A second post today! Surprise! But I couldn’t contain my excitement. COLD SNAP is a finalist in the 2014 Thriller Awards for Best Paperback Original. I am totally surprised and thrilled and humbled because I am in AMAZING company, including MSW alum Kendra Elliot. I have been a judge for the Thriller Awards in all but three years of the contest, and one of those years I was the awards chair, so I know how difficult it is for judges to narrow down a list to just a few books. There are so many fabulous thrillers published every year, and… Read More

I’m back home after my mini-tour. I blogged about that last week, and all-in-all, I think it was time well spent. Except for the writing part. Usually I can write when I travel, but that’s when I fly to a conference and am at the same hotel for five days straight. I set aside writing time on a schedule so I know I’ll always put in my hours — the time changes depending on what I need to do at the conference, but I usually work either four hours in the morning or four hours in the afternoon. This helps… Read More

I never thought I’d write that! Book Tour! Wow 🙂 I haven’t been blogging much because I’ve been out of town on and off ever since Left Coast Crime in Monterey. And when I’ve been home, I’ve been writing and playing with the kids because they’ve missed me. So my plan to blog twice a week with one guest has failed. Hoping that I’ll pick it up again in the coming month! So, what’s this book tour been like?

THANK YOU to Face in a Book in El Dorado Hills for helping launch NOTORIOUS. And a special thanks to my friend Brenda Novak who co-signed with me. Her newest book in her Whiskey Creek series COME HOME TO ME (set in California’s Gold Country) came out the same day! We had a fabulous turnout, and I greatly appreciate all the support from my friends and readers who came — including those who drove all the way from Napa! I was so humbled and thrilled to talk about Max Revere and meet so many of my readers. My husband took… Read More

Today is the day I’ve been waiting for since last March, when I first turned in the revised manuscript for NOTORIOUS. Today is the day I’ve been waiting for since two years ago, when I signed the contract for my first hardcover thriller. Today is the day I’ve been waiting for since 2006, when my first book THE PREY hit the shelves in mass market paperback, and I dreamed of one day being in hardcover. NOTORIOUS is here.

Left Coast Crime is fast becoming one of my favorite conferences, for three primary reasons: 1. Location. It’s on the “left” half of the country and much easier for me to travel to. Two years ago it was in Sacramento! This year … Monterey, a three hour drive. Much easier (and cheaper) than spending a day flying cross-country. 2. Intimacy. LCC is neither large nor small, it’s just right. I have the opportunity to catch up with old friends and meet new ones. 3. Readers. LCC is one of the few conferences that still is largely filled with reader —… Read More

I have a confession. Whenever a new show is a huge hit out of the gate, I don’t watch it. I don’t know why, I think I get overwhelmed by the hype. I figure if it’s really that good, I’ll get it on DVD. You know the problem with drawing lines in the sand? With a breath of air, they disappear. You may not like me. You may not understand how or why I do what I do. But I’m here because you want answers to questions you haven’t even thought of yet. ~ Red I had a problem with… Read More

I read this article in the Wall Street Journal and it really hit home. I posted it on Facebook, but found that I had more to say about the subject. On Saturday, my daughter who will be 11 on March 25th had her birthday party. Twelve of her friends from school, plus a couple family friends, came over to play in our yard with a bounce house and slide I rented. It was a beautiful day. My mom commented how delightful all the girls were–they were polite, friendly, happy, answered when spoken to, and while they were waiting for ice… Read More

Like most writers, I hate my writing process. But, also like most writers, it’s my process and I can’t change it. Before I got serious about writing, I happily wrote “sloppy copy,” the first draft all the way through. Yes, there were lots of errors and I did a lot of revising and editing and cutting and adding. But since I love revising, this wasn’t a problem. The hard part was done — getting the story down from beginning to end. Everything can be fixed. But somewhere along the way, this changed.

In two weeks NOTORIOUS will be available. March 25 is the big day. I am very excited and nervous and scared. Most of you who read my blog know about my history. I have 21 mass market originals, numerous short stories and novellas, and 2 original indie novellas. But NOTORIOUS is my first hardcover. Everything has been different. Even the writing.