As my long-time readers know, my publisher cancelled my Seven Deadly Sins series after two books. While some readers loved the supernatural thriller series, it didn’t find its audience — unlike my more successful crime thrillers. Publishing is a business — I get that — but I was still disappointed because I loved this series and I loved these characters. I put it aside and started the Lucy Kincaid series — which is still going strong. The 12th book, MAKE THEM PAY, will be out in March!   While writing these two books nearly killed my career — and I don’t… Read More

I have so many things to blog about … but no time to blog! Daughter finished up Winter Ball softball, now in soccer … son finished up football, now in basketball … I lost my extra drivers to college … and then of course WRITING! BOUCHERCON 2014 I attended by first Bouchercon! I had a panel and an impromptu panel (lead by Charlaine Harris and Sara Paretsky!) and I got to meet Sue Grafton (briefly — but it was worth it!) Isn’t she beautiful and gracious? And totally, completely “real” and unpretentious. I could write much more about the conference,… Read More

I’ve been quiet for the last few weeks because: 1) I took my #2 daughter to college. College prep, then driving and getting her settled, then coming home and catching up … took time. Lots of time. 2) Writing! Yes, writing is keeping me very busy. Last year I didn’t have as many tight deadlines; this year they seem to have crept up on me. But I finished the edits on MORTAL SIN, have been writing the next Lucy book (and having great fun!) and am expecting the page proofs for COMPULSION, the next Max book, this week. 3) Sports… Read More

Good news: I finished MORTAL SIN, book three of my Seven Deadly Sins series. My publisher cancelled this supernatural thriller series more than four years ago. I was heartbroken and never planned on writing another book, even though I loved the characters. There were a lot of reasons it was cancelled, but it boiled down to low sales: too many of my readers didn’t cross-over to a shift in genre. They read my because of my crime thrillers, and weren’t going to be satisfied by demons and ghosts in their stories. But I love this series. And there were enough… Read More

I’m not talking about Frankenstein or Catcher in the Rye, I’m talking about MY old books — books I wrote years ago and am now re-reading. Cringe. I have three side projects going right now. Yeah, I know. But I’m waiting on line edits for COMPULSION and what else do I do? Clean? Ha! The first is taking my first six books and digitally publishing outside of the North American market. I paid to have them scanned (because I don’t have the original edited files anymore — wonder how THAT happened!) and am proofreading them primarily for scanning and formatting… Read More

Damn! I had this post written on MONDAY, three days before my blog day, and I totally forgot to post it. I’m sorry! I have a book due in three weeks and that’s making me tense – tense primarily because I’m not in the zone (writing without awareness of passing time) and I’m still in the “this sucks beyond everything imaginable” mode. I took 10 days off to work on the page proofs for STALKED and in the middle of that, took my daughter to college. Now, I’m back into writing STOLEN and hoping I can figure out why it’s… Read More

We’ve often heard the phrase, “Life is a journey, not a destination.” While I do believe there is a final resting place, I also know that the road leading there can be rocky and smooth, curvy and straight, treacherous and safe. No two paths are the same, even if we share the road from time to time with others. It’s sometimes too easy to look at someone else and think their path is smoother or rougher than it really is. And even if we share the journey for a few miles, the way we view the terrain is filtered through… Read More

On Monday my kids start school. I’ve already had two orientations (on Tuesday for my second grader and on Wednesday for my third and fifth graders.) On Friday it’s the high school orientation, with a special meeting with just the seniors. Yes, I have a senior. I don’t feel old enough to have a daughter who will be 18 in a few months. :/ I’m VERY excited about the start of school because I get my regular schedule back. Having the kids around is one thing, but summer is also full of playtime, sports practice, summer day camp, shopping, and… Read More

I’m nearly done revising a digital-only, self-published novella for a charity anthology benefitting breast cancer research. ENTANGLED (9.12.11) has a great group of paranormal romance and supernatural thriller writers and I’m thrilled to be included. Because we’re self-publishing it, and because all the royalties for the first year will be donated to charity, I’m not going to see any money on it. And that’s okay because it’s for a good cause. I’ve written other free stories–for International Thriller Writers and for my website–so I’m just happy to do something that contributes back. I decided to write a Seven Deadly Sins… Read More

. . . I’m not talking about your children! There’s a phrase writers use in the revision process: Kill Your Darlings. That a descriptive paragraph or scene, no matter how well-written or poignant or suspenseful or romantic or just plain stunning . . . if it doesn’t fit in the story . . . if it can be taken out without changing anything . . . has to go. Kill it. It’s the hardest thing a writer can do. Because killing your darlings goes well beyond a well-turned phrase that may be repetitive, or a scene that is unnecessary. Sometimes… Read More