Writer's Life
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A Random Day in the Life of a SDP Author
Take a moment to catch up with our resident Crime author Evelyn Infante and check out her newest novel Bloodhound Investigations The house is clean, the laundry done, and it’s raining—a perfect day for a writer who’s been procrastinating lately, to get on with the hard but enjoyable work of writing. That’s where my mind was on the day I wrote this: A Rainy Day Doing Research On this rainy day in the Poconos, what else is there to do for a writer than do research on a new story idea? Oh, and bake, but today I want to concentrate on my new book idea. I spent most…
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BLOG POST FROM SHAGGY DOG AUTHOR SUSAN MOORE JORDAN
And This Shall Be for Music, my new novel, had been “percolating” for some time. I had begun the tale in 2017, but soon realized the book needed to be put on the back burner for a while. Four years and eight mystery novels later, the protagonist, Lindsey Cameron, reminded me she was waiting to tell her story. This time, even though it took a nearly a year and many re-writes, Lindsey was able to complete her journey. In my new blog post, read more about what this author experienced and learned from her characters and what happened to them. And how music, the center of their lives, never failed…
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Haute Hijab Speaks with SDP Author Sahar Abdulaziz
Haute Hijab, an online magazine dedicated to empowering women, spoke with our own Sahar Abdulaziz on “The Problem of ‘Not Taking Sides’ with Post-Divorce Relationships & Domestic Abuse.” This SDP author is also a Certified Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault Counselor Advocate, trained and qualified to weigh in on this topic. During her conversation with Haute Hijab’s contributing writer, Layla Abdullah-Poulos, Sahar explained that neutrality has no place in the face of abuse. “There is no such thing as ‘not taking sides’ when an abuse victim discloses,” explained Sahar. “All too often, people will claim neutrality when, in fact, they are looking the other way, making excuses for the abuser…
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The Unforeseen Impact of Book Reviews
Authors and book reviews, book reviews and authors—the never-ending entanglement of conflicting emotions, eliciting everything from exuberance, passion, and pleasure to sadness, fury, and sometimes humiliation. No author, no matter how well received, is safe from the biting sting of the disparaging critique. “The unflattering reviews are painful for short periods of time; the badly written ones are deeply, deeply insulting. That reviewer took no time to really read the book.” Toni Morrison The wide range of emotions generated by having your work and creativity publicly judged can make some authors cringe while others jump for joy. “For me, one of the most challenging aspects of being a published author…
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The Land of Lost Chapters
Recently, while sorting my writing folders, I stumbled across some very old works-in-progress. Cue me spending a morning reading unfinished stories and forgetting to do any work. I found stories I loved and a couple that, frankly, should be burned, digital or not. But in the process, I conceived this blog post about all the half-finished stories nearly every writer has hidden away somewhere. Continue reading this post on Kelly’s blog -> Kelly JensenWriter of love stories. Bibliophile. Gamer. Hiker. Cat herder. Waiting for the aliens. kellyjensenwrites.com/
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The Origins of The Case Of The Missing Monarch
Life became pretty lonely when the pandemic lockdown began in March 2020. But the birds began arriving a few weeks later, and escape to the Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge became my sanctuary and link to the outside world. I teamed up with a fellow birder who remained as diligent as I about masking and social distancing. The Case of the Missing Monarch started out as a serial sent to a select two to lift all our spirits, and document some of our nature adventures at the Refuge. I added a murder mystery plot and a couple of interesting leading characters who go to a lot of trouble to find…
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Writing Blocks
Like most writers, I enjoy talking about my craft. Much of my process is patched together with tips from friends, writers’ blogs, workshops, and books. So, it’s my hope, when I post an article like this, that my tips will help someone else refine their process—or at least give them something new to try. This post is about what I call Writing Blocks. When I first added the topic to my list, I tried to think of a clever way to tie my title into what is often considered a writer’s greatest nemesis, the dreaded block. Perhaps you’ve landed here thinking just that! If so, this post might help, because—for me—the easiest…
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Update From Kelly Jensen-Newly Available Paperbacks, German Translations and More!
Shaggy Dog Books asked me for a long overdue update on which books I have in Kindle Unlimited and which are now available wide. The Let’s Connect series has left Kindle Unlimited and is now available through a variety of retailers. I have also submitted the books to Overdrive and other library services, so get your requests in! LET’S CONNECT | LET’S GO OUT The Let’s Connect series is now also available in paperback! These editions are gorgeous. I always choose glossy covers for my independently published books and the artwork really stands out in this format. Both editions include all the extras (epilogues, art, and recipes) and Let’s Connect features the first chapter…
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Interview with Belinda M Gordon
For this third installment in our series about Shaggy Dog’s Lady Writers, we feature Belinda Gordon, the founder and director of our publishing cooperative. Belinda is a lady of many talents, and we learned more during a recent conversation with this dynamic entrepreneur. SMJ: I just read and thoroughly enjoyed your award-winning book, The Good Pharmacist’s Deadly Secrets—a Finalist in the 2020 AIN Book of the Year Award. I see it’s listed as book one in a new series, following your 4-book series “The King’s Jewel.” All of these include mythical creatures from a world very different from our own. Do you consider these works urban fantasy, and what…
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Interview with Evelyn Infante
How exciting for all of us Lady Writers at Shaggy Dog Productions to celebrate the release of Evelyn Infante’s new book, Simply Gregg, on Amazon on March 11! We sat down with Evelyn for an interview shortly before the book became available to the public and asked her to share some thoughts. SMJ: I’m excited to read your new book, Simply Gregg, which is about to be released. I know it’s a mystery. Can you tell us a little more about it? EI: Simply Gregg is not so much a mystery as it is a detective story. You know who the killer is soon after the homicide. The story…
