Maggie Pill Mysteries

Buy it here Of course you know by now that the 4th Sleuth Sisters Mystery releases today. If you don't, I'm not sure what I could have done differently. I'm on two blogs. I'm featured on a book lover's site. I sent out newsletters. I delivered early copies to Tom's so the locals can have first looks. I tweeted. I Facebooked. I sent out postcards to libraries and bookstores. All you have to do is enjoy the book...unless you're willing to write a review somewhere. That would be great.

Yesterday I discovered Facebook has forgotten who I am. It's some mix-up with passwords, but I got so frustrated I had to walk away from that circle world one gets into with internet sites: That's not the right email . Fix that. That's not the right password. Fix that. We're sending a code to your phone . Get it, plug it in.  Is this you? Yes. Congratulations. You're logged in. Hit 'enter.' Your email and/or password don't match our records. Can you get workman's comp for banging your head against your desk? What makes all this worse is that SLEUTHING AT SWEET SPRINGS is one week from its official release today, so there is LOTS I should be doing other than fighting with internet gremlins. Amazon print and e-book versions are ready. Order HERE   Audio takes much longer (sorry listeners). I hope my fans enjoy Book #4--and most of all, I hope they hear about it SOMEwhere!  

I should be receiving ARCs (Advance Review Copies, also known as Proofs) in the mail next week. I'll deliver them to some beta readers with sharp eyes who enjoy being the first to read a book. Covers are done by yeocladesigns--amazing! This stage is our last chance to clear up the pesky little errors that creep into books despite hard-working editors and despite the fact I've probably read the dumb thing a hundred times! I listened to my computer read the book aloud before sending it in for the final setup. As long as I don't let my mind wander, I can hear the tiniest errors, like a pause where I left an extra space or when it reads sat instead of sad . The fact remains that an author can't step back far enough to see places where the reader goes "What?" I'm grateful to have faithful friends who are willing to read and point those spots out to me. For example, a friend who read SLEUTHING AT SWEET SPRINGS noted that in one conversation I'd giv...

Boonies, boondocks, down in the boondocks. Who'd have guessed the term has nothing to do with docks? It comes from the Philippines' Tagalog language: bundok , meaning mountain. It was picked up by U.S. military folk and apparently became associated with "way out there where the guerrillas are." When I titled Book #3 MURDER IN THE BOONIES, someone asked if most of America would known the term boonies . I think they do, because of Billy Joe Royal's song, "Down in the Boondocks,"  and an assortment of Vietnam-era movies. In Michigan we use it a lot. Someone lives "way out in the boonies" or we get "lost in the boonies" when our GPS goes crazy. Not sure if/how it's used in other places. (Chime in here!) In Book #3 we learn that Barb, Faye, and Retta were raised in the boonies, ten miles from town. Typically, when they were kids Barb never thought much about where they lived, Faye loved everything about the farm, and Retta felt...