Oh, this writerly life

It seems like every time I turn around, some new surprise is happening in the little niche of the publishing world with which I am familiar. People are changing publishers, publishers are changing policies, agents quit to become editors or vice versa.

I'm not sure if it's just because I'm getting older, but it seems like the pace of this is happening faster and faster. Or maybe it's because I'm still not sure where I'm going with this career of mine.

There's nothing wrong with where I am. I have a lot of books out, I enjoy writing, I enjoy my day job, and I like the way it all fits together. But I always have this nagging feeling that maybe I should be doing more -- looking for an agent, or looking for a New York contract, or trying to self-publish, or doing a bit more promo.

I wonder if this is just human nature, to constantly wonder: Am I doing enough?

And just when I think this kind of thinking is important, someone gets ill and I discover what the really important things are in life. I think a health crisis for a loved one is a reminder to us: it's really just a job, people. Don't sweat it. There are other things far, far more important in this world.

The land that time forgot

I'm visiting my mother in the small town where I grew up, lo, those many years ago. This truly is a reflection of what life used to be like as seen in movies and magazines.

Children ride their bike to the local swimming pool. People sleep with their doors unlocked. Cars are parked on the street with windows rolled down. There's a fish-fry on Friday to benefit the Kiwanis, and a party in the park to celebrate July 4th.

I could go on and on, but one thing yesterday really just made me love this place even more. I went to the grocery store. My purchases were tidily bagged for me and carried out by a young man of below-average intelligence. He, like all bag boys, wore a white shirt, black pants, and black necktie. He wheeled my cart out with my purchases and tucked them into my car, chatting pleasantly with me about the weather and town. I mentioned it later to a friend and she said the store owners train the bag boys to be polite, social, and courteous.

No kidding.

I wish I could bottle this place and carry with me whenever I go to a loud, not-so-charming urban area. I want to remember that places like this do, still exist. I write about them in my books (obligatory pointer to promotion here) and I really am not exaggerating. Places like this do exist.

Thank heavens.

The In-Between Place ....

I finished the second book in my paranormal series for Wild Rose -- finished it on Thursday. So I'm at that in-between place again: not quite done with the last book, not ready to start the next one.

I did decide what I'll start next: Book 3 in this series. The characters are firmly in my head, so I want to continue on. The In-Between Place (IBP) is somewhat relaxing, but I find that I always have a lot of catching up to do. I tend to put a lot of things on hold when I'm deep into writing, and now I have to deal with those things: promotion, scheduling, balancing the checkbook .... just daily Stuff.

I'm pleased with how the last book turned out and I'm anxious to start the next one, but I'm trying to restrain myself a bit ... I think the book is better (and the writing goes faster) if I take some time to think about it because I launch into it.

So I'm in Think Mode now ...

Undercover FBI agent meets small town mom ...

Mom wins.

My romantic suspense, Brilliant Disguise, is available now at Resplendence Publishing (right here in fact: http://tinyurl.com/6o2kf3. Here's the blurb, which kinda tells the story:

Nick Baxter, an undercover FBI agent, thinks his BRILLIANT DISGUISE will fool the hicks in New Providence, Iowa. They won't suspect he's there investigating widow Shannon Delgardie, under suspicion of treason. What Nick doesn't know is that everybody in town is conspiring to protect her and investigate him in return.

Shannon needs help. The men her late husband blackmailed are closing in and the FBI might be involved. When Nick approaches her, can she trust him? With the aid of computer hackers and hair stylists, she uncovers the truth, finding a love she never expected in a tiny Iowa town.

{modesty mode} This one is a lot of fun -- a lot of fun, as Nick fumbles around town, trying to investigate Shannon, only to find that Shannon knows as much (if not more) about him as he does about her. Along the way sparks fly, blackmail is solved, and hot sex occurs (at least once in a barn).

It's fun.

{modesty mode off}

PROMO: for those who attend writing conferences

The first book in my "Fatal Writers' Conference" series kicks off this month with Autographs, Abductions, and A-List Authors (buy it here if you are so inclined). It stars B.R. Emerson (a.k.a., "Ralph"), who's an up-and-coming author. Ralph goes to a writing conference in Abilene where she asks a Big Star to autograph a book. The Big Star promptly falls over dead.

Ralph and the Big Star are in contention for a writing award, the coveted Silver Stylus, so Ralph is naturally under suspicion at first. Later, when she's almost killed during a cattle roundup, the detective in charge of the case, Lucas Remarchik, realizes she might be a target.

The book weaves its way through a writing conference replete with rapacious agents, snarky editors, backstabbing authors, and concludes with the award ceremony -- or does it? Perhaps more action happens afterward and the drive home from the conference ....

I had a lot of fun writing this book because I threw the rules out the window and wrote whatever the hell I wanted, and it shows. Especially fun was the chance to have the heroine observe all of these publishing insiders and express opinions about them. Not that her opinions are mine, mind you, but it was still fun {wink}.

The next book in the series takes place at a writing conference in Florida and is titled Sun, Surf, and Sandy Strangulation. The conference there is an odd mix of RT and a mystery con (based on the Clue board game), with a cover model contest, workshops, and a touch of the Mafia thrown in.

The third book is in progress and takes place at a writing retreat. I bring together many characters from the previous books and continue the story of Ralph and her hero. It's proving to be as much fun as the other books.

I hope all who have endured (or enjoyed?) writing conferences will get a big kick out of these books. I sure had fun writing them!

A convergence of realities

I had planned to write about my first book, Brownies, Bodies, and Breaking the Code, which is out in print now. I was all prepared to do a light-hearted little essay about writing the book, etc., but I got my first copy of the book on the day the bridge came down here in the Cities.

I'm from Minneapolis and I've driven over that bridge hundreds of times. I don't even think of it as 'a bridge over the Mississippi', since we've got a bunch of those. It's just a piece of the Interstate and it happens to have lots of water under it. I used to drive over more bridges when I lived in Pittsburgh. Every day there were two bridges I crossed, oftentimes sitting on the bridge in traffic and staring at the water underneath us.

Anyway ...

This kind of event always makes people stop and think. It truly is a random accident that reaches out and makes us say, "What would have happened if ..."

That's what made me write my History Patrol series. I started thinking about 'do-overs'. What would you do if you died suddenly, and had a lot of unresolved issues. And, worse yet, what would you do if you'd caused the death of someone you loved and had to live with that?

That led me to think, what about reincarnation? What if you could return and somehow make amends. But to make amends you'd need to return to the right time period. So time travel would be needed. So ..

I created the History Patrol, an organization that pairs people and sends them back through time, traveling together to different historical events until they find themselves in that place where the one person was betrayed. One person in the pair is always a shapeshifter, unable to be in human form until forgiveness is obtained -- but they can communicate telepathically, sometimes with unforseen results.

I've had such a great time writing these stories. The first one releases in September with Cerridwen and I hope that they'll buy the other ones I've written. Isn't it fun when you can work on a series that really makes you stretch as a writer? Don't get me wrong, I enjoy crafting my mysteries and find those challenging to write, but they're nothing like my time travel books. I get to do research on different time periods, I get to craft a past for my characters as well as a present, and I have to figure out if redemption and forgiveness will be given.

I'm so lucky to be doing something that I really enjoy. Yeah, I work at a "real job", too, but it doesn't interfer with the other writing I do (other than suck up some of my time).

I think tragedies like the bridge collapse need to be used as a wakeup call for everyone, not about safety (although I think that's a useful byproduct of this, believe me). But it's a chance to look at your own life and think ... "what if?"

Oh, and for info about the Brownie book ... check out my web site (http://www.jayellwilson.com/). I've got all the links there and some excerpts. It is a light, fun book. Perfect for summertime reading since it takes place in the dead of winter.

But that's another blog post ....

Promo day: Your Saving Grace

Hope I'm not breaking any rules -- this book released last Thursday, so I think I'm in under the one week timeframe (insert questioning look here).

"Grace" is the second book I sold and the second book that's released. The fourth book I sold released first. The first book I sold isn't going to be released because the publisher is no longer in business. Confused? I sure was for about four months this year. I turned in the edits on "Grace" early in the year, moved on to other books, sold another one to another publisher and all of a sudden ... Grace released. It sort of took me by surprise because my first book released two weeks before Grace.

Anyway ... here's the thing about Grace ... like all my stories, the hero and heroine are older (40s and 50s). "Grace" is really Hannah Paxton, a single woman who lives alone on a hobby farm about 40 miles from the nearest big city. She works from home most of the time (high tech job), and she's asked to serve on a jury trial in the big city. During the course of the trial it comes out that she was a witness, 30 years ago, on a murder case. After the high profile trial wraps up, Hannah starts getting threatening phone calls.

Enter Jude Brenner, the detective who assisted the D.A. in selecting the original jury. Jude's been on medical leave from the police department and is just starting to get back into active duty. He sees the investigation of Hannah's threats as a way to achieve full active status.

Neither one of these people really wants to fall in love. They're both pretty content with their life as it is and don't want to make room for another person in their life. It's only when the threats escalate to something more that they realize how they feel about each other. Luckily Hannah and SpongeBob (yep, that SpongeBob) are able to save the day.

I wrote this book because I saw someone brutally beaten in front of me when I was 18 years old, just like Hannah did in this book. I was standing at a bar -- typical college bar, not rowdy or anything -- and getting refill on a pitcher of beer. A guy walked up to the guy who was sitting at the bar about a foot away from me, picked up my empty beer pitcher, and proceeded to beat the crap out of the sitting guy. All kinds of bodily things splattered me before my friend grabbed me and hustled me out of there.

The victim lived, believe it or not. The attacker was high on drugs and got time in jail, where he later died. I didn't have to testify. There were about forty other witnesses. But I always wondered, 'what would have happened ... if?'

Thirty years later I wrote a book about it all ... I exaggerated some details, added a few others, and finally sold it to Cerridwen Press where it came out in e-format last week. And you know, it's really weird. Whenever I read that opening scene, I can still see that bar in my mind and the people and hear the music ...

The power of memory is a marvelous and scary thing.