The change has been made, and everything looks good on my end. If you are a subscriber, would you mind leaving a brief comment to let me know this post showed up in your feed? I would like to make sure that it works for my followers as well as for me.
If everything is sorted on your end as well as mine, then you may stay tuned for some more exciting posts/news coming soon! I have a book review to share, as well as info on how to subscribe to the coming-soon newsletter, and maybe even some book news to share by the end of the summer.
I hope your summer is going well! If you don’t want to simply leave a boring “it works” comment here, feel free to let me know of any interesting things you’ve been doing this last month-and-a-half (“summer is halfway over,” folks around here keep reminding each other, with doom or relief depending on how one feels about hot weather and tourist traffic). Mine so far has been full of traveling and projects–sounds about right for this time of year!
A brief note to let you all know that I’m going to be moving this website to a different server sometime in the next few days. I am hopeful this will be a simple task, but we all know that nothing is ever as simple as we’d like, right? So this is to let you know that there might be some wobbles in your ability to access the blog/website during the next couple of days. Fingers crossed it won’t be too bad!
One of my reasons for changing servers is to make it easier for folk to subscribe to the monthly newsletter I’ll be starting to send out in either August or September. Right now there isn’t a good way for me to set up a “subscribe” button on my website, but I’ll be able to do that once I’ve switched. I’m so excited to start this newsletter! I’m looking forward to being able to keep in touch with subscribers on a more regular basis than I can through blogging, and to be able to offer some sneak peeks into what stories I have coming out next, behind-the-scenes stuff, and even, yes, even a free short story as a “thank you” to subscribers.
So those are the upcoming changes for StarDance Press–a fresh website and a new newsletter. I’m hoping to be able to announce some new stories to be published soon, but gotta get all this writerly/publisherly housekeeping stuff out of the way first!
I will let you know the release date of Whitney & Davies #3 when I have a better idea as to when it will be finished, and I’m hoping to have some exciting news related to starting a monthly newsletter to share with you soon, as well. In the meantime–
Enjoy some examples of me playing in other writers’ sandboxes!
When newspaper columnist Pauline Gray agrees to help a retired schoolteacher write her memoirs, she has no idea it will lead to murder. Someone doesn’t want old memories stirred up … and they are willing to kill to keep the past a secret. Now it’s a race to uncover the truth that the murderer is so desperate to keep buried. It will take all Pauline’s ingenuity to solve this case before the killer strikes again—and this time Pauline herself might be the victim …
I confess: I forgot to post about it on the blog on the actual publication day. I was so busy updating all my other social media sites that writing a post for here slipped my mind. So I decided I would wait and do a “one week” post instead (and then nearly forgot about that as well).
I am so happy to have this book out in the world. It’s a bit surreal to think that I have completed this series. Originally I had intended for there to be 7-8 Pauline Gray books, but as I went along I started to realize that this was better suited for a shorter series, and when I started working on Secrets, it became very clear that this was the final story. The final chapter was a little emotional to write! But I am satisfied with the three stories, satisfied with Pauline’s character arc throughout the series, and pleased to see the project completed.
The ebook of Secrets of the Past is available at pretty much all the usual retailers, via this link. So far the paperback is only available through Amazon, but it will eventually be distributed through other retailers as well. The process takes a bit longer with print than with ebooks.
I hope you have all enjoyed going back in time to 1930s Canton, NY with me, and getting to know all the characters I chose to people this town with, and I hope you enjoy this final book in the series. Happy reading!
As I approach the publication of the final Pauline Gray mystery, I am reminded again of this post I wrote six years ago. I have been finding myself turning again to detective novels this past week, as the world has been shaken by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and I am certain that it is due to my instinctive need for the hope of justice and restoration that is implicit in such stories. Tomorrow, Secrets of the Past will be available for purchase in both ebook and print, and my sincere hope is that it brings the same sort of comfort to its readers that mysteries have always brought to me in times of chaos and grief.
The second proof copy of the print edition of Secrets of the Past arrived in the mail yesterday, and … it’s gorgeous. I’m so pleased with how it turned out.
The first proof copy had some problems with the margins, which I was able to finally sort out, and I wasn’t happy with a couple of details on the cover, things that looked fine on a computer screen but just didn’t work well on a physical book. That’s why we have physical proof copies, to work out all those little details in order to have the final product be as close to perfect as a human can get!
The really good news, so far as my readers are concerned, is that with the success of this proof, I will be able to release the paperback edition of Secrets of the Past on March 1st, right along with the ebook edition. Hurrah!
So mark your calendars for March 1st, 2022, whichever edition you prefer to buy, because you will be able to take your pick.
When newspaper columnist Pauline Gray agrees to help a retired schoolteacher write her memoirs, she has no idea it will lead to murder. Someone doesn’t want old memories stirred up … and they are willing to kill to keep the past a secret. Now it’s a race to uncover the truth that the murderer is so desperate to keep buried. It will take all Pauline’s ingenuity to solve this case before the killer strikes again—and this time Pauline herself might be the victim …
I am very happy to be able to announce a release date for Secrets of the Past, the third and final Pauline Gray novella. It will be available in ebook form on March 1, 2022. You can preorder it now using this link: Secrets of the Past
I am hoping that the paperback will be available on March 1 as well, but I can’t make any promises with that.
This book was one of my most challenging to write, and one of the most rewarding. I can’t wait to share it with readers! This is a bittersweet release for me–I am pleased to have brought Pauline’s journey to completion, and a little sad to say goodbye to her. I hope all of my readers find satisfaction in how this final mystery works out.
You can also add Secrets of the Past to your Goodreads list here, if you like.
I will update once I have a set release date for the paperback as well!
In my last post I said I wasn’t sure when the next Caledonia book was going to come out … but that doesn’t mean I can’t have some fun with research, anyway.
I never did physics in college, so most of what I put into From the Shadows was very much seat-of-my-pants, desperately looking stuff up as I thought of it, hoping to technobabble my way through. That only goes so far, though, and so I am hoping to equip myself better for future books.
Besides, the more I know, the further my imagination can roam … who knows how many creative possibilities are out there that I haven’t been able to grasp simply because I don’t know about them?
So when I found Physics of the Impossible and Parallel Worlds by Michio Kaku, I knew they were just what I was looking for. Especially since the entire premise of From the Shadows is based on the idea of parallel worlds, and they are traveling through space at faster-than-light speeds, with alien planets capable of sustaining life along their way … yeah, those are definitely some impossible physics right there. Like I said, these books are just what I need for future sci-fi stories.
I have a couple of books I was already reading when these arrived, so I’m hurrying to get through them, and then … it’s physics time!
I often hesitate to post about upcoming books and publications, because so often life ends up turning my plans upside down–or the book refuses to be written–or the prior book takes longer to be written than planned and so this book has to be pushed off yet again–and so on and so forth. However, I also do like to keep my readers informed as to what they can expect, and so with the qualifier that these plans are very, very loosely held, here is what to look out for in 2022, and possibly beyond.
Secrets of the Past. The third and final (at least for now) Pauline Gray novella will be coming soon–possibly even this month, though a March publication date is more likely.
Death by Disguise. The third novel in the Whitney & Davies series, following after Glamours & Gunshots. (The current chronological order of the series, for those who are curious, is: Magic Most Deadly, The Third Thief*, Masks & the Magician*, While Shepherds Watch, Glamours & Gunshots, Death by Disguise.) My original plan for 2022 was to have this published by April. Substantial rewrites are making that look less and less likely, but I am still intending to publish it this year, just most likely later than the original goal.
Another collection of short stories in the Whitney & Davies collection, these to feature some of the smaller cases the team solves between Glamours & Gunshots and Death by Disguise. This collection is tentatively titled Sorcery and Suspicion, but we’ll see if the title lasts throughout the actual writing and organizing of the stories!
Those three books make up my publishing plans for this year. I have not forgotten about the Caledonia sequel I hinted at however many months ago (either here or on one of my social media sites, I can’t remember now where I talked about it). That story is still proving recalcitrant, and since it is more important to me to get it right rather than publish it fast, I’ve stopped trying to set a publication date for it. It is still happening, just … not very fast.
I also have two more Whitney & Davies novels planned, and my hope is to publish one if not both in 2023. After that … who knows? We shall see where the muse strikes!
Feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions about the upcoming books, or an urgent request for a story that you are hoping to read, or a character you’d like to see featured in an upcoming story, or if you just want to talk about the books! I always enjoy chatting with my readers.
*found in the short story collection Magic & Mayhem
At long last, it is time to reveal the cover for the third (and most likely final) Pauline Gray novella. Are you excited? I am excited to show it to you!
This is the fifth book cover I’ve designed (I’ve done all the covers for the PG mysteries, as well as the cover for Magic & Mayhem and While Shepherds Watch), and while I’m not planning on taking up graphic design as a career any time soon, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed developing my skills in this area. I’m also indebted to my husband Carl and my editor A.M. Offenwanger, both of whom have a far better artistic eye than I do and who both always offer valuable input on the cover before I declare it ready.
So now, without further ado, here is the cover for Secrets of the Past.
Old Secrets Cast Long Shadows …
When newspaper columnist Pauline Gray agrees to help a retired schoolteacher write her memoirs, she has no idea it will lead to murder. Someone doesn’t want old memories stirred up … and they are willing to kill to keep the past a secret. Now it’s a race to uncover the truth that the murderer is so desperate to keep buried. It will take all Pauline’s ingenuity to solve this case before the killer strikes again—and this time Pauline herself might be the victim …
This has been one of my most challenging stories to write, and I am looking forward to at last being able to share it with you all–soon! I don’t have a specific release date yet, but it should be sometime in February or, at the very latest, early March.
One more adventure for Pauline, and this one the most difficult yet! We can only hope she survives it …
