Everything you Need to Know about Me - LOL

Dear friends,

This morning, I was interviewed over on Lois Winston's Book Club Friday blog where I talk about my writing history, where I get my inspiration, how small towns and quirky individuals have influenced my work---you might even learn some stuff my mama doesn't  know! LOL

http://anastasiapollack.blogspot.com/2014/08/book-club-friday-author-bobbi-chukran.html

Happy trails!

bobbi c.

New "Nameless, Texas" Novella coming soon!

Dear Reader-Friends,

Way back in 1999 or 2000, I started my very first cozy mystery about a fiber artist who lives in a small Texas town. This was several years before I wrote LONE STAR DEATH, my historical Texas mystery. Now, 14 years later, I've decided to revisit my first book, polish it and publish it as a novella.

Back then, I had an idea for a sleuth who was a weaver. I'd written a lot about the fiber arts, had a degree in textiles, and was an internationally known "expert" in the field. I had wanted to do some fiction writing for a while, and figured that I'd combine my two interests. This particular story involves natural dyeing with plants---specifically, indigo---in the story line. I had written several how-to books on the craft and grew an extensive dyer's garden of my own.

One of my how-to books written under my previous name, Bobbi A. McRae

Thing is, back then, the popularity of the "occupational" cozy sleuth hadn't come about just yet, and  although publishers were intrigued and somewhat interested, they weren't sure they could sell this idea. I have to laugh at that concept now, because we all know those types of books are very popular.

Lots has happened between there and here in my writing life, and when I finally sat down to revise the story, it seemed  like visiting with some old friends I haven't seen for a while.

Thing is, they aren't old friends. Once I started revising the text, I realized they are the same folks who inhabit my current "Nameless, Texas" short story series.  You'll find Aunt Jewel, Kendra, Jeremy and more. There are a few new ones and some of the relationships have changed, but in general, it's the same place. That tickles me. :-)

I kept the original idea of the story and changed it a bit to fit my Nameless story world. A few  things surprised and amused me--especially the pay phones and film cameras used in the story. They definitely added to the time the sleuth spent chasing around town and waiting for film to be developed, but was easy to fix. 

And since I've been writing a lot of short stories and prefer the shorter length, I decided to make the novel a novella, coming in around 30,000 words. I hope it will appeal to the many readers who like my short story series and the quirky folks who inhabit Nameless, Texas.

So keep an eye peeled for DYE, DYEING, DEAD---coming by the end of July!

(And yes, it's spelled that way on purpose.) :-D

Happy trails,

bobbi c.

Oh my gosh! It IS a murder mystery. And a bit of a western romance! And suspense. And action-adventure!

On finding the right audience for our books. . .

Dear friends,

Authors around the ‘nethood are conversing daily about how we can get our books into the hands of those readers who’ll love them and hopefully recommend them to their friends (no matter how they do that-—by tweeting, Facebooking, Goodreading, Google+ing, blogging or whatever.)

Did you think we just sit down, open up the laptop, and go?  Afraid not. I WISH we had the luxury of doing that. Writing is a business, and increasingly, a lot of our time is taken up with the promotional aspects of being an author. One thing we talk about a lot is finding the perfect audience for our book. The problem with that is that many of us write books that can be categorized in more than one genre.

My novel, Lone Star Death, for example, is basically a historical murder mystery, set in central Texas in the 1880s.

There is a murdered man (victim), a murderer, lots of suspects, a sleuth (Samantha Slater, the editor of the local newspaper), a method of murder (no spoilers!) and a sidekick (Tom Hill, her printer’s assistant).  I include several real places and people that lived in Austin during that time period, and researched the book for a year before sitting down to begin writing it. 

So, it’s a murder mystery, right? Well, yes, BUT, there’s also a whole lotta action/adventure. Think bush-whackings, a runaway horse, an overturned buggy,shootings—-you get the picture. So, my book is a murder mystery/action-adventure novel.

 

Most readers assume that anything written about Texas in the 1880s is a western. I have a wonderful, high-spirited horse, I have cowboys, a train station, a beautiful ranch, a rural small town outside Austin, a “house of ill repute” and the women who live there, market days, a school teacher with a great Victorian wardrobe, a general store, a great pearl-handled pistol, etc. And I’m eligible to join Western Writers of America based on this book. So, my book is a murder mystery, action adventure AND western.

And last, but not least, I have a love interest for Samantha—-Tom--who is plumb smitten with her, an older lady (mentor) who tries to nudge them into a relationship--and a handsome rival! (Ah yes, the doctor!) Not to mention the cowboy who’s impressed with Samantha’s horse riding ability. And, finally, there’s one of those happily-ever-after-moments (after the murder mystery is solved, of course). And there's the promise of a stronger future relationship.

Not to mention the nail-biting suspense. :-)

So—if you’re mostly a western romance book reader, would you give this book a chance?  If you like historical mysteries, would the fact that there’s also a bit of light romance turn you off?

Why all this analysis, you might ask?  Because, if I write another book in this series, it will be very important for me to position it for the right market.  And yes, some of those decisions come during the writing.

For now, I’m calling the book a historical murder mystery/western romance. And I hope readers who like "all of the above" will enjoy it.

Happy trails, and happy reading!

bobbi c.
http://bobbichukran.com