A New Box Set and an Upcoming Event!

Happy August!

        I hope you've all had time to enjoy the wonderful weather and take a break from the ordinary. I was lucky enough to get to go away for a week and enjoy the shores of Lake Huron, some beautiful sunsets and the company of my wonderful other half. I also spent time writing while he fished and puttered around on the property.

Book #9:  I’m in the process of renaming and revising my Thistlewood Mystery. Why? Because I’m planning to publish it with my Canadian publisher and want to find a Canadian location! All of my books to date have been set in the U.S. which was supposedly an easier sell. While that may be true, I’ve decided to take a sharp turn North and am looking for a similar location to the one I wrote about A.J. Cadell for her new mysteries. This one will be released in early 2020!

Book #10:  This one has a name, Dead Without Shame. Yup, Gilda Wright is back for Book 4! This time, she is grading for her Brown Belt in karate, finding the killer of a store clerk at Happy Harvey’s Hangover Hut, and figuring out ways to avoid her mother who has come to visit thanks to her fairy godfather Gary del Garda.

Novellas in the works! Another work in progress, I am puttering with the idea of self-publishing a series of novellas featuring a character I introduced in an anthology no longer available, Cozy Christmas Capers. Audra Clemmings will return to print soon as well. Stay tuned!!

I also have some great news!  The first three books in my Wild Blue Mysteries is now a BOX SET!  Woohoo!  You can purchase it through this link!

Packham is like some small town time hadn’t only forgotten but skirted around on tiptoes.
It’s also where Danny Walker got his start.
The same place he’s being dragged back to along with a reluctant Leo Blue, his partner at
the Wild Blue Detective Agency.

Packham is home to a bookstore lady on the run from the mob,
a mystery writer determined to get herself killed,
and a sexy baker with a secret life she would rather forget.
All three women are enough to keep Danny and Leo on their toes
—and on the verge of nervous breakdowns.
 

So what will the rest of summer bring?

For me:

·       Doing some crazy decluttering.

·       Getting my youngest off to college.

·       Finishing A.J.’s novel to send off to my publisher.

·       Writing both Gilda’s story and Audra’s novellas.

·       Getting organized both at work and at home for fall, which will be very busy!

·       Advertising a new event…. A Mystery Panel coming this September!

Have an amazing day!

Diane

February Round Robin Blog Fest

GOOD MORNING!!

Welcome back to another episode of:

My apologies for disappearing for the past couple of months, between getting Book 2 done for Gemma Halliday Publishing and a few other things, I've pretty much been hiding in a cave! I promise you, the results will be worth it!

If you are unfamiliar with the Blog Fest, grab a cup of tea and sit back to jump from author site to author reading their answers to the question: If you have (or even if you don't have) a bucket list, what top priority thing(s) do you want to accomplish?

This made me think of the movie The Bucket List, which I thought was very funny and stirred both my mind and emotions. Aside from the movie, I've been thinking about this question a lot lately. Every January in karate class, we set our goals for the year. The three basic ones include: Something karate based, something personal, and one other. This year, like every year, my goals include earning my next belt and getting a book published. I'm proud to say I exceeded my goals for last year. I had three books published, ran two 5km events, and earned my blue belt. This year may be a little more difficult.

This year's goals include earning my brown belt, publishing two more books and losing 20 pounds - sorry, Letting Go of 20lbs. With one book already off to my agent for submission to Gemma Halliday Publishing, I've started the fourth book in my Wild Blue Mysteries series for my other publisher Books We Love. I'm also at work on a short story for Gemma to put into an anthology this summer and we are doing a revamp of my Yin-Yang series to give it a different vibe and reach a wider audience. 

Eventually, I would like to start a whole new series of books once the Wild Blue Mysteries are done. The characters and settings are already waiting in the wings!

The physical side is where I'm running into trouble. Last year my goal was to run a 5km race. I ran one and ended up walking one. Something in my body has held me back to the point I struggle to walk some days and am in pain most days. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a whiner by any means. I've still done karate and yoga classes up until karate became too painful. Yoga helps alleviate the pain, but only for a while.

On the upside, I've been to my doctor. I have an anti-inflammatory and have had vial after vial of blood taken to find out what's going on. Then I can get my goal to become a black belt (eventually) back on track!

From here, you can jump over to visit Victoria Chatham and see what she's written on her list! Below is the list of all the writers on our tour. Feel free to check them all out and show them some love!

Stay warm,

Diane

Skye Taylor  http://www.skye-writer.com/
Fiona McGier  http://www.fionamcgier.com/
Marci Baun  http://www.marcibaun.com/
Diane Bator  http://dbator.blogspot.ca/
Victoria Chatham  http://victoriachatham.webs.com/
Anne Stenhouse  http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com/
Beverley Bateman  http://beverleybateman.blogspot.ca/
A.J. Maguire  http://ajmaguire.wordpress.com/
Rachael Kosnski  http://rachaelkosinski.weebly.com
Geeta Kakade  http://geetakakade.blogspot.com/
Kay Sisk  http://kaysisk.blogspot.com
Connie Vines  http://connievines.blogspot.com/
Judith Copek  http://lynx-sis.blogspot.com/
Rhobin Courtright  http://www.rhobinleecourtright.com/

A Summer in the Life of...

Run or Dye Toronto 2014

I'm a bit laid up this summer. I've pushed so hard to do a 5km run and my Blue belt grading in karate, that I've injured my knee. A minor thing that a bit of rest will help, if I can sit still. In the meantime, I'm embarking on a new venture! Not only am I actually updating my own blog for the first time in...I've offered to do blogs for my publisher Books We Love on their blog page http://bwlauthors.blogspot.com/ starting this week on July 3.





What else is in store this summer? A few trips to the beach, a lot of walking, and an awesome retreat weekend with girlfriends!
With The Bookstore Lady and The Mystery Lady published and for sale, it's been nice to take a few days to sit back and enjoy Canada Day and my family. It's easier to take a break when Book #3, The Bakery Lady, is DONE and off to my beta readers! After a few days of forced rest, my brain is churning with ideas for Books #4 and 5.

As for Death of a Jaded Samurai, my agent Dawn is still seeking a publisher. Keeping my fingers crossed for some wonderful news this summer! Watch for more updates!