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In this newsletter ...
Welcome to all new subscribers!
This month's newsletter features fellow Level Best Books mystery author Gabrielle St. George whose second novel in her EX-WHISPERER FILES series, HOW TO KILL A KINGPIN, releases this month. Learn more about Gabrielle and my own publishing journey in this edition.
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NEVER LET GO, a psychological thriller, releases Dec. 20. ARCs are now available to reviewers on NetGalley!
Click here to download.
About NEVER LET GO
Most people have nightmares while they sleep. Carla Murphy awakens to find herself living one. Carla is excited when her best friend asks her to lunch and tells her to bring the baby. Rachel dislikes children and had been distant throughout Carla’s pregnancy. But Carla should have known that people don’t change that quickly. Lunch was a ruse. Carla emerges from a drug-induced slumber sealed in a room in Rachel’s basement with her son gone. Her best friend is no friend. She is obsessed with Carla’s husband and will kill them both if she doesn’t get what she wants. Carla has no choice. She must help Rachel, her confidant since childhood, seduce her husband or they all die, and her baby will be lost to her forever.
Early reviews for NEVER LET GO
- "Wow! This book has so many plot twists and turns and just so much going on that you can not predict what’s coming next. I couldn’t put it down…I just had to know what was going to happen! When you pick this up be prepared to put your life on hold. Excellent read! Thank you to Lori Duffy Foster for venturing into the psychological thriller genre. It’s my favorite!!" - Tina, Goodreads
- "This book was so intriguing, I initially read the first few pages and then got busy, but last night before bed I got back into it and I couldn’t stop, I had to read the entire book. I stayed up until 3am and it was so worth it." - Sofia, Goodreads
- "Never Let Go is a
page turner that will have you hooked from page 1. It's intense,
emotional, gripping and unexpected to say the least. I couldn't put this
book down and when I did, I thought about it all the time! It's a
definite must read!
" - Jenny, NetGalley
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Meet Gabrielle St. George
Gabrielle St. George is a Canadian screenwriter and story editor with credits on over 100 produced television shows, both in the USA and Canada. Her feature film scripts have been optioned in Hollywood. Ms. St. George writes humorous mysteries and domestic noir about subjects on which she is an expert—mostly failed relationships, hence her debut soft-boiled series, The Ex-Whisperer Files, which launched with HOW TO MURDER A MARRIAGE. Book #2 in the series, HOW TO KILL A KINGPIN, releases October 25th, 2022. How To Murder a Marriage was a Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Finalist for Best Comedy novel of 2021 and won the Patzi Award for Best Novel of 2021 in the USA from the NPR Radio show, Joy On Paper. A Los Angeles film production company is currently negotiating to option the rights for a television show based on the Ex-Whisperer Files book series.
About HOW TO KILL A KINGPIN
“It’s times like these when a gal’s got her ex-husband hiding inches away from her new boyfriend and a murdered man in rigor on the floor beside her that being good at lying would sure come in handy.” ~ How to Kill a Kingpin
Gina Malone, aka the Ex-Whisperer, an expert on Exes and bestselling relationship advice author, meddles in people’s affairs for a living. A modern-day Miss Lonelyhearts, Gina’s smart, she’s sassy, she’s got a potty mouth, and she’s determined to live her life on her own terms. She’s also divorced, an empty nester, and just turned 50.
It’s a not-so-happy Halloween weekend in Gina’s little lakeside town. Everyone is coming home for Sunset Beach High’s 150th anniversary celebrations, plunging the Ex-Whisperer and her gal pals up to their necks in exes. For Gina, running into old crushes and former mean girls from high school is like anthrax-infected corpses of dead reindeer who’ve been encased in ice for millennia suddenly waking up in the melting permafrost. Prehistoric romantic history and high school cliques you weren’t welcomed in are almost always better kept in the deep freeze. Extra pounds and grey hair make recognizing aged classmates tough—throw in Halloween masks and it’s even tougher to tell the Jasons from the Freddys or the Reginas from the Heathers. And if there happens to be an actual killer in the costumed crowd, everybody better watch their backs. Some people go to reunions to relive their past, others, to exact revenge for it. One former student has a deadly chip on their shoulder and they blame cool-kid Gina for their years as a loner. So many great reasons to skip your high school reunion, not the least of which, to avoid being murdered. Don’t you just hate it when that happens?
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Q: You have had a long and successful career as a screenwriter. Why did you start writing novels at this stage in your life?
Gabrielle:
Being a screenwriter pretty much dictates that you live in or close to
an urban center and spend a lot of time in the office and on set. When
you work on a television show, 60-hour long weeks are normal. I wanted
to work from home so I could be with my four kids and I wanted to live
on a farm. I also like to think about writing more than I actually like
to write, so being a novelist checks all the boxes.
Q: How is novel writing different for you from screenwriting? Was the transition a struggle or did you find it easy and natural?
Gabrielle:
The two are completely different animals, different languages. Being
proficient in one of these forms does not in any way guarantee
proficiency in the other. I enjoy screenwriting because the present
tense makes it so immediate, also scripts are usually dialogue heavy and
writing dialogue is my favorite part (read easiest for me) of writing.
Most of all I like writing screenplays because they’re shorter than
novels and I love short (Raise your hand if you’re ADHD like me.). I
found writing an 85,000-word book akin to climbing Everest without a
Sherpa guide. One novelty I did enjoy in writing fiction was the freedom
to describe a character’s thoughts. That’s the main reason I write my
mystery novels in first person—It’s fun revealing all the dark and dirty
things characters can’t bring themselves to say aloud. It’s the
opposite in screenwriting. Nothing at all can be on the page if it won’t
be on the screen, and since you can’t film a person’s thoughts (Well,
maybe you could with some creative animation, but I can’t see that
flying often.), you have to find other ways to express what characters
are thinking and feeling through dialogue and action alone.
Q: Any advice for aspiring writers?
Gabrielle:
Tell the truth. Even when it’s hard, even when you’re afraid a friend
or family member will never speak to you again, even when you’d rather
stick pencils in your eyeballs—tell the truth. Anything else is a waste
of time and readers always know when you’re skirting around or full-on
bull-crapping, and they won’t have it. Let your characters be raw, be
real, be honest. That’s what the world is most lacking right now so it’s
what everyone is most hungry for.
Q: Gina Malone is fun, witty and smart and a bit dangerous. What was the inspiration behind her character?
Gabrielle:
Gina is my alter ego. We both share those same traits except Gina is
funnier, wittier, and smarter than me. In the danger department,
however, it’s possible we’re neck and neck. Whether I’m running through
my farm fields in the middle of the night chasing after coyotes with a
broom to scare them away from my cows and beloved dogs, or knocking on
the doors of private homes, official-looking clipboard in hand,
illegally posing as a government social welfare worker to gather
evidence against my deadbeat dad of an ex-husband (true story btw—there
are many more that I can’t mention here without risking a lawsuit)
there’s very little that can scare me off if something needs doing (or
for that matter if something looks like it might be a lot of fun).
Another trait Gina and I share is a ridiculous amount of enthusiasm for
anything that catches our attention (which is almost everything—at least
for a few minutes until something else comes along—Oh look, a chicken).
We’re the champions of short attention spans.
Q: You
have written three independent self-help books in Gina Malone’s voice
in The Gal Guide series and are contracted for more. Where did that idea
come from?
Gabrielle: Gina Malone, the main character in my Ex-Whisperer Files
mystery series, is a relationship advice columnist and author of
several bestselling self-help books. I thought it would be interesting
to have her write some actual self-help books, so my character Gina
Malone wrote the non-fiction Gal Guides series (I ghostwrote them.). So far, they include, Breaking up Without Breaking Down; How to Say so Long to Mr. Wrong; Cheaters and Liars; How to Know if He’s Having an Affair; and Navigating Narcissism; and How to Survive the Love You Hate to Love. Gotta say I learned a lot in the research. Bottom line? Stay single ;)
Q: What are you working on now?
Gabrielle: Doing final edits on book #2 in The Ex-Whisperer Files series, How to Kill a Kingpin, and starting the first draft of Book # 3 How to Bury a Billionaire,
and a short story, and a stand-alone domestic suspense (with witches
and talking crows), and starting up an herbal remedy company, and doing a
complete gut and reno on my farmhouse, and building a cottage, and I’m
also an artist working on a number of paintings for new clients, and I
was thinking about taking a Reiki course too… Like I said, short
attention span—hope at least one of these projects actually crosses the
finish line.
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MY BOOKS
Pre-order the Kindle version of NEVER LET GO, which releases Dec. 20, here. Pre-orders of paperbacks and other ebook formats will soon be available.
Click here for more about A DEAD MAN'S EYES, a SHAMUS AWARD finalist for Best First PI Novel, an AGATHA AWARD nominee for Best First Novel and book 1 in the Lisa Jamison Mystery Series.
Click here for more about NEVER BROKEN, book 2 in the series, which released in April.
Signed books make great gifts for book lovers!
Contact me at lori@loriduffyfoster.com for signed copies of any of my novels.
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This is where you will find me virtually and in person!
(For the always-updated website version, click here.)
News and Events
November 19, Mid-State Literacy Council’s Barnes & Noble Book Fair, Barnes & Noble, 365 Benner Pike, State College, PA, 2 p.m. I am excited to participate in a panel entitled How We Write: Connecting Internally and Externally, Privately and Publicly as
part of this fundraising event for the council’s annual children’s book
drive. In all, five authors from various genres will be participating
and signing books after the event.
November 25, Christmas in Cathead Fling – Sabinsville, PA. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Vendors will be set up indoors at three different locations, all within
easy walking distance of each other in this cozy community near
Westfield, PA. You’ll have to cruise the buildings to find me, but I
promise it will be fun!
December 3, Dickens of Christmas, Wellsboro, PA, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
This event is so much fun! Here is the official description: “Step back
in time and celebrate the holidays Victorian style. Get your shopping
done early amongst the many outdoor vendors that line our streets of
downtown Wellsboro, in addition to our many stores that are a great way
to warm up and get your gift list completed at the same time. There is
something for everyone! Hungry or thirsty? We have just the
thing…wonderful local restaurants as well as many food vendors on the
streets.” I will be in the Fire Department Annex. Come on by and enjoy some holiday fun!
December 17, NEVER LET GO soft launch and signing, Payne’s Coffee House, Main Street, Knoxville, PA., 3 to 5 p.m. NEVER
LET GO will not be available in bookstores until Dec. 20, but I expect
to have copies on time to sell and sign them for local folks who want
them for Christmas. Check back here to be sure the event is a go. I will
update this as soon as I have copies in hand.
December 20, NEVER LET GO Release Day Book Signing, Barnes & Noble, Consumer Square Plaza 821, County Rd 64, Big Flats, NY, time to be announced. Come help me celebrate the official release of NEVER LET GO
at my local Barnes & Noble. This will likely be an evening event. I
will update the listing when the time is decided. I hope to see you
there!
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In less than a week, my husband and I will celebrate our 24th wedding anniversary. We can see the church where we were married through the fall foliage from our front porch. It was an awesome day, bright with color and sun, warm with the love of family and friends. I love that we can relive those moments simply by stepping outside with a cup of coffee on a clear October morning. As the plants of summer begin to wither and brown, the wild teasel become more prominent in our landscape. There is something so regal about this plant. It endures through the best and the worst of each season, much like our marriage. Happy anniversary, Tom!
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What's up with my books?
NO TIME TO BREATHE, book 3 in my Lisa Jamison Mystery Series, is due to my editor Oct. 12 and releases in April of 2023.
Yikes!
That means the rest of this week and the weekend will be devoted to reading, editing and writing, and then reading, editing and writing all over again while also maintaining a balance with work, the kids and a presentation I promised to do for a writing group the day the novel is due (What was I thinking!). Thankfully, I have an awesome and supportive family. They will get me through it.
When that is done, I will go back to promoting my other books and preparing for the Dec. 20 release of NEVER LET GO. I am also super excited to start edits on my historical courtroom drama, SPRING MELT, which releases in December of 2023. That manuscript is due in June. At the same time, I plan to work on a proposal for book 4 in the series. I have some ideas, but it will require a new contact with a publication date a good two or three years in the future. It takes me about two years to write a novel and I don't want to rush it. Readers deserve better.
So that's my writing life right now.
It's stressful and a bit crazy, but I have to admit that I love it.
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What's up at home?
In just over a week, our twins--the youngest two of the bunch-- will take the PSATs. What happened? Where did the time go? How did they suddenly become high school sophomores? And in three months, they will get their driver's permits.
Wait. What?!
Part of me wants them to slow down and be our little (gigantic, actually, at 6-foot-4) boys for a bit longer, but another part of me envisions the twins heading down the driveway on a bitterly cold morning next fall for the 20-minute drive to school while I wave from the front porch, bundled in a sweatshirt and sweatpants, cradling a cup of coffee and trying to decide whether to start my day with moderation work or writing. I like that vision.
So how about this? How about they remain my little (gigantic) boys a bit longer, but do so with driver's licenses in hand?
The older two kids are too immersed in their semesters to think about college graduation this spring. I've been pushing off those thoughts as well. I am happy for them, but I also know my role in their lives is changing and I am not ready to dwell on that yet. We are proud of them though. They are already awesome adults.
Here at the homestead, we are focusing on getting ready for winter- covering the pool, ripping up the garden, trading the mowers for a plow. The leaves are bright with orange, red and yellow. The deer are darker now, blending in with the browning brush and grass. I've pulled out the crockpot twice so far and the fireplace is ready for the first flames of the season. I think I am finally ready to say goodby to t-shirts and shorts and hello to sweaters and jeans.
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If you read and enjoyed my books, please
consider clicking on a rating or leaving a review on your favorite
website, such as Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Book Bub.
Reviews are important to newbies like me, who are also published by
small presses. We greatly appreciate them.
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The Lastest: Interviews, reviews, articles and podcasts |
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Here are the most recent interviews, reviews, articles and podcasts. For a complete list, click here.
Celtic Lady’s Reviews, NEVER BROKEN
Uncaged Book Reviews, Magazine article
The Strand Magazine, NEVER BROKEN review
Celtic Lady Reviews, review A DEAD MAN’S EYES
Novels Alive, NEVER BROKEN review
Novels Alive, A DEAD MAN’S EYES review
The Thrilling Detective, review
Bolo Book Reviews, review
The Big Thrill, interview (2022)
Books to the Ceiling, review
Fictionophile, review
Dru’s Book Musings, interview with Lisa Jamison
Read with Me, Review
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Happy writing and reading! |
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