his dogs up in a pen. She’d had enough freedom for the day and we were able to get ahold of her easily.
That was a scary day for us. All we could think of was, “Oh no! She can’t go back to the dog pound! We promised her that she’d never see those terrifying walls again. We promised a forever home. If she takes off up the road and the dog catcher finds her before we do, she’ll think we lied. She’ll never trust us again. Or worse, they might put her down before we find her.”
So many thoughts go through your head, so quickly. Horrible thoughts, with miserable endings. We got her back safe and sound that day, but it was the first of many big scares where we feared for her life. Dakota was not an easy dog.
Four years later, the elderly dog had long since passed away and we went to the pet store for dog food. The bluest eyes looked up at us from the most serenely beautiful face, and Dakota got a sister that she didn’t want…
Sharon Delarose
Dakota’s forever home is with Sharon Delarose, author of the coffee table and Kindle books An Acre of America Backyard Nature Series and Back Yard Nature Kids which highlight all the cool animals, bugs, and plants that live in your back yard with full color photos and stories.
Dakota’s first year in her forever home is also a book with photos. Sharon also writes about extraterrestrial aliens, in both fiction and non-fiction, including Alien Nightmares, Ancient Aliens and the Lost Islands, and Fomorian Earth: Star Borne: 1.
Dakota’s book is Bad Dog to Best Friend and you can get it for Kindle, Nook, Kobo, audiobook, and even in paperback.
From bad dog to best friend, Dakota’s story takes you through her first year with us. From pottying all over the house, chewing and destruction, Dakota was transformed into a dog who could be trusted with full run of the house all day.
Don’t give up on your dog and abandon him to a shelter. You have the power to save your dog from a life of revolving doors and people who don’t want him. Locked inside of every bad dog is a good dog who just needs a bit of encouragement to come out.
You can find out more about Sharon at her website: http://www.sharondelarose.com
The Kiss: thirty-one stories in a multitude of genres, each revolving around the idea of a kiss. I can’t decide which I like best. Ben Cassidy’s farcical fairy-tale kiss? JL Jarvis’ encounter with a hunky, out-of-time Highlander? Jason Deas’ wrenching tale of a returning Vietnam vet? Colleen Hoover’s depiction of family life for her first family, Layken and Will? Jess Mountifield’s sci-fi novella about a resourceful slave who longs for safety?
I could go on and on. But I’ll just give you the links. You can get the Kindle version on Amazon for $3.99, if you are so inclined. Or you can go the Smashwords and get The Kiss in a variety of formats for free. And if you are so inclined, feel free to report a lower price to Amazon, we’d love them to price match.
Whatever you do, be sure to read my story, Kiss No. 43, it’s my best short ever.
Doing the happy dance here! I never thought I’d see #1 in the Free Kindle Store. Shot is free through Monday. If you don’t have your copy yet, click the cover in the sidebar to get yours.
BONUS: Shot is part of the whispersync program with Audible. If you own the Kindle edition, you can get the audio, with Jane Boyer’s wonderful narration, for $1.99. How cool is that?
I’m really excited about Maximum Security. It’s going to be another month before it comes out (November 21, Yikes!) and I can’t stand it, so I’m posting the first 10% here. This dog park mystery features my very own Max (yes, that’s her, above) as an escape artist (she’s playing to type). If you want to go straight to the dogs, skip the prologue and go to “Day 1.”
To get the PDF, click here > Maximum Security Sample
I hope you love it!
Here’s another picture, just because.
“What’s a platform?” I get asked this a lot. It’s a fancy name for the people interested in your work that you can sell directly to when you launch your book. It’s also the stage you need to create BEFORE you release your book, if you want to sell books the day you launch. Everyone has some kind of platform, even if it consists of your mother and your best friend.
Nick Russell is the author of Gypsy Journal (an RV travel Newspaper) and two blogs. His thousands of readers provided a platform which sent his first book, Big Lake, to the New York Times Bestseller List.
Colleen Hoover is a gregarious social media addict who makes adventures out of her life’s foibles. She has the ability to make strangers feel like friends. Before she published her first book, she had a huge Facebook following. She also has sisters and other family who banged the drum for her to anyone who would sit still long enough to listen. Slammed made it to the NYT Bestseller List and was followed by two more titles that year.
A large initial surge of sales boosts your visibility and makes success stories like these possible. Of course, you have to have a dynamite book with a professional presentation in order for that initial surge to morph into word of mouth and lasting success.
Many folks think, “I’ll just post my book on Facebook and Tweet it, and people will buy bushels of them.” Ummm . . . it doesn’t quite work like that. That ship has sailed. Now Twitter is clogged with spam, and Facebook has changed their algorithms so that it’s harder and harder for people to see the posts they WANT to see, never mind yours.
Social media is a great tool, but when you begin to think about your platform, you need to start closer to home. Identify two groups of people: the “A” group is people around you who like you and will support you just because you’re you. Group “B” is your target audience, people who will love your book. Your first goal is to cultivate Group A in order to increase your reach to Group B.
Why? Because if you go around telling people to buy your book, you are likely to annoy them. If someone else says, “Hey, there’s this great book out, you need to read it,” they are grateful. Your best marketing is done by other people.
“How the heck am I supposed to get THAT to happen?”
I know many of you are already pulling your hair out, about how you hate marketing and are socially inhibited and . . . and . . . and.
I get it. You’re nerds, like I am. I was not gregarious in school, but I figured out this nifty thing. If you want to throw a party and get people to come, get them involved first. The person who has promised to bring the potato salad (or whatever) is going to show up, and chances are, they’ll bring a friend.
Take that thinking and apply it to your book. Instead of hiding in your closet with only the light from your laptop screen to guide you, involve other people. Let your friends and family know you’re writing a book. Consult them whenever possible. Use beta readers. Poll friends about cover designs. Allow them to share in the excitement of publishing.
A friend of mine is writing a book about a tattoo parlor. I suggested she consult with a local tattoo parlor and ask if she could pattern her fictional parlor after it, maybe even get permission to use their name. If she has a good experience with them, they are going to be bragging about being in a book. They will WANT to tell people.
Many people will volunteer to help you if you already have a connection with them. The key is, you have to be authentic about this. I didn’t ask people to shout out about “A Shot in the Bark.” They did it on their own and I’m convinced they’re responsible for the modest but respectable success my mysteries have achieved.
I’m presuming you are a nice person with a positive attitude, good manners and a good book. These are musts. If your book is not great and you go around alienating people, forget it. Being shy is not a deterrent. There are people who love to adopt shy people.
“But I write Sci-Fi. Who am I going to consult?”
Look, I can’t do everything for you, you’ve got to use your creativity to figure out ways to connect around your book. There is always something. A friend of mine writes Sci-Fi and he polled people to get weird names for the new races he was creating.
Not everyone will become your cheerleader, but some will. As a bonus, they will come up with things that never occurred to you. One of my betas thinks it would be fun if a friend of hers who is fundraising for an animal rescue did a murder mystery dinner based on my books. Even if it doesn’t work out, that’s more people talking about my books.
Get out of your hidey-hole and turn your book into a group project. You’ll be glad you did.
I’m having a hard time as a reader these days. Part of it has to do with becoming an author, giving me less time to read for pleasure and making me choosier as well as more critical of the books I read. Part of it has to do with reading the same series authors since the 90s.
For many of them, their story-lines have become preposterous, or they’ve gotten lazy and they’re phoning it in. I can tell because I still reread the stories that made me fall in love with them. James Patterson has become the McDonalds of popular fiction, farming out a dozen novels every year to a variety of short-order writers.
I was thrilled when the library phoned to say Storm Front was in. Thank God. John Sandford is still a reliable great read. I was in the middle of listening to Rough Country on audio, but happy to set it aside for the new installment in the Virgil (that F-ing) Flowers series.
I usually avoid reading the inside flap on authors I like because I want to be surprised every step of the way. This time I was riding in the car with a friend when I picked it up, so I took a peek. Turns out, Virgil is in pursuit of an artifact with calamitous religious implications smuggled out of Israel. A DaVinci Code knockoff? Not your typical Flowers fare, but what the hey, it’s John Sandford.
So I cracked the spine and turned the pages and found: “I wrote this novel with help from my partner, Michele Cook . . .” and she’s a journalist and screenwriter who never wrote a novel before.
Uh-oh.
I tried, I really did. I made it to page 60, but then I had to stop. It’s not a bad book, exactly. The writing is competent. If this were a college student, I’d give it an A. Not because I wanted to, because they did what they were supposed to. But it lacks the heart that makes a great book live.
I’m sure many people will be perfectly happy with the book. It’s just that it’s not John Sandford, whose ball-scratching masculinity sweats from the pores of every word. Sandford put the “F-ing” in Flowers. This Virgil is a paper doll in comparison.
I’m sure the rest of the book is competent as well. It’s just that I feel like someone gave me tickets to see Elvis and I got Taylor Hicks in a white jumpsuit instead.
Perhaps it’s not fair of me to judge a book I won’t finish, but my time is valuable and so is yours. If you aren’t picky, and you aren’t a rabid Sandford fan, you will probably enjoy this book. But I don’t think Sandford did Cook any favors by putting his name on the cover and setting expectations so high.
You’ve been warned.
“Tell me, honestly, do these pants make me look fat?”
How many times have you wanted to answer that question with a resounding “YES! THEY HAVE ‘HINDENBURG’ WRITTEN ACROSS THE ASS! IN NEON!”
We don’t ever say it. Not if we want to keep our friends and loved ones. Our jobs. Peace with the neighbors. Tell the truth and you will be shunned. The closest we can come is a very tactful, “That’s not your best look. I like (fill in the blank) on you so much better.”
But that’s exactly what I want, need, prize in a beta reader.
What exactly is a beta reader you ask? Only the most important support person in that village it takes to get an indie book published. Indie authors cultivate a group of beta readers. These are the first people who see a manuscript, often at a point in development where it is nearly finished but not totally polished. They serve as a consumer focus group to give feedback about a book before it is published.
This is critically important to indie writer/publishers. Traditional publishing houses suffer from a huge deficit. They have a long food chain to support and they have to nurture projects that they know will sell. This results in slick, cookie-cutter books by big name authors that often play to the lowest common denominator, at the direction of their editors.
An indie author/publisher has a food chain of 1. He/she may farm out aspects of the publishing process, or an indie author may do it all themselves, editing, proof-reading, cover design and formatting. There is one thing an indie author cannot do. An indie author cannot experience their book the way a reader will.
One nifty thing about being an indie author is being able to take risks. Be different. Pursue a niche category. I don’t have to convince an editor that my book will sell. I only have to please myself and my readers. I value the beta readers who give me feedback on my books because they help me do a better job of serving my audience.
It’s hard to find good beta readers. Why? Social conditioning. The fear of hurting someone’s feelings, of offending, of damaging a relationship. So often a newbie beta reader will respond with some typo corrections and a vague “I liked it, it was good.”
While we really, really want you to love it, that response is always vaguely unsatisfying. I know I’m not perfect. I want to be better. In order to be better I need your raw, unfiltered, unvarnished response (okay, you can use a little tact and I won’t mind). I’ll pull on my big girl panties when I review your feedback and take care of my own ego.
My favorite beta reader once decided I was using a certain word too many times. She began numbering the instances in red pen, with the numbers getting larger with each instance. She added exclamation marks, first one, then two, then three. She circled and underlined. It let me know how annoying it was. I cut most of them out and we are still valued friends.
My usual method of working with a local beta reader is to supply them with a paper copy of the manuscript. If they don’t have a red pen, I will supply one. My fondest wish is that the reader use the red pen to scribble commentary as they go along.
I supply computer files for remote readers. In the best of all instances, they have full Word functionality on their device so they can add comments as they go along and return it to me with the comments included. Otherwise, they just take notes and send those back.
Go ahead, scrawl “BORING” right across that four page info dump. Lose track of who’s talking in a conversation? Let me know. Like something? You can put little hearts on it, I won’t mind. Did I put the bullet in his left arm in chapter 3 and bandage the bullet hole on the right arm in chapter 4? Point that out. If I say Lia rode west, into the sunrise, for heaven’s sake, correct me!
Does it drag? I really, really want to know that. If it drags for you, it’ll drag for other people, too, and they won’t bother to finish the book.
I know it’s hard. It’s like telling someone their fly is down. If your fly was down, and you were about to enter a room full of people, wouldn’t you want to know?
Some Hints:
1. Be a good match. Only beta books in genres and styles you like. I stopped using one beta reader because she kept pointing me at John Grisham, her favorite writer. I am very lukewarm about John Grisham and I absolutely don’t want to be him!
2. Be yourself. Don’t try to give me the “correct” response. Give me yours. I want to now what did and didn’t work for you.
3. Read for pleasure. Make comments when you notice something, but don’t feel like you have to comment on everything.
4. Don’t rewrite my book for me. That’s my job. Stick with feedback. “Too gory” “more mushy stuff,” (or “too mushy” “more gore”).
5. We want you to be totally immersed in the world we’ve created. If anything catches your attention and jars you out of that world, point it out. It could be an obvious error, weird word usage, an overwrought metaphor or something else.
6. Don’t assume I meant to do something. When I first wrote Drool Baby, I wasn’t sure if I was going to stick with the mystery format or go for a thriller format that revealed the killer early in the book. After I decided to stick with the mystery format, I failed to erase all instances of my murderers name. None of my betas mentioned it. It was published with the killer revealed a good sixty pages before the final confrontation. (It was corrected soon after, thankfully)
7. If you happen to catch a typo, sure, go ahead and mark it, but don’t search for them. I’d rather you were in the flow of the book instead. I’ve got someone else who proofreads. It’s a different mindset.
8. I may agree with you or I may not. Your opinion still provides valuable information to me.
Authors – Do you have any tips/hints for beta readers you’d like to add?
Okay, so I recently published the audiobook version of A Shot in the Bark, and Audible sent me a few free codes for my personal use. And I thought, I don’t want to give these to my friends, they are the only people I can count on to buy my stuff. And I don’t know any audiobook reviewers (if you do, please let me know!) to send them to.
So that leaves raffling them off.
If you’re wondering what I’m talking about, click on the cover below to go to Audible.com, where you can listen to the first five minutes of Jane Boyer’s fantastic narration.
Are you hooked?
I was, the first time I heard Jane’s voice on her audio samples. And you can have more than 7 glorious hours (okay, it’s actually 7 hours and 42 minutes) of Jane bringing Lia, Peter, Bailey, Anna and the rest to life.
If you’d like the chance to win a copy for your very own self, click on the link below to go to Rafflecopter.
You’ll get entries for liking my Facebook page and following me on Twitter. You can get extra entries for tweeting once a day.
The contest runs through June 29th.
If all this seems like too much fuss, you can always just surf back over to Audible and shell out 17.95. But what fun would that be?
Lia Anderson Dog Park Mysteries by C.A. Newsome 