Mike Befeler's Blog, page 20

Left Coast Crime Conference 2022

One of my favorite conferences for mystery fans and authors is The Left Coast Crime Conference. This year it’s being held in Albuquerque April 7 – 10. Typically, 400 to 500 people attend. In 2020 the conference was cancelled after one day, and last year it was virtual. The name of the conference comes from it being located in a city in the western part of the country. During the four days, attendees can choose from a wide variety of panels about the mystery genre. I will be hosting the Meet the New Authors breakfast at which we’ll introduce debut mystery authors. The best part of the conference is the opportunity for mystery authors and readers to mingle, chat and share stories and experiences.

The Saga of My 18 Published Books, Part 2

My first publisher, Five Star, didn’t ask for e-book rights for the first four books in the Paul  Jacobson Geezer-lit Mystery Series, so I self-published the e-book editions and an e-book box set of the four books. For the next five books Five Star published, they asked for e-book rights. Once Five Star exited the mystery line, I obtained rights for the five e-books they had published. In addition, I also obtained e-book rights for the four books published by four other publishers who went out of business. Working with my new publisher, Encircle Publications, here is how my e-book backlist stacks up. I have self-published eight of these books, and Encircle has published one of them. Encircle has also published four new e-books for me. I have self-published one new e-book, Coronavirus Daze. Consequently, all 18 of my books are available in e-book editions as well as print.

I have worked with one other publisher, Books in Motion, who has published nine of my books in audiobook editions.

The Saga of My 18 Published Books

My first book, Retirement Homes Are Murder, was published in January, 2007. The current count is 18 published books. Over this time, I’ve worked with eight publishers as well as self-published some of my books. Here’s the first installment of my saga: print editions. I originally worked with Five Star who published nine of my books in hardcover and six of them additionally in large print. Unfortunately, they decided to exit the mystery line. Over the years I also had four mystery novels published by four other publishers as trade paperbacks. These publishers are now all out of business as well. The good news is that I have rights to all of my backlist from these publishers. In addition, eight of my mystery novels have been published by Harlequin Worldwide Mysteries as mass market paperbacks. My current publisher, Encircle Publications, has published four new books and reissued seven of my original books as trade paperbacks.  I have self-published one book, a novella titled Coronavirus Daze, and reissued six of my earlier books as self-published trade paperback editions. Thus, all 18 of my books are currently available as trade paperbacks. In my next post, I will discuss e-books and audio books.

Christmas Season

Preparations are underway at our house for Christmas. We’ve sent out a family newsletter, the artificial tree is up and decorated, and some amount of present wrapping has been accomplished. Our 6-year-old grandson has completed his fifth annual craft Christmas tree to display on our dining room mirror. We’re getting there.

Giving In-person Presentations

This week feels a little bit like the times before the pandemic. I gave an in-person presentation to a book club earlier this week and have another presentation scheduled with a Kiwanis Club at the end of this week. I’ll be wearing a mask since we meet indoors, but will take it off when I give the presentation.

Cataract Surgery

Last month I had cataract surgery in one eye. It took several days for the fog to clear but then I could see in the distance without my glasses for the first time since seventh grade. Another surprise: colors were vibrant. The doctor explained that over time the lens gets cloudy, and you don’t notice the gradual change. I’ll be getting the second eye done this week, so hopefully I will be able to go without glasses for distance vision completely in a week or so. I’ll need reading glasses. This will all be quite a change for me.

Dumb Dad Jokes

I’m an advocate for dumb dad jokes. These are jokes we dads tell to our kids and grandkids to make them groan. These are very sophisticated jokes. Here are several examples:

I got fired from the orange juice factory because I couldn’t concentrate.

Every morning I plan to make pancakes, but I keep waffling.

I’ve accumulated a large number of these jokes. My kids have given me dad joke books, and I get a weekly email from a source who always has good jokes. I’ve been sharing these on a daily basis with several friends who appreciate puns and humor.

Thanksgiving

We will have a small family Thanksgiving gathering this year. It’s a good time of the year to express our gratitude for all we have. The one thing that surprised me about the Thanksgiving week: our grandson has the whole week off from school. I don’t know when this changed, but as a kid and when raising our own children, it was only Thursday and Friday off. In fact, when I started working, the Friday after Thanksgiving was a good time to catch up on paperwork at the office. Not being a shopper, I’ve never been inspired by the whole Black Friday thing. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you.

Thinking About Ideas for Cover of Old Detectives Home

My publisher solicits ideas for cover art from authors. With the upcoming Old Detectives Homes, I’ve been thinking about ideas for the cover. The story takes place in a retirement home on a cliff above the Pacific Ocean. The inciting event is a body being discovered on the beach below the cliff. I’m thinking of a view of the retirement home from the beach with a body in the foreground, stairs going up the cliff and the retirement home in the background above the cliff. We’ll see what we come up with.

First of Omnipodge Trilogy, Old Detectives Home, will be Published Next Spring

I’m pleased to announce a three book contract with Encircle Publications for my Omnipodge Trilogy, the first of which is titled Old Detectives Home.

 

Imagine a retirement home populated with residents such as an aging Hercule Poirot and a dementia-suffering Sherlock Holmes and run by staff including Art Doyle, Dash Hammett and Dot Sayers. In this light-hearted spoof of the mystery genre, every character is either a real person from the mystery writing world or a character from a mystery novel. On anything but a dark and stormy night, a dead body is found. The staff managers find themselves unable to control the unruly old detectives. Mix in clues and red herrings galore as the cast of suspects investigate each other to figure out who done it.

Fans of Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Agatha Christie and more, hold on to your rockers as the top detectives of all time reunite at The Old Detectives Home to solve their most difficult whodunit—but first without killing each other.