A Huge Thank You!

I had a wonderful time this weekend at the Buffalo Historical Society's Maker's Market! A huge shout-out to friends Laura, who showed up for moral support, and Ann and Jay who traveled great distances to support my efforts as well. So great to see them!

It was a great venue, and the folks who run and volunteer at the museum are the friendliest!

What a super time meeting so many people -- young and old alike -- who were interested in Relic and Eye of the Peacock, their story lines, themes, and inspiration. I had some great conversations! This was my first big signing since Covid hit, and meeting potential readers is really the best part of being an author. Writing is a very isolated craft -- you're really kept company only by the characters you create. But when you do a signing, you get to connect with people who are interested in those characters that you have become so close to. 

So many people out there like to read -- and write. If you bought a copy, I thank you. If it was a gift, I hope they love it. Please feel free to contact me here. And don't forget to write a review on either my Amazon or my Good Reads page. Friday and Saturday let me also talk about this blog and the writing tips I've been offering. I hope you all visit and take advantage! It felt so good to be back in the saddle again!

Book Signing

This weekend I will be signing books and talking to readers about my craft at the Audubon Library in Amherst, NY. It will be my first book signing for Eye of the Peacock, which is really exciting.

Audubon is a fabulous public library with an extensive book collection. I think it is great that they are opening their doors to local writers as a venue to sell their books. What a marvelous chance it will be to catch some great new reads.

Take advantage of the opportunity – Sunday, Nov. 17 from 2 to 4 p.m. Come out and see me as well as the other authors who will be on site!

Local Author Fair

I’m very excited to announce that I will be offering signed copies of both Eye of the Peacock and Relic at the Local Author Fair. I will be joining authors from around the area from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, November 17, at the Audubon Library on John James Audubon Parkway in Amherst, NY.

A major thank you to my neighbor Martin for slipping the announcement for the event in my mailbox! I love events like this. One of the best parts of writing is meeting people who are eager to read your work.

I mean, really, ultimately, it’s why we should be writing – to share our work. Otherwise, writing is a terribly lonely endeavor. So put it on your calendars! Come out and chat with me on the 17^th!

Fun Morning!

Thanks to all the wonderful parents and kiddos of Smallwood Elementary School for coming by and talking with me today!

I met some really nice kids and some great parents! One young man even asked if I was the author of The Magic Treehouse books, mistaking me for Mary Pope Osborne -- now there's a compliment! I really hope Relic provides some good reading for the remainder of the school year or maybe their first read of the summer for my newest readers.

Don’t forget – if you read Relic I would really appreciate a review on Amazon. And tell me how you really feel, what parts you liked and if there was anything you wished was different. But don’t be a spoiler!

Again, thanks so much for coming by – and happy reading!

Pancakes and Relic

Part of the fun of being a writer is getting to meet your readers and your potential readers.

I have the awesome opportunity to do just that this Saturday, April 22, at Smallwood Elementary School, Amherst, during their PTA pancake breakfast. I’ve been to this event before – $5 for great pancakes, sausage, orange juice and coffee – all served by the teachers of Smallwood!

Look for me there between about 8 and 11 a.m. I’ll have some original art work from the book as well as some artifacts to help you picture parts of the story. If you’ve purchased Relic I’ll be glad to sign it for you! See you there!

Thanks all!

Wow! What a great day yesterday at Appleumpkin in Wyoming, NY!

First of all, a perfect Autumn day in Western New York. Sunshine, and 68 degrees.

Add to that some gently falling yellow leaves, a constant flow of foot-tapping country music my perfect perch on the porch of the Middlebury Academy, and it couldn’t get much better. But it did!

I met some wonderful people, who love ghost stories, history, books, quaint villages or a combination of any or all of the above! Not only did a bunch of people leave with copies of Relic, but I left with a great number of topics to research. Some will be future fodder for plot lines, while others will just be some great items to read about.

Some authors say that events like this make them feel less like authors – it’s not time spent writing. But I say otherwise. These folks, who share the excitement of my story – they’re the reason I write.

Thanks all who came out to meet and talk!

Book Signing Set!

I am mega-excited!

On Sept. 24 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., I will be signing copies of Relic at the Middlebury Academy in Wyoming, NY, as part of the annual Appleumpkin Festival!

This is truly a special occasion for me because the village of Wyoming was the inspiration for Willowbend, the setting of Relic. Many of the line drawings that begin the chapters started out as photos from the village.

And I'll be sitting on the porch of the building you see here, the Middlebury Academy -- the academy on the hill -- which served as the inspiration for the school that Abigail attends.

So, Relic really will be coming home to the setting of inspiration. If you've read Relic, come down and see the beautiful village first-hand. While you enjoy Appleumpkin, make your own scavenger hunt. See if you can spot the places that head many of the chapters!

And, please, find your way to see me on the porch of the Middlebury Academy! I'll gladly sign your copy of Relic. If you haven't read it yet, come down, buy a copy and get it signed!

I can hardly wait!

Good fun!

Women's Rights in Relic

     Mrs. Van Dansk lifted the flap of the envelope and pulled out a letter.

     “Dear Elizabeth, it starts. A letter to Elizabeth Cady Stanton? Oh, now this is exciting!” She adjusted her glasses on her nose and glanced at each of us, a child-like grin dancing at the corners of her mouth, but it wouldn’t last.”

In Relic, the original owner of Hydrangea Hall, Olivia Ainsley Wagner Roth, was a suffragette who kept company with the likes of Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

During some recent travels, I took a chance and turned off at the exit for Seneca Falls, the home of the women's movement, to see what I could see.

Alas, it was not much.

The museum dedicated to women's rights pioneers like Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony was closed for the day. I’ll visit again.

If you try to find it, be warned…we passed it four times before I stopped in an extreme state of confused frustration to ask a shop owner where it was. I was expecting something grand, but found it to be an equivalent to 12 Grimmauld Place. My oldest daughter, a women’s libber in her own right at 13, said, “It couldn’t have been better hidden.”

Fun Times

What a wonderful time we had at the tea party at Monkey See, Monkey Do Wednesday!

I made some new reading friends and was supported by some old reading friends. I thank them all for coming!

We were able to experience some of the items from Relic that kids might not be familiar with – Depression Glass and Samantha’s “torture device” – and we were also able to eat some of the goodies straight from the pages of the book!

It’s always wonderful to have kids tell me they want to be writers. It means they have ideas and are creative. Those are the kinds of kids that should populate our planet to take us into our future!

Can You Find the Freebies?

I took a bike ride the other day and found two “free” libraries in my neighborhood. I put a copy of Relic in each one.

So, there they are. Free copies to anyone who finds them!

Enjoy!

My hope is that who ever reads them, will also review Relic on Amazon.com and then return it to a free library so others have the chance to enjoy Samantha’s story.

That goes for the rest of the readers out there. Please consider writing a review of the story on Amazon!

Thanks!

And by the way, send me the location of a free library near you and I’ll consider dropping a copy of Relic there, if I’m in the neighborhood!

Treasure Found!

Look what I found!

The original draft of Relic!

I knew it was somewhere, and I had been keeping my eye peeled for it for the last year or so as I did my weeding out. Then, a week or so ago, as I was cleaning out the deepest, darkest recesses of my classroom, I found it buried on the bottom shelf of a cupboard.

What is cool about this draft is that it was written years ago on a Brother word processor and is literally cut and pasted together as I rearranged paragraphs. You can also see where I added hand-written sentences as I changed the draft. It wasn’t like writing on a computer where you can go back into your paragraph and make immediate changes!

What fun!

Tea Party

Join me from 4:15 to 5 p.m. Wednesday July 20 at Monkey See, Monkey Do bookstore, located at 9060 Main Street in Clarence, NY.

We plan to turn the visit into a tea party Mrs. Van Dansk would be proud of! We’ll be serving tea in china and pink depression glass tea cups. Mrs. Van Dansk’s very own peanut butter and lemon cookies will be on the menu, as well as Mrs. Whitaker’s shortbread with berry preserves.

I'll discuss the writing of Relic and answer questions. I promise a reading or two from Relic, and I’ll sign your copy if you bring it with or purchase at the store.

See you there!

Use Photos to Inspire

As the school year winds down, I’m gearing up for a writing summer.

Part of that pre-writing preparation involves finding photos that inspire me. For my next supernatural mystery, Eye of the Peacock, I am lucky enough to have photographed the location that provides the most inspiration for the story. But I also scan the internet for people, scenery, and historical events that help keep my descriptions focused and help me imagine the story.

Sometimes I drop these photos right at the top of my page as I write, and then remove them later. In Relic, some of the photos even made it into the book as chapter illustrations.

I’m even collecting photos for my next project, yet untitled, but planned to be a futuristic adventure.

Book Group Challenge

I heard through the grape vine the other day that several young readers plan to read Relic as a book group this summer. I think that is a fantastic idea! Reading is often such a solitary thing, and it doesn’t need to be!

Get together with two or three friends. Make a timeline so you’ll all be in the same place at the same time, and then stop and get together to talk about it. (Don't forget to have some snacks!) If you have what I call “I wonder” questions, post them on the blog in the comments section, and I’ll make sure I respond.

Then I can be a member of your book group, too!

Talking Writing with Teachers

Today I had the true pleasure of talking writing with colleagues. Teaching and writing buddy John and I discussed why, when and what we write in an attempt to inspire more teachers to find their inner novel.

We talked about how being a published writer adds a layer of credibility to you as a teacher.

As a teacher of English, writing Relic made me practice what I preached. I battled point of view, re-writing almost the entire manuscript as I changed from third to first person. I also can personally attest to how much effort goes into word choice to help create the tones associated with my scenes and characters. Both word choice, tone and point of view are aspects I want students to pay close attention to as they read to see how they affect the book as a whole.
We also got to chat about publishing, especially indie publishing.

Great fun!

Pancakes and Relic

What a wonderful morning!

I spent several hours at the Smallwood Elementary School pancake breakfast! Although it wasn’t an occasion to sell books, I got to talk with a lot of great folks about writing, publishing, and, of course, Relic!

Lots of foks – old and young – were interested in Relic, and I’m hoping pick up a copy at one of the local stores or through Amazon. If you do pick up a copy, catch up with me at another event and I’ll sign it for you!

Thanks for a great start to my day!

 

Relic News!

In an interview at the back of Cinder, Marissa Meyer said one of the most difficult things about writing is the publicity side. And she has a major publisher behind her.

As an indie author, I have to agree. She said that she has learned that following the publication of a book, the marketing takes a front seat and she has learned to write the next book during the lulls in between. Good advice.

Over the holiday break I have been working on making Relic more available. You can now purchase it as a Kindle e-book here. The paperback version will be carried in two local stores, Tile Pharmacy in Cheektowaga, NY, and Sinclair Pharmacy in Warsaw, NY. They may seem like odd venues for book sales, but both have a large gift-seeking clientele and Tile has a “locally-made” section.

The big news is that on July 20, I will have an author talk and book signing at the independently-owned Monkey See, Monkey Do book store in Clarence, NY. It looks to be a special event with cookies from the book and tea! Watch for more details. I can’t wait!

Relic to Wear!

I’m really excited to announce that Relic fans can now purchase t-shirts and coffee mugs as reminders of Samantha’s spooky adventures in Willowbend!

T-shirts are available on wilseymc.deco-apparel.com in a wide selection of colors and feature the beautiful cover image of “The Ick” on the back and one of Samantha’s musings, “I heard someone say once that Fate throws people together because they need each other” on the front. Click on the link above or the images to the right to purchase. I know I’m buying one of each!

Melon Research

From St. Nicholas Magazine, August 1916.
From the Dave Thomson
collection

“Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please.”

                  -Mark Twain

That’s been my writing job this week. Getting the facts.

Both Eye of the Peacock, and Relic, are inspired by real mansions in New York State. The stories are ficticious, but I like pieces of the story to ring true for the age and location of each real place. So, I’ve been doing some research as I’ve been writing. The extra time over the holidays has allowed for this nicely.

This morning, for instance, I was looking into conservatories, greenhouses, the differences between them, how they are constructed, and details about the real greenhouses on this particular property. I’ve also been researching melons – yes, melons! Muskmelons versus Casabas, and how growers use little hammocks to protect them from falling.

Both of these, believe it or not, are needed in my next supernatural mystery.

No, it’s not about an attack of ghost Casabas from a haunted greenhouse….

 

Times are Changing

Sci Fi Author Martin Wilsey
already has his copy!

It has begun!

People are buying Relic!

Until now, this was a personal quest, a private journey. But things have changed. Now it’s about my readers. I always knew it was, but now they’re really there!

I’ve signed my first copies – one purchased by a dear friend and another for an 8-year-old. It is surreal. It is daunting. I am writing for young people, and I feel an obligation not to disappoint them.




Friends have been a wonderful support in Relic's opening days!

I hope they all get to love Sam and root for her as she struggles with all the changes in her life. I hope they giggle at quirky Mrs. Van Dansk, and wonder about the girl with the chestnut hair.

I’m working with three local book stores to arrange book signings and author talks. There are so many stories about the writing of this book that I would love to share.

Purchase your copy of Relic by clicking here, or on the cover on the right side of my blog!