Author of the Month at Dawn's Reading Nook

Dawn Roberto of DAWN'S READING NOOK was kind enough to make me the August Author of the Month. Come on over and visit me there. http://tinyurl.com/cf5j2ry


She featured three of my books...the new one, Who's Got the Money?, my anthology The MAFIA FUNERAL and Other Short Stories, and the third Silver Sisters Mystery, Vanishing Act in Vegas.


Mega thanks to Dawn.

Love my new cover for CONFESSIONS OF A COUGAR

I love my new cover for CONFESSIONS OF A COUGAR, due to come out in September. Kudos to cover designer Karen Phillips.

Oh yeah, Audrey has lots of secrets and the only way to find out what they are is to read the book. As I've already said, I was the model for Audrey and this is creative non-fiction, meaning that an extremely large percentage is true.

Yesterday, I had lunch  with the friend who was the model for Sue, and we laughed our heads off at some of the things we got into back then. Both of us have traveled extensively since that time, but our escapades during this trip made for hot, steamy...

And it didn't stop after we got back to the States.

Oh yeah!

How do you recognize a true friend?

Nope, these aren't my slick radar glasses. Just a fun pair I tried on when I was in Australia last year, but thought they sort of went with this post about seeking out old friends.

Today I once again realized the special quality of a true friendship. A few years back I connected with my best friend from elementary school in Chicago after I was able to get her current address through a high school reunion list. I didn't go to that high school because we moved to California, but knew that many of my elementary school friends had.

I contacted her and we were in the groove immediately. That's what I'm talking about. It doesn't matter how many years pass, if the friendship was true, it should still be there. She lives in a different state, so we don't see each other often, but every time she comes into Los Angeles we try to hook up, and the connection reignited all because I emailed the address on that high school reunion list.

Today I gave into the temptation to try to find someone who "did me wrong" several years ago by shelling out the few bucks it takes to do an identity search. Something I decided not to do on other occasions. BTW, it is a little scary how much information  is out there about most people if you are willing to pay to get it. Well, I guess this slimy dude managed to stay under the radar (if he's still alive) so there was nothing beyond some info from several years ago. While I was searching and had paid for a 7 day window,  I decided to take a chance and plug in the name of someone who was a dear friend I lost contact with many years ago, just to see what would come up.

What came up, among other things, was a phone number. I took the plunge and called, then left my name and number on the answering machine. I hadn't seen this person for probably 20 years. A few years ago his old phone number popped into my mind out of nowhere, and just kept doing that. I had the feeling something must be wrong at that time and called the number, but it was completely outdated. I even did a search on the internet and didn't find anything. Still, I couldn't shake the feeling that something had happened.

I'm so glad I called and left a message today. Lo and behold, a few hours ago my phone rang, and --yep-- it was my  friend from the past. Turned out he had been very sick when I was getting those vibes but is now recovered. And there it was. The unique  sign of a true friendship. We talked for an hour as though the last time we'd seen each other had only been a day or so ago.

Here is what I learned. Don't allow yourself to lose track of true friends. It really felt good to reconnect and I know we will have lots to talk about as we play catch up. After all, a ton of time has passed with many changes for both of us.

Author Wendy Mazaros wows 40 Plus-Just Us Girls in Las Vegas

At the end of the year I joined a great MeetUp group in Las Vegas - 40+ Just Us Girls in Las Vegas. They do all kinds of neat things and the women are all ages groups and professions.

I'd offered to set up a talk and book signing by my friend, "Vegas Rag Doll," Wendy Mazaros. Well, Wendy talked about her life as a 15 year old runaway who got involved with the Binion family and ultimately the Mob, how she finally broke the cycle and so much more. It in her book "Vegas Rag Doll." We had great attendance and everyone was blown away by Wendy -- she was engaging, open to talking about some very hard things and emphatic that she wants to reach out to runaways so they don't experience what she did.

Everyone brought food, drinks and so forth and I provided my home for the talk. By clearing the table out of the breakfast nook, and putting it on the patio for the evening, I was able to set up enough seating for 30 people to easily see and listen to Wendy. But, oh the food. We had enough to feed and army and have some left over.

We started the evening by just socializing and you know how women talk...and talk...and talk. Everyone made sure to visit the dining room table with the amazing variety of food. Some knew each other and others met for the first time.

Wendy circulated among everyone and many of the women had already read her book and were armed with questions, which she answered until her voice gave out.

Then people chose their chairs, and several of the "lucky" ones were able to snag seats on one of the two sofas while they anticipated hearing all about Wendy's life.

I was so happy I was able to set it up and mega thanks to Wendy for a wonderful insight to what it was like to walk in her shoes and be able to rebuild a life she can be proud of.

A MONTH WITH TWO NEW BOOKS

After lots of hard work, WRITERS' TRICKS OF THE TRADE (the book)  is finally available as a Kindle on Amazon. Look for the eBook and paperback to pop up on most online bookseller sites nationally and internationally by the end of the month.  The paperback will also be available for order at your favorite local bookstore.


My greatest thrill is when someone emails me to say that something I wrote in my Writers Tricks' of the Trade column helped them or got them past a bump in the road. Yesterday I received thanks from a few fans.

Writers' Tricks of the Trade: 39 Things You Need to Know About the ABCs of Writing is a handy reference about 39 things a fiction writer needs to know in a field filled with challenges.

In addition to my columns in the Los Angeles and Las Vegas editions of examiner.com and this new book, I've also launched a new blog: Writers' Tricks of the Trade at http://writerstricksofthetrade.blogspot.com. Every month on the 15th the latest issue of the new Writers' Tricks of the Trade newsletter will be uploaded to the site with the debut issue on August 15.  SUBSCRIBE to the blog for all the postings and the newsletter.

I'm delighted that many people in the industry have jumped on the bandwagon, and the blog and newsletter will feature several guest contributors in addition to many of my own articles. SO PAY A VISIT AND CHECK IT OUT.

As if having one book release wasn't enough, the third comical Silver Sisters Mystery VANISHING ACT IN VEGAS also releases this month with the Kindle and eBook first, followed by the paperback. And, my sister Phyllice Bradner and I are already working on #4, DIAMONDS IN THE DUMPSTER.

When Beverly Hills advice columnist Godiva Olivia DuBois' son Torch, an Academy Award winning FX expert, moves to Las Vegas to work on a new show about imploding buildings, his 80-year-old grandmother and great-uncle, former vaudeville magicians, fire up their '59 Caddy and take a road trip to Sin City. Flossie is determined to make his new condo at the High Rollers Plaza feel homey.

When they introduce him to beautiful magician Mara the Magnificent, star of the show at the Glitz Palace, the comical crime caper begins. Filled with typical high comedy from Godiva and her over-the-hill flower child twin Goldie Silver, the quartet is led on a merry chase when a mystery surrounds Mara. Don't miss this one!

Working on the "Writers' Tricks of the Trade" book

After I read through the plotting notes for the new Diamonds in the Dumpster Silver Sisters caper, I realized we needed to add a scene to Chapter 1. Phyllice has a slightly different idea, so I'm waiting for her to wrap her head around it so we can begin writing the book. It is so great that we decided how we would treat different approaches or ideas when we first began writing together. It is truly a delight to write with my sister.

Writers Tricks of the Trade

39 Things You Need to Know About the ABCs of Writing Fiction

This is the rough of the cover by the very talented illustrator Scott Garrett. Can't wait to see the final

The manuscript is back from the editor with a few corrections. She offered a couple of very valid suggestions that I agree with, so I've begun to read through it again and make some minor adjustments.

The book is moving along on schedule and I really feel confident it will be out before the end of the year. I've said this over and over and even devote some space in the book to the necessity to allow a manuscript to get cold. It is so important to reread it before commiting it to the final draft.

As I read through Tricks of the Trade, I spot those places where it could be one bit better, maybe something that was repititious and should be cut or adjusted or changing an example because I've found a better one. Maybe just a little tightening. Yes, there has to be a point where you stop, and I'm rapidly approaching it, but just this one more time...

Another thing. When I put the manuscript through spellcheck before sending it to the editor, I was really amazed at how many valid things were caught. Like double words, missing letters and transpositions. It is so weird how the eye doesn't always catch these. I've said it before and I'll say it again. The eye often sees what the mind thinks it should see. While some spellcheck suggestions are way off base, it's invaluable to have it catch the little faux pas you dont really see.

Okay, that said, I've got to get out of the house today! Since I got back from Oregon, I've been at the computer working on a myriad of things nonstop. I planned to do things on Tuesday and Wednesday, but all of a sudden it was evening and I was still at the keys.

Right now my mouth is watering for a Jewish delight - a nice lox and creamcheese sandwich on a good bagel. I'm heading to Noah's because theirs is wonderful and half the price of a deli. Then, back to working on Tricks of the Trade when I return.



BACK IN THE "BIG" CITY-PRAISE FOR SOUTHWEST AIRLINES

My sojourn to McMinnville is over and I'm back in Marina Del Rey CA. This is the first time in many years I've flown with Southwest, and I have to say they definitely get it right. At least for this trip. By paying a modest $10 fee each way, they automatically check you in which gives you a preferred position in line. I was number 22 coming back from Portland and got exactly the seat I love: Row 6 on the aisle. They don't charge for luggage---BTW today's L.A. Times reported that luggage fees now account for about $3.4 BILLION dollars a year.

I always look for non-stop flights, but this time I took one with stopovers in Oakland CA (don't get off the plane) in each direction Why? It was more than $200 cheaper than the competing airlines, and don't forget the lack of fees for luggage. These people have the efficiency of Disneyland when it comes to moving crowds. Within 25 minutes the Oakland passengers were off the plane, the Los Angeles ones on and we were in the air. We arrived in Los Angeles at 10:23 p.m.--7 minutes ahead of schedule. Kudos to Southwest!

This morning after setting up my laptop I realized the thing I missed the most while at my sister Phyllice's house was typing on a keyboard rather than directly on the laptop. Talk about frustration. I'm simply not used to using the keyboard on the laptop and the cursor kept jumping around creating some very unusual words like seboardtting-- see what I mean. Anyway, it's always good to go and good to come back, particularly when I'm able to come back with 30 outline pages of a fully plotted Silver Sisters mystery. We actually managed to stay on point despite gossip sessions, rerun episodes of Law and Order, Numbers and Bones, and the insanity of Phyllice's house with people coming and going. Yep. We have our plot.

When we are together, it always reinforces how much alike we are in some ways, even to the extent of events in our lives paralleling, and how different we are in other ways. As Phyllice sometimes puts it, she is the country mouse like Goldie Silver and I'm the city slicker like Godiva Olivia DuBois.

We also spent some time reminiscing about our Uncle Sol, the perennial youth. In his seventies, Uncle Sol was still going on 17 in spirit. He was the spot of sunshine in a day and could make generations of kids and adults laugh. Some of the humor in our books comes from his antics and we both agreed that as kids we didn't realize the gift he gave us of looking at situations with a positive eye, always infused with laughter. After my father died when Phyllice was 12 and I was 17, he was sort of a surrogate dad for several years. He used to call himself the voice of reason and that's what we gave the Silver Sisters' uncle Sterling Silver.

That's all for now.

SMALL TOWN EXPERIENCE

I've been in McMinnville Oregon since last Tuesday so Phyllice and I can plot the next Silver Sisters Mystery, "Diamonds in the Dumpster." We have been putting in lots of hours and today she is in her booth at the Saturday market so I have time to do some catch-up.

I'm a big city person, splitting my time between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, and being in a small town like McMinneville Oregon is always a relaxing experience. Life goes at a slower pace. Phyllice lives a block from the main drag, 3rd Street, and the gallery where her artwork is exhibited is just a block and a half away. It's nice to be here during the time that she is the featured artist for the month. Her wall comes down just after the time I return to L.A. and then her work will be dispersed throughout the Currents Gallery and another artist gets the big wall.

Last night we took a nice walk from one end of the main street to the other, stopping along the way at a brew pub to have some dinner. The only movie theater in town is an intimate back room of a restaurant where they show second or third run movies. Life is definitely a different pace. There was an actual theater at one time, but I guess it didn't make it. Tonight we plan to go hear some music at the hotel on 3rd.

In addition to everything else she does, Phyllice has turned her big old house into a guest house so there are always an assortment of characters present, from the wine distributor who lives in the garage and takes care of the garden, to the cop in the attic. The house is about 4,000 s.f. and over 100 years old, and totally wonderful. She has turned the downstairs into a small boutique shop called Katz and Dawgs and uses the huge dining room as her art studio. Occasionally, people who come in to browse also buy one or two Silver Sisters books. Yesterday a couple from Astoria WA bought A Corpse in the Soup and Seven Deadly Samovars. They now have rare copies autographed by both of us. That's pretty unusual since we're not together that often.

McMinnville is the home of Evergreen Aviation and the Evergreen Aviation Museum. If you ever get into this area, that is a must see. It's where the Spruce Goose has been housed for the past several years in a building designed specifically for it. The Museum has now expanded to 3 buildings and they just added a water slide like none in the world. They hefted a 737 to the top of the building and it is the entrance and part of the slide. Imagine that. It will be a huge attraction. They take some of the vintage planes to the airfield across the road sometimes and fly them.

Well, time to get myself together and walk over to the market to see what my Sis is up to. She's a big fish in the little pond in McMinnville, and many people in town know her. I'm lucky if my neighbors on my own street know me! When we went to dinner the other night a Silver Sisters fan approached us saying she recognized us from our website photo. She had seen Phyllice at art shows as well. Ah. Celebrity!

THE CURSE OF BEING A WORKAHOLIC

Being a workaholic is both good and bad. The good is that you really get things done. Not feeling that hot? It's midnight and you're still not done? What a beautiful day for a drive, but the article isn't done? Workaholics are driven to finish what they start. They truly believe their own commitments. I should know. I've been one all my life. Nope--haven't even been sober for a day!

Back when I was an interior designer, my partner always made time for the things she wanted to do. Me? I kept hacking away until the job was done. Then I would have time for the other stuff. Never mind that it was 8 or 9 o'clock. I'd finished the floor plan, or drawing or whatever other thing compelled me to keep working.

I kept the same discipline when I became Director of Design for a developer. Ten hour days were the norm, and somehow I managed to make time for my kids, too. I set up a design department from scratch, developed all of the systems and procedures, hired, trained and supervised staff and in the process designed some damn good model homes.

On to  sales and marketing of design projects --- I worked on projects for a variety of companies, involving anything and everything from fast food restaurant interiors to major office jobs. At one point I covered the 11 Western states for a Canadian firm, one of the five approved interiors suppliers for McDonalds. I was design liaison for their eateries from the beaches to the mountains, and flew into some city 3 to 4 times a week. My neighbors thought I was a flight attendant, albeit one dragging a huge portfolio. A typical day, including travel time, averaged about 15 hours. Occasionally I made an overnight trip to Windsor, Canada. I'd fly from Los Angeles into Detroit, rent a car, and drive through the tunnel to Canada. Then I'd have my meeting the next morning followed by a flight back to L.A. Needless to say, my internal clock was really messed up by all the time zones in such a short time.

 Later I changed to representing a comany in Irvine, CA. and worked with other concepts like Burger King, Denny's, Tony Roma's, Pollo Loco, Arbys and more. At least corporate meetings were in California.

I won't bore you with the details of my journey from interior design, sales and marketing to writing but there were several more stops along the way. Suffice to say that the habits linger. Yesterday wasn't one of my best. I really felt a little punk. But my manuscript for Writers Tricks of the Trade called to me.

The voice in my head screamed, "Hey, it's me, your manuscript. I'm supposed to go the editor by June 15. That won't happen if you don't finish me." So I forced myself through eight hours of working on it. I must say, and this sounds strange, I'm learning from my own manuscript.

Sometimes as writers, we put the words on the paper without absorbing the full meaning of what we've written. I'm glad I didn't let up the guard yesterday, because as I re-read a few of the chapters, I realized I had to follow my own advice and make some changes to a manuscript.

Today I'm feeling great. Wonder how many hours I'll put in. It's a beautiful day for a drive. Hmmm, I still have to write my column, the manuscript beckons, and--- what the heck --- maybe I'll take the drive after all.