I took a brief break from posting on my blog because of a busy and happy summer. My daughter and her husband gave birth to their first child, and Kim’s and my first grandchild, Mason William. I can’t spend enough time with him, and Kim and I playfully fight to hold him. Couple that with a nice vacation in a cabin on a lake with extended family, I didn’t have the time.
This summer, I have also been busy with various book sales and signings in various venues. I have to say, aside from actually writing, I look forward to each event. Each venue differs from the next, and even the same venue from year to year is different.
I receive the same or variations of the same questions at each event. They are:
Are you the author?
I find this one interesting. I’m not opposed to selling someone else’s books, but my picture is on some posters, and my picture is on the bookmarks and business cards. I politely smile and say yes, I am the author.
How do you come up with your ideas?
I explain the process, as Stephen King stated in his book On Writing. Two or more unrelated ideas/thoughts/events come together and I end up with a question or idea. It really is that simple. My Lives Trilogy and Prequel came from my work as a counselor and my volunteer work with the Wetterling Foundation for Stranger Abducted and Sexually Exploited children. My job was to teach parents how to protect their kids; teach kids how to protect themselves; and teach parents and caring adults what signs and signals to look for. While the four books making up the trilogy and prequel are fiction, the stories within those books came right from my work with the foundation, my work as a counselor/coach/teacher, my research using the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the FBI website and my conversations with various FBI agents and law enforcement.
The idea for Caught in a Web came right from a newspaper. On the front page was an article on the rise of fentanyl and heroin deaths among adolescents. The book was published in 2018, and the problem still exists today, perhaps even more so. A couple of pages further in from that first article was an article about MS-13 and how the gang is reaching further into Northern Virginia, where I live. The idea I came up with combined both articles into a thriller based on fact.
Spiral Into Darkness came from my background in psychology and counseling, and a conversation I had with one of my psychology teachers on nature vs nurture: are we who we are based on our genetic makeup or are we a product of our environment? The same day as that conversation, I went home and watched a Criminal Minds episode about a serial killer. The question came to my mind: is a serial killer born or is there a trigger that causes someone to become a serial killer?
My latest, Fan Mail, came from an article on the stalking of a famous actress, the stalking of a famous singer who had a stalker show up at his door, and a famous football player who found two stalkers in his hot tub when he arrived home one night. While it is common for those in the spotlight with some celebrity to have “fan mail,” I came up with the question, what happens when fan mail turns dark, ugly, and threatening, especially if the person is an inexperienced adolescent?
I think those of you who are authors come up with story ideas similarly as mine do. The other thing that happens is that the more I write, the more I get ideas to write about. The trick is to harness them and make them manageable. I keep track of mine using a note app on my phone. Some I use, while some I let percolate until I’m ready for them.
Which book is my favorite?
I will state what Keith Urban said when asked which song is his favorite. He said he looks upon each of his songs as one of his children, so it’s hard to pick just one to like better than the others. I will then describe each book using a short “pitch” or sometimes the “blurb” on the back of the book. I encourage the person to pick up a book and read it, and they usually choose by the cover. (Thank you, David King and design team, at Black Rose Writing).
I’ve found that more often than not, the person usually buys two or more books because he/she can’t decide on just one. A problem for them, but a significant benefit for me.
Where should I begin? Where in your books should I start?
I explain that the first four books are the Lives Trilogy and Prequel. I have been bundling the Prequel, Taking Lives, with the first book of the trilogy, Stolen Lives at a discount. I sell two books and they receive a bit of a price break.
I then explain that like Patterson does with his Alex Cross or Michael Bennett characters, or like Baldacci does with his John Puller character, I carry my characters from book to book. The five books that come after the trilogy are technically stand-alones, but to follow the characters and their development, it might be best to begin with the Prequel or jump to Caught in a Web, which is the first of the five stand-alones. I’ve written each stand-alone in a way that kind-of-sort-of keeps the reader current with previous action and developments in the previous books so they don’t become super lost by diving into the middle of my book catalog.
As I answered in the previous question, I take the time to explain each book using the pitch or blurb. And again, most times, the person will purchase two or more books.
You should write something on ______. A variation is: Have you thought about writing a. in a different genre? b. a collaboration with another author?
I don’t want to offend anyone, so I smile and tell them that because I read thriller-crime-mystery, I feel more comfortable writing in that genre. There are aspects of romance or comedy in my books, but only to lighten the mood, and help with setting and the situation. I explain I don’t think I have what it takes to write a romance or comedy novel. It isn’t my strength. All of my books have a coming-of-age thread running through them, which is different from most thriller-crime-mystery authors.
As for collaborating with another author, I/we would have to work out logistics and set some parameters. I explain that at this time, I’m more comfortable writing solo.
Comments and Tips
I always have something a person can take with them, even if they don’t buy one of my books. I give the person a bookmark and a business card. On one side of the bookmark, I feature a picture of one of my books, while the other side has all of the books listed along with the login for Amazon on one side. The business card contains my picture, along with my social media contact information on one side, with a cover of one of my books on the other.
I usually have a piece of candy in a big bowl for anyone who stops in to visit with me. However, when I know the weather is going to be hot and humid, I don’t have anything that will melt. You can imagine the mess, right?
To lure in the prospective buyer, I have several posters on a tripod visible. They involve the cover of the book and a short pitch/blurb and/or positive reviews of that book. If the book has won an award or two, I would include that on the poster. As a former principal, one of my graphic and digital art teachers helped design the posters, bookmarks, and business cards.
If you don’t have one, purchase a tent to enclose your set up. It helps keep the sun from burning you to a crisp and prevents rain from damaging your books and materials. Lately, I’ve used vinyl sides that clip right to the top of the tent to keep the wind from knocking over the posters and to prevent the bookmarks and business cards from blowing away.
I hope this helps you and gives you some ideas for your own events. Best of luck to you, and please let me know how it goes for you. For your convenience, I listed the books, short synopsis and the Amazon links to each of my books. I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences with your events, or your thoughts on this post. Use the comment section below. As always, thank you for following along on my writing journey.
Oh, and here is a picture of my new Grandson, Mason William! A bit proud, I will admit.
Betrayed: Two Top Shelf Awards: 1st Place Fiction-Mystery; and Runner-Up Fiction-Crime; A PenCraft 1st Place Winner for Thriller-Fiction! A Maxy Award Runner-Up for Mystery/Suspense! A Literary Titan Silver Book Award Winner! A Reader’s Ready Recommended Read Award Winner! A Reader’s Favorite Honorable Mention Award Winner for Fiction-Crime-Mystery!
Betrayed is Now Available in Audio Book, Kindle and Paperback! https://amzn.to/3AfUUpS
A late-night phone call, a missing kid, a murdered family, but no one is talking. A promise is made and kept, but it could mean the death of a fifteen-year-old boy. Greed can be all-consuming, and seeing is not believing. No one can be trusted, and the hunters become the hunted. https://amzn.to/2EKHudx
Fan Mail: New Release! A Maxy Award Finalist, an Eric Hoffer Award Nominee, and a Literary Titan Silver Book Award Winner!
A barrage of threatening letters, a car bomb, and a heart attack rip apart what was once a close-knit family of adopted brothers. Randy and Bobby, along with fellow band member and best friend, Danny, receive fan mail that turns menacing. They ignore it, but to their detriment. The sender turns up the heat. Violence upends their world. It rocks the relationship between the boys and ripples through their family, nearly killing their dad.
As these boys turn on each other, adopted brother Brian flashes back to that event in Arizona where he nearly lost his life saving his brothers. The scars on his face and arms healed, but not his heart.
Would he once again have to put himself in harm’s way to save them? And if faced with that choice, will he? https://amzn.to/3eNgSdS
Blaze In, Blaze Out: Best Action Crime Thriller of 2022 by Best Thrillers! A Literary Titan Gold Book Award Winner! A Readers’ Favorite Award Winner! A Reader’s Ready Recommended Read! A BestThriller’s Editor’s Pick!
Blaze In, Blaze Out is Now Available in Audio Book, Kindle and Paperback! https://www.audible.com/acx-promo\
Eiselmann and O’Connor thought the conviction of Dmitry Andruko, the head of a Ukrainian crime family, meant the end. It was only the beginning. They forgot that revenge knows no boundaries, vindictiveness knows no restraints, and ruthlessness never worries about collateral damage. Andruko hired contract killers to go after and kill O’Connor and Eiselmann.
The killers can be anyone and be anywhere. They can strike at any time. They care nothing of collateral damage. Andruko believes a target is a target, and in the end, the target must die. https://amzn.to/34lNllP
Caught in a Web: A PenCraft Literary Award Winner! Named “One of the Best Thrillers of 2018!” by BestThrillers.com
Caught in a Web is also available in Audio Book, Kindle and Paperback! http://bit.ly/2WO3kka
They found the bodies of high school and middle school kids dead from an overdose of heroin and fentanyl. A violent gang, MS-13, controls the drug trade along the I-94 and I-43 corridors. They send Ricardo Fuentes to find out who is cutting in on their business, shut it down and teach them a lesson. But he has an ulterior motive: find and kill a fifteen-year-old boy, George Tokay.
Detectives Jamie Graff, Pat O’Connor and Paul Eiselmann race to find the source of the drugs, shut down the ring, and find Fuentes before he kills anyone else. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKF7696
Spiral Into Darkness: Named a Recommended Read in the Author Shout Reader Awards!
Would you recognize a serial killer if one spoke to you? Vincent and Shirley didn’t, and now they’re dead!
He blends in, is successful, intelligent, and methodical. So far, he has murdered eight people. There is no discernible pattern, no clues, and no leads. The only thing the FBI and local police have to go on is the method of death: two bullets to the face- gruesome and meant to send a message. But it’s difficult to understand any message coming from a dark and damaged mind. Two adopted boys, struggling in their own world, do not know they are the next targets, and neither does their family or local law enforcement. https://amzn.to/2RBWvTm
The Lives Trilogy Prequel, Taking Lives:
FBI Agent Pete Kelliher and his partner search for the clues behind the bodies of six boys left in various and remote parts of the country. Even though they live in separate parts of the country, the lives of Kelliher, 11-year-old Brett McGovern, and 11-year-old George Tokay are separate pieces of a puzzle. The two boys become interwoven with the same thread Kelliher holds in his hand. The three of them are on a collision course and when that happens, their futures grow dark as each search for a way out. https://amzn.to/34nXBH5
Book One, Stolen Lives: Editor’s Pick by BestThrillers! Literary Titan Gold Book Award Winner! A Crime Thriller finalist in the 2021 Best Thriller Book Awards!
Two thirteen-year-old boys are abducted off a safe suburban street. Kelliher and his team of FBI agents have 24 hours to find them or they will end up like the other kids they found- dead! They have no leads, no clues, and nothing to go on. To make the investigation that much tougher, Kelliher suspects that one of his team members might be involved. https://amzn.to/3oMo4qZ
Book Two of the Lives Trilogy, Shattered Lives:
The boys are home, but now they have to fit back in with their families and friends. Their parents and the FBI thought the boys were safe. They were until people began dying. Now the hunt is on for six dangerous and desperate men who vow revenge. With no leads and nothing to go on, the FBI can only sit back and wait. A dangerous game that threatens not only the boys, but their families. https://amzn.to/2RAYIk2
Book Three of the Lives Trilogy, Splintered Lives:
Three dangerous men with nothing to lose offer a handsome reward to anyone willing to kill fourteen-year-old Brett McGovern. He does not know that he, his younger brother, and a friend are targets. More than anyone, these three men vow to kill George, whom they blame for forcing them to run and hide. A fun vacation turns into a nightmare and ends where it started, back on the Navajo Nation Reservation, high on a mesa held sacred by George and his grandfather. Outnumbered and outgunned, George will make the ultimate sacrifice to protect his adoptive father and his adoptive brothers- but can he? Without knowing who these men are? Or where they are? Without knowing whom to trust? Is he prepared for betrayal that leads to his heartbreak and death? http://bit.ly/SplinteredLives
Photos courtesy of Hannah Adley and Joseph Lewis
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