On Solitude

This essay appeared April 21, 2012 on Meanderings and Musings

We writers have voices in our heads. It’s just a fact of life. The voices speak to us, we write their words on the page, and people read the stories and are captivated, drawn into a land of make believe.

All right. Let’s be honest and call this what it really is. Controlled psychosis.

You laugh, but think about it. Where else in the world are you allowed to let the little voices in your head control your thoughts, your words, and your deeds? Hmmm?

Most writers are loners, happily spinning yarns with their imaginary friends day in and day out. Some of us are extroverts, getting a rush from interaction, gratified by teaching, or simply refilling the well on a night out with friends.

I’m one of those bizarre introverts who can unveil my personality at will, as necessary, for groups. The public me is a version of myself, the me I want to be. It’s like actors on the stage, playing a role. Or, for those of us who are terribly shy, it’s a bit like going to war.

You embellish yourself a bit. So you can make it through the night. You put on pretty clothes – armor. You do your makeup and your hair – helmet. You take a pill or have a glass – shield. And then, head to toe in metal and mail, you swan about, hoping you aren’t putting your foot into it too badly.

But that’s life, isn’t it? We all feel that momentary cringe when we think we’ve said something off, or insulting, or embarrassing. 99% of the time, no one takes your words the way you think they came out. As a matter of fact, everyone is so busy cringing that no one really hears what’s being said.

I hope.

Many of you know that Randy and I recently lost our beloved kitten, Jade, aka Thrillercat. Things have been very, very quiet around here. I’ve always seen myself as a quiet writer – I like the silence of being alone with my thoughts and my laptop – but it wasn’t until Jade passed away that I realized just how much I talked to her during the day. I ran bits of dialogue past her, or ideas, or questions. And she sat there, quiet as a mouse, and accepted all my thoughts. It is so bizarre not to have that sounding board anymore. And it’s been lonely.

I’m starting the tour for my newest novel, A DEEPER DARKNESS, April 17. I will be strapping on my armor and sallying forth into the world to talk about the book, and hopefully not put my foot in my mouth too many times. But this novel is about loss, and since I’ve been experiencing so much of my own lately, I’m girding myself to speak in public about that very issue.

It’s the commonalities that make each of us connect with a book. Even quiet, solitude-loving writers need to come out of their shells every once in a while and connect with people. I hope to see you on the road. And maybe we can make each other feel a little less alone. 

If you're in Nashville, join me tomorrow at Parnassus Books in Green Hills at 1pm for a reading and signing of A DEEPER DARKNESS! 

On All Things Short (Stories, That Is)

Most of you know I play around with short stories. Last year I put them all in a collection called SWEET LITTLE LIES, and now I've broken out some of the individual shorts, the ones that have been anthologized (Prodigal Me, Gray Lady, Lady Gray, Killing Carol Ann, Chimera) and a couple of my early favorites (X, Where's You Get That Red Dress)

The stories are a cool .99 and are now live on both Kindle and Nook. I hope you enjoy them! 

Prodigal Me

First Appeared in KILLER YEAR: Stories to Die For (January 2008)
Edited by Lee Child (St. Martin's Minotaur)

When a relationship goes south, a young woman must come to grips with her new reality.

X

First Appeared in Demolition Magazine and Nashville Lifestyles (February 2009 Issue)

What lurks in the woods behind your house?

Chimera

First Appeared in SURREAL SOUTH '09 (October 2009)
Edited by Pinckney Benedict and Laura Benedict (Press 53)

Have you ever wondered what might happen if you sold your soul to the devil?

Killing Carol Ann

First Appeared in FIRST THRILLS (June 2010)
Edited by Lee Child  (Tor)

We've all had that friend who liked to do bad things. What happens when a young girl is pushed too far?

 Gray Lady, Lady Gray

First Appeared in SURREAL SOUTH '11 (October 2011)

Edited by Laura Benedict and Pinckney Benedict (Press 53)

It lives in the attics of a remote Scottish Castle. It needs the blood of a bride. And there's a wedding scheduled for today... 

Where'd You Get That Red Dress

The title says it all - where did she get that red dress?

 Inspired by the song Red Dress by James McMurtry

On the Vagaries of Research

There's a controversy a-brewing out there in literary land. A couple of them, actually - a(nother) plagiarism scandal, and a research scandal. For the record, there is no excuse, none whatsoever, to ever, ever plagiarise. So that's all I have to say about that. 

No, I want to talk about the research flap. The very fine author Jodi Picout has apparently infuriated the wolf world with her new novel Lone Wolf.  I can't see that pissing off a bunch of lycanthropes is such a great idea, but...

So Evil Wylie posted the following Tweet:

@Evilwylie NPR: "Wolf scientists howling mad at @jodipicoult over new book" is.gd/3a7Cvt   (where was their outrage with Twilight?)

Which of course made me giggle, then follow at the link. In case it doesn't work, here you go: Why Are Wolf Scientist Howling at Jodi Picoult?

There's something I've learned over the course of the eleven novels I've written. Research does matter. And you are never, ever going to make everyone happy. Having been on the receiving end of nasty grams when I mess something up, I know that firsthand.

BUT.....

We are writing fiction. Fiction. There's an age old debate concerning literary license. I fall somewhere in between, along the lines of in order not to strain credulity, hold to the iceberg theory - only show the teensiest bit of your research on the page, but do your research. There is no better way to lose a reader than to get something easily figured out wrong. Cocking the hammer on a Glock, for example, is one of the my most favorite screw-ups.

There's a fine line between fiction, stretching the truth to fit your story, and making shit up. Some readers are forgiving of mistakes, and some lose their minds. I try very hard to get stuff right, but I know I make mistakes, and sometimes, purposely distort reality to fit my story. I am a fiction writer, and that is my right.

I haven't read Jodi's book, nor do I know much abut wolves. But I do know that you can't make everyone happy. Any time you write something that has a bit of esoteric information, you'll manage to upset someone. So let that be a lesson - when in doubt, look it up. But don't freak out if you need to fudge things to make it work.

Since fiction, by its very nature, isn't reality, that's kind of the whole point, isn't it? 

On Book Festivals and Waiting for Workmen

First up - you will notice a pretty little widget to the right of the blog - that's so you can browse inside of the new book. Enjoy!

Instead of working this morning, I've been waiting for the air conditioner repairman - the umpteenth in a long line of people attempting to fix a leak in our system. He's late, and so I am blogging, because I don't want to interrupt the flow of words to deal with the mundane. 

A fabulous time was had by (almost) all at the Southern Kentucky Festival of Books this past weekend. I was lucky enough to have a friend in town, brilliant author chick Deanna Raybourn. If you don't read her, and follow her blog, you simply must. We ate barbeque and went shopping and did honkytonking Ellison style - which means Patterson House, Oak Room, Merchants and Past Perfect with a brisk walk past Tootsie's and Legends - and sandwiched in a trip north to Bowling Green for the festival. It's one of my favorites, always drawing a crowd of fun and interesting people, as well as a few, shall we say, odd ducks. 

With so many authors and readers in a single room, you really can't go wrong. There was something for everyone, and I counted the day a complete success, not only because my stack of A DEEPER DARKNESS was gone within the first two hours, but I got to panel with a few of my favorites - Will Lavender, David Bell and Rick Robinson, who are all fascinating, and make faces at Deanna, who was right across from me, and sit next to one of the sweetest girls ever, who was so gracious and happy to be a part of her first event that I couldn't help but smile every time I looked her way, and spend some serious quality time with Heather Graham and hubby Dennis. Talk about a blessing - good friends, awesome fans, a well-run event - yep, it was a good day.

But y'all know me - my glass is always more than half-full. Meeting readers whilst surrounded by a stack of books is my idea of a good time.

One little housekeeping note: you'll notice I've turned off comments. Because we normally talk on Facebook and Twitter, and I deal with legions of spam, it seems the right thing to do. You can now come, read and move on with your day without feeling compelled to leave a comment or jump through the CAPTCHA hoops. I hope that works better for us all!

AC man here and gone, thankfully, so I'm off to revise Edge of Black. Have a super day! 

Spring 2012 Newsletter

Spring 2012, Volume XIII
A DEEPER DARKNESS IS ON SALE TODAY!

The first Samantha Owens novel is a May Indie Next Pick! 

Dearest friends,

Two years ago May 1, Nashville was hit by a flood of biblical proportion. It is fitting that the first book in my new series, A DEEPER DARKNESS, is releasing so near the second anniversary. I'm so excited to share this book with you, my first foray away from Taylor Jackson.

The past few weeks leading into the release have been rather amazing, and I have a boatload of good news to share. 

First, the print and audio editions of A DEEPER DARKNESS are on sale now. The electronic edition for your Nook, Kindle, Kobo, Sony Reader, iPad, etc., goes on sale Tuesday, May 1. I am thrilled to share that the novel has been chosen an Indie Next Pick for May. This is an amazing honor, and I am so excited! Our independent booksellers have been the lifeblood of my career from day one, and to have this happen for Samantha's first foray is incredibly exciting. And I've just learned that A DEEPER DARKNESS is a Publishers Weekly Pick for this week! I am floored.

A DEEPER DARKNESS is also a Top Pick from Romantic Times this month. Part of the review reads: "A gut-wrenching tale that rings with emotional resonance and heart amidst the thrills, A DEEPER DARKNESS ranks as Ellison's best book yet. Her amazing streak of great thrillers continues." I am so happy that they loved it. Publishers Weekly called A DEEPER DARKNESS, "(A) scintillating first in a new forensic series." Suffice it to say I am very, very happy to see this first Samantha Owens novel being well-received!

We have some serious momentum building behind this novel. So I have a favor to ask of you. If you haven't already, please order your book today. These first few weeks are vital to the life of the book. And if you like it, please share it with your friends through recommendations on your Facebook pages, Twitter, Goodreads, Shelfari, etc. And if you're so inclined, leave a review on the sites as well. Your support helps me continue writing stories, giving you new books to read. Thank you so much for all your help spreading the word about A DEEPER DARKNESS!

Order Yours Now!   Amazon  Barnes & Noble  IndieBound  Audio

RITA! RITA! RITA!  

Is that enough for you? Well, hang on, because there's more. And it's HUGE!  WHERE ALL THE DEAD LIE has been nominated for a 2012 RITA® Award for Best Romantic Suspense. When I got the call from Romance Writers of America® (RWA) I was completely speechless. I still am. The awards ceremony is in Anaheim, California in late July, at a gala black-tie event. I can't wait to go to RWA, and will let you know what happens. Regardless, the honor of being nominated in the romance field is major for me. I'm up against some incredible writers, and to be mentioned in their company literally brought me to tears. 

Tour Dates

In addition to my visit to California, I'm also touring a bit for A DEEPER DARKNESS. Things kick off tonight at Reading Rock Books in Dickson, Tennessee, and Thursday evening I am hosting a live video chat online. I wish I could come to every store in every market, but since that's not feasible, the video chat is a chance for those of you outside the local area to hear the stories that went into writing A DEEPER DARKNESS. I hope to see you at one of these events:

April 17, 3pm EST
Live on Cover to Cover
Sirius/XM Book Radio
Channel 80

April 17, 6-8 pm
A DEEPER DARKNESS LAUNCH
Reading Rock Books 
122 North Main Street
Dickson, Tennessee 

April 19 6-8 pm EST
Shindig Video Chat
Reading and Speaking on A DEEPER DARKNESS
Shindig Events
RSVP by Clicking Here   

April 20-21
Southern Kentucky Bookfest
2355 Nashville Road
Bowling Green, Kentucky

April 28, 1-3 pm
Reading and Signing A DEEPER DARKNESS
Parnassus Books
3900 Hillsboro Pike, Suite 14
Nashville, Tennessee

May 5, 11-2 pm
Heart of Dixie Luncheon
Huntsville, Alabama

May 12, 2-4 pm
Reading and Signing A DEEPER DARKNESS
Mysteries & More
Lenox Village, 6965 Sunnywood Drive
Nashville, Tennessee 

Treats

From me to you, as an added thank you to being a loyal reader of this newsletter, I am instituting a quarterly giveaway. Since this one is at the same time as a book release, I'm going to give away a few things. Don't worry, I've done all the work for you already, by picking winners at random from this mailing list. 

Grand Prize Winner: Melissa Suitt
$50 giftcard to your favorite bookseller

First Place: Dan Elam 
Signed Copy of the divine Allison Brennan's new Lucy Kincaid novel, SILENCED, also a Romantic Times Top Pick, and on sale April 24.

Second Place: Shirley Farris
Signed copy of your choice of backlist titles in the Taylor Jackson series

Melissa, Dan and Shirley, you have until April 30 to get in touch with your address, or your prize goes back in the pot for another to win.

Enjoy your treats!


LOVE IS MURDER!

I have a brand new short story in this amazing anthology, which just received a STARRED Review from Publishers Weekly. Prepare for heart-racing suspense in this original collection by thirty of the hottest bestselling authors and new voices writing romance suspense today. My contribution, THE NUMBER OF MAN is a love story, of sorts. Love twisted, love that hurts. Love that is unrequited, unwanted, and definitely not nice.

LOVE IS MURDER is on sale May 28, 2012. 




This Month's Recipe

Light and delicious, this summer salad is perfect for barbeques, picnics, or adventurous lunchboxes!

Southwestern Black Bean Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 15.5 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 9 oz frozen corn, thawed
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1 small hass avocado, diced
• 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
• 1 scallion, chopped
• 1 lime, juice of
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp cilantro
• salt and fresh pepper

Directions: 

Combine beans, corn, tomato, onion, scallion, cilantro, salt and pepper. Mix with lime juice and olive oil. Marinate in the refrigerator 30 minutes. Add avocado before serving.


Social Butterfly

My break from blogging has been a real help to my fiction. So while I'm not out there as often, you can still find me in several places across the web, including occasional updates to my blog on the site - Tao of JT, on Twitter under the handle @thrillerchick, and on Facebook.

Thank you so much for all your support! You mean to the world to me. See you on the road!

xoxo,