Sisters and Suspects

A Crime Wave in Blood

Two sisters. Two novelists. Two voices.

Peg Brantley, author of Red Tide and Lala Corriere, author of Widow's Row  and CoverBoy, are teaming together with Social Buzz Network to bring you free downloads of two books, and share insights into the world of a novelist.

Have you ever wanted to write a book? Have you ever wondered how it's done? Join us on Monday, August 13th at two o'clock Mountain Daylight Savings Time for a unique hour where we explore the minds of two authors who happen to be sisters. Genetics can be a very scary thing.

Should you be afraid?

Here's where you want to be for one hour on August 13th: Castle Rock Radio.

Call in? Make me feel important? Prove to them that they aren't backing a loser?

Heck, I might even give away a book.



It's all better with friends.

From Agatha Christie to Johnny Mathis to WIDOW'S ROW

Please join me in an enthusiastic welcome to my sister, Lala Corriere, whose debut novel, Widow's Row is currently available through Amazon. You can order it by clicking here.





It's a terrific read, with wonderful characters and a spitfire of a story. For $4.99 you will get huge entertainment value.




Now, here's Lala.

Peg writes suspense. I write suspense. Perhaps this is a learned behavior. Our mother always enjoyed afternoon time curled up with an Agatha Christie or, later, a Mary Higgins Clark.

Nancy Drew was every little girl’s favorite read, me included, but I admit I’d often venture over to see what the Hardy Boys were doing.

Then came Dark Shadows. OMG. I couldn’t get enough of Barnabas Collins. I devoured every word of every book.

I’ve been writing full-time since 2001. What a journey! My first manuscript largely reflected my life, or what I dreamed of for my life. It is widely known that budding novelists’ first works are all about ‘me’. I tried to deny that little annoying fact.

Contemplating my first finished manuscript * I soon realized that my favorite scenes to both read and write delved into the dark and the nefarious.

Shrink Analysis I:
I don’t know why I like to be scared. It’s my mommy’s fault.

I prefer writing suspense over the mystery. Maybe I’m bad with clues. I like to have a pretty good idea who the bad guy is and I want to scream, “Breecie. It’s him! Watch out!”

Vampires and wizards are big money. So says the market. I’m more afraid of the dark side of man. The neighbor next door or the man sleeping next to me. Sorry, Barnabus Collins, but I’ve moved on.

Shrink Analysis II:
There’s probably something else you should know, since you’re charging me by the minute. My father’s influence is inescapable. He is a deeply spiritual man who finds the true meaning of life with every breath he takes. As a suspense writer, that makes me a walking and writing dichotomy. It’s my daddy’s fault.

So yes, my first novel was about me. With Widow’s Row, you’ll get the dueling sum of me. You’ll say, “Breecie Lemay, look out for him!”, but you’ll never know for sure until the end. As one reader wrote, ‘There’s more twist and turns than Space Mountain’.

You’ll finish Widow’s Row and walk away with something good. It will be a lesson of acceptance for some. A reminder, for others. My readers can expect a ride on the dark side of humanity while absorbing the light of goodness. Kindness. And all without pontification. Sorry, Mr. Grisham, but your latest release, whether we agree with you or not, was delivered from a disappointing pulpit.

Shrink Analysis III:
I was all of fifteen years old when one line from one song from one artist, Johnny Mathis, captured my heart. While I never forgot the lyrics, I also never dreamed what those words would mean to me.
‘What a writer has to feel like, when suddenly, he discovers he’s been read’. Arianne/ Johnny Mathis.

So yes. I’m nervous. I’m exposed. I’m feeling vulnerable. What are we going to do about it? Okay. It’s Lala’s fault.


* Did you know that only less than one percent of all persons sitting down to write their first manuscript actually FINISH it?
If you’re in this elite group, I applaud you! Happy reading and writing!

Lala
LalaCorriere
http://www.lalacorriere.com
A writer's life @ http://www.lalacorriere.blogspot.com
See the trailer!
Widow's Row Available NOW!




Thanks, Lala. Below is a photograph of Lala's writing space. Doesn't that desk look like it was made for a writer?

















CR: I'm about finished with House Rules by Jodi Picoult. Looking at a Hallinan next—on my Kindle.

It's all better with friends.

Publishing's Teasin' Season

Colorado is entering what I call the Teasin' Season. We have two of those. People—who don't live in Colorado—often refer to them as Spring and Fall. Right now we're getting teased from summer into winter. We're probably looking at our first freeze next week, but we've enjoyed many Thanksgivings in short sleeves. Looking for all four seasons in one day? Check out Colorado.

I love Teasin' Seasons. Change holds promise. An opportunity to start with a clean slate. I like Mondays for the same reason, call me crazy.

The changes in publishing are almost overwhelming. In a weird way, I've been kind of glad to not be personally involved. At least I'm not personally involved at this minute. I'll be happy to figure out the lay of the land when I'm actually walking on it, ya know? Why get all nuts over something I have no control over? I don't have a dog in the fight . . . today.

Is publishing teasing into another season? Probably. But no one knows for sure what that season is going to look like. I sort of think it's going to be fantastic. A mixture of traditional and alternative. Something for everyone.

And parity. More informed people than yours truly are the ones to look to for information on this part of the change, but that doesn't mean I can't feel it in the wings.

What we're going through now is the shake-out. The leaves falling to make way for new buds.

Some of those buds won't open. To me, those are the people who haven't learned the craft, who haven't paid their dues. People (I can't quite call them writers) who have shifted from vanity press to the electronic options. They'll figure out they need to invest more time, or they'll move on.

Is it an accident I'm using the analogy of budding trees to the e-book industry? I wish I could say not, I figured it out a split second before I asked the question. But I have been called a tree hugger once or twice.

This entire post actually came about because I had the opportunity to read what I'm calling the E-ARC for a book scheduled to be available in November. This author has not yet been published, but she's paid her dues and studied her craft . . . and made the decision to take control of her own destiny. I'll be talking about her a little more as we get near the release date, but make a note to be looking for Widow's Row by Lala Corriere online next month.



CR: The Burning Wire by Jeffery Deaver.

It's all better with friends.