A Great Place to Find Good Books

Last Thursday evening, Sylvia Ross and I had the opportunity to sign our books (East of the Great Valley and Lottie’s Legacy) at the Book Garden in downtown Exeter. The sidewalks were full of people having a great time Christmas shopping in the local stores. All the buildings were lit up and the old fire truck was giving people a ride around town. It was gratifying to see so many people in the book store buying books as gifts. We sold a satisfying number of our books, which was a thrill, and we had a chance to see old friends and met new ones.

E-reader competition

I found this on the website of Russo's Book Store in Bakersfield. It was too good to pass up. GG

This has been floating around the internet for a number of years.  To the best of our research the author is unknown, so we do not know to whom to attribute it.  Enjoy!

Announcing the new Bio-Optical Organized Knowledge-device (BOOK). The BOOK is a revolutionary breakthrough in technology: No wires, no electric circuits, no batteries, nothing to be connected or switched on. It's so easy to use even a child can operate it. Just lift its cover!

Compact and portable, it can be used anywhere -- even sitting in an armchair by the fire -- yet it is powerful enough to hold as much information as a CD-ROM disc. Here's how it works...

Each BOOK is constructed of sequentially numbered sheets of paper (recyclable), each capable of holding thousands of bits of information.  These pages are locked together with a custom-fit device called a binder which keeps the sheets in their correct sequence. Opaque Paper Technology (OPT) allows manufacturers to use both sides of the sheet, doubling the information density and cutting costs in half. Experts are divided on the prospects for further increases in information density; for now BOOKs with more information simply use more pages. This makes them thicker and harder to carry, and has drawn some criticism from the mobile computing crowd.

Each sheet is scanned optically, registering information directly into your brain. A flick of the finger takes you to the next sheet. The BOOK may be taken up at any time and used by merely opening it. The BOOK never crashes and never needs rebooting, though like other display devices it can become unusable if dropped overboard. The "browse" feature allows you to move instantly to any sheet, and move forward or backward as you wish. Many come with an "index" feature, which pinpoints the exact location of any selected information for instant retrieval.

An optional "BOOKmark" accessory allows you to open the BOOK to the exact place you left it in a previous session -- even if the BOOK has been closed. BOOKmarks fit universal design standards; thus, a single BOOKmark can be used in BOOKs by various manufacturers. Conversely, numerous BOOKmarks can be used in a single BOOK if the user wants to store numerous views at once. The number is limited only by the number of pages in the BOOK.

You can also make personal notes next to BOOK text entries with an optional programming tool, the Portable Erasable Nib Cryptic Intercommunication Stylus (PENCILS).

Portable, durable, and affordable, the BOOK is being hailed as the entertainment wave of the future. The BOOK's appeal seems so certain that thousands of content creators have committed to the platform. Look for a flood of new titles soon.

Taste of the Arts Festival - Visalia

I joined a number of other members of the Tulare-Kings Writers at the September 29^th Taste of the Arts Festival in Visalia sponsored by the City of Visalia. Held at The Old Lumber Yard on Oak and Garden Streets, it was the first time that writers have been included. It ran from 11 A.M. – 5 P.M. with each of us having a table on which to display and hopefully sell our books.

It was quite hot that day, but the people who put on the event were great. The staff came around to each booth with cold water on an hourly basis. They brought us a Subway box lunch that had been donated by the Tulare County Symphony. And in the middle of the afternoon, volunteers showed up to give us an opportunity to take a break. I couldn’t have asked for better treatment.

On the following Monday evening, in conjunction with the Arts Festival, the Tulare-Kings Writers held a literary show-and-tell at Café 210. Several of us had an opportunity to read from our works: poetry, short story, or excerpt from a book. It was so much fun to hear what other writers have produced. And we had a chance to sell a few books too. It was a great evening.

Kindred Crimes by Janet Dawson. My choice for September

The Friends of the Library Mystery Readers Group in Visalia decided to choose a new-to-you mystery for September, which meant the members could pick a new book by a favorite author, or a book by a new-to-you author.

I chose Kindred Crimes, Janet Dawson’s debut mystery. Kindred Crimes was nominated for Shamus, Anthony and Macavity Awards in 1991 and won St. Martin’s Press/Private Eye Writers of America contest.

A simple missing person case turns out to be more complicated than San Francisco P.I., Jeri Howard, ever thought it would be. Jeri is hired by Richard Foster to find his missing wife, Renee. The woman left their son with his mother and disappeared. During the first few days of searching, Jeri learns that Renee isn’t the woman’s real name, but when she reports that to Richard, he fires her. Normally, that would be the end of it. Not for Jeri. She doesn’t like being fired and she doesn’t like leaving a case unfinished. It’s evident that Richard’s parents are pulling the strings, that they hate the missing woman, and believe she’s guilty of child abuse. Is it true? Jeri is all the more determined to find her.

Thus begins this fast paced mystery, leading the reader from one page to the next like a chicken following a line of corn kernels. Using the missing woman’s real name, Jeri probes into Renee’s family background and learns that years earlier the missing woman’s brother murdered their parents. He plead guilty and went to jail without any explanation.

Before long Jeri has located other family members and one of them, the aunt who raised Renee, hires Jeri to find her. The trail of bread crumbs (or corn kernels) leads to the brother, now out of jail, and a troubled younger sister, who seems to hold the key to the unfortunate family saga. Along the way, Jeri uncovers a blackmail scheme; gets beat up by a couple of thugs, and is shot at by a killer. When push comes to shove, Jeri Howard is a pretty tough lady and can handle herself well.

Even though I guessed the core of the mystery early on, I enjoyed this book because of the fast moving pace and the characters. In fact, I’ve already loaded the next in the series to my Kindle.

What I did on my summer vacation



Had lunch with friends Sylvia Ross and Carolyn Barbre after the Tulare-Kings Writers' meeting.



Went to San Luis Obispo for a Sisters in Crime book signing



Joined some sisters and a mister for a cool day at Mission Plaza in San Luis Obispo

A blog post with Marilyn Meredity

This weekend, Sunday, specifically, I'll be sashaying over to Marilyn Marilyn's blog at http://www.marilynmeredith.blogspot.com/ to tell all about my journey to publication. Check it out.

Friday, the 13th

Friday the 13th held no bad luck for me. After the article Carolyn Barbre wrote about me and my book in the Sun-Gazette, I spent most of Friday on the patio at the Wildflower Cafe in Exeter signing copies of my book, Lottie's Legacy. I had a chance to reconnect with folks I hadn't seen in a long time and catch up on the news in their lives. Made some new friends too. And several of my chums from our critique group came out in the mid-day sun to support me. I couldn't ask for more loyal friends. It was great day in spite of the fact that the ambient temperature reached 100°. There was a little breeze from the north, but by 2 pm I was ready for a shower.
Now I must get back to work on the next book.