Beth Groundwater's Blog, page 69

The Pikes Peak Writers Conference

This weekend I will be busy at the Pikes Peak Writers Conference in my hometown of Colorado Springs, CO. I'm looking forward to hobnobbing with other writers, agents, and editors there and soaking up the energy I need to keep those creative writing juices flowing. PPWC is my favorite writing conference, and this will be the 13th one that I've attended. Here's times and places where you'll be guaranteed to find me, though I'll be hanging out in the dining room, hallways, and bar ;-) during the...

A Mystery Fan Guest Blogger: Cheryl Delano

In the immortal words of Monty Python, "And now for something completely different...", a huge fan of the mystery genre, Cheryl Delano, has agreed to be a guest on my blog to talk about her mystery conference experiences. It's a timely topic since we're in the middle of the spring conference season. Cheryl also sent me photos of herself with a couple of her favorite authors, one with Tim Maleeny and one with Barry Eisler. Here's what Cheryl has to say.
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I have always been a reader, but whe...

The Kitchen Project is Done!

My husband and I have finished updating our kitchen in preparation for listing our house for sale by the end of the month. As promised, I'm posting some photos of the project and of the final result. We replaced our white tile countertops with Madura Gold granite, replaced the kitchen sink and faucet, and all of the major appliances except the refrigerator, the selection of which we'll leave up to the buyer.

The first photo shows the kitchen after the old tile countertops had been ripped out, ...

A nice review of A Real Basket Case

Hart Johnson writes the blog, Confessions of a Watery Tart, a digressionary journey of a writer. In this Wednesday's Murder Mysteries post, she reviews my book, A Real Basket Case, as well as a book written by a fellow Colorado mystery author and friend, Patricia Stoltey, titled The Prairie Grass Murders. Hart says she always calls it like she sees it, but she seemed to really enjoy reading both titles.

I agree with Hart when she said about The Prairie Grass Murders, "I loved this story, prima...

My author guest: Shannon Baker

As promised yesterday, Colorado thriller author Shannon Baker is visiting my blog today. Her book, Ashes of the Red Heifer, was released in January. The tale includes an ancient prophecy, a terrible secret, and a deadly conspiracy. From the prairies of Nebraska to holy ground in Israel, a deadly battle is underway to force God's hand. Is a young veterinarian God's chosen to fulfill the ancient prophecy of the red heifer? Only she can choose. Her own life. Or an apocalyptic war. The future ...

Tomorrow's Guest Blogger: Shannon Baker!

Tomorrow, fellow Colorado author and Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers member Shannon Baker will be a guest on my blog. Shannon has an MBA and is an accountant by trade, a mild-mannered career that some may even call boring. To compensate, she concocts thrillers, such as her 2010 debut, Ashes of the Red Heifer. The constant right brain/left brain conflict explains a lot about her personality. A lover of mountains, plains, deserts, oceans and rivers, she can often be found traipsing around outsid...

Saturday's Mountain of Authors Program

This past Saturday, I attended the Pikes Peak Library District's (PPLD) fourth annual Mountain of Authors program. What a great day! I arrived at 11 am to consign my books to the Friends of the Library sale then set up my display table for the Author Showcase Spotlight. Local authors, fiction and non-fiction, traditionally and self-published, ringed the large community meeting room.

After setting up, I took some photos of the library's planning committee, with whom I worked on planning the eve...

Blogging about Asking for Blurbs

It's my turn to post an article over at Inkspot, the group blog for Midnight Ink authors, today, and I'm talking about a touchy subject for many authors, asking other, more established, authors for blurbs. I'm in that stage of the process for my March, 2011 release, Deadly Currents, and it hasn't gotten any easier! One wonderful author has already come through for me with a stellar blurb, so that takes some of the pressure off.

Go to Inkspot now to find out who and what she has to say about De...

PPLD "Mountain of Authors" Program

This Saturday, April 10th, I will be participating in the fourth annual Mountain of Authors program at the East Library, 5550 N. Union Blvd. I invite everyone in and around Colorado Springs who is interested in reading and writing to attend this free event!

The keynote speaker for this year's event will be one of my favorite mystery authors, New York Times best-selling author Margaret Coel. Book lovers and writers of all experience levels will find tips and inspiration from two speaker pane...

My mystery author guest: Gerrie Ferris Finger

As I said yesterday, Gerrie Ferris Finger won the Malice Domestic Best First Traditional Mystery Novel Competition in 2009. Her April 27th release from St. Martin's Minotaur, The End Game, is the result of that win. The End Game features a strong new heroine in a vivid Southern setting. Moriah Dru's weekend off with her lover, Lieutenant Richard Lake, is interrupted when Atlanta juvenile court judge Portia Devon hires Dru to find two sisters who've gone missing after their foster parents...