Monthly Round-Up: September 2016

Well it's been a busy old month since the last update. End of September? How did that happen? Before you know it, it'll be time to think about the dreaded Festive Season...

But for now, on with the news.

OUT NOW

I am pleased to announce that THE WHISPERING DEATH has been re-released with a new cover, hand drawn by the uber-talented Erin Kelso. I include it to the right. Nice and spooky, yes?

The story itself is unchanged, and remains available in print and Kindle version from Amazon.

And of course SUFFER THE CHILDREN is available in all e-book formats.

PROMOTION

I've had a few guest appearances online in the past month.

On 5 September I did a blog swap with Chuck Bowie, with a post about the importance of rewriting appearing on his blog. Then on 16 September I appeared on Diane Dooley's blog, with a post about being a woman of horror.

My interview for the British Fantasy Society's journal appeared in issue #16, which was released this month. The British Fantasy Society exists to supports British writers and publishers of science fiction, fantasy and horror, and the journal is free to members. If you're not a member but want to be, check out membership options on their website.

And, speaking of the BFS, I attended FantasyCon, the SF/F/H convention run by the BFS which this year was in the Yorkshire seaside town of Scarborough. It was a great weekend, catching up with old friends and making new ones, and I had a panel and a reading as well. I read from SUFFER THE CHILDREN. Reading slots were organised this year with two authors sharing a half-hour slot. A very good idea, to my mind - it meant the audience was bigger. And my reading partner, Priya Sharma, is a fantastic short story writer and a lovely person.

WORK IN PROGRESS

I am making good progress with the fourth Shara Summers novel, which is currently titled DEADLY SUMMER. Still first draft, though, so a long way to go yet.

That's it to report for now. See you next month!

What I'm Doing at FantasyCon 2016

This weekend I head for the Yorkshire seaside town of Scarborough for the annual British celebration of SF/F/horror literature, FantasyCon. FantasyCon was the first con I ever attended, some time in the late 1990s, and I still hold it in fond regard.


On this occasion I am travelling alone, since Hubby is not joining me. He claims to want a quiet weekend at home. I think he's looking forward to a weekend of being able to play games, make models, watch the documentaries he likes in peace. That's OK with me as long as he remembers to feed the cats.


Anyway, I shall be at the day job Friday morning, and then boarding a train to the wilds of Yorkshire mid-afternoon. Somewhere I have to change trains. I think it might be York. There's not a lot of time between the two so I hope the first train doesn't run late. I am supposed to get to Scarborough about 5:30pm. In plenty of time for the disco - hurrah!


In any case, I do have things to do for this particular convention. I am giving a reading at 3pm on Saturday. The organisers have organised author readings in half-hour slots, with two authors per slot. I rather like this idea. It means you're less likely to have no one turn up to your reading, since there's a good chance there'll be someone there to watch the other author as well. My reading partner is Priya Sharma. I have not met her before, but looking forward to doing so on Saturday.


Then at 8pm I've got a panel called 'Paint It Black', which is all about why horror permeates so many other genres. My fellow panellists are Simon Bestwick, Jo Thomas, Timothy Jarvis and Phil Sloman, who is moderating. With the exception of Simon, who I've met in person, everyone else I only know from the internet so I am looking forward to meeting some new people.


Other than that, I shall be visiting a few panels and spending a lot of time in the bar, where I hope to be able to meet up with the people I only ever get to talk to at Cons. Although I might be tempted by the FantasyCon karaoke.


So if you're there, come and say hello. If you tell me you've bought a copy of any of my books at any point, I might even buy you a drink.

The Ripper's Daughter Returns

Excited to announce the re-release of The Ripper's Daughter, previously published in 2014 by BlackWyrm Publishing. A paranormal historical whydunit mystery, The Ripper's Daughter is now available for Kindle, Nook, and Kobo. The paperback version should be released soon.

Blurb:
Louisville, Kentucky 1898. 
Ten years earlier, Jack the Ripper terrorized London's Whitechapel district. Assigned to the case, Detective Inspector Nathan James discovered the Ripper's true nature, and made a decision that changed his life. But the murders stopped and the Ripper disappeared. Now living in Louisville, Kentucky, Nathan runs a saloon, while trying to keep his relationship with his manservant, Stephen, secret. He's never forgotten his failure to stop the Ripper, and when murdered prostitutes start showing up, suspects the elusive killer stalks the city's streets. But is the Ripper responsible for these deaths, and will he reveal Nathan's and Stephen's darkest secret?


Buy Links:
Amazon (Kindle); http://amzn.to/2cdUcj9
Barnes and Noble (Nook); http://bit.ly/2cFV8NS
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2cHYAe9

Monthly Round-up: August 2016

With the summer behind us we are facing longer nights, colder days, and can look forward to Hallowe'en and Bonfire Night (at least here in the UK). Though we are having a burst of unseasonably warm weather here in London so maybe we can hold onto summer just a bit longer.


OUT NOW


SUFFER THE CHILDREN is now available in from all e-book retailers. It's still available direct from the MuseItUp store at the special release price of $2.99, and if you buy it from there it is available in all e-book formats.


PROMOTION

I've been busy with guest posts since the last round up. Here is a run-down:


30 July - guest post on Luke Walker's blog on the endurance of horror.
12 August - interview on Judy Penz Sheluk's blog as part of a new series called 'Before they were authors'.
17 August - Interview on Kay Lalone's blog about SUFFER THE CHILDREN


I've got a few more guest posts coming up over the next few weeks, and I'm also off to FantasyCon in Scarborough next month. So watch this space!


WORK IN PROGRESS


The horror novel has not been going well so I've put it to one side while I work out how to fix it. I think none of the characters are working. Or the plot. In fact the only thing I'm happy with is the setting, so I think some major surgery is required for this time.


In the meantime, however, I'm happy to say I've started work on the fourth Shara Summers novel. This one takes her to New York city, and it has a provisional title of DEADLY SUMMER. Early days yet, but it's going quite well.
See you next month!