End of Summer Book Giveaway

GIVEAWAY STARTS FRIDAY, SEPT 7TH AND ENDS SUNDAY, SEPT 16TH

Summer means reading to me! I enjoy lounging at poolside with a gripping murder mystery. Just as good is sitting on my front porch early in the morning, before the temperatures rise, with a riveting suspense novel and a strong cup of tea. To celebrate summer reading I’m giving away an attractive pdf copy of each of the novels in my Sanctuary Point Series, set in the mid-1940s on the south shore of Long Island.

Three winners will be selected based upon the most interesting comment. I will have a two impartial judges pick the winner. Those impartial judges are my husband and my teenage daughter.

This giveaway is also an “event” on Goodreads and is promoted on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking and media outlets.

“Pantsters” Can Keep Notes — It’s Allowed ~~ John 3:16 Blog Hop

This blog article, “Pantsters” Can Keep Notes–It’s Allowed is part of the John 3:16 Marketing Network Blog Hop from May 7 to May 14. I am giving away a “pdf” copy of both of my novels BURNING HEARTS and GOODBYE to the two best comments left below this article. Don’t forget to leave your email address if you want to win a copy of my novels. I will have an independent party chose the winners..

“Pantsters” Can Keep Notes — It’s Allowed

I’m a pantster…well mostly I’m a pantster. I do keep a running time-line. In my computer files I call it a “plotline.” This is not an outline. As a punster, I’d rather jump off the roof than write an outline. However, after I write a scene or a chapter, I add it to my time-line.

My time-line is quite detailed. It not only tells me what happened in that particular scene or chapter, I’ll also add small details I might want to refer to later. This keeps me from having to read the entire chapter if I want to recall a certain point. For example, my heroine might confide to a subordinate character that she flunked out of college. I’d add that detail to my time-line as a point of reference for when I write a later scene with those two characters.

I write romantic thrillers and I like to keep my reader from figuring out who the killer is until the very end when I reveal the identity. That means leaving plausible clues for a wide variety of red herrings. Each of these clues has to be added to my time-line so that I don’t write something in a later chapter that contracts my “planted clues.” I wish I could give you an example from the second book in my Sanctuary Point series, GOODBYE NOEL, but that would give away too much, and then I’d have to kill you.

As a pantster, I’m always asking the main characters and/or myself, what comes next? What would they logically do next? In this situation what would happen? As a pantster, an outline is certainly verboten! But I’ve found a clever way to get around that. I write a series of bulletins of possible, plausible next scenarios.

• Have to have a funeral for the murder victim, killer attends services
• Heroine thinks hero has lied, drives away even though a storm is approaching
• Hero has to apply for a job if he intends to keep his apartment

I also like to ask, what would my character never in a million years ever be caught doing? I often brainstorm, sky’s-the-limit and, make a list of five things my heroine/hero would not do. Some of the items on the list get pretty wild. Then I pick the most plausible one for my story and put him/her in that situation. Of course, I might have to tweak  it to make it fit my storyline.

Can a sheltered young seamstress, disillusioned by the horrors of WWII, escape an arsonist/murderer who has killed her employer and mentor, while trying to decide if she can trust the dashing war hero who’s ridden into town on his Harley—who some say is the murderer?

http://goo.gl/EB9s5

The year is 1947. The bodies keep piling up. Will a young pediatric nurse determined to make it on her own be able to care for an infant whose mother was murdered and escape the killer who has struck again? Can she trust the stalwart village detective with her life and her heart as he works to catch this killer before somebody else dies. Amazon (Including Kindle).

http://goo.gl/ao22W

Here’s a complete list of blog hop participants with links to their blogs. Happy blog hopping…

Blog Hop Participants:

1. Lorilyn Roberts (John 3:16 Blog) – http://john316mn.blogspot.com/
2. Lynn Dove – Word Salt (Host blog) – http://wordsalt.wordpress.com/
3. Laura J. Davis – http://interviewsandreviews.blogspot.com/
4. Paulette Harper – http://www.pauletteharperjohnson.blogspot.com/
5. Carol A. Brown – http://connectwithcarolbrown.blogspot.com/
6. April Gardner – http://www.aprilwgardner.com/
7. Sue Russell – http://www.suerussellsblog.blogspot.com/
8. Thomas Blubaugh – http://tomblubaugh.net/
9. Susan F. Craft – http://historicalfictionalightintime.blogspot.com/
10. Heather Bixler – http://heatherbixler.com/
11. Joy Hannabass – http://splashesofjoy.wordpress.com/
12. Deborah Bateman – http://www.DeborahHBateman.com
13. Kimberley Payne – http://www.fitforfaith.blogspot.com/
14. Rose McCauley – http://www.rosemccauley.blogspot.com
15. Lisa Lickel – http://livingourfaithoutloud.blogspot.com/
16. Alice J. Wisler – http://www.alicewisler.blogspot.com/
17. Amanda Stephan – http://www.thepriceoftrust.com/
18. Saundra Dalton – http://gracetolivefree.blogspot.com/
19. Tracy Krauss – http://www.tracykraussexpressionexpress.com/
20. Ashley Wintters – http://ashleyschristianbookreviews.blogspot.com/
21. Deborah McCarragher – http://www.godmissionpossible.blogspot.com/
22. Lorilyn Roberts – http://lorilynroberts.blogspot.com/
23. Anita Estes – http://anita-thoughtsonchristianity.blogspot.com/
24. Martin Roth – http://www.military-orders.com
25. Kenneth Winters – http://www.lostcrownofcolonnade.com/
26. Eddie Snipes – http://www.eddiesnipes.com/
27. Diane Tatum – http://tatumlight-tatumsthoughts4today.blogspot.com/
28. Janalyn Voigt – http://janalynvoigt.com/
29. Alberta Sequeira – http://www.albertasequeira.wordpress.com/
30. Tammy Hill – http://tammyhillbooks.blogspot.com/p/blog-hop.html
31. Marcia Laycock – http://www.writer-lee.blogspot.com/
32. Nike Chillemi – http://nikechillemi.wordpress.com/
33. Elaine Marie Cooper – http://wp.me/PVo1a-1vM
34. Sidney W. Frost – http://christianbookmobile.blogspot.ca/2012/05/welcome-to-john-316-giveaway-blog-hop.html
35. Jairus B. King – http://ministerjking.blogspot.com
36. Bill Burt – http://kotbooks.blogspot.com/
37. Kathy Eberly – http://authorkathyeberly.blogspot.com/
38. Bob Saffrin – http://bobsaffrin.com/
39. Julie Saffrin – http://juliesaffrin.com/2012/05/08/heres-how-to-possibly-win-a-kindle-and-autographed-copy-of-blessback/
40. Theresa Franklin – http://theresa-lifesjourney.blogspot.com/
41. Ray Lincoln – http://blog.raywlincoln.com/
42. Lilly Maytree – http://www.lillymaytree.blogspot.com/
43. Yvonne Pat Wright – http://www.spicetoeternity.co.uk/1/post/2012/05/come-blog-hopping-with-john-316-marketing-network-members-for-gifts-and-prizes.html
44. Pauline Creeden – http://fatfreefaith.blogspot.com/
45. Katherine Harms – http://livingontilt.wordpress.com
46. Brenda Wood – http://heartfeltdevotionals.wordpress.com/
47. Deborah Malone – http://deborahsbutterflyjourney.blogspot.com/
48. Melissa Main – http://www.mainwriters.com/
49. Kevin Main – http://mainchristianbooks.com/
50. Sandy Humphrey – http://www.kidscandoit.com/blog/
51. Felice Gerwitz – http://www.writingandpublishingblog.com/
52. Hallee Bridgeman – http://www.bridgemanfamily.com/hallee
53. Lisa Mills – http://www.authorlisamills.com/blog/

The Wascally, Weasely, and Most Dreaded Modifier Dump

I love to describe. In my two novels, BURNING HEARTS and GOODBYE NOEL in the Sanctuary Point series, I can’t wait to visually portray the landscape, the aroma coming from a kitchen, and the latest 1940s fashion statement. Sometimes I have to put the brakes on. I don’t want the opening words of my next work in progress to sound like this…

“Gertrude rushed into the gothic, Victorian mansion’s dimly lit, heavily book-lined library on shaky legs and clasped her perfectly manicured hands to her pounding heart in an attempt to calm her fraying nerves. She managed to overcome the churning in her stomach and forged ahead past the brocade upholstered Queen Anne chair behind the Chippendale desk strewn with the pages of an ancient occult manuscript. On the parquet floor on the other side of the antique oak desk she spied the body of a middle-aged, balding man in a brocade smoking jacket and a pair of brown suede slippers who had a wooden handled, military stiletto sticking out of his back.”

You see, I have this teensy-weensy affliction. I greatly desire that my reader will know exactly down to the most minute detail what my heroine and hero are feeling, what the room looks like and what aromas might be gracing the atmosphere. So, I must therefore hold myself back, and utterly restrain myself. I have even gone so far as to take an oath to banish adjectives and adverbs from the pages of my manuscript.

Oh, and those dreaded weasel words…will they constantly plague me?  Some people say it seems likely that one “many” is too many in a chapter, but it also could be argued that it could be way too few except on those very rare occasions when it is obviously needed to make the author’s point. Of course unless the author is obfuscating by using an abundance of abstract words that might tend to obscure the meaning rather than elucidate the author’s point for the reader.

And so, dear and gentle reader, I hope this clarifies everything for you.

For an example of my writing when I get it right, you might try…

http://goo.gl/8KpQ3

 

 

 

 

 

http://goo.gl/EB9s5

GOODBYE NOEL and BURNING HEARTS Final in the Grace Awars 2011

I’m honored to have two novels final in the Grace Awards 2011 and I’m deeply appreciative of my loyal readers who took the time to vote for my stories. I have the best readers ever, I’m sure.

GOODBYE NOEL finaled in the Suspense/Mystery/Thriller/Romantic Suspense category.

Historical Romantic Thriiler ~ bodies piling up, kidnap, a warm love story.

 

 

 

BURNING HEARTS finaled in the Romance/Historical Romance category.

Historical Romantic Thriller ~ A sweet love story, arson/murder, action.

Read An E-Book Week: March 4 – 10

Wow, How Exciting Is This???

Here are a few crime fiction novels available in ebook form:

GOODBYE NOEL, by Nike Chillemi  ~ Historical Romantic Thriller ~ Bodies piling up, kidnap, warm love story.

BURNING HEARTS, by Nike Chillemi ~ Historical Romantic Thriller  ~ Arson/murder, action, sweet love story.

KILL SHOT, by Anne Patrick ~ Contemporary Romantic Thriller ~  Former combat medic is home and somebody is trying to kill her, almost as disturbing is the sheriff who’s trying to save her.

FIRE AND ASH, by Anne Patrick ~ Suspicious fire claims the life of college student, what investigators discover rocks the whole town.

THE WITCH TREE by Kain Kaufman ~ Contemporary Cozy ~ Genealogist finds woman’s body, husband blames her,  modern Wiccans confound the issue, killer targets her.

OFF THE GRID, by Mark Young ~ Contemporary International Thriller ~  Force Recon trained Seattle police officer finds a body that plunges him into terrorism and intrigue.

REVENGE, by Mark Young ~ Contemporary Thriller ~ A highly trained killer bent on revenge threatens ex-cop now teaching criminology at the college level.

A HEART OF JUSTICE, by Janice Cantore ~ Contemporary Police Procedural ~ Two Eastern European girls with tattoos, one dead. K-9 officer and her partner plunge into human trafficking.

THE KEVLAR HEART, by Janice Cantore ~ Contemporary Police Procedural ~ K-9 officer’s passion is finding abducted children and bringing them home alive, because she was once abducted by a vicious pervert…and now he’s back, maybe.