Amazon Author Blogs

Amazon Connect hosts author blogs, with RSS feeds. A long and growing list of participating authors is provided.

Two examples:
Sharyn McCrumb
Robin Lee Hatcher

Amazon Connects also offers customer "plogs" which it defines as "a personalized web log that appears on your customer home page. Every person's Plog is different (hence the name) and just like a blog, your Plog is sorted in reverse chronological order. Each post also gives you the opportunity to provide feedback to the sender as to whether you liked the post or not. This feedback loop means your Plog becomes even more relevant and interesting over time. Your Plog will appear if you are logged into our web site and is visible only to you."

Bottom line, your Amazon "plog" collects posts from various author blogs for you on your customer page. Same thing can be done directly to your email via an RSS feed option, if you prefer.

From my surfing through the author blogs, these aren't kept current -- and most authors with an interest in blogging have their own blogs at this point.

Watching the Deals-5

Nancy Atherton's Aunt Dimity series continues with the sale of two more in the series. A cozy mystery series that is sometimes called romantic suspense as well as gothic, Aunt Dimity is a ghost providing supernatural assistance to the protagonist, Lori Sheppard. The first in the series broke all the rules, and got a rating of "5" (superb) from MysteryGuide.com.

Recent Romances Sold:

Stacey Kayne's BRIDE OF SHADOW CANYON, a second western historical romance, to Linda Fildew at Harlequin Historicals, in a nice deal, by Kim Lionetti at BookEnds. "Nice deal" means $1 - $49,000.00.

Larissa Ione's DEMON E.R: Dark Pleasure, the first in a paranormal series in which a demon doctor in an underworld hospital and the woman who hunts his kind must join forces to stop an enemy who would kill them both, to Melanie Murray for Warner Forever, by Roberta Brown of the Brown Literary Agency (world).

Tess Stimson's THE ADULTERY CLUB and THE INFIDELITY CHAIN, which have been sold to ten territories, to Caitlin Alexander at Bantam Dell, for six figures, at auction, by Carole Blake at Blake Friedmann (US).

Recent Mysteries Sold:

Nancy Atherton's AUNT DIMITY books, thirteen and fourteen in the series, to Rakia Clark at Viking Penguin, in a good deal, by Meg Ruley and Annelise Robey at the Jane Rotrosen Agency (NA). "Good deal" means $100,000 - $250,000.00.

Olen Steinhauer's VICTORY SQUARE, the fifth and concluding book in the Yalta Boulevard crime series, set in 1989 at the end of the Cold War, to Kelley Ragland at Minotaur, in a very nice deal, in a two-book deal, by Matt Williams of The Gernert Company (world English). "Very nice deal" means $50,000 - $99,000.00.

Edgar and Shamus Award nominee Parnell Hall's HITMAN: A Stanley Hastings Mystery, to Claiborne Hancock at Pegasus, in a nice deal (world).


Recent Thrillers Sold:

From Perri O'Shaughnessy (the pen-name of sisters Pamela and Mary), two more suspense thrillers, following Maggie Crawford to Pocket, for publication beginning in 2008, by Nancy Yost at Lowenstein-Yost.

John Olson's FOSSIL HUNTER, an Indiana-Jones-style thriller that explores the Intelligent Design controversy from the points of view of two field scientists working in the strife-torn countries of Iraq and Pakistan, to Karen Watson at Tyndale, in a nice deal, for publication in fall 2007, by Steve Laube at the Steve Laube Agency (world).

Write A Book Fast: In a Week, Two Weeks, a Month

Lots of people do this: put the pressure on themselves to write a book fast. After all, Jack Kerouac wrote On the Road in three weeks. (Kerouac's famous first draft in its scroll format is pictured here.)

First, there are the groups, that provide help and support.

1. NaNoWriMo stands for "National Novel Writing Month," with a website, forums, and a national following. Lots of books actually get written during this time period (in 2005, there were 59,000 participants and 9769 winners). You "win" NaNoWriMo by writing 50,000 words by midnight on November 30th. Every year, there are many winners. No awards are given; however, each winner gets an official "Winner" web icon and certificate. During the month, there are open forums, where lots of good advice is shared on writing, grammar, and other helpful topics.

2. BIW is similar to NaNoWriMo, but it is for those interested in writing a book in a week. The site is coordinated with a Yahoo Group, and on the first full week of the month, participants go for it. They are scheduled a year in advance. For 2006, the remaining three BIWs are: Oct 2 - 8; Nov 6 - 12; and Dec 4 - 10. The site is run by published authors, includes a chat room, and has a great list of helpful sites.

Second, there are online articles by writers who share their tips on fast writing.

3. Romance writer Elizabeth Rose wrote her first published novel (Eden's Garden) in two weeks, and provides the steps to do write a book in one month in two great posts: How to Write a Book in a Month, part one and part two.

4. Writer John Coyne offers How to Write A Novel in 100 Days or Less, with excellent, practical advice for each step along the way.

2011 Update: I may have found the book for me where you learn to outline and write your novel in 90 days, read about it here. 

2006 Check: The Big Deals So Far

So far this year, Publishers' Marketplace reports 84 "major deals" and 63 "significant deals". Select details are shown below.

Major deals are those starting at $500,000.00; significant deals range from $251,000 - $499,000.00. Now, this is only what PM reports - and it's only what has been reported to PM. This is not a complete list, and from what I understand, this information may not be totally accurate, either.

Major Deals:

Fiction: Thriller (10)
Fiction: Women's/Romance (9)
Fiction: Mystery/Crime (4)
Fiction: Debut (2)

The only major deal in non-fiction (religion, spirituality) went to romance writer Debbie Macomber for her book Knit Together: Discover God's Pattern for Your Life, saying that when we come to recognize our deepest longing, we can discover our potential and reach for our dreams, with her own journey of discovery weaved throughout the book.

The nine romance writers with major deals are: Carly Phillips, Kat Martin, Madeline Hunter, Karen Robards, Stephanie Laurens, Teresa Medeiros, Eloisa James, Kris Radish. All these deals are multi-book deals - mostly two books, sometimes three.

The four mystery/crime writers with major deals are: Iris Johansen (8 books, "multi-million dollar" deal); Ariana Franklin (2 books, "seven figure" deal); Joseph Wambaugh (1 book); Jacqueline Winspear (2 books).

The ten thriller writers with major deals are: Chelsea Cain (3 books); co-authors Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (2 books); Mitch Silver (1 book, a debut); Harlan Coben (2 books); Stephen J. Cannell (2 books, Scully series); C.J. Box (3 books, all stand alones); James Rollins (3 books, Sigma Force series); Erica Spindler (3 books); Kathleen McGowan (3 books, first being her initially self-published The Expected One); Dale Brown (2 books).

Significant Deals:

Fiction: Debut (2)
Fiction: Mystery/Crime (4)
Fiction: Thriller (4)
Fiction: Women's/Romance (2)
Non-fiction: Religion/Spirituality (2)

The two romance writers with significant deals are: Allison Brennan (three romantic suspense) and Julia London (1 romance).

The four mystery/crime writers with significant deals are: Linwood Barclay (1 book); Margaret Coel (2 more in her Wind River series); Lisa Lutz (1 book), P.J. Parrish (3 books).

Watching the Deals-4

This month, a significant deal for a romance writer was revealed, when Julia London's latest romance was sold to Pocket.

Recent Romance Sales:

NYT bestselling author Julia London's untitled romance, to Maggie Crawford at Pocket, in a significant deal, by Jenny Bent at Trident Media Group (world). Significant deal means $251,000 - $499,000.00.

Jennifer Oko's debut GLOSS, a peek at the ratings-driven, celebrity-mad world of TV news, told through the eyes of a young morning show producer who finds herself in jail after working on what she thought was just a fluffy feature, to Selina McLemore at Mira, in a two-book deal, by Stephanie Kip Rostan at Levine Greenberg Literary Agency (World).

Francis Ray's ONLY YOU, the fifth novel of the Graysons of New Mexico series, in which Sierra Grayson falls in love with a compelling stranger, which leads to unforseen and almost disastrous consequences, to Monique Patterson at St. Martin's, for publication in summer 2007, by Elaine Koster at the Elaine Koster Agency.

Annie Windsor's BLOODLINE, the first in a paranormal trilogy, the story of a warrior-witch, a NYPD detective and the terrible murder that brings them together, to Charlotte Herscher at Ballantine, in a very nice deal, in a three-book deal, by Nancy Yost of Lowenstein-Yost (World). Vice nice deal means $50,000 - $99,000.00.

Molly O'Keefe's JIGSAW HEARTS, about a tortured journalist hiding from the world and the FBI agent sent undercover to investigate him, to Wanda Ottewell for Harlequin Superromance, in a nice deal, in a three-book deal, by Pam Hopkins at Hopkins Literary Associates.

Marie Bostwick's untitled, again to Audrey LaFehr at Kensington, in a nice deal, by Jill Grosjean at Jill Grosjean Literary Agency.

Maya Reynolds's YOU'VE BEEN A BAD GIRL, to Tracy Bernstein at NAL, by Jacky Sach at BookEnds.

Recent Mystery Sales:

Timothy Boyd's A NAIL THROUGH THE HEART, launching a mystery series about Bangkok, and THE MILLION-DOLLAR MINUTE, the second in the series, in which the hero finds himself stuck between North Korean counterfitters, the Secret Service, and his long-estranged father's cry for help, to Marjorie Braman at William Morrow, in a pre-empt, by Bob Mecoy at Creative Book Services (World).

Martyn Waites's BONE MACHINE: A Joe Donovan Thriller, the second in the series, in which Joe Donovan and his crack team of investigators infiltrate a gangland prostitution ring but discover their quarry's a deranged serial killer, to Claiborne Hancock at Pegasus, in a nice deal, by Jane Gregory of Gregory and Company (US). Nice deal means $1 - $49,000.00.

Recent Thriller Sales:

Chicago Tribune editor/reporter Gerry Doyle's speculative thriller, DRAGON, pitting a CIA forensic scientist with a Navy SEAL team investigating deaths aboard a North Korean submarine defecting to the US, to Jackie Swift of McBooks Press, for publication in November 2007, by Lois Bennett at Bennett & West Literary Agency (US).

-- From Publishers' Marketplace.

Natural Reader - Help in Editing

When you're alone and editing your work, hearing the words come back to you helps. There's an excellent and free online AT&T service that offers voice recognition software at NaturalReaders.Com. (Technically, this stuff is called "text to speech" software.)

The free version offers a male voice that is rather electronic, but if you don't mind 2001's HAL reading your work back to you, then you'll be fine. For those who prefer a more human feel, both male and female readers are offered (there is a selection) for a cost: the Professional option is $39.95 while the Enterprise version is $79.50. Each option has lots of bells and whistles (MP3 converter, etc.) if you're interested in that sort of thing.

Personally, I'm happy with HAL. Remember? "Hello, Dave ...."

What's Your Genre?

Who do you read? That's what you should write, so they say. Here are books/authors I've read recently - some, if not most, are favorites:

Cozy
Tamar Myers (Magdalena Yoder)
MC Beaton (Agatha Raisin)
Nancy Bell (Biggie)
Alexander McCall Smith (Mme Ramotswe)
Susan Conant (Holly Winter)
Diane Mott Davidson (Goldy Bear)

Hard-Boiled
James M. Cain
Raymond Chandler
Dashiell Hammett
John D. McDonald

Legal Thriller
Lisa Scottoline (all)
John Grisham
Earl Stanley Gardner (Perry Mason)

Private Eye/Caper
Janet Evonovich (all)
Sue Grafton (Kinsey Milhone)
Elizabeth Peters (Amelia Peabody)

Whodunit-Classic
Elizabeth George (Inspector Linley)
Agatha Christie (Poirot, Marple)
Carolyn Hart (Henrie O)
PD James (Inspector Adam Dalgliesh)

True Crime
Diane Fanning (all)
Frank Abagnale (Catch Me If You Can)

Science Fiction
Patricia Briggs (Mercedes series)

Romantic Suspense
Daphne DuMaurier - Rebecca
Charlotte Bronte - Jane Eyre

Romance
Margaret Mitchell - Gone With the Wind
Jane Austen - Pride and Prejudice
George Eliot - Middlemarch
Charles Dickens - A Tale of Two Cities

Here's my quick list - I know I've missed some. Already, I see that I'm driven by characterization in my reading, as well as my writing. Ethical dilemmas and the fight between good and evil also form a theme in this list. Humor and wit are there. And, I'm much more focused on mysteries than romance. All, good to know.

Watching the Deals-3

Recent Romance Sales:

Annie Windsor's BLOODLINE, the first in a paranormal trilogy, the story of a warrior-witch, a NYPD detective and the terrible murder that brings them together, to Charlotte Herscher at Ballantine, in a very nice deal, in a three-book deal, by Nancy Yost of Lowenstein-Yost (World). "Very nice deal" means $50-99,000.00.

Molly O'Keefe's JIGSAW HEARTS, about a tortured journalist hiding from the world and the FBI agent sent undercover to investigate him, to Wanda Ottewell for Harlequin Superromance, in a nice deal, in a three-book deal, by Pam Hopkins at Hopkins Literary Associates. "Nice deal" means $1-49,000.00.

Marie Bostwick's untitled, again to Audrey LaFehr at Kensington, in a nice deal, by Jill Grosjean at Jill Grosjean Literary Agency.

Roxanne Rustand's INTENSIVE CARE, in which a couple who marries against all odds faces a serious accident, bringing into focus their joy, mistakes, and heartbreak, to Johanna Raisanen at Harlequin Everlasting, in a nice deal, by Roberta Brown at the Brown Literary Agency (World).

Sharlene MacLaren's LOVING MISS MERIWETHER, in which a young Bostonian woman travels to Kentucky to assume the job as schoolteacher, but finds tender love instead, and SARAH, MY BELOVED, in which a woman travels to Kentucky as a mail-order bride only to find her intended has married another, to Christine Whitaker at Whitaker House, in a nice deal, by Joyce Hart at Hartline Literary Agency (world).

Deborah Wright's THE HISTORY OF LUCY'S LOVE LIFE IN 10 1/2 CHAPTERS, in which Lucy, fired from her job as assistant to a scientist, retaliates by stealing her boss' prototype for a time travel machine, meeting history's most famous lovers, and trying to discover the true nature of love and if the love of her life has been right under her nose, to Alicia Bothwell Mancini at Plume, by Melissa Chinchillo at Fletcher & Parry, on behalf of Simon Trewin at PFD UK (NA).
UK rights to Little, Brown.

Kristin Harmel's THE ART OF FRENCH KISSING, in which a charmingly neurotic record exec in search of the perfect kiss in Paris stumbles upon much more with a headstrong journalist with a family secret while she tries in vain to save the public image of her volatile, zany rock star client, to Rebecca Isenberg at Warner Five Spot, in a nice deal, by Jenny Bent at Trident Media Group (world).

Recent Mysteries Sold:

Darlene Franklin's GUNFIGHT AT GRACE GULCH, a reenactment of a famous gunfight during Oklahoma's centennial goes terribly wrong, to Susan Downs at Barbour, in a nice deal, by Tamela Hancock Murray at Hartline Literary Agency.

Lisa Harris's BAKER'S FATAL DOZEN, in which a baker goes missing and a woman is hot on the trail of a sticky scandal that begins with murder, to Susan Downs at Barbour, in a nice deal, by Joyce Hart at Hartline Literary Agency (World).

Nancy Mehl's A BIRD IN THE HAND, in which a woman is working hard to get her late aunt's rare bookstore on its feet when she discovers an old map tucked within the pages of a book, to Susan Downs at Barbour, in a nice deal, by Janet Benrey at Hartline Literary Agency.

Sara Ann Freed Memorial Award winner Karen E. Olson's WATERLOGGED, the next Annie Seymour mystery, moving to Kristen Weber at NAL, in a two-book deal, by Jack Scovil at Scovil Chichak Galen Literary Agency (NA).

From Publisher'sMarketplace.Com.

And, just to keep things in perspective, remember that the most expensive book ever published is hitting the shelves this Fall: Random House paid $8,000,000 for the new book from Charles Frazier, author of Cold Mountain. Thirteen Moons arrives in October.

How They Do It -1: Nora Roberts

In a recent article, Nora Roberts explained her work ethic as well as how she works.

First, she writes 8 to 5, Monday through Friday.
Second, she does this consistently.
Third, she limits her commitments: she relates that she may not see anyone other than her family for days, or weeks, at a time.

As for how she works, she doesn't plot nor does she outline. She works on one book at a time, and completes it in three drafts. Beginning with a key character, or setting, or event, she builds a story from there - crafting a story that she would want to read.

For example, in her latest - Angels Fall - she began with the key idea of a woman who sees a murder, but she is not close enough to stop it, and too isolated to be able to get other help in time. Later, when she reports the killing, she isn't believed.

"That's how I build," Roberts said. "What's the situation? And here is basically the setting I'm thinking of. ... What is she doing there? Why did she come there? Did she live there? Did she move there? Is she visiting, passing through ... and why doesn't anybody believe her? Oh, well, maybe nobody believes her because she's not only new in town, but she's a little bit crazy. Oh, that's good!"

At the age of 55, Nora Roberts has had 165 published works under both her name and the pen name JD Robb. What's her secret? "I think I have a really strong work ethic, plus I really love the work. I think if you love what you do, you do a lot of it. I have a lot of discipline ... and I have a fast pace."

Rules for Writing Romantic Suspense

Nora Roberts has an article entitled Crafting Romantic Suspense available online. While it doesn't have a rule list, it does have lots of info.

Deidre Savoy has a good how-to article, as well: her view being that romantic suspense is a full romance and a full murder mystery, combined.

From Becci Clayton, there are seven rules for writing romantic suspense (go here for the full article:

1. Romantic Relationship - First and foremost, these stories are romance.

2. Logical Suspense Plot - As with any suspense story, any error in logical suspense will not be forgiven by the reader.

3. Include Sexual Tension - ... a careful balance must be created between the suspense and the romantic relationship and the internal and external conflicts.

4. Insure the Correct Use of Language - ... A romantic suspense tends to be more spare and "clean" or "everyday" where straightforward romance tends to have a more emotional, intimate descriptive flavor.

5. Get the Details Right - ... If you are writing a story set in the early 1960's, DON'T put a laser sight on the murder rifle. They weren't available to the public yet....

Not as well defined as other genres, eh? Perhaps reading through books considered "Romantic Suspense" helps .... And before you think contemporary works, like that of Nora Roberts, Suzanne Brockmann, and Catherine Coulter, remember Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier and Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.

Oh, and there's a sub-sub-genre here: humorous romantic suspense, with Jayne Ann Krentz leading that pack.