Saturday, August 1, 2015

Long August Weekend at the Keyboard

 
The long weekend is here and we've got a spectacular day underway. The 40 degree heat has lifted and the sun is shining, and I have three days to wrap up the ending on this latest manuscript. I'm close to 83,000 words, using some of my time this week to ponder the ending. I'm still not 100 per cent sure how everything will unfold, so this should be an interesting few days. I remain on track to meet my September 1 deadline.

I visited my neighbourhood Carlingwood mall earlier this week and introduced myself to the Coles staff, who as it turns out, had all heard of me. The assistant manager said that they'd had to reorder my Stonechild and Rouleau mysteries three times as they keep selling out. We've set up a signing for Saturday, October 3 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. so I hope to attract some new readers from my 'hood'.

An interesting interview in the Globe and Mail this week with Toronto crime writer Linwood Barclay. He talks about how easy it would be to keep rewriting the same best-selling book but his need to stretch as an author. He spent the last fourteen or so months writing at new trilogy and challenging his comfort zone. I've done much the same throughout my writing career, starting with young adult mysteries and short stories for adults, which I wrote all around the same time. I went on to write In Winter's Grip, a standalone adult mystery and now alternate between the Stonechild and Rouleau police procedurals and the Anna Sweet PI mysteries for adult literacy. All the while, I've been experimenting and quite frankly, amusing myself. I'm grateful for those readers who've read every one of my books and come along with me on my writing quest. I'll be interested tor read Linwood's latest Broken Promise to see where he's taken his writing, which has already garnered a wide international audience.



 

Today is a beautiful day, with hours of sunshine spread out before me, a second cup of coffee at the ready and some good writing time waiting to be filled.

Good safe long weekend, everyone.


1 comment:

  1. Hi Brenda,
    I actually will have four books out in the Ramirez series when HUNGRY GHOSTS comes out next June (it's already written) and I am still working on FAMINE BAY, which is historical fiction. I don't have any plans to write more books after that; it's a tough business, as you know, and the fact that US publishers (and also Penguin RandomHouse here in Canada) are no longer willing to publish books that they don't think will hit a certain threshold for sales makes it very hard for a relatively new author to get, or stay, published. But I have nothing but good things to say about my Canadian publisher, Simon and Schuster Canada. The fourth book in the Ramirez series was always intended to be the last. I suppose that may yet change. All the best, Peggy

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