#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Cindy Goyette

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I’d like to welcome Cindy Goyette to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!


Things you need for your writing sessions: I need the TV on. Doesn’t matter what’s on, but I can’t write in silence and music doesn’t cut it for me. But if I’m on a plane, the background noise is good enough. I also need water, maybe a candle burning.

Things that hamper your writing: I can’t write late in the day. My mind just goes blank.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Now that I’m about to be published, I have to say marketing. I hate putting myself out there and don’t feel comfortable talking in large groups. But it’s essential, so I’m working on getting over it.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Second drafts. I love cleaning up a first draft. First drafts are the second hardest thing about being a writer by the way.

Things you always put in your books: Dogs. My debut doesn’t have many, but everything else I’ve written does.

Things you never put in your books: cruelty to animals. I can’t stand to even think about it.

Things to say to an author: I loved your book, I can’t wait to read your book, you’re so talented. I could go on, but you get the drift. Stroke our ego!

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: You should write a book about…, I could write a book if only…

Favorite places you’ve been: My absolute favorite place is The San Juan Islands. It’s so peaceful and if you’re lucky, you can see orcas from land.

Places you never want to go to again: Laughlin, Nevada. Sounds crazy since my book takes place in Phoenix, but I’m not a huge fan of the desert.

Favorite books (or genre): I like a lot of things, but my favorites are mystery, suspense, and thrillers. I do read some literary fiction and some non-fiction.

Books you wouldn’t buy: Books about sports. But I’m open to almost anything if it holds my interest.

People you’d like to invite to dinner: Oh, so many. Bono, Alice Hoffman, Rachel Maddow… I could go on.

People you’d cancel dinner on: Not to get political, but most politicians.

Favorite things to do: Write, of course. I like working out at Orange Theory Fitness, hiking, spending time with my family and dogs, reading, watching a good series on TV with my husband.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: I used to teach behind the wheel driving. I’d eat bugs to never do it again!

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Probably completing the police academy and being a cop.

Something you chickened out from doing: I’ve turned around on hikes due to my fear of heights.

The funniest thing to happen to you: This struck me funny, although my daughter will say otherwise. I was grocery shopping, and this kid was swinging his foot. He had heavy sandals on. His shoe flew off his foot and nailed me in the throat. I fell into the frozen fish and couldn’t breathe. I thought I was going to die, and it kind of struck me funny that I would go out that way. My daughter was with me and did not see the humor in the situation.

The most embarrassing thing to happen to you: See above.

About Cindy:

Armed with a handgun and a word processor, Immigration Officer Cindy Goyette spent her nights creating fictional friends to help pass the lonely hours between border crossers. A portable black-and-white TV cancelled the unexplained noises coming from the ancient jail cells in the creepy basement. The resulting book will stay in the closet where it belongs, but the seed was planted and she’s been writing ever since.

Cindy spent the ensuing years as a probation officer, dealing with hardened criminals with hard-luck stories that sometimes kept her up at night. Every day was an adventure. She survived by seeing humor in situations where she could find it. She joked about writing a book and then she did just that.

OBEY ALL LAWS incorporates the wild and crazy life of a probation officer with an issue currently in the news. Cindy’s history with flirtatious felons who thought they were charmers and addicts who denied the drugs in their pockets, claiming they’re wearing their friend’s pants have given her ample material for the books she now writes.

Born in New Jersey, Cindy lived in Phoenix for twenty years. She now makes her home in Washington state with her husband and two cocker spaniels.

Let’s Be Social:

Website: https://ccgoyette.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077005287995

#WriterWednesday Interview with Sarah E. Burr

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I’d like to welcome my friend and talented author, Sarah E. Burr, back to the blog for #WriterWednesday.

Favorite thing to do when you have free time: I enjoy reading manga, watching true crime shows, listening to true crime podcasts, and video gaming.

The thing you’ll always move to the bottom of your to-do list: I really despise grocery shopping for some reason. It’s such a chore for me.

Things you need when you’re in your writing cave: For a productive day of writing, I require a beverage, a candle, my dog, Eevee, and my computer.

Things that distract you from writing: I always get sidetracked by social media (YouTube videos, especially) and laundry.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Writing the first three chapters of a new book is the hardest part of any writing project.

Easiest thing about being a writer: I have no trouble coming up with people to kill off!

The coolest thing you’ve bought online: I am obsessed with my new wax warmer.

The thing you wished you’d never bought: I have no shopping regrets! Everything has its purpose.

Something you’re really good at: I’m great at designing book-related content for social media.

Something you’re really bad at: I’m terrible at anything remotely athletic.

Something you wanted to be when you were a kid: I wanted to be a detective or FBI agent.

Something you do that you never dreamed you’d do: I never dreamed I would actually get to write amateur detective stories for a living.

Something you wish you could do: I wish I could speak more than one basic language.

Something you wish you’d never learned to do: I wish I had never learned to suck on my teeth—it’s a horrible habit that I can’t stop after doing the Invisalign treatment.

Favorite places you’ve been: I loved my adventures in London, England, on a Nile cruise, and in Athens, Greece.

Places you never want to go to again: I mean, I hate going to the dentist, but we do what we must!

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: I did a massive zip-lining course in Jamacia.

Something you chickened out from doing: I refused to drive a convertible along California’s coastal highway (I ended up just being the passenger).

The most exciting thing about your writing life: I get to visit so many incredible places and people with all the different series I write.

The one thing you wish you could do over in your writing life: I would have used more pen names for all my different series!

Best piece of advice you received from another writer: A guest on The Bookish Hour told us that even if you aren’t actively writing, you are still “writing” because you are always thinking about your work. That advice has helped me to cut myself some slack and take more restful breaks.

Something you would tell a younger you about your writing: Be kind to yourself. You’re doing the best you can.

About Sarah:

Sarah E. Burr is the award-winning author of the Glenmyre Whim Mysteries, Trending Topic Mysteries, the Book Blogger Mysteries, and the Court of Mystery series. She currently serves as the social media manager for the New York chapter of Sisters in Crime and is the creative mind behind BookstaBundles, a content creation service for authors. Sarah is the co-host of The Bookish Hour, a live-streamed YouTube series featuring author interviews and book discussions. When she's not spinning up stories, Sarah is binging true crime podcasts and enjoying walks with her dog, Eevee. Stay connected with Sarah via her newsletter: https://bit.ly/saraheburrsignup.

Let’s Be Social:

Website: http://saraheburr.com

Socials: https://bit.ly/sarahsocialmediahub

Happy Kiss a Ginger Day and a Redhead Playlist

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Happy Kiss a Ginger Day! Here’s my list of songs about redheads. I was surprised at how many there are:

  • Garth Brooks “Ain’t Goin’ Down”

  • Dolly Parton “Jolene”

  • Willie Nelson “Redheaded Stranger”

  • John Palmer “The Band Played On”

  • REM “Redhead Walking”

  • Amy Winehouse “Valerie”

  • Bruce Springsteen “Redheaded Woman”

  • Ed Sheeran “You Need Me, I Don’t Need You”

  • Miranda Lambert “White Liar”

  • Bob Dylan “Tangled in Blue”

  • Flock of Seagulls “I Ran”

  • Counting Crows “Good Time”

  • Gaelic Storm “Green Eyes, Red Hair”

  • Natalie Merchant “San Andreas Fault”

  • Bob Segar “Sightseeing”

  • Brooks and Dunn “Boot-scootin’ Boogie”

  • Neil Young “Cinnamon Girl”

  • Travis Tritt “Modern Day Bonnie and Clyde”

  • Billy Joel “Keeping the Faith”

  • Taylor Swift “Fifteen”

  • Jake Owen “Barefoot Blue Jean Night”

  • Billy Idol “Dead on Arrival”

  • Shania Twain “Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under”

  • Little River Band “Redheaded Wildflower”

  • Lonestar “Front Porch Lookin’ In”

  • Sammy Hagar “Red”

What would you add to my list?

#ThisorThatThursday Interview with William Ade (And Nic Knuckles)

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I’d like to welcome William Ade to the blog today. His sleuth, Nic Knuckles, filled in for the author and provided the responses to my This or That Thursday questions.

Favorite thing to do when you have free time: “Not much to say. Nic Knuckles is a big city private eye with a boatload of heartbreak, traversing the universe in pursuit of justice for the little guy.”

The thing you’ll always move to the bottom of your to do list: “Death scene investigations involving cat ladies who cared for more than a dozen felines.”

Favorite snacks: “Maybe the discovery of fire and the invention of the wheel helped humans evolve from hunter-gathers to on-line shoppers, but Nic Knuckles believes we only truly became the apex mammal with the innovation of multiple varieties of cheese.”

Things that make you want to gag: “Nic Knuckles suffers an upset stomach if someone hovers over me while I eat. It probably started when I was a newborn, and my mother gave the wet nurse only five minutes to feed me. ‘I ain’t payin’ for no fat baby,’ she’d yell, if the woman went into overtime.”

Something you’re really good at: “Nic Knuckles is built to locate slippery people, the neutrinos of human misery, men and women, boys and girls, cats and dogs living in the shadows.”

Something you’re really bad at: “Nic Knuckles is bad at making my mother happy. Even though she’s promised to dance on my grave more than once, I know she'd be sad if something fatal happened to me. Her grief would be even greater after learning I'd removed her as my life insurance beneficiary.”

Something you wanted to be when you were a kid: “When Nic Knuckles was a second grader, my dream was to be a third grader. Crazy huh?”

Something you do that you never dreamed you’d do: “Nic Knuckles has had more than a few destitute clients over the years, like the man who lived in a chicken coop. He couldn’t pay me in cash, so I took eggs, lots and lots of eggs.”

Last best thing you ate: “Nic Knuckles is munching a nice gorgonzola as he types in these answers. I’ll probably switch to a sharp cheddar after I ship these answers off to Heather. Can’t get anymore last than that.”

Last thing you regret eating: “Nic Knuckles avoids drinking alcohol, although a beer or two was consumed during a recent case. Drinking was necessary to blend in with an unsavory crowd at a college sorority kegger. I think it was Gamma Ramma Mamma, or something like that. Some girl was pledging and her parents hired me to investigate if it was a safe environment. I went undercover and survived to the last day of Rush Week before getting tipsy and kicked out.”

Things to say to an author: “Where can I back up my truck full of money and exchange it for a truck full of your book?”

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: “I won a free copy of your book as part of a Goodreads Giveaway and it’s now three hundred and twentieth on my bedside table. I’ll get to your review in 2044.”

Favorite places you’ve been: “Kleinstadt, Indiana. The town had a Main Street, that once hosted fine family restaurants, a movie theater, and two department stores, now gave up the space to taverns, tattoo emporiums, and consignment shops. Some said Kleinstadt was a busted, rundown little burg full of broken, rundown people, and it was, but I solved a fifteen-year-old murder case while working for a mysterious client who paid really well. Best of all, it’s the location of my first novel, Big Scream in a Small Town, available now, and probably in your favorite book store’s remanded bin by July.”

Places you never want to go to again: “I'd never forget that night in Hoboken, New Jersey, when I stumbled upon a one-eyed drug dealer with a Mexican Chihuahua named Needles. Sorry, Heather, I really don’t want to talk about it.”

Favorite things to do: “Nic Knuckles, is dedicated to that lady in the nightgown. The one with the bandana tied over her eyes, holding the scales high above her head. Pursuing justice is my favorite thing to do, followed closely by the Art of Cheese Festival held each September in Madison, Wisconsin.”

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: “Actually, Nic Knuckles likes snacking on roasted bugs.”

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: “There's a thin purple scar riding across Nic Knuckles’ chest that I acquired years ago while doing something daring. I was undercover at the Little Pee Wee Preschool at 73rd Avenue and 188th in Queens. Her name was Penny, and she had an outsized temper at four years of age. Yeah, she came at me with scissors when I interrupted her naptime. She had to have been eating paste or something to act so crazy.”

Something you chickened out from doing: “Hiking in the woods. You see, being a big city guy, walking in a forest always made Nic Knuckles nervous. Pigeons, rats and squirrels, I understood, but those trolls and fairies creeping about the forest, ready to do something unnatural to you, were terrifying. The sooner we paved over Mother Nature, the safer I'd feel.”

The funniest thing that happened to you on vacation: “Nic Knuckles is a hard-boiled private eye. Hard boiled private eyes don’t go on vacations. They experience extended periods of having no clients. I once vacationed four months without any compensated sleuthing.”

The most embarrassing thing that happened to you on a vacation: “She was a blind date I took on a cruise up the Hudson River. Her name was Shelia and she must've stood five foot ten, and then, throwing in those four-inch heels, she towered over me. But she didn't seem to care, so Nic Knuckles didn't either. That good night kiss, however, ruined it. She closed her eyes and puckered, so I did the same and went in for the smooch. Dang, I reached up but still planted my lips on her throat.”

The most exciting thing about your writing life: “Being interviewed by Heather Weidner. When it comes to clever plots, engaging characters, vivid settings, and tight fluid writing, Heather is the complete package. To be a guest on her blog has Nic Knuckles kvelling.”

The one thing you wish you could do over in your writing life: “Secured all the rights to the name, Harry Potter.”

The nicest thing a reader said to you: “You’re so much taller in person than how I envisioned while reading about you.”

The craziest thing a reader said to you: “Wouldn’t it make more sense to get a suspect talking like a parrot, rather than singing like a canary?”

About Nic Knuckles:

Nic Knuckles was born and raised in the New York City borough of Queens. His mother single-handily raised Nic and his three incorrigible sisters, as their father preferred fast women and slow ponies. Nic achieved perfect attendance while in elementary school and was a proud graduate of Bernie Madoff Secondary.

While never marrying, Nic has had a long string of failed romances, including Olga the Pole Dancer; Magee and her pet chimpanzee, Chopper; Tilly the Language Impaired City Bus Driver; Lucy Long Legs; Wobbly Peg; Sheila, Rosie, Lulu the Human Hermit Crab; Weepy Wilma; Mabel; Tina the Tease; Madam Vue Due; Eldora; Hannah the Sociopathic Phone Solicitor; and Bubbles.

Nic opened his detective agency, Knuckles Investigation, in 2008.

The novel, Big Scream in a Small Town was published by Level Best Books in early 2024. Nic’s follow up novel, Big Scream in a Wee Village, should be out early 2025.

Let’s Be Social:

Facebook: nicknucklesprivateye@gmail.com

Tiktok,com/@nic.knuckles

YouTube: https://www.youtube@nicknucklesPrivateEye

Instagram: NicKnucklesPI


Some Behind the Scenes Secrets...

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I love finding Easter eggs (surprises hidden by the developers) in software and bloopers in films. Here are a few secrets from my mysteries that you may not have known about…

In the Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries, I often named police, waiters, EMTs, lawyers, and other minor characters after some of my favorite pop culture folks. You’ll see some 80s rockers and 70s TV characters serving some amazing dishes or keeping law and order.

In the Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, Jules themes the vintage trailers and the tiny houses. Her special décor ties in with the camper like the 1947 Robin Hood Trailer that is decked out in honor of its namesake, the 1959 Sunliner Caravan that sported a posh pink Barbie fashion design in honor of the year that the camper and the doll debuted, and the 1953 Redman New Moon, decorated in honor of Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball’s movie from the same year, The Long, Long Trailer. The tiny houses all have a book or author themes and fun amenities like a revolving bookcase or a reading nook for the guests to enjoy. These are named for Beatrix Potter, Bram Stoker, A. A. Milne, and L. Frank Baum. (And I may have been watching The Tiger King at the beginning of the pandemic when I wrote Christmas Lights and Cat Fights.)

I am a huge 80s pop culture fan. Jules is named for Demi Moore’s character in St. Elmo’s Fire. Her last name is a tribute to all the women who wrote the Nancy Drew mysteries under the pseudonym of Carolyn Keene. Jake is named for Jake Ryan from Sixteen Candles.

In the Pearly Girls Mysteries (May 2024), the bigger-than-life Chihuahua (at least in his own mind) is named for the one and only Elvis. The four “Golden Girls” who help Cassidy with her event planning business (and her love life) are named for my grandmothers, great-grandmother, and my grandmother’s best friend. And the handsome new bartender in town is named after Austin Butler (who recently played Elvis). I know, there’s a pattern here.

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Daphne Silver

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I’d like to welcome Daphne Silver to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

Things you never want to run out of: Ideas or energy. Unfortunately, I have seemed to run out of the energy part already.

Things you wish you’d never bought: Shoes that hurt and don’t have support, even if they are cute

Things you need for your writing sessions: A laptop and being left alone, even in a busy cafe or place

Things that hamper your writing: People talking to me, which is slightly ironic because I’m a big extravert.

A few of your favorite things: So many books, especially the first edition Edgar Allan Poe I gave my husband.

Things you need to throw out: my maternity clothes. My kiddo is 7 years old already.

Words that describe you: Creative, enthusiastic, generous of spirit

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Bombastic, talkative, speaks before thinking.

Favorite foods: Pizza, dark chocolate, paneer makhani

Things that make you want to gag: Mint, coffee, red meat

Favorite smell: Vanilla, gardenia, tea rose

Something that makes you hold your nose: canned tuna

The last thing you ordered online: Winter gloves

The last thing you regret buying: Pillow covers instead of pillows

Things you’d walk a mile for: My family

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: My family

Things you always put in your books: Unexpected history factoids

Things you never put in your books: Graphic gory violence

Things to say to an author: I can’t wait to read your book!

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: Why do you waste your time writing?

Favorite places you’ve been: Italy and Ireland

Places you never want to go to again: Middle school

Favorite books (or genre): Cozy mysteries

Books you wouldn’t buy: Horror, unless they’re for my husband

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done: Painting. I was a painting major in college.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it: Learning a new language. I don’t have any linguistic abilities.

Some real-life story that made it to one of your books: The missing bejeweled covers to the ancient Book of Kells

Something in your story that readers think is about you, but it’s not: I’m not as daring or smart as my heroine Juniper Blume

About Daphne:

Daphne Silver is the author of the Rare Books Cozy Mystery series. She’s worked more than twenty years in museums and has the great fortune of being married to a librarian. When she’s not writing, she’s drawing and painting. She lives in Maryland with her family. Although she’s not much of a baker, she won’t ever turn down a sweet lokshen kugel.

Let’s Be Social:

http://daphnesilver.com

http://facebook.com/daphnesilverbooks

http://instagram.com/daphnesilverbooks


#WriterWednesday Interview with Gerald Elias

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I’d like to welcome author and musician, Gerald Elias, to the blog!

Things you need for your writing sessions: Imagination, something to write with, coffee, and a window to stare out of when my brain goes blank.

Things that hamper your writing: Distractions, lack of ideas, no coffee, and thoughts of pastrami.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Promotion, marketing, learning how to brag about my work without sounding like I’m bragging.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Conjuring up the words –– sometimes even the right ones –– to create entertaining, occasionally thought-provoking stories.

Words that describe you: Willing to dive in, ethical, organized, hardworking.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Rash, insistent, too goal oriented.

Favorite music or song: A Mozart piano concerto, Schubert string quintet, or a Bach violin sonata.

Music that drives you crazy: Bad Christmas music arrangements (which means just about all of the new ones), and just about anything by Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Something you’re really good at: Playing music, talking at public events about music and writing, cooking (especially Italian).

Something you’re really bad at: Mountain climbing. I get dizzy too easily, and it scares the crap out of me when I look down and feel like I'm going over the edge. (Gulp.)

Last best thing you ate: I slow-cooked a brisket in the oven for 6 hours. It was so tender you could cut it with a fork. I’m drooling as I write. (Let me know if you want the recipe. It's amazingly easy.)

Last thing you regret eating: That last bite of brisket, leaving my plate with nothing left on it.

Things you’d walk a mile for: Exercise, fresh air, relaxation, a nice view, and especially if there’s a beer or coffee at the end of the mile.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: People talking nonstop about their health issues, i.e. “the organ recital.” Also, loud music, but that would be okay if it covered up the “organ recital.”

Things you always put in your books: Quirky and engaging characters, plot twists, and humor.

Things you never put in your books: One-dimensional characters, gore, gratuitous sex, or endless details about weapons of mass destruction.

Things to say to an author: Go for it! Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite! Enjoy the journey, whatever the destination.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: Let me at least put up a good fight while saving a damsel in distress, and then leave a nice epitaph.

Favorite books (or genre): Thrillers by John le Carré, mysteries by Walter Mosley, Donna Leon, and Dick Francis, and adventures by Patrick O’Bryan.

Books you wouldn’t buy: Books on self-help, financial advice, pseudoscience, and The Art of the Deal.

People you’d like to invite to dinner: Mozart and Fani Willis.

People you’d cancel dinner on: Anyone who says they’ll vote for Donald Trump.

Favorite things to do: Go outside, write books, play music, drink coffee, and most of all, be a hands-on grandpa.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Filling out tax returns, but I don’t think the IRS will accept running through a fire or eating bugs as an excuse.

About Gerald:

Gerald Elias leads a double life as a critically acclaimed author and internationally recognized musician.

His award-winning Daniel Jacobus mystery series, beginning with Devil’s Trill, takes place in the dark corners of the classical music world. Murder at the Royal Albert, the eighth and most recent installment of the series, was described as a “clever, pacey entry” by Publisher’s Weekly. The audiobook version, featuring excerpts of live performances by the Boston Symphony and the author himself, received praised from AudioFile Magazine “as an altogether delightful listen.”

Elias has also penned two standalone novels: The Beethoven Sequence, a chilling political thriller, and Roundtree Days, a Jefferson Dance Western Mystery, which was a 2023 Silver Falchion Award finalist. His musical memoir, Symphonies & Scorpions, was the subject of his 2019 TEDx presentation. His essays and short stories have been featured in prestigious journals ranging from The Strad magazine to Coolest American Stories 2023. He has just signed a new deal with Level Best Books for two new mysteries, Murder on Vacation and Wild Horses.

A former violinist with the Boston Symphony and associate concertmaster of the Utah Symphony, Elias has performed on five continents and has been the conductor of Salt Lake City’s popular Vivaldi by Candlelight chamber orchestra series since 2004. In 2022, he released a groundbreaking recording of the Opus 1 violin sonatas of the Baroque virtuoso-composer, Pietro Castrucci, on Centaur Records.

Elias divides his time between his home on the shores of Puget Sound in Seattle and his cottage in the Berkshire hills of Massachusetts, savoring the outdoors and maintaining a vibrant concert career while continuing to expand his literary horizons. He particularly enjoys winter, coffee, cooking, travel, watching sports, and being a hands-on grandpa.

Let’s Be Social:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gerald.elias

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

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geraldelias504/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gerald-elias-6a67a0157/

Website: www.mysteriesandmusic.com



It's That Time of Year Again...

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Every December, I get in my Marie Kondo mode. Out with the old and in with the new. I always dread the cleanup, but it feels good to start the new year with a clean desk (even if it’s only temporary). Here are some of my organizational to-dos that help me get ready for the new year.

  • I clean up my desk. It’s not as bad as the picture, but it’s cluttered. I always end up with tons of sticky notes all over the place.

  • I put all the contacts in my database and all the appointments on my calendar.

  • My photo collection always needs attention. I archive all of the current year’s photos to my external hard drive.

  • It’s also time to clean up the email files and my saved documents. Don’t forget to clean out the Sent and Trash, too. The old stuff takes up space.

  • And it’s tax time. I always procrastinate on the task of pulling all the tax information together. I set up files for the current year and close out the old one.

And if I’m still in an organizing mode, I might get around to the closets. (Or maybe not)

Happy New Year. I hope you have a safe and productive year.

What are you planning to do to get ready for 2024?