Fiction

Award-Winning Novel SALE!

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MooseTracks_CoverFor a limited time…my award-winning, full-length general fiction/women’s fiction novel Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven is available in e-book from Amazon for just $3.99! That’s $10 off the print price!

Described as “Fried Green Tomatoes meets Prairie Home Companion”, this novel is set in the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains and is over 100,000 words/300+ trade size print pages. If you’ve been waiting to give something new a try, now is your chance.

For those who are new to this site, you can click on the title to be taken to the book page, where you can read an excerpt and learn more about the book. Click on the word “Amazon” above to be taken to the sale page for your e-book copy. In the meantime, from the back cover blurb:

“…Humorous, poignant, and endearing (Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven)…is a tender foray into the emotional landscape of family, friendship, and the kind of love that transcends boundaries, weaving an inspiring tale about what it means to hang on before learning to let go . . . and remembering how to keep living when you lose someone you love.”

I hope you’ll give it a try, and enjoy a new read at a bargain!

 

Foreword Reviews “Reviewer’s Choice” Award!

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FINAL COVER MOOSE TRACKSJust in time for Christmas…

I’m delighted to share that Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven has received a “Reviewer’s Choice” Award from Foreword Reviews, the preeminent Indie Book Review Quarterly.

Considering that the quarterly publishes more than 600 book reviews annually, this nod for Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven – one of only 15 chosen for the year – is a real honor, and I am thrilled.

Just click on FOREWORD REVIEWS right here and it will take you to the blog posting and the list of books named. Mine is the sixth one down, with the original review by Maya Fleischmann, along with some lovely commentary just before it, explaining why she chose my book as her favorite of 2015. 🙂

 

 

Author Talk FREE Event!

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For those of you who might be near Central Upstate New York this weekend, November 28th, the Saturday after Thanksgiving…

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My talk and signing will be at Jervis Public Library (613 N Washington St, Rome, NY 13440 Call: (315) 336-4570 for more information) in my old hometown – which was the inspiration for the fictional setting of Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven. I’ll be talking about converting real life into fiction, publishing, writing in general…and pretty much anything else anyone wants to know or have a conversation about.

I’d love to meet you there and chat! 🙂

A Few New Posters – Please Vote!

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So – here are a few posters that have been made for Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven. I’m asking that you vote in the comments for which you like best; please explain why. I’ll be having more posters done, and I want to incorporate your suggestions and ideas!

That said, if you’ve read Moose Tracks and want to suggest a quote to be made into a poster, please do so as well in the comments! I’d love to hear your thoughts. The quote chosen has to be fairly short, obviously, but it can be several sentences long. 🙂

Okay, here are the latest three posters:

CFoHWhKUgAE-G8b    1.

Forest poster 1    2.

CGJEesxWkAA0pIM3.

 That’s it for now – tell me what you think, please! 🙂

Foreword Review!

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Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven

Reviewed by Maya Fleischmann
April 29, 2015

A woman discovers her rich relationships in this exquisite exploration into themes of time and connections, love and loss.

Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven tells the story of protagonist Elena Elizabeth Wright Maguire, who reexamines her life and relationships after she is involved in a minor car accident.

M. Reed McCall skillfully transitions between different periods with segues that invite further exploration into memories triggered by a comment made in the present. For example, when Pa says he can hardly wait to put Christmas decorations around the house, the narrative flashes back thirty-two years to the Christmas Eve when Elena was almost seven years old. This movement in the narrative not only serves to keep the story flowing but also creates an intriguing and natural flow in the stream of connections that Elena makes as she unravels the journey she has made in her life.

McCall captures the unique voices of different personalities and their relationships with one another with evocative and heartfelt precision. This creates a vivid image, not only about Elena, but also about the people around her and the place she lives. This is clear in Pa’s letters to Elena, which offer wisdom, and in radio disc jockey Willard T. Bogg’s announcements on WGRR FM 103.9 about the events in Moose Junction. Elena’s transformation to a mature woman is contrasted with her past idealistic and youthful eighteen-year-old voice in a diary entry about her love, Jesse: “I can’t wait to give Jesse the card and giant Hershey’s chocolate bar I bought for him. I’m SO in love!!!”

While the narrative itself is deeply moving, the black-and-white photographs scattered throughout further contribute to the story’s heartrending quality by lending a unique sense of reality to the story and giving it the feel of a personal history unfolding, adding to the book’s allure and effectiveness.

Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven forges a path straight to the heart.

**For a limited time, Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven is still on sale for $2.99 for Kindle and Nook!

Moose Tracks – a BIG Sale

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MooseTracks_CoverPSA: For the merry month of May, Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven is going to be priced at 40% off its original price for Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes & Noble’s Nook. That means you can get it from either of those eBook sources for only $2.99 (which is a whopping 79% off its print price)!

Here are the links for Amazon or Nook

If you like a good book deal as much as I do, please feel free to share this info via re-blogging or anywhere else that strikes your fancy. 🙂

Happy shopping…and reading!

(Un)Happy Endings?

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hulsebus-unhappy-ending-thumb-250x386-33965I’m a bit stumped. I admit it…and so I’m reaching out to any of you in the blogosphere who might want to comment, to get your opinion on this.

Here’s the short version of what caused the controversy that has erupted in my mind:

I had a conversation with a colleague today. She is someone who loves books and is well-read. We were discussing my upcoming Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven, and I was telling her about how it was a different genre from what I’d written before – Women’s/General Fiction rather than Historical Romance – and that is would therefore be appropriate for most age groups, as it has no explicit content, unlike my historical romances.

Here’s where the turn of the conversation kind of made my mind bend.

She says (and I’m paraphrasing, but it’s pretty close): “Oh, I read your first two books. I like historical fiction, so I liked the history in them.”

I think I see where she’s going here, and so I interject, admitting, “I know the love scenes aren’t everyone’s cup of tea.”

But she shakes her head, adding, “No, I didn’t mind the romance – I can skip over some of those parts if I want.” She looks vaguely uncomfortable. “It’s just…the happy endings! You know, at the end, everyone goes off happy…” She makes a wry face. “I read historical fiction.” (which I’m surmising she added to try to make it clear that historical fiction books DON’T have happy endings and therefore are her preference).

I was floored, I admit it.

I’ve had people tell me they don’t like historical romances because they’re not “historical enough”.

I’ve had people tell me they don’t like historical romances because of the focus on the romantic relationship, which often includes some explicit love scenes between the hero and heroine (who BTW are monogamous, according to the traditions of the genre).

I’ve had people tell me they don’t read “those” kinds of books (which basically means they won’t read romances because of the stigma attached to romance, as books that are somehow less worthy/well-written/complex/”real”…you can supply your own negative adjective).

But this is the first time anyone has ever said to me that they basically objected to/disliked historical romances because they ended happily.

So…what’s your take on happy endings? Please enlighten me, as I really, really want to hear from everyone, regardless of your perspective. Of course I’m a reader before I’m a writer, and I have my own opinions, but I’m interested in hearing about this issue from other readers’ point of view.  So please, chime in! 🙂

Only 30 Days Left!

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Actual Final copy with endorsementIt’s been a great couple of weeks of Holiday celebration, but it’s winding down now and the grind of regular work/teaching is going to pick up again tomorrow.

Writing and all things book-related will have to take a back seat…so it’s a good thing I’ve got just about everything in place for the February 3rd release date of MOOSE TRACKS ON THE ROAD TO HEAVEN! Just 30 short days left, so place your pre-order now and secure the eBook version at it’s introductory price. Go here for amazon/kindle preorder or here for preordering from Kobo!

B&N doesn’t allow preorders of all books, unfortunately, and we’re working on getting it up at Google and iTunes – though preordering isn’t a guarantee there either. It will be up on all platforms by February 3rd, though.

In the next few weeks, I’ll be posting a few little sneak peeks, reviews, and other little tidbits from the novel, the inspiration behind it, and the process of writing, but until then, you can read an excerpt from the first three chapters here if you’d like.

It’s a different kind of book – set up in the style of Fannie Flagg’s Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café –  but I hope anyone who ventures to read will enjoy it. 🙂

How Important Are Reviews?

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article-new-ds-photo-getty-article-129-37-92826390_XS-ehowAuthors write for many reasons, but one big reason (presumably) is because we want others to read our novels, stories, poems, or essays.

 

gatekeepersThe publishing world has changed significantly since the days when I was first writing. Back then (and at the risk of aging myself, we’re talking about the first half of the 1990’s, LOL) there was one path to having your work available to readers: traditional publishers. They were the gatekeepers, the “golden ticket” to a tangible, beautiful book on a shelf, distribution, and ultimately, readers.

The publisher handled things like galleys, and securing reviews from reputable reviewers who would then print those reviews in publications or later, online, to entice (provided the review was good), readers to give the story a try. Continue Reading…

Acknowledgements and Author’s Note

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Blank (thus far) Acknowledgements Page for Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven

I’m in the process of crafting the Acknowledgements Page and Author’s note for Moose Tracks on the Road to Heaven. The Dedication for this one was easy for me, since the novel is loosely (very, very loosely) autobiographical in nature. In fact, the only two “characters” who are truly similar to the “real” people they represent are the “Pa” and “Ma” characters – and that is to whom I’ve dedicated the novel (because without them there wouldn’t have been even the germ of the idea to begin with).

But the Acknowledgements and Author’s Note are stumping me.

This is my eighth published novel, so it’s not like I haven’t done this before. imageHere’s the one I wrote for the final book in my Templar Knights trilogy: The Templar’s Seduction.

But I always, always drag my heels at this part of the writing process.

Why? you might wonder. It should be easy to thank the people who have helped you along the way with the manuscript, and not too much effort to provide some background and “fill-in” information for readers in the Author’s Note, right?

Yes, of course.

And no, definitely not.

I’m always worried about leaving someone – or, in the case of the Author’s Note, something – out that should be there. There are so many who overtly or just in my mind and memories lent something to the creation of a book like this; and I always enjoy reading about those in other writers’ books. There is a great deal of background and information that might, with its addition, give readers something useful or enjoyable after they’ve just finished reading the novel; material that might add a bit of extra texture or layered emotion to what they’ve just read (since I tend to put my Author’s Notes at the end of each novel).

And so I put it off, and put it off, until my back is against the wall.

Sigh.

Does anyone else who writes novels – or books of anything – face a similar conundrum? How do you manage it?

For readers out there, do you notice Dedications, Acknowledgements, or Author’s Notes? If you do, is it something you enjoy, or something you just skip over?