YOU KNOW YOU WANT ONE!

I was going to have the draw for an e-reading device in January  when Grounds to Kill comes out. Then I thought what kind of Christmas gift is that, right?

So the draw date will be December 5th.

Want a chance to win a Kindle, Nook or your other wish-list e-reader?

OR have an e-reader but would love a gift card for the equivalent value so you can add more books to your device?

If you're on my mailing list, then your name is already in the draw.

If you're not on the list (and why the heckadoodle not?) then go to wendyroberts.com by clicking here and send me a message adding you to my mailing list.

In other news, I'm trying to cut down on caffeine. Specifically, I'm trying to get down to 2 cups of coffee a day (rather than 2 pots). So far it's not going well z-z-z-z-z *snore*. 

How caffeinated are you?

The Elephant in the Room (e-readers vs paperbacks)

It’s time we talked about the elephant in the room. More precisely, the elephant in MY room. And by elephant I mean the emails I’ve been getting and comments surrounding the controversy over e-reading vs paperback.

First let me say I LOVE my readers. I know lots of authors say that, but I’ve got a special file with emails  received from fans. If that sounds stalkerish I apologize but being an author is lonely work and sometimes you need the encouragement and opinions of people who you’ve never met. Weird, right? In my defense I write paranormal murder mysteries so there is no way to be “normal”.

My readers are wise, wonderful, witty women. Oh and great men too (sorry Jack). And you are better than most people in the world because you actually read. If you’ve read a book in the last year you’re already a million times better than a person who, say, would rather watch reruns of Miami Vice instead of pickup a book.

Back to the emails.

In January, Carina Press will be publishing GROUNDS TO KILL. In February, Penguin will be publishing DEAD SUITE (Ghost Dusters 4) and in May they will also be publishing Ghost Dusters 5. I am super pumped about this!

All three of those stories are coming out as e-books only at this point.

Did I work just as hard on these e-books as I did on my paperbacks? Yes. (Harder if you count the fact that I had to finish one book only typing with my right hand since I hurt my left shoulder.)

Could they eventually come out in print? Maybe. That will depend on sales.

Did I do this to piss you off because you only read “real” books? No. I wish I could wave a magic wand and please everyone. Hell, I wish I had a magic wand just so I could summon a cabana boy to deliver me a latte every hour!

Did I have a say in whether or not these books got published only as e-books? Sure. I could’ve said no to their offers and they, in turn, may have refused to publish the stories. This is a business and, like most businesses, publishers need to make a profit or they will go the way of the Dodo bird and my first word processor. 

Now, for all of you on my newsletter list there will be a contest to win an e-reader!! *YAY* If you already have an e-reader *YAY* you can choose a gift card to Amazon, or Barnes and Noble, or somewhere else that sells books. 

Not on my mailing list but dying to be? Click here.

In unrelated news, I’m getting my hair done tomorrow to cover up the gray hair that comes with having 4 teens and writing 3 books in 15 months. What are you doing?

DEAD SUITE - Ghost Dusters 4

News! News! News!

Yes, I have news.

DEAD SUITE (Ghost Dusters 4) will be released mid-February!

Amazon is showing it as February 19th and so is Barnes & Noble.

And, yes, that means you can pre-order now. I did :D

Oh and the picture of my dog, Bella, is there because I don't have a cover picture to share with you yet.

My Precious

I am no PhilipEmeagwali but I do consider myself somewhat techno savvy. For example, I am the only one in my house who correctly programs the PVR to make sure we don’t miss a single episode of Pawn Stars. Also, I can change the clocks on all 3 family vehicles without reading a manual AND I know how to operate truly obscure programs like Multimate.

What I lack in the area of technological skill is patience. This is the reason why I’m having huge issues with Windows 8. It’s also the reason why I play Pogo Scrabble only against robots and not live partners. Robots don’t say “brb 1cpkg”. Which translates to “be right back number one child is puking”. I don’t care if your kid is vomiting when I’m waiting to put down the word ‘Qadi’ for 50 points!

Windows 8 is trying my patience and this is from a woman with 4 opinionated teenagers who test me daily. I’m sure there’s a reason why I have to look at giant colorful tiles before I can get to my real screen. I’m sure there’s also a reason why it took me half an hour to find the button to allow me to shut down the computer. 

I keep reminding myself that this laptop was a gift to myself; a reward because I successfully wrote three complete manuscripts in 14 months (a personal record). I deserve my new HP Envy dv6. Especially since I got my last laptop using air mile points and it ran as slow as I do after a round with my physiotherapist. But it’s hard to think of something as a reward when you find yourself yelling obscenities and threatening the piece of machinery with a sledgehammer.

Maybe I should’ve purchased a new laptop before Windows 8? The problem is I have a superstition about completing manuscripts on the same computer where I type the very first word. I was committed to completing those manuscripts on my old Toshiba and now my old work horse that allowed me to write Grounds to Kill and also the next 2 Ghost Dusters, has been retired to kiddie corner where it will be used solely to play Minecraft.

Maybe what I need to do is start a new manuscript on this baby. A new story will keep me focused on Microsoft Word and I can ignore all the other new fangled whatchamadingles associated with this new operating system. 

Now if I can only find Word.

Anything testing your patience these days?