Books I got at ALA

I posted news of ALA and list of books here. http://lindajsingleton.livejournal.com/

TV: First Peek at Shirley MacLaine's Downton Abbey

TV: First Peek at Shirley MacLaine's Downton Abbey

I love Downton Abbey!

FREE on Kindle and Nook...mystery short

FREE on Kindle and Nook What happens when psychic sleuth Sabine needs out-of-body help from Dead Girl Amber? http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Lifers-Revenge-Short-ebook/dp/B006J9DENQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1324187472&sr=1-1

Rae's Rumblings: May Challenge Buried

Rae's Rumblings: May Challenge Buried:   Buried is the story of a finder of lost items.  Thorn's mother is a minister and does not approve of Thorn (real name is Beth Ann) appea...

Cynsations new article by me!! http://cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com/2012/05/guest-post-linda-joy-singleton-on.html

REGENERATION series is regenerated

Tihe first book in my REGENERATION cloning series is now an ebook for only $2.99, and a wonderful new illustrator created a new cover for this book. Check it out here: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/153744

Editors, Agents, Authors...Oh, my NOTES!

My SCBWI Spring Spirit Conference notes are up on my blog. Enjoy the editor, agent, author advice. http://lindajsingleton.livejournal.com/

Pens for Paws Auction: Teaser Tuesday: Auction Items as of 4/16/2012

Pens for Paws Auction: Teaser Tuesday: Auction Items as of 4/16/2012: In writing blog circles, we do a little thing called Teaser Tuesday, where we offer up short teasers from our work. I'm carrying that over ...

CubicleBlindness Reviews: Buried by Linda Joy Singleton

CubicleBlindness Reviews: Buried by Linda Joy Singleton: In a new school and determined to keep her secrets from being discovered, Thorn finds a mysterious locket that leads to a shocking discove...

Did you see this interview?

http://raychelle-writes.blogspot.com/2012/03/writers-block-interviews-linda-joy.html All about writing & my books! Check it out! Also don't forget that DARK LIFER'S REVENGE is still free on Nook and Kindle.

Trust Me...I'm a Writer: Is Your Character a Zombie?

Trust Me...I'm a Writer: Is Your Character a Zombie?: With the season finale of The Walking Dead still fresh on my mind, I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the zombies vs. survivors dynam...

ADVERTISING THROUGH YOUR SYNOPSIS

ADVERTISING THROUGH YOUR SUBMISSIONS by Linda Joy Singleton While the writing process can seem magical and wondrous, one basic fact remains: Writing is a business. We sell our product to an editor, who (usually) then sells it to her associates, and then once purchased, the "book product" is sold to readers. As with most businesses, selling involves advertising. And for a writer, your first advertising tool is the query. A query can appear in many forms depending of the publisher and submission specifications. For a picture book, a short query will introduce you-the-author and your manuscript. For non-fiction, a query will describe the project and request permission to submit. And for middle-grade of young adult, you might send a brief cover letter, synopsis, and sample chapters. No matter what form your query takes, use it well. Think of your submission as a commercial. This is your chance to snag an editor's interest. Your cover letter/query/synopsis should be fresh, dynamic, and compelling. Editors read through hundreds of proposals, so make yours IRRESISTIBLE. Here are some guidelines: #1. KNOW THY EDITOR. Some editors prefer a short, breezy query or synopsis. They want the essence of the story without a lot of wordy explanations. But other editors demand scene-by-scene details. Study submission guidelines. #2. CHARACTERS. Characters are the breath and substance of a successful book. When you think of your favorite books, it's usually the characters you remember. Create a character trait chart and know your fictional people as if they were alive. Then write from your heart. Emotion is a key to strong, memorable characterization. #3. BE A PRO. This goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway. Write professionally. Follow tip sheet rules. Don't send a picture book to a non-fiction publisher or middle-grade series to a hardback single-title publisher. And make the manuscript look GREAT. Use a dark ribbon, double-space, use proper margins, and check for misspellings and grammar problems. The quality of your product is a reflection on YOU. Strive for PERFECTION. #4. RAZZLE DAZZLE. Editors are people, too. But they are over-worked people who see similar plots and situations repeatedly. Don't be cute or silly (no pink perfumed paper or cute kid photos or stickers). Think past the ordinary and let your own natural style WOW the editor. Open your a query/synopsis with an irresistible hook, follow through with a suitable submission, and then wait for magic to happen; the kind of magic that starts with blank paper, grows with imagination, and then materializes into a book with your name on it. ---------------------------------------------------------------

Inspiration Blog

http://migwriters.blogspot.com/2012/02/thank-you-linda-joy-singleton.html?showComment=1331096114751#c495809901929644708 I am so honored and touched by this blog. I love my fans!

vvb32 reads: Spirited with Linda Joy Singleton

vvb32 reads: Spirited with Linda Joy Singleton: ~-~-~-~-~ guest ~-~-~-~-~ by Linda Joy Singleton ~-~-~-~-~ guest ~-~-~-~-~ SCENE FROM "PHANTOM OF THE PROM" short story in Leap/SPIRITED a...

Love this!

Some reviewers really get it -- check it out! http://fictionstateofmind.blogspot.com/2012/02/review-buried-by-linda-joy-singleton.html

Dark LIFER'S Revenge is free

FREE on Kindle and Nook http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Lifers-Revenge-Short-ebook/dp/B006J9DENQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1324187472&sr=1-1

SPIRITED 13 Authors

A SNEAK PEEK: SPIRITED
Last year I was invited to contribute a short story with a paranormal them to an anthology from Leap Books titled SPIRITED. I was super excited, especially when I found out that some fantastic authors would be joining me.

Since my THE SEER has some amazing fans, I wanted to give them a new story with favorite characters Sabine and Dominic. So I wrote PHANTOM OF THE PROM; a ghost, prom, romance.

SPIRITED is out now online and in March a paperback comes out, too.

This book is split up in three different genres of stories: PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE. My story is in the PRESENT category. I thought it would be fun to share the titles and authors for each story:

SPIRITED paranormal Anthology, edited by Kat O'Shea

THE PAST

1. Strangeways vs. the Wraith by Judith Graves
2. The Senet Box by Jill Williamson
3. Stained by Mark Finnemore
4. Thread of the Past by Dawn Dalton

PRESENT
5. The Cold One by Candace Havens
6. Death becomes Her by Kitty Keswick
7. Oast House by Carmen Tudor
8. The New Girl by Maria V. Synder
9. Aftermath by Halli Dee Liburn
10.Phantom of the Prom by Linda Joy Singleton

FUTURE
11. Night Queen by John W. Otte
12. To Hell and Back by Shannon Delany
13. The Story of Late by Heather Kenealy

Hope you check out our stories!

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-dark-lifers-revenge-linda-joy-singleton/1107900048?ean=9780738734668&itm=1&usri=dark-lifers+revenge

DARK LIFER'S REVENGE Is FREE on Nook.

In this short story Sabine from THE SEER unites with Amber from DEAD GIRL WALKING to rescue Sabine's boyfriend Dominic from a Dark Lifer.

Also BONUS 3 chapters from HE SEER, DEAD GIRL and preview of BURIED: A GOTH GIRL MYSTERY.

POPULAR MUCH??

Doesn't it feel great when you're talking about music-tv-movies-books to someone and find out you have the same taste? "I love it too" -- four words that connect us with each other. Having something in common is a unversal Superglue that unites people.

Not having anything in common can be interesting, too, and sometimes you can convince a friend to try something new. Or by liking something unique, you feel unique, too.

So I thought I'd share my list of things I like that are POPULAR or SHOULD BE.

THINGS I LIKE THAT ARE TRENDING IN POPULARITY:

BOOKS MADE INTO MOVIES:
Girl with Dragon Tattoo (Swedish translated to English) plus upcoming movie
The Help
HUGO
TWILIGHT

TV SHOWS
Terra Nova (not sure if this is popular or not!)
Glee
Two Broke Girls
Survivor, Amazing Race, Project Runway,Big Brother

MEGA-STAR BOOKS
Harry Popular...I mean...Potter
Twilight -- yeah, I liked them which is less popular now than last year
Hunger Games-soon to be as popular as Twilight once the movie comes out

BOOKS THAT ARE GAINING POPULARITY AND IF THEY AREN'T THEY SHOULD BE:
Ruby Red
Emerald Atlas
Liesl and Po
Drizzle
The Future of Us
Terrier trilogy by Tamora Pierce

And a picture book called PIRATE NAP by Danna Smith which is so fun to read that kids will beg "Again!"

Under the topic of "chocolate"...I love chocolate which is always popular especially at holidays.

Cats. Writers and cats, we just understand each other.

Music -- I have an odd mx of popular (Katy & GaGa) & Coldplay) and vintage (Beach Boys, Abba) on my Pandora app.

And I love musicals -- already have tickets for my family to go to see WICKED in June -- with a great song called "Popular."

A CHRISTMAS BOOK GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING.....

A CHRISTMAS GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING....

A book, of course. But add a childhood story to the book and it becomes more than a book; it becomes a never-ending story (which was an amazing movie of the same title by the way...but I degress....)

The story of this Christmas-theme book begins when I was 13 years old. I was shy, unpopular, insecure and bursting with creativity that often came out in the inventive crafts and games my best friend and I created (but that's another story). When I couldn't hang out with my best friend Lori, I spent time with my other best friend: books. I loved reading so much and had discovered girl mystery books. My favorites were the Nancy Drew and Judy Bolton series (rivals in publishing, but best friends on my bookshelves). So I wrote two fan letters--the first went to Carolyn Keene care of Grosset & Dunlap. I never received a reply (ghosts can't write fan letters after all). So I wrote a letter to my other favorite author, Margaret Sutton, original creator and author of 38 Judy Bolton mystery novels. And Margaret wrote back.

I was SO thrilled to have a letter from my favorite author. I showed it off at school the next day and will never forget that thrill, especially when I get the opportunity to give the same thrill to a fan of my books. Well, my relationship with Margaret didn't end there. She recognized something in me, maybe passion for writing, and we kept sharing letters. I met her in person at my high school graduation party (just my family in the kitchen, with Margaret as the celebrity guest).

PHOTO: Linda (age 17) Margaret (age 71)


As adults Margaret and I kept in touch mostly through holiday cards but when she moved to Berkeley, just an hour away, I visited her. On one visit she gave me the address for a group of her fans who had started a newsletter, The Whispered Watchword. Meeting other Judy Bolton fans was amazing. Even more amazing, through serendipity, one of the other fans has been given the beginning chapters of a new Judy Bolton mystery by Margaret and told she could do whatever she wanted with it. She gave it to me.

Now to understand how HUGE this was, imagine your favorite series and how you felt when it ended. I'd read all 38 Judy Bolton mysteries many times and longed for more. Just one more mystery, I wished. And now I had the opportunity to make it happen. But I had no synopsis or outline to go by, only 3 chapters that ended dramatically with a ambulance siren. I knew these books so well, better than I knew my own writing style. And I was thrilled for the chance to finish this book. So I reread Judy's and studied the style. I typed like I was possessed, and in three weeks had finished the book which Margaret titled THE TALKING SNOWMAN.

Several months later, I met Margaret along with some of her fans in Pennsylvania at a Judy Bolton reunion. I showed Margaret the manuscript, and while she pointed out things that would need to be edited, she was very positive, even impressed that I came up with solutions to the mystery and also guessed much of what she had planned. Of course, I couldn't include her trademark "something that really happened to the author" so she took the manuscript from me and added this scene herself, making editing marks and returning it to me for completion. And years later, I self-published THE TALKING SNOWMAN, a new Judy Bolton mystery co-written by Margaret Sutton and me.

Fans were so thrilled to have this book that I didn't need to advertise. Word spread and they found me. It didn't feel right to profit from a work of love, so I priced the book low; enough to cover my expenses. The first 500 books sold out so next time I printed 1,000. And I continue to sell these books to fans who stumble upon the www.Judybolton.com website and are stunned to find there are more than 38 books.

I wrote an introduction to SNOWMAN which begins: THIS BOOK IS A GIFT.

THE TALKING SNOWMAN is a Christmas story that keeps on giving to readers who love Judy Bolton; the girl heroine who wasn't perfect like Nancy Drew which endeared her to readers like me who watched her age from 15 to mid-20's; a teen to a young married woman.

And the 38 books of the original series have all been reprinted by Applewood Books so new readers can fall in love with Judy, too. Go online and search for Applewood's reprint of the first Judy Bolton book: THE VANISHING SHADOW, based on a real flood.


WIN A BOOK!
Make a comment on this blog and I'll randomly pick a winner who can choose one of my books as a prize. I have copies of my SEER, DEAD GIRL, STRANGE ENCOUNTERS series, as well as TALKING SNOWMAN to choose from.