New: BIM LINk

Good news this week: I was offered a link to the vast entertainment Books in Motion offers readers - a link to look for the genres all of us readers look for - and there's a wealth of them for you in each genre. I haven't seen a place to put a link on this blog or I would be offering it to you now. However, I'm going to put it on my web page so everyone who visits will be able to 'c'mon in and look around,' not only at my Spanish Eyes audio but look around at all the other genres and authors available at BIM.

Break's over, happy reading (and listening :-)
Jackie

Paranormal SITE

My latest Maryvale cozy mystery has been up a couple of weeks now and is selling well - thank you for visiting Maryvale again or if you haven't yet - c'mon over LOL.

I'm sure everyone waits and watches to see if a new novel in a series is going to be popular and I'm no exception. (I can hear other writers nodding - it's the rocks in our heads I guess-ha!) Anyway, I'm so glad you've found my new word child and I'm waiting for a review in progress now on this latest of my Maryvale series.

I held my breath worrying about how the new characters and the (more than just a touch of) paranormal would be received. When I posted my last blog in September, I asked if visitors would please leave a comment about the new characters. I loved writing about them and each is such an individual with his own hang-ups and endearments too, so their characters are set but their futures (in the series) are not. So I asked anyone who felt like putting in his/her two cents worth to leave a comment about it. No one commented, but you did buy the book - that really makes me feel good - thank you, and I hope you had a great time visiting Maryvale - but please, if and when you do visit, leave a commlent. One of the very best things about writing is the people you meet, the interesting readers and fellow writers you meet along the way and in digests, groups, other blogs, et cetera.

Thanks from my heart for buying my books and please come back to vist Maryvale and here too.

Break's over,
Jackie :-)

MARYVALE UPDATE

Hello, fellow readers, writers, and cyber friends :-). My newest Maryvale cozy mystery is now live as I told you on my last post. I've checked sales and you've found it, bless your hearts - thanks for the sales which I hope will grow as the word gets around :-)

I know the new one with the paranormal scenes may attract some new Maryvale visitors and I know, like me, cozy mystery readers prefer to read them in order or at least know where in the order the one they're considering fits in. So, here's the list in order, forgive me if this is a repeat for most of you:

1. The Devil in Maryvale; 2. The Nelson Scandal; 3. Recipe for Trouble; 4. Mardi Gras Murder; 5. An Unpopular Corpse; and 6. A Hysterical Site. Mardi Gras Murder and A Hysterical Site introduce some new Maryvale citizens and I'd love to hear from any of you who want to comment about them. Of course, Sheriff Cas Larkin and his wife Connie will be in every one, but the characters will depend on the current crime or crime wave (LOL) that Maryvale and Pine County, Tennessee is caught up in at the time.

Please come over and check from time to time and comment to keep me posted, I love hearing from you.

In the meantime, thank you, thank you, thank you, dear readers for your visits to Maryvale.

Break's over,

Jackie

HYSTERICAL SITE QUESTIONS

I've now got the sixth of the Maryvale series live on Kindle but I'd like to hear from you who have bought other adventures in the series. A Hysterical Site introduces four new characters. I enjoyed writing about them and their problems and adventures but their futures depend on YOU! Comment here if you want to tell me what you liked or didn't like. Their characters are set but their futures aren't. Like the rest of us - LOL.

The series: 1. The Devil in Maryvale; 2. The Nelson Scandal; 3. Recipe for Trouble; 4. Mardi Gras Murder; 5. An Unpopular Corpse; 6. A Hysterical Site - Happy reading!

Break's over, :-)
Jackie

LIVE NOW! A HYSTERICAL Site

Live now and available on Kindle: another Maryvale cozy mystery!
"A HYSTERICAL SITE begins with a bloody RED murder; scatters COLORFUL characters and clues from New York to the little town of Maryvale, Tennessee; and has a couple of scenes guaranteed to make the paranormal shows on television GREEN with envy-ENJOY!"
The seies to date is: l. The Devil in Maryvale (Sheriff Cas Larkin has a brutal homicide on his hands; cattle thefts and mutilation; and a club which smacks of devil worship.) 2. The Nelson Scandal (Sheriff Cas Larkin and his match-making wife, Connie solve four murders, two of them more than a hundred years old. 3. Recipe for trouble (When Pine County's one celebrity begins to write her new cookbook her kitchen explodes; Sheriff Larkin looks into recent accidents she's had; and when she rents a cabin on the lake to work uninterrupted, someone poisons her; and the project is beginning to look like a recipe for trouble.) 4.Mardi Gras Murder (Sheriff Cas Larkin is plagued with a missing citizen no one has reported; a stranger found drowned in the lake; and one of the Pine County citizens is in jail in New Orleans accused of murder.) 5. An Unpopular Corpse (The librarian finds a body on her doorstep with no ID; no tracks up to the porch;and no one wants to talk about him or how he got there.) 6. A Hysterical Site: This one has just been added to the list on Kindle Aug. 2, 2011. (A HYSTERICAL SITE begins with a bloody RED murder; COLORFUL characters and clues are scattered from New York to the little town of Maryvale, Tennessee; and it has two scenes guaranteed to make the paranormal shows on television GREEN with envy - ENJOY!"

This is for cozy lovers who like to read a series in order. Happy reading!

Break's over! :-)
Jackie

$0.99 EBOOK COUPONS!

Heads up, cozy mystery lovers and other ebook readers too. Smashwords is having a $0.99 sale from now till May 22, 2011! There are many interesting genres to choose from including my first two Maryvale cozy mystery novels. The novels are: The Devil in Maryvale, coupon #QJ74B and The Nelson Scandal, coupon #ZH98B - so go shop,and happy reading :-)
Break's over,
Jackie

BARGAIN EBOOKS-$0.99

Good news for cozy readers and for other ebook goodies and genres-the month of May is full of bargains from Smashwords and their markets on and Kindle too. These $0.99 prices are good for the month of May.

Also, for those who like to read the first of a series first, scroll down to the blog entry that has all the Maryvale series (so far) by number, title, and a brief logline or thumbnail so you can see if you want to make more visits to Maryvale.And of course, there are more on the way :-)

Happy reading, break's over,
Jackie

$0.99 Ebooks

More good news, not only are the first two Maryvales on Kindle on sale for $0.99 right now, there are also coupons on Smashwords for these two. The Smashwords price will be in effect until June 26, haven't decided yet if I will end Kindle sale then or not. In fact, I'm hoping enough people will visit that I'll be able to tell what the majority of cozy mystery readers want.

Here's my question, I'll see if I get any response:

1. Leave first two cozies at $0.99 and raise price from $2.99 to $3.99 on the rest of the series. (This has been suggested by some other writers as broke as I am and needing ink cartridges-:-)
2. End the Kindle sale the same time as the Smashwords coupons and leave the $2.99 price on all the Maryvale series books at $2.99.

Hope I get some opinions - break's over,
Jackie

$0.99 Maryvale Ebooks!

Fellow readers and writers, here's good news if you're a cozy mystery lover like I am: My first two Maryvale mysteries - The Devil in Maryvale and The Nelson Scandal, ebooks on Kindle are now on sale for $0.99 for 30 days - maybe longer if sales demand.

I'm hoping you will enjoy your two visits to Maryvale and want to come back for more. You're not going to run out of something to read, there are five of them now: The Devil in Maryvale; The Nelson Scandal; Recipe for Trouble; Mardi Gras Murder, and An Unpopular Corpse. I'm working on another Maryvale and also have more books listed on Kindle, so please take a look.

If you visit, please go to the guest book, I love meeting new readers and writers (when I'm not up to my ears in writing or my own reading - LOL

Break's over,
Jackie

Series Nos./Thumbnails

Hi, fellow readers and writers. I've seen a lot of help asked for by avid readers like me, to find the first and other numbers of novels in a series so we can read them in order (I like to do that too :-) So here goes: The Title; No.; and a thumbnail

The Maryvale series:
THE DEVIL IN MARYVALE (1)
A stunning homicide in the small town of Maryvale sends Sheriff Cas Larkin on an investigation from a trailer park on the industrial side of town to the Pine County Coutry Club uncovering the town's darkest secrets; a secret club at the high school which smacks of devil worship; and he is also plagued with cattle rustling and mutilation. Fighting lack of evidence and the Pine County Judge with only circumstantial evidence and his gut feeling, Cas sets a trap for the killer in their midst.

THE NELSON SCANDAL (2)
Sherif Cas Larkin has two homicides on his hands which may be connected and his wife Connie, runs into classic 'haunting' conditions in the Pine County Library basement. Cas and his matchmaking wife follow hot clues and cold trails to investigate four homicides, two of them over a hundred years old.

RECIPE FOR TROUBLE (3)
Pine County's only celebrity, Mattie Carrington is writing another cookbook rumored to be even more popular than her first. However, before she's got a good start, her kitchen blows up and she decides to find privacy to work at a cabin on the lake near Maryvale which involves more delay and comic interest in the Present Too Often form of Mattie's younger sister, Katie's boyfriend, Eugene. When mattie finally is settled in to work, someone poisons her and the whole thing is beginning to look like a recipe for trouble. As Mattie lies in a coma, it's up to Cas to find the culprit and save Mattie in spite of friends and relatives all trying to help.

MARDI GRAS MURDER (4)
Sheriff Cas Larkin and his matchmaking wife, Connie, and even his Aunt Harry, have their hands full with Cas's case involving a stranger drowned in the lake; a disappearance no one is willing to admit is a disappearance; and a Maryvale citizen accused of homicide way down yonder in New Orleans! They wade through old politician's secrets, a witch's interfering mother, and alligators to get at the truth. C'mon in, the entertainment's fine...

AN UNPOPULAR CORPSE (5)
When Hannah, Asst. Librarian of the Pine County Library tries to get her morning paper the door is blocked by the legs of a strange and quite dead man. When Sheriff Cas Larkin finally gets his idenity and other personal information the question that comes to mind along with 'who done it?' is why didn't they do it sooner - the man was very unpopular and no one really wants to talk about him or why he was dumped on Hannah's porch. In spite of his interest in a young woman of which Cas does not approve, Coroner Cliff helps him untangle clues that just don't seem to go together or solve any part of what happened. The plot twists will keep you turning pages to a surprising and unexpected climax.

MAGGIE AND JOE series:
DEAD ON ARRIVAL (1)
Maggie Murphy's husband Horace's motorcycle accident leaves her a widow at twenty-four. Broke, and the cosmetic ads say your skin starts drying out at twenty-five, Maggie wastes no time on self pity. She gets a part-time job which turns into full time when she finds the mutilated body of the journalist she was hired to replace. On top of other financial and emotional problems there is an instant attraction between Maggie and Joe Driver, the handsome policeman sent to investigate the murder. He helps her get more information on Horace's accident and the relationship between them heats up as Maggie's Aunt Myrtle keeps a sharp eye on Maggie's social life. With characters like: a co-worker named Fatima (AKA Queen Esther Johnson); Evil Elvira, a former slave who claims to be over a hundred years old; and friends at the paper, it's a merry southern romp with love, laughs, the MPD, the FBI all trying to find out 'who all done what?'

THE SNAFUED SNATCH (2)
When two young hoodlums are disappointed at the take from robbing convenience stores, they decide to try kidnapping and search the papers for information on local businessmen. They decide to kidnap Grace Hanover, Maggie's cousin and boss's wife and ask for a hundred thousand in small bills which they think will be low enough so he will just pay and not involve the police. They plan the kidnapping for Halloween night and everything goes well except for one little glitch. There is a party going on and they get the wrong woman. They snatch Maggie, Hank's cousin instead of Grace. With Maggie chloroformed, bound hand and foot in their van they call Hank at his Halloween party and tell them they have his wife and the figure they have in mind is only hundred thousand dollars in small bills. Hank, full of good bourbon and looking at his wife across the room laughs at them. He says the way Grace spends money and credit he can't possible take her back for a mere hundred grand and hangs up on them! Waking during the last part of the conversation Maggie smiles to herself at the difference between her and Joe's bank balance and a hundred thousand dollars. This is followed by panic as she wonders if Joe is looking for her; if he even knows she's gone; and what's going to happen to her when these two idiots find out she's not Grace?

There's an insurance series with two so far: ONCE BURNED (1) AND VARMINT (2)
AND MORE'S COMIN'

Happy reading, break's over,
Jackie

$2.99 Novels @Kindle!

Right now I'm 'in up to my ankles and in head first' in the writing/publishing business. It's exciting and I've even got a couple of new covers on my new Kindle books. My e-books are all $2.99 with a few for even less so everyone who wants a wide choice of novels will have a good choice. The newest ones are Mardi Gras Murder; An Unpopular Corpse; and Good and Dead. Check them out and do leave a comment when you visit here.

I love meeting new readers and writers.
Break's over :-)
Jackie

BacklistEbooksAnthology!

Backlist Ebook is considering one or more anthology ideas. Heads up to get some really good reading in these short stories by authors you have 'met' here and elsewhere in cyberspace :-)))

Right now two of the genres being considered are Mystery/Horror and Family. These are just a few of the ideas being considered so watch for more news about it on Facebook and BeB and other places.

In the meantime, check out your favorite authors and genres on Amazon. com and the Kindle bookstore. Snow days are happy days with a book to read :-)

Just remember there are roots and buds and good stuff under all that snow!
Break's over,
Jackie

Happy 2011 Readers & Writers!

Here it is, a brand new year to make progress, make friends, and make do in some cases with the economy still in the - well, never mind - concentrate on the good stuff like a little poem that sticks in my mind:

As you travel on through life
Let it ever be your goal
To keep your eye upon the donut
and not upon the hole! :-)

Another bright spot is seeing something good to balance anything that's not so good. The thing I'm watching closely right now (besides the family health both physical and financial) is my ebook sales. I've priced them all no higher than $2.99 and crossed my fingers (didn't change my typing much - ha!) but my sales though not big enough to brag yet are at least going steadily up.

Also, I've got all my rights back except two hard covers which are still under contract, the rest are available on Kindle and live right now at great prices. Also, people seem to be reading the series since multiple sales are being reported.
The Maryvale series; The Maggie and Joe series; the Chris and Duff Insurance series; plus the stand alones and others on my Kindle list.

Also, I'm hoping to hear from fellow readers and writers on my blog so please if you come to visit, leave a comment (and welcome and thanks for coming :-)
There will be more Kindle novels and good prices too and soon - keep checking back and have a great 2011.(And do keep your eye on the donut!)
Break's over! :-)