Newest News:
While the rest of the U.S. has been struggling through a very cold spell, Central Arizona has remained sunny and warmer than normal. That is, until Saturday. On Saturday, I attended our local Women’s March. I’ve never been to a march or demonstration, so I decided I had to come. Anyway, for the first time in months, it was cold and rainy. Of course! Over 50 people came to stand along the sidewalk on the primary street running through town with signs. We had lots of honks for us and a few who decided the middle finger salute was more appropriate. Oh well. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. Anyway, it rained on and off all afternoon and in the evening, when the temperature dropped, it snowed. We woke to about an inch on Sunday morning, covering everything in the area. Very pretty. See the above picture.
My second All About Bob story, It’s All About the Game, is in full swing. I have several chapters written already. My main character Roberta Hixon, or Bobbie to her friends, is in trouble up to her neck. She has just days to figure it out! This is a YA contemporary, novelette series that I think everyone will like. The plan, as I discussed last year, is to write all five and release them one right after the other, probably in 2019.
Had a bit of a slump last week as my mom went into the hospital again. She’s doing better now, and my brain has come out of it’s fog and I can get some things accomplished.
I’m finalizing the formatting of Tested, then I’ll put it up for pre-sale. I’m thinking of putting it into my St. Patrick’s Day giveaway, so stay tuned for that.
I’ve made a calendar for 2018. It’s for sale at http://www.lulu.com/shop/connie-cockrell/my-calendar-2018/calendar/product-23462179.html. The photos were taken by my husband of places around Arizona where we live and hike. If you haven’t gotten your 2018 wall calendar, check it out. I hope you like it.
Giveaways:
The Christmas Giveaway is over. My prize winners were Sparrow Chaser, Richard Brandt, and Christina Tatt. They all have their prizes. Now, for the Lovestruck Authors and Bloggers Valentine’s Day giveaway there are 32 authors giving away at least two prizes each and there’s $100 in PayPal cash for the grand prize winner. This is a great way to find new to you authors, but it doesn’t last long. The St. Patrick’s Day giveaway will start after Valentine’s Day. Check out https://conniesrandomthoughts.com/giveaways-and-prizes/ and click on the Rafflecopter link to enter the new contest. Books, ebooks, jewelry and more is being given away. You don’t want to miss out.
My January giveaway, Ring in the New Year with Killer Mysteries, hosted by author Anne R. Tan on BookFunnel.com ran from January 5th to the 21st. Lots of new to you authors were also in the giveaway. For the over 1100 readers who downloaded my book, Mystery at the Fair, thank you. A welcome email will be coming to you shortly.
Shout Out:
I’m reading Connie Willis’s short story collection, The Best of Connie Willis. These are all award-winning science fiction, science fiction/horror stories. I wouldn’t be surprised if one or two of these appear on the hit show, Black Mirror. They are that good. I attended the 2017 Westercon with her and served on a few panels with her. She has an encyclopedic memory of everything science fiction. I was honored to be sitting next to her.
Where Will I Be?
Check my website, https://conniesrandomthoughts.com/where-will-i-be/ for my next engagements.
I’m already scheduled to go to the Phoenix Comicon May24th – 28th. I’m putting together at least 2 costumes. Hope to see you there in your costume. I’ll be in Artist’s Alley!
Newsletter Sign Up:
Click here to sign up for my newsletter. I’ve put sign-up gifts on both the regular and the Brown Rain newsletter sign-ups. That’s right. If you sign up for my newsletter you get a free story from me. Be prepared for fun and contests! Click on the video link for a short video from me. Hear what I’m working on. Join my “A” Team to be the first to read my books and hear what new books are coming.
Don’t forget to follow my blog, too. Different material goes in the blog as in the newsletter. You can share both, so spread the word!
Newest Book Release:
Mystery at the Book Festival released June 1st and I’m pretty excited about it. You can buy it and my other books at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Smashwords, today! You can also see all my books on https://conniesrandomthoughts.com/my-books-and-other-published-work/. If you’ve read any of my books, please drop a short, honest, review on the site where you bought it or on Goodreads. It’s critical to help me promote the books to other readers. Thanks in advance.