C. Lee McKenzie's Blog, page 37

Four Uses for an Insecure Writer & Evernight Teen Giveaway

Alex Cavanaugh's Brain Child

Awesome co-hosts today are Allison Gammons, Tamara Narayan, Eva E. Solar, Rachel Pattison, and Ann V. Friend!Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!SIGN UP HERE




You're washed up before you begin. Nobody wants to read your stuff. The rejections come back before the send key is cool. 

What's so strange then about being just a little INSECURE? 

Nothing, but to ease any tension--should any of these be nagging at you--I've come up with some alternative uses for you... and me. Don't thank me, please. I'm preparing for all of these after this post goes live.


Inspect Keyboards


Do Line Edits


Generate Memes

Function as a Door Stop

Any other uses for Insecure Writers that you can think of? For heaven sakes share! But call me first because this was my idea. And read on because there's some free books and a $100 dollar gift certificate waiting for you below.





Visit EVERNIGHT TEEN to see all of their books.

EVERNIGHT TEEN is celebrating their anniversary this month with a 3rd Birthday Blog Hop. It’s EVERNIGHT TEEN’s birthday but we're giving out the presents with a Grand Prize of a $100 Amazon gift certificate!
EVERNIGHT TEEN books feature fresh teen fiction that is raw, gritty and real. Whether paranormal, contemporary, sci-fi or suspense, our books are about real issues and pack a strong emotional punch. You’ll find cutting edge fiction that today’s young adults can relate to and will keep you turning the pages long into the night.


Here are some excerpts of some reviews.

By Carla Davis

I decided to give Double Negative a try because the sample dragged me in from the first paragraph until I had to read the whole thing! It's so rare to see well done first person, but this book does it masterfully. Hutch has a real voice that must be rendered in the way the author has chosen. No lazy writing here!


By ltg584

I could tell within pages that this book was pure genius and it only became more apparent the deeper I was pulled into the story. I devoured it as quickly as I could… and now it’s over! :( I wish there was some way that it could be a series, just so I could have more! I have already been perusing the author’s other works, debating over which one to read next.

By Night Owl Reviews

Double Negative is just amazing. Reading it felt like being on emotional roller-coaster.



I’m proud to be an EVERNIGHT TEEN author. Enjoy this tease from my book, Double Negative.
"My life was going, going, gone, and I hadn't been laid yet. I couldn't go into the slammer before that happened." Hutch McQueen
TEASE: This is a short bit of a scene between Hutch and Fat Nyla. They're get along most of the time, but not today. Nyla's one of my favorite characters in this book because she's often fragile and under attack by the "in-group" of girls, especially on a website called Mona Knows. Yet Nyla refuses to be beaten. 


I see her before she sees me, but when she does, man, does she shoot lasers at me with her eyes. I walk fast and stop her at the edge of the lawn. “Look, I’m a sleaze, okay? I’m sorry, but that’s just the way I was made.”

“What do you need?” 

“Nothing.” That’s pretty much the truth at the moment. By using one eye to read I’m doing more of the homework. If I hold one of them magnifying glasses over a page I can even look up words in the dictionary, so while it takes a lot of time, I can almost get through Deek’s assignments. Still I don’t want to take any chances. Nyla’s brain could be the difference between me staying a junior for a long time or making it to my senior year. I need to be on her good side.

She passes me and starts toward Larkston High.

“I said I’m sorry. Liz and me . . . well we kind of—”

“Just shut up.” She keeps walking, her eyes down.

“I came to try and—”

She wheels around so fast I run smack into her and have to back up.

“You’re a creep.” Nyla pokes me in the chest with her finger, and I back up some more. “I know what you call me. Not to my face, but when you talk about me to other kids.”
I try for one of those neutral looks, like I don’t know what she’s talking about.
“Let me refresh your memory.” She’s squared off in front of me with her hands on her hips. “Fat Nyla! That’s what you call me. That’s what Mona Knows calls me, and she got it from you.”
“Mona who?”
I don’t expect her to sock me, so when her fist comes at me I take the full wallop on the left side of my jaw. One minute I’m there with the sidewalk under my feet and the next that sidewalk is pressed against my cheek. 






I'm offering two eBooks of Double Negative during Evernight Teen's super celebration.  All you have to do is say you'd like a copy and leave your email in a comment. I'll put your name in the "hat".


Be sure visit each stop on the BLOG HOP for more chances to WIN the GRAND PRIZE of a $100 Amazon Gift Card. You’ll receive bonus entries for commenting on each blog!a Rafflecopter giveaway







Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Celebrate and Win at Evernight Teen's 3rd Birthday Party

Visit EVERNIGHT TEEN to see all of their books.

EVERNIGHT TEEN is celebrating their anniversary this month with a 3rd Birthday Blog Hop. It’s EVERNIGHT TEEN’s birthday but we're giving out the presents with a Grand Prize of a $100 Amazon gift certificate!
EVERNIGHT TEEN books feature fresh teen fiction that is raw, gritty and real. Whether paranormal, contemporary, sci-fi or suspense, our books are about real issues and pack a strong emotional punch. You’ll find cutting edge fiction that today’s young adults can relate to and will keep you turning the pages long into the night.


Here are some excerpts of some reviews.

By Carla Davis

I decided to give Double Negative a try because the sample dragged me in from the first paragraph until I had to read the whole thing! It's so rare to see well done first person, but this book does it masterfully. Hutch has a real voice that must be rendered in the way the author has chosen. No lazy writing here!


By ltg584

I could tell within pages that this book was pure genius and it only became more apparent the deeper I was pulled into the story. I devoured it as quickly as I could… and now it’s over! :( I wish there was some way that it could be a series, just so I could have more! I have already been perusing the author’s other works, debating over which one to read next.

By Night Owl Reviews

Double Negative is just amazing. Reading it felt like being on emotional roller-coaster.


I’m proud to be an EVERNIGHT TEEN author. Enjoy this tease from my book, Double Negative.
"My life was going, going, gone, and I hadn't been laid yet. I couldn't go into the slammer before that happened." Hutch McQueen
TEASE: This is a short bit of a scene between Hutch and Fat Nyla. They're get along most of the time, but not today. Nyla's one of my favorite characters in this book because she's often fragile and under attack by the "in-group" of girls, especially on a website called Mona Knows. Yet Nyla refuses to be beaten. 


I see her before she sees me, but when she does, man, does she shoot lasers at me with her eyes. I walk fast and stop her at the edge of the lawn. “Look, I’m a sleaze, okay? I’m sorry, but that’s just the way I was made.”

“What do you need?” 

“Nothing.” That’s pretty much the truth at the moment. By using one eye to read I’m doing more of the homework. If I hold one of them magnifying glasses over a page I can even look up words in the dictionary, so while it takes a lot of time, I can almost get through Deek’s assignments. Still I don’t want to take any chances. Nyla’s brain could be the difference between me staying a junior for a long time or making it to my senior year. I need to be on her good side.

She passes me and starts toward Larkston High.

“I said I’m sorry. Liz and me . . . well we kind of—”

“Just shut up.” She keeps walking, her eyes down.

“I came to try and—”

She wheels around so fast I run smack into her and have to back up.

“You’re a creep.” Nyla pokes me in the chest with her finger, and I back up some more. “I know what you call me. Not to my face, but when you talk about me to other kids.”
I try for one of those neutral looks, like I don’t know what she’s talking about.
“Let me refresh your memory.” She’s squared off in front of me with her hands on her hips. “Fat Nyla! That’s what you call me. That’s what Mona Knows calls me, and she got it from you.”
“Mona who?”
I don’t expect her to sock me, so when her fist comes at me I take the full wallop on the left side of my jaw. One minute I’m there with the sidewalk under my feet and the next that sidewalk is pressed against my cheek. 






I'm offering two eBooks of Double Negative during Evernight Teen's super celebration.  All you have to do is say you'd like a copy and leave your email in a comment. I'll put your name in the "hat".


Be sure visit each stop on the BLOG HOP for more chances to WIN the GRAND PRIZE of a $100 Amazon Gift Card. You’ll receive bonus entries for commenting on each blog!a Rafflecopter giveaway






Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Yolanda Renee's Murder & Obsession Cover Reveal

COVER REVEAL

 MURDER & OBSESSION
Flames burn between a hardboiled cop and a gifted artist, but soon extinguish as another man’s obsession ignites into an inferno of desire, driving him to destroy the object of his madness.

To be Released March 10, 2016


As wedding bells echo like the ring of toasting champagne glasses in the ice carved mountains of Anchorage Alaska, detective Steven Quaid rehabs his grandfather’s cabin into a honeymoon cottage for his new bride.
When he returns from a hunting trip, Steven’s faced with five police officers, who “Want to talk.” Plagued by two unsolved murders, the Department is searching for answers.
The conversation comes to a deafening halt as the team finds a bloody crime scene in the bridal suite. "Where's her body?" is a question Steven cannot fathom. 
Steven’s jaw clenches and his heart races. Images of Sarah streak through his mind.
The silence breaks as an explosion of accusations vibrate through every fiber of his being.Steven bolts…
Although running is never the smart thing to do, Steven’s not thinking clearly and his escape into the wilderness of the Brooks Range proves almost fatal.
This Steven Quaid mystery is both personal and heartbreaking.

*****
   Yolanda Renee


At one time Alaska called to me and I answered. I learned to sleep under the midnight sun, survive in below zero temperatures, and hike the Mountain Ranges. I've traveled from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez, and the memories are some of my most valued. The wonders, mysteries, and incredible beauty that is Alaska has never left me and thus now influence my writing.

Despite my adventurous spirit, I achieved my educational goals, married, and I have two wonderful sons. Writing is now my focus, my newest adventure!

You can find Yolanda at:

Blog:  Defending the Pen Facebook Twitter  
Pinterest   Amazon

New Covers:

Murder, Madness & Love



After a gritty detective becomes involved with a beautiful widow suspected of murder, rumor and obsession obstruct his quest for justice.

Memories of Murder



World damnation is a psychotic man’s goal, but two obstacles stand in his way, greed and a dedicated detective. 


Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Let's Shake Off Winter Blahs and Farewell Painted Ladies

Got the Winter Blahs? We're here to help. Join us in 
A MEME Blog Hop!
Easy Peasy "rules"

Post a MEME during the week (use your own pic or an easy meme maker app) - and if you can't think of anything, pass on encouraging words from one of your reviews, or an inspiring quote!
Visit others
That's it!

Then the awesome hostesses will hop around and Ooo and Ahh and choose one entry each to win an ebook. AND two lucky random participants will win a $20 GC. Enter and spread some warmth!




Woodland, California's restored 1875 Clapp & Jones Steamer
Excerpt from Farewell Painted LadiesC. Lee McKenzie
When mechanical engineer Paul Hodge unveiled his steamer for its first public test in 1841, it must have been an incredible sight to see. Imagine a fourteen foot long hot metal cylinder, weighing seven tons, snorting and fuming black smoke in front of New York's City Hall. 
That day, as the crowd looked on, the stoker tossed more coal into the fire door and steam pressure in the great iron belly soared. Two men aimed the leather fire hose above the roof of City Hall, and the pumps began their powerful tempo, shooting a stream of water at the rate of ten thousand pounds per minute one hundred and sixty-two feet straight over the cupola. The engine noise buried the onlookers' gasps.
The Hodge steamer had flaws. Men could not pull its bulk to a fire and, although the designer had intended it would propel itself through the streets by steam, it wasn't dependable. In any case, the Hodge engine's arrival presaged change. It performed an effective job of delivering a strong, steady stream of water; required fewer men to operate; and, most importantly, it never tired.  
In 1841, the volunteer firemen must have watched from the sidelines, jaws set and arms folded across their chests. They didn't need to tell each other their thoughts. Their determination to defeat this upstart mechanical freak filled the air as blackly as the engine's smoke. From then on, these men did whatever they could to make the steamer fail
 on the job. They slashed hoses, diverted coal deliveries and stirred dissent between the engine and hand pumper companies at every opportunity. They'd never been above thrashing it out on the streets, and now they turned their energy to defeat a new rival. The volunteers were proud men not given to walking away from a fight, especially this one which, if lost, meant the end to their way of life. 




By now you know I was deep into antique fire equipment and their history at one time. I even got teary when I read about the last of the Painted Ladies being mothballed. But change comes and those 1841 steam engine interlopers became dinosaurs not too long after they displaced the hand pumpers.

I still have several articles tucked among my TBDWL (To Be Dealt With Later) file, and pulling these posts together have made me think about actually doing something about those articles. 


Quote for the Week: "We always overestimate the change that will occur in the next two years and underestimate the change that will occur in the next 10." Bill Gates

Have you enjoyed reading about the early fire equipment or was it a bore? Will you join the Meme Hop or are you hopped out?Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Let's Muster, Mister!

If you haven't seen a muster, you've missed out. They're absolutely better than a Rugby game. Well, at least as exciting. Here are three of the regulation competitions.


HOSE CART RACES

The hose cart race is one of the competitions. In the 1800s, pumper companies delivered water to fight those old-time fires, but not without hose companies arriving on the scene, too. Firemen of both companies raced through narrow streets, their high-wheeled equipment in tow to reach the burning building and prevent the fire from spreading. The hose cart races reenact those scenes from the last century, but now the competition is only against the clock.

There are two separate contests, men's and women's. In each, six people run their hose cart beyond the target to a nozzle platform. One team member connects the hose to the hydrant while two others attach the nozzle, take aim at the target, and pray for a steady hand and the best time to give them a first place.
Sonora Volunteer Fire Department Hose CartBUCKET BRIGADE COMPETITION 
So, where's the water? The convenient hydrants that dot modern sidewalks weren't always there. Firemen had to take water from creeks, cisterns or any other available sources, then get it to the pumper which could be a distance away. For many years men used buckets and passed them hand-over-hand to keep the tank filled. Success of the bucket brigade was measured in speed and endurance. 
In today's competitions, teams of five firemen or women make up the bucket brigade. They form a line twenty feet long between a "dip tank" and a "dump tank," then at a signal they try to be the first team to pass fifty gallons of water from the source to the empty tank.  Look out for the sloshing frenzy. In the end one team comes up soaked and winning...and bushed.

Bucket Brigade CompetitionMOTORIZED PUMPER AND HOSEWAGON COMPETITIONS  
Now it's 1918. Imagine six firemen sitting at a firehouse. An alarm sounds, they leap to their rigs, turn over their engines, start the sirens and hit the lights, then speed out the firehouse door.  At the
 fire, they connect the hose to the hydrant, run the hose out to its full length and connect to additional hose. The crew aims the nozzle and the line leaps in their hands as water spurts onto the fire. 
The muster recreates the urgency and demonstrates these early firefighting skills. At the muster there's no fire to extinguish. Instead, the competing teams jump on their trucks, race to the end of the track and knock down a target with a blast of water to stop the clock and beat their opponents' time. Even without the threat of fire, excitement and tension charge the crowd and everyone gets caught up in the proud moment of victory.  Mortorized Fire Truck Competition, Fairfield Fire Department

Quote of the Week: "Better to be busy than to be busy worrying." Angela LansburyBeware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

The Amazing Hand Pumper

If you've followed this blog for a while you know I write fiction, and I iron my sheets. So that's about all that's really exciting in my life. 

Actually, I do other stuff just like all of you. And one of things I do is hunt down antique fire equipment to oh and ah over. 

Some years ago, I even wrote about those amazing machines from our past. That was the first $100 from my pen, and I would have paid the magazine to print my article I was so excited to create it. Here are the opening pages.




The images in my article were all original photos from those early days. The main page photo was of the Hunter Street Fire Station in Stockton, CA. The fire fighters were testing the Button Hand Pumper.

Below are some photos I took at the Pioneer Memorial Museum in San Francisco and at Columbia State Park in northern California. You can see how colorful these beauties were. 


Protection Company Engine, 1849. One S.F.'s first fire engines.

The Papeete cost $1800. It arrived in Columbia, CA in 1859. 

Another Protection Company Engine, 1849.I have tons to say about early fire departments. Their development and the history of our country are so entwined that if you know what was happening around the fire house, you know a lot about the those early years in the U.S.
If you're on my Special Offers Newsletter, I'll be sending you a link to my article. Hope you enjoy.


Quote of the Week: "There is no subject so old that something new cannot be said about it." Dostoyevsky


Have you seen a hand pumper, especially one in action? Next week I'll show you some at a Muster. 
Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

January IWSG

Thanks Alex J. CavanaughHere are your brilliant and thoroughly amazing co-hosts this month.
L.G. Keltner  http://lgkeltner.blogspot.com/Denise Covey  http://dencovey.blogspot.com/Sheri Larsen  http://www.salarsenbooks.com/J.Q. Rose  http://www.jqrose.com/Chemist Ken  http://hogwartssabbatical.blogspot.com/Michelle Wallace http://www.writer-in-transit.co.za





Some questions about INSECURITY.

If you don't believe in yourself, how can you have confidence? How can you not be insecure? 


Some people just aren't going to like you or what you create. Does that mean you're not a good person? Does that mean that what you create has no value?


That critical inner voice came from painful life experiences when you were young.  As an adult isn't it time to examine that voice, its origin, and then silence it?



Quote of the Week: "Practice any art, no matter how well or badly, not to get money and fame but to experience becoming, to find out what's inside you, to make your soul grow." Kurt Vonnegut



Do insecurities hold you back from taking risks with your craft, your art or your life choices? Do you hear that inner critic and listen or turn a deaf ear?

If you're not a IWSG member, get on the list now. There are some helpful posts each month that are worth the read. The Linky's below.

Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Happy New Year and Jury Duty

And so here we meet again! New year. New month. 




How did you celebrate the arrival of 2016? Did you make resolutions? I didn't. I decided that I won't do that anymore because I invariably disappoint myself when I do. 
Instead, I tidied up my C Drive, organized my desk, and threw out a pound of food recipes I know I'll never take the time to create. 
In a way those are resolutions, I guess. Get organized. Get real. Then I took a hike. A short one because it started to rain, but did I complain? Absolutely not. Another resolution? Don't complain. Accept. I came home, curled up with good book, and lost myself in someone else's story. Ahhhh! Relax. Take it easy. Read more.
Sneaky ResolutionsI feel as if resolutions have crept up on me when I wasn't paying attention. Pay attention, for heaven sakes!


I was enjoying my holiday and not making resolutions, when the government called me to duty. Yep. I'm officially on Jury Duty this month. My first reaction was this. 


Good thing I didn't resolve not to get upset this year. But then I remembered my conversation with a disinterested, non-voter about civic responsibility in a free country, and I quickly changed my attitude to this. 


If I'm not around, I'll be on duty. Oh, I'll be taking notes, too. I may need to write a courtroom scene one of these days. Put a positive spin on things! Oye! Can you direct me to Resolution Support Group, please?

Quote of the Week: "Our most dangerous tendency is to expect too much of government and at the same time do for it too little." Warren G. HardingBeware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Merry Christmas and Farewell 2015

This is not a California scene, unless you're in the Sierras. But we are getting some rain, and some is better than what we had last year, which was none. 
Because I tend to be an optimist (even in these times when I should know better) I planted tulips and daffodils all over the place. The rain will come, I'm sure, and so will those brilliant blooms. 


I won't be blogging until after the year ends, so this is both a Christmas greeting and a farewell to 2015. May 2016 usher in things like world peace, and no more hunger for anyone, and tolerance, and excellent books. 
Quote of the Week: "Always be in the lookout for the presence of wonder." E.B. White.
What are your wishes for 2016? Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Hats Off Corner Welcomes Jessica Haight and Stephanie Robinson

It's great to be back and to kick off my return I'm welcoming Jessica Haight and Stephanie Robinson to the HATS OFF CORNER! 



Release date: DECEMBER 1, 2015
Delacorte Press/ Random House Kids Books
MIDDLE GRADE/ ages 10 and up
ISBN: 978-0-385-74471-3
Authors: Jessica Haight & Stephanie Robinson
Illustrator: Roman Muradov
Publicity Contact: Samuel Terris sterris@penguinrandomhouse.com

Eleven-year-old Fairday Morrow is less than thrilled that her family is moving thousands of miles from civilization to the quiet country town of Ashpot, Connecticut, where she’s absolutely certain she’ll die of boredom. 



As if leaving Manhatten and her best friend, Lizzy, the only other member of the elite Detective Mystery Squad, weren’t bad enough, Fairday is stuck living in the infamous Begonia House, a creepy old Victorian with dark passageways, a gigantic dead willow tree, and a mysterious past. 




Before she can even unpack, strange music coming from behind a padlocked door leads Fairday up a spiral staircase and into a secret room, where she finds an ancient mirror, a brass key, and a curious portrait of a red-haired lady. These seemingly unrelated items prove to be the first in a series of clues that takes Fairday, the visiting Lizzy, and their new squad member, Marcus, on an amazing adventure.






Can the members of the Detective Mystery Squad piece together the puzzle before it’s too late? Or will whatever’s causing trouble find Fairday and her friends first? 




Catch the Book Buzz. . .
"I really enjoyed this book. It was a marvelously done, debut, thriller novel. Ms. Robinson and Ms. Haight are great authors that really pull you into their story. I couldn’t get out until that final sentence. And, by then I wanted more. To say I want a second book is an understatement. The writing style is compelling, and makes me feel as if I was there with Fairday and her friends. I really like the illustrations in the book. They are like the ribbon on a present, or the icing on the cake. I give this book five out of five bookworms!"
~ Erik Weibel/ This Kid Reviews Books  

"Mixing realism and fantasy, Haight and Robinson’s debut opens with 11-year-old Fairday’s move from Manhattan to a small town in Connecticut, where her relentlessly cheerful parents plan to turn a dilapidated Victorian into a bed and breakfast. No sooner has the family arrived than eerie sights and sounds begin to haunt Fairday. The house turns out to hold dark secrets that everybody in town suspects but nobody can explain: a perfect mission for Fairday and her best friend Lizzy’s Detective Mystery Squad (DMS)."
~ Publishers Weekly

"Fifth-grader Fairday Morrow's new home lives up to its spooky reputation, but she and her companions in the Detective Mystery Squad find out why. At Begonia House, strains of bagpipe music issue from behind a padlocked door, grains of sand in an hourglass have stopped falling, and a malevolent weeping willow looms in the backyard. A magic mirror shows an invisible door; a wardrobe hides secrets and a portal. Ruby Begonia vanished more than 50 years ago. Is there also a ghost? Fairday has a new, helpful friend in classmate Marcus, and her best friend Lizzy can visit on weekends to help solve the mystery. What more could readers want?"
~ Kirkus Reviews








JessicaHaight is a true New Englander, with a deep desire to be near the ocean and a love of the four seasons. She enjoys drawing while standing up and cultivating magic in her garden. She easily floats away in the pages of a good story and is still waiting for her owl from Hogwarts.

StephanieRobinson lives with her husband in a quiet town, though not as quaint as Ashpot. After teaching fifth grade for almost fifteen years, she is now enjoying her role as a school media specialist. 

Fairday's Blog Fairdayfiles.com @DMSfiles <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-font-charset:78; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:1 0 16778247 0 131072 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} </style><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Good luck you two. So happy you could visit with me today. </span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">******</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V2_HQ_QJq3w..." imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img adlesse_been_here="true" border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V2_HQ_QJq3w..." width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And here's my Christmas spirit showing. If you have young readers, I hope you'll take advantage of my <b>50% off sale </b>on <i>The Great Time Lock Disaster</i>, <i>Sequel to Alligators Overhead</i>. Here's the coupon to use at <a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view.... </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b>SC99M</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">******</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Quote for the Week: "No one has ever become poor by giving." Anne Frank</span></b></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew</div>