From Stage to Keyboard: by Connie DiMarco

Jenn McKinlay: True confession -- I read my horoscope every day. 

I have also been known to consult runes, tarot cards, and one time a 

psychic. She told me not to worry and that everything would work 

out. That was enough for me, I never needed to consult another 

psychic again. Right? Anyway, when I saw the Zodiac Mysteries 

hit the shelves, needles to say, they were immediately added to my 

TBR pile! They're wonderful! And their author, the fabulous 

Connie DiMarco, is here with us today to tell us how they came to 

be.

Connie DiMarco: A big thank you to Jenn 

McKinlay for  inviting me over to visit the 

Jungle Reds! I’m thrilled to be here today 

among such a fabulous group. 

Tail of the Dragon, Book 3 in the Zodiac Mysteries, has just been released.  The mad round of blog tours and events has (almost) come to a close and now, with a little breathing room, I find myself giving a lot of thought to the crazy business we are all involved in.  The ups and downs, the disappointments and frustrations.  And of course, the thrill of holding your very own book in your hands or spotting your magnum opus on a Barnes & Noble bookshelf. But the truth of it is that getting published can be a real pain in the zorch! 

JENN: Pain in the Zorch!!! I love it!

My wonderful agent several years ago tried to sell the Zodiac Mysteries, but no publisher would bite. One reason I’m sure was that I had no resume as a writer.  In fact, I had never written a thing or even thought about being a writer.  Crafting a thank you note or a little message on a Christmas card took all my ingenuity and focus.  The thought of staring at a blank computer screen, wracking my brain for clever ideas seemed an excruciating form of mental torture.  I swore I’d never step into that.  

My first love was acting, from the time I heard a soap opera on the radio at the age of six.  I was entranced.  I wanted to live in that world.  And eventually I did -- for a lot of years.  A few people who know about my foolish past have remarked, “How exciting! Wasn’t it exciting?”  I’ve replied, “Uh . . . .”  How can I explain to anyone that the work is sometimes an E-ticket ride, but the life is anything but.  If sweating blood for the next job, anxiety attacks, and waiting for the phone to ring is exciting . . . then maybe you’re meant to be an actor (?). 

It was boredom that kickstarted my venture into mystery writing.  The epiphany happened one day in a Hollywood parking lot in 105-degree heat. I was playing a receptionist in a miniseries who helps an undercover FBI agent posing as a Muslim terrorist fill out a job application for a rabbi who is in fact a terrorist himself.  If you’re confused by this description, no worries.  So was I.  Over the years under my professional name, I’ve played all sorts of moms, divorcées, nurses, secretaries and waitresses, even a hooker or two.  That particular day, I was in a state of narcoleptic ennui.  Bored stiff.  This was not art.  I was merely advancing the plot.  That’s the day I decided to head home as soon as possible and start writing my mystery.  (Did I mention I’ve always been a lover of mysteries and thrillers?)  

As an actor, not only are you a social leper at a party because everyone knows you’re just looking for the next job, but in a working situation, you have no control.  Not on a set and not on a stage.  You only have your part, one cog in a great wheel.  But (lightbulb going off here) as a writer, you can create and control everything.  You build your own world, just the way you like it.  

August 2018

So that’s how my crime-solving San Francisco astrologer was born.  The early rejections didn’t bother me.  I already had a Ph.D. in rejection – three decades of chewing fingernails, sitting in LA traffic, A/C on stun and makeup melting onto my lap for the jobs I didn’t book.  But I was undaunted.  I wrote the second book in the series and then the third.  Still nothing happened.  The Zodiac Mysteries languished.  Julia, my crime-solving astrologer wasn’t solving any crimes, nor did she have any clients to speak of.  In the meantime, I wrote several books in the Soup Lovers’ Mysteries but I hadn’t given up on the Zodiac Mysteries.  Those stories were still dear to my heart.  

Fast forward several years. Once again, my dauntless agent tried to sell the series.  But still there were difficulties.  One editor said, “A religious cult that takes over the city?  Oh no, we can’t touch anything like that!”  (The Madness of Mercury)  Another said, “Astrology? Oh, I think that’s way too complicated for our readers!”  (All Signs Point to Murder)  And so on . . .  But, at least no one said, ‘She’s a terrible writer.’  There was hope yet.  

Then finally, the clouds parted, the stars aligned.  A publisher actually wanted the series!  Not just any publisher, but Llewellyn/Midnight Ink.  How perfect, how appropriate, I thought.  The publisher of all those astrology books I had been perusing for years.  Who knew I be able to create a unique character from all that wealth of information? 

Chinese Zodiac

So that’s how the Zodiac Mysteries finally saw the light of day.  That’s how Julia Bonatti was born, with clients who bring murder to her doorstep. And I couldn’t be happier to have created my own world.  Is getting published still a pain in the zorch?  Yes, it is, but it’s a whole lot more satisfying than anything else I’ve done in life.  I wouldn’t trade being part of the mystery community for anything!  I just wish I had started sooner.  

So, Reds and Readers, the obvious question is -- what's your sign?

Are you a believer in astrology or no? 

Here's description of the latest Zodiac Mystery: Tail of the Dragon

A rare astrological event could help San Francisco astrologer Julia Bonatti avoid a deadly destiny:

Julia Bonatti loves the freedom of working for herself as a professional astrologer. But after receiving several unexpected bills, she considers a temp job offer from her old boss a stroke of luck too good to pass up.

On her first day, the posh law office becomes a crime scene when one of the partners is found dead. Julia discovers that a series of death threats have been sent to several employees of the firm, and she uses her astrological expertise to discover possible motives. But before she can convince the authorities of what she knows, the killer strikes again. Will Julia unmask the culprit before he, or she, takes another life?

Praise for the Zodiac Mysteries

All Signs Point to Murder

"Di Marco crafts an intricate, twisting plot and layers on the astrological details that fans of psychic mysteries so enjoy."―Booklist

The Dreaded Mogus (Read this and see.)

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Some days on the writing road you meet a colleague who turns out to be a lifetime pal. Jess Lourey and I have been on so many adventures, and misadventures, and life changes and hurdles and hilarity—I cannot begin to tell you. (Someday we will.)

Shannon is a Forge colleague, and when I read her amazing first book, I knew were we soul mates, too.

Then Jess and Shannon met. And they teamed up to become the power sisters. Seriously. They are a force of nature.  And now, with shelves of their individual books between them, they are once again taking their show on the road. And their sisters at Jungle Red are welcoming them with open arms, champagnes, and…fear of the dreaded mogus. 

(Plus--you could win their books!)

SHANNON BAKER:   Good morning Reds and everyone. Thanks, Hank, for inviting Jess and me for a stop-over on the Lourey/Baker Double Booked Blog Tour redux, in which we get to mention our upcoming releases, but more importantly, settle in for a good visit (as my grandma would say).  Virtually traveling with Jess is more fun than a person can have without a prescription. 

I’m Shannon Baker on the road to peddle Dark Signal, the newest in the Kate Fox series, where it’s murder by railroad tie. Forge is releasing a .99 Kate Fox short story September 17^th, but at the time of this writing, I don’t have a link, so I’ll put it in the comments. Jess Lourey is announcing the ever-hilarious installment in the Murder by Month series, March of Crime.

Shannon: I recently ran a half marathon. It was my first. I’m 57 years old. I’d kind of always wanted to run a ½ marathon, but the idea of actually racking up 13.1 miles seemed so far outside of my abilities (and the bounds of sanity), I didn’t ever try. Jess, when was a time you challenged yourself to do something you thought might be outside your abilities?

JESS LOUREY: First, can I say how thrilled I am to be here? The Reds are amazing women, and I count two of my favorite people among them: Hallie and Hank.

HANK and HALLIE: Aw. We feel the same way. xo

JESS: Mwa-h. So My 2016 TEDx Talk, and the book it inspired, Rewrite Your Life: Discover Your Truth Through the Healing Power of Fiction, were so far out of my comfort zone that I’m still finding my way back. Both deal with the transformative power of turning your facts into fiction. The thing is, I don’t write memoir for a reason. I like hiding behind stories, and I had to drop my fiction fig leaf to share the process with others. I am glad I did, but I’m still dealing with the psychic terror.

Shannon, congratulations on the half marathon! How’d you do? Did you have special equipment? And why in the name of all things lazy did you do it?

Shannon: A couple of things inspired me to run the race, not least was proving to myself I wasn’t too old to try new, fun things. Once I convinced myself it might be possible and even enjoyable, I immediately signed up for a race three months down the road. I invited my daughter (who had talked about wanting to run a ½ marathon…someday) and her fiancé to take a trip from Portland, OR to Tucson and run it with me.  With that, I was set-in-cement committed.

Shannon: As you can imagine, you don’t just wake up one morning and run 13.1 miles. I found a training schedule that would take me to race day. And I stuck with it. The first week my big run was only 6 miles. And the next week, 7 didn’t seem so hard. The week I ran 10 miles nearly blew me away. Ten miles! Me? No way. After that, adding one more mile a week didn’t seem insurmountable.

Jess: Hmmm. Does it count as exercise to drink beer while I read about you training for a marathon? Because that bottle isn’t making its way to my mouth by itself. Also, you make this whole training process sound pretty smoo—oooth.

Shannon: I suffered some set-backs along the way. I developed a hitch in my giddy-up (a technical term) that required slacking off and lots of Ibuprofen. I contracted a dread mogus flying to a book event. Nevertheless, I persisted. (I’ve been waiting to use that quote!)

Jess: What is a dread mogus? Also, rock on with that quote. I’m going to talk politics here, and I’m going to keep it simple: women are capable, women are amazing, and it is our time. Boys are welcome, too—some of my favorite people are male—but it’s long past time to shake up the system. Back to our regularly-scheduled programming: Shannon, after you peturped (I can make up words, too) the dread mogus, what’d you do?

Shannon: My daughter and her fiancé flew in, we carbo-loaded and bought new running clothes, although my almost son-in-law only opted for new socks. Then ran the race, in much better times than any of us believed we could, and I basked in the glow of that accomplishment.

Jess: Well-deserved. I felt the same way after my TEDx Talk, and when the backstage pass I kept from the event snags my eye, I feel a tiny purr of that wonderful “I did it, you guys I did it!” feeling you earn when you Do the Thing That Is Hard. And what that thing is differs for all of us. For me, the combination of sharing personal information I’d kept hidden for over a decade, public speaking, and standing on the revered TEDx red circle was so terrifying for me that I woke up at 2:00 am the night before my Talk, sweating cold, realizing that I’d been gone for three days and hadn’t asked anyone to feed my cat. I was on my phone, crying, scrolling through my contacts to see who I could call to see if my poor kitty was even still alive, before I realized I don’t have a cat.

I learned something important about myself, and the world: we were put here to push our boundaries. All the good stuff is on the other side of Uncomfortable I Don’t Wanna. Shannon, what were your takeaways from the half marathon?

Shannon: Through this, I learned that a mile can be really far, or hardly any distance at all, depending on where I focused my attention (and what was on my playlist). Any big chore can be tackled by breaking it into chunks. Commitment and accountability are key. And whatever the journey, find comrades to share, commiserate, and celebrate.

Jess: Love it. As in running, so in life.

Shannon: I admit that a few days after the race I felt let down and wondered if I ought to schedule another race and see if I could better my time. But running is not my passion. Writing is.

Jess: That’s so interesting that you say that. A while back I started a writing retreat business because I was searching for something that I apparently wasn’t getting with my full-time teaching, writing two novels a year schedule. After five months and hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars invested, I realized I hadn’t been running toward something. I’d been running away from writing. I’m back, and remind me this is where I belong, yes?

HANK: Love you guys so much--and congratulations on your wild success! (I am now doing the thing that is hard. So your inspiration comes at the perfect time.)

Reds and readers, what have you faced and conquered?

And wait--there's more!

JESS AND SHANNON: Yes, there's more! We are each giving away three books on the Lourey/Baker Double-Booked Tour. For every comment you make along our tour stop, you’ll get another entry in the contest. We get lonely if you’re not talking to us.  This is our last stop but we’ll count if you check out our other visits.

September 2 Mysterious Musings

September 5 Janice Hardy

September 7 The Creative Penn

September 9 Write to Done

September 12        Wicked Cozy Writers

September 20        Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Blog

September 21        There’s a Dead Guy in the Living Room

September 23        Femmes Fatales

September 24        Writer Unboxed

September 25        Dru’s Book Musings

September 27        Do Some Damage

October 3               Terry Ambrose

October 12             Jungle Red Writers

Jess Lourey (rhymes with "dowry") is best known for her critically-acclaimed Murder-by-Month mysteries, which have earned multiple starred reviews from Library Journal and Booklist, the latter calling her writing "a splendid mix of humor and suspense." She is a tenured professor of creative writing and sociology, a recipient of The Loft's Excellence in Teaching fellowship, a regular Psychology Today blogger, and a sought-after workshop leader and keynote speaker who delivered the 2016 "Rewrite Your Life" TEDx Talk. March of Crime, the 11th book in her humorous mystery series, releases September 2017. You can find out more at www.jessicalourey.com

Shannon Baker is the author of the Kate Fox mystery series (Tor/Forge). Set in the isolated cattle country of the Nebraska Sandhills, Kirkus says, “Baker serves up a ballsy heroine, a colorful backdrop, and a surprising ending.” She also writes the Nora Abbott mystery series (Midnight Ink), featuring Hopi Indian mysticism and environmental issues. Shannon makes her home in Tucson where she enjoys cocktails by the pool, breathtaking sunsets, a crazy Weimeraner, and killing people (in the pages of her books). She was voted Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer’s 2014 and 2017 Writer of the Year. Visit Shannon at www.Shannon-Baker.com

  

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Lisa Alber, WHISPERS IN THE MIST—and Meeting her Matchmaker

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: Today I'm delighted to introduce Lisa Alber, author of Kilmoon and her just-published Whispers in the Mist.

LISA ALBER: Thanks for having me, Susan! I always enjoy joining the Jungle Reds gang for a day.

In my relatively short time as a novelist (my second novel, WHISPERS IN THE MIST, came out a few weeks ago—woohoo!), I’ve come to the conclusion that reading is a conversation we have with ourselves; how we react to what we read isn’t so much about the story as about ourselves.

I hadn’t thought about this until I went to Ireland this past spring for novel research. One day to my delight I happened on a big horse fair and got to talking to the owner of a Connemara pony. He was charming fellow, one of the loquacious Irish. I wasn’t expecting anything out of the conversation, but then he asked my name, and I asked his name, and then my mind got blown.

“Wait,” I said, “you’re W—D—, the matchmaker?” I couldn’t believe it. Of all the horse owners in all of Ireland, I happened to be talking to the man who was one of the inspirations for my first novel (and thus the series). Oh. My. God. I immediately fell into a flurry of words, telling him about the County Clare mysteries and assuring him that my rendition of matchmaking had nothing to do with reality.

I pulled out a copy of KILMOON that I carried with me everywhere. He seemed a little—bemused? Wary? Skeptical? But, also curious. Maybe a smidgen impressed. So, feeling a tad foolish, I signed over the copy to him. He asked for my phone number. 

Sure, why not? I thought.  

I walked away thoroughly tickled by the encounter, so tickled that I had to tell Lou the owner of my favorite café, Ginger Lou’s, and later Kevin the barman at my favorite pub, Cooley’s. I got an earful about the matchmaker along the lines of:

“He’d buy and sell you as soon as look at you.” “He’s a pretty tricky character.” “An old gigolo.” “You couldn’t be matchmaker without doing a bit of quality control.”

Fascinating, I thought. W—D—, matchmaker, was or is a total player. Huh.

Fast forward a week. I received a text message: You said i may not like the book i said i might so when good to meet up w--

Whoa! I hadn’t expected to hear from W—, and here he’d read the bbook surprisingly fast. The next day we met up at Ginger Lou’s. Only now I was unaccountably nervous. My matchmaker is the only character I’ve written who is remotely based on reality, and however remotely, the fact remained that I’d gotten the idea for him from W—D—. If W— was a tricky character, did he want money? If he was an old gigolo, did he want—something?

WHAT DID HE WANT?

The suspense about killed me, and Lou was nothing but laughing at me. “Oh ay, he probably just wants to get the leg over.” (“The leg over” – I love the Irish!)

The next day, W— was charming as could be as we sipped tea and ate dessert (with Lou smirking in the background). He didn’t say much about the novel, only that I certainly “can write.” We chatted about all kinds of things, including his large extended family, many kids, and grandchildren. I couldn’t figure him out.

Toward the end of the conversation, he finally said, “There’s one thing I want to ask you though.” Uh-oh, here we go. “Your character, Merrit—is she based on anyone?”

Merrit is one of my series protagonists. She’s from California and is the illegitimate daughter of the local matchmaker. It took me a second to realize what W— was asking: Was Merrit based on ME? Was I his daughter? Whoa! Without letting on that I understood what he was really asking, I assured him that she’s not based on anyone real.

You can see why I got to reflecting about the meanings our stories can have for people, meanings that we could never in a million years predict, meanings that don’t reflect the stories themselves, meanings that have nothing to do with us, the authors. It’s an amazing thing, not to mention a little mind-boggling.

Ultimately, I suppose that’s why storytelling is so powerful. Stories have their own lives. I just hadn’t considered this for the stories I write. I mean, I’m just doing my thing—having my own conversation with myself as I write.

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: Lisa, wow, what an amazing story. He must have been completely freaked out that you might be his real-life daughter, based on Merrit!


Reds and lovely readers, when you read, how much of yourselves to you bring to the book? Do you think novels are a collaboration between writer and reader? Tell us in the comments!



ABOUT WHISPERS IN THE MIST:

There’s a whisper in the mists

In Lisfenora, Ireland, a strange fog has rolled in off the Atlantic. Along with the fog comes tales of the Grey Man, a predatory faery of local lore who snatches innocent souls into his deadly gloom.

And with the mists come murder

When a teenage boy dies in Detective Sergeant Danny Ahern’s arms, Danny finds himself pursuing his own grey man, a killer who becomes more elusive the closer Danny gets to the truth. A mute woman may be the key to solving the murder and helping Danny heal his own broken life, but first she must unlock the memories from her past.

ABOUT LISA:

Lisa Alber writes the County Clare mysteries. Her debut novel, Kilmoon, was nominated for the Rosebud Award of Best First Novel. Kirkus calls her second novel, Whispers in the Mist, a “worthy successor to Kilmoon in tone, mood, complexity, and keen insight into human failures and triumphs.” She balances writing her third novel (Midnight Ink, August 2017) with gardening, dog-walking, and goofing off. She lives in Portland, OR. You can find Lisa online at lisaalber.com, Facebook and Twitter.

WHISPERS link: https://www.amazon.com/Whispers-Mist-County-Clare-Mystery/dp/073874896X

KILMOON link: https://www.amazon.com/Kilmoon-County-Clare-Mystery-Alber/dp/0989544605

A Mixed Bag of What? From Jess and Shannon

What We Wished We Knew Then

This is Jess

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Do you know Jess Lourey and Shannon Baker? If I had a million hours, I could not begin to list the superlatives that they deserve. Hilarious, first, and talented. And loving, and thoughtful, and spiritual, and authentic and genuine.

I was trying to think of a funny thing to say about them, some anecdote or experience to explain how fabulous they are, but it’s—well, Jess and I have criss-crossed the country together as part of MWA University (Hallie, too), have eaten ridiculous food and (sometimes) great wine, have taught and listened and commiserated and laughed and planned and plotted and shared the terribles and the fabulousness. Fabulousnesses.

And then along comes Shannon, who shares an editor with me—as well as an outlook and a joy and an enthusiasm to see what’s coming next.

This is Shannon

Their books are terrific.

And today, hurray, here they are on Jungle Red. And they are so fabulous, they wrote their own intro. At least—they thought they did.

THE INTRO THEY WROTE:

Today's guest post features thriller writers Jess Lourey (Salem's Cipher) and Shannon Baker (Stripped Bare), both of whose latest books hit shelves on September 6, 2016. They are embarking on their whirlwind, 30-day Lourey/Baker Double-booked Blog Tour in celebration of their dual release date. Today, they’re joining Jungle Red Writers to share what they wished they knew way back when, in the land and time before they’d written and published 19 books between them.

Jess here. I wish I had known at age 18 that youth is its own beauty, and that 125 pounds is not fat no matter what the magazines tell you. I wish I had known in my 20s how great dating would become in my 40s (all the guys have jobs and vasectomies; I am now happily married, but the point remains). Even more important than those two tips, I wish I knew three very specific things about writing way back in 2003 when I was hand-mailing query letters (featuring licked stamps! remember when?) out into the world.

   1. Writing novels is a marathon, not a sprint. May Day, my first book, hit shelves in 2006 to some good reviews (notwithstanding Kirkus, who I swear keeps ellipses in business). Twelve novels later, ten of those traditionally published, and I’m still working my day job. I don’t think the awareness that building a writing career takes time would have changed anything for me because like most writers, I write for the love of the story, not the money. Still, I maybe wouldn’t have gotten so down on myself if I hadn’t expected I’d have made it big by at least my tenth book.

   2.   I wish I had known I would make lifelong friends by joining the crime fiction community. I might have jumped in this pond sooner if someone had told me how cool all the fish are. I have all sorts of theories about why mystery writers are the best human beings you’ll ever meet, but bottom line, writing novels has brought amazing people into my life who I’m lucky enough to call friends, including Shannon, Hank, and Hallie.

   3. Everyone thinks their book is crap at various times when writing it. (If this isn’t true, don’t tell me.) Write through that stage. It is the equivalent of me at age 12 (through 19), when I thought claw bangs, frosted lipstick, and pinned jeans were the way to go. Keep moving forward, in writing and in life. Things always get better.

Shannon, you’re working on your second series, which is earning rave reviews, and you’ve been in this business as long as I have, right? What pearls of wisdom do you have to share?

Shannon: First of all, what are pinned jeans? And secondly and more importantly, huge congratulations on your recent marriage. One thing I know now that I didn’t back then is that you can find the love of your life in your middling years and it’s even better than in your twenties.

HANK: Yay Yay Yay!

Shannon: Damnit, Jess. You went first and got all the good ones. But here’s my first turd of wisdom:

   1.  Know when to quit. That’s right. I have this little disaster I call Ashes of the Red Heifer. I started writing that sucker in 1997. It’s a great premise. The TV series, Dig, is based on the same ideas. But I didn’t have the craft to carry it off. I kept working on it, though. Every time I’d learn something new, I’d rewrite the doomed thing. It went through so many critique groups it became completely homogenized. At one point, a New York agent picked it up. But 9/11 hit and no one would touch it. I hate to admit I rewrote that for over 10 years and finally sold it to a nanopress. It is out of print and shouldn’t have ever been in print. To use a Biblical reference, you can’t put new wine into an old wine skin. Let it go and start something new.

   2.  Your journey is your own. If I could internalize this point, I’d be happier and wiser than I am now. Other writers are better, luckier, smarter, more successful, prettier, thinner, have more friends…. Do what you can, be who you are, and don’t worry about someone else’s path. The Desiderata says it best. (You remember all the hippies loved that in the 70’s, right? In my new series, Kate’s mother lives by it.)

“If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.”  Namaste.

.        3. I'll try to stay away from quoting ancients on this one. Again, this is a do as I say, not as I do kind of thing. Try to maintain a sane perspective on this writing gig. So much of the business is out of our control. One of my friends decided in the fourth grade that she wanted to be a novelist. She is in her 50’s and hasn’t published a novel, yet. She battles depression, literally, over this. She can’t make the markets yearn for her work or force a publisher to take her on. No one knows what makes one book a runaway bestseller and a better book languish. What’s the worst thing that can happen if you don’t hit that goal you’ve set for yourself? The sun will come up, your children will still be brats, sex will still feel great, and you keep writing books. It’s writing, people, not life.

Haha! Jess here.  That's me and Shannon for you, a mixed bag of wisdom, turds and sex.

What we wished we knew then ...  

HANK: Wait, wait, I hear you wrapping up. But yeah, what are pinned jeans.

JESS: Anyone out there know? 

Thank you for joining us today! I am giving away a Salem’s Cipher and Shannon is giving away a Stripped Bare. Tell us what you wished you knew when, writing-related or otherwise, or leave a comment for a chance to win.

And because we love you best of all, we’ve got more:

If you order Salem's Cipher before September 6, 2016, you are invited to forward your receipt to salemscipher@gmail.com to receive a Salem short story and to be automatically entered in a drawing to win a 50-book gift basket mailed to the winner's home.

If you order Stripped Bare before September 6, 2016, you are invited to forward your receipt to katefoxstrippedbare@gmail.com to receive a Kate Fox short story and be entered for a book gift basket mailed to your home.

You’re welcome to enter both contests.  

HANK:  Love to you both, too. Reds--instead of trying to match their advice--lets talk about pinned jeans. What they heck are they? Did you wear them? What's the clothing choice you most regret? Shoulder pads don't count.

Mine: The lavender linen hot pants suit (very conservative) I wore to a wedding in 1972. WHAT was I thinking?

Or okay…their advice is so great. DO you have any? 

A copy of my new DRIVE TIME to once lucky commenter.

*************

Jessica (Jess) Lourey is best known for her critically-acclaimed Murder-by-Month mysteries, which have earned multiple starred reviews from Library Journal and Booklist, the latter calling her writing "a splendid mix of humor and suspense." She is a tenured professor of creative writing and sociology, a recipient of The Loft's 2014 Excellence in Teaching fellowship, and leads interactive writing workshops all over the world. Salem’s Cipher, the first in her thrilling Witch Hunt Series, hits stores September 2016. You can find out more at www.jessicalourey.com, or find Jess on Facebook or Twitter

Shannon Baker writes the Kate Fox mystery series. Stripped Bare, the first in the series, features a sheriff in rural Nebraska and has been called Longmire meets The Good Wife. Baker also writes the Nora Abbott Mystery Series, a fast-paced mix of murder, environmental issues and Hopi Indians published by Midnight Ink. Baker was voted Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers’ 2104 Writer of the Year. She writes from the Colorado Rockies to the Nebraska Sandhills, the peaks of Flagstaff and the deserts of Tucson. Visit Shannon at www.Shannon-Baker.com

Pop on over to the Midnight Ink blog Monday as we continue the Lourey/Baker Double Booked Tour.