FamousFivePlus.com

I recently became a member of Famous Five Plus a web group created to promote the writing of Indie Authors whose passion is to succeed.  While I am still learning about the group and its members, I find myself amazed at the quality and diversity of my fellow author's tales.  They write in many genres to match the reading pleasures of a wide audience of book enthusiasts.  Check out the group's website to see what strikes your fancy.  I guarantee you'll find a lot that will.  In particular, I encourage you to take a peek at two sagas published by group members in the past week, Pauline Barclay's Storm Clouds Gathering (Pauline is the group's founding member) and D.S. Ingram's Angel Girls. And keep checking back at the website where you'll be introduced to new stories and authors you'll come to follow and recommend to your friends. http://www.famousfiveplus.com/

Falling from the Sky

I've just put the finishing touches on my next novel, Falling from the Sky.  It will be in the editing process for the next several weeks and I'll be working with a cover designer to come up with something snazzy and appealing.  I'll keep you posted on the progress and, when we get closer, the actual publication date.

Friday afternoon I received exciting news from the President of indieBRAG, LLC that I am delighted to share with you. My mystery novel, Reno Splits, has been awarded a B.R.A.G. Medallion. The Medallion is an honor conferred by indieBRAG, LLC, an organization created “to bring together a large group of readers, both individuals and members of book clubs, located throughout the United States, Canada, and the European Union.” The word ‘indie’ refers to self or independently published books and B.R.A.G. is an acronym for Book Readers Appreciation Group. indieBRAG’s mission is “to recognize quality on the part of authors who self-publish . . . digital books.” In order to maintain the integrity of the award eligibility process, the identity of its reader/reviewers is “kept anonymous to protect them from criticism and influence. Authors do not know who is reading their books and readers do not know who else is reading a particular book.” The reviewers “make their decision without any influence from indiBRAG, authors or other readers and the decision to award a B.R.A.G. Medallion must be a unanimous ‘yes’”. Books that have met indieBRAG’s standard of quality are awarded the B.R.A.G. Medallion and featured on the organization’s website, www.bragmedallion.com. I encourage you to visit the website to see the ninety-two books that have been awarded this prestigious honor, including Reno Splits. You might even decide to take a look at some of the offerings at the site. For those of you who already have read Reno Splits, I send you my sincere thanks. If you haven’t, as yet, I encourage you to do so. It’s a fun read, and now has the recognition of a prestigious organization for validation. And I have a favor to ask. If you are so inclined, please share this posting with your own Facebook friends and other acquaintances. Word of mouth is my most effective marketing tool and you are my best marketing asset.

Looking for A Good Book to Read?

In looking to promote Reno Splits online I've come across a great Website, Goodreads, a site that contains a lot of good information about books other people have read and, often have written reviews about. You can find best sellers, fiction, non-fiction, eBooks--and a lot more. Check it out.

Reno Splits Now Available Online

The publication process is complete. RENO SPLITS is now available on several eBook Websites including Amazon (for Kindle), Barnes and Noble (for Nook), and eBookPie (for multiple types of eReaders). It soon will be available on the Sony Reader Store, the Apple iBookstore and Kobo--among other sites. The price to download to your eReader device is $2.99. And if you don't have an eReading device, you still can read your book on your desktop, laptop, iPad, or any number of other devices by downloading the free Kindle app from Amazon or the Nook reader from Barnes and Noble. I've enjoyed the process of writing RENO SPLITS and hope you like the results!

Please don't forget to "Like" my Facebook page as well!

Reno Splits: Mystery on a Nevada Divorce Ranch

This summer I'll be e-publishing  Reno Splits: Mystery on a Nevada Divorce Ranch, a novel of mystery and suspense set in post World War II  Reno, Nevada.  This post introduces you to the story.  Later posts will delve into the culture of the time, specifically the divorce ranches that sprang up around Reno in the 1940s and 1950s.  If  you have specific questions, I would be pleased to try and provide answers.

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Bustling 1949 Reno featured flashy casinos, dazzling nightlife, high-stakes gambling, majestic scenery and alluring women.  Some of the women were eastern socialites and Hollywood starlets who had come to the gambling mecca for another of its offerings--a 'quickie divorce'. 

During their time in Nevada, many of the split-seekers lived on dude ranches, exclusive enclaves the locals called  'divorce ranches'.  Those oftentimes rustic establishments catered to their guests' every wish, providing whatever entertainment and companionship the women desired to fill the forty-two days and nights required by the state before it would grant them a divorce.  It was a luxurious and pampered life for most--but not all the women.  Some mysteriously disappeared .  One of those was Sally Renfield who vanished on the day her divorce hearing was scheduled.  Days later, when her animal-ravaged body was found in the desert north of Reno, her twin brother, New York lawyer Sam Carr, traveled west to find her.  As Sam explored the divorce ranch culture, getting ever closer to his prey, he uncovered some unexpected truths about his sister--and about himself.  He also found himself in the crosshairs of a madman, leaving him only one option--succeed in his quest or die.