Peg Herring's Blog, page 27
March 1, 2012
Am I Famous Yet?
Chris Redding interviews me today on her blog: http://chrisredddingauthor.blogspot.com/
Thanks, Chris!
Thanks, Chris!
February 20, 2012
If An Author Sounds Dumb Sometimes...
Yesterday a man said to me, "My wife really likes your new book." He couldn't recall the title, but she'd said it was totally different from everything else she'd read of mine. I formed a theory from that and was just about to say the title when he said, "It's the one that takes place in Grand Rapids."
Oh, THE DEAD DETECTIVE AGENCY. Not the one I was thinking of at all. That book came out last April, and there have been so many on my mind in the time between that it seems really really old to me.
Another time, a man asked at a book signing what year my historical novel HER HIGHNESS' FIRST MURDER takes place. I said a year and added that it was during Henry VIII's rule. He informed me disgustedly that Henry was dead in the year I'd mentioned. I knew that, but at the time I was editing the second book, POISON, YOUR GRACE, which takes place under Edward's reign. That date was stuck in my head.
Authors work far in advance of what readers are reading. When we attend a book signing or speak to your book club, we're editing the next book and writing the one after that. Or we're focused on the new series that will begin as soon as the last of this series is released.
For example, my editor just picked up the first of a new series that we're both really excited about, but she wants Book 2 ready for editing when Book 1 comes out, possibly in the fall.
I often feel like Vonnegut's Billy Pilgrim, unstuck in time. I jump from Tudors to modern to the '60s, and I sometimes have trouble pulling my mind to the right spot when a reader mentions a book. The one that came out in December? That seems like so long ago! I've been in so many different places since then.
Oh, THE DEAD DETECTIVE AGENCY. Not the one I was thinking of at all. That book came out last April, and there have been so many on my mind in the time between that it seems really really old to me.
Another time, a man asked at a book signing what year my historical novel HER HIGHNESS' FIRST MURDER takes place. I said a year and added that it was during Henry VIII's rule. He informed me disgustedly that Henry was dead in the year I'd mentioned. I knew that, but at the time I was editing the second book, POISON, YOUR GRACE, which takes place under Edward's reign. That date was stuck in my head.
Authors work far in advance of what readers are reading. When we attend a book signing or speak to your book club, we're editing the next book and writing the one after that. Or we're focused on the new series that will begin as soon as the last of this series is released.
For example, my editor just picked up the first of a new series that we're both really excited about, but she wants Book 2 ready for editing when Book 1 comes out, possibly in the fall.
I often feel like Vonnegut's Billy Pilgrim, unstuck in time. I jump from Tudors to modern to the '60s, and I sometimes have trouble pulling my mind to the right spot when a reader mentions a book. The one that came out in December? That seems like so long ago! I've been in so many different places since then.
February 13, 2012
Where Might You Fit in History?
So I glance at my Kindle, which is off, and there's a picture of Jane Austen. She's a little plump, with curls around her face, and my mind says, "If I lived back then, I wouldn't be worried about dropping these extra pounds and fretting about my unfashionably curly hair !"
Things we concern ourselves with were no concern at all in other times, so I often think about the advantages of not living in the twenty-first century. Not wearing shoes might be good. Certainly times without bras were better. Days when older women were revered rather than ridiculed. Times when society was small enough that crime was minimal and eccentricities were handled with gentle understanding instead of governmental angst.
I'm not sure which other eras I'm best suited to, but I'm pretty sure I could cope, wherever.
I know what you're thinking: They had bugs. They died at forty. They had no concept of Facebook. Honestly, I see only one of those as a possible problem.
Things we concern ourselves with were no concern at all in other times, so I often think about the advantages of not living in the twenty-first century. Not wearing shoes might be good. Certainly times without bras were better. Days when older women were revered rather than ridiculed. Times when society was small enough that crime was minimal and eccentricities were handled with gentle understanding instead of governmental angst.
I'm not sure which other eras I'm best suited to, but I'm pretty sure I could cope, wherever.
I know what you're thinking: They had bugs. They died at forty. They had no concept of Facebook. Honestly, I see only one of those as a possible problem.
February 6, 2012
Why Humans Are Really Cool People
I'm reading a book about the brain (again, I know--I do this a lot). The author contends that somewhere along the line, humans took a huge evolutionary step that resulted in something unique to the earth: a creature that can consider its own being. It is that, he contends, not language or opposable thumbs or use of tools or whatever you've heard before, that makes us so special. He says we might imagine our computers taking off their covers and turning their webcams into their interior workings as a metaphor for what we as humans do to get to know ourselves better.
I am intrigued by this idea and by all that goes along with it. It's a very cool thing we do, although it results in both bad and good knowledge. We now know that the brain is amazingly complex, adaptable, and plastic, but we also know it can screw us up royally when something goes wrong.
What amazes me is the number of people who don't seem inclined to use the three pounds of amazing power they carry around with them: the people who accept everything they are told; the people who don't read; the people who actually seem proud of their ignorance. They're so open to manipulation from advertisers (Did you even THINK about whether you need that product?), religious zealots (Are you SURE you want to follow that line of non-logic?), and, especially this year, political rhetoric (Do you REALLY think things are going to change if you vote X into office?)
Having these wonderful brains that can examine, process, and filter isn't enough. We have to use them. So maybe the title of this piece should be "Why Some Humans Are Really Cool People, and the Rest Remained in the Primordial Ooze".
I am intrigued by this idea and by all that goes along with it. It's a very cool thing we do, although it results in both bad and good knowledge. We now know that the brain is amazingly complex, adaptable, and plastic, but we also know it can screw us up royally when something goes wrong.
What amazes me is the number of people who don't seem inclined to use the three pounds of amazing power they carry around with them: the people who accept everything they are told; the people who don't read; the people who actually seem proud of their ignorance. They're so open to manipulation from advertisers (Did you even THINK about whether you need that product?), religious zealots (Are you SURE you want to follow that line of non-logic?), and, especially this year, political rhetoric (Do you REALLY think things are going to change if you vote X into office?)
Having these wonderful brains that can examine, process, and filter isn't enough. We have to use them. So maybe the title of this piece should be "Why Some Humans Are Really Cool People, and the Rest Remained in the Primordial Ooze".
February 1, 2012
Me! I'm Famous!
Well, not so much, but I am interviewed on Anne Albert's blog this week. You can see it at http://tinyurl.com/6mtk6wp
January 30, 2012
What Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up?
I'm preparing a presentation for a group of teachers, and a question I will ask them has come back around to me: How did you come to do the work you do?
I think many of us float into our vocations. For me, a small town girl in the '60s whose mother, grandmother, and great-grandfather had all been teachers, choice wasn't really choosing. It was more doing what I thought I could and should do. Luckily, I loved teaching and made a good living at it.
But now I'm a writer, and I can't imagine doing anything else. What if I'd made that decision forty years ago?
Honestly, I think teaching prepared me for writing. I know there are writers who do brilliant work in their twenties, but I don't think it would have been me. I knew I liked to write, but that isn't the same as having something to say.
John Lennon said that when he was a boy and people asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up, he said "Happy." They said he didn't understand the question; he said they didn't understand the answer.
I think what we want to be changes over time. I'm really glad I spent thirty years working with kids, trying to get them to see their potential, before I finally took a breath, looked around, and realized my own.
I think many of us float into our vocations. For me, a small town girl in the '60s whose mother, grandmother, and great-grandfather had all been teachers, choice wasn't really choosing. It was more doing what I thought I could and should do. Luckily, I loved teaching and made a good living at it.
But now I'm a writer, and I can't imagine doing anything else. What if I'd made that decision forty years ago?
Honestly, I think teaching prepared me for writing. I know there are writers who do brilliant work in their twenties, but I don't think it would have been me. I knew I liked to write, but that isn't the same as having something to say.
John Lennon said that when he was a boy and people asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up, he said "Happy." They said he didn't understand the question; he said they didn't understand the answer.
I think what we want to be changes over time. I'm really glad I spent thirty years working with kids, trying to get them to see their potential, before I finally took a breath, looked around, and realized my own.
January 16, 2012
New Author Guest Blog
My guest today is Ryder Islington, whose book, ULTIMATE JUSTICE, is published by the people who produce my Dead Detective Mysteries.
I'm giving away an Amazon gift certificate for one person who comments on Ryder's post, so go to my main blog: http://itsamysterytomepegherring.blog...
and enter for your chance to win.
I'm giving away an Amazon gift certificate for one person who comments on Ryder's post, so go to my main blog: http://itsamysterytomepegherring.blog...
and enter for your chance to win.
January 2, 2012
Why Do You Read?
I finished a book last night that was one of those "I can't wait to find out what happens" stories. The author had me caring desperately for the characters, hoping against hope that they could defeat the almost certain doom that swept toward them. I read and read and read...and then they died.
Greek tragedy and ANNA KARENINA aside, that's not what I read for.
I read to be entertained, at least when I read genre fiction. I contend that an "entertaining" author who gives the reader false hopes then zaps his characters betrays an unwritten contract between provider and client. Yup, you surprised me. Good for you, I guess. But getting to know a person intimately, coming to believe that he isn't really such a bad guy, and then watching him get shot by the cops and bleed out on the floor is not my idea of entertainment.
When I write, if I create a character readers like and root for, that character is going to triumph somehow. Not trying to give anything away. I'm just sayin'.
Greek tragedy and ANNA KARENINA aside, that's not what I read for.
I read to be entertained, at least when I read genre fiction. I contend that an "entertaining" author who gives the reader false hopes then zaps his characters betrays an unwritten contract between provider and client. Yup, you surprised me. Good for you, I guess. But getting to know a person intimately, coming to believe that he isn't really such a bad guy, and then watching him get shot by the cops and bleed out on the floor is not my idea of entertainment.
When I write, if I create a character readers like and root for, that character is going to triumph somehow. Not trying to give anything away. I'm just sayin'.
December 26, 2011
Real Books, E-books, and My Books
A woman I've known for months said to me yesterday, "I hear you wrote a book!"
Yup. And another, and another, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
I have to stop and think when someone asks me how many books I have out, because there are different versions, different publishers, and different formats. Oh, and different prices!
Here's how it goes:
***MACBETH'S NIECE is out of print in regular, still out in large print and on Kindle.
http://www.amazon.com/Macbeths-Niece-... ($2.99)
***GO HOME AND DIE is only on Kindle and doesn't seem destined to be anywhere else.
http://www.amazon.com/Go-Home-and-Die... ($5.99)
***HER HIGHNESS' FIRST MURDER is available in hardcover, large print, and on Kindle.
http://www.amazon.com/Highness-First-... ($24.79 or $7.99)
***The sequel, POISON, YOUR GRACE, is recently out in hardcover, soon to be in large print, and should be made available on Kindle soon, but the publisher hasn't made that decision yet.
http://www.amazon.com/Poison-Your-Gra... ($25.95)
***THE DEAD DETECTIVE AGENCY is available in paperback and for all e-readers.
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Detective-... ($11.32 or $3.99) SEQUEL, DEAD FOR THE MONEY, is due out in the spring, just finished the final edit!
***SHAKESPEARE'S BLOOD is available for Kindle and Nook.
http://www.amazon.com/Shakespeares-Bl... ($2.99)
***SOMEBODY DOESN'T LIKE SARAH LEIGH is on Kindle but not available for Nook until March.
http://tinyurl.com/88eph4s (Currently on sale at 99 cents)
Crazy, isn't it?
Why? It boils down to decisions that are usually out of my hands. Some publishers market primarily to libraries, so they create sturdy (expensive) books. Some market mostly or completely on the Net. Some do both.
It seems the most available book format is e-books, and Amazon leads the pack with 70% of sales. When a publisher decides on a direction, I'm pretty sure that has a huge impact. So when you ask me how many of my books you can get, the answer will vary. It depends on how you're going to get them!
If you missed one or want to know what a particular book is about, I've just redone my website, http://pegherring.com, and all the info is there. (It's wonderful, and I can say that because I didn't do it!)
Yup. And another, and another, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
I have to stop and think when someone asks me how many books I have out, because there are different versions, different publishers, and different formats. Oh, and different prices!
Here's how it goes:
***MACBETH'S NIECE is out of print in regular, still out in large print and on Kindle.
http://www.amazon.com/Macbeths-Niece-... ($2.99)
***GO HOME AND DIE is only on Kindle and doesn't seem destined to be anywhere else.
http://www.amazon.com/Go-Home-and-Die... ($5.99)
***HER HIGHNESS' FIRST MURDER is available in hardcover, large print, and on Kindle.
http://www.amazon.com/Highness-First-... ($24.79 or $7.99)
***The sequel, POISON, YOUR GRACE, is recently out in hardcover, soon to be in large print, and should be made available on Kindle soon, but the publisher hasn't made that decision yet.
http://www.amazon.com/Poison-Your-Gra... ($25.95)
***THE DEAD DETECTIVE AGENCY is available in paperback and for all e-readers.
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Detective-... ($11.32 or $3.99) SEQUEL, DEAD FOR THE MONEY, is due out in the spring, just finished the final edit!
***SHAKESPEARE'S BLOOD is available for Kindle and Nook.
http://www.amazon.com/Shakespeares-Bl... ($2.99)
***SOMEBODY DOESN'T LIKE SARAH LEIGH is on Kindle but not available for Nook until March.
http://tinyurl.com/88eph4s (Currently on sale at 99 cents)
Crazy, isn't it?
Why? It boils down to decisions that are usually out of my hands. Some publishers market primarily to libraries, so they create sturdy (expensive) books. Some market mostly or completely on the Net. Some do both.
It seems the most available book format is e-books, and Amazon leads the pack with 70% of sales. When a publisher decides on a direction, I'm pretty sure that has a huge impact. So when you ask me how many of my books you can get, the answer will vary. It depends on how you're going to get them!
If you missed one or want to know what a particular book is about, I've just redone my website, http://pegherring.com, and all the info is there. (It's wonderful, and I can say that because I didn't do it!)
December 19, 2011
Somebody Doesn't Like Sarah Leigh
My cozy mystery, SOMEBODY DOESN'T LIKE SARAH LEIGH, is available for Kindle and will come in other formats in the spring of 2012. Set in northern Lower Michigan, it’s an intriguing mystery and more than that. It's also about what can happen to friendships between women.
We've all seen movies and read books about those lifelong, girl-to-woman relationships, and they are wonderful. But what we often don't consider is that some of those friendships go wrong over time. It's hard to say which ones will, but when a friendship dies, it's usually because one, the other, or both of the people in it changed.
We admit that it happens in marriages. We say, "They grew apart." It happens in friendships, too, and if the two parties are lucky, they only grow apart. What happens in this story is worse than that.
Carolyn and Sarah have been friends since childhood, but in recent years, things changed. Sarah became cold and distant, even hostile. Hurt, Carolyn backs away, unaware of what she’s done wrong. Their rift becomes public when Sarah betrays Carolyn in a way she would never have imagined. Now more angry than hurt, Carolyn confronts Sarah, much to the town’s surprise and...well, delight, at least for the gossips.
When Sarah disappears, Carolyn is suspected of drowning her. And when the people responsible for what happened to Sarah come after Carolyn, things go from embarrassing to life-threatening, all because she was once the best friend of the saintly Sarah Leigh.
Get it for 99 cents! Such a deal!
http://www.amazon.com/Somebody-Doesnt...
We've all seen movies and read books about those lifelong, girl-to-woman relationships, and they are wonderful. But what we often don't consider is that some of those friendships go wrong over time. It's hard to say which ones will, but when a friendship dies, it's usually because one, the other, or both of the people in it changed.
We admit that it happens in marriages. We say, "They grew apart." It happens in friendships, too, and if the two parties are lucky, they only grow apart. What happens in this story is worse than that.
Carolyn and Sarah have been friends since childhood, but in recent years, things changed. Sarah became cold and distant, even hostile. Hurt, Carolyn backs away, unaware of what she’s done wrong. Their rift becomes public when Sarah betrays Carolyn in a way she would never have imagined. Now more angry than hurt, Carolyn confronts Sarah, much to the town’s surprise and...well, delight, at least for the gossips.
When Sarah disappears, Carolyn is suspected of drowning her. And when the people responsible for what happened to Sarah come after Carolyn, things go from embarrassing to life-threatening, all because she was once the best friend of the saintly Sarah Leigh.
Get it for 99 cents! Such a deal!
http://www.amazon.com/Somebody-Doesnt...
