Now available from Midnight Ink, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Indiebound, and your local bookseller!
Friday, May 29, 2015
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Q&A with Amanda Flower
This week, we sat down with Amanda Flower. Her Midnight Ink debut, The Final Reveille, is out now!
Midnight Ink: How long have you been writing?
AF: I’ve
been writing ever since I was a child, but my first novel, Maid of Murder, was published in 2010.
MI: What influence have other authors
had on your writing?
AF: They
have influenced me in knowing the kind of books I wanted to write. I wanted to
write cozies before I even knew what a cozy was. I just knew at an early age, I
wanted to write mysteries that made people laugh.
MI: If you weren’t a writer, what would
you be doing?
AF: Be
a librarian, which I am.
MI: If you have a job outside of
writing, what is it?
AF: Yes,
I am a full time college librarian. I love it. I keep toying with the idea of
leaving and writing full time, but I just can’t let go of my library life just
yet.
MI: What is/are your favorite thing/s
to do when you’re not writing or working?
AF: Travel.
I’m headed to Prince Edward Island this summer. I’m going to totally geek out
over all things Anne of Green Gables.
Anne and I have a lot in common. We are kindred spirits I am sure.
MI: Who is your favorite mystery
sleuth and why?
AF: Goodness,
that’s a tough question. I would say Nevada Barr’s Anna Pigeon. She so
resourceful and can survive in the woods, desert, or polar ice caps. I hate to
camp, so I find her fascinating.
MI: Do you have a favorite murder
case from a book (either yours or another author’s)?
AF: Agatha
Christie’s And Then There Were None.
I have read it several times. She was a genius. I’ve even read the play Ten Little Indians based on the book. It
has a different ending. You should read it.
MI: What was your inspiration for
this series?
AF: When
I was in college, I worked at a living history museum one summer and thought,
“Holy cow, there are a lot of ways to take someone out around here.” I was
already writing Maid of Murder then,
so I had already set my course to be a mystery author.
MI: How does this series compare to
your past works?
AF: I’ve
a very successful Amish mystery run that’s still going strong. I’ve written
Amish mysteries under my name and the pen name Isabella Alan. There’s no
Amish in this book, but there are plenty of quirky characters and humor, which
are my specialties.
MI: Tell us about Kelsey Cambridge.
AF: Kelsey
is a single mom and the Director of Barton Farm. She sees it as her life’s
mission to keep the Farm open despite some serious financial challenges not to
mention the dead bodies she runs into.
MI: How did you come up with Barton
Farm?
AF: It
is loosely based on several living history museum I have visited.
MI: Do you have a pet? Tell us about
him/her.
AF: Yes,
I do! I have two cats Reepicheep AKA Cheeps and Mr. Tumnus AKA Tummy. Can you
tell I am a Chronicles of Narnia super fan? Cheeps and Tummy are my first
editors and get lots of air time on my Facebook Page. They have
their own Instagram account
too. In my opinion, the Internet would crash and burn without cat photos to
keep it going.
 |
| Tummy |
 |
| Cheeps |
MI: What food could you live off of
for the rest of your life?
AF: Ice
cream.
MI: Do you have a favorite recipe?
AF: Hmmm…
this is assuming I can cook, which I can’t. Not too long ago, I caught a pot on
fire while hard boiling eggs. I’m still in recovery over the incident.
MI: What’s your favorite part about
being an Inker?
AF: I
like how supportive the network of authors and the awesome books they write.
The Final Reveille is available online and in bookstores now!
Monday, May 25, 2015
Seven Tips for a Successful Cover Reveal Contest
A cover reveal is supposedly the perfect opportunity to build excitement about your newest novel, but how do you get anyone other than your mother to care? My past cover reveals (all two of them) got lots of likes and more than a few comments, but they felt anticlimactic to me. I love my covers. I want my readers to be as excited about them as I am. But how?
On the flight home from Malice, the answer came to me. Host a cover reveal contest!
Now all I had to do was figure out how to do it. In case any of you want to try one too, here are my key learnings:
Seven tips for a successful cover reveal contest:Follow the rules. My favorite social media marketing tool is Facebook, but Facebook is persnickety about contests. There are rules, rules and more rules. Follow them and all is golden. Don’t? You might get yourself banned to Facebook purgatory. A place where your Facebook privileges are suspended or even revoked completely. Facebook rules, including those pertaining to contests, are at this page.
Have a single web page that summarizes the contest. I write for multiple blogs, but I posted the first day of the contest on my personal blog. This included the disclaimers and instructions for all days of the week-long contest. That way even as the contest continued to plug along, I had a single place I could refer people. Even though I thought I was clear in every post, I had multiple entries that I needed to correct each day.
Make it a week-long event
In my case, there were 5 key elements in the cover I wanted to highlight, so I spread the contest out over 5 days, with a unique prize each day. The grand prize round two was days later. Even my husband, who had seen the cover multiple times, started to wonder what the next “reveal” would be. And the participants created stories about how the 5 elements might fit together—some of them surprisingly close to the truth!
Have a grand finale
The final reveal, of course is the grand finale, but shouldn’t there be a grand prize to go along with it? In my case, I honored my fellow Agatha nominees for Best First Novel by giving a set of autographed copies of all 5 of the nominated books.
Ask for a little help from your friends
In this case, my friends are my street team. I had a special contest for a signed ARC of my book to street team members who shared the post. That got me reach to readers I’d never otherwise find.
Be involved
I’ll admit, this contest took a lot more time than I thought it would. Posting the contest was only the start. I also had to check in on the posts several times a day, note who had shared each post and how many times, and reply to the relevant comments. I also had to re-direct people who accidentally posted their answers on the wrong page. I firmly believe that time spent interacting with my readers (and future readers) is time well spent. I don’t recommend doing this, however, if you’re up against a deadline. Make sure you leave plenty of time for contest administration.
Advertise!
What good is a contest if no one enters? I advertised in several ways, all low cost and low time:
· Posts on my personal and author Facebook pages. I started a week before the contest, and posted daily throughout it.
· Cheap Facebook post promotions. I was hesitant to do this, in case my contest violated any of the oh-so-grumpily-enforced Facebook rules, but I put on my big girl pants and did it anyway. I paid between $2 and $5 a day to boost the day’s post. Honestly, except for the final day, my organic reach far exceeded my paid reach.
· Posts in relevant Facebook groups. I belong to 5 cozy mystery groups, and I posted to every one of them. If you’re going to do that, be sure to follow the group rules.
· Dedicated blog posts. I dedicated the contest-week posts on Killer Hobbiesand my Whole Life Yoga blog to the contest.
If I’d had more time and energy I would also have posted on Twitter and advertised in Goodreads groups. Alas, that will have to wait for next year’s contest.
The results?
Considering my author page only had less than 600 fans and I’m a newer author, I was pleased with the interaction.
· Each day of the contest, my author page post was seen by 900 – 1200 people, 90% of that reach was organic.
· The final reveal post has been seen by over 2300 people. Four times the number of fans of the page it is posted on. Considering I didn’t promote that post and Facebook’s organic reach is usually about 5%, that is notable.
· Each day’s contest had 60 – 90 entries.
· The final contest (which required following the contest for 5 days and e-mailing me personally) had 54 entries.
· The “likes” on my Facebook author page grew by 70. (Not a lot, but since I wasn’t targeting that, I thought over 10% growth in a week was interesting.)
· Many of the contestants contacted me personally to say how much fun they’d had and to thank me for the contest.
Will I do it again? You bet! The fun I had alone was worth the costs of the prizes! Next year I plan to make it even more exciting.
How about you? Have you ever run a cover reveal contest? If so, how did it go? What ideas would you add to my list above? And even more importantly, what do you think of my new cover?
Tracy
Tracy
Tracy Weber is the author of the award-winning Downward Dog Mysteries series featuring yoga teacher Kate Davidson and her feisty German shepherd, Bella. Tracy loves sharing her passion for yoga and animals in any form possible. Her first book, Murder Strikes a Pose won the Maxwell Award for Fiction was nominated for the Agatha award for Best First Novel. The second book in her series, A Killer Retreat, was released January, 2015 by Midnight Ink.
Tracy and her husband live in Seattle with their challenging yet amazing German shepherd Tasha. When she’s not writing, Tracy spends her time teaching yoga, walking Tasha, and sipping Blackthorn cider at her favorite ale house.
Visit her at TracyWeberAuthor.com, friend her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/tracywe, or e-mail her at Tracy@WholeLifeYoga.com.
Friday, May 22, 2015
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Q&A with Catriona McPherson
This week, we sat down with Anthony Award-winning author Catriona McPherson. Her latest, Come to Harm, is out now!
Catriona McPherson: I
started in 2001 and have been full-time since 2005.
MI: What influence have other authors
had on your writing?
CM: I
love that we can read the stories we want to read and call it research work.
Charlaine Harris, who I’m reading now, has a lot to teach about writing an
ensemble. Jess Lourey, fellow Inker, does a dry witty voice better than anyone.
Stephen King is my writing hero. I adore his big-hearted love of a really good
story. And of course his book On Writing.
MI: If you weren’t a writer, what
would you be doing?
CM: Bookseller?
Librarian? When I did work I was a university professor. No way I’d do that
again. My pipedream job is running an independent cinema.
MI: If you have a job outside of
writing, what is it?
CM: More
writing!
MI: What is/are your favorite thing/s
to do when you’re not writing or working?
CM: Hold
on to your hats now . . . reading. Gardening, cooking, baking. I’m a wild one.
MI: Who is your favorite mystery
sleuth and why?
CM: Blimey.
That’s tough. I’m going to hit the Keurig machine while I chew it over. (I’m
currently at fellow mystery author Darrel James’s B&B in Ashland, OR, to do
some readings.) Back again and I can’t
think of anyone I’d rather spend a book with than Miss Jane Marple.
MI: Do you have a favorite murder
case from a book (either yours or another author’s)?
CM: Margery
Allingham’s case of The Beckoning Lady.
It’s one of her tricksiest and most exuberant books. I had to read it twice
before I had a clue what was going on and it was just as entertaining the
second time (and the third and the fourth).
MI: What was your inspiration for
this book?
CM: Well,
I love cooking and baking (and eating) and I think food is the bit of our
culture that touches our lives most often. So, I was fascinated by the thought
of a character being so overwhelmed by an alien food culture that she begins to
see monsters under her bed and ghosts round every corner. A Japanese scholar living
above a butchers shop in Scotland was about the most dramatic fish-out-of-water
scenario I could imagine. Japanese food traditions value presentation and
precision and make a meal out of small things well combined. Scottish food
tradition is more about frying a whole pig in lard.
MI: How does this book compare to
your past works?
CM: It’s
more gothic than my previous standalones have been. Just as a gun on the mantelpiece at the start
of Act One must go off by the end of Act Three, I think if you’ve got butchers
in a psychological thriller there’s one place you’re duty bound to go. You know.
And
that place—where fear meets giggles on the corner of schlock and suspense -
is somewhere I’ve only been in my historical series before now. I’ve had Dandy
Gilver neck-deep in spirit-mediums, for instance; so turned around that she
almost starts to believe in ghosts.
MI: Tell us about Keiko Nishisato.
CM: She’s
a psychology PhD student from Tokyo, setting off thousands of miles from home
to study “food as modern folklore” in Scotland. She’s caught between ambition
and tradition, determined to be the serious academic woman of her resumé but
still with her mother’s voice in her head much of the time. “No one is perfect: even monkeys fall out of
trees, Keko-chan.” She’s clever,
kind, nosy, vulnerable—I’m very fond of her.
 |
| Catriona's haggis |
MI: Would you want to live in
Painchton?
CM: Absolutely!
I’d move there in a heartbeat. I pretty much designed my dream small town in
Painchton. I’d love to be able to buy Malcolm Poole’s home-made haggis instead
of having to get the ingredients from various Mexican butchers in Sacramento to
make my own.
MI: Do you have a pet? Tell us about
him/her.
 |
| Rachel |
CM: I
have a black cat, Rachel. She’s a very catly cat. It’s all on her terms. If she
wants company you drop everything. If you dare to pet her when she’d rather you
didn’t she moves away, sits down with her back to you, and washes the place you
touched. Don’t you love cats?
During
the drought last year when the pond was dry, we had a water trough for the
cows. (They are lodgers; we bought twenty acres for the view and our neighbours
use the grazing.) So we had to have fish to eat the mosquito larvae in the
trough. When the grass was eaten and the cows went home, the fish came inside
to live in a tank. So now I have two goldfish, Lucy and Desi.
MI: If you don’t have a pet, do you
have a favorite animal?
CM: I
like the cow lodgers. And the hummingbirds, lizards, king snakes and jack
rabbits. I love the frog chorus in the pond at night. There’s a skunk who
wanders past on his (her?) nightly patrol too. I’m less keen on the gophers and
ground squirrels, because they eat the melons I’m hoping will be mine. And I
could live without rattlesnakes and black widows quite happily.
MI: What food could you live off of
for the rest of your life?
CM: Leftover
Christmas dinner: turkey; pork, sage, and onion stuffing; sausages with bacon
wrapped round them; gravy (left to go cold and jellified, then spread on
buttered toast); potatoes roasted in goosefat; potatoes mashed with butter and
cream; Brussels sprouts; parsnips; cranberry sauce. I’m hungry.
MI: Do you have a favorite recipe?
CM: So
many. Here’s an easy one suitable for everyone. Well, it’s not dairy-free
actually.
Make
vegetable stock by simmering onion, carrot, celery, potato, parsley stalks,
whole garlic cloves, and peppercorns in a big pot of water. Meanwhile soak 8oz
of butter beans overnight in cold water. Lima beans? Fava beans? The big white
ones. Slice two large onions and soften them in a big blob of butter until they
are translucent and slippery. Add the butter beans and the stock, salt and more
pepper and cook until the beans are soft. Then chop up six to eight ripe
tomatoes and add them too. Cook another ten minutes and serve sprinkled with
parsley.
It’s
unbelievably tasty—velvety, unctuous, savoury, and comforting.
NB:
if you make it with a stock cube, canned beans, canned tomatoes, and vegetable
oil my guarantee of tastiness is null and void.
MI: What’s your favorite part about
being an Inker?
CM: It
should be the beautiful jackets that Kevin Brown has put on my books, or the
tight edits from Nicole Nugent. But actually it’s knowing that when I arrive at
a convention I’ll be seeing Terri Bischoff’s sweet face. The MI acquiring
editor is one of the world’s best people. I don’t mean the mystery world. I
mean the world.
Come to Harm is available online and in bookstores now!
Friday, May 15, 2015
MAY RELEASES!
Take a look at these FANTASTIC spring reads!
Bite the Biscuit
By: Linda O. Johnston
A Barkery & Biscuits Mystery #1
"Kicking off a cozy new series, prolific Johnston blends mystery and romantic intrigue."—KIRKUS REVIEWS
A Novel
By: Catriona McPherson
"[McPherson is a] master of psychological thrillers."—KIRKUS REVIEWS (STARRED REVIEW)
Murder with a Twist
By: Tracy Kiely
A Nic & Nigel Mystery #1
"Witty, droll, and hilariously spot on."—Hank Phillipi Ryan, Agatha, Anthony,
Macavity, and Mary Higgins Clark Award-winning author
The Final Reveille
By: Amanda Flower
A Living History Museum Mystery #1
“History and Civil War buffs will enjoy the historical details woven through the mystery, and Kelsey and the secondary characters are well drawn and sympathetic. This one will appeal to readers who enjoy contemporary cozies with a history frame.”—BOOKLIST
Monday, May 11, 2015
Ch-ch-ch Changes
by Shannon Baker
Chaos. *cue Maxwell Smart music* The next two weeks, more like three, will be so far from routine it’ll be like 21 days of Mondays. We’re getting an 8 week old puppy and moving to Tucson from Nebraska. Stopping long enough to inhale—something like 24 hours—then bopping up to Flagstaff so we can clean up a rental house to sell it. Then I fly out of Flagstaff up to Denver to do a presentation at the University of Colorado (I KNOW!!) drive my car to Tucson and we’re starting the good life.
The great news is that this marks the end of gainful employment for our household. Long days of leisure await us as we lounge by the pool, sipping mai tais and strumming on ukuleles. Ask any retired person and they’ll tell you all about their endless free time.
Right now, I’m dreaming of those big moving vans with strapping men who come and load boxes and furniture. You hand them your new address and a check and like magic, it all appears in your new home and you never had to get out of your negligee and kitten-heeled slippers. That’s not the way we do it. We have a pickup and a trailer and my whining, complaining, ever more feebleness dragging, hauling, and sometimes crying.
In the middle of all this, I’m struggling to tame my current manuscript and expecting my first editorial letter from a new editor on the novel I turned in a couple of months ago.
I’m packing boxes, stopping to read a chapter in one of four puppy books, driving toward completing draft 2 –which is the one where I take all the mess from a blind gallop to the finish line in the first draft and pat it into a real story with all those things like character motivation and rising tension, and where I throw out all the really great scenes that don’t add to the story but were probably some unconscious emotional therapy and are rich in subtlety and moral philosophy and read like poetry or the work of a literary master. (I can say that because no one will ever read them and you’ll have to take my word for their beauty.) Let’s see, where was I before I took that punctuational detour?
You might get an idea of my monkey brain. As my husband so eloquently puts it, I’m like a fart in a skillet. Forget about bitchy resting face, my current look, as I’m shoving my happy lamp into a box (why would I need a happy lamp in Tucson but now I’m to the point where everything goes into a box because it’s easier than the cull) is more like a prune swallowing battery acid because I’m working out the book while applying strapping tape.
Deep breath. It will all get done. It always does.
The good news is that when we get down to Tucson and settle ourselves, we’re opening up our doors. We’ll be offering writers retreats. This five bedroom house sits on the edge of the desert with nothing but sage and cactus for miles out our back door. Sunsets are staged every evening over Kitt Peak with perfect viewing from our back deck and are paired perfectly with a glass of wine or cocktail of your choice. It’s quiet and sunny, with a pool and spa surrounded by a tall and very private fence. You and your writers group or buddy or solo can come down and immerse yourself in your words. In Tucson. Where mid-winter temps require a light jacket.
I promise by then, I’ll be exuding nothing but serene, creative, happy vibes—you know, like usual for me.
Contact me if getting away from snow and cold and going deep into your writing sounds good. Summers are pretty great on the desert, too. The nights cool off and, did I mention the pool? Come on, you know you want to!
Friday, May 8, 2015
May 2015 Books Available Now!
Don't miss Midnight Ink's latest releases!
"[McPherson is a] master of psychological thrillers."
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on Come to Harm
"Even teetotalers will enjoy these Martinis."
—Kirkus Reviews on Murder with a Twist
"Recipes for both dogs and humans add enjoyment in this clever cozy that will taste just right to fans of both foodie and pet mysteries."
—Booklist on Bite the Biscuit
"This one will appeal to readers who enjoy contemporary cozies with a history frame."
—Booklist on The Final Reveille
Now available from Midnight Ink, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Indiebound, and your local bookseller!
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Dying For The Malice In All Of Us
by Tj O'Connor Author of Dying to Know and Dying for the Past
Third time’s a charm …
Three years ago, I attended my first writer’s conference—Malice Domestic—and spent the entire three days scratching my head and trying to figure out where I belonged in this new world of cozy-mystery authors. When I came home, I said, “Nowhere.”
Of course I felt out of place. My debut novel, Dying to Know, was not yet out. I knew no one, and while I’ve never been one to stay shyly secluded somewhere, I still felt the odd-man-out. Perhaps it was that I didn’t consider myself a cozy writer. Perhaps it was that I was one of very few guys who had written a cozy (I did by accident), or perhaps it was simply that being surrounded by so many talented authors—most of which were ladies—was intimidating. I hadn’t been a rookie at anything for a couple decades and being one then scared the holy crap out of me. I’d say holy shit, but as a cozy writer, you sort of keep the colorful language to yourself … oops.
What a silly man I am.
This year, I was no longer a complete rookie. Book II, Dying for the Past, was out and I’d spent a good many weekends touring around talking about my book, signing, and begging for as many listeners as I could get. Malice this year wasn’t any different in that regard—I’m still begging for fans—but I began to feel a little at home with this crowd of amazing authors and fans.
And damn, a few fans actually came up to me and asked, “Are you Tj O’Connor? I loved your book … would you sign …” Holy crap on a peanut butter sandwich. They loved Dying to Knowand Dying for the Past. And, yes, you heard it right. I actually have a few fans! And, no, they’re not family, I didn’t pay them, and no one put them up to a joke. Fans. Real, breathing, reading fans. Who would think?
Malice was a terrific three days on the heels of an extraordinary guest speaking gig in Upstate New Jersey at the Children’s Special Hospital Charity, where I had the extraordinary pleasure of dining with my dear friends, Tom and Gale Sloan, and American Hero—Jerry Parr—the man who saved Ronald Reagan’s life—and his hugely successful and graceful wife, Carolyn, who is a retired Federal Judge (more on this one in another blog later). I sold a bunch of books, met some great people, and helped a little with the coffers of a great charity.
How on earth do you follow that one up?
Good books. Good friends. Good times.
During the weekend at Malice Domestic, I spent most of my time meeting new friends and fans (lord that sounds funny to say out loud … fans…) and swapping stories with fellow authors about how we’re muddling through this wacky business. I had the greatest time chatting and having a few drinks with my editor—the grande dame of Midnight Ink (my publisher)—Terri Bischoff, whom has single-handedly made life as a new-guy so much more bearable this past year that I don’t think she knows it.
But there were other highlights, too, that have pulled me into this family of cozy-writers.
First, there was the Midnight Ink dessert bash Friday night to celebrate 10 Years in the biz. We had amazing sweets, met some fantastic fans (there it is again … fans…), and had fun giving away a stack of books and signing for those lucky enough to get to the table first. But, being the loyal mystery readers they are, after I ran out of free books to sign, several bought them and had me sign on Saturday and Sunday. Thank you to all of you who made my day!
Second, there was the awards banquet for some good pals who were up for prestigious awards. It was bittersweet on a couple where friend vs. friend meant one would win and one would lose. Dinner was ehhh, but dessert —oh, la, la—(and I rarely indulge, although you wouldn’t believe that to look at me these days!) Speeches are speeches, but the event was grand. I had the distinct pleasure of sitting with my good friends—old and new—at Tracy Weber’s table. We were all rooting for her to win best first novel for Murder Strikes a Pose. Alas, it was not to be, but it’s pretty clear she’ll be heading to the podium soon.
Perhaps the best event at Malice for me was the honor of being on a panel with three brilliant and charming authors during the Sunday morning Malice schedule. Our panel was Magical Mystery Tour—Paranormal Mysteries. As Tonya Kappes—a bestselling author—said, “it was a hoot!” I was thrilled to be there among fellow authors Leigh Kelner/Perry, Tonya, and the extraordinary Charlaine Harris of True Blood fame. Our moderator was Judy Hogan, a delightful author who kept the whip cracking and the questions flying for us. While I was the low guy on the totem pole with so little experience and no notable success yet, these lovely ladies treated me like I was one of them—err, a good author, not a lady. That would have been weird, right? But, yes, what a hoot.
I was exhausted by the end of my book signing Sunday and ready to call it a weekend. How to end three days on an even higher note? Not possible. Not possible at all … but wait … maybe …
An email awaited me during the event that was the cherry on top of my third Malice. My incomparable publicist, Maryglenn McCombs, sent me this notice:
Independent Publisher Book Awards (Ippy) – Mystery/Cozy/Noir—Gold Medal—Dying to Know by Tj O’Connor.
No, you didn’t misread this. Yep, it’s real. Who would have thunk it? Not me. But Maryglenn did!
Wow. Holy crap. What a week—dinner with an American hero; meeting real fans; time with my pals and colleagues; on a panel with Tonya, Leigh, and Charlaine; and now an Ippy. What next, the Nobel? Ah, no. Just kidding.
So, book fans and wannabe authors, here’s the message. Don’t quit. Write. Write some more. Keep writing. If you have the dream, you’ll never wake up if you keep writing. I’ve been so privileged these past two years to have met some of my heroes, heard from others who shouldn’t even know my name (yes, Mr. James Grady, I’m referring to you again), and had the honor of being among some great authors and some talented, aspiring ones. You can too. Just don’t stop.
All things are possible and while I’ve had a few pretty tough weeks of late, this past one wasn’t among them. I may never become famous. I may never make the bestseller list or be able to quit my real job and write for a living (not unless my wife will agree to live in someone’s basement). And I may never make it to the level of James Grady or Stephen Frey. But I do get to hang with some of the best and most gracious people I’ve ever met.
For now, that’s pretty damn good.
Tj O’CONNOR IS THE GOLD MEDAL WINNER OF THE 2015 INDEPENDENT PUBLISHERS BOOK AWARDS FOR MYSTERIES. He is the author of Dying to Know and Dying for the Past, available in bookstores and e-books from Midnight Ink. His third paranormal mystery, DYING TO TELL, will be released January 2016. He is currently working on a traditional mystery and a new thriller. Tj is an international security consultant specializing in anti-terrorism, investigations, and threat analysis—life experiences that drive his novels. With his former life as a government agent and years as a consultant, he has lived and worked around the world in places like Greece, Turkey, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, and throughout the Americas—among others. He was raised in New York's Hudson Valley and lives with his wife and Lab companions in Virginia where they raised five children. Dying to Know is also a Foreword Review’s 2014 INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award finalist.
Learn about Tj’s world at:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/tjoconnor.author
Blog: http://tjoconnorbooks.blogspot.com/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7148441.T_J_O_Connor
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