P.D. Workman's Blog, page 138
December 24, 2014
Writer’s 12 Days of Christmas
[reblogged from last year]
This song idea came to me on my morning run. You all know the song, so I’m going to short form this, and you can sing all twelve days for yourself:
On the first day of Christmas my muse it gave to me…
A plot idea and a setting
Two Scrivener licenses*
Three act structure
Four Facebook likes
Five star reviews
Six characters
Seven stock graphics
Eight blog posts
Nine inspirations
Ten twitter retweets
Eleven sticky notes
Twelve index cards
*one for Windows, one for Mac – Mac is better
Merry Christmas readers and writers!
image: Flickr CC Alpha Sticky Note Christmas Tree – UX Team
December 23, 2014
Excerpt from Never Go Back #teasertuesday #books #jackreacher
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!
Christmas is only two days away! Don’t forget books for your favorite reader (or yourself!) I just released By-Pass, Breaking the Pattern #3, and if you can get books 1-3 of the Breaking the Pattern series all in one ebook and save $$! Don’t forget to sign up for my mailing list (to the right) to be informed of new releases and deals.
I am currently reading a couple of thrillers, including Never Go Back by Lee Child, a Jack Reacher novel. I’m not sure if I’ve ever read any Jack Reacher novels before, but I knew they were popular! And so far, I have not been disappointed.
Reacher’s mantra was: Get your retaliation in first. Especially when outnumbered two-to-one against guys with youth and energy on their side.
Lee Child, Never Go Back
Former military cop Jack Reacher makes it all the way from snowbound South Dakota to his destination in northeastern Virginia, near Washington, D.C.: the headquarters of his old unit, the 110th MP. The old stone building is the closest thing to a home he ever had.
Reacher is there to meet—in person—the new commanding officer, Major Susan Turner, so far just a warm, intriguing voice on the phone.
But it isn’t Turner behind the CO’s desk. And Reacher is hit with two pieces of shocking news, one with serious criminal consequences, and one too personal to even think about.
When threatened, you can run or fight.
Reacher fights, aiming to find Turner and clear his name, barely a step ahead of the army, and the FBI, and the D.C. Metro police, and four unidentified thugs.
Combining an intricate puzzle of a plot and an exciting chase for truth and justice, Lee Child puts Reacher through his paces—and makes him question who he is, what he’s done, and the very future of his untethered life on the open road.
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Bookish Gifts IVDecember 18, 2014
Norman Bridwell, Creator of Clifford The Big Red Dog Dead at 602 Dog Years #books #kidlit #cliffordbigreddog
It is always sad to hear that the author of one of your beloved children’s books has passed away. So, with sadness we bid farewell to Norman Bridwell, the creator of Clifford the Big Red Dog.
I loved Clifford books as a little girl. I can remember looking through my Clifford books before I could even read. I think my mom bought them through my older brother’s Scholastic orders. One of my favourite was Clifford’s Halloween. Oh, that Clifford dressed up as a ghost. Nobody could tell who he was. 
And who could forget Clifford performing good deeds, and sling-shotting the kitten through the air?
When we were big enough to go to the school library, Clifford was one of the first series’ that I gravitated toward, and consequently the first library book I ever lost was a Clifford. (No, I haven’t lost very many library books since. It was a very traumatic experience. I thought the librarian would eat me for dinner.)
I don’t remember wanting a dog as big as Clifford. I could see how impractical that would be. And even though it was never mentioned in those books, I couldn’t imagine how you would clean up the droppings of such a humongous animal. But I loved Clifford as a puppy, he was cute and cuddly. I would have loved a Clifford plushie.
My younger brother watched Clifford on TV, but I was too old for it by then. And I didn’t like the dogs talking in it. Good grief, everybody knows that dogs don’t talk.
It is sad to say good-bye to an old friend.
Related articles across the web
Clifford the Big Red Dog creator Norman Bridwell dies, aged 86
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The artist for Clifford the Big Red Dog diesDecember 16, 2014
Excerpt from Widow Boy #teasertuesday #books
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!
Christmas is almost upon us! Don’t forget books for your favorite reader (or yourself!) I just released By-Pass, Breaking the Pattern #3 last week, and if you can get books 1-3 of the Breaking the Pattern series all in one ebook and save $$! Don’t forget to sign up for my mailing list (to the right) to be informed of new releases and deals.
I am currently reading Widow Boy by Mary Lloyd. I was initially attracted solely by the title, which for me has always been a homonym for ‘little boy’ said in your best baby/kittycat voice. The summary was intriguing, so I picked it up. It is a western with a strong heroine on the trail of her husband’s murderer:
“Think about it some more, child. Two wrongs ain’t never made a right yet.” She gripped Eddie’s forearm gently. “And killing is always wrong.”
Mary Lloyd, Widow Boy
The bullet that ended Edwina Sinclair’s life went into her husband’s chest. Their dream of a new life together in the gold rush town of Cripple Creek died with him. She escapes the ruthless gang that killed him, only to discover the local law is on the take. She must find justice on her own.
Disguising herself as a boy and using skills she isn’t supposed to have, she makes her way in the gold-crazy town, intent on killing the gang leader to make things right. But she discovers he’s also hunting her, intent on his own revenge for making him look like a fool.
As she struggles to stay one step ahead of him, she realizes that getting justice is not so simple. And neither is staying alive.
With energetic storytelling and a subtle backdrop of historical and technical accuracy, Widow Boy is a riveting tale of the classic West with a not-so-classic hero(ine).
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The Top Ten New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2014December 11, 2014
Release of By-Pass, Breaking the Pattern 3 #books #newrelease
By-Pass, Breaking the Pattern #3 has been released on Kindle and in paperback!
Watch the trailer, read a teaser, and have a look at the summary below.
Although By-Pass is the third book in the Breaking the Pattern series, it works as a stand-alone, so you don’t have to have read Deviation or Diversion. But if you want to, you can get them all and save four bucks by getting the three-in-one ebook! (Of course, if you’re a paper book person and want to get a deal on purchasing all three, contact me and we’ll work something out!)
It’s better when she’s happy.
Bobby is a geeky teen who is convinced that his new foster home is everything he has ever hoped for.
His foster mom Katya is so different than any he has ever had; but as her behavior becomes more and more unpredictable and disturbing, he comes to realize that both he and Katya’s daughter Zane are in trouble.
The crazy thing is, Bobby doesn’t want to leave her, and new revelations from Bobby’s own forgotten past throw his quest for a real family into further turmoil.
—Absolutely intriguing story! I loved it! The story line was amazing it kept me wanting to read, and wonder what was going to happen
—By-Pass is a book that will make you think, laugh at times and cry a lot. It was a very good story, emotional and sensitive but also happy a lot of times too. I loved the Breaking the Pattern Series from the first book to the last page of the third book
—An inspiring theme about changing direction in life
December 9, 2014
Excerpt from The Santa Shop #teasertuesday
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!
If you like free books, take a second to sign up for my Goodreads Giveaway of Tattooed Teardrops!
A quick holiday read from last week: The Santa Shop (The Samaritans Conspiracy Book 1) by Tim Greaton. I don’t normally spring for a book of fewer than 200 pages, but I made an exception for this Christmas story (and then discovered that 30% of that is an excerpt from the next book in the series). It is currently free (I think probably permafree, but I can’t be sure.) So, without further ado:
I gritted my teeth and trudged on, thankful there was no snow yet. Christmas lights glared from many of the apartment windows I passed. I was uncertain, but it seemed to me that the dreaded holiday was only a week or so away. Just the thought of it gave me a sinking feeling inside.
Tim Greaton, The Santa Shop
Skip Ralstat is a man so steeped in grief and despair that life seems no longer possible. After the death of his wife and child, Skip blames himself. He has given up his friends, his job and now, devoid of all hope, he survives on the mean streets of Albany. He knows it can’t go on, that life must end…but will it?
In “The Santa Shop” we get our first glimpse at the Samaritans Conspiracy, a secretive group of individuals who are seldom seen and never recognized.
Also, don’t miss “Red Gloves” the second novel in this emotional, life-affirming series. With Maine teenage corpses stacking up and her life crumbling around her, Lead Detective Priscilla Harris seeks out a red-gloved stalker who is either a murderer or a saint.
December 5, 2014
Trailer for By-Pass, Breaking the Pattern #3
By-Pass is going to be released very soon! My trailer is now up, so have a look, and maybe add yourself to my mailing list (to the right –>) to be notified when it comes out.
Although By-Pass is part of a series, it can definitely be read as a stand-alone book.
It’s better when she’s happy.
Bobby is a geeky teen who is convinced that his new foster home is everything he has ever hoped for.
His foster mom Katya is so different than any he has ever had; but as her behavior becomes more and more unpredictable and disturbing, he comes to realize that both he and Katya’s daughter Zane are in trouble.
The crazy thing is, Bobby doesn’t want to leave her, and new revelations from Bobby’s own forgotten past throw his quest for a real family into further turmoil.
—Absolutely intriguing story! I loved it! The story line was amazing it kept me wanting to read, and wonder what was going to happen
—By-Pass is a book that will make you think, laugh at times and cry a lot. It was a very good story, emotional and sensitive but also happy a lot of times too. I loved the Breaking the Pattern Series from the first book to the last page of the third book
—An inspiring theme about changing direction in life
December 2, 2014
Excerpt from By-Pass #teasertuesday
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, read the rules at Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!
I am putting the final touches on By-Pass, hoping to have it out next week. So I thought I would share an excerpt for my teaser this week. By-Pass is the third book in the “Breaking the Pattern” series, but also works as a stand alone. It is a young adult contemporary novel; summary below.
Bobby looked at the price tag attached to the laces, his heart sinking. He felt ill. “Two h-hundred,” he murmured. He let out his breath. “I’ll put them back.”
But Katya was thumbing apart her bills. She handed a wad to him. “They don’t go with your suit,” she advised. “You’re not wearing them at the party.”
P.D. Workman, By-Pass Breaking the Pattern #3
It’s better when she’s happy.
Bobby is a geeky teen who is convinced that his new foster home is everything he has ever hoped for.
His foster mom Katya is so different than any he has ever had; but as her behavior becomes more and more unpredictable and disturbing, he comes to realize that both he and Katya’s daughter Zane are in trouble.
The crazy thing is, Bobby doesn’t want to leave her, and new revelations from Bobby’s own forgotten past throw his quest for a real family into further turmoil.
—Absolutely intriguing story! I loved it! The story line was amazing it kept me wanting to read, and wonder what was going to happen
—By-Pass is a book that will make you think, laugh at times and cry a lot. It was a very good story, emotional and sensitive but also happy a lot of times too. I loved the Breaking the Pattern Series from the first book to the last page of the third book
—An inspiring theme about changing direction in life
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November 30, 2014
Do you Like Free Books? #goodreads #giveaway
Do you like getting free books? I am running a Goodreads Giveaway of a signed copy of Tattooed Teardrops. If you would like a chance to win, enter here.
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November 27, 2014
The Other “P.D.” #pdjames
Nov 25, 2014 Sadly, the news broke this morning that P.D. James has passed away. So I thought I would re-blog my previous post on her, with a couple of additions.
Originally published Nov 18, 2013:
I came across this article yesterday about P.D. James.
I like P.D. James for several reasons:
She has really great initials.
She writes good mystery books!
But I don’t really know that much about P.D. James as a person. This article filled me in on a couple more similarities between her and me, besides our initials:
She started writing in her childhood.
She didn’t publish until her early 40’s (her first book published at 42, mine at 41!)
If you’d like to find out some more about P.D. James and hear her top 10 writing tips, follow the link! And, of course, check out her official website.
Maybe one of these days I’ll write my top 10 writing tips. Of course, they won’t hold the same weight as P.D. James, but it might be fun to compare notes.
Now, I think I’ll go see if the library has some Adam Dalgleish audiobooks.
Did he fall or was he pushed?”
I really like the one quote that I am seeing by P.D. James today:
Even as a child, she said, she had been interested in death. As a little girl, when someone read “Humpty Dumpty” to her, she asked, “Did he fall or was he pushed?”
Here are some of P.D. James’ works that I have enjoyed:
Related articles across the web
Mystery novelist P.D. James dead at 94
Crime novelist P.D. James dies at 94
Crime writer and Conservative peer P.D. James dies aged 94
NEWS: P.D. James’ novel Death Comes to Pemberley hits the small screen!Image: “PD James Cologne” by Benutzer:Smalltown Boy (Diskussion) Licensed under Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.
