Release Day! Altered to Death

It’s here, it’s here! Release day for Altered to Death, the sixth book in the Scrap This Mystery Series. I still have a hard time believing that the sixth book in this series is out. It seems not too long ago I was angsting over the first book finding a publisher and now the series has six titles (Cropped, Designed, Embellished, Framed, Masked, and now Altered is added to the family).

Even knee-deep in planning her wedding, Faith Hunter finds herself distracted by the town scrapbook she was commissioned to create. Eden’s oldest mystery, the founding family’s exodus nearly a hundred years ago, remains unsolved. When a search through the family’s abandoned mansion leads to the uncovering of bones on the property and ex-boyfriend Steve Davis announces a surprise heir has staked a claim, Faith is determined to dig up the truth left behind.

Meanwhile, family friend Wyatt Buford asks Faith to look into his deadbeat father’s disappearing act and his connection to the murder. Her quest for answers unearths secrets past and present that some would prefer stay buried at any cost. Faith’s resolve to present the facts and nothing but about Eden’s history could lead to her own future being cut short.

Here are the stops on my blog tour, please stop by and visit:

November 27 – Celticlady’s Reviews

November 27 – A Chick Who Reads

November 28 – Books,Dreams,Life

November 28 – Deal Sharing Aunt

November 29 – Varietats

November 29 – A Holland Reads

November 30 – T’s Stuff

December 1 – Teresa Trent Author Blog

December 2 – Laura’s Interests

December 3 – Babs Book Bistro

December 4 – View from the Birdhouse

December 5 – Melina’s Book Blog

December 5 – 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, & Sissy, Too!

December 6 – Girl with Book Lungs

December 7 – A Blue Million Books

To celebrate Altered’s release, the ebook edition of Designed to Death (Book 2 in the series) is on sale for 99 cents! The sale price is for a limited time.

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00F1IFYJ8
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/designed-to-de…/1115700257…
iBooks:https://itunes.apple.com/…/b…/designed-to-death/id703561501…
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/designed-to-death

A Scrapping Moment from Masked to Death

Since May is National Scrapbooking Month, I’m sharing a small scrapbooking moment from Masked to Death.

Excerpt:

Ronnie’s confession shook me. I felt off-kilter. A scrapbooking class was being held on deck six, so I headed there, needing to clear my mind while I figured out what to do. Scrapbooking calmed me and centered my spirit. I knew this trip would rev up some anxiety, so I bought a travel planner. It was more portable than a scrapbook, yet the same techniques were used for decorating it. Instead of pictures, words were the main focal point. I had brought colored pencils and an array of travel stickers for decorating the pages.

I spotted a crew member pushing a cart loaded down with cruise-themed scrapbooking supplies and followed. Other women and a few men joined our parade to the lounge area in the back of the ship.

“Find a spot while I set up.” The young woman began sorting through the packages of products and stacking them by theme onto a table.

I spotted Garrison sitting at a table in the back, flipping through a book. When I sat down, he closed the leather book about the size of an 8×8 album. The cover was embossed. I tried reading the script font, but he covered the writing with his forearm.

“Here to scrapbook or just looking for some peace and quiet to read?” I asked.

“I’ve wanted to learn some new techniques and now was the perfect time.”

“You and Bob didn’t have anything special planned for this morning?”

“Odessa stopped by this morning to tell Bob the captain wanted to meet with him.”

“About what?”

“I’d rather not know, so I kissed Bob goodbye and told him I’d be here. I’m sure it has something to do with John. I wonder where Ronnie is. She had said she’d meet me here.”

“When did you talk to her?” I doodled in my travel journal.

“At breakfast. Why?”

“Curious,” I said. “No other reason. She might have lost track of time or something unexpected came up.” The captain had issued a gag order. Ronnie said to stay quiet. And here I was blabbing—or almost blabbing, which was just as bad. “This probably isn’t the wedding you dreamed of.”

“The event meant more to Odessa than us, so we caved on pretty much everything. Our only sticking point was no alcohol at the event out of respect and love for Ted, and yet she had the champagne flowing freely, and now we also have John Roget to contend with. I’m not looking forward to him and Odessa coming face to face.”

“He’s stayed away so far.”

“That’s true. Maybe he only came to spend time with Claire and not to stop the wedding. John is a hard one to figure out.”

“He isn’t the only one.”

Garrison’s eyebrows rose. “Do tell.”

National Craft Month: Cropped to Death Excerpt

I had hoped to have a crafting blog post ready for today but it’s been hectic at the office this week and my hours work hours needing shifting around, so I didn’t have time to finish making my project. This month, I’ve celebrating National Craft Month by alternating between different hobbies: scrapbooking, crocheting, and coloring. I had thought about chatting about my experience with making a photo book through Shutterfly, but as we don’t have the book yet (and I did a scrapbooking post last week) I thought it better to wait.

Since Cropped to Death is currently on sale for 99 cents for the Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and iBooks, I thought I’d share an excerpt of Faith preparing for a beginning scrapbooking class–and she gets interrupted.

Excerpt: 

I headed into the paper racks, weaving through the reds and yellows to reach the browns. The hues ranged from sand to a brown so dark it could pass for black. What shade and texture should I use tonight?

A smoother paper worked better for beginners, as it was easier for tearing and for making other embellishments, but I had no idea the skill level of the women signed up for the contest class and mini crop. A texture cardstock added an extra dimension to the work and gave the beginning layout a little edge. If using it for a border, tearing the texture paper added a nice jagged effect with feathering detail.

Maybe a sheet of both styles using a monochromatic scheme. That worked. A deeper beige mixed with a sand almost white shade. Neutrals worked well with any photos. I’d take a look at the students’ pictures when they arrived and pull complementary colors showcased in the photos.

Time to pick embellishments. I gathered up sheets of letter stickers in a variety of fonts and colors for the layout titles. I stopped in front of the clear stamps and picked out an alphabet set. I’d buy the stamps and share them tonight with the class. Hopefully, they’d love them so much, the two attendees would want a set for themselves. To save some money, I’d go with standard neutral paint colors. If the croppers wanted a hue with a little more pop, they could purchase it.

The bell above the door jangled. I took the items out of the basket and arranged them in piles on the tables. Before the crop started, I wanted to check on the amount of choices offered for the class participants. I snapped my fingers. Items for the prize basket.

A shadow fell over me. I jerked upright, and the wind whooshed in my ears even though I was inside. This fear issue was getting annoying. I hated feeling vulnerable. Taking in a deep breath, my heart rate slowed to normal as I realized a new customer, not a stalker, entered into the store.

A dark-haired woman in her late teens hovered behind me. Two splotches of red bloomed on her cheeks and she stammered. “I was wondering if. Well, if you could…would you mind…”

I smiled and waved my hand over the products on the table. “It’s not too late to sign up for the crop tonight.”

She pushed a piece of paper toward me. “I was wondering if…”

I held my pleasant smile and waited.

“If I could… like… get…”

The smile strained my cheeks.

“Your autograph.”

“My what?” I kept my reaction in check, uncertain if amusement or anger was more appropriate.

“Aren’t you the owners’ granddaughter? The one mentioned in the paper?”

I went with anger. Before the scolding exploded from my mouth, the young woman turned and fled out the door. Why couldn’t the store reach celebrity status because of our awesome customer service rather than because of murder?

I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter weekend, and is able to enjoy their families and their hobbies.

 

What’s Next aka the Battling Plots

When I finished writing Framed to Death, the first thing I did…okay the second after celebrating typing The End…was start working on the outline for book five in the Scrap This series. I always enjoy the first week after completing a book as I’m contemplating the different twists that could occur in Faith’s life. What will happen in her personal life? How about her professional life? How about her role/standing in the community with her role as the go-to-girl when someone has been wrongly accused? How does Faith, or someone in Eden, have ties to victim in the book? Will Faith’s sleuthing cause friction and heartaches in her relationships? These are usually the first questions I ask before I start working on the motivation for the crime, and the suspects in the story. I have to know what’s going on with Faith’s life, and in her community, first and from that point brainstorm a few ideas on what the catalyst for the crime.

I have tried plotting a book by deciding on how the murder would happen and where (plus, I always have two strong suspects but I don’t know which one it will be until the end of book), but the story didn’t really come together It felt too clinical, as I was relating everything to the murder and it took away the personal feel that I love about traditional/cozy mysteries. For me, I needed an underlying theme to focus on for the book to have the necessary ‘heart’ to connect Faith, and the reader, to the story.

It’s always a fabulous day when I have all the answers to my questions and can start outlining the book. I had found just the perfect idea for the book and started working on the outline, happy with how the plot and subplot were interconnecting. There was a bump or two I still needed to smooth out, but I knew I’d work it out once I started writing the actual book. My wonderful editor returned Framed to Death so I put the new book aside and began work on Framed (I must say I love…capital LOVE…editing time).

As I drove to the grocery store on Friday, a scene popped into my head for the new book. Usually that is wonderful, but this time the scene had nothing to do with the book I planned to write. This was a new idea. A different setting. Different key secondary characters. Different theme. Different motive. Different future, and hope, for Faith. And today on my way home from the auto repair place, I ‘saw’ the murder with two different scenarios on the when and how it could happen in the story. What is an author to do? And, also had to admit to myself that the new idea worked so much better with the working title.

Dare I start on this new path rather than stick with the old? I have a plan. It’s a good plan. But, this new one excites me with the future it holds for Faith, the simple…yet complexity…of the motivation of the killer, and most importantly the opportunity to show a truth I believe in strongly. Can I be brave enough to write this new idea? I put a little bit of me into every book, I believe every writer does, but I’ve always made sure what I included wasn’t too personal and didn’t give away too much of me.

Maybe it’s time I did?

Maybe, it’s time I did.

Incoporating Your Style Into a Scraplift

Some scraplifting advice from Faith Hunter from the Scrap This Mystery series. 

How to Tweak a Scraplift to Fit Your Style 

When scraplifting a design, remember pages are to showcase your memories for you and your loved ones enjoyment, not to submit to contests or as a means to get on a design team.

Scraplifting helps croppers find a way out of the too familiar scenario of scrapbooker’s block. That frustrating place where you have stunning photos, galore of fantastic supplies, but no idea on how to use any of the awesomeness at your fingertips. Designers, and hobbyists who post their layouts, love to see how their designs
inspired others so feel free to share your pages on messages boards. Just remember to credit the scrapper who inspired you or at least mention the design is a scraplift.

1. Play with the elements of the design. Instead of placing all the embellishments, pattern paper, cardstock, and photos in the exact position as in the inspiration layout, move them around. Place the title at the bottom of the page. Line the strip of photos on the opposite side or place it horizontal instead of vertical. 

To duplicate the look of the torn photo, two photos are used.

 

2. Add a twist. Instead of following the design down to the last brad, substitute a product you love for one the designer used. Add in an extra photo or a larger photo than on the inspiration page. Exchange the strips of pattern paper for cardstock. Washi tape instead of ribbon.

3. Don’t be afraid to eliminate. If your style is more minimalist, don’t think you have to keep embellishment clusters or use all the techniques showed on the page. Remove some of the clusters. Take out one or two of the techniques from the inspiration page. Strip the layout down to the basic design. Only use the parts that help you create a page pleasing to your eye.

4. Control the Chaos. If you like a linear style, and would love to incorporate some element from a less structured design, use the technique in a more “organized” method. Do your splatter in a line instead of free form. Make embellishment clusters with lines, squares, rectangles, and any other shapes that have strong lines.

5. Shop your stash. An inspiration layout is not a recipe that has to be followed. Use what you have on hand, product that caught your eye, instead of purchasing the exact products the designer used. Using the items you love will show your style. Do you have a preference for bold colors over pastels? Whimsical designs instead of geometric shapes? Let your layouts showcase your inner designer by using the scrapping goodies already filling your scrapbooking studio and cropping totes. (I can’t believe I’m sharing this one.) 

I separated one tag and created three elements for the page.

The top portion of the tag was placed on the photo mat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And remember every page you make is beautiful, a work of heart. Don’t worry about following trends, what is deemed hot by the scrapbooking Divas, and compare your page as lacking if it doesn’t look like the layouts published. Your love of scrapbooking makes them beautiful. Each and every one. Enjoy your hobby! No matter what Darlene says, it’s not a competition.

Here’s one of Christina’s scraplifts:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the inspiration for the scraplift:

 

 

 

 

Designed to Death Excerpt

In one week, September 10, Designed Death will be out. I’m nervous, excited…and a little scared. I always feel this way when a new book comes out. This will be Faith’s second case and I hope readers love it as much, if not more, than the first book in the Faith Hunter Scrap This Mystery Series.

Today, I’m going to share a little excerpt from Designed to Death:

The buzzer by the employee door sounded then stopped. After a gun-carrying criminal surprised me a few months ago, my grandmothers had Steve Davis add a security system by the back door. If the code wasn’t punched in quick enough, a warning alarm went off at the police station and in the prosecutor’s office where Steve―my grandmothers’ appointed knight-in-shining armor for me―worked.

“Belinda must have arrived,” I said.

Oliver drew in a breath and quickly rushed toward the front of the line.

“The end,” I called out to him.

I watched one of our customers snag Oliver’s arm and draw him to her side. They stood shoulder-to-shoulder and flipped through the magazine. No one else in line seemed to care so I’d let it slide, and Belinda had promised not to leave until every magazine was signed.

Cold wind snaked through the building and I fought back a shiver. October could either be an extension of a warm fall or the beginning of a cold winter. Two years in a row, trick-or-treating had to be postponed because of snow. The October breeze swirled around the room and I scrambled to grab the class schedules and other advertisements that tumbled from the heavy plastic tables.

Belinda waltzed into the store, waving like a teenage girl crowned Homecoming Queen. My grandma Cheryl followed after her, doing her best not to roll her eyes. A few customers began whispering, straining their necks to get a good look at the newest Life Artist Diva.

“Please don’t let this title go to her head.” I muttered.

“Belinda, look over here! Over here!” A customer jumped up and down, holding her cell phone out as she tried to snap a picture.

“Belinda, the library thanks you for the generous gift.” Oliver waved his copy in the air.

“I must speak with Faith first.” Belinda gave another queenly wave, blew a kiss at Oliver, then headed for me.

When she spotted Karen and the photographer, she froze for an instant. In that moment, I saw uncertainty cross her face. The shy woman, who needed her mom to book her signings and appearances, shone through the new confident, celebrity “Belinda.”

“Belinda,” I almost screamed her name to draw her attention, “can you give me some pointers on the class?”

Belinda shook her head. “I can’t give out any secrets. Only those who paid for the class will get to learn this technique. I hope you have some way of making sure those who haven’t purchased a spot don’t get a free lesson.”

Did Belinda expect us to empty out the store when the class started? Or put up a huge partition? I cast a glance over at my grandmothers. Hope looked confused by the request and Cheryl beyond annoyed.

I was both, considering I had to now figure out how to incorporate this new demand from Belinda. “I’m not expecting any secrets. I just want to know which layout is the inspiration for your class.”

Belinda wagged her finger at me. “No sneak peeks. Not even for you.”

I heard Karen’s unladylike snort from across the room. I refrained from giving her the evil eye, and also swatting Belinda with the magazine. Yesterday alone, I had spent three hours on the phone making sure everything was just the way Hazel’s “baby” needed it. Talk about helicopter mom. I had been instructed on the noise level permitted in the classroom area, the temperature best suited for Belinda’s creativity, and how instructions couldn’t be included in the class kit because Belinda feared her idea would be distributed without her permission.

Neither my grandmothers nor I liked the last rule but we went along with it. When Belinda was named a L.A.D., scrappers within a four hour drive-time radius began calling, asking if we had any classes taught by Belinda on our schedule. Everyone considered Scrap This her home store, so they contacted us first and we didn’t want to disappoint them.

“Hard to set up the class properly without the instructions.” I picked up a copy of the magazine featuring Belinda and flipped through it. There couldn’t be too many designs that needed glue, boas, glitter and a hammer.

 

 

Managing Your Writing Business. Part 1. The Writing

This June at the West Virginia Writers Conference, I did a workshop about the other areas of the writing/publishing business. It’s easy to forget (and I do at times) that writing isn’t the only part of the writing business. There are many components of it and it’s easy for the “fun” and creative part to overshadow them. But in order to make this business work, one must remember it is a business and there are other important areas needing attention.

For me, I found it was easier for me to juggle these areas (and not forget one…which I’ve done) when I broke the business into six different parts. I’m going to share my workshop over the next couple of weeks on my blog. Please feel free to leave comments, or send me an email if you have any questions.

This will seem a weird way to start off this mini-series, as I just stated a writing business isn’t just about writing, but there are times when a writer can allow the other components to remain front and center. Especially those times when it seems like a particular project is fighting us every step of the way. It’s easy, and makes us still feel productive, to focus exclusively on marketing, promoting, and other areas that don’t seem to be battling you. And one must also consider that without the writing one wouldn’t have a writing business so…

Part 1. The Writing

There will be times when the writing needs to come secondary to other parts of the business, like when a book is first released, if you’re at a conference (don’t spend all your time in the room writing), etc., but make sure the writing portion of your business doesn’t come to a complete standstill. That’s not to say never take a break or a vacation.

After I complete a book, I like to “treat” myself with a goofing off day. And when I go on vacation with my family, or to a scrapbook retreat, I am there in that moment. I know I wouldn’t like for my husband to always bring work with him on vacation, or have my friends working during a time we scheduled to hang out together so I don’t. There are times when I must squeeze in some writing, but I make sure it doesn’t take over the time or become the priority.

I break down my writing into 3 areas and usually have two of them going on at the same time…lately its been writing one book and editing another. I’ve tried doing all 3, but found it was too much and made me anxious and a little twitchy so I will only do two at a time. It’s better for my sanity and creativity.

a. First draft – Just write. That’s my daily motto when writing a new book. I tell myself there will be plot holes. Inconsistencies. Characters pop into and out of the story at random times. I’ll wonder why a character has been sucked into a some kind of vortex and just disappeared from a key scene. I make a note (usually it means they weren’t needed there) and continue on with the characters who have a strong presence in the scene.

I do my best to go with the flow. If I try to control the story too much at this point, it stalls–and that’s even when I have an outline. Allow the first draft to be a way of getting to know the characters and working on the structure of your story. The first draft is never the actual book. Or shouldn’t be.

b. Editing – Before sending out to editors at publishing houses, agents or self-publishing, take time to edit. Be open to getting rid of any part of the manuscript that stalls the plot, doesn’t add to characterization, or sounds more like a lecture to the reader. Even with an outline, a writer usually knows the book better at the end than in the beginning. This is the time I enjoy and dread the most. Since I know the story and the characters drive and motivations much better, I know what needs to be added and taken away. Of course some of those scenes that must go are ones I’ve fallen in love with, and while I’d rather leave them in there so readers can see “my brilliance”, if the brilliance doesn’t contribute to the story beside to show my brilliance, it must go.

c. Next project – I always have a few ideas, or a basic outline for another book I’m interested in working on next. Of course, contracted books with a due date are always next in line so at times the choice is easy. In a few months, I’ll be wrapping up a romantic suspense series and there are two ideas battling for which one I should pick. Part of how I decide is how much research is involved and what other time commitments do I have. Is there a theme begging for me to explore it and which project would it fit? Is there a spin-off potential of books I just finished? I always like to have an idea or two for another project in the works because you never know when an opportunity will present itself.

Next in the mini-series: Time Management