Sunday, November 3, 2013

Best of Mystery/Suspense Novels



Like most writers, I'm an avid reader. Whenever I'm waiting in line at the grocery store, I pass the time by reading everything from the cashier's name tag to the names of candy bars and other products placed near the registers so that customers will make impulsive buys. Other than the occasional candy bar (okay, more than occasional), I'm not tempted to buy any of their gadgets; I just read their names. I read at the dentist's office, I read at stop lights, everywhere. And, although I do sometimes read a magazine article or a non-fiction book (mostly for research for my books), by far, the majority of my reading is fiction. Make that Mystery/Suspense novels.

In the past couple of years, I've read some wonderful books by small press authors. As a small press author myself, I realize how hard it is for us to get publicity. The authors published by the Big Guys get all kinds of press. And, they often get to go on tours across the country to promote their books. Some even advertise on TV. Needless to say, that kind of publicity takes some bucks, money that small presses simply don't have. It's quite a dilemma for small press authors. So, what's the answer?

It's called "shameless self-promotion" and we small press authors, whether we're comfortable tooting our own horn or not, MUST do it if we want anyone, other than our closest friends and family members, to read our books. Which brings me to the purpose of this post. To acquaint my blog readers with the list I've created on Shelfari: Best of Mystery/Suspense Novels published by small presses.Yes, my two books are on the list. See what I mean about shameless self-promotion? But, seriously, every time I read a book by a small press author that I really enjoy, I add it to the list. So, if you're looking for a good mystery, look no further.

I sincerely hope you'll check out the list and, if you like what you see, that you'll click the "Recommend" button on the site and tell your friends about it. If you haven't joined Shelfari yet, it's a very simple process and I know you'll be glad you did. Here's the link:

http://www.shelfari.com/Best-Of/10560/Best-of-Mystery-Suspense-novels-published-by-small-presses

Happy Reading!

12 comments:

  1. Pat,

    You're correct about this. Those of us who don't have the distribution and publicity departments of the large publishers to back us need to publicize our own books that are published by Independents which tend to be small companies with limited finances.

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    1. Jacquie, if only we and our publishers had the advertising dollars James Patterson does . . . . :)

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  2. Pat, You hit it right on the head. If we don't do something, no one else will. Shameless? Yes, but necessary. Love the Shelfari list, and thanks for including me on it. And, yes, your books should definitely be on the list.
    Marja McGraw

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    1. Marja,
      I was happy to include you on the list! I love your Sandi Webster mystery series and your Bogey Man mysteries.

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  3. Great post! Besides reading at the places you mentioned, I'm also an avid people watcher...always on the lookout for traits for my next characters :-)

    I will definitely go check out the Shelfari site and shelf you mentioned.

    Thanks

    Nicole

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    1. Nicole,
      Thanks for stopping by! I'm so glad I created the list. I now have 66 books on it and I plan to keep on adding more.

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  4. I'm just so happy you're such a go getter and have created this list for small press authors. Thanks for your generosity.

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    1. Lesley, I enjoyed reading each and every book on the list, including yours, and I want to share them with the world! (Don't forget, my books are on there too.) LOL

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  5. Shameless promotion must be done no doubt about it. The key is to do it discreetly. Great thing you are doing here and I appreciate it.

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    1. Fancy we should meet here today, Chris. I just added "Gray Ghost" to my Best Of list on Shelfari. I enjoyed reading it!

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  6. As an author published by a small press, I salute you, Patricia! Thanks for putting my novels on your Best Of list on Shelfari.

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  7. My pleasure, Evelyn. I love your books!
    I was just thinking that we might get the word out about the list if the featured authors would "share" my post about it on FaceBook. Just a thought.

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