Audio Bonanza!

Wow--it was terrific to hear that the Booktown Mysteries were going to continue on audio.  Yesterday Murder on the Half Shelf was released.  What I like best about this new contract is that they're not only selling them as MP3 downloads (did you know you can listen to them on your Kindle?), but also as CDs.

I have to admit, while I do have a couple of MP3 players, I've never downloaded a book to either of them. I still prefer to listen to a CD and maybe that's because I used to listen to a LOT of loud music with earphones, and now I want to protect my hearing as much as possible. (I rarely listen to my MP3 player with earbuds.  I have tiny speakers that sound surprisingly good.  Great for when you travel.)

I hope many libraries will buy the new edition and that a lot of people will get enjoyment out of the rest of the series. (Sadly, there are no plans to put the first five books on CD.)
It's available from:

Audible | Amazon | iTunes| and discounted from the publisher, Tantor Media

Next Up:  Not The Killing Type.  It'll be released on April 14th. They did a nice job with the cover.

Related articles

Good news for Booktown Audio Fans!

Hit the road with the Booktown Mysteries!

It's a REAL hardcover!

The other day I got a couple of sample copies of Murder On The Half Shelf.  Woo-hoo!  They're beautiful!

It wasn't the first time I'd held one of my own books, in hardcover, in my hands. I had that honor (?) back in 2005 when Murder On The Mind was published. I can't say it was one of my happiest experiences.  For one thing, it arrived with the world's ugliest cover (and still holds that honor).  It was yanked from it's comfortable March publication date and thrust into a very unfriendly November timeline. The review copies went out late, and since that publisher targeted libraries who buy books based on reviews, the book was doomed.  It would have been kinder to just bury the thing in the backyard with an RIP wreath.

Luckily, the book had a second life as a mass market paperback.  (Although for some unknown reason, the cover was of a brown leather chair, a cold fireplace, and a open book.  Still scratching my head over that one.)  Finally, the book has an even happier life with a wonderful cover (done by my good friend Pat Ryan) as a trade paperback and an e book.  (Now, don't you have to agree that this is a marvelous cover--and speaks directly to a scene in the book--um, my favorite as it turns out.)

To make up for the nasty first cover, my publisher redeemed themselves by giving me a spectacular cover for Murder On The Mind's sequel, Dead In Red (also in hardcover).  Sales were still lackluster, and so once I had the rights back, I self published it as a trade paperback and an e book.

Which brings me up to Murder on the Half Shelf (or, MOTHS--great acronym, huh?).  Look at that cover.  Isn't it lovely?  As pretty as it looked in a j-peg photo, it looks spectacular with REAL printing on the dust cover.  And look!  The title is embossed in gold (which also isn't in the j-peg).

I'm really happy with that dust cover.  My publisher was gracious enough to add a box on the back flyleaf that notes my website address, facebook author page, and twitter handle.  I hope a LOT of my readers will feel motivated to check out all three -- and then maybe they'll find out about the Victoria Square and Jeff Resnick mysteries.  One can but dream!

Now, to see if readers (and libraries!) will embrace this story.  I've got my fingers crossed.

Murder On The Half Shelf will debut on July 3rd.
.

Free at last ... sort of

Okay, I'm not really free at last, but I did have a huge burdon of guilt lifted when I handed in the manuscript for THE CHAMBER PLOT, my title (which may not last when Marketing hears of it) for the 7th Booktown Mystery.  Can't tell you about it now.  I'll talk about it later this summer ... after Murder on the Half Shelf comes out.  (That's July 3rd for those of you who like to mark your calendars.

I must admit I dragged my feet a bit about finishing the book. There's a new character (who first shows up in Murder On The Half Shelf) that is such a delight to write, and I never know what's going to come out of her mouth next.  I'm looking forward to finding out what she'll be doing in the next book.

Speaking of which, during the next few months I'll be working on the 8th book in the series (no title yet), and on the 4th Victoria Square Mystery.  (No contract yet--but it's in the works.  Best to start now just in case I have to turn it in earlier than I thought.)  But honestly, first I'm taking the rest of the month off to do administrative stuff.  Like send out bookmarks to independent booksellers (and if you're one and would like some--please ask!), and get my postcards ready for readers and libraries.  This effort requires sitting for hours and hours on end sticking down labels and stamps -- usually in front of a TV set with DVDs.  Hey, it's a difficult job, but somebody has to do it, right?

Where do I get my addresses from?  Why people who sign up for my e newsletter.  There's the option of adding your address, and if you do, you'll get a postcard.  Also, I'd love to know if there are libraries out there who would like to be notified of my new books, and/or if they would like signed bookmarks to hand out to patrons.  So if you haven't already signed up, do it now--there's a sign-up form right on this page--scroll down if you don't already see it.  (But look for a confirmation email to follow--it might end up in your spam folder. and, BTW, I don't share or sell addresses.)

Off to work.
.