Speaking to Book Clubs (Anywhere!)
Do you know that I speak to bookclubs via speakerphone? There have been some weeks when I make a call every single night. I always promise 20 minutes, but I have so much fun talking that I may ramble on for 30. The time just flies by. This week I spoke with a book club…
Read More"No Thinking. That Comes Later"
I’m watching the old (2000) movie, Finding Forrester, as I work on this blog post. Have you seen it? It’s the story of an aging agoraphobic author played by Sean Connery (the only actor worthy of the name Bond, in my opinion) and his young protoge’, a brilliant inner city kid named Jamal. Forrester tells Jamal…
Read MoreMy Curious Readers
Today I received an email jam-packed with questions from a reader, so I thought I’d take this opportunity to answer her questions along with some of the others I’ve recently received. Here we go! Q. I love your books and when I tell my friends about them, they ask what category they are in and I never…
Read MoreSpeaking at Quail Ridge Books
I always love speaking at Quail Ridge, one of my two favorite Independent Bookstores (the second being Quarter Moon Books in Topsail Beach). Quail Ridge does a good job getting the word out and it has a wonderful setup for the audience. I had such a good time. My favorite part of a speaking…
Read MoreMarcus's Operation Bumblebee Tower
If you’ve read Before the Storm or Secrets She Left Behind, you know that my character, Marcus, lives in an unusual house. After World War II, the US Navy ran a secret program called Operation Bumblebee on Topsail Island (where I just happen to be for the weekend). The program was designed to develop and test supersonic…
Read MoreThe Women Helping Women Expo
I had so much fun last night! The event was a giant Expo full of women vendors of all stripes, showing off their wares and skills and businesses. It was so impressive. I’d been invited to sign books and I was able to meet loads of new-to-me readers, which is always a treat. (This is…
Read MoreStates' Rights
I’d like you all to welcome Alexandra Sokoloff to my blog. Alex is one of my Scribbler buddies here in North Carolina, and she is . . . well, she’s one of a kind! And she’s the master of intelligent, spooky books. I can relate a bit to what she writes below, since I lived…
Read MoreThe Sequel Dilemma Revisited
Want to win a copy of The Courage Tree? Check out Emilie Richards’ interview of me on her blog and leave a comment by June 3rd. Good luck! I can’t sleep. It’s this dang sequel dilemma. Remind me never to write…
Read MoreHow Do You Read?
Want to win a copy of The Courage Tree? Check out Emilie Richards’ interview of me on her blog and leave a comment. Good luck! In my last post (which must have set a record for the number of comments on my blog!), several people mentioned two quirks about reading novels that fascinated me. The…
Read MoreSecrets She Left Behind
Today’s the big day! Secrets She Left Behind should be in stores this morning. It’s the story of a family–a complex, extended, messy, and wildly secretive family. It’s suspenseful and surprising, poignant and ultimately uplifting. I can’t wait to hear what you think of it! If you haven’t seen the book trailer for Secrets, you can…
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