This Writer's Life

17 May 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author-A Rainy Afternoon Perfect For Writing

It’s raining and I’m not sure if it’s because I’m grew up in an area where rain always seemed to be in the forecast but my favorite time to write is on an afternoon just like this one. Overcast and the gentle sound of rain falling as background music. Maybe that’s why I love to set so many of my stories in the Pacific Northwest.

Speaking of which, Death Likes Me is gradually getting distributed to all the major book sites. First up was Amazon and here’s a link if anyone’s interested in taking a look and yes, buying a copy-

http://www.amazon.com/Death-Likes-Me-Susan-Palmquist/dp/1782993908/ref=pd_rhf_ee_p_t_3_PTCX

The whole thing has got me in the mood for writing the next Niki Webber story. A few days ago I pulled out the notes I’d written for it, adding to it now and then as the years went by, and revamping elements as new ideas came to mind. This one’s going to be called Trouble Likes Me and Niki will revisit old demons and help her ex-partner solve the murder they were working on when she got shot.

Anyone else keep a notebook filled with ideas? Sometimes I not only use ideas from my notes but something that I remember from many years ago. Case in point is the story I’m working on right now and something I saw many, many years ago even before I became a writer. It was a touching scene of a wedding reception and the groom was blind. I still remember it as if it happened recently, and little did I know that decades later I’d not only still recall it, but base a story upon it.

Have a good weekend and happy writing.

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10 May 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author-A Short One

It’s a lovely day and my first opportunity to work outside. The weatherman says it’s turning colder and windy tomorrow so we authors have to take advantage of nice writing conditions when we can. And for that reason this week’s rambling will be short.

The POV workshop kicked off this week. Next week I have another story, The Vampire’s Seduction being released. I got a copy of Death Likes Me and it looks great. Now I’m just waiting for it to be distributed to all the sites. Fingers crossed that people still like print copies!

I finished the first draft of the next Perfect Pairing story and now working my way through the second one. A load more stories ideas popped into my head this week so who knows by this time next Friday I could be telling you that I’ve started work on a few more books.

Have a good weekend, happy writing and a Happy Mother’s Day to all the ladies.

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03 May 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author

It’s been spring and it’s also been winter. Yes, it snowed again today. I haven’t decided whether cold or warm weather is better for writing.

We have just a handful of people registered so far in the POV workshop that begins on Monday, so if you know anyone who wants to brush up on their point of view skills pass along the information. It’s nice to have a small group but more people always makes for better interaction for everyone.

And before I forget…last Friday I didn’t have the cover for my latest release Letting Go so here it is. If you’re wondering why dogs feature on the cover, the heroine runs a doggie daycare and is looking after the hero’s dog while he’s been serving in the army.

letting-go

My next release is from Cobblestone Press. The Vampire’s Seduction which is published on May 15th. Cobblestone changed their schedule on new releases so this got pushed back from March.

And Tell Me No Lies, my next romantic suspense will be released by Evernight on June 14th.

My next goal is to finish the non-fiction book I’m working on, also the next story in the Perfect Pairing series and then start on another Niki Webber story as a follow up to Death Likes Me. I have lots of other stories in my head and sometimes figuring out what to work on next is a challenge. I used to write only on weekdays but now find myself including weekends too.

Hope you have a good weekend, and for those in the UK, a safe extended holiday weekend. Happy Writing.

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26 Apr 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author-April’s Nearly Over

A beautiful sunny day where I am, and the first one in what seems like a long time.   I was tempted to take the afternoon off.

Another busy week comes to an end. I finalized everything with Death Likes Me and now it’s being processed at Feed A Read. Also did a couple of edits this week. One was for next week’s release, Letting Go which is another story for the Romance On The Go line. I got the good news that it’s been chosen as the editor’s pick. I don’t have a cover to share with you yet but it’s released on May 2nd.

And happy to announce that I got a contract for Getting Lucky from Evernight. And yesterday I got the art package for the final story in the Big Bad Bosses trilogy that’s being published by Cobblestone. The Vampire’s Seduction will be released May 15th. And The Hamilton Men July 15th. I’d share the cover with you but so far I’ve been trying to figure out how to exact each cover from the zip file…I’ll figure out my new computer one of these days!

Today was the final day of the synopsis workshop. Another fun one and a wonderful group of people. I’m always sad to say goodbye to everyone.  The next workshop begins on May 6th and it’s the POV one if you know anyone who’s interested.

I’m going to make the most of the lovely weather this weekend.  As well as doing some yard work, I hope to sit down and do some reading outside.  Rain is in the forecast next week so I’ll make the most of it.

Have a good weekend and happy writing.

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19 Apr 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author-It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Mother Nature obviously wants me to keep on writing indoors this year because another foot of snow fell yesterday. The trees are coated with white and it looks like a scene from a Christmas card and not spring with flower and buds blooming. I suppose I was a little premature when I uncovered the patio table and chairs.

Today saw the release of The One and Only. The first book I wrote and I couldn’t help but wander down memory lane and yes think about all the mistakes I’ve made along the way.

THEONEANDONLY

The London Book Fair was held this past week and by what I heard from my writing groups the focus was on self publishing.

Speaking of which all my files for Death Likes Me are now loaded onto the Feed a Read site so I’m just waiting to check everything.

And I found two interesting articles online this week-

This first one is about writers thinking like entrepreneurs-

http://publishingperspectives.com/2013/04/at-lbf-authors-encouraged-to-think-like-entrepreneurs/

And the second one another success story of a self-publisher who hit the bestseller lists, way to go!

http://omg.yahoo.com/news/texas-woman-self-publishes-hits-best-seller-lists-172855313.html

Have a good weekend and happy writing.

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12 Apr 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author-Not Quite Spring

Spring it seems doesn’t want to put in an appearance this year. Well at least not where I live. We got rid of every last bit of snow in the garden and then back it came and it looks like it’s not leaving anytime soon. I suppose it means more writing done inside than out on the deck.

Another busy week and not just shoveling snow. Yesterday saw the release of my fourth story in the Perfect Pairing series. Last week when I wrote the Friday Ramblings I didn’t have the cover to share with you so here it is-

MOTH

Right now I’m working on the fifth story and for the first time since I started the series I haven’t even got a working title for it.

I saw an interesting article in the e-newsletter I get from Publisher’s Weekly asking what was the book that made you fall in love with books? I’ve been trying to think but can’t narrow it down.  It probably was one of the Enid Blyton mysteries I read over the summer holidays each year.

Next week I’m taking the e-publishing bootcamp and looking forward to learning more about self publishing. Speaking of which I’m self pubbing the print version of Death Likes Me and will be using Feed A Read again.

Next week sees the release of The One and Only with MuseIt Up Publishing.

Have a good weekend and happy writing.

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05 Apr 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author-Happy April

It’s been a busy week with a little bit of everything which is how  I like it. I did final proofs of the galleys for The One and Only which will be released on April 19th. And before I forget, here’s the cover of Death Likes Me which was created by Karen Phillips who I think did a wonderful job.

DeathLikesMe_333x500

This summer I plan to write the second Niki Webber mystery.  It ’s been years since I created this character so it’s going to be strange getting back to her story again.

Last year I also started another mystery that back in 2008 made the longlist for The Harry Bowling prize. One of the requirements was it had to be set in London. Since then I’ve toyed with the idea of setting it somewhere else and have been brainstorming like crazy.  All this thinking now has me wondering if I should turn this into a series too.

A few days ago I finished the final draft of my latest work in progress and it’s now with my critique partner. It’s always exciting to get another book finished. My next one…the fifth book in the Perfect Pairing series. This one will focus on one of Jake and Mitchell’s Army buddies.  Book four should be released sometime this month and I’m looking forward to seeing the cover for that.

And I registered for the eBook Bootcamp, here’s the link if anyone’s interested-http://digitalpublishingcafe.com/ It looks like lots of good stuff on offer.

The synopsis workshop got underway on Monday and I have to admit it’s one of my favorite ones to teach. Next month it’s the POV workshop.

And to finish things off for the week, I finally got around to updating my Susan Palmquist Web site…been on my to do list for some time.

Have a good weekend, and happy writing.

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29 Mar 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author-March is Nearly Over

It’s the last week of March and I always use the last few days of every month to go over my to do list to see what’s been done and what fell by the wayside. This time of the year it’s all too easy to get sidetracked with things to do around the house and yes, eventually the garden, when the temperature heats up.

One of the questions I often get asked is about finding the motivation to both begin writing a book and finishing it. Some days it’s tougher than others but I’ve found what works for me is to stick with a schedule. I write my fiction after dinner, and write for two or three hours. Some days aren’t so productive as others, but at least something gets done.  So if you’re having trouble, pencil in a time on the calendar just for writing and don’t cancel the date.

A new workshop starts on Monday. This time around it’s all about writing a synopsis. And this week I finally put together my workshop ideas for 2014. I sat down and thought about new topics and what I hoped other writers want to learn about. So far it seems everyone has liked  them because my schedule is filling up fast.

There always seems to be some big publishing news each week, and this time around it’s that Amazon is buying Goodreads.

And if you’re wondering what the next big seller is going to be, one of my writer’s groups had a link to this article from the UK’s Daily Telegraph all about Gillian Flynn’s latest bestseller Gone Girl. It’s been on my to read list since last year and now I’m more motivated than ever to pick up a copy as I love a good mystery. Looks like it’s set to outsell Fifty Shades of Grey and Reece Witherspoon has purchased movie rights to it.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/9956996/Gone-Girl-the-female-noir-that-puts-Fifty-Shades-of-Grey-in-the-shade.html

Have a good weekend, happy writing and a Happy Easter to you too.

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22 Mar 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author-It’s Spring

The calendar says spring but the temperature doesn’t agree.  It’s been a bitter cold week but I’ve been busy so it’s just as well I wasn’t tempted outside by balmy weather.

Yesterday I completed gallery proofs of my upcoming cookbook. It’s looking good and reading through it made me just as hungry as when it was being created. No official release date but I think it looks like sometime in July.

I also got to see a sneak peek at the cover for another July release, this one a mystery, Death Likes Me. It’s a super one and I can’t wait to share it with you here once I get the final copy. Sometimes the most exciting thing about an upcoming release is viewing the cover for the first time. I think it’s fun to see how an artist envisions your story in images.

Wondering what the best selling e-books of 2012 were? Publisher’s Weekly just put out this list-

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/56408-the-e-book-explosion-facts-figures-2012.html?

And you know I always do some shameless self promoting. If you’re interested in learning to write a synopsis, a new workshop taught by moi, starts Monday April 1st and ends April 26th. It’s always a fun one with lots of participation so hope to see you there. Here’s a link if you want to register and feel free to pass this along to any writing group you might belong to-

http://heartofcarolina.org/

And while I’ve been offering the free seminar over at Coffeetime Romance someone asked how they could get back to writing and stick with it. I suggested writing to music and it started a discussion on the pros and cons. My suggestion is to write to music without lyrics. I tried writing to all my favorites from the Eighties…showing my age here, and it didn’t work because I was listening to what the singer was saying and not what I was writing, and it slowed me down. I then decided to go no lyrics, just New Age and classical and it was perfect. Something I mentioned on the Coffeetime Forum today was Music for Brainwave Massage by Dr. Jeffrey Thompson. It’s great background music and I listen to it when I’ve creating my first drafts. You hardly notice it’s there playing but you feel relaxed and the writing flows. You can check it out at http://www.therelaxationcompany.com/shop/welcome

Have a good weekend and happy writing.

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15 Mar 2013

Friday Ramblings From An Author

Spring arrives next week and after the cold and snow I won’t be sorry to say goodbye to winter. Not that I don’t like getting comfy on the couch and either writing or reading a good book, but there’s something about the change in seasons that sparks creativity.

If you have time stop by the Coffeetime Romance forum and say hello. I’ve been answering questions about writing a romance novel. Next week, I’m finishing things up with tips about writing a synopsis and during the last week of March taking questions and picking two winners of the giveaway. One is an e-book of How to Write a Romance Novel and the other win will get feedback on their synopsis.

Yesterday I got my cover for next Wednesday’s release Maybe This Time-

maybe-this-time

My next release after that is book four in the Perfect Pairing series which is released April 11th. I have to say these books are some of my favorite to write and after I’m done with my current WIP, I’ll be tackling book five.

I’ve been asked to put together class proposals for workshops for 2014. Yes, it seems early to be doing that but it got me thinking about topics. I’m considering all new topics for next year, or maybe offering my older workshops myself and teaching them through Yahoo or Google Groups.

I’m in the process of also putting together some ideas to pitch to writing magazines. The best way I know how to do that is to look through back copies and see what’s been done and how it’s been approached.

Have a good weekend and a Happy St. Patrick’s Day.

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