P.D. Workman's Blog, page 44

Writing a novel in Markdown

Why Markdown?

Markdown files are plain text, with a few added characters or symbols used to format it for conversation to HTML or other formats. Being plain text files, they are very small and not likely to become corrupted. Writing one scene or one chapter per file also keeps them very small and can be opened in an instant. Since they are written in plain text, they can be edited with any text processor or word processor.

Versioning and file backup

I use Dropbox to sync all of my data files across all of my devices, and the license that I pay for includes versioning, so I can roll any file back at any time if it becomes corrupted, overwritten, or something else disastrous happens, like a hard drive failure. I also use Mac OS Time Machine backups to four different hard drives so that I always have additional copies which can also be rolled back. And when I am actively drafting a new book, I also compile and save a backup every few days.

My file folder structure for a novelWritingMy booksSeries folder (Obsidian vault)Novel folder (Longform project folder)archived (old drafts/versions of anything)backup (compiled backups of book made every few days)characters (character motivations/notes for this book, different than the general notes on the characters in the series wiki)Drafts (Longform drafts folder)draft 0 – preplanning – snowflake, outline, etc.draft 1 … 2 … 3 …editing notes (notes of things to look at later, formatting, things to bring to the attention of my editor)graphics (covers, promotional graphics, ads, etc.)published (Vellum output folder for this novel)queries (saved search templates for Obsidian)research and notes (background for this novel)templates (character notes, snowflake template, word count tracking)Series wiki (linked “series Bible”)Best practices for drafting a book using Markdown files for eventual use in VellumFile names

I like to use descriptive file name for the chapter or scene. Numbered so that they can be sorted sequentially in any file viewer or editor. I eliminate the description in Vellum and just use numbered chapters. If you use named chapters in your final copy, then use them as your file names.

Front matter

I put searchable metadata in the front matter of each md file. There are a number of different ways to do this, depending on which editor you want to use as your main Markdown editor. This metadata is “commented out” so that it will not appear in the final file, but can be used during the drafting stages to quickly find scenes or necessary information.

Commenting outYAML--- metadata ---

Three hyphens as the first characters in the markdown file, followed by the metadata, followed by three more hyphens. YAML is a standard format for front matter, but is not recognized by all apps (like Notebooks). It is recognized by Obsidian.

The information normally included in a YAML header is things like title, author, and date (examples). Some apps or plugins (such as Obsidian Dataview) may make use of other variables to be included in the YAML header. You can put other Dataview fields anywhere in your file, so they can be inserted between any of the other pairings below as well.

If you are using the Obsidian Longform plugin to compile your scenes into one document, you can’t put a YAML header in each scene, only the first will actually convert to a header. Choose the Percents or HTML comments format below instead.

Percents%% metadata %%

Recognized in some apps but not in others. Does not work for Notebooks App. Can be used anywhere in the document.

If you are using the Obsidian Word Count Dashboard to track your word count, use this method to comment out your metadata so that they will not be counted with your novel’s words.

Slashes// metadata //

Recognized in some apps but not in others. Does not work for Obsidian. Can be used anywhere in the document.

HTML comments

Works in the majority of apps. (I won’t say all, because, who knows, but this one has worked pretty universally for me.) Can be used anywhere in the document.

This is the only method I could find that works for both Notebooks App and Obsidian. It is not recognized by the Obsidian Word Count Dashboard, but you can nest %% inside of the html comment to make it ignore the metadata.

Metadata I Use

I use metadata in the front matter of the document to tag each chapter or scene with information that I want to filter on or track later. My metadata may include something like this.

%%Character:: !KiaraCharacter:: !MalachiCharacter:: !NurseSetting:: ~DoctorPOV:: KiaraDay:: 1Note:: Draft:: 2Grammarly:: √%%

I precede character names with ! and setting names with ~ so that I can also search/filter them quickly from any file explorer. Why would I not just search Malachi instead of !Malachi? Because I don’t want to bring up every scene that Malachi is mentioned in, only the ones where he is a main character in the scene.

I only use POV in books that have multiple points of view. If there is only one POV in the book, I don’t need to track it. Similarly, if every scene in the book uses Joe Blow’s POV, then I don’t include !Joe in the list of characters, because he would be listed for every single scene, there’s never any need to filter on him.

Day helps me to keep track of day of the week or month, length of time between scenes, etc.

Note is anything that I need to remember for later.

Draft is the draft number

Grammarly indicates whether I have run the scene through Grammarly. Yes, you can copy and paste Markdown text into Grammarly and it will not screw up the paragraph breaks, italics, etc. You can check the file and paste the results back into your Markdown file, and everything will still be properly formatted, unlike trying to copy and paste other formats into/out of Grammarly.

As well as letting me search or filter by these variables in any file browser, I can also use Obsidian’s Dataview plugin to produce a tabulated summary.

Special formatting

If you are going to draft one scene or chapter per file, then you are going to need (a) a tool to combine those chapters into one long file and (b) a tool to convert that file into docx format for your editor and/or for import into Vellum and/or to convert into epub and pdf for publication. I am going to focus on getting from Markdown to Vellum here, you will need to experiment and adapt for other formats.

Compiling tools

The two compiling tools that I have used are:

Notebooks App

You can compile all files in a folder to one HTML file by clicking the three dots at the top of the panel and selecting compile. By default, the first line of the file becomes an H1 header.

Obsidian Longform Plugin

You can compile all files in the draft folder of a Longform project by going to the Longform panel compile tab and clicking compile. Select the checkbox to make the Scene titles become H1 headers.

Why H1 headers?

H1 headers are automatically recognized by Vellum as chapter titles.

Marking scene breaks

If you are importing into Vellum, then you want all of your scene breaks to be properly marked. You don’t want to have to input all of your scene breaks after the file has been imported.

If you use *** or --- to mark your scene breaks, then they will be converted to a horizontal line when you convert to HTML. And horizontal lines are not recognized by Vellum as scene breaks.

If you use to mark your scene breaks (you don’t need to center it), it will not be converted to a horizontal line when you convert to HTML. It will stay as a . And is recognized as as scene break by Vellum.

Converting to your final file format

In order to import cleanly into Vellum, you want to convert to HTML first. Converting to HTML first will retain chapter names as H1 headers, which Vellum will recognize as chapter names. Converting directly to docx will not retain the H1 headers.

Notebooks App

You can compile directly to HTML as mentioned above.

Pandoc

The Obsidian Longform Plugin will compile all of the Scenes into one long MD (markdown) file.

To convert from MD to HTML, you will want to use Pandoc. Pandoc is a command line file converter that lets you convert from one file format to another in Terminal. But don’t panic. If you used the Obsidian Longform Plugin to create your compiled MD file, then install the Pandoc Plugin in Obsidian. (If you are using another Markdown editor, you will need to see what the options are there, learn Pandoc command line prompts, or use an online tool such as StackEdit to convert the file from MD to HTML.)

In Obsidian, navigate to the compiled MD file and click on it. Pull up the command palette (cmd-p) and type HTML. You should see “Pandoc Plugin: Export as HTML (without Pandoc)” Select it to convert your MD file to an HTML file.

HTML to docx

Here is the magical step to convert your HTML file to a docx file for import into Vellum, retaining those H1 headers so that Vellum splits the chapters on the H1 header, using the H1 header as the chapter name.

Find the HTML file in your File Finder. Right click and select “Open With” and click either Word or your word processor. I have only tested this with Word and LibreOffice. I can confirm that it works with both of these apps. Then you can “save as” a docx file.

This file can be imported into Vellum and all Chapter and Scene breaks will be properly converted. Of course, you may want to send it to your editor first. If you don’t want your chapters to have names, you can select all of your chapters on the left navigation panel and clear the titles. Then they will just show up as Chapter 1, Chapter 2, etc.

Vellum does not retain formatting such as block quotes, so if you have sections that will need to be converted to alignment blocks or other special formatting, I suggest that you use a symbol combination to mark each of those sections while working in Markdown, and then search for that combination in the Vellum file and format it accordingly.

eg. use “999 alignment block” and search for 999 in the text in Vellum.

Other formats

You can use Pandoc to create pdf files, epub files, etc. I have not experimented with this for novels. I have used Pandoc to create very nice formatted pdf files for printed newsletters (for people who want print copies rather than emails), but that is a topic for a separate article.

Writing in Obsidian Longform plugin

You can format your editing and preview screens in Obsidian using CSS formatting that only applies to Longform project files.

My edit screen:My preview screen:My sample CSS/* Font for the markdown source panel */.Longform-leaf .cm-s-Obsidian{ font-family: Arial; font-size: 1.1em; line-height: 2em;}.Longform-leaf .cm-comment{ font-family: monospace; font-size: .8em; line-height: 1em;}.Longform-leaf .cm-header-1{ font-family: Garamond; font-size: 1.5em; line-height: 2em;}/* Font for the markdown preview panel */.Longform-leaf .markdown-preview-view { font-family: Garamond; font-size: 1.2em; text-indent: 1em; text-align: justify;}.Longform-leaf h1 { font-family: Garamond; font-size: 2em; text-indent: 0em; margin-top: 1em;}.Longform-leaf p { margin-bottom: -15px; line-height: 1.3em;}.Longform-leaf { --background-primary: antiquewhite; --background-primary-alt: white; --background-secondary: white; --background-secondary-alt: white; --text-selection: #aaa; --text-normal: black; --text-faint: blue; color: black;}.Longform-leaf .suggestion-item.is-selected { background-color: var(--text-accent);}.Longform-leaf .markdown-preview-view blockquote { border-color: darkgrey; font-size: 95%; text-align: left; hyphens: auto; word-break: keep-all; color: black; # you need to define font-color: #aacdbe; line-height: 1.3; padding: 10px 2% 10px 2%; margin-top: 15pt; margin-bottom: 15pt;}Using Word Count Dashboard in Obsidian

I use the Word Count Dashboard to keep track of the word count in my Longform Project Draft folder. It is a little complex to set up and took a bit of playing around to get right.

This is what the top portion of my query template looks like:

---cssclass: wordcountTable---%%## Configuration**Folder containing Notes**folderPath:: ZG 11/Drafts/Draft 1**set to 0 to ignore**charTarget:: 0wordTarget:: 80000includeFootnotes:: truecharactersIncludeSpaces:: trueexcludeComments:: true**Notes to exclude**Leave empty to disable.Notes with the yaml-key "status" and value "exclude" for that key are also excluded excludeTag:: #exclude **Bibliography estimate for Pandoc Citations**includeBibliographyEstimate:: falsewordsPerCitation:: 22charsPerCitation:: 155**purely visual**thousandSeperator:: ,naChar:: —%%

And this is what the query results look like:

Other settings/plugins that I find helpful drafting novels in Obsidian

As well as the Longform and Pandoc plugins, I also find these to be useful when drafting novels.

Dataview Plugin

Needed to produce the data summaries you see above with my metadata and word count.

Obsidian Tabs Plugin

I prefer to have multiple documents open in tabs rather than panes. I’ll have my current scene open, my tabular summaries, my outline, and research documents, and they all show up as tabs that I can switch between. You cannot vertically or horizontally split with this plugin turned on.

Smart Typography Plugin

I want curly quotes and apostrophes. I want my ellipses converted. Other than that, I turn the rest off.

I recommend that if you use Smart Typography, you turn off “auto pair brackets” in your editor preferences. Otherwise things can get a little wonky.

Templates Plugin (Core)

I use templates for my character notes and my snowflake planning. I could also use them to automatically insert my metadata template. Alternatively, you could use TextExpander or another utility for this.

Starred Plugin (Core)

I like to star certain reference documents, such as my outline, word count dashboard, etc.

Wikilinks (Preferences)

I use Wikilinks to set up my series wiki (series Bible).

A deal on Dosed to Death and other books

If you haven’t yet purchased Dosed to Death, book #3 in the Kenzie Kirsch Medical Thrillers yet, this is your chance get it at a discounted price.

For a limited time, you can get this latest Kenzie Kirsch book for just $0.99. It can be read as a stand alone medical mystery or as part of the series.

@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-c06d719 .ugb-img{width:640px;height:auto !important}}Dosed to Death

Out of the frying pan and into the fire!

Kenzie Kirsch needs a vacation from the dead bodies in the Medical Examiner’s Office, so she arranges for a Thanksgiving resort vacation.

Who knew she would be dealing with more deaths there than if she had stayed at home? At first, she and partner Zachary Goldman assume that it is just a weird coincidence, but as the snow starts to pile up outside their doors, so do the bodies.

Trapped with a killer, it’s up to Kenzie to gather what clues she can from the remains of her fellow holidayers.
But the killer isn’t going to just sit around and wait for her to figure it out.

another well-crafted mystery full of suspense, plot twists, and nail-biting tension as Kenzie and Zachary work diligently to unravel the clues to the bizarre happenings at the lodge where they were hoping to enjoy a peaceful and relaxing vacation.

If you are a reader of the Zachary Goldman Mysteries series, you have already met Kenzie Kirsch. This series is a spinoff from Zachary Goldman Mysteries, giving Kenzie a front-and-center position in solving medical mysteries.

Looking for a strong female lead in an engaging medical mystery? This will be right up your alley.

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Clicking the Author Direct button allows you to purchase an ebook directly from the author using your PayPal account (blue button) or a credit card (grey button)

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.ugb-09ecd66 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-09ecd66 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-09ecd66 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-09ecd66 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-09ecd66 .ugb-img{width:333px;height:auto !important}}The Mercy of Snakes

A series of suspicious deaths in a retirement home draws Nameless into the confidence of a terrified former resident—and into the dark heart of a shocking conspiracy. In part five of the Nameless series, it’s time to hunt.

Oakshore Park is Michigan’s most exclusive assisted-living community. Presided over by two killer angels of mercy, it’s also the go-to facility in assisted dying. For a cut, they make impatient heirs happy. Nameless must concoct a scheme just as cunning. But righteous retribution stirs disquiet in the avenger as light starts to shine on the black hole of his past. Should he welcome it or keep running?

.ugb-12bbece .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-12bbece .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-12bbece .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-12bbece .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-12bbece .ugb-img{width:332px;height:auto !important}}The Reluctant Coroner

Blood is thicker than oil–until murder is involved.

Fenway Stevenson doesn’t want to return to the coastal town where her estranged father is practically king. But the death of her mother draws her back home–and the murder of the county coroner draws her into a deepening conspiracy.

As the body count rises and all signs seem to point toward her father’s oil company, will Fenway uncover the truth before family bonds become deadly?

Free[image error]@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-eb68d14 .ugb-img{width:313px;height:auto !important}}Hemingway Found

Did Ernest Hemingway’s lost manuscripts contain deadly secrets?
Details of a murderous cult with only one ambition?
A secret society out to achieve ultimate power?

Ryan R.B. Bodean and Megan Simons are back. However,The Congregation For The Light is out for revenge.

While on a relaxing train ride through Europe, Ryan and his business partner Megan encounter a man who claims he knows what happened to Ernest Hemingway’s infamous lost manuscripts.

To solve the mystery of these century-old documents, and uncover the mind-blowing revelations they conceal, R.B. and Megan must escape a powerful secret society hell-bent on covering those secrets up — an enigmatic cult willing to buy elections, destroy their enemies, and kill anyone who impedes their claim for ultimate power.

This cutting-edge action thriller will keep you turning pages deep into the night. If you like relentless, edge-of-your-seat and unputdownable thrill rides, you’re going to devour this book.

Amazon Google Other stores

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Book 2 in the award-winning Medical Students series
From busy hospitals in San Diego to the barren deserts of Arizona, this tension-filled thriller, the second installment of The Medical Students series, follows the life and death challenges, the surprising twists and turns, and the ethical dilemmas of two young doctors in their quest to rid the profession of bad doctors who practice bad medicine resulting in bad outcomes.

Book One, Do No Harm, introduced Torrey Jamison and Matthew Preston. Torrey, with her genius IQ, gained acceptance to Stanford Medical School to pursue her dream of becoming a pediatric neurosurgeon in honor of her little sister, Leia, who died of brain cancer. At Stanford, she met her future husband, Matthew, who pursued medical school for the sole purpose of becoming a prison doctor in order to gain access to—and kill—his father’s murderer who was incarcerated in San Quentin. As their relationship deepened, Torrey was forced to confront the potential value and moral ambiguity of vigilantism.

In this page-turning, stand-alone suspense sequel, Bad Medicine, newlyweds Torrey and Matthew have graduated from medical school and are now new doctors at Kaiser hospital in San Diego. While there, they learn of a friend’s young niece who has fallen victim to a doctor who is running a phony cancer treatment center. Putting their careers and marriage in jeopardy, Dr. Jamison and Dr. Preston agree to help their friend’s family seek the ultimate revenge.

Check it out.ugb-69e8d8e .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-69e8d8e .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-69e8d8e .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-69e8d8e .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-69e8d8e .ugb-img{width:313px;height:auto !important}}Every Trick in the Book

Turning over a new leaf doesn’t always go according to plan…

When Jemma James takes a job at Burns Books, the second-worst secondhand bookshop in London, she finds her ambition to turn it around thwarted at every step. Raphael, the owner, is more interested in his newspaper than sales. Folio the bookshop cat has it in for Jemma, and the shop itself appears to have a mind of its own. Or is it more than that?

Gradually Jemma starts to make a difference … and then the anonymous letters start arriving. Who is behind them, and why?

As the threats escalate, and the shop becomes increasingly turbulent, Jemma and Raphael must work together to find the culprit. And what else will Jemma find in her investigations?

Every Trick In The Book is the first in the Magical Bookshop humorous mystery series, set in modern London.

Amazon.ugb-af8e6c9 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-af8e6c9 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-af8e6c9 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-af8e6c9 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-af8e6c9 .ugb-img{width:316px;height:auto !important}}A Sample Death

A bemused, rotund, medical examiner in his 60’s with anger management issues, Dr. Jonathan Watson has a run of unfortunate events despite his good intent. Recently divorced and relocated from Canada to a Maine coast town to start his new job, he’s confronted by a series of suspicious deaths in patients with unexplained psychosis– deaths that others too eagerly call routine. With help from Maine Detective Jessica Snow, he uncovers a shady deal by doctors, a lethal web extending well beyond his town, tangling even Snow’s family.

Free.ugb-353348d .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-353348d .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-353348d .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-353348d .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-353348d .ugb-img{width:333px;height:auto !important}}The Vines

Description for this block. Use this space for describing In the shadows of New York City lies forbidden North Brother Island, where the remains of a shuttered hospital hide the haunting memories of century-old quarantines and human experiments. The ruins conceal the scarred and beautiful Cora, imprisoned by contagions and the doctors who torment her.
 
When Finn, a young urban explorer, arrives on the island and glimpses an enigmatic beauty through the foliage, intrigue turns to obsession as he seeks to uncover her past–and his own family’s dark secrets. By unraveling these mysteries, will he be able to save Cora? Will Cora meet the same tragic ending as the thousands who’ve already perished on the island? 
 
The Vines intertwines North Brother Island’s horrific and elusive history with a captivating tale of love, betrayal, survival, and loss.

$0.99.ugb-e81ab8a .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-e81ab8a .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-e81ab8a .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-e81ab8a .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-e81ab8a .ugb-img{width:335px;height:auto !important}}Kiss, Marry, Kill

One chosen for a kiss …
The second picked to be a wife …
And the third, condemned to die.

July 2016, Classen High School Alumni celebrate thirty years since they walked the halls of their alma mater. It’s a night of toasts, laughs, and fond memories. While flipping through the pages of a yearbook, twelve people decide the fate of twelve others when they play a random game of chance.

None recognize that there was a vengeful soul mingling among them that night. His psychotic, depraved thoughts take their innocent picks and twists them into a perverted game of murder.

Kiss, Marry, Kill is the Prequel Episode of the new crime thriller series, Reunion Pact by Martha Henley. If you’re looking for a new novella length thriller series with realistic characters and psychological twists on the pages, then you’ll love these episodes.

Reunion Pact is an episodic novella series, written to be read in order and in its entirety. Each episode tells a complete story, but they are one part of the whole incredible tale. Start it today with this prequel episode, Kiss, Marry, Kill!

Kindle.ugb-005058e .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-005058e .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-005058e .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-005058e .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-005058e .ugb-img{width:326px;height:auto !important}}The Nurse

When you hear her story, will you believe her?

Rose Marlowe is a hard-working nurse, a loving wife, and a merciless killer. Or so she says. Despite her confession, it is hard to believe that this beautiful, kind woman could have killed her vulnerable patient in cold blood.

Down-on-his-luck true crime author, Theo Hazel, is convinced that there’s more to what happened than Rose is telling, and so decides to visit her behind bars to write her story. His first surprise comes when Rose reveals that the victim was not a stranger to her.

As time goes on, it seems that Rose is letting Theo see behind her perfect mask. With each new visit, he learns terrible new things about her heart-breaking past. With each new visit, he becomes more and more convinced that she can’t be a killer. 

But is he trying to free an innocent woman, or falling prey to a calculating murderer?

Kindle.ugb-a51de2e .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-a51de2e .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-a51de2e .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-a51de2e .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-a51de2e .ugb-img{width:313px;height:auto !important}}Maya Hope

A doctor stumbling through life. A North Korean bioterrorist plot.
The two collide in an unforgettable tale.

Dr. Nicklaus Hart, a gifted trauma surgeon, searches for meaning in his life. His self-reliant spirit is broken with the death of his missionary best friend, found sacrificed at the base of a Maya Temple. Going to Guatemala to fill the shoes of his friend at the mission hospital, he discovers God’s redemption and peace in the smiles of the children he cares for. But his own life is in danger as he and his team stumble onto a deadly North Korean plot.

As Nick delves into the mystery of his friend’s death, he exposes the very cause of the extermination of the Maya race…a virus which is about to be released upon the entire world through a bioterrorist scheme of global proportions. Will Nick and his team stop them in time?

Maya Hope is the first book in a series of skillfully crafted medical thrillers. If you like fast-paced adventure, international settings, sizzling medical suspense, then you’ll love this heart-pounding thriller by Timothy Browne.

Free.ugb-3e9b4a1 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-3e9b4a1 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-3e9b4a1 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-3e9b4a1 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-3e9b4a1 .ugb-img{width:328px;height:auto !important}}The Appointment

He’s a doctor . . . but can you trust him?

With his marriage collapsing and grief-stricken following the death of his baby son, surgeon Dan Lewis is struggling to make sense of it all.

His work is his lifeline. But when he fixates on a child patient he thinks has a potentially lethal disease, no one believes the diagnosis. They all think he’s losing his mind.

When one of Dan’s critics is senselessly murdered and the evidence points to the damaged doctor as the prime suspect, his bad situation becomes desperate.

But there’s a dark secret linking the ill child and the murder victim. One that no one other than Dan can see.

$0.99.ugb-153af8a .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-153af8a .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-153af8a .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-153af8a .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-153af8a .ugb-img{width:400px;height:auto !important}}The Messiah Conspiracy

Could this really happen in the near future?

A young student at Oxford University has an idea for his doctor’s thesis (PhD), which fulfils not only the criteria for ‘originality’, but goes far beyond it. For if Jason Dyke is right, his idea will soon change the world and shift the delicate balance of power from one nation to another. Jason’s idea is simple: In the genetics laboratory at Oxford University, he will clone Jesus Christ.

But when the CIA finds out about his plan, the President of America realises that if the UK succeeds, the balance of power will shift from the USA to Europe. And he realises that the only way to stop this happening is for America to create its very own clone of Jesus Christ. The race is on…

Free.ugb-53dd6c5 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-53dd6c5 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-53dd6c5 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-53dd6c5 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-53dd6c5 .ugb-img{width:333px;height:auto !important}}Shock

Katie Boles finds her life turned upside when she finds a dead body on her driveway. The mysterious death is reminiscent of the work of a serial killer who terrorized Katie’s hometown five years ago. The police arrested Katie’s brother for the murders, but the trial and her brother’s behavior left her with plenty of questions.
After a second killing nearby, Katie is afraid that the Shock Killer, the man who had forced her into hiding, was back to involve her in a second round of murders. Even more frightening is the fact that Katie might have to come face-to-face with her brother and learn the truth of the murders.

Free

Reading Verses for the Dead

Are you wiped out after Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday preparations, shopping, and deals? Relax with a few books from my Thanksgiving post. And don’t forget that today is Giving Tuesday. Lots of charities have matching donation programs today, so check out your favourite cause and see how you can multiply your donation to help out others today.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme. Read the rules and more teasers at The Purple Booker. Anyone can play along.

Verses for the Dead is book #18 in the Pendergast series by Preston & Child. If you have read any of the rest of the series, you know that Agent Pendergast (FBI) prefers to work on his own, but in this case he is paired up with a junior agent to “assist” him (ie. spy on him and report any rogue behaviour to their boss.) A serial killer is on the loose, and Pendergast is the only one who seems to have any idea how to pursue the investigation.

As always, Preston & Child bring a good thriller to publication, with plenty of interesting characters and a truly evil serial killer operating behind the scenes. I will say, though, that there was some stuff in the behavioural profiling explained by a character in the book that is way off base. But to be fair I don’t know yet whether that is because the character was intentionally misleading the agents, whether it was a red herring planted by the authors, or if it really was just a mistake. I’ll know in a few more days!

I noticed that you can pick up the first four chapters of this book for free, if you want to check it out.

Pickett’s fingers tightened on the sheet as Pendergast reached for it. “There’s just one thing. You’ll be working with a partner.”

Preston & Child, Verses for the Dead

After an overhaul of leadership at the FBI’s New York field office, A. X. L. Pendergast is abruptly forced to accept an unthinkable condition of continued employment: the famously rogue agent must now work with a partner.

Pendergast and his new colleague, junior agent Coldmoon, are assigned to investigate a rash of killings in Miami Beach, where a bloodthirsty psychopath is cutting out the hearts of his victims and leaving them with cryptic handwritten letters at local gravestones. The graves are unconnected save in one bizarre way: all belong to women who committed suicide.

But the seeming lack of connection between the old suicides and the new murders is soon the least of Pendergast’s worries. Because as he digs deeper, he realizes the brutal new crimes may be just the tip of the iceberg: a conspiracy of death that reaches back decades.

Giving thanks for books!

There is so much to give thanks for, even in tough times. We had a week of challenges last week, but have been blessed in so many things. Showing gratitude for the good things and blessings in our life is important, so it is nice to have a day set apart to do so. (Even if you are not in the USA, you are probably aware of US Thanksgiving this week.)

And one thing to be thankful for—books! You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t a reader, so I assume you are looking for some fresh news reads to accompany your turkey and gratitude.

In my most recent release, Dosed to Death, Kenzie Kirsch and Zachary Goldman head off to a mountain resort for a Thanksgiving vacation. Turkey, trees, and… well… a snowstorm that isolates them from the rest of the world. And seeing as it is a mystery/medical thriller, you can guess that they don’t just bunk down and nap until the snow stops.

@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-c06d719 .ugb-img{width:640px;height:auto !important}}Dosed to Death

Out of the frying pan and into the fire!

Kenzie Kirsch needs a vacation from the dead bodies in the Medical Examiner’s Office, so she arranges for a Thanksgiving resort vacation.

Who knew she would be dealing with more deaths there than if she had stayed at home? At first, she and partner Zachary Goldman assume that it is just a weird coincidence, but as the snow starts to pile up outside their doors, so do the bodies.

Trapped with a killer, it’s up to Kenzie to gather what clues she can from the remains of her fellow holidayers.
But the killer isn’t going to just sit around and wait for her to figure it out.

another well-crafted mystery full of suspense, plot twists, and nail-biting tension as Kenzie and Zachary work diligently to unravel the clues to the bizarre happenings at the lodge where they were hoping to enjoy a peaceful and relaxing vacation.

If you are a reader of the Zachary Goldman Mysteries series, you have already met Kenzie Kirsch. This series is a spinoff from Zachary Goldman Mysteries, giving Kenzie a front-and-center position in solving medical mysteries.

Looking for a strong female lead in an engaging medical mystery? This will be right up your alley.

AUTHOR DIRECT RETAILERS SAMPLE BOOKBUB BINGEBOOKS GOODREADS

Clicking the Author Direct button allows you to purchase an ebook directly from the author using your PayPal account (blue button) or a credit card (grey button)

Download format options are Kindle or ePub (iBooks, Nook, etc.) format

Free

And if you would like to begin a new series, take a look at a one of my free first in series books!

And more

And some other Thanksgiving promos for you!

Investigating A Most Curious Murder

Have you picked up Dosed to Death, my latest release, yet? Hop on over to find my new releases blog post for Dosed to Death, A Kenzie Kirsch Mystery #3, and other new releases to add to your TBR pile.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme. Read the rules and more teasers at The Purple Booker. Anyone can play along.

This is a new cozy mystery series and author for me. Book #1 in the Little Library Mystery series, A Most Curious Murder by Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli features protagonist Jenny returning to her hometown after a nasty divorce. She is confronted by first, the destruction of her mother’s little library, and then by something even worse…

A have just started reading, so I am not sure if the little person next door, talk of fairy houses and magic are just whimsical tie-ins to the fairy tales that are discussed, or whether this is a paranormal mystery series. I guess I’ll find out before too long! If there is any magic or real fairies, they should reveal themselves soon!

Jenny is a little tougher than your average cozy mystery amateur sleuth. She snaps, she shoves, she was a “hellion” in her teens. She doesn’t like the neighbours. She constantly refers to her sister as “the good Lisa” and prior to this hasn’t been home for five years. But she obviously still has a soft spot for those in distress, and winds up entangled in the small-town murder.

Jenny squeezed her eyes tight enough to hurt. She wiped rain from her face. Maybe, she thought, if I keep my eyes closed and click my heels, this smart-aleck kid will disappear.

Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli, A Most Curious Murder

Jenny Weston moves home to Bear Falls, Michigan to nurse her bruised ego back to health after a bitter divorce. But the idyllic vision of her charming hometown crumbles when her mother’s little library is destroyed.

The next door neighbor, Zoe Zola, a little person and Lewis Carroll enthusiast, suspects local curmudgeon Adam Cane, but when he’s suddenly found dead in Zoe’s fairy garden, all roads lead back to her. Jenny, however, believes Zoe innocent, so the two women team up to find the true culprit, investigating the richest family in Bear Falls, interrogating a few odd townspeople and delving into old, hidden transgressions — until another body turns up.

Dosed to Death and other new releases

Happy (almost) Thanksgiving! It is release day for Dosed to Death, A Kenzie Kirsch Medical Thriller #3. Dosed to Death can be read as a stand alone mystery or as part of the Kenzie Kirsch series. You will also be familiar with Kenzie, Zachary, and their other friends and family members if you have been reading the Zachary Goldman Mysteries.

Kenzie and Zachary have decided to take a Thanksgiving vacation at a mountain resort. Well, of course a storm blows in so no one can get in or out, and you know what’s going to happen, right? I mean, it is a medical thriller…

@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-c06d719 .ugb-img{width:640px;height:auto !important}}Dosed to Death

Out of the frying pan and into the fire!

Kenzie Kirsch needs a vacation from the dead bodies in the Medical Examiner’s Office, so she arranges for a Thanksgiving resort vacation.

Who knew she would be dealing with more deaths there than if she had stayed at home? At first, she and partner Zachary Goldman assume that it is just a weird coincidence, but as the snow starts to pile up outside their doors, so do the bodies.

Trapped with a killer, it’s up to Kenzie to gather what clues she can from the remains of her fellow holidayers.
But the killer isn’t going to just sit around and wait for her to figure it out.

another well-crafted mystery full of suspense, plot twists, and nail-biting tension as Kenzie and Zachary work diligently to unravel the clues to the bizarre happenings at the lodge where they were hoping to enjoy a peaceful and relaxing vacation.

If you are a reader of the Zachary Goldman Mysteries series, you have already met Kenzie Kirsch. This series is a spinoff from Zachary Goldman Mysteries, giving Kenzie a front-and-center position in solving medical mysteries.

Looking for a strong female lead in an engaging medical mystery? This will be right up your alley.

AUTHOR DIRECT RETAILERS SAMPLE BOOKBUB BINGEBOOKS GOODREADS

Clicking the Author Direct button allows you to purchase an ebook directly from the author using your PayPal account (blue button) or a credit card (grey button)

Download format options are Kindle or ePub (iBooks, Nook, etc.) format

And more

If you need some more books to fill up your ebook reader or stack on the bedside table for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday (and even of those who aren’t in the USA can still celebrate by reading books…) scroll down!

.ugb-91d0894 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-91d0894 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-91d0894 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-91d0894 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-91d0894 .ugb-img{width:329px;height:auto !important}}The Madness of Crowds

You’re a coward.

Time and again, as the New Year approaches, that charge is leveled against Armand Gamache.

It starts innocently enough.

While the residents of the Québec village of Three Pines take advantage of the deep snow to ski and toboggan, to drink hot chocolate in the bistro and share meals together, the Chief Inspector finds his holiday with his family interrupted by a simple request.

He’s asked to provide security for what promises to be a non-event. A visiting Professor of Statistics will be giving a lecture at the nearby university.

While he is perplexed as to why the head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec would be assigned this task, it sounds easy enough. That is until Gamache starts looking into Professor Abigail Robinson and discovers an agenda so repulsive he begs the university to cancel the lecture.

They refuse, citing academic freedom, and accuse Gamache of censorship and intellectual cowardice. Before long, Professor Robinson’s views start seeping into conversations. Spreading and infecting. So that truth and fact, reality and delusion are so confused it’s near impossible to tell them apart.

Discussions become debates, debates become arguments, which turn into fights. As sides are declared, a madness takes hold.

Abigail Robinson promises that, if they follow her, ça va bien aller. All will be well. But not, Gamache and his team know, for everyone.

When a murder is committed it falls to Armand Gamache, his second-in-command Jean-Guy Beauvoir, and their team to investigate the crime as well as this extraordinary popular delusion.

And the madness of crowds.

Amazon.ugb-84aab72 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-84aab72 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-84aab72 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-84aab72 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-84aab72 .ugb-img{width:217px;height:auto !important}}Shadowed Footsteps

To protect her daughter, she will do anything—lie, cheat, and steal. But at what cost?

Lana has found her child’s father. She thinks. But he’s homeless. Or is he? In trying to reveal the truth, she uncovers way more than she bargained for. He appears to be working with Lana’s mother to protect her jewelry. An old, expensive piece that as far as Lana can tell is connected to her mom’s past, something she knows nothing about. Determined to find answers, Lana soon discovers that she has put her family in the direct line of sight of a man who is out to get what he believes is his.

Jordie has been running and lying his whole life but now he is using his skills and position for one thing, to take down the notorious Joe Brown. His father. But he can’t do it alone. The last attempt almost got him killed.

Lana forces Jordie to work with her and to use his skills and connections to protect her family. But she’s truly not sure if he’s the problem… or the solution… He has a connection to the man they are trying to stop. So, is Jordie really working with her? Or for him?

Can they stop a man notorious for his brutality and his success before he takes the one thing that means the world to Lana?

Sheila grew up in a Foster Home run by Mrs. Stephanos. Now, thirty-five years later, the bauble she played with as a child, has arrived. And it is worth over a million dollars. She is the second of the foster sisters to receive her jewelry. But who is sending them out? And what is their end game?

Multiple stores.ugb-41ef295 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-41ef295 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-41ef295 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-41ef295 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-41ef295 .ugb-img{width:313px;height:auto !important}}Dark Greed

Jealousy is evil. Greed is deadly.

When a young man is found hanging inside a barn, it seems like an open-and-shut suicide. But the boy in question is none other than Bryce Mowery, son and only heir of the richest family in Savannah, and Bryce’s father is claiming foul play. Much to her chagrin, Detective Charli Cross is sent to investigate and appease the farm and real estate magnate.

But soon, it’s no longer a question of if Bryce was killed, but by who. The Mowerys have made plenty of enemies in town, but why would anyone want to kill the happy-go-lucky playboy? As Charli and her partner Matthew delve deeper into the cutthroat world of land development, the killer is waiting. Not only does he like to play games, but he’s covering his tracks . . . and he’s developed a taste for murder.

Read more.ugb-d300c03 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-d300c03 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-d300c03 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-d300c03 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-d300c03 .ugb-img{width:333px;height:auto !important}}Reasons Why

What would make a mother sell her children?

Sally made choices – choices you might not agree with, like sacrificing her kids to give herself a better life. But what if she truly believed that was the best thing for her daughter and sons?

The Sally on the book cover has two sides – one warmed by the sun’s rays, the other buffeted by storms.

Doesn’t that happen to all of us? Which side dominates our world view?

Do we have a choice?

Do life’s events shape us, or do they just show us who we really were all along?

This is Sally’s story. See what made Sally the woman she is today.

Kindle.ugb-484c16e .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-484c16e .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-484c16e .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-484c16e .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-484c16e .ugb-img{width:313px;height:auto !important}}Buried at the Lake

The presumption was murder.

Everyone assumed they knew the killer…

…but what if they were wrong about the crime?

It was the most beautiful house on the lake. When a girl’s remains are found on the property, Bill Miller seems to know something. For ten years, there had been whispers about what happened to the girl.

What was he hiding?

Her case wasn’t Luca’s priority.

Between his sick wife and The Park Shore Murder, his plate was full. The press was all over it and he needed to find out who murdered the innocent woman relaxing in her backyard. Worth millions, but without any known enemies, what was the motive?

Was it mistaken identity?

Or something sinister?

Those thoughts danced through his head as he tried to get a handle on what happened to the girl. He shouldn’t be focused on her, with the other murder unsolved, but he couldn’t help it.

Something was off.

It didn’t add up.

If he could just figure out what that something was, Luca’s gut said the rest would fall into place.

Buy now.ugb-52fd607 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-52fd607 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-52fd607 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-52fd607 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-52fd607 .ugb-img{width:333px;height:auto !important}}Keepsakes, Karma & Murder

The perfect first date. Good food, romantic setting, good vibes. Until a woman screams and a shot is fired.

As a trauma counselor, Stacie Maroni, doesn’t hesitate to barge through the fray. Nor does her date, Detective O’Hare. With the case falling outside his jurisdiction, O’Hare and Stacie should simply be witnesses.

Emphasis on should.

As contradictory information emerges, things get complicated and Stacie’s involved whether she likes it or not. Good thing O’Hare has her back. Mystery with a side of romance.

Buy now.ugb-88e2e09 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-88e2e09 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-88e2e09 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-88e2e09 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-88e2e09 .ugb-img{width:313px;height:auto !important}}Sewing Suspicion

Secrets and a patchwork of lies. Can Alex string together the truth before her life unravels?

Alex Bailey’s heart feels threadbare. Struggling with the dubious practices of her NYC law firm, she’s left her high-profile career and is eager to clear her conscience with a trip home to care for the woman who raised her. But when an ill fate befalls the quilting matriarch, the shocked lawyer suspects someone is covering up murder.

Unpicking the strands of her beloved grandmother’s life, Alex patches together clues that prove her loved one’s death was no accident. And when the practice’s stained history weaves into the culprit’s devious handiwork, she’ll need to stay alive long enough to expose a heartless killer.

Can Alex get to the bottom of a sinister pattern before she ends up buried in a flower garden?

Sewing Suspicion is the captivating first book in a series of Quilting Cozy Mysteries. If you like troubled heroines, pulse-pounding twists, and intriguing howdunits, then you’ll love Kathryn Mykel’s cleverly woven tale.

Buy now.ugb-d2fecd2 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-d2fecd2 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-d2fecd2 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-d2fecd2 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-d2fecd2 .ugb-img{width:313px;height:auto !important}}The Mystery of Mistletoe Hall

When Lord Edgington receives an invitation to spend the Christmas holiday with an old colleague from the police, he expects fine food, good conversation and the warmth of a roaring fire. But on arriving at Mistletoe Hall with his family, they discover the house deserted and no explanation for where their host or his servants could be.

As more guests appear, the master detective begins to question what could connect the disparate group of newcomers. A teacher, a comedian, a thief, a sportsman, a singer, a policeman and a racing driver will all have their roles to play when a killer crashes the party. Cut off from the outside world by the worsening weather, and with bodies piling up, Lord Edgington must rely on his wits, his years of experience, and the help of his bumbling grandson Christopher in order to solve “The Mystery of Mistletoe Hall”.

With hints of “And Then There Were None” and “The Sittaford Mystery”, the fourth “Lord Edgington Investigates…” novel is a spoiler-free, standalone whodunit with a wicked resolution all of its own. Filled with warmth, humour, a fiendishly twisting plot, an adorable canine sidekick and plenty of Yuletide spirit, “The Mystery of Mistletoe Hall” is an Agatha-Christie-style Christmas cracker that will baffle and charm you in equal measure.

Christmas Read.ugb-5205569 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-5205569 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-5205569 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-5205569 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-5205569 .ugb-img{width:217px;height:auto !important}}I, Vigilante

She fought her way back from certain death.
A predator is still hunting her…

Alex Ridley knows there are only three certainties in life… taxes, death, and that if you try to kill her, that death will be yours.

After escaping from a vile human trafficking ring, Ridley dedicates her life to liberating more innocent victims from a future of misery and administering her own special brand of justice. She’ll take the fight to them, tracking them to their lair and bringing them down from within, one by one by one.
But there’s a problem.

Ridley had left her nemesis for dead in her desperate fight for survival. Somehow, the Korean gangster lived, and is hell-bent on a revenge he will stop at nothing to get.

From the mountains of Tibet, to the filth and flamboyance of Mumbai, a nerve-shredding rampage for justice leads Ridley to the ‘City of Dreams’ and to an inevitable war.

Amazon[image error].ugb-c26f26a .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-c26f26a .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-c26f26a .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-c26f26a .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-c26f26a .ugb-img{width:362px;height:auto !important}}When Christmas Comes

Colorful Christmas lights dapple the family homes in the idyllic lakeside town of Sweet Haven when Jennifer Dean, a young librarian at the local elementary school, is brutally murdered. There are witnesses and her boyfriend Travis Blake confesses to the crime… but something doesn’t quite add up. Blake is a third generation Army Ranger, awarded the Silver Star for his heroism in Afghanistan—how could a beloved son of this tight-knit burgh commit such a grisly deed?

As a community of military families a few miles down the road from an Army base, no one in Sweet Haven wants to investigate a war hero like Blake, not even the top brass at the police department. In steps Cameron Winter, a rugged and lonesome English professor haunted by the ghosts of his own Christmas past, whose former lover asks him to prove Blake innocent. The Sweet Haven murder reverberates in his mind, echoing a horrific yuletide memory from his youth, and Winter knows there are darker powers at play here than a simple domestic dispute. If he can solve this small-town mystery, just maybe he can find peace from his inner demons as well.

Buy now.ugb-8739502 .ugb-button{background-color:#BE1E2D;border-radius:25px !important}.ugb-8739502 .ugb-button .ugb-button--inner,.ugb-8739502 .ugb-button svg:not(.ugb-custom-icon){color:#ffffff !important}.ugb-8739502 .ugb-button:before{border-radius:25px !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-8739502 .ugb-img{width:333px;height:auto !important}}Be Still My Heart

Skelm Island, Maine has always been known for two things: lobsters and its broken lighthouse.

But when corpses start showing up in the water, the isolated town becomes the face of a cryptic investigation.

At the heart of which stands Lincoln Porter, a grumpy ex-SEAL whose lobstering business seems to attract more dead bodies than fish.

When homicide expert Detective Sloane is called in to assist with the case, she begins digging up skeletons; ones that Lincoln would rather stay buried.

Forced to work together, Sloane’s suspicious attitude and optimistic demeanor grate on the lobsterman’s nerves, resulting in a rivalry that’s as addicting as it is volatile.

But as everything unravels and they have no one else to trust, Lincoln and Sloane must depend on each other to figure out what secrets should be brought to light…

…and which secrets should stay hidden.

Find more

On the Slab Pie

by P.D. Workman
Coming Soon!
Series: Auntie Clem's Bakery #18
Genres: Cozy Mystery

Clicking the Author Direct button allows you to purchase an ebook directly from the author using your PayPal account (blue button) or a credit card (grey button)
Download format options are Kindle or ePub (iBooks, Nook, etc.) format

Coming Soon!

+ About On the Slab Pie

From USA Today Bestselling Author, P.D. Workman!It all starts with a body.

Erin thought she’d seen and heard it all. In Bald Eagle Falls, everyone seemed not only to know everyone else’s business, but to discuss it at length. Yet she had always assumed that her neighbor Mrs. Peach, who had no man in her life, was widowed.

Mr. Peach’s unexpected reappearance, a prison breaking, and a body in the woods combine to form the toughest case yet for the gluten-free baker to solve!

The author has the ability to pull you into her story and keep you firmly rooted there until the end. Her characters are interest and have depth. She isn’t afraid to explore the areas of our society that many would rather sweep under the rug.

Like baking mysteries? Cats, dogs, and other pets? Award-winning and USA Today Bestselling Author P.D. Workman brings readers back to small town Bald Eagle Falls for another culinary cozy mystery to be solved by gluten-free baker Erin Price and her friends.

Have your gluten-free cake and eat it too. Sink your teeth into this sweet treat now!

+ Praise for Auntie Clem's Bakery Series

—This lady knows how to write!! I read this during hurricane Irma on my Kindle so I didn’t care the power was out!

—It was very good! But made me hungry!

—Oh my goodness I loved it! The murder mystery was so awesome… I couldn’t put this book down. Props to you again for another amazing read!

—I really enjoyed this book … Would make a great Hallmark movie.

—This very enjoyable story with uncomplicated characters and a sweet and easy storyline was well done.

+ Author's Note

Coming soon

+ Book Club Resources Gluten-Free Pinterest BoardMore coming soon

+ Praise for P.D. Workman

“Every single one of [P.D. Workman’s] books has spoken to me in ways no one or almost anything else has. And I have found strength in the books I’ve read.”

“The way that P.D. Workman writes just flows amazingly and allows the reader to get really invested in a book.”

“This is one author I certainly will be looking out for, I can’t recommend her enough.”

“I’ll read anything by P. D. Workman that I can get my hands on.”

“Every book by PD Workman that I’ve read has been a gripping one, however different the genres are, going from lighter mysteries to really dark ones… this is one of my favourite, most dependable authors.”

“P.D. Workman is an incredibly versatile writer. No matter which of her books I read I am drawn into a great story and honestly, I don’t think I’ve followed another author that could go from cozy mystery to YA to a PI series dealing with mental health issues. Really enjoy her books!”

“[P.D. Workman’s] stories are so believable and you can’t help but feel like you know these people. You find yourself crying, laughing and feeling the characters emotions. Now if an author can make you cry and feel every emotion in a story, she is one hell of an author.”

+ On the Slab Pie On the Slab Pie #pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf .pt-cv-title a, #pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf .panel-title { font-family: 'Arial', Arial, serif !important; font-size: 14px !important; line-height: 1.3 !important; color: #be1e2d !important; font-weight: 600 !important; }#pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf .pt-cv-title a:hover, #pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf .panel-title:hover { color: #000000 !important; }#pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf .pt-cv-specialp { background-color: #be1e2d !important }#pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf .pt-cv-specialp * { color: #ffffff !important; }#pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf .pt-cv-readmore { color: #ffffff !important; background-color: #be1e2d !important; }#pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf .pt-cv-readmore:hover { color: #ffffff !important; }#pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf + .pt-cv-pagination-wrapper .pt-cv-more , #pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf + .pt-cv-pagination-wrapper .pagination .active a { color: #ffffff !important; background-color: #00aeef !important; }#pt-cv-view-7e4f13eayf { text-align: center; }

About P.D. Workman

P.D. (Pamela) Workman writes riveting mystery/suspense and young adult books dealing with mental illness, addiction, abuse, and other real-life issues. For as long as she can remember, the blank page has held an incredible allure and from a very young age she was trying to write her own books.

Workman wrote her first complete novel at the age of twelve and continued to write as a hobby for many years. She started publishing in 2013. She has won several literary awards from Library Services for Youth in Custody for her young adult fiction. She made the USA Today Bestseller list in 2019. She currently has over 50 published titles and can be found at pdworkman.com.

Born and raised in Alberta, Workman has been married for over 25 years and has one son.

Gamache Explores The Madness of Crowds

Are you doing Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month) or have you ever wondered why anyone else does it? If so, check out last week’s post about Nanowrimo—Why or Why not?

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme. Read the rules and more teasers at The Purple Booker. Anyone can play along.

This week I picked up Louise Penny’s newest Chief Inspector Gamache book, The Madness of Crowds. I posted about the previous book in this series, which is All the Devils Are Here. I have enjoyed all of the Inspector Gamache books that I have read, and this one is no difference.

Lots of description of Gamache’s native Quebec and small-town life in Three Pines, his family and friends and Ruth and her duck. And of course, plenty of suspense and sufficiently twisty mysteries to keep me guessing until the end, when Penny brings it all together.

This particular volume is set in a post-pandemic timeline, so while there is mention of the impact of the pandemic on the economy and society in Quebec, it is not a focus of the book. I have not yet reached the murder, but things are definitely tense and heating up!

Even before Isabelle said it, he’d felt it himself. In his gut. In the tingle on his skin. In the pricking of his thumbs…

Louise Penny, The Madness of Crowds

You’re a coward.

Time and again, as the New Year approaches, that charge is leveled against Armand Gamache.

It starts innocently enough.

While the residents of the Québec village of Three Pines take advantage of the deep snow to ski and toboggan, to drink hot chocolate in the bistro and share meals together, the Chief Inspector finds his holiday with his family interrupted by a simple request.

He’s asked to provide security for what promises to be a non-event. A visiting Professor of Statistics will be giving a lecture at the nearby university.

While he is perplexed as to why the head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec would be assigned this task, it sounds easy enough. That is until Gamache starts looking into Professor Abigail Robinson and discovers an agenda so repulsive he begs the university to cancel the lecture.

They refuse, citing academic freedom, and accuse Gamache of censorship and intellectual cowardice. Before long, Professor Robinson’s views start seeping into conversations. Spreading and infecting. So that truth and fact, reality and delusion are so confused it’s near impossible to tell them apart.

Discussions become debates, debates become arguments, which turn into fights. As sides are declared, a madness takes hold.

Abigail Robinson promises that, if they follow her, ça va bien aller. All will be well. But not, Gamache and his team know, for everyone.

When a murder is committed it falls to Armand Gamache, his second-in-command Jean-Guy Beauvoir, and their team to investigate the crime as well as this extraordinary popular delusion.

And the madness of crowds.

Nanowrimo—why or why not?

I’ve written on Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month) before. If you’ve hung out here for a few years you know that I participate every year. But why?

I knew I wanted to do a blog post on nano today, and I was trying to figure out what to write. What it is that you want to know. What you would ask me if you had the chance (and you can ask me in the comment section below. I’ll answer you!)

What I originally homed in on is why or why not to participate in Nanowrimo. Some writers have very strong opinions on the matter. Some people love nano. Some people hate it. Some people keep trying it and giving up, some try and succeed, and some wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pole.

My reasons for participating in Nanowrimo and in some of the other events that Nanowrimo has hosted over the years (Script Frenzy, Nanowrimo for young people, and Camp Nano) have changed over time.

My stats? I have been doing Nanowrimo and other hosted events for ten years. I have written 2.4 million words during these events. Where I originally found it difficult to get out the requisite 1,667 words per day (the number of words required to write 50,000 during the month of November,) that is now a laughably small number of words to me. I have written up to 13,000 words during a write-in day. I have written 6,000-8,000 words per day in a month where I knew I had a 125,000 word book to write in a month where I would lose almost a week to travel out of the country to a conference. (That book ended up being 150,000 words, and yes, I finished it in one month, even with the conference and some family issues.)

When I participated in Nanowrimo the first time, I was working full-time as a legal assistant and homeschooling. Writing was a sideline, a hobby. I was writing novels, but I had wanted to participate in Nanowrimo for a few years, and decided to make the plunge. What Nanowrimo gave me at that point was the opportunity to make writing a priority for the month. I would clear the decks of whatever else I could, make no social commitments in November, and put Christmas preparations off until December. I let my family know that I was doing it and that I had a word quota I needed to get done every day in order to pull it off. Emails and the Nanowrimo forums gave me encouragement and tips all along the way. On the old Nanowrimo website, it was easy to watch your buddies and see how they were scoring and what projects they were working on.

It was fun. I liked the energy and encouragement. I liked the “official” reason to put my writing first (well, at least a higher priority than it had been) for a month. In the end, I had a book (or the 50,000 word start to a book) to show for my work. I had not been writing a lot of words before that an it gave me a boost to see what I could accomplish in a month if I made the time with it.

For the next few years, I participated in Nanowrimo, Script Frenzy, and Camp Nano each year, dedicating three months to finding the time to get my writing projects completed. I got my son to participate in Script Frenzy as well, writing out the panels for a superhero comic book for homeschooling. We got Nanowrimo t-shirts and stickers.

As I began working toward establishing a writing/publishing business to see whether it was something I could eventually support myself and my family with, I knew that I could write three books a year during those three nano months, and figured I could edit three more books from my back catalogue a year, allowing me to publish six books per year. I think in the first year I published seven. Then eight the following year. I found that it was easier to write a fresh new book for publication than it was to rework and rewrite book that I had previously just written for self-entertainment. The next year I published twelve books, and since then, have written and published twelve books per year on a regular schedule. (Though last year, I started a novella series as well, so I wrote three novellas instead of one book in September 2020 and then again in July this year, so that my annual output was 14 books instead of 12.)

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Where did Nanowrimo go in all of this? I kept participating. Instead of aiming for the official target of 50,000 words after the first year or two of nano, I aimed at completing the first draft, which was generally closer to 100,000 words. I had found it too easy to lose the momentum of nano in December and to let the unfinished book languish. Was there any reason to keep participating in nano if I was producing a book a month anyway, even without it?

I found that I still enjoyed the camaraderie and the excitement of Nanowrimo. It was fun to see new people trying it for the first time. To watch my graph climb over the course of a month. To have so many other people writing a novel at the same time as I was.

With the changes to the website, most of my nano chat is now in Facebook groups and Discord. And over the years, I have come across a number of people who hate Nanowrimo. They may feel pressured instead of encouraged. They may not be able to work to a goal of a number of words or certain length of time to write each day. They might have had bad experiences with other authors writing for nano, or have experienced anxiety or depression as a result of the push to produce during the busy holiday-prep season. And if you are one of those people, I don’t have any desire to push you into doing something that is going to make you angry or anxious or to cause friction with your family, schoolwork, or business. If you participate in nano, I would hope that it is because you get something out of it. Camaraderie, support, a reason to prioritize writing, the thrill of setting a goal and achieving it, discount coupons for writing software, stickers, shirts, or whatever makes you happy.

If you don’t like the goal of 50,000 words, you can be a “nano rebel” and set your own goal or non-goal. You can edit words already written. Write a poem, short story or blog post each day. Set aside a half hour or an hour to write or join a scheduled write-in each day. The goal should be to get something out of it, not to drive yourself to despair.

So for those who are nano-ing this month: Best of luck! Enjoy yourself!

And for those of you who are not nano-ing this month: Best of luck! Enjoy yourself!

According to the website, these are the books I have written during Nanowrimo or Camp Nano:

Loose the Dogs (originally titled The Dogs of War)Lion WithinLooking Over Your Shoulder (originally titled Paranoia)Stand AloneBy-pass (being republished as Bobby, Breaking the Pattern)Those Who BelieveCynthia Has a SecretPursued by the PastQuesting for a DreamIn the Tick of TimeChloeMaking Her MarkEndless ChangeShe Wore Mourning (free download)Allergen-Free AssignationTortured TeardropsShe Was Dying AnywayHe was Walking AloneA Catastrophic TheftJune Into the LightNight of Nine TailsMuffins Masks MurderFairy Blade UnmadeHe Never ForgotChanging Fortune CookiesMagic Ain’t a GameCareful of Thy WishesImmersed in the ViewSkimming Over the LakeHazard of the Hills (originally titled Narrowing of the Trail)And this month, working on Fail, book #6 of the Medical Kidnap Files

Witch Ways

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Genres: Cozy Mystery

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A great, witchy read!

+ About Witch Ways

20 Full-Length Novels (and 1 Novella) Featuring Witches, Wizards, Vampires, Shifters, and More!

It’s time to get your witch on….

More than one million words of witchy goodness! Get ready to be transported with this magical boxed set of stories from NY Times, USA Today, and national bestselling authors! In this collection, you’ll find witches, wizards, and warlocks, along with vampires, shifters, and other creatures of the night.

The Witch Ways boxed set includes these first-in-series paranormal romance and urban fantasy stories:

STORM BORN – Christine Pope STICKS AND STONES – Meredith MedinaDEUS EX MAGICAL – Kat ParrishTHE COVEN PRINCESS – Lily LuchesiSHADES OF MAGICK – Julia CraneCALLED – J.A. Belfield BEWITCHING BEDLAM – Yasmine GalenornGRAVE MISTAKE – Christine PopeINDUCTION – T.K. EldridgeDEATH’S HAND – SM ReineA QUESTION OF FAITH – Nicole ZoltackBEWARE THE VIOLET – Maria VermisoglouBURIED MAGIC – TJ GreenLUNA – Stella FitzsimonsGHOST OF A CHANCE – Cherie ClaireHOW TO SNAG A SHIFTER –  Karin de HavinTHE PERFECT BREW – Jo-Ann CarsonPROPHECY OF THREE – Ashley McLeoVANILLA BEAN VAMPIRE – Selina J. EckertA WITCHY MISTAKE – Rhonda HopkinsWHAT THE CAT KNEW – P.D. Workman