The law breaking continues in Spirit and Dust:

I was really not dressed for breaking into a graveyard.

I shivered in my borrowed coat and gazed up at the fence that Carson expected me to climb–brick and iron and about nine feet tall. The moon was still bright enough to see the points on top of the bars. Were people in Minnesota that desperate to call on their dearly departed outside of visiting hours?

Remember–four more days to find Spirit and Dust in the wild (in your house, in a bookstore, on a plane, train or automobile) and TWEET it for a chance to win a signed copy of TEXAS GOTHIC, the first Goodnight book. Remember to use #spiritanddust in your tweets!

In which we meet Mr. Carson (Spirit and Dust excerpt)

I’m in England until Tuesday!  Tomorrow… Today? … FRIDAY I will be the BONUS ACT at Rachel Caine’s booksigning at Waterstones bookstore in Nottingham. That’s Nottingham, ENGLAND.  (Follow on Tumblr and Twitter for updates on the trip, which has no hashtag yet. I’m calling it the castle and pub tour.

TODAY’S S&D excerpt!

I turned to Mr. Carson… but paused when I got my first good look at him.

My first impression didn’t lie. Young. Twenty-one-ish. Younger than Agent Taylor, and almost as tasty. And tall. I’m five foot ten, and I had to tilt my head to look at him. HIs hair was brown, still wet, and standing up all over. His eyes were a dusky green–no, hazel–and I’d last seen them in the Minnesota cold, just before everything went dark.

“You!” I exclaimed, with all the melodrama his offenses deserved. “You’re the one who whammied me behind the police station.”

 

Spirit and Dust week continues

Today’s excerpt:

I woke face down in a drool soaked pillow.

There were worse puddles to wake up in, I suppose, but I didn’t want to think about that. I just wanted to lie there, absolutely still, until I was certain that nothing was going to kill me. Not my migraine, not Agent Gerard, not whoever had snatched me off the curb.

When I cracked an eyelid to take a peek, I glimpsed a nicely decorated room, with a reassuring absence of white slavers and crack whores. A quick inventory under the covers revealed no amateur sutures, so I didn’t seem to be missing a kidney. Just my clothes.

Don’t forget!  You have until next Wednesday to Tweet your picture of Spirit and Dust in the wild to be entered to win a signed copy of Texas Gothic!  Remember to use the hashtag #spiritanddust so I’ll see the post.

SPIRIT AND DUST DAY

Spirit and Dust has been released from captivity in the US. Already there have been sightings.

For the next week (until May 23) if you TWEET a picture of Spirit and Dust in the wild (in a store, in your house, in your shopping bag, on a bus/train/plane) then you will go into a drawing to win a signed copy of the first Goodnight adventure, Texas Gothic.  Here’s the deal, though. You MUST used the hashtag #SpiritandDust to be entered. (Because otherwise I won’t see your post.)

Not on Twitter? There will be other chances to win stuff coming soon.

Spirit and Dust Countdown

The local cops kept staring at me. I couldn’t decide if it was the plaid miniskirt in subarctic temperatures, or the fact that they’d never seen anyone talk to the dead before.

Here’s something weird about me. I almost always start writing with the first line of the book. 

I know, I know. It doesn’t sound that weird. Where else would you start other than the beginning?

Only it’s not that simple. You have to know where the story ACTUALLY starts. Backstory and characterization are good things for the author to know, but we don’t need to put it in up front. We want to start as close to The Thing That Sets Stuff In Motion as possible.  (Imagine if you had to sit through ten minutes of Luke Skywalker fixing moisture vaporators and whining to his aunt and uncle before the droids showed up. No. Just, no. Instead we start his part of the story with the droids arriving, shorthand in a few lines of characterization, and then, boom, we’ve got a Princess in Peril and off we go.)

I’m not talking about that part. I’m saying that I LITERALLY write the first line of my book first. In my head. Sometimes before I even know what the plot of the book is going to be. Prom Dates From Hell was like that.  And so was Spirit and Dust.  I knew from the moment I finished writing Texas Gothic (where Daisy is a minor character) what would be the opening line of her book. I didn’t know if or when I would get to write it, but I knew how it would start.

(By the way, you do NOT have to read Texas Gothic or Spirit and Dust in any order. The only thing that connects them is the characters come from the same family. Their stories are independent and don’t have spoilers for each other.)

Anyway. That’s the first line of Spirit and Dust. More teasers to come.

 

Things that make me happy

It’s been a rough couple of weeks at Casa Del Clement-Moore.  So to remind myself that Life is Good, today I am posting about Things That Make Me Happy.

1) My family and friends. I know this is cliche, but it’s true. Read the dedication of Spirit and Dust (you HAVE pre-ordered your copy, right?) and you’ll know how I feel. Family is a thread that runs through my books for a reason. I have a good one, and that includes the family I’ve chosen for myself in my friends.

2) Young readers.  Okay, yeah, I wouldn’t have a job without them. But the enthusiasm of young readers is unrivaled. Look at this bunch from TLA last week:

Brimstone has these readers absolutely captivated!

3) Knitting.  I got bit by the knitting bug big time. How lucky am I that it’s trendy right now?  I’m going to do this Spring Knit-Along if anyone wants to join me. On top of all the other projects I’ve got going. (And, you know, writing and stuff.)

4) Travel. I’m going to England in three weeks. I haven’t been talking about it, because it’s like I’ve won the  lottery. (I’ve definitely won the friend lottery.) More on that to come. First…

5) I get to do what I love, and what I’m best at, and I get to do it as my job.  Talk about winning the lottery!

I just got a big box of Spirit and Dust! Tell me in the comments what makes YOU happy, and on Friday I will draw one commenter to win a copy! 

Better Than Chocolate and Hot FBI Agents

This morning I retweeted something from one of my favorite paranormal romance authors* (and awesome person) Alyssa Day:

RT @Alyssa_DayDear Readers: You know that part where you tell us you like our books? We love that part like chocolate.

First off, I would amend that to say we love that part better than the chocolate-covered marshmallow Easter eggs that I have stashed in a secret place in my office where my mother can’t find them.**

The thing is, it’s not just that we (as authors) are looking for the ego stroke. At least, I’m not.  Or mostly not.  But hearing from readers who have enjoyed my books is honestly my favorite part about being a published writer, and here’s why:

A book is a collaborative process in more than just the writer/editor/cover-designer/publisher/marketer way.  It’s a collaboration between the author and the reader. See, when I write a scene, or I describe a character or setting, I have a picture in my mind. Literally, for me, because I tend to see my scenes as multi-sensory movies in my head.  That picture is drawn based on my own experiences: places I’ve been, people I’ve met, plus a whole lot of my own dreams, emotions and neurosis.

When you read a book—MY book, for the sake of this blog post, though it’s possible you’ve wandered to this site by accident, or because you Googled Alyssa Day or chocolate-covered marshmallow Easter eggs—then my words, if I’ve done my job right, make a picture in your mind, and that picture is drawn by YOUR experiences.

So if I write this***:

“Hey, Agent Tasty,” I’d said, when I saw Agent Taylor waiting beside the car. I liked Taylor, and not just because he was young and really hot for a buttoned-up guy with a G-man haircut and a newly minted FBI badge. I sort of like liked him, but we worked together and I was still three months shy of legal age, so it stayed with they boundaries of “sort of.” None of which kept me from noticing that he did not skimp on the FBI physical training program.

I might be picturing this (I’m not, btw):

You could be picturing this:

Someone else might be picturing this:

Or going old school: 

Or REALLY old school:

None of these, by the way, are models for Agent Taylor, who is fresh out of the academy as well as my imagination.

I do draw on real people and places for inspiration sometimes, but rarely just one. It’s this model’s hair, but this dancer’s height, and this actress’s cheeky grin, etc.  I rarely, if ever, tell anyone what/who I have in mind because I want you to form your own picture.

Even my editor and I have different ideas. She said, “I picture Daisy looking sort of like a red-haired Taylor Swift, only with a lot more eyeliner and black nail polish.”  (Which got me thinking, would Taylor Swift even BE Taylor Swift with red hair and a lot more eyeliner and black nail polish?)  However, Swift is quite tall (or she looks that way) with really long legs, and so body-type-wise, that’s exactly what I’d described in both Texas Gothic and the new book, so I considered this a success.****

ANYWAY. This brings me to reader tweets/comments/email.  The fun thing for me is to find out what stuck with you from the story. I have my favorite parts, so I love hearing yours. I know what *I* think Ben McCullough looks like, but I love to hear what reader’s imagine. I think that the shared universe of a book is something kind of magical. When I see fans of a wildly popular book/series sharing ideas, fan art, world-building theories, character analysis, that book becomes almost like a virtual reality.

That’s why I love reading, and that’s why I love writing. PLUS, I got to spend my morning looking up pictures of hot FBI agents. It really is better than chocolate.

—

* No, really. Day really gets it RIGHT. You can tell that she loves the Fantasy part as much as the Romance part, and it’s not just an excuse to have the couple to have Magical Soulmate Sex. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but I suspect Alyssa might be a bit of a SFF fangirl at heart.

** This is not an exaggeration. I bought a ridiculous number of packages when they went on sale, and if I don’t want Mom to eat them ALL AT ONCE, I have to hide them. When did I become my parent’s parent?

*** Why, yes, that IS pulled from SPIRIT AND DUST! So glad you asked.

**** Dear Ms. Swift. If you’re looking for a starring vehicle, the option on Spirit and Dust is available. Ha ha.*****

**** No, really. Call me. We’ll do lunch.

Another fine mess… I mean, Goodnight caper.

First review of Spirit and Dust is out, and I couldn’t be happier!  Especially with this part: 

 

This likable, uber-competent heroine’s adventure combines elements of paranormal romance and fast-paced thriller, while Daisy herself resembles a Southern teen version of supernatural PI Harry Dresden from Jim Butcher’s best-selling adult series. Another smart Goodnight caper.

 

Kirkus Reviews

A ghost-whispering 17-year-old is roped into a cinematic showdown between the FBI and the mob. Clement-Moore introduces another magical teen detective from the Goodnight family, following on Amy’s adventures from Texas Gothic (2011). College freshman Daisy is accustomed to helping out the FBI on cases. Adorable Agent Taylor doesn’t consult with the teen psychic because she’s cute–much as Daisy might wish otherwise–but because her ability to read spirit remnants has helped them catch murderers before. While Daisy interrogates the dead bodyguard of a kidnapped girl, she’s snatched herself, spirited away by the girl’s crime-boss father. Soon, Daisy is on a madcap road trip across the Great Lakes states in the company of a disturbingly attractive young mobster, learning about Egyptology while avoiding erstwhile apocalyptic cultists. A CGI-ready climax pulls together all the metaphysical building blocks laid down in this mystery’s tight worldbuilding (not to mention mummies, ghosts, animated tattoos and a bonus dinosaur). This likable, uber-competent heroine’s adventure combines elements of paranormal romance and fast-paced thriller, while Daisy herself resembles a Southern teen version of supernatural PI Harry Dresden from Jim Butcher’s best-selling adult series. Another smart Goodnight caper. (Paranormal mystery. 13 & up)

Thanks, Kirkus reviews!  

Puppies and Books and Babies, Oh My!

What I’ve been doing when I’m not writing (and rewriting and throwing out and writing again)…

Penny got a haircut.  She’s hard to snap a photo of because she’s never still.  But she was looking like a yeti, so it was time.

More pomeranian, less yeti.

And speaking of babies…

Me and my new cousineice. (That’s a word, right?)

And no, I haven’t had a baby, but if I could mail order one like B. I totally would.  Or at least I’d think very seriously about it. She’s the sweetest thing. Okay, it might be a contest with her older sister, but it would be a close one.

Here’s an assorted list of reminders and stuff that’s coming up and what not:

This Thursday from 7:30 to 8:45, I’m speaking at the Arlington (Texas) Central Branch Library. It’s the Teen Creative Writing Club, and you don’t have to register. I’m talking about writing and stuff and I’ll probably read something from SPIRIT AND DUST. Here’s the website for more details.

And speaking of SPIRIT AND DUST, remember you can preorder it from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other online retailers. You can probably even pre-order it from your brick and mortar, too. (It seriously took me four tries to spell ‘mortar’ right. Five if you count “Mordor.”  Nerd, yes. Spelling champion, no.)

If you like to read grown up romance novels, you might want to grab DATE BY MISTAKE, available in e-book from all the e-book places (including Kindle, Nook, Kobo and iBooks).  It’s four novellas, including one  from yours truly.  It’s not a book for teens, unless you, like I was when I was 16, are already reading Harlequins and stuff.

Places I’m going to be this spring:

The Texas Librarian Conference in Fort Worth, April 24-27.

The RT Booklover’s Convention in Kansas City, May 1st-5th, but in particular the Teen Day on that Saturday.

More (Mordor?) to come soon.

New Year, New Look for Spirit and Dust!

So, guess what?  Spirit and Dust has a new cover!

 

 

Here’s the book description:

  Speaking to the dead is nothing for Daisy Goodnight. The living, on the other hand, can occasionally be a problem. Especially when they knock you out, kidnap you, and force you to be their magical police dog. 

   Devlin Maguire—mob boss extraordinaire—has a missing daughter, and Daisy is his first choice to track her down. But he didn’t actually ask her for help. When she woke up in his guest bedroom, she was told. But why her? And who—or what—in the world is the Black Jackal?

I  love this new cover!  The original one was beautiful, but this is fresh and exciting and gets more of the modern supernatural mystery feel.

If you can’t wait for Sprit and Dust to come out (in only four months!) then you can meet Daisy Goodnight in Texas Gothic, where she makes herself indispensable (at least she likes to think so) in her cousin Amy’s investigation of the Mad Monk of McCullough Ranch. (As for whether Amy shows up in S&D… you just have to wait and find out!)