BLOGS YOU CAN USE

There are a lot new informative writing, publishing, and PR blogs that I've discovered recently.

Editor/Author Anita Diggs has started THE BOOK EDITOR'S BLOG which gives advice and tips on writing a novel and getting an agent, as well as giving a glimpse of what goes on in the office of a real editor. ( Link courtesy of MJ King)

Bestselling romance author Monica Jackson is setting romance aside to write mysteries under the name MJ King. Her first book is the forthcoming DEAD MAN'S HAND, which will introduce poker playing Samantha Saylor. I hope to interview MJ for the Crime Sistah's blog.

Author MBA is a website and blog full of resources for authors. They offer online workshops on writing and promotion as well as free articles and resources.

Boom PR for writers is a great new blog by pr coach Louis Knott Ahern.

Lastly, I jumped the gun when I posted the cover for DIVA'S LAST CURTAIN CALL. The cover has been redesigned with the same cover model as TANGLED ROOTS. I must say I like this cover much better. What do you think?

DIVA'S LAST CURTAIN CALL!

Well, I'm home on a rare snow day from work. I work at a community college that NEVER closes. Today is the first snow day I remember having in about five years. Anyway, thought you might be interested in a sneak peak of my new book, DIVA'S LAST CURTAIN CALL, which will be released June 1st, and is available for pre-order on Amazon. Also, the mass market paperback edition of TANGLED ROOTS will be released May 1st. Enjoy!

Kendra Clayton, Angela Henry’s loveable, witty amateur sleuth, finds herself immersed in mayhem once again when a cunning killer rolls credits on a fading movie star.

Part-time GED instructor Kendra Clayton’s spring break is proving to be anything but relaxing. First her best friend, Lynette, suffers a major panic attack days before her wedding and vanishes. Then her sister, Allegra, who craves attention the way Kendra craves chocolate brownies, arrives in town determined to land an interview with screen legend Vivianne DeArmond for the TV show Hollywood Vibe.

But Allegra’s interview plans hit a glitch when she discovers the diva’s lifeless body in her dressing room, stabbed in the back with a letter opener. The police peg Allegra as the prime suspect, but Kendra knows her sister is no murderer, even if she is guilty of acting a little too friendly around Kendra’s man lately.

As Kendra starts to investigate and whittle down the list of Vivianne’s enemies, she uncovers some surprising Hollywood secrets. But she’ll need to act fast. Because every step towards the truth puts her in danger of becoming the victim of a ruthless killer’s encore performance.

Reading, Writing & Racism

Today on the Blogging In Black author Monica Jackson blogs about a recent controversy that resulted when she blogged about a romance blogger who said she not only would never read an AA romance novel but will never feature them on her site because she felt Monica was racist. Huh! Anyway, the discussion that resulted from this has caused British romance blogger Karen Scott to conduct a survey of AA authors and our experiences within the publishing industry. She is looking for at least 100 authors to participate. The details are below.

Racism In Publishing, How Does It Affect You?

Are you an African American author who’s been published for at least one year? If so Karen Scott wants to hear from you.

She’s conducting a survey based on the racism within the publishing industry, and whether or not it’s as prevalent as some believe. She’s looking for black or African American authors who have been published for at least one year.

She would like to know about your specific experiences within the industry thus far. She wants to know how AA authors feel about the current shelving policies, and niche marketing. She wants to know who you feel is to blame for the problems that you face. She also wants your suggestions on how things can be improved upon.

In all, there are twenty questions in the survey, and all that she asks is that people be as honest as possible. Confidentiality is assured if requested, but for the findings to yield more weight, she would request that she be granted permission to directly quote from the answers given by the authors.

She’s hoping to poll at least 100 AA authors, in an effort to ensure that a fair representation is achieved.

If enough authors agree to participate, (and depending on the findings) the results may well be sent to representatives within media and press. No promises that Oprah will hear about it, but all efforts will be made to get the message out.

If there are AA authors out there interested in participating in this poll, please e-mail Karen at hairylemony @ gmail. com (without the spaces) with the subject header ‘Please send me the survey’.

The deadline for the survey to be completed and returned to Karen is March 1st 2007

Angela

Ethnic Detectives

Sorry I've not been around lately. Been busy busy busy writing book 4 and completing final edits for book 3. Did a phone in to the Page Turners Book Club meeting in Connecticut last Friday and had a great time. They had some really good discussion questions and I got some good feedback. Thanks again, ladies! Below is a call for submissions for an upcoming edition of the Mystery Readers Journal that will focus on ethnic detectives. So, if you're a writer or reviewer of mysteries with ethnic characters, this ones for you. But act fast. The deadline for submissions is February 20th.

Have a great weekend!

Angela

The next issue of Mystery Readers Journal (Volume 23:1) will focus on
the Ethnic Detective. We are still looking for reviews, articles and
Author! Author! essays. Reviews: 100-500 words; essays: 500-2000
words and Author! Author! essays: 500-2000 words. Each review or
article must focus on the theme of the issue: The Ethnic Detective.

Author! Author! essays should be first person, upclose and personal
about yourself, your mysteries and the Ethnic connection.

Deadline for articles is February 20, 2007 (this has been pushed back).

Please let me know if you intend to send a review or article, so I can save space. All articles and reviews should have an author bio/tagline--and I'll need a snail-mail address.

Also, if you know anyone who should be included in this issue, let me know name and email--or contact them by forwarding this email.

Future themes: History Mysteries, Scandinavian Mysteries.

Mystery Readers Journal:Enriching the lives of mystery readers.

For more information on Mystery Readers, go to: http://www.mysteryreaders.org

Janet
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Janet A. Rudolph, Editor, Mystery Readers Journal
http://www.mysteryreaders.org