Bridge to Magic

The good news is that my editor read my manuscript for the 3rd THE SEER, WITCH BALL, and she loved it. Big relief! When I turned in the 2nd THE SEER, she wasn't excited at first and I had to do a lot of revisions. The revisions really improved the story and readers should really love all the magic, ghosts and romance when it comes out in June.

Now back to writing the STRANGE ENCOUNTERS series....
I've started to write the 4th book. My title (unless the publisher changes it) will be GHOST BRIDGE.

Here's how I describe the book:
A bridge to magic blasts Cassie back in time – to the 1970’s!
London Bridge is falling down again--and Cassie Strange is swept up in a magical mystery involving a bunny, a missing girl and TIME TRAVEL!

Here's the opening line so far:
When I saw the purple envelope, I knew something exciting was going to happen.

I only have six pages written, but it's a good start.

As I type this morning, my lovely white cat Lily is curled and purring on my lap. There's a picture of her on my website www.LindaJoySingleton.com if you jump around to find the "Linda Facts" link.

Well I'm off in a few hours to enjoy sun, surf and WRITERS. I'm going to a writing conference near Monterey where I'll listen to talks from editors, agents and famous mystery author Nancy Werlin. Her books BLACK MIRROR and DOUBLE HELIX are great!

Sisters In Crime and Fairsite School

I'm going to a Sisters-In-Crime meeting this afternoon. I've been reading mysteries since my first Judy Bolton and Nancy Drew as a kid, and continue to love this genre. The Sacramento Sisters-In-Crime group is great and we've had some fantastic speakers, like detectives, crime scene investigators, fire inspectors and many authors (including me). Today we're going to talk about publishing and submitting manuscripts.

Yesterday I spoke at Fairsite School in Galt to 4th graders about the writing contest I'm judging. This will be my 10th year with this contest, and this year my co-judge is Dana K. Smith who has a wonderful picture book out from Hyperion about a boy pretending to be a cowboy. She spoke to 3rd graders and read them an advance copy of her next book with the same little boy blasting off into space. Afterwards Dana, her daughter Olivia, the librarian Mrs. Sweeny and I went out to lunch.

One of the questions the kids asked during the Q&A was, "What's it like to be an author?"
The answer is, "Fun!"

FREE DRAGONFLY SCREEN SAVER!!

I checked out my publisher Llewellyn's Tween-Teen page and was pleased tofind they're offering free screen savers from book covers - - including the cover for my book DON'T DIE DRAGONFLY. I downloaded and now have my own shimmery purple cover as a screensaver. What fun for an author!!

Also there's an article I wrote called HOLLYWOOD SEES GHOSTS -- part promotion, part speculation about trends on TV and in books. Anyone curious can check it out at: http://teen.llewellyn.com/

Valentine's Day Contest Winner

Congratulations to Kim C. for being chosen to win one of my books in my tri-annual website contest. Thanks to the others who entered, and be sure to enter again as a new contest starts now.

Arizona and Oedipus

Things have been busy lately.

Last week I spoke to a great school in Arizona called Topock Elementary.

After an introduction from the Principal and a teacher named Angel, I started off with overhead pictures for about 25 minutes, then showed stories I wrote as a kid and answered questions. I talked about the upcoming #3 Strange Encounters, SEA SWITCH, and showed the class a rough sketch of the future book cover. Then I read the chapter where Cassie meets a mermaid. Afterwards, I signed books, answered more questions and talked to four more classes. I had a great time!!

Then a few days ago I went to college with my son Andy. He had a part in a "reader's theater" of the Greek tragedy Oedipus (a really gruesome, sad story). Soon the teacher announced that their "Star" who played Oedipus wasn't there. Next thing I know, my son is taking that part and reading it with great dramatic ability. After about 20 minutes, the "Star" showed up, so my son switched back to his regular role. I was really proud of Andy.

MOOD: Itchy cause I have an allergic reaction to scorpion weed (like poison oak)
BOOK I JUST READ: See You Down the Road by Kim Ablon Whitney
BOOK I'LL READ NEXT: Eragon by Christopher Paolini

FAVORITE FIRST TEEN NOVEL LINES

THESE ARE SOME GREAT OPENINGS TO GRAB READERS OF TEEN NOVELS.

IF YOU HAVE A FAVORITE OPENING LINE, ADD IT AS A COMMENT!

I saw the assassin before she saw me. (Singing the Dogstar Blues by Alison Goodman)

Things had been getting a little better until I got a letter from my dead sister. That more or less ruined my day. (Dead Girls Don’t Write Letters by Gail Giles)

12th Day of September. I am commanded to write an account of my days: I am bit by fleas and plagued by family. That is all there is to say. (Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman)

Once upon a time there was a pair of pants. (The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares)

Henry got up early on the day that changed his life.(Faerie Wars by Herbie Brennan)

My name is Salmon, like the fish, first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973. (The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold)

When summer comes to the North Woods, time slows down. And some days it stops altogether. (A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly)

We cut ourselves. Not by accident, we do it purposely-and regularly-because physical pain is comforting, and because now it has become a habit. Like the drugs. (Crosses by Shelly Stoher)

It all happened because I had to pee.(L.O.S.T. by Debbie Federucci and Susan Vaught)

"Oh, Man!" David had thought he might be dying as he looked past his chest and saw his intestines splayed before him. (David V. God by Mary Pearson)

"Simon Glass was easy to hate." (Shattering Glass by Gail Giles)

"Which would you rather be, fat or dead?" (Life in the Fat Lane by Cherie Bennett)

And I can’t resist adding one of my own:
I could feel the eyes. Watching me. (Double Vision by Linda Joy Singleton)

So what's YOUR favorite opening?

SAMMY HAND PEOPLE STAR TAYLOR

So here's what been going on--

* I passed the 100 page mark writing THE SEER #3. WITCH BALL.
* Added Kid Writer Advice on my website: www.LindaJoySingleton.com
* Currently reading a YA science fiction novel called WILDSIDE by Gould.
* Went square dancing New Years Eve where I ran into two childhood friends.

At the beginning of every year, I make a list of some favorite books I read.
Here are five favorite juvenile mysteries of 2004:

* SAMMY KEYES AND THE ART OF DECEPTION by Wendelin Van Draanen - funny, clever mysteries with characters kids and adults will love.

* HAND OF FATE (Fortune Tellers Club) by Dotti Enderle - Spooky, fun for young girls who love a bit of magic with their mysteries.

* PEOPLE OF SPARKS by Jeanne DuPrau -- A fantastic futuristic mystery for all ages. The long awaited sequal to CITY OF EMBER.

* STAR OF KAZAN by Eva Ibbotson - Reminds me a bit of Dorothy Gilman mysteries, with intriguing settings, clever characters and lots of atmospheric fun.

* TAYLOR FIVE by Ann Halam - A topic I enjoy, cloning, with a survival adventure plot.

A HARRY CHRISTMAS

It's almost Christmas and today J.K. Rowling announced that her 6th book will be released on July 16, 2005. This news is like an early Christmas present. I can't wait!

So far these are some things I'm looking forward to in 2005:

* February 4th -- I'm speaking at a school in Topock, AZ
* February 25th - Attending SCBWI writer's conference at Asilomar
* March - Attending SCBWI conference in Davis, CA
* March - Annual Family Easter Party
* May 7 - My daughter Melissa's wedding day
* May - Family cruise to Mexico
* July 16 - Will begin reading the 6th Harry Potter....
* August - National SCBWI conference in Los Angeles
* Sept. 10 - Speaking in Idaho at SCBWI conference
* Oct - May attend a Nancy Drew conference in Arizona

And somewhere between all those events, I'll continue writing on THE SEER and STRANGE ENCOUNTERS series.

Currently writing: THE SEER #3. WITCH BALL ... Up to Page 84

Happy Holidays!

SHAMROCKED!

Yesterday I had a surprise package from UPS -- two advance copies of the second title my STRANGE ENCOUNTERS series, SHAMROCKED.

The book is a pretty shade of green and I love it! It's my tradition to read a new book right away, pretending like I'm a reader who doesn't know the story. So I read it last night and I think it's better than the first book in the series. The magical world inside Mount Shasta was fun to create.

Now I'm eager for the book to show up in stores -- probably in January. Although last time I had advance copies the actual book showed up in stores just a week or two later.

This means the contest in the back of STRANGE ENCOUNTERS #1. OH, NO! UFO will end January 1st, so anyone who wants to enter needs to do it soon. Ten winners will receive free copies of SHAMROCKED. There's also an ongoing contest on my website and the last winner, Shirley from VA, was given a free copy of DON'T DIE DRAGONFLY.

Happy holidays!

PUBLISHING SECRET REVEALED

I have decided to reveal a deep dark publishing secret.
Unfortunately, because of a secrecy clause I signed when I joined The Royal
Order of Butt in Chair Obsessive Writers, I can't write this secret down.
So I have hidden the secret in one of my books.

Here are the clues to discovering the ONE THING that I do every day that resulted in my selling over 25 books:

* Look inside my purple book with a winged bug cover.
* Flip to Page 24.
* Go to Paragraph 8.
* The third word.

Once you know this secret, you will be a member of the ROBICOW Club.
Go forward and share your words with the world.
Stay tuned for the secret ROBICOW initiation test.

FAN LETTER

You know the only bad part of getting an email fan letter?
When I can't write back because the fan's email address didn't work.

That just happened to me. I had a wonderful fan letter from a reader
who enjoyed THE SEER #1. DON'T DIE DRAGONFLY. I emailed
back a long reply, only the email bounced. So I can't answer this letter.

So I guess I'll answer it here. The reader asked when THE SEER, #2.
LAST DANCE, will be released. It'll be out next June.
The cover of this book and a short excerpt is on my website,
www.LindaJoySingleton.com .

I'm currently writing the 3rd book in THE SEER series. It'll either be
titled PREDICTIONITIS or WITCH BALL.

Which title do you prefer?

Halloween Party

Tonight my family is having our annual Halloween-Birthday party.
I wasn't going to dress up, but found a purple skirt and glittery purple jacket in my closet and have decided to go as a fortune teller. My best friend, Lori, who shares my birthday will be there with her family. I'm eager to see her new granddaughter, Olivia.

I've started to write the third THE SEER book. It'll either be titled WITCH BALL or PREDICTION-ITIS. I'll let my editor decide (since they often change my titles anyway!). It's going to involve a carnival fundraiser, deadly predictions, romantic complications and the continued search for missing charms.

I posted a new picture of myself on my old website www.LJSingleton.com under Linda Facts. It shows a glimpse of my future home during construction. It'll be a two-story home with an office and library on the top floor. The view is fabulous. I hope we can move in by next March.

Halloween has always been a favorite holiday.
When we were young, Lori and I used to love going trick-or-treating. We always made our own wild costumes and carried our candy in pillow cases. A few times, we took our wrapped candy and hid it all around our bedrooms, so that we wouldn't eat it too fast. It was fun to discover a piece of candy in a drawer, pocket or shelf months later. Luckily we didn't have an ant problem in our homes.

Happy Halloween everyone!

OFF IN THE MAIL!

The third book in the STRANGE ENCOUNTERS series, SEA SWITCH, is finished!

I ran off a copy last night after reading and editing the whole book. It came to 140 pages.

SEA SWITCH will feature a villain named Sebastian Mooncraft. He's a rival of Cassie's father, and he has a sleezy cable show called MOONCRAFT'S MIRACLES. This is how I describe Mooncraft: He was way tall, over six-five, and wore a formal black suit and yellow tie. He had heavy eyebrows, a shaved head and a gold hoop in one ear. Sort of a cross between a basketball star and a pirate.

I had lots of fun writing about mermaids, mer-guys and other strange creatures under the sea.

Here are some of the chapter titles for SEA SWITCH:

A Glimmer of Magic
Giggling Eels
Magic Alive!
A Brave New Vision
Politeness Counts
Prehistoric Poop
Switcheroo #2

Now I'm off to the post office to mail SEA SWITCH to my editor.

ALIEN PARTY

Around 30 kids showed up last night for my "Alien Party" at the Galt Library -- including Emily and Brittany from the reading club I had at my house. They're in 8th grade now and very pretty, mature girls. And they were REALLY helpful when I needed assistants for the activities at the library. While I showed little kids how to bend pipe cleaners into alien antennas, they helped older kids fill out a fun "Create Your Own Planet" worksheet.

This event went really well! I raffled off three free books and the young boy who won a copy of OH, NO! UFO was so excited he jumped up and hugged the book. Wish I'd had a picture of that!

Another cool thing -- a newspaper reporter showed up at the library. She took pictures and plans on doing an article in the Galt Herald.

Well I better go write on SEA SWITCH. Over 100 pages now.

WHAT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY IN 1984 & 1994

Currently Reading: ABARAT by Clive Barker

Last night I watched the latest episode of Survivor and Apprentice.
I also made up a "Create Your Own Alien World" worksheet to
hand out to kids at a library talk I'm doing in Galt on Tuesday.

Not much going on today. So checking my journals, here's what
happened to me on this date 10 and 20 years ago.

Sept. 24, 1984 - Monday (Weather: 80's)
I hope the weather stays this way.
All the sudden, today, Melissa is close to being potty trained.
She even pooped in the potty. She has made a game of going
pee all day. I have only used a diaper once, and that was
during her nap.

Sept. 24, 1994 - Saturday (at Series Book Conference)
5:30PM - In Beuna Park Hotel, Los Angeles, getting ready
for informal banquet. Kids are swimming. Hoping to get
David a ticket into the banquet.
6:00PM - David got into nice buffet banquet ($25 ticket).
I couldn't talk much (sore throat), but still did. They had
an auction of books, signed author letters and pictures.
Hope my signed letters and unpublished stories or
manuscripts are of interest to collectors someday.

Life sure changes in ten years!
Wonder what today will bring.

P.S. The answer to the Tri-Bond question
in my last post is:
Radio station
Gas station
Station wagon

TRI-BOND ?

Have you ever played that game Tri-Bond? Where you take three words and guess what they all have in common.

My favorite Tri-Bond question is: Superman, Moses and Cabbage Patch Dolls.
Can you guess what they have in common?

Anyway, I was driving today and thought of some words with something in common, so I made up a new Tri-Bond question.

Gas
Radio
Wagon

Did you guess yet?

Well the answer to the Superman -Moses-Cabbage Patch Tri-Bond is: They're all adopted.

And I'll share the answer to the gas-radio-wagon one in my next entry. Hint: each one goes together with the same word.

And aside from play word games today, I did write. I added two more pages of SEA SWITCH.

BOOK BABY IS BORN!

For the last few days I've been waiting for my copies of THE SEER #1. DON'T DIE, DRAGONFLY. I knew it was coming by UPS. But days passed without a delivery.

Yesterday I had to leave for my mom's house in Sacramento, but told my son to call if the books arrived. He called at 5PM. I was going to see a sister-in-law at 6:30 at a bunko game in Sacramento, so my son drove to her house FAST to give her my books, which she delivered to me.And while everyone else at bunko oohed and ahhed over Mandy's newborn baby (Elsie is very cute), I admired my new book.

I knew what the cover of DON'T DIE, DRAGONFLY looked like, but I hadn't seen the spine or back. It's shiny and pretty and I love it.

I have a reading ritual with my books. Usually it's so long since I last read them, I can read them anew when they come out. So after bunko (I came in 4th place), I stayed up till almost midnight reading my book; pretending I'm a fresh reader, trying to imagine how others will see it, and what sort of things readers/reviewers will like or dislike (I found a few typos the copywriters missed). The pacing is really fast with lots of conflicts and paranormal elements. I'm proud of my new baby and hope readers treat her well. She can be seen on my website with her future sister (#2. LAST DANCE) at www.LindaJoySingleton.com under books link.

LAST DANCE

Today I got the cover for THE SEER #2. LAST DANCE in the mail. It's done in the same style as DON'T DIE, DRAGONFLY, but with a gold wedding ring instead of a dragonfly.

I was surprised my publisher decided to use the wedding ring for the cover as that's a very small scene in the book. But when I think about the plot, that ring led to a girl's death and a ghostly haunting which psychic Sabine Rose investigates.

I'm going bowling tonight and am at my daughter's place right now. There are peacocks strutting outside, four dogs and a barn with around 40 pigs. Our own future home is in the early construction stage and just a short walk up a nearby hill. When our house is finished next year I'll have a 2nd story office with a view of a distant lake, hundreds of oak trees and my favorite towing pine tree I named Big Red.

I'll be posting the new cover to my website. Let me know if you like it.

Best Friend & Baby

My best friend Lori became a grandmother today. Little Olivia Ann Craine was born 10:37am, weighing 6 lbs 8 ozs. Lori and I used to do things together when we were kids, but she beat me on this one. My daughter is engaged, but doesn't plan to get married till next May and then wait a few years to have kids.

Yesterday my daughter and I had a good time seeing PRINCESS DIARIES #2. It was fluffy and fun. Then we celebrated her birthday more that evening with dinner out. We started our bowling league in Stockton. My average is only 130, but I had one game of 180. I've still NEVER gotten a 200 game.

I was asked for an interview by kidmagwriters.com . I agreed and will answer the questions soon.

I'm reading a REALLY good book called PETER AND THE STARCATCHERS by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. It answers the question: How did Peter Pan meet Captain Hook? And so far it's fast-paced, creative, exciting and FUN.

Birthday Girl

Happy birthday to my daughter, Melissa.

To celebrate, I'm taking her to see the movie, Princess Diaries #2. When I was at Book Expo in June, I got to meet Meg Cabot and have her sign the latest Princess Diaries book. She wore a sparkling pink gown and glittering tiara.

Tonight we're all going out to dinner for Melissa's birthday. So I'm not writing much today.