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Once again, the newsletter is going out at a different time. I have a live sales event on Sunday. It lasted all day, and so I didn’t follow my usual routine and write one on Sunday. I’m wiped out today. So this is likely to be a shorter newsletter.
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The event went better than I had thought it would. I wasn’t sure if I’d sell enough books to even make back my table rent. However, it turned out that I sole about my average number of books. Not only was it a romance heavy event, there were a lot of writers with very spicy books. When people came up to my table I described it as a spice-free zone. This was a very good differentiator for readers, as some of them were only there for the spicy books, some liked the non-spice as a palate cleanser, and a few were actively looking for non-spicy books.
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One of the things that was different about this event was that I sold more mysteries than fantasy. Generally speaking, I sell a lot more of the cozy fantasy. I think it had to do with the age of the attendees, as they trended toward older women. Plus, I sold two mysteries to younger women who were buying my mysteries for their mothers.
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Here’s a picture of my table at the event:
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ION, I continue to knit. A lot. The knitting is part of my relaxation at night. I read and knit at the same time. The reason this is part of my nightly routine is because I can watch my resting heart rate decrease. Just reading, or just knitting, do not lower my heart rate as well as when I combine them. So doing both of them together has been really good.
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I’m trying to always have three projects going at the same time, so that I can switch between them. Generally speaking, that’s been a hat, a scarf, and a sweater. This week, I’ll be starting three projects, as I’ve finished off so many already.
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I just realized I never posted here about the latest hat that I finished. I really like how this turned out. It’s the 3D blocks hat. I’m not sure how well you can see it in the pictures, but in person, the 3D effect really works.
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Then I also finished a scarf. The color changes are from the variegation in the yarn itself. This was one of those “extra” skeins in a bag of yarn that I got from Goodwill. Generally speaking, my local Goodwill sells bags with 3-4 skeins of yarn in it for $6.99. What happens is that I’ll buy a bag for a particular skein, then I have to figure out what I’m doing with the “extra” skeins in the bag.
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So I already made something from this bag. This is an extra scarf.
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As I’ve mentioned before, I work much better with carrots than with sticks. Every quarter, I have to reconcile all the bank accounts and do quarterly taxes. This is not my favorite job in the world. My carrot for doing it? Knitting accoutrement that I will use, but would never buy for myself because it’s an extravagance.
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This month, I bought myself rubber mats so I can block my finished knitted projects. They’ll arrive this week and I’m so excited about it!
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In the meanwhile, here’s the latest scarf that I’ve finished, that still needs to be blocked. The pictures don’t show that the yarn, in addition to being very colorful, is also sparkly.
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And I think that’s it for me. Words are hard today.
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Los Angeles. The city that never sleeps.
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These stories take inspiration from those hard-boiled detectives of yore, with broken noses and steely eyes. The white knight you could rely on because the rest of the world had soured like a rotten apple. Even if he (or she) didn’t follow the rules.
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Or maybe because they broke them in order to see justice done.
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Come see what the MCM Syndicate has to say about these types of “heroes” as we enter our seventh year of publication.
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MCM – So Criminal, It’s Good.
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And now for something a little different...
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For the month of April, Birth of the Star Dragon, a science fiction novel written with an 1950s pulp flair by Blaze Ward, is on sale for $0.99!
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Two tiny lizardmen scientists/criminals power up their illegal wormhole generator, getting ready to kidnap their next victim by pulling the poor human across the galaxy in an instant, forever trapping him in the Accord of Souls.
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Maybe this human won’t destroy everything they love.
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The last human they kidnaped killed the big boss, took over their criminal gang, and now, threatens to conquer the entire galaxy.
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The problem? Despite being criminals, the human they want to kidnap is a cop.
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What could possibly go wrong?
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Birth of the Star Dragon—science fiction written with an 1950s pulp flair—opens new vistas for readers of Blaze Ward. Fantastic, weird worlds, populated by aliens, criminals, and, oh yeah, one human cop.
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Previously published as Awaken the Star Dragon.
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