HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Oh, my goodness, there are so many stories. And in our book world, so many stories of authors—including debut authors--whose dreams were about to come true. Alicia Kennedy, like her intrepid sleuth Naomi in her Traveler Cozy series, was about to have the trip of a lifetime.
And then, Alicia (writing as AR Kennedy) and the other authors had the rug pulled out from them—devastatingly and irretrievably.
And because we all try to be brave, and loving and embrace our shared situation, we are honored to highlight those authors-and essential employees-who have braved so much.
Alicia Kennedy is a soldier. She’s a debut author during this horrible time. But what did she do? She went to work. And we are so proud to hear her story.
A Dream Interrupted
by
One day in August 2019, I chose March 24, 2020 to release my new series — The Traveler Cozy Mystery Series. I chose March to release the first in the series, Sleuth on Safari, because it was the recommended six months away for marketing. I also chose March because of Spring Break. I envisioned a reader buckling their seatbelt on their flight to their own adventure or laying down at a beach or at a pool, opening their e-reader and beginning to enjoy Naomi’s adventure in Africa.
In August 2019, the only thing I thought of when I heard ‘corona’ was a beer and a lime.
In August 2019, if I typed COVID19, my iPhone would have auto-corrected it.
As the release date approached, the pandemic infected the world. The series is independently published and due to Amazon rules, changing the release date would come with penalties, such as not being able to post pre-orders in the future. So I was stuck with the date of March 24, 2020.
I tried to tell myself it would be all right, that the release would be a success. I tried to assuage my fears by thinking how no one was traveling and that they would want to read a story about a woman traveling to Africa on a safari.
However, few can concentrate to read and so many have lost their jobs.
Many independently published authors are either retired or have full time jobs. I have a full time job.
As a home care physical therapist, in New York, I am considered an essential employee. Typically, I treat people who are considered homebound. Now, basically the whole state is ordered to be homebound.
During most of this unprecedented time, I have been thankful to have a full time job. It helped me maintain a sense of normalcy, ensured a steady paycheck and kept me from watching too much news. Sadly, on Good Friday, I was faced with the harsh reality of my work and this pandemic. On April 9, 2020, one of the physical therapists on my team died. The tragic loss of Mario to COVID19 is one that will be felt by his family, as well as his co-workers and patients, forever.
My goal when I began writing The Traveler Cozy Mystery Series was to have the reader travel with me to international locales I have enjoyed. For the readers who cannot travel due to financial or physical restrictions, I hoped they enjoyed the journey. For the readers who are able to travel, I hoped the book would inspire them to book a trip.
Sometime in the future, I hope many more readers join Naomi on her travels. They are full of fun, adventure and family. It’s what all of us need in our lives.
HANK: Oh, Alicia, you are so brave, and you are so tough, and you are facing so much right now. Our hearts go out to you in so many ways. And I am working hard to be optimistic. But yay for debut authors! And we are giving standing ovations to all authors whose tours have been cancelled. We all become family now, right? And each and every one of us is sending you hugs and gratitude.
So, Reds and readers, let’s pretend. If you could go anywhere right now, safely and happily and no holds barred, where would it be, and why? (And we hope you are all well.)
A R Kennedy lives in Long Beach, New York, with her two pups. She works hard to put food on the floor for them. As her favorite T-shirt says, ‘I work so my dog can have a better life'. She’s an avid traveler. But don’t worry. While she’s away, her parents dote on their grand-puppies even more than she does. Her writing is a combination of her love of travel, animals, and the journey we all take to find ourselves.
SLEUTH ON SAFARI
Naomi and her estranged sister are off on a trip of a lifetime—an African safari, a bucket list trip for Naomi on which she got a last-minute deal. Naomi thinks traveling with her sister will be the worst part of her African safari until she finds one of their fellow travelers, the unlikable Dr. Higgins, dead. She gets more adventure than she bargained for when she starts investigating what she thinks is murder but the luxury lodge says was a tragic accident. She only has a few vacation days, and a few game drives, to find the killer. 
