It takes a village

Everyone knows that it takes an entire community of people interacting with children, supporting and encouraging them, in order for them to thrive. Well, the same principle applies to books. It takes a village to effectively promote a book. But what exactly does that mean?

There are over two million books published every year. Over 300,000 in the U.S. alone. Stop to think about that for a minute. Of course, that includes fiction and non-fiction and I don’t have the statistics by genre. Still, imagine how many mystery novels are released in a twelve month period. Now, picture one book lost in that sea of books. The bottom line: an author can’t successfully promote his or her book alone. We need your help.

So, as a reader, what can you do? Here are a few suggestions: 

1. If you read a book and love it, spread the word. Tell everyone you know about it. Because the most effective means of promotion is word of mouth.
2. Write a positive review on amazon and Goodreads. I know this sounds like a lot of work but, believe me, once you do it, you’ll see how easy it is. A lot of readers have the mistaken impression that writing a review is similar to writing a book report. It isn’t. One or two sentences telling what you enjoyed most about the book can make all the difference in the world.
3. Purchase a paper copy of the book you enjoyed and give it to a reader on your shopping list. An avid reader will love nothing more than receiving a book for Christmas or their birthday.
4. Follow your favorite authors on amazon and Goodreads. That way, you’ll get a notification whenever they publish a new book.
5. Take a chance on a new (to you) author. It’s fine to read the novels by Big Name authors but you’re missing out if you don’t give small press and self-published authors a chance. Not all writers can be a Mary Higgins Clark or a James Patterson but we all have stories to tell that you just might love.

The Trash Harem by Marilyn Meredith

ABOUT THE COVER FOR THE TRASH HAREM

 

Deciding what should be on a cover is always something the author and/or the publisher must decide.

Since the title of my new Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery is The Trash Harem, yes, it does refer to trash containers, the idea of one on the cover didn’t appeal.

One of the threads in the plot involves an old oak tree on property belonging to the Pechanga Indians. If you’ve never heard of this tribe of native people, they are located in the Temecula area (very southern California) and own the very popular, Pechanga Resort and Casino.

The Great Oak, called Wi’aasal, is over one-thousand years old making it the largest naturally grown, coastal live oak tree. The huge trunk is over twenty-feet around, and the largest branches touch the ground, and it is over one-hundred feet tall. This oak tree still produces acorns.

The native people revere this oak tree whose canopy sheltered many generations. It is legendary and holds spiritual significance.

At one time, the land this magnificent tree grew on belonged to the author Erle Stanley Gardner. Both the tree and Gardner play significant roles in this mystery.

The editor, Lorna Collins, and I felt a depiction of this special oak tree would be the perfect choice for the cover—and Larry Collins did a great job creating it.

Marilyn Meredith

Official Blurb for The Trash Harem:

Deputy Tempe Crabtree has retired from her job in Bear Creek when friends, who once lived in Bear Creek and attended Pastor Hutch’s church, ask her to visit them in Temecula. The husband, Jonathan, is a suspect in what might be a murder case. The retirement community includes many interesting characters, any of whom might have had a better motive than Jonathan. There is also a connection to Earle Stanley Gardner as well as the Pechanga Old Oak. What is a trash harem? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

To purchase The Trash Harem

https://www.amazon.com/Trash-Harem-Tempe-Crabtree-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B096KZDPH8/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=The+Trash+Harem+by+Marilyn+Meredith&qid=1622899167&s=books&sr=1-1

Marilyn Meredith’s Bio:

She is the author of over 40 published books including the Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery series, and writing as F. M. Meredith, the Rocky Bluff P.D. series. She’s a member of two chapters of Sisters in Crime and the Public Safety Writers Association.

Webpage: http://fictionforyou.com/

Blog: https://marilynmeredith.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marilyn.meredith

 

I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Patricia Gligor (rhymes with "tiger") and I'm a fiction writer. I live in Cincinnati, Ohio and have for most of my life. I grew up reading Judy Bolton and Nancy Drew mysteries and knew, from the time that I was ten years old and had a poem I'd written accepted for publication in my Sunday School magazine, that I wanted to be a published author when I grew up.

Well, I've been grown up for some time now. I've spent my whole life writing and I did have three short stories published locally at one point. Unfortunately, although I tried from time to time to market my writing, I didn't focus on the publishing side of things. Through the years, I attended numerous writing classes, seminars and writers conferences but I let "life" get in the way of pursuing my dream of becoming a published author. I'm not willing to do that anymore.

Which brings me to why I started this blog. Quite simply, to network, to get my name out there because that seems to be the path to publication these days. Also, I'm interested in hearing from other writers. After all, we're all in this together and I believe that we need to help and encourage one another. I'd love to hear from you.

Since writing this post ten years ago, I've written and published nine mystery novels. If you haven't yet read my books, just click on the book covers on the right side of this page to read more about them and/or to order your copy/copies.

Until next time, Happy Reading!

The Writing Process

The writing process fascinates me. I recently published my ninth mystery novel and I’m still in awe of how bits and pieces from my life and lots of other sources come together to form a book. Sometimes, it’s easy to figure out where ideas come from; other times it’s not. When an idea comes to me seemingly from “out of the blue,” I look up and say, “Thank You,” because I believe in giving credit where credit is due.

My favorite part of writing is creating characters. People and psychology have always fascinated me. My Malone mysteries have been described as “character driven” and my  Small Town mystery series is also character driven. A house may have been the inspiration for both series but the characters quickly became the most important element to me.

So, how did I come up with the characters for my four-book series? Like all of writing, it was a process. 

Kate, my main character, is based on someone I once knew who was the single mother of a young daughter. But that’s where the similarity ends. The two women are nothing alike in appearance or personality.

The rest of the characters are figments of my imagination but I know they each include characteristics of people I've known.

In Secrets in Storyville, Kate’s parents and grandmother are hiding a secret. They, Kate's daughter, the people Kate works with, several of the town’s residents and the man Kate meets and falls in love with all play a role in the mystery.

 (If you'd like to read more about one of my books and/or you'd like to purchase it, click on the book cover on the right of this page.)

I hope you enjoy getting to know the characters in Secrets in Storyville, the first book in the series, as much as I enjoyed creating and writing about them and that you will go on to read the rest of the series.

Until next time, Happy Reading!

New Release!

https://tinyurl.com/d6djw36f

Kate Morgan is helping her best friend, Beth, decorate for her parents’ fiftieth anniversary party at the Storyville Inn, which was formerly the Prescott mansion. While there, they learn the details of the legend surrounding the inn.

In the late eighteen hundreds, Elise Prescott disappeared from her home without a trace. Although there was speculation that her husband murdered her, there was no proof to substantiate the allegations. Now, ninety-five year old Ellen Prescott, Elise’s granddaughter, is obsessed with proving her grandfather’s innocence and clearing her family’s name before she dies.

When Ellen turns up missing and then is found dead in the woods behind the inn, the coroner rules it an accidental death. But her granddaughter, Jennifer, doesn’t believe that’s true. She asks Kate and Beth, who are fascinated with the legend and always eager to solve a mystery, to help her prove that her grandmother was murdered and to find her killer. 

Twelve Days in the Territory

 I'm pleased to welcome good friend and fellow writer, J.R. Lindermuth. John's novel, "Twelve Days in the Territory" was released on May 5th and I'm eager to read it. 

J. R. Lindermuth lives and writes in a house built by a man who rode with Buffalo Bill Cody. A retired newspaper editor, he is now librarian of his county historical society where he assists patrons with genealogy and research. He has published 19 novels and two non-fiction regional histories. He is a member of International Thriller Writers and a past vice president of the Short Mystery Fiction Society.

Readers (and writers) often have misconceptions about women of the past.

Victorian stereotypes, fiction, film and scant attention to history color these opinions. We know women didn't have the vote in the past, often couldn't own or inherit property and were bound to obey without question their husbands and fathers. But, even if totally true, it doesn't mean women couldn't be strong and resourceful.

True, it took a long struggle for women to achieve the vote, and we still can't say they've achieved full equality. In the 19th century, most women here and abroad lived in a world of class, formal religion, social strictures and structured family life. Despite these restrictions, there were many women who bent the rules and did things others considered radical.

We see in the bible and other early writings, in Shakespeare and in contemporary novels how women used their wiles (psychology as well as physical charms) to get their way with men. They may not have been able to own property, but many definitely could dominate and even punish a man who did them wrong. And many were capable of achieving things on their own.

History shows us some of the most effective and bravest of spies in the Revolution and the Civil War were women. In the 1840s, Margaret Fuller dedicated her life to a revolution aimed at freedom for women. She made her living giving lectures in a time when it was illegal for women to do public speaking for pay. She beguiled men like Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Edgar Allan Poe said society consisted of men, women and Margaret Fuller. Later there was Nellie Bly (Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman), an inventor, businesswoman, charity worker and (most famously) a journalist.

Martha, the young woman taken hostage by outlaws, in my latest novel, Twelve Days in the Territory, believes she'll be rescued by her uncle, the sheriff, and Will, the man she loves. But, in the meantime, she's also doing something about her situation. She's leaving a trail for Will and her uncle to follow, she's paying close attention to the conversations of her captors, and she's taking advantages of opportunities for escape. Then there's Lucinda, Craw's woman. Despite living with outlaws, she's a Christian and intent on passing her faith to her children. She also makes sure other women in the camp are treated with respect while pursuing her goal of changing Craw's ways.

tinyurl.com/ys2ssvd8

Here's a blurb for Twelve Days in the Territory:

Will Burrows, a mild-mannered school teacher, is the only man in town who volunteers to join Sheriff Gillette in pursuit of outlaws who have taken Martha Raker, the sheriff's niece, hostage and fled into Indian Territory in the fall of 1887.

Gillette doubts Will's suitability for the task, but the young man who has been courting Martha insists he must go. Yet even Will has doubts about his qualifications and harbors a secret which raises his fears of what they'll face in the Territory.

Martha, a strong-willed young woman, will show courage and tenacity in the will to survive, confident in the belief she will not be abandoned by the man she loves or by her uncle.

All three will face trials the like of which they've never known before and they soon discover Crawford McKinney, the outlaw holding Martha is the least of their troubles.

A Gift of Rainbows

When we lose someone we love, we feel an almost overwhelming sense of loss. There's a hole in our life that no one else could ever fill. That person is gone and we miss them so much. So, even though we know our loved one is in a better place, we grieve. But eventually, we stop focusing on how badly we feel and we realize how blessed we were to have had them in our lives. When we think of them, we're finally able to smile because we have so many wonderful memories.

My mother went to be with The Lord two days before Thanksgiving. So, this is my first Mother's Day without her. But, instead of dwelling on that, I decided to do something to honor her, to thank her for all she gave me. She was always there for me. Always.

Mom taught me so many things, gifts I will treasure and carry with me forever. One tangible gift was a small, round crystal, which I hung in my window. Whenever the sun is out, it catches the rays and creates several rainbows on my bedroom wall. Every time I see them, I think of Mom and smile.

Mom was very artistic and she loved to paint. When my brother and I were packing up her things, I found three watercolors, which I framed on one of the walls in my apartment. Some days, they still bring a tear to my eye but, mostly, they make me happy.

Through the years, Mom and I spent a lot of time together. We went shopping, to yard sales, took day trips and went on several vacations, including two trips to North Carolina to go gem hunting.

Mom loved her Welsh Corgi, Bosley, and, believe me, no dog ever had it so good. 

Mom was my biggest fan and always went to book signing events with me. She crocheted the bookmarks on the table.

 

Happy Mother's Day, Mom.

Escape to Storyville

Reading is the best way I know to escape reality. If you're feeling the need to escape - and I think most of us are these days - I have a suggestion. Escape to Storyville, a small, fictional town in southwest Ohio where there are no Big Box stores, only family-owned businesses, traffic is never an issue and neighbors look out for neighbors.

https://tinyurl.com/y4ledcgp

Kate Morgan, a single mother, lives in the small town of Storyville, Ohio where she grew up. A want-to-be author, she works as a sales clerk in the town’s only department store doing what she describes as “a job a monkey could do.” Although she’s bored with her job, she’s reluctant to consider making any major changes in her life. However, she’s about to find out that change is inevitable.

When Kate’s ten-year-old daughter, Mandy, tells the family she plans to do a family tree for a school project, the negative reaction of Kate’s parents and grandmother shocks her but also arouses her curiosity. Why are they so against Mandy’s project? Surely her family is too “normal” to have any skeletons in their closet.

Kate decides to support her daughter even if that means defying her parents. As she searches for the truth, she discovers some long buried secrets that, if she decides to reveal them, will change her life and the lives of the people she loves - forever.

https://tinyurl.com/wmkwmvf

Kate Morgan loves a good mystery. She’s an avid reader and she recently finished writing a murder mystery. The story takes place at the fictionalized version of Maple Ridge, the real life home of Chad Hollingsworth, the man Kate has been dating for the past year.

Chad has invited Kate to his parents’ annual New Year’s Eve party where Kate will meet the other members of his family. On the drive to Maple Ridge, he tells her, “I have to warn you. When the Hollingsworth family gets together, there’s always a lot of drinking and drama.” He has no way of knowing there will be a murder.

In a strange twist of fate, there are numerous similarities between Kate’s manuscript and what actually happens. Kate is determined to separate fact from fiction by figuring out the identity of the killer. But she soon discovers that solving a murder in real life is a lot harder than figuring out whodunit in a mystery novel.

https://tinyurl.com/ybgn8myf

Kate Morgan, a single mother raising her eleven-year-old daughter, Mandy, in Storyville, Ohio, feels like she’s finally getting her life together, both professionally and personally. Her first mystery novel is about to be published and she and Chad Hollingsworth are engaged to be married. She’s looking forward to a bright future. Until the past comes back to haunt her.

Eleven years ago, a string of home invasions took place in Kate’s hometown, threatening the safety and security of the elderly residents. The burglaries stopped abruptly – until now.

And, eleven years ago, Bobby Benton, Mandy’s father, left town, never returning – until now. The police consider Bobby a person of interest in the crimes and, for the sake of her daughter, Kate is determined to figure out the identity of the perpetrator in order to clear his name. However, she quickly discovers that’s easier said than done.

The Legend, the fourth book in my Small Town mystery series, is due to be published in June 2021.

A rose by any other name. . . .

When I choose names for the characters in my novels, I want to use names that suit the image I have of them in my mind. I’m not talking about physical characteristics, although they’re important too. I’m talking about personality traits, including the little idiosyncrasies that make each character a unique person. 

The process is interesting and fun. Lots of times, I’ll use a name that I associate with someone I’ve known. That can be a positive or a negative thing. For example, when I chose the name for the main character in my Malone mystery series, I decided on “Ann” because the personality and qualities of that character reminded me of my Aunt Ann, a kind and gracious woman. On the other hand, when I decided to name Ann’s mother-in-law “Louise,” I did so because someone from my past had that name and, let’s just say, she was “difficult” to deal with. 

Sometimes, I want to use a name simply because I like it. I have a third cousin named “Marnie.” I liked the name the minute I heard it. Although I’ve known her mother all my life, I didn’t meet Marnie until a few years ago, long after I decided to use her name. In my series, Marnie is Ann’s older sister, an attorney who lives in South Carolina. Here’s an excerpt about her from Mixed Messages: “Marnie said that the ocean gave her something nothing else could: a sense of peace and serenity; that she felt closer to God there than anywhere else.” 

I often look up names in my “Name Your Baby” book to see if the meaning of the name accurately describes the character. I'm not sure what I'd do if the name didn’t “fit” but, fortunately, the names I chose for my series have worked out so far. Here are some of the names I used in Mixed Messages and Unfinished Business. (Check out the definitions for Ann, Louise and Marnie in particular.)

Ann – Graceful one or Gracious one

David – Beloved one or Friend

Marnie – From the sea

Olivia – Olive tree or olive branch; symbolic of peace

Lawrence - Laurel-crowned

Bernard (Bernie) – Bold as a bear

Louise – Famous warrior-maid; famous in battle

An Easter mystery

https://tinyurl.com/ydbvjzq5

As Ann Kern starts her new business as an interior decorator, the temperatures have risen, tulips and daffodils are in bloom and there’s a feeling of endless possibilities in the air. 

She has no idea that her world is about to be turned upside down.

Ann is terrified when she wakes up the day before Easter to find her young son, Davey, gone. Another local child, Kelly Kramer, has been missing since December. Where are the children? And what, if anything, can Ann do to get her son back?

What inspired me to write my Small Town mysteries?

When I finished writing my fifth Malone mystery, Marnie Malone, I wasn’t sure what my next book would be. I’d spent so many years on the series and had become so involved in the lives of the characters. I knew I’d miss the Malones but I also realized it was time to end the series and to do something totally different.

My Malone mysteries are all written in the third person and they are set in real locations, places that really exist. An old Victorian in my neighborhood was the inspiration for the series.

For a long time, I’d wanted to write a cozy mystery in the first person and set it in a fictional small town. Now I had my chance. My Small Town mystery series is completely separate from and different than my Malone mysteries but the books have one thing in common: an old house inspired me.

 

As it turned out, I didn’t use the house (below) as the main setting in Secrets in Storyville, the first book in the series, but it is where Murder at Maple Ridge, the second book, takes place. 

 

The third book, Out of the Woods, is set in Storyville. 

I'm currently working on the fourth, The Legend, which takes place, for the most part, at the Storyville Inn on the outskirts of town. Here's a sneak preview of the house that inspired me to write the book, which I hope to publish in June 2021.

I hope you enjoy reading my Small Town mystery series as much as I'm enjoying writing it.

Love what you do

We’ve all heard or read these words, probably many times. “Love what you do and you’ll never work a day in your life.” Which I believe is absolutely true and, in a perfect world, we’d all spend our lives in the careers we’ve chosen, doing what we love to do. Spoiler alert: It’s not a perfect world. Sometimes, “life” has other plans for us.

My mother was an intelligent and creative woman who, I’m convinced, could’ve become anything she wanted to be. She was the fifth child of ten and grew up during the depression. At age fifteen, she was forced to quit school to take care of her younger siblings. She’d just started high school and was so excited about it. But it wasn’t meant to be.

Eventually, it was time for her to find a job and that’s where she met my father. They were married and, while she raised four children, she was a stay-at-home mom. Sadly, my parents divorced when they were in their mid-forties and my mother needed to find a job. With a limited education, through no fault of her own, the jobs she found were low-paying and, sometimes, back-breaking. But I never heard her complain. Not about the jobs and not about her lot in life.

Instead, Mom enjoyed everything she did and she gave it her "all." When I asked her how that was possible, that surely she couldn’t like everything, she replied, “Of course I can. It’s easy. I make up my mind that I’m going to enjoy whatever it is I have to do and I do.” She wasn’t kidding. It really worked for her.

I don’t claim to like everything I have to do – a couple of household chores come to mind - but, whenever I start to complain, mostly to myself, about doing something I’d rather not do, I remember my mother’s words. “I make up my mind that I’m going to enjoy. . . "

From the time I was ten years old, my dream was to become a published writer but, like most people, I needed to earn a living. I was fortunate to have worked at jobs I enjoyed. (It’s interesting that some of my experiences at those jobs and some of the people I met have been “fictionalized” and they appear in my books.)

Anyway, through the years, I never stopped pursuing my dream. I took every writing class I could find, read voraciously and wrote whenever possible. Fifty-two years later, my first Malone mystery was published and now, with eight published novels - I'm working on the ninth -  I’m finally doing what I love to do.

Keeping it clean

I learned some valuable lessons about reading and writing when I was growing up. From the time I learned to read, I constantly had my nose in a book. Judy Bolton and Nancy Drew mysteries were my favorites. Good, clean stories with intriguing plots and characters I came to know and to love. More than anything I wanted to write mysteries like Margaret Sutton and Carolyn Keene when I grew up.

My father nourished my love of reading by bringing books home to me from time to time. Dad wasn’t much of a fiction reader but he knew how much I enjoyed a good mystery so, for a change of pace, one day when I was ten or eleven years old, he brought me a copy of “I, the Jury,” a Mickey Spillane novel. I picked it up and started to read, amazed and secretly pleased that Dad had given me such an “adult” book. A day or so later, I had left my book on the coffee table, book marker in place, and Dad happened to pick it up and read a page. His eyes got wide and he immediately confiscated the book. No more Mickey Spillane for me! 

Back then, I was disappointed when Dad took my book away but, as an adult, I’ve come to realize that what intrigued me as a child (probably because it was “forbidden”) bores me now. When I read a mystery/suspense novel with several paragraphs or pages of descriptive sexual acts, I find myself skimming over those parts to get back to the story. 

I’m not a prude and I have no problem with a sex scene and/or “colorful” language if it’s necessary to the plot and, of course, it's perfectly acceptable and even expected in certain types of novels. A steamy romance wouldn't be very steamy without, well, some steam. By the same token, in a book about a street gang, I can't imagine one of the members saying, "Gosh, darn it!" when he's angry. That’s unrealistic and I think fiction should be realistic, believable. But, in my own mystery novels, I chose not to use certain words and to leave what happens behind bedroom doors (or anywhere else, for that matter) to the reader’s imagination. Because, it’s my belief that you can have a good story and still keep it clean.

Setting Goals

The New Year will be here in a couple of days and, with it, comes a fresh start for all of us. Many people make New Year’s resolutions but I prefer to set goals instead. To me, a resolution implies a commitment that, if not met, will lead to disappointment and frustration. How many people do you know who resolve to lose ten pounds by swim suit season and, when they don’t, feel as if they’ve failed? What if, instead of a resolution, they set a goal?

A goal is something we strive to achieve. We can break it down into bits and pieces and, if we aren’t able to completely meet our goal in spite of our best efforts, we still see progress, which increases our self-esteem. So, if that person who wants to lose ten pounds lost five, instead of being down on themselves and possibly giving up, they would recognize and celebrate the weight they had lost.

I write down my goals for the coming year in a small spiral notebook. Throughout the year, I add to the list and, once a goal is reached, I take great pleasure (and satisfaction) in checking it off. I’ve made my first entry for 2021: Finish writing (and publish) the fourth book in my Small Town mystery series.

How about you?

Happy New Year!