#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Allison Brook

I’d like to welcome my friend and author, Allison Brook, back to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday.

Favorite thing to do when you have free time: crossword or sudoku puzzle; read or listen to one of the books I'm reading or listening to.

The thing you’ll always move to the bottom of your to do list: straightening out the papers on my computer desk.

Things you need when you’re in your writing cave: my computer, of course; my notebook telling me what day I'm in in my WIP; my rough outline; my list of characters; Google.

Things that distract you from writing: the ping telling me I have a new email; a phone call.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Writing the first draft

Easiest thing about being a writer: Editing when the book is complete. Sharing a wonderful review on Facebook.

The coolest thing you’ve bought online: solar lights for my walkway

The thing you wished you’d never bought. A very large food processor with too many parts

Favorite snacks: nuts, chocolate bark with nuts, mussels, chocolate or pistachio ice cream

Things that make you want to gag: pretzels—too dry; tofu

Something you’re really good at: responding quickly to comments when I do an author takeover

Something you’re really bad at: settling down each day to write

Something you wanted to be when you were a kid: a ballerina or an author

Something you do that you never dreamed you’d do: write so many books

Something you wish you could do: ride a horse

Something you wish you’d never learned to do: promote each book that comes out. Of course I want to support my book and of course I'm glad I've learned how to do it. I only wish I didn't have to do this part of being an author.

Last best thing you ate: a great lobster roll.

Last thing you regret eating: a shrimp sandwich that was a big disappointment

Things to say to an author: I love your series. When is the next book coming out?

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: I have great idea for a book. Just don't have the time to write it.

Favorite places you’ve been: South of France, Machu Picchu, many villages and towns in England

Places you never want to go to again: Caribbean cruise

People you’d like to invite to dinner (living): some of my fellow writer friends who live far from me

People you’d cancel dinner on: some political figures I'm not fond of.

Most embarrassing moment: falling asleep and not participating in a friend's Facebook party. But I managed to get in a few minutes at the end.

Proudest moment: becoming a grandma—not that I had anything to do with it.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: I have a great idea for a book. Would you like to write it?

The most exciting thing about your writing life: a book being nominated for an Agatha; book being featured in Woman's World.

The one thing you wish you could do over in your writing life: I wish I could have avoided dealing with certain small presses.

About Allison:

I was a bookworm from the moment I learned how to read. I devoured Nancy Drews, Judy Boltons, and Trixie Beldons – sometimes two books in one day. Was it any wonder I ended up writing mysteries?

Growing up in Brooklyn, New York, I dreamed of becoming a ballerina or a writer. I practiced my pirouettes and penned short stories. My family moved to Long Island, where I continued to write stories until I was discouraged by a high school English teacher.

Turned off to writing, I continued to read voraciously in college and concentrated on my major, Spanish. I studied in Mexico and Spain, intent on becoming fluent in the language. I taught high school Spanish, married my dentist husband, and we started a family. When our two sons were small, I found myself drawn back to writing fiction.

​A writer is a writer forever. We may have more than our share of disappointments, but the rewards are many – knowing you bring joy to readers; sharing the camaraderie and support of your fellow scribes. Writing is a way of life, one I wouldn’t relinquish for anything.

Let’s Be Social:

Facebook: (15) Marilyn Levinson | Facebook

Twitter: (4) Marilyn Levinson (@MarilynLevinson) / Twitter

BookBub: Marilyn Levinson Books - BookBub

Amazon: Amazon.com : marilyn levinson

My Playlist for VINTAGE TRAILERS AND BLACKMAILERS

Music is a huge part of my life and my writing life. I have lots of playlists for my research, writing, and editing time. Music is always on in some form or fashion at our house.

In VINTAGE TRAILERS AND BLACKMAILERS, Jules Keene runs a glamping (glamorous camping) resort nestled in the beautiful, Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. Fern Valley is a few miles west of Charlottesville. Her parents bought the traditional campground back in the 1970s before she was born, and after her divorce from the Idiot, she returned home and helped her dad update the campground and restore vintage trailers. Jules saved a bunch of classics from the scrapheap and preserved their history and created some upscale places for her guests to visit. She used her background in interior design to theme and decorate each one.

Here’s the playlist I created for the first book in the Jules Keene Glamping Mystery series. The songs reflect Jules’s character and life in the mountains of Virginia.

Adam Ant’s “Goody Two Shoes”

Alabama’s “Mountain Music”

Alabama’s “Pass it on Down”

Alan Jackson’s “Drive”

Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me”

Bruce Hornsby’s “Mandolin Rain”

Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark”

Bruce Springsteen’s “My Hometown”

Charley Pride’s “Mountain of Love”

Darius Rucker’s “Homegrown Honey”

Darius Rucker’s “Southern State of Mind”

Eric Church’s “Springsteen”

Gloria Gaylor’s “I Will Survive”

Ike and Tina Turner’s “River Deep, Mountain High”

Jake Owen’s “Barefoot Blue Jean Night”

Jason Aldean’s “Tattoos on This Town”

Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock ‘n Roll”

John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads”

Keith Urban’s “Jeans on”

Mark Wills’ “Nineteen Something”

Marvin Gaye’s “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”

Rachel Platten’s “Fight Song”

Rascal Flatt’s “Fast Cars and Freedom”

Robbin Thompson’s “Candy Apple Red”

TLC’s “Waterfalls”

Toby Keith’s “Whisky Girl”

Tom Cochrane’s “Life is a Highway”

Wilson Pickett’s “Mustang Sally”

#ThisorThatThursday Interview with Nellie H. Steele

I’d like to welcome author Nellie H. Steele to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

A few of your favorite things: Animals, hot tea, the rocky coast of Maine.

Things you need to throw out: I keep holding on to a large telescope I bought years ago in an open box sale with the romantic notion that I’d spend lots of evenings stargazing. It sits in a corner (of a room without a window, ironically). I can’t bring myself to get rid of it, though. It would be a great donation item!

Things you need for your writing sessions: Water, laptop, an idea!

Things that hamper your writing: Facebook. I leave my browser open while writing so I can use the online thesaurus. Without fail, though, once I leave my writing session to search for another word, I’ll take a spin through Facebook or Instagram to procrastinate.

Things you love about writing: Creating stories, worlds and characters. I love bringing characters to life and watching them navigate the world I’ve created for them. My stories are very much character-driven. I don’t pre-plan many plot points because without fail they will fall by the wayside once the characters come to life. In fact, I had a character that I planned to kill off very early on in Book 1 of the series, but that didn’t happen. He clung to life, made it through the entire book and will move on to book 2.

Things you hate about writing: Gosh, I’m not sure I can pinpoint anything I hate. Perhaps the marketing side of the writing game! Or maybe the editing!

Words that describe you: Independent, creative, eccentric.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Stubborn!

Something you like to do: I’d love to spent an entire summer seaside!

Something you wish you’d never done: I wish I’d never put off writing my first book.

Things you always put in your books: Humor. Regardless of the genre, I try to include a little humor to entertain and lighten any heavier themes.

Things you never put in your books: Bedroom scenes! Like Jessica Fletcher of Murder, She Wrote, “I don’t write bedroom scenes!”

Things to say to an author: If you enjoyed their book, tell them! On down days, it really helps a writer continue writing if they know someone out there loves their work!

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: If I wrote that book, the character would have…

Favorite places you’ve been: Maine, I love the state, especially the coastline. Hunter’s Beach is my favorite spot on earth!

Places you never want to go to again: I wouldn’t say “never ever” but I’m over traveling south for vacations. I often find it far too hot to enjoy!

Favorite books (or genre): Mysteries, any kind, all kind!

Books you wouldn’t buy: I’m not a huge fan of “drama” or “slice of life” type books (basically stories without intrigue).

Things that make you happy: My pets! I have a rescue home with 14 pets and I love all of their unique personalities.

Things that drive you crazy: When technology misbehaves (and it inevitably happens when you’re trying to get something done fast!).

The nicest thing a reader said to you: I’ve gotten a lot of nice feedback from readers. One of the most memorable was when someone told me they wished they could be friends with my characters because they liked them so much!

The craziest thing a reader said to you: I had a reader internet-stalk me to insist there was a typo on page 2 of my book (no such typo existed).

About Nellie:

Nellie H. Steele lives in the South Hills of Pittsburgh with her family and her many fur-babies. Nellie is an Indies Today award finalist for Best Book of the Year 2020 with Cleopatra’s Tomb. When she isn't writing, she enjoys teaching Statistics at a local university or watching her dogs and cats play in the yard.

Nellie is the author of the Cate Kensie Mystery Series, a cozy mystery series following the adventures of Dr. Catherine Kensie, a history professor turned Scottish Countess, and her beloved dog, Riley, as they navigate their new lives in their quirky Scottish highlands castle, solving mysteries along the way! She is the creator of the Shadow Slayers series, a suspenseful series with a supernatural twist! Follow the Shadow Slayers through time as they fight to banish darkness from the world. Nellie also writes an adventure series, Maggie Edwards Adventures. Follow Maggie Edwards as she travels the world solving mysteries and finding unique treasures! Jump into Nellie's newest series, Duchess of Blackmoore Mysteries, a historical mystery set in the Scottish Highlands! Follow Lenora and her unique ability to communicate with the dead as she uses her skill to solve mysteries.

Check out all Nellie offers at http://www.anovelideapublishing.com/novels, sign up for our newsletter to get the latest news about book releases or like us on facebook (facebook.com/anovelideapublishing or facebook.com/nelliehsteele) to keep up with us!

 Let’s Be Social:

Website: http://www.anovelideapublishing.com

Blog: http://www.nelliesbooknook.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/nelliehsteele  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nelliehsteele/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NellieHSteele1 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19769743.Nellie_H_Steele

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/nellie-h-steele

Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/Nellie-H.-Steele/e/B07Z9PD3YN 

Remembering All the Administrative Tasks - Tips for Authors

Writing is a business, and with that comes a lot of administrative tasks that you need to keep up with, along with your writing, revising, and book marketing work. Make sure that you take care of the tasks before they get out of control.

Mileage and Receipts - After an event, I record the mileage, tolls, and expenses in my yearly spreadsheet. I do it as part of my unpacking routine. If I purchase something, I print the receipt and file it. By doing these as they happen, I don’t have to spend time at the end of the year trying to remember what I did and how much I spent. And I don’t have to scramble to find receipts.

Sales Tax - My state requires that I collect and file sales tax on all book sales that I do. During an event where I’m selling books, I keep a list of what books sell and the cost. I record all sales in my spreadsheet, so I have the information when I file my quarterly sales tax.

Filing - Filing is not my favorite thing to do, but I’ve learned over the years to keep up with it (or it’s a mess at tax time).

Contacts - When I get a new contact, I added it to my electronic contact’s database with a description of who/what it is. It takes some time, but it helps me remember later. If it is a service or a person for book marketing, I also keep a spreadsheet with a lot of metadata (like name, business name, specialty, who recommended them, etc.), so I can find the information later (in case I forget the person’s name). Make sure that you back up your favorites and contacts in case your computer or phone is lost or damaged.

Minimize the Clutter - I acquire hundreds of postcards, bookmarks, flyers, and business cards throughout the year. I put all of the contact information in my electronic contacts database or my spreadsheet, and then I recycle the business cards and flyers. If it’s an event that I attended, then I keep the souvenir for my scrapbook. I donate a lot of books to the Friends of the Library, and I’ve started putting bookmarks that I don’t use in a plastic baggie to go with the donation. You can also slide them in the book for the next reader.

Organizing Your Photos - I download my photos to my computer after an event. I file them by event with enough information that I can find them again, especially if it something that I want to use for book marketing. I go through my pictures and delete the ones I don’t want to keep. Cloud or hard drive storage can add up with thousands of pictures after time. At the end of the year, I move all of the previous year’s photos to an external hard drive.

If I do the admin-y tasks throughout the year, then it’s not such a big hassle at tax time. Best wishes for your writing and book marketing!

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Lois Winston

I’d like to welcome author Lois Winston back to the blog. Congratulations on your latest!

Favorite thing to do when you have free time: See a Broadway show. Unfortunately, since I recently moved nearly 1,000 miles from Manhattan. I’m going to have to find a new favorite thing to do the next time I have some free time.

The thing you’ll always move to the bottom of your to-do list: Housecleaning. Why is it that someone always spills something right after you’ve washed the kitchen floor?

Things you need when you’re in your writing cave: Coffee, coffee, and more coffee!

Things that distract you from writing: Emails, texts, and my husband. (Yeah, I know I should ignore them. Easier said than done. Especially the husband!)

Favorite snacks: Chocolate, pretzels, and ice cream. Not necessarily together but often all together.

Things that make you want to gag: Peanut butter.

Something you wanted to be when you were a kid: An astronaut.

Something you do that you never dreamed you’d do: Write novels.

Something you wish you could do: Sing. Trust me, you wouldn’t want to hear me try.

Something you wish you’d never learned to do: Anything I can’t do well. I want to feel a sense of accomplishment whenever I learn to do something new.

Things to say to an author: I love all your books! When is the next one coming out?

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: Oh, anyone can write those books. When are you going to write a real book?

Favorite places you’ve been: Manhattan, Italy, and Disneyworld (yeah, I’m a really just a kid at heart)

Places you never want to go to again: Anywhere with 100+ degrees heat and 100% humidity. (Disneyworld is far better in the winter, spring, and fall than in the summer!)

Best thing you’ve ever done: Learned to stand up for myself.

Biggest mistake: Allowing myself to be roped into living with my in-laws for six years.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Backpacked across Europe with a friend when we were in college.

Something you chickened out from doing: All rollercoasters or other thrill rides. (Yeah, I know I said I had wanted to be an astronaut, but that was before I ever rode a rollercoaster!)

The nicest thing a reader said to you: I once had a reader tell me my books had helped her get through a really difficult time because they’d made her laugh when all she had wanted to do was cry.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: A reader once gave me a 1-star review because my book was nothing like what Lee Child writes. Huh? I write humorous cozy mysteries. It’s no secret. All you have to do is look at the cover or read the back cover copy. Lee writes thrillers. Why would she expect my books to be anything like his?

Stitch, Bake, Die!

An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery, Book 10

With massive debt, a communist mother-in-law, a Shakespeare-quoting parrot, and a photojournalist boyfriend who may or may not be a spy, crafts editor Anastasia Pollack already juggles too much in her life. So she’s not thrilled when her magazine volunteers her to present workshops and judge a needlework contest at the inaugural conference of the New Jersey chapter of the Stitch and Bake Society, a national organization of retired professional women. At least her best friend and cooking editor Cloris McWerther has also been roped into similar duties for the culinary side of the 3-day event taking place on the grounds of the exclusive Beckwith Chateau Country Club.

The sweet little old ladies Anastasia is expecting to meet are definitely old, and some of them are little, but all are anything but sweet. She’s stepped into a vipers’ den that starts with bribery and ends with murder. When an ice storm forces Anastasia and Cloris to spend the night at the Chateau, Anastasia discovers evidence of insurance scams, medical fraud, an opioid ring, long-buried family secrets, and a bevy of suspects.

Can she piece together the various clues before she becomes the killer’s next target?

Crafting tips included.

 Buy Links

Paperback https://amzn.to/2YiodcR

Kindle https://amzn.to/3ylMivw

Apple Books https://books.apple.com/us/book/stitch-bake-die/id1582066729

Kobo https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/stitch-bake-die

Nook https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stitch-bake-die-lois-winston/1140036766;jsessionid=25A7F9659AD9C525D5EAB0BECCEA6D09.prodny_store02-atgap06?ean=2940162610267

About Lois:

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry.

Let’s Be Social: 

Website: www.loiswinston.com

Newsletter sign-up: https://app.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/z1z1u5

Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog: www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/anasleuth

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Anasleuth

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/722763.Lois_Winston

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lois-winston

It's My Book Birthday!

My new cozy mystery series launches today with Level Best Books. Many thanks to Shawn, Verena, and Harriette!

There is nothing like finding a dead body, clad only in a red satin thong, on your property to jolt you from a quiet routine. Jules Keene, owner of the posh Fern Valley Camping Resort in the Blue Ridge Mountains, is thrust into the world of the Dark Web when one of her guests, Ira Perkins, is found murdered in the woods near her vintage trailers. Jules quickly discovers that the man who claimed to be on a writing retreat was not what he seemed, and someone will go to any length to find what he left at her resort. Jules, along with her Jack Russell Terrier sidekick Bijou, has to put the rest of the missing pieces of a blackmailing scheme together before her business is ruined.

Jules’s resort, set in the heart of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains near Charlottesville in the quaint town of Fern Valley, offers guests a unique vacation in refurbished and upcycled vintage trailers. Hoping to expand her offerings, she partners with her maintenance/security guy to create a village of tiny houses, the latest home DIY craze, but a second murder of a reporter interrupts Jules’s expansion plans. Curiosity gets the best of her, and she steps up her sleuthing to find out what Ira Perkins was really up to and what he was really hiding at her resort.

Book Links:

Apple Books: ‎Vintage Trailers and Blackmailers on Apple Books

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GGBFWT5

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Vintage-Trailers-Blackmailers-Heather-Weidner/dp/1685120369

Barnes and Noble: Vintage Trailers and Blackmailers by Heather Weidner, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Booktopia: Vintage Trailers and Blackmailers eBook by Heather Weidner | 9781685120375 | Booktopia

FNAC: Vintage Trailers and Blackmailers - Dernier livre de Heather Weidner - Précommande & date de sortie | fnac

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/vintage-trailers-and-blackmailers

Thalia: Vintage Trailers and Blackmailers von Heather Weidner - eBook | Thalia

Don't Click on That Link - Ways Authors Can Protect Themselves

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The threats out there are constant and dangerous. We have to be vigilant all the time. It only takes one slip to cause big problems. Make sure that you’re protecting yourself. Here are a few suggestions:

• Don’t click on any links or attachments that you can’t verify.

• These attacks can come via email, text, phone call, or social media friend/connection requests.

• Legitimate contacts don’t ask for your login or password.

• Never use the link or the phone number in a suspicious email or text or one that a unsolicited caller gives you. Call/email using a verified contact that you already have or use a search engine to locate the company’s official page and contact information.

• Hackers use social engineering to find ways in. You don’t have to accept every friend request. If it looks suspicious, delete or block it. When you accept them, you give them access to your information. This allows them to harvest information about you and others. Also, it provides them legitimacy when they send a request to your friends. It may look benign to you, but gathering information about causes, vacations, travel, and interests gives them additional ways to appear to connect with you and to lull you into a false sense of security.

• Many of the scams are lonely hearts, causes asking for money or support, or fake friend accounts. If you’re already linked to someone, and you get a second request, be cautious.

• Many of these scams create a sense of urgency or emergency. You need to provide what they’re asking right now or your service will be cut off, you’ll be arrested, you’re in violation, etc. That’s a red flag. When people are rushed or frustrated, they don’t think things through, and they often click or provide information that they shouldn’t. Stop and think before you respond.

• Clicking on a link or an attachment is just as bad as providing your personal information. Many of these install malware or viruses on your computer. They can track your keystrokes, collect personal information, and even turn on your camera and microphone to see/hear what you’re doing.

• Take a minute to look at your security settings on your social media sites. Is all of your information open to the world?

• Make sure that you download your security patches regularly. Security threats change constantly, and you need to make sure you plug any holes in your operating system or applications. Updates take time, but unpatched systems are easy targets.

• Computers running extremely slowly, frequent/unplanned shut downs, pop-ups appearing on your screen when you’re not on the internet, and your friends receiving social media requests or strange emails from you that you didn’t send are signs that you’ve been infiltrated. Change your passwords and get your system scanned and cleaned.

As authors, we want to build our platforms and increase our following. Just be careful. Bots and hackers aren’t the followers you want. Don’t put yourself or your personal information at risk.

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with J. P. McLean

I’d like to welcome author J. P. McLean back to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

Hardest thing about being a writer: Writing on beautiful days. Those days are temptresses that lure me outside to play in the garden or stroll on the beach instead of writing.
Easiest thing about being a writer: Not having to commute to an office!

Words that describe you: perfectionist and ultra-organized.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: perfectionist and stubborn. Both traits get in the way of life in general, and often my writing, which will never be perfect and is often better with flaws.

Favorite music or song: When I’m not writing, I enjoy pop/rock music, but when I’m writing, lyrics distract me. I’ve recently discovered a few French café music stations, which are perfect! I love the jazzy sound and because I don’t speak French; the lyrics don’t distract me from my writing.

Music that drives you crazy: heavy metal. I know many people love it, but I find it jarring.

Favorite beverage: Red wine—preferably Cabernet Sauvignon, Amarone, or Zinfandel.
Something that gives you a sour face: grapefruit juice.

Favorite smell: Ooh, so many! Fresh laundry is right up there at the top of my list.
Something that makes you hold your nose: Low tide on a sweltering hot day.

The last thing you ordered online: A USBC to headphone jack converter for my smartphone. When I’m selling books at conferences and markets, I sometimes use Square’s credit card swiper to take payment. The Square swiper uses a headphone jack, and the new phones have phased out this feature.

The last thing you regret buying: An expensive pair of Italian leather sandals. They were beautiful, but they didn’t survive an unexpected run through the rain. 

Things you’d walk a mile for: A hug from my dad, and my mom’s pea soup.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: Negative people and their never-ending stream of complaints, perceived mistreatments, and poor-me attitudes.

Favorite books (or genre): My favourite genres are supernatural thrillers or urban fantasies. The thing I like most about those genres is the unexpected, whether it’s a superpower, or a magical talisman, or a new world. I love inhabiting those worlds and imagining the possibilities of superpowers and magic. Victoria Aveyard’s Red Queen series is one I recently enjoyed.
Books you wouldn’t buy: Political memoirs don’t appeal to me.

 Favorite things to do: I love sitting down to a leisurely meal with friends and family, sharing laughs and anecdotes and just catching up. The pandemic restrictions have severely curtailed that for us, but it’s opening up now and we’re slowly getting out again.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Grouting tile or sanding drywall, both of which I’ve done during various home renovations. If I ever renovate again, I’ll move into a hotel or travel and leave the grouting and sanding to the professionals.

The funniest thing to happen to you: When I was in my first year of high school (we were called nifty niners), I met a boy a year ahead of me in grade ten at my first high school dance. He invited me to the school football game the following day. I’d never had an interest in football, but he was cute, and I wanted to see him again, so I agreed to meet him there.

The football field didn’t have seating, so spectators were camped out on the lawn or milling about outside the school building. I walked up and down the field, scanning the crowd for him. After a half hour of fruitless searching, I gave up and left, disappointed about being stood up on my first high school date.

But the following Monday at school, he sought me out to ask why I hadn’t attended the game. Imagine my surprise when I learned he wasn’t a spectator in the crowd, but a football player on the field.

The most embarrassing thing to happen to you: When I was in grade eight, I was a centre on the school basketball team. Our team made it through to the runoffs, and on the day of the final tournament, we were bussed to the hosting stadium. It was an impressive facility, with several courts and half a dozen of the best school teams. They even had volunteers on the sidelines with trays of sliced oranges for the players. We thought we’d made it to the big leagues.

I’ve never been a strong scorer, but I had a knack for getting the ball to my teammate, who was a forward and could dead drop the ball into the net from anywhere on the side of the key. We played hard during the first half, and I was exhausted. At halftime, after I’d gobbled down a few orange slices, the teams changed ends.

We headed back out on the court and I got hold of the ball and made a breakaway for the net. I heard the crowd cheering and I couldn’t believe my good luck that no one challenged me along my way to glory. I tossed the ball at the net—missed but caught it on the rebound and tried again.

It’s a good thing I was such a bad shot, because the crowd hadn’t been cheering me on, they were shouting at me to stop. I’d forgotten about the end change and was at the wrong net. If I’d scored, it would have been for the other team.

Not surprisingly, the coach pulled me out of play, and I sat out the rest of the game on the bench. I would have preferred to crawl into a hole.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: After Lethal Waters came out, one reviewer wrote, “I would read this author’s shopping list if she’d let me. Excellent, fascinating, exciting . . . I can’t get enough!”

The craziest thing a reader said to you: “You should write my memoir. I’ve had a very interesting life.”

About J. P.:

JP (Jo-Anne) McLean writes urban fantasy and supernatural thrillers. Her work has won honourable mentions from the Whistler Independent Book Awards and the Victoria Writers’ Society. Reviewers call her work addictive, smart, and fun. JP is a graduate of the University of British Columbia’s Sauder School of Business and makes her home on Denman Island, which is nestled between Vancouver Island and British Columbia on Canada’s west coast. You can reach her through her website at jpmcleanauthor.com.

Let’s Be Social:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/JPMcLeanBooks

Twitter ID: @jpmcleanauthor https://twitter.com/jpmcleanauthor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jpmcleanauthor

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/jpmclean

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/j-p-mclean-cd5829f0-6e0d-4189-b561-44651ad67b9e