This Week In Review

I don't often have such a week that I need to review it. Plus, since being busy writing the third book, I've relied on Sumiko and interviews to sort of fill in the gaps here. So, here it goes.

Earlier this week my husband and I went to the grocery store to pick up some things we needed. We went through a cashier's line who I don't often see, remember speaking to her and was pretty sure she liked vampire books. So, I was eager to tell her about my book coming out.

She isn't 21 (couldn't check out our wine and beer), has very dark, long hair, wears false eyelashes with a lot of eye-liner. One of the first things she says to me is "Have you ever had a bird fly and hit you in the head?"

We laugh. "No," I said. "Where did it hit you?"

"Right here, in the back." She pointed. "I've never had that happen before."

"I'll have to use that in a book," I said and when she gave me the "What?" look, I said, "You didn't know I'm a writer? My vampire novel just came out, and I had a book signing at Borders. . ."

The girl--I learn later her name is Jeni--was quite excited. She asked me where my book was, and I told her, then she tore off a sheet of the receipt paper and asked for my autograph. I told her the books I have left are all autographed, as far as I knew.

"Well, I'm going there tonight!" she said. "I'm taking my friend too."

So, I also told her that the book had a facebook page and to please join it. Which she did, and that was great!

The very next day, because I drive the bus that goes through this grocery store's parking lot, I like to hop off and take a little break. When I came back out of washroom, one of the managers stopped me.

"Didn't you write a vampire book?" she asked me.

"Yes," I told her. She'd seen the article in the paper. She told me she wanted to pick it up for her granddaughters. When I realized they were only 10, I did caution her it had adult themes in it. Well, she said she'd still buy it for her daughter to read.

This showed me that people do still read papers (ha-ha), and books--which is good. I'm still waiting for anyone who has bought my book to finish it and tell me what they think. One person I work with had just begun an on-line class and wasn't able to continue reading it. Saying to me it was "a bit spicy", but I knew that was a good thing to him. "I think I'll give it to my wife to read," he said. Hummm. That might be a plan.

The young man who works for the Northern Star said he would be checking out the information I gave him this week, so, this is still in the works. I know that he has the entertainment column, and when he needs something to fill in--when there isn't something more entertaining in DeKalb--he'll use it. I'm looking forward to seeing this story hit a 3rd paper in the area.

Meanwhile I've finished the second book in Frankenstein series by Dean Koontz and have begun the third. I'm enjoying these books. There's the strong sense of Koontz tongue-in-cheek style, and this series offers him to really take advantage of speculative fiction, science fiction and alternate history, combine them into a story that is spell binding and give us characters to cheer for and really despise or hate, and some are innocents that you want to see have their day. I love that the megalomaniac, Victor Helios aka Frankenstein, has no idea how things are flying out of control while he thinks he has his army of pre-programed tank-made humans poised to take over the world.

I've also been approached by a reviewer at another writing post to review my book, but I have no way of sending him an electronic copy myself. I'm on dial up. I'll have to see if my publisher wants to mess with this. I'm still waiting on something he is setting up for me as well--a review and interview???

I've been able to get back into the 3rd novel of this series I'm writing, and am working into a character's emotional arc--I guess this is what it's called. All I know is that emotions of two characters over lost loves must be addressed in order to strengthen their bond of friendship. Although the man, Jett, is a vampire, he is not a sanguine vampire, however must stay out of sunlight, but he needs to feed from emotions induced by sex. Something Sabrina needs to avoid doing with him, and she well knows it.

That's it for my week in review. I really didn't expect people to approach me about my book, but that's pretty cool.