Maggie Pill Mysteries

Today marks 35 days to the release of SLEUTHING AT SWEET SPRINGS. (Some of you have already pre-ordered, but if you haven't and want to do that now, here's the link: https://www.amazon.com/Sleuthing-Springs-Sleuth-Sisters-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B01F7B6L4K) To build buzz and eventually celebrate the release on June 30th, I'm inventing the world's FIRST Create-Your-Own-Contest Contest. The rule is "Do whatever you want to with the idea of the Sleuth Sisters Mysteries, and you might win a $50-gift certificate to the bookstore of your choice." $50 worth of books? Be still, my heart! I'm guessing some of you will get all shy and say, "But I don't know what you want, Maggie." That's just it. I want what you want. However...here are some ideas that came to mind. Use them or ignore them and be creative. It's all up to you. Entries will be judged on originality, quality, and popularity, so have at it! *Caption the picture below (I...

If you read this blog regularly, you might remember I was worried about our vacation and how Old Cat would react to living in a travel trailer for a few weeks. She's 21, though she wears her age very well, and she hadn't been on many car trips in her lifetime. Because she's so old, we weighed the possibilities carefully. Leave her home with a drop-in sitter? She'd be alone most of the time. Take her to relatives? She'd be just as upset in a strange place as she'd be in a camper. Boarding has never been something she enjoys. In the end we decided she'd come along. If it was traumatic, at least she'd be with Mom and Dad. There's no telling what she thought, of course, but Old Cat did okay. The going-down-the-road part wasn't her favorite, but she accepted it if she could crawl into the pillowcase on the camper bed and stay there until the movement stopped. Since she sleeps all day anyway, that worked well. Once we were set up, she did exactly w...

First, the upside of arranging pre-orders of an upcoming book. If an author sets a book up for pre-order, the sales that come before the release date count as sales on that day, which raises the book higher in rankings, which shows it to more people, which in turn generates more sales. In theory, anyway. I'm not much for figuring out the ins and outs of selling more books. I'd rather write more. The downside of pre-orders is my anxiety level. I have to cross-my-heart-and-hope-to-die promise I'll get the book done by June 20, ten days before the "official" release date so Amazon knows I'm trustworthy. If I fail, they promise to never let me pre-order again (well, for a year, anyway). I could live with that, but I hate failing, so I won't if I can possibly help it. The problem is I'm waiting for others to do their jobs and hoping that their jobs (editing) won't require too much more work from me (re-writing/fixing errors). When I signed a con...