Charity Auction for Humane Society of West Alabama

After the recent storms which hit the southeast, animal shelters have been hard hit with the task of caring for and identifying lost and misplaced pets. The authors of the Criminal Minds group blog, an award-winning weekly blog featuring 14 mystery and thriller writers, have joined forces to help those who cannot speak or help themselves. All CM authors have donated SIGNED copies of their most recent books for this charity auction.

Again, these are SIGNED COPIES! You will not find this collection of mystery, thriller, and paranormal fiction anywhere else!

Hard Cover

Rock Bottom by Erin Brokovich with C.J. Lyons (signed by C.J. only)

The Curse-Maker by Kelli Stanley

Dead in the Water by Meredith Cole

Murder on the Bride's Side by Tracy Kiely

Monkology by Gary Phillips

The Last Striptease by Michael Wiley

The Damage Done by Hillary Davidson

Paperback

A Trace of Smoke by Rebecca Cantrell

iDRAKULA by Bekka Black

Assault with a Deadly Glue Gun by Lois Winston

The Jook by Gary Phillips

Orange County Noir by Gary Phillips

Ghost in the Polka Dot Bikini by Sue Ann Jaffarian

Day One by Bill Cameron

Before Cain Strikes by Joshua Corin

Blood Law by Jeannie Holmes

Black Rain by Graham Brown (not shown in picture)

Black Sun by Graham Brown (not shown in picture)

All proceeds -- 100% -- will be donated to the Humane Society of West Alabama -- a non-profit, all-volunteer, no kill shelter in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Tuscaloosa was one of the cities hardest hit by the tornadoes and storms. The shelter's facilities were not badly damaged but they are in desperate need of supplies and donations.

Thank you for joining the Criminal Minds to support HSWA and their ongoing animal rescue and storm recovery efforts!

Click here to bid on the auction.

Click here to learn more about the Humane Society of West Alabama.

Author M.I.A.

It’s baaa-aack!

Okay, “it” is really me and I’m only sorta back. I’m gradually returning to normal life. If you’ve been wondering where I’ve been for the past month or so, let me fill you in.

December was a busy month. It seemed like every week brought a new event, both good and bad, and they all culminated into an emotional rollercoaster that’s only now slowing down. Without going into details, here’s the record of the ride:

December 15 – I arrive at my mother’s home in Mississippi for niece’s wedding.

December 18 – Wedding rehearsal.

December 19 – Niece’s wedding. Mom unable to attend due to illness.

December 20 – In the early morning hours, Mom passes away in her sleep.

December 22 – Nephew’s birthday.

December 23 – Mom’s funeral.

December 24 – Other nephew and niece-in-law welcome their first child. (Yes, I’m a great-aunt now. Gods, I feel old.)

December 26 – Family gathers for Christmas.

December 27 – Mark returns to Mobile and I remain in Mississippi at my mother’s home to work on Book 2 and help with estate issues.

December 28-Present – I’m still in Mississippi, planning first trip back to Mobile at end of January, and still working on Book 2.

So, it’s not that I wanted to disappear for weeks but circumstances have required my dropping out of sight for a while. However, I’m now happy to report that I’m returning to normal life -– if you can call my life up until this point “normal” –- and I hope you’ll see more of me in the coming weeks.

For those who follow the Criminal Minds group blog, I’ll be returning to my usual Monday posting February 1. I’m also planning to make my first posting to The Magic District blog next week (Wednesday, January 27). I don’t have constant internet access so doing anything, including responding to emails, is tricky. (If you’re expecting an email response from me, I’m not ignoring you, just interweb challenged at the moment.)

The good news here is I can report that progress is being made on Book 2. Given recent events, I can tell you that spelunking in the cave of my unconsciousness is not easy right now. It’s hard to write about rogue vampires, creepy killers, body dumps, and psychotic episodes when you’re living in the same house where your mother died only a month prior. Some days it’s not so bad, but the scenes that require a body… Yeah, I admit I procrastinate on those days and put off writing those scenes as long as possible. So while progress is being made, it’s slow and I’m nowhere close to where I’d hope to be in the story by this point. But, progress is being made. Words are making it to the page. They may not be the best (yet) but at least the pages are stacking up and the story is unfolding.

Speaking of pages, Mr. FedEx paid me a visit yesterday and brought with him the page proofs for BLOOD LAW. Squeeeeee! For those who don't know, page proofs are the uncorrected pages of a manuscript that has been formatted for publication. The text appears exactly how it will be printed in the final version. It's also the last chance for the author to make minor corrections. Over the next few days, I'll be reading these, making corrections (if needed) and will then return them to Ms. Editor who will send them along to the next stage: galleys! Galleys are similar to ARCs in that they are sent to various people for possible cover quotes, advance reviews, etc. Yes, I'll be recieving copies. Yes, I will be teasing you unmercifully with them. Why? Because I'm evil. Muwahahaha!

And…on that note, I’m going to shut this down and get back to work.

Thanks to everyone who’s expressed condolences for Mom’s passing and offered encouragement. You know who you are and how much you’re appreciated. *hugs*

Mama Drama and Emotional Dodgeball

It's been a long, rough week and I'm exhausted -- physically, mentally, and emotionally. Here's why:

On Friday, November 27, my mother fell (who is seventy-seven, by the way) and broke three ribs. Thankfully she did not injure her hip, screw up the artificial knee replacement or shoulder surgery she had a few years ago, nor did she hit her head. The broken ribs did not puncture or injure any vital organs. She simply has large bruises on her side and hip and, of course, the ribs.

I, along with Mark, drove to Mississippi that same night, and I stayed with Mom for the week. Needless to say, I didn't get much writing done while I was caring for her, cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, taking Mom to the doctor for follow-up visits from the emergency room, etc. However, the sacrifice is paying off because Mom is recovering very well and is now able to stay by herself for the most part. My siblings are checking on her frequently throughout the day and there is never anyone too far away should she need assistance.

But, as often happens, life threw the family another undodgeable ball. The younger brother of one of my brothers-in-law was killed in an auto accident Saturday night just a few miles from my mother's house. It was late at night and the roads were slick from a rare snow fall in southwestern Mississippi. Jason was only a year or so older than me and we'd grown up together. His family lived "across the woods" from mine when we were growing up, and our families spent many summers enjoying one another's company. Aside from being my brother-in-law's brother, he and I had been childhood friends and although our lives had taken us in different directions, he was still a part of our extended family. My heart breaks for everyone who lost a son, brother, uncle, and friend on Saturday night. Jason will be missed.

However, on a happier note, I get to spend the next week at home with Mark and my kitties before having to return to Mississippi for my oldest niece's wedding. It's hard to believe she's even old enough to get married, but she is. It seems like only yesterday she was scrunching up her nose and pronouncing "noodle" as "noonle" and being obsessive about Barbie. Oh, how time flies.

Speaking of how time flies, there will soon be a new addition to my family...other than the nephew-in-law I'll gain next week. My third nephew and his wife are expecting their first child any day now. My first great...whatever. I love being an aunt. I get to spoil 'em and run...and since I live in another state, I get plenty of mileage out of the spoiling and the running.

Now, as for news on BLOOD LAW, there has been some new developments. My wonderful editor, Danielle Perez, is leaving Random House to take an executive editor position at NAL/Penguin. While I'm sad to see her leave before BLOOD LAW is released, I wish her the best of luck in her new venture. She's an awesome editor and I've learned a lot from working with her. She'll be missed but I'm also excited about working with my new editor, Shauna Summers. Because of all the "Mama Drama" that's been going on with me lately, Shauna and I haven't had an opportunity to chat yet, but I'm sure we will soon enough. I'm really looking forward to getting to know her and working with her.

Also, another new development: As of December 7, (today) I'll be joining the Criminal Minds group blog as a regular contributor. I was invited to join by the wonderful Kelli Stanley and since as how that entire group of authors simply rocks, I couldn't say no. I'll be making my inaugural post shortly on the subject of "Have you ever worried about your family's reaction to a scene you wrote?" Short answer: Hell yeah. Long answer: You'll have to read it on Criminal Minds. ;)

And mark your calendars! By now you should know that BLOOD LAW is scheduled for release June 22, 2010. However, you may not be aware that on June 23, 2010, I will be having a virtual book launch party at Bitten by Books! There will be prizes, Q&A, and mass hysteria. I'll post more details as they become available, but mark your calendars now so you don't forget. (And if someone could make certain to remind me a few days in advance that would be great because I'll probably be a quivering pile of babbling goo on June 22.)

I think that covers all the updates I have for now. Be sure to check Criminal Minds later and then come back here for instructions in a new extreme sport that I and a couple of friends invited. You won't want to miss it. ;)

TTFN JKH