I spent the day looking for my contracts from my publisher so I could possibly get back the rights to Glory Days. Seeing as it is no longer in print (I have about 30 copies), according to what I read, I should be able to get back the rights.
I am not even really sure what that means, but Glory Days has a sequel, Dancin' in the Dark. They're both for sale on Amazon and B&N in electronic form, so it might be nice for me to get the royalties for both of them from now on.
Maybe.
Who reads old books?
I mean, with all the new books coming out, you'd think, well, nobody would want to go back to 2006 and read the first of a series, even though when I wrote the sequel, I planned on it being six years ahead in time and, funny thing, that's how long it took to get Dancin' available.
But here's the thing: Many more times than I can count, I bought a book that I thought was terrific only to realize that it was the second in a series! Just about every fantasy book I ever read was that way, except for those by Anne McCaffrey. I managed to keep on top of her books, though I saw on Amazon that there is a new Pern book out, probably by her son Todd.
Anyway, my two books are fun and so full of Jersey they make grown men smile. I once sold a book to a guy who wanted a Valentine's Day present for his wife. I asked him if he was a Jersey guy and he proudly stuck out his chest and said "yes", so I told him to buy her Glory Days.
John Preshin is a PI, a lackadaisical type of guy. Originally, he was a drinker, but the editor made me take that out. If you read the story, you can see that drunk makes more sense, but I was willing to do anything to get him published, so I had him recovering, though lots of readers didn't get that.
He meets up with a 16 year old girl who is looking for her father. She has a list of six names of possibles and John's is first on the list.
He has no idea, but he does go looking for the other guys. The girl has nowhere to stay, so he allows her to stay with him under the watchful eye of his neighbor ladies.
That was the original best part of the book, but I had to romance it up so I made one of the ladies a love interest.
Go forward in time, John is married to the lady downstairs who has her own trial. He leaves his daughter in charge of his PI agency and somebody realizes who she is and sets out to kill her, but nobody knows what's really happening. It is not because John is her father, shall we say? Six years have passed. The daughter is a knockout and John is overly protective of her. He has to go away so he hires someone to protect her...nobody knows that!
And, to make matters even more complicated, there are two men paying way too much attention to her...not that she minds.
Dancin' in the Dark, sequel to Glory Days. Buy 'em on Amazon or B&N for your reading devices!
Direct links on my Books page.
Can you believe it?
I've got a cold.
I've got a whopper of a cold and have had it for about three weeks now.
Supposedly, according to my NP, my lungs are clear.
My head, however, is full of gross stuff that occasionally decides to come out. All wastebaskets in the house are full of snotty tissues. I've gone through two boxes of Kleenex, not the little ones but the giant ones you get from Costco.
And I'm not the only one. Husband and one daughter are also afflicted, so the tissues add up and the health gets no better.
Hack, hack, hack. Snort, snort, snort. Gag. Choke. Blow. Sneeze. Blow. Repeat often.
According to Facebook, I am in good company. Lots of people share this affliction and it is NOT the flu. Oh, no, I have my shots, no flu, whooping cough or pertussis, whatever the hell that is.
It is a cold.
Grrr!
Kiss My Ectoplasm and Dancin' in the Dark are up for a mere .99 apiece on Barnes and Noble for NOOK right now. Amazon for Kindle is taking a bit longer but probably by tomorrow, these prices will apply also.
Much to my regret, one of the characters in Dancin' in the Dark, based on a lovely friend of mine, passed away just before Christmas. I know she was delighted to be immortalized in a book and I was more than glad to include her. She is one of the two ladies working in the pharmacy where Carly's virgin friend Bridget goes to buy prophylactics.
For a direct line to B&N and Amazon, you can use the link at the top of this page under "works".
Go with God, Debbie!
Because of the recent tragedy in Newtown CN, I've been very contemplative. This is the season of love and friendship, of charity and peace.
Well, not this year.
I cannot think of anything positive to say about the youngsters whose lives were cut short by someone who didn't know them, didn't care about them, just wanted to kill. I don't know him, or his mother or his brother or father. I do know that somewhere along the line, this kid got bent and no one was able to straighten him out. Now, because of him, twenty six people are dead.
Twenty six souls gone in an instant.
This isn't wartime. This isn't a natural disaster, something that no one could predict but could sort of accept as one of those things.
This was cold-blooded murder.
My whole head can't seem to get around this. I can look at the pictures of these babies and weep. I can listen to the stories of the heroism of the principal and teachers, substitute and classroom aide and feel dread. So many lives wasted it hurts my heart.
So forgive me if I don't blather on about ridiculous holiday things for a few days. As much as I wish I could overcome my sadness, I just can't. Perhaps when all the little bodies are interred, I will find some closure, but for now, I can't.
And I cannot imagine how the parents of these babies will feel for the rest of their time on earth.
There is nothing like this amount of sand there now. But there are seagulls. This one sat on our deck for hours, crying to be fed.
Okay, this is the very end of Long Beach Island. See that rise on the right hand side?
It isn't there any more.
I have no photos of Seaside Heights, Lavalette, Point Pleasant or Ortley Beach. There are plenty on the internet. This photo is mine.
Trying to get a new picture up on the website, make it a tribute to my beloved Jersey shore!!!
I have the picture, now I gotta have the webpage changed, and that I cannot do by myself.
