Blair Bancroft's Blog, page 40

Series - Summary

The series that never was.

Someone is killing people at the Bellman Museum, staging the deaths as bizarre works of art scattered over the museum's sixty-six tropical acres, the creation of famed circus entrepreneur and art connoisseur, Richard Bellman. FBI Special Agent Aurora "Rory" Travis is visiting her grandmother in Florida while recuperating from a three-story fall that killed her partner and lover. Although broken in spirit as well as body, Rory volunteers as a tram driver on the tranquil museum grounds, ignoring the outside world, until a friend becomes a murder suspect and she feels obligated to do a bit of private sleuthing.

As the first ripples of a possible suicide, compounded by a series of odd pranks, stir the serenity of the Bellman complex, Josh Thomas, a man of mystery, hops onto Rory's tram to a clap of thunder. Josh is dangerous, Josh is ruthless. Josh has not come in her life by accident, of that Rory is certain. Villain or hero? As the murders continue, she can only wonder.
I had every intention of The Art of Evil being Book 1 of a series of mysteries, but my Regencies continued to be the place where the money was. And, let's face it, money talks. Which doesn't keep this mystery, set at a thinly disguised Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida, from being a really good story, with some fascinating secondary characters, including an elderly lady with onset dementia, a golf-ball scrounger, and members of the circus community. And- surprise - although the murders are solved, it has a classic cliff-hanger ending.

Maybe someday I'll find time to continue the story of Rory and Josh. After all, it took twenty years for Jack Harding to get the girl in my Regency Warrior series.

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Writing a Series - Summary
As often happens, something I was reading this week reinforced an important point about writing a series. I started a new book on my Kindle, and found myself going, "Huh? What is this author talking about? Did someone leave a couple of chapters on the cutting room floor?

Finally, it dawned on me that this book was part of a series, and the author was beginning her next book as if the reader had just finished the first one and had every detail fixed in his or her mind. Major oops! Every book in a series must immediately tell readers enough about any continuing plot or characters so the reader can readily understand what is going on. Every single book in a series must be able to stand on its own, from identification of characters to brief summaries of relevant action that has gone before. 

Frankly, I am only continuing to read this book in order to find other errors that may make good lessons for future blogs. (And for the workshop I will be delivering at the BeauMonde's mini-conference on Wednesday of the RWA conference in Orlando next July. My topic: Creating the Regency "feel" or How to make your book rea like a Regency instead of a Contemporary with long skirts, tailcoats, and a title thrown in here and there.)

Grace note (added later):  Couldn't do it - finish that is. I sent the book above to Archives about a third of the way through. Not so much for missing plot as for too much introspection, repetition, a shortage of dialogue and action, and an outrageous situation inadequately justified. Sigh.  I promptly switched to Gail Carriger's latest, which brought a smile back to my face.

Okay, humor aside, here's a summary of what you need to remember when tackling the challenge of writing a series.

1.  Series are money-makers. Readers positively salivate over what will happen next to the continuing characters in a series, or what will happen to new characters set down in a world already familiar to readers. Series with continuing characters tend to emphasize plot, often tales of mystery or suspense, while a new set of heros and heroines dropped into a world familiar to readers - their lives touched on by characters from previous books in the series - tend to emphasize romance.

2.  Some books in a series read like stand-alone books; some have cliff-hanger endings; and some are a mix of continuing plot and romance. (As I edit The Bastard Prince, Book 3 of my Blue Moon Rising series, I realize I have three romances in one book trying to fit themselves into a long-running action plot. Definitely a juggling act.) 

3.  Above all else, no matter which kind of series you're writing, be sure you identify your main characters, as if the second, third, or tenth book were the first of the series. Get in a mention of important action in previous books that affects the plot of the new one. To phrase this differently, NEVER refer to something that did not happen in the present book without explaining what you're talking about. Readers absolutely hate to be left out of the equation, and that's what you're doing when you charge ahead without regard to whether or not they read the first book. (And even if they did, it's highly unlikely they remember the details of what they read six months or a year ago.)

4.  If you are writing a series with the continuing main characters, you need to add new faces, new settings, new ideas to keep your series from going stale. Some authors go as far as killing off a continuing secondary character. A practice that makes me wince. (See #5 below.)

5.  Conversely, once your main characters in a continuing series are established, do not mess with their characters or with their primary setting. Readers wallow in the comfort and expectations of the "known." That doesn't mean your main characters can't have a revelation or two, but basically don't mess too much with characters your readers have come to know and love. It is, however, expected that a continuing couple will have ups and downs in their relationship. (James Lee Burke seems to enjoy providing a new wife for his main character from time to time!)

6.  It's always important to create in-depth characters, but in a series where one person - or one couple - carry a series over multiple books, their characters have to be particularly well drawn. The secondary characters who appear in each book as well. These are the men and women who must appeal to your readers, as they deal with every kind of trauma and tragedy, and still, miraculously, survive to live and love another day. 

7. If you are writing a series where the plot is primary (rather than romance), be careful you don't make your ending too much of a cliff-hanger. There are many readers - like me - who really like a more "finished" ending to each segment of the long-term plot. Exception: if you know you are writing for a market that actually likes books that don't wind anything up until the very last book. (Definitely not my cup of tea.)

8.  If you are writing a series where the romance is primary, you're likely writing "single title" type stories with a new romantic couple in each book, although there is always some device, such as extended friendships and a fixed setting, that ties all the books together.

9.  Many series with continuing characters are Mysteries or Thrillers, often written in First Person. Some provide the point of view of other characters by combining Third Person POV with the hero's or heroine's First Person narration.

10.  Series that emphasize Romance, however, are usually told in Third Person, so readers can see the story from the point of view of both hero and heroine. And perhaps a villain. In his A Song of Fire and Ice series (Game of Thrones), George R R Martin provides an almost infinite number of POVs, each giving readers a look at the overall epic tale from a different point of view. A tour de force of amazing brilliance. 

11. Whatever type of series you write, keep faith with your readers. Provide them with the information they need to enjoy your book. Never assume they know, or remember, anything from previous books. (Except, hopefully, their interest in your characters and their appreciation of the fertility of your imagination!)

Grace note:  I have always enjoyed the creativity of new people, new settings, new plots, which means I've written very few series. If I had it to do over again . . . I'd probably think differently. So if you haven't tried a series yet, give it serious consideration. And for those who are in the midst of a series, remember the need not to leave your readers behind, floundering in a morass of forgotten plot. Identify your characters. Reprise what readers need to know. (And there, I've said the same thing three or four different ways now. Pay attention. Shine the light of revelation on succeeding books. Don't leave gaping holes your readers will deal with by slinging your book against the wall or hitting "Archive" on their Kindles.

That said, Good Luck with your series, whatever type it should be!

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Thanks for stopping by,
Grace
 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.

For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.     

"Mixed Approach" series

Book 2 of the Blue Moon Rising series


"MIXED APPROACH" SERIES

Once again, I've had to make up a title in order to differentiate one type of series from another. So far, we've talked about "cliff-hangers" and about series books that read more like "single titles." This week's Mosaic Moments is going to concentrate on series that use a bit of both. In these series there is an overall goal which must be reached, but each individual book is a completed portion of the greater story. Readers are not left hanging, with the feel of "If you want to know what happened, you'll have to wait for the next book." As a detailed example, I'm going to use my own SyFy Adventure/Romance series, Blue Moon Rising, to try to illustrate what I mean. 

In this series a princess from a pacifist planet accidentally inspires a rebellion against a greedy empire, and finds herself not only drawn into the resistance but involving three other young royals as well. The first book features imprisonment, travel to distant planets, and space battles, but it also emphasizes romance, as it was originally intended as a stand-alone book. Basically, Rebel Princess has its own Happily Ever After ending, even though by the time I got there, I realized it was going to take at least three more books before the rebels could take down the nasty empire.

Book 2, Sorcerer's Bride is the story of a different princess and her not-so-eager husband, but it dwells more strongly on the triumph of the rebellion on a single planet, and the significance of this triumph to the final victory over the Empire. In other words, there is romance, but the long-term theme of rebellion is becoming stronger.

In Book 3, The Bastard Prince (written but not yet out), the theme of rebellion becomes stronger and romance becomes less defined by being spread among three couples: 1) the ups and downs of the hero and heroine from Book 1 as they struggle to expand the rebellion. 2) A second romance that does not have the traditional HEA ending, and 3) the romance of the young prince who doesn't talk. A prince who manages to redefine the traditional concept of HEA. We also see a vast panoply of characters ranging over an entire sector of the galaxy. 

Grace note: As the overall goal of the Blue Moon Rising series becomes more important, Happily Ever After fades a bit; i.e., the rebellion overshadows romance. I even allowed myself a bit of a "cliff hanger" at the end of Book 3, pointing toward the final resolution of who rules in the Empire, not to be settled until Book 4, Royal Rebellion. (At least I hope I can resolve all the bits and pieces in one last book. That's the problem with a cast of what seems like thousands, many of them pulling in directions of their own.)

So what is the point of Blue Moon Rising? How is it designed to entertain? In a nutshell, the first three books spell out the romantic fates of two princesses and a prince. And how their lives are forever altered by becoming part of a rebellion against a powerful foe. Book 4? Well, there's another royal out there, as well as more aspirants to the Emperor's throne than anyone anticipated. Hopefully, I'll manage to wrap it all up into a HEA for most of those left standing. And in the course of doing so, while striving for a "single title" feel, I managed to use all three types of series, finally letting the overall theme of rebellion overshadow the romances, and even sneaking in a moment of "cliff-hanging." 

Grace note 2: What is described above is not a formula for writing a series. It's merely used as analysis of a series that does not stick to one style. Each author must decide which style works best for his/her work.


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I saved Jayne Ann Krentz/Jayne Castle/Amanda Quick for this post because she has written all three kinds of series. In her Futuristics, writing as Jayne Castle, she created Harmony, an earth-like world which is totally cut off from Old Earth and has had to learn to survive on its own. Most of the books set in Harmony are individual romances with strong suspense elements, all with HEA endings. The initial four books grew into book after book about Ghosthunters (no, not the kind you're thinking of) and the women who find them fascinating. Women who grow stronger and stronger in their own right with each book. 

And then, oops, some of the characters on Harmony turn out to be descended from the psychically charged characters in Amanda Quick's historical novels. And magical elements make their way into books by Jayne Ann Krentz. In fact, I'm not even going to attempt to unravel the cross-over between these series, except to say that some of Ms Krentz's series are "single title"; some have a strong continuing theme with not all problems resolved; and some have characters who echo down the centuries from old earth to the far-away planet of Harmony. I call that creativity to the max.

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Rhys Bowen in her Royal Spyness mysteries has a strong continuing theme, with emphasis of romantic frustration to the max for the hero and heroine. Yes, a mystery is solved in each book, but the romance is so rocky, as well as the heroine's problems with her family and poverty (in spite of being something like 33rd in line for the British throne) that the reader is always left with wondering what is going to happen next. I had to laugh when Ms Bowen managed a Christmas retreat for her poor beleaguered hero and heroine, undoubtedly so she could keep her faithful readers from gnashing their teeth over continued celibacy. Again, individual mysteries but with a strong overall theme that never lets up.
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Kim Harrison, in her series, The Hollows, writes incredible stories of magic and sorcery, piling on problems for her heroine in book after book after book. The overall idea is definitely "cliff hanger," yet Ms Harrison manages to provide a satisfactory ending without leaving the reader gnashing his/her teeth too loudly about an unfinished story. But yes, there's a overall theme, building stronger and stronger with each book, until readers wonder how the heroine's problems can ever be resolved. Yet Ms Harrison does it so well, I didn't mind waiting all those years, wondering if the poor girl was ever going to get her happy ending.

 I'd like to end with one of my all-time favorite authors, Gail Carriger. If you have not read her Parasol Protectorate series, you've missed some priceless creativity. Comedy and high drama, well laced with magic, werewolves, and vampires. (And, believe me, I don't even like vampires - until I met the ones created by Ms Carriger.) She is now creating a series for the offspring of the characters in the Parasol Protectorate, as well as a YA series. All have acceptable "finished" endings to each book, while maintaining a strong continuing set of problems that will not come to a successful conclusion until the of the final book.
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Next week: a summary of what I hope we've learned about writing a series

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Thanks for stopping by,

Grace

 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.

For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.    

"Single Title" series

My daughter-in-law, Becka, a devoted classic movie buff, got the thrill of a lifetime this month when John Cleese appeared in person in Hartford at a showing of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. For a photo of Becka and John, click here.






Rebel Princess, Book 1 of the Blue Moon Rising series is on sale at Amazon for 99¢ this month. A SyFy Adventure/Romance, the series features four royal children who get drawn into a rebellion against the classic Evil Empire. 



"Single Title" Series

Let's begin with two of the best-known historical romance authors, Jo Beverley and Mary Balogh. They have each made a highly successful career out of writing series. Mary Balogh has written several shorter series, while Jo Beverly's Company of Rogues series goes on and on, spreading from relatives and close friends to acquaintances of acquaintances, all connected, however loosely, with boys who formed a tight-knit group while still in school. War, spying, personal trials, each with a romance settled by the end of that couple's particular book. Because both Ms Balogh and Ms Beverly surround their romances with action plots and well-drawn characters, and give each book its own Happily Ever After, they provide highly satisfying reads for their devoted fans. Naturally, members of the original group of boys pop up, almost randomly, in later books. Readers do love to know that the marriages in earlier books survived, children were produced, etc., etc., even while cheering on the newest entries in the Regency and Georgian romance sweepstakes.
Grace note:  There may be a continuing theme through series of this type; for example, in Mary Balogh's Survivors' Club series, at least one couple in each romance was physically or emotionally damaged by the long war with Napoleon. But the action is always secondary to the romance, which inevitably concludes with the traditional HEA ending. I.e., characters from other books may pop up in succeeding books, but each individual book is strongly centered around just one couple.
Tasha Alexander's Lady Emily mystery series adds a new wrinkle to this concept. Each book is a separate mystery; but very early on in the series, she allows the heroine to marry. Which adds the warmth of romance to each mystery while leaving the suspense to the mystery itself. She is also very careful to keep Lady Emily to the forefront, even though her charming husband works at one of those hush-hush jobs for the government. Yes, her husband is allowed to help her on occasion, but these are Lady Emily's books, her mysteries to solve. Something female readers can appreciate. 

The Lady Emily series provides a varied background for its main characters - London, France, Italy, Greece, etc. - as opposed to many series which cling to one city or a certain part of one country. 

Jumping to the modern, an excellent example of a "single title" series are the Stephanie Plum novels of Janet Evanovich (now at #23). In the Evanovich books, the characters are supreme, the more incredible the better. And it helps that she's provided two such intriguing heroes that her readers are split into two camps: Is Stephanie going to end up with Joe or Ranger? (Just one more thing to keep us panting in anticipation from one book to the next.) Although Ms Evanovich has a string of continuing characters, from long-suffering parents and outrageous gramma to her astounding cohorts in the office, each book brings a new story, new murders, a new set of close calls, and even more zany characters to add to the mix. Each story is complete in one book. No one is tacking on hints about unfinished business or what may happen next. The mystery is solved, the killer(s) found, Stephanie triumphs once again - if only by accident - and we can hardly wait for what Ms Evanovich will think of next.

I'm also a great fan of Jack Higgins, James Lee Burke, and Randy Wayne White. Time and time again, they create great adventures with the same main characters and still manage to keep their stories fresh. All three have a gift for developing the villains of their tales, making them human and not just cardboard bad guys. Higgins writes Thrillers; Burke and White write mysteries. Both Burke and White are good at integrating third-person point of view into what are essentially first-person books. But again, each book is a stand-alone story. Yes, they read better if you've read the earlier books and have become familiar with the characters, but none of the authors above forget to feed in the information you need to know in order to be able to understand and enjoy whichever book you're reading. I recall one Higgins book that opened in Washington, D.C., and noting, and admiring, that every bit of vital information about the continuing characters was laid out in the first few paragraphs. Way to go, Jack!

Grace note:  It should be noted that James Lee Burke committed a cardinal sin that the authors of series are warned to avoid. After writing book after successful, highly colorful book set in the bayou country south of New Orleans, he suddenly decided to move his characters to the mountains of Colorado. Oops. I hated it. I suspect other readers did as well. We don't want authors to mess with people we have come to know and love. We don't want them to change. Oh, the hero or heroine may be allowed a different love interest, but move them a thousand miles or so to entirely different environment? That's not a fresh approach, that's desecration! I am happy to report that Dave Robicheaux has returned to New Orleans.

Lindsay Buroker (mentioned in last week's blog), who writes what might be called "Steampunk SyFy" has something in common with Jack Higgins. They both created villains so intriguing and well-defined that they simply wouldn't go way. Higgins first did it with a Nazi, whom he had to resurrect from the dead to satisfy his fans. But a Nazi-era character wouldn't translate well into modern times and keep Higgins's series going, so—to my astonishment—he seized on a rather nasty Irish villain, who wanted to blow up Downing Street, a villain who cold-bloodedly killed a girl—and turned him into the hero of one of the longest series around: Sean Dillon, whom we've all grown to know and love (!), in spite of the murkiness of his earlier days. Lindsay Buroker does the same for an assassin who has an epic battle with the hero in one of her books. Somehow this "villain" becomes the hero of her long-running series, The Emperor's Edge.

The Emperor's Edge was included in "Cliff-hanger" series because it has a strong central theme, which carries over from book to book, even though each individual adventure comes to a satisfactory close. When writing SyFy Romance, however, as Ruby Lionsdrake, Buroker writes in flat-out "single title" style. One couple, one romance, with a strong hint toward HEA at the end of each one. The same author who wrote nine books of The Emperor's Edge series with the hero and heroine doing nothing more than eyeing each other, embellishes her Mandrake Company books with enough hot sex to satisfy any enthusiast of sexy details. Yes, characters from the other books appear, but these books are a series because they share a single setting. There is no long-term goal, just adventure and sex on planets and space stations far, far away.

Other authors who do a great job of writing "single title" stories while sticking to just one locale are: Julie Hyzy (whose heroine is the chief cook in the White House), Catherine Lloyd (who writes mysteries set in and around an English Regency-era village), and Linda Castillo (who writes modern mysteries set in an Amish community). Castillo is another example of an author who allows her heroine to settle down with one man (several books into the series) and still manages to write marvelous stories, each standing on its own merit.

Summary: There is a surprising amount of flexibility in series which keep the same characters (and often the same locale). The creation of new situations, new adventures keeps things fresh, as does the addition of new characters. Well-drawn villains - not just evil stick figures - also add to a story. Keep the continuing characters humming along, doing what they do best; don't make any drastic changes in personnel or setting unless you want to incite your readers' ire. But if you find you've created a character who seizes the bit and runs with it, then maybe you'd better keep that character around, make him/her a permanent member of the cast. And above all, if your series has an overall theme - a goal that remains unsolved, whether it be the overthrow of an empire or the finalization of a romance, be sure each of your books has a satisfactory ending of the plot-of-the-moment. 

As I looked over my list of series I have read and loved, I was surprised how many were of the "single title" variety. (Clearly, I am not a fan of series that focus so heavily on one main theme that no book seems finished until the final one.) Next week, I'll look at more favorites of mine - series that have a defined overall theme but still manage to produce satisfactory endings to each individual book. 
 
~ * ~   Thanks for stopping by,
Grace
 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.

For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.  
 

"Cliff-hanger" series

Python Update:



In the latest move to cut down on the explosion of Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades, the Florida Wildlife Commission has hired a pair of python hunters from the southern India Irula tribe. In three weeks the two men have captured fourteen pythons. There will also be a repeat of Great Florida Python Hunt, which is open to the public.



For a video of a python eating an alligator - a big one! - click here.

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"Cliff-hanger" Series
 I thought I'd tackle series in which individual books feel "unfinished" first, as Regency Reader commented about not liking this type of series. My feelings? It depends on how the "unfinished" feel is handled. In many of Nora Roberts's 3-book series, particularly the ones with paranormal elements, I feel a sense of frustration, because no matter how well written the book (and Nora is always good), the books are so focused on the solving the final goal (leaving the first two books in cliff-hanger mode) that I end up grinding my teeth. They are definitely not among my favorite reads.

Lindsay Buroker's Emperor's Edge series, even her Fallen Empire series, are birds of a different feather. Even though they have a long-term problem to solve, each book has a satisfying completion to the adventures of the moment. It's necessary, of course, in a long-running series with the same characters to provide an impediment to any romance between the two main characters. In the Emperor's Edge series Ms Buroker manages to go all the way to the final pages of the 9th book before she allows the hero and heroine to do more than talk about the possibility of a future together. Nine books? Let's just say that Buroker is a master of writing action, and lots of it, keeping her characters too busy for much else. In her Fallen Empire series, the problem is mechanical - her cyborg hero needs surgery before he can . . . well, use your imagination.

In her Temeraire series Naomi Novik carries her hero and his talking dragon through a series of startling adventures that span the world during an alternative history version of the Napoleonic wars. But every adventure is so complex, so intricately delineated, that I doubt readers mind that the hero remains an outcast at home, and sex happens more among the dragons than with the hero. Is there a long-term solution to his problems? Well, there's another 9-book series you should read. To emphasize my point: each book can be read as a "single title," and the author does not leave you hanging by undue emphasis on the problems that remain to be solved.

Speaking of dragons, Anne McCaffrey's Pern series is at 21 and counting. These books provide examples of both "finished" and "unfinished" endings. All the earlier books (written by McCaffrey herself) have satisfactory finished endings, even though the threat of "thread" permeates them all. More recent books, written by Ms McCaffrey's son and aimed at a younger age group, tend toward cliff-hanger endings. I find myself not so eager to read them. (And I am a long-time Pern fan.) This does, however, raise the question of whether or not a younger audience deals better with "unfinished" endings.

As long as we're talking about fantasy . . . what about the Harry Potter series? There's a lot of room for action in 700 pages times 8 books (!), and J. K. Rowling milks every page for all its worth. In general, I think it's safe to say that she gives each of Harry's adventures a satisfactory ending. She does not leave you in suspense except for the final resolution of the long battle against Valdemort. 

Meljean Brook in her 8-book Iron Seas series provides an excellent example of a series with a single driving theme that still manages to deliver a satisfactory ending for each adventure. (Well, perhaps not in the romance department. Naturally, she had to find an impediment to keep the hero and heroine apart until Book 8.) 

And then there's George R. Martin and Game of Thrones. Nothing is ever settled at the end of his books - the "game" and its cast of thousands goes on - yet somehow each book manages a satisfactory ending to that particular set of adventures. (And if you have only seen the series on television, I strongly recommend reading the books. Within the first chapter of Book 1, I found  answers to questions that had been plaguing me throughout all the years of the TV series!)

Summary: Most series with continuing main characters emphasize plot and action over romance for the obvious reason that a Happily Ever After ending precludes further books! Within this type of series, there are two styles of writing: 1) books that have endings without a resolution to the hero's or heroine's problems; and 2) books that provide a satisfactory resolution to the hero's and heroine's adventures in that particular book, leaving the overall problem hanging but not spoiling the resolution of the individual book.

My personal opinion is that I strongly prefer series in which each book comes to a satisfactory conclusion, not leaving me hanging and often annoyed. 

Next week: Authors whose series read more like single (stand alone) titles.

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Reminder: Tarleton's Wife is on Pre-order at 99¢. Pub date:  February 6, 2017  For link to the Pre-order page, click here.
 
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Thanks for stopping by,

Grace

 

For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.

For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.    
 

Why write a series?

GIANT ALLIGATOR!
So many awful things have happened in the Orlando area this past year, I'm delighted to be able to offer a "fun" video posted to YouTube this past week. The incident happened in the neighboring county of Lakeland. Please note that everyone is standing there, taking pictures, instead of running! The alligator is estimated at a whopping 12-14 feet. For a look at this giant crossing a trail, click here.


 


My Historical Romance, Tarleton's Wife, first published in 1999—and my all-tiime best-seller—is now available for Pre-order on Amazon at 99¢. This brand new cover is the work of Delle Jacobs and is the first to show that TW has TWO heroes! For more details on Tarleton's Wife, click here.
 
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WHY WRITE A SERIES?
This past week someone asked me if I had done a blog about writing a series. And I replied, I didn't think so as I hadn't written many. But it was certainly a good idea for my blog, as I've read a lot of them. So what is it about series?
I'm the idiot who has always written exactly what she wanted to write (except when I was trying to please New York (Signet & Kensington), and I guess I didn't operate in series mode. But if I'd been putting my career first and foremost, I certainly would have paid more attention to series. Above all else, series are money-makers. Readers come back again and again and again, snapping up every volume as soon as they hear it's ready. I had only to look through my Kindle (and on my bookshelves for older series) to see that most of my reading is of series written by favorite authors. 
I found Regency Romance, Mystery, Suspense/Thriller, SyFy, Fantasy, Paranormal, and Steampunk, all by authors writing series that ranged up to more than twenty volumes each. (More on individual authors laters.)
Series come in two types:
1.  Stories, usually mystery or suspense, with the same hero/heroine & many of the same secondary characters. In each book they confront a new problem. And to keep things fresh, new characters are added as the series goes along.
2.  Book 1 of the series, usually one that emphasizes romance, concentrates on a single couple but introduces several well-drawn secondary characters. Each succeeding book in the series tells the story of the problems and romance of one of these characters. It is common for them to encounter couples from previous books as their story progresses. Yet another "draw" for faithful readers of the series.
A series of either type requires outstanding characterizations, central figures that draw you in, make you care about them. But there can be no doubt that if you keep the same main characters, book after book, you may have the ease of knowing your characters, but you also have to find ways to add new twists and fresh faces to keep interest high. The author must continually find ways to keep readers panting after what's going to happen next to people who are already familiar. Are they ever going to find happiness for themselves? Are they going to live through the series, or be killed off, as has happened in the past, to the great chagrin of thousands of devoted fans. And heaven forbid the main characters should do anything "out of character," anything contrary to behavior readers have come to know and love! 

Examples of authors who write series with the same main character in each book are: Janet Evanovich, [J. K. Rowling, Robert Galbraith],Jack Higgins, James Lee Burke, Rhys Bowen, Gail Carriger, Lindsay Buroker, George R. Martin, Linda Castillo, Naomi Novik, Tasha Alexander, Ashley Gardner, Julie Huzy, Catherine Lloyd, Randy Wayne White, Kim Harrison.

I'm inclined to think series where the main characters are spin-offs from Book 1 are easier to write. You have a head start on their characters, merely having to flesh out their descriptions, plus the opportunity to create new secondary characters and an entirely different plot from the first book, etc., etc. I have written only three series, and they are all of this second kind. 

Examples of authors who write series with heros and heroines who are spin-offs from Book 1 are: Mary Balogh, Jo Beverley, [Jayne Ann Krentz, Amanda Quick, Jayne Castle], Ruby Lionsdrake (Lindsay Buroker), Anne McCaffrey.

Examples of authors who have done both:  Meljean Brook, Shelley Adina, & Kady Cross.

Special note: Nora Roberts, the Queen of Romance, writes series only when she's emphasizing romance instead of plot. Her more serious works are stand-alone novels (often called single-title).

The authors listed above are chosen from my personal reading list. There are, of course, many, many more. As previously stated, Series pay! Writing a series is definitely the way to enhance your sales.

So while I'm at it, here are my modest contributions to series writing:

Blue Moon Rising series. A planned 4-book series which I call SyFy with Romance or Futuristic Paranormal. (Although my books are not chockful of hot sex as are some Futuristics! I always emphasize character and plot instead.) Rebel Princess and Sorcerer's Bride are currently available on Amazon. The Bastard Prince will follow in mid-2017. Royal Rebellion is still a gleam in the eye. Blue Moon Rising follows the adventures of four royal children as they attempt to overthrow the traditional evil empire.

The Aphrodite Academy series. Four books which I describe as Regency Darkside. These are stories of girls whose lives were not easy, who had to suffer for their Happily Ever After. Belle, Cecilia, Holly, Juliana. Warning: these books are a frank depiction of the underbelly of Regency times.

The Regency Warrior series. This was an unintended series, but when a duchess from The Sometime Bride made an appearance in Tarleton's Wife, and Terence O'Rourke, who was destined for the hero in another book, also popped up in Tarleton's Wife, and Jack Harding simply refused to go away, I ended up - over a span of twenty years - adding O'Rourke's Heiress and Rogue's Destiny (Jack gets the girl at last!), and labeling the four books, The Regency Warrior series. 

Next week's Mosaic Moments will likely be an expansion on some of the series I have known and loved. And an attempt to explain why.

~ * ~  
Thanks for stopping by,
Grace
 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.
For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.      

The Varied Faces of Indie Pub

Squeak sacked out on her favorite furry throw. Sheer bliss.
Cassidy diverging from kneading to create a doughy heart.
Odd Political Note:

Being totally stunned by last fall's election, I did not notice how shell-shocked everyone looked until I was in the grocery store shopping for Thanksgiving dinner and saw the first smiles on people's faces since that fateful day in early November. Nobody, but nobody, expected the results of that election. And now . . . cracks are beginning to appear everywhere as reality approaches with frightening inevitablity.

During the overly long campaign for President (and since), the Op-Ed pages of the Orlando Sentinel featured columnists of two opposing opinions. Today (1/14/17) my eyes popped when I read the headline of the pro-Trump columnist: "Trump wears out welcome, and hasn't even taken office". Huh? Needless to say, I read the entire article. Although Mr. Krauthammer gets in a final punch at Barack Obama, he spent ninety percent of the column delineating all the things Trump has done wrong since winning the election. Wow! My own opinion is that we should all pray for a conversion like the one on the road to Tarsus that changed Saul to Paul.
~ * ~

 THE VARIED FACES OF INDIE PUBLISHING
I have been enjoying indie publishing since 2011, but only over the past year have I had books that were exclusive to Amazon's Kindle Scout or to Kindle Direct Publishing. After struggling to comprehend the differences, and after overhearing some misinformation being passed along one day, I felt this might be a good time to share some of what I've learned over the last six years.

IS INDIE PUBLISHING WORTH THE EFFORT?

Yes, and yes, and yes! There is no way I can adequately express what it has meant to me since Signet shut down its traditional Regency line and put their authors "out to pasture," because hot sex was becoming all the rage in romance long before the unsuspecting public ever heard of Fifty Shades of Gray. Yes, I've enjoyed the extra income, faithfully relayed to me monthly by Amazon and quarterly by Smashwords, but the most important factor has been the outlet for my creativity, the chance to still be able to share the products of my imagination with the world.

I was helped into the world of indie publishing by Delle Jacobs, and have helped many others in turn. I cannot recommend too highly this opportunity to publish your book the way you want it, without a New York publisher's marketing department hovering anxiously, saying, "Oh no, you can't do that!" For example, the title of my first book had to be changed from Love at Your Own Risk to the bland He Said, She Said, because "risk" was not an acceptable word! The same for my first Regency for Signet - The Courtesan's Letters (wouldn't play well in the Mid-west) became the vague and inaccurate, The Indifferent Earl. Both are now online under their original titles.

So absolutely yes. Enjoy the satisfaction of writing what you want to write and getting a far larger royalty than New York will pay.


SMASHWORDS:
 
First and foremost, for all I appreciate Amazon and what it's done for my books, Mark Coker's Smashwords Style Guide remains the best introduction to indie publishing, bar none. Coker is the only techie I know who can write directions for computer that ordinary mortals can understand. Do not attempt to upload an indie book without reading the pertinent parts of his instructions. (Way, way back when I first began uploading my books to Smashwords and Amazon, I recall being amazed when Mark Coker himself answered several of my "Contact Us" questions.) 

What does Smashwords do? Exactly as the name implies. It takes your Word Doc and transforms it into all the different formats used by the various e-readers out there. Why on earth struggle to do it yourself when Smashwords will do it for you for a very modest cut of the royalty? (And no, I don't get any kickbacks for my opinion.) Smashwords and I have gone round & round on a thing or two, but in general for six long years they've done well for me. (That I upload separately to Amazon is the result of ignorance on my part when I first got started, but Amazon's record-keeping is so precise and up-to-date, I have kept the practice of uploading my books twice - once to Amazon, once to Smashwords.)  

Mark Coker's Style Guide is FREE. For a link to the Smashwords Style Guide, click here.


For more details on publishing with Smashwords, click here.


AMAZON:


Amazon's KDP - Kindle Direct Publishing 

KDP is what I have used for all my books until the Blue Moon Rising series. As stated above, I upload to KDP, add the front page required for Smashwords and then upload there as well, which covers all the other e-book formats, including Barnes and Noble's Nook. KDP pays a 35% royalty for books under $2.99, a 70% royalty for books $2.99 & up. Their record-keeping is spectacular - you can view sales on close to an hourly basis. Payment is once a month (90 days in arrears) by direct deposit to the bank account of your choice. Their reach is world-wide - I receive royalties from Europe to Australia. For details on KDP, click here.

Amazon's Kindle Select

This is relatively new to me, but I'll try to get it correct. If you publish with Select, you are agreeing to have your book distributed exclusively by Amazon. There are privileges that go with this. Your book will be offered on Kindle's "Unlimited" program (a monthly reader subscription service). Evidently, in addition to your royalty this makes you eligible for a bonus from Amazon's Global fund (which is heavily weighted toward books that sell a lot of copies). You can also purchase Amazon advertising to enhance your other promotional efforts. For a more detailed explanation of Kindle Select, click here.
  Amazon's Kindle Scout
Kindle Scout is a relatively new publishing program. You submit your book, it goes through a vetting process, and if it passes, you are asked to get readers to "nominate" your book (from a 5000-word sample). My own experience would seem to indicate that there is a certain amount of editorial selection; i.e., a book that gets the most votes might not be selected over one of better quality. If selected, the author receives that rare thing in e-publishing, an advance on royalties ($1500). You will be placed on a KS Facebook loop, where you can ask questions to your heart's content. Your book will receive a thorough but once-over editing, and a fairly decent amount of marketing after it goes live. This is a publishing option worth considering. For more details, click here.
~ * ~WARNING!  

Never submit your book to one of those fly-by-night so-called "publishers" who e-mail you about their willingness to publish your book. Stick to the tried and true, the proven, known entities, like Amazon and Smashwords. 

COST:

My only costs for publishing my books are my cover and an ISBN number (I buy them 10 at a time from MyIdentifier.com. (Yes, there are freebies available, but I don't want to feel beholden to any one company.) If you are not comfortable with self-editing and formatting, or too impatient, then you may have to shell out money for those services as well. You must edit! So if you're not up to doing it yourself, add that service to your budget.

PRINT BOOKS:

I have no experience with print books beyond my books published long ago by Signet and those published by several e-publishers over the years, so I don't feel qualified to comment. I do know, however, that many use Amazon's CreateSpace. (Be careful you are not fooled by companies with a similar name.) The one with a good reputation is a branch of Amazon.] I personally have accepted the digital age and don't feel inclined to go to all the formatting work for print books that may sell only a few copies. I feel print books in a digital age are anachronistic. (Get over feeling the need!) But that's just me. Amazon's CreateSpace has a good reputation. The cost, I'm told, is minimal if you do your own formatting. But again, beware the many ill-qualified "let us print your book" scammers out there. Get recommendations from people you know before putting your baby into some unknown print publisher's hands.


~ * ~

And there it is, a miniscule summary of a huge subject. I hope you find the info and links helpful.

  Thanks for stopping by,
Grace
 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.

For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.    

SORCERER'S BRIDE & Python Update

Python Update:

Pythons have found a new way to menace their non-native habitat in South Florida. Late in 2016 a 9-foot Burmese python was spotted wrapped around part of a platform more than a half mile offshore in Biscayne Bay. The sighting was a first and according to an article in the Orlando Sentinel (Jenny Staletovich, Jan. 2, 2017), "another worrisome sign that the state's out-of-control pythons are getting more adept at inhabiting the state's salty fringes. In September, state wildlife biologists confirmed for the first time that the snakes are now breeding in the Keys."

The article goes on to say that scientists suspect that at least some of the adult snakes that started breeding in Key Largo swam there [from the Everglades]. "It also means that snakes could make their way to islands inhabited by birds or other small mammals and occasional turtle nests." 

". . . . Since the snakes became established around 2000, biologists still have no reliable way to control them, an effort complicated by the inability consistently track them. The snakes are perfectly camouflaged for the marshes and mangroves, which are equally inhospitable to human hunters."

Grace note: Selfishly, I'm delighted the pythons are moving south, not north! I can only hope the owners who dumped those snakes know what an ecological disaster they've caused.
~ * ~
Long ago—and far away in the suburban hinterlands of East Orlando—I conceived the idea for a book about as far away from the Regency era (for which I was known) as I could get. At the time I thought of it as SyFy with Romance, and only after it was nearly done did I decide it was best described as "Futuristic Paranormal." 
There was another problem. I had created so many characters and so much plot there was no way I was finishing the story in one book. I informed my then-publisher that three ought to do it - we even named them. But as I got toward the end of Book 2 (Sorcerer's Bride), it was a case of Oh-oh, not going to make it. And, besides, my voiceless teen had become such a strong character in his own right that he needed his own book (Book 3 - The Bastard Prince).  Leaving Royal Rebellion for the final confrontation and wrap-up as Book 4. Hopefully. As I finished K'kadi's book, I began to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but who knows . . . There's many a slip between the brain, the keyboard, and the final denouement.
For those who have read Rebel Princess, the story of the girl known as Kass Kiolani, Sorcerer's Bride is the tale of her sheltered younger sister, now Psyclid's Princess Royal, who must learn to fight a rebellion and who does not get the privilege of marrying a man who loves her. Below please find the cover and blurb for Sorcerer's Bride, which went live on Amazon Kindle on Thursday, January 6, 2017.


Rebellion, mind tricks, and tangled love on a planet far, far away.
Princess M'lani of the planet Psyclid, where almost everyone but M'lani is gifted with some kind of psychic ability, has agreed to marry Jagan Mondragon, the Sorcerer Prime. Jagan fled Psyclid when it was invaded by the Regulon Empire, but has now returned, supposedly to lead his people in rebellion against the occupation. But he's been dragging his feet about it, and when he finally shows up, he has his mistress with him. If that weren't enough of a problem, M'lani develops a not-so-welcome psychic gift, and then there's that prickly long-time rebel leader, T'kal Killiri (who did not flee Psyclid at the first sign of the Regs), and the antics of M'lani's younger brother, K'kadi, who speaks only through illusions.

On Blue Moon, one of Psyclid's three moons, M'lani's older sister and her husband, Tal Rigel, continue to plot a massive rebellion against the Regs, but freedom for the obscure, peace-loving planet of Psyclid seems a long way away.

For Kass's and Tal's story, please see Rebel Princess, Book 1 of the Blue Moon Rising series.

For a link to Sorcerer's Bride on Amazon, please click here.

~ * ~
Thanks for stopping by,
Grace
 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.

For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.  

Editing & Holiday Musing

 My daughter didn't re-post this video from 2012 (in Gatlinburg, Tennessee) until after my last Mosaic Moments. So please enjoy a holiday treat, which is just as pretty after Christmas as before. For Susie Reale singing "Have a Merry Little Christmas" against a backdrop of the mountains of Tennessee,  click here.

On a more somber note, somewhere over the last few decades we seem to have lost the concept of honor - particularly in this year of 2016. So when I saw the word "honor" in the Orlando Sentinel (12/29/16), I felt these few sentences were worth passing on. [Every Thursday the Sentinel publishes a Spotlight featuring "Champ" and "Chump." I read it faithfully, as it's good to know who's doing good deeds in the state and who's being an idiot. This was today's "Champ." (We won't bother with the Chump.)]

Bob Hansell:  Next week's retirement for Osceola County's three-term sheriff will cap his 40-year career with the agency. He joined at 18, rose through the ranks to captain, and commanded the agency's SWAT team. Along the way, he earned a reputation for leadership and integrity. In 2004, amid discontent in the agency's ranks, Hansell took a risk and quit so he could challenge then-Sheriff Charlie Aycock. Voters rewarded Hansell with a 12-point victory. In 2008 and again in 2012, he easily won re-election over write-in candidates. [Grace note: this indicates that no one would run against him, knowing he was unbeatable.] He'll be especially missed among his peers in law enforcement. One told the Sentinel, "He is one of the most honorable men that I have ever worked with in my career."

Grace note:  Clearly, our world needs a great many more honorable men. And women.

The "cartoon" below was also in Thursday's Orlando Sentinel. No explanation needed, except perhaps to say that it was drawn before Carrie Fisher's death was compounded by that of her mother, Debbie Reynolds.


~ * ~
 MORE ON EDITING
 I've harped on this theme before, but whether you're swamped with distractions or suffering from classic writer's block, you should just keep writing. That's what I did the week before Christmas. Yes, I probably should have given up any attempt at creativity during that period, but I'd just started a new book, and it was ringing in my head, so . . .

All went well until that final ten days, which saw not only holiday preparations but a massive amount of musical events. If I wasn't singing myself, I was watching the grandchildren follow in the family musical footsteps. So no wonder when I sat down on December 26 to look at Chapter 5 (which for me is hardcopy with a legal pad, pen, and pencil at the ready) I found it appalling. As you've heard me say, my first drafts can be little more than shorthand for what I had in mind, but this! 

There's no way to present the deletions and keep the chapter legible, so I'll just put the editing additions in red, so you can see what I did to salvage my Christmas disaster. (At least I hope I did.) The point, as always, is to emphasize that you, too, can do this. You can read over what you wrote and make it better, even if the first time was but a gleam in the eye of what you intended. Self-editing is all important. READ WHAT YOU WROTE, THEN MAKE IT BETTER.

Excerpts from The Lady Takes a Risk, Chapter 5: 

Marcus blew out his candle but left the one on the small bedside table still alight. He wanted to see his wife, though he suspected she would soon cut short his enjoyment of the vision before him (as a properly brought up virgin should.) The bed was broad, and she had thoughtfully positioned herself on the side away from the door that connected their rooms . . .

The side as far away from him as possible . . . ? 

Inwardly, Marcus mocked himself. Did she think him a reluctant lover, doing his duty? Fulfilling the agreement they'd made? Did she have no idea how intriguing he found her? How long it had been since he'd held a woman in his arms?
 
Despite knowing he'd been married, she probably thought him a Don Juan who had left behind a string of women panting for him on the continent, when, in fact, he'd put all that behind him when Susan and little Julian died. He hadn't so much as looked longingly at a woman until nigh onto a fortnight after coming to Kirkwood Farm. In the midst of struggling to replace a broken hops pole, he'd paused to wipe sweat from his eyes, and there she was: this magnificent creature in a green velvet habit slowing her black gelding to a leisurely walk, making no effort to hide her interest in what he and his men were doing.

..............................
And, incredibly, by some miracle here he was, sitting on the edge of the lady's bed in his nightshirt, his manhood a half-mast because he had so many doubts. Doubts about himself after that fatal charge at Waterloo, doubts about plunging a duke's daughter into the maelstrom of Kirkwood Farm. Doubts about betraying his beloved Susan by taking a second wife. 

Susan, forgive me!

She would be happy for him, he knew she would, and yet . . .

Why had he survived the war when she and their child had not? When so very many had not. Why should he be gifted with a duke's daughter when he had so frequently come close to being the toy soldier she had accused him of? Marcus Trevor, commanding officer of "The Prince's Dolls"—now there was a name to make a proper soldier blush!
...............................
Colonel Marcus Granville Sherbrooke, commander of a regiment of sons of England's most noble houses, mucking about in a hops field. He was sorry his father hadn't passed by that day. Or any of the many days afterward as he and his "pretty boys" learned how to grow hops. Not grapes to be fermented for the superior palettes of noblemen, but hops for beer for the masses.

The irony was topped only by his marrying exactly the woman he would have been expected to marry in his former life. 

If he were particularly fortunate. 

Idly, an action rearing its head from his past, he wound a strand of her hair around his finger. Lifting his gaze,he studied her face—the face struggling so hard not to show anxiety. "Well, my lady, it seems you have joined me in taking a plunge down in the world. Frankly, I could use your support. Tell me, Amelie, can we be friends?" Dear Lord, even in the flicker of the one rapidly guttering candle, he could see her soften, feel her silent inner sigh. He'd done it. He'd said the right thing. And suddenly he could see her through the eyes of a lover. Radiantly beautiful. 
...........................

Grace Note: the remainder of the chapter is almost as heavily revised as the above.  So no matter how hectic, depressing, or utterly impossible the circumstances, hang in there. Keep writing. Fix it later when the bright sunshine of another day shows you the way.

~ * ~  
Thanks for stopping by,
Grace
 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.

For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.      

Peace on Earth

Last year I did not put up my Christmas tree - it remained bagged-up in my garage as my treasured box of ornaments could not be found in my son's warehouse, where we store our Christmas stuff. But, fortunately, he moved the contents of his warehouse to Longwood this year, and lo & behold, my lifetime collection of  ornaments turned up. The night before this photo was taken, the pieces of the tree had just come out of two years of being bagged—the lights not connected, the branches all askew. But while I was reading the morning paper, it acquired its first ornament. (I have grave doubts about some of fragile ornaments when the tree is finally decorated. And yes, this is Squeak's first Christmas. She is snoozing in my lap as I type this.)



Over the past two weeks, our family has been swamped by Christmas musical performances—and all the rehearsals that go with them. Last Sunday three generations of the family sang at the Christmas program presented by Church of the Redeemer. Cassidy also sang with her outstanding chorus at Woodlands Elementary, and we managed to find Seminole High School in Sanford, where Hailey and Riley were singing in two of the three choruses from Markham Middle School. (Even the change of venue to a high school auditorium wasn't enough. Latecomers had to stand. We were fortunate enough to have Cassidy make a run for seats way down front.) 

Meanwhile, during the same weeks, Susie and her Citrus Singers have been singing everywhere from the Orlando Art Museum to shopping malls, and of course last week's concert at Church of the Redeemer. Tonight (Saturday, the 17th) they will be repeating what they did last year - singing the National Anthem at the Cure Bowl here in Orlando before what will likely be a sold-out crowd as our own UCF (University of Central Florida) team will be playing. (1015 p.m. - just watched the video on Facebook - the girls were great!)

The primary point of this week's Mosaic Moments is that every performance, directed by a variety of musicians, has featured the themes of Peace of Earth, Diversity, and Tolerance. How could it not, after what Orlando has been through this year? (I should note that last Monday marked the six-month anniversary of the massacre at Pulse nightclub. There were some very moving memorial services at the site and at the historical building which now archives most of the Pulse memorials contributed by so many mourners. The Orlando Gay Chorus performed and did an outstanding job, as usual.)

Cassidy's elementary school chorus - c. 60 strong - took the stage in rainbow T-shirts (one group wearing purple, one red, etc.) They sang songs of peace and good will, including that great African-American spiritual, "Follow the Drinking Gourd," a song telling slaves to follow the Big Dipper where it points to the north star.

Markham Middle School (performing at Seminole High) did a beautiful variety of songs, ending with the director emphasizing the importance of their final number, "Let There Be Peace of Earth."

And the Citrus Singers have been doing the same at their concerts. One of the four songs they performed at Church of the Resurrection was also "Let There Be Peace of Earth." Cassidy and Riley are the featured soloists, and their father got a good recording. (Warning: if the video goes into family stuff at the end, just hit the back arrow.) 

For the video made at Church of the Resurrection in Longwood, Florida, Sunday evening, December 11, click here.

As for my literary contributions to Christmas, I featured Mistletoe Moment in my last blog, but I'd like to note that there's a lot of Christmas in my traditional Regency, A Gamble on Love (cover & blurb below).




Miss Aurelia Trevor has a problem. Until she reaches the age of twenty-five, she will have no control over her beloved Pevensey Park, and by that time her unscrupulous uncle will have run it into the ground. Marriage to someone other than her uncle's leering son is her only way out, but, one by one, she rejects the men on her list of suitors. In desperation, Aurelia does the unthinkable. She hires a solicitor to find her a husband strong enough to stand up to both her uncle and her cousin. And soon learns the truth of that old adage: Be careful what you wish for.

Thomas Lanning is a man of the City. Unlike Aurelia, who stands to inherit vast land and wealth, he has made his own place in the world. He is not at all tempted by the suggestion of marriage to an heiress, but other considerations, such as a power base for a seat in Parliament, tweak his interest. Plus an unexpected twinge of chivalry when he hears the full extent of Miss Trevor's difficulties with her uncle and his family.

Aurelia, who only wants to live in peace on her acres, finds she has acquired a ready-made family in Thomas's younger sister and brother, as well as a head-strong husband whose campaign for MP fills her household with a shockingly odd assortment of characters. It seems her marriage of convenience is fast becoming a marriage of inconvenience. Just how far will this strong-willed pair bend to accommodate each other? And will they do it before it's too late?

May your holidays, whichever ones you celebrate, be bright, and may 2017 prove to be more peaceful than the sad and awful moments that overshadowed 2016.

~ * ~
Thanks for stopping by,
Grace
 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.

For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.  

SECRET REVEALED

For many years I used a Florida Gulf Coast town as the setting for many of my Romantic Suspense novels and Mysteries. And I've always said I wanted to keep the location a secret, as the population triples each winter, and we really didn't want it to become known to any more people! 

It's been nine and a half years since I moved to the Orlando area, but my daughter and I still make a pilgrimage back at least once a year, usually in October. This year, however, we couldn't go until Thanksgiving weekend, and, lo and behold, we discovered the secret is out. The hidden beach where we've always gone to swim, fly kites, and find shells looked like Coney Island! We couldn't believe it. So I've decided to come clean and admit that this very special retirement/resort/Florida native community is Venice, Florida, which is about 20 miles south of Sarasota. It has the only direct beachfront for something like a hundred miles in each direction; i.e., no barrier island in front of the downtown portion of Venice. A canal had to be dug behind downtown to accommodate the Intracoastal Waterway. The high school is right on the canal, and woe to any football kicker with a heavy foot. (The eastern goalposts back up to the canal.)

The main street of Venice extends ten miles from the Gulf of Mexico, becoming a dirt road shortly before it ends on the Myakka River in a jungle that always reminds me of photos I've seen of Vietnam. Yet not far beyond that jungle is cattle country (as you'll discover in Shadowed Paradise and Paradise Burning). 

As for our time on the beach this year, we found heavy erosion from hurricane Matthew (which entered the Gulf before turning back over Central Florida and traveling up the east coast, doing heavy damage from Daytona north). There was an upper "cliff" and a "lower" cliff of sand each beach-goer had to negotiate. The wooden walk-over ramps were left dangling 12-18" above the sand, so not very usable. Nonetheless, we had a grand time, spending most of our two days just enjoying the salt air, waves, and the greatest beach for sharks' teeth in the world.

For this week's Mosaic Moments I'm including a few Venice photos, then displaying cover & blurbs for my books using Venice as a setting. I hope you enjoy both the photos and the book info. If you're ever near Florida's Gulf Coast, don't miss Venice. It's one of those very special places. The boutiques on Main Street and those unique stores, Venice Stationers and Sea Pleasures and Treasures, make the trip worthwhile, even without Caspersen Beach, Airport Beach, Venice Beach, Nokomis Beach, the jetties (entrance/exit from Waterway to Gulf), waterfront restaurants, a fishing pier . . . 

The lower "cliff" on Caspersen Beach
Sitting on a bench in the shade, with nothing but the Gulf between me and Mexico
Lunch at a sidewalk café on Venice Avenue  Second day - Susie shelling right down to the last minute

Blair's Books Set in Venice

Romantic Suspense






A killer gloats as he stalks Realtors in the Gulf Coast resort community of Golden Beach, Florida, where Claire Langdon, a sophisticated but vulnerable New England widow with a young son, now works in real estate. When she acquires a self-proclaimed protector, a half-Russian, half-Florida cracker ex-fed, overcoming the cultural shock is almost as difficult as catching the killer.











Amanda Armitage has a problem. A highly skilled researcher, she has been assigned the job of assisting Peter Pennington, world-famous newsman turned author, with his latest book. (A glorious vacation, she is assured. The whole winter Season in Florida.) Peter's book topic:  international sexual slavery. Mandy's problem: Peter is the husband she hasn't seen in seven years.

Grace note:  Paradise Burning contains some crossover characters from Shadowed Paradise.









A Florida Highway Patrol officer investigates his brother's serious injury in a Medieval Fair tournament and discovers an astounding sub-culture in today's Florida - the Medieval Reenactment group, the Lords & Ladies of Chivalry. He also finds a Lady Knight, fighting her way out of years of abuse. Michael Turco and Kate Knight both have a great deal to learn before they can solve a crime and lay each other's ghosts and preconceptions.

Grace note:  Florida Knight is based on my years as a member of the Society for Creative Anachronisms in Florida. And also on my experiences as a volunteer at Medieval Fairs held at The John & Mable Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida.





Mysteries



Want to get married in a hot air balloon? Have the bride step out of a Fabergé egg? Just call Fantascapes, the Halliday family business. Trouble in paradise? Call Laine Halliday, who travels the world smoothing out bumps encountered by high-end clients. But when Fantascapes is used as a front by the Russian mob, in action ranging from Florida to Peru to France, Laine steps into a whole new world of Protect and Serve.










Death by accident, old age, and strangulation. An elderly senior about to marry a con artist. A rash of burglaries. Only an artistic imagination could conjure these disasters into connected events. But costume designer Gwyn Halliday manages it, as she flees trauma in the big city only to discover that bad things can also happen in a sleepy Florida retirement community.








 Someone is killing people at the Bellman Museum, staging the deaths as bizarre works of art. Though struggling to recover from a severe injury and the death of her lover, FBI Special Agent Rory Travis can't resist the challenge of tackling this mystery, which brings two new men into her life. But in the end she stands alone, facing evil one-on-one.

Grace Note:  The Art of Evil is set twenty miles north of Venice in Sarasota, Florida. More specifically, almost all of it at The John & Mable Ringling Museum, where I was a volunteer tram driver once a week for a number of years. (As well as volunteering each year for the Medieval Fair when it was held at the Ringling (& which accounts for my living the background for the opening of Florida Knight).
~ * ~  
Thanks for stopping by,
Grace
 
For Grace's website, listing all books as Blair Bancroft, click here.
For a brochure for Grace's editing service, Best Foot Forward, click here.