Mar 11 2011
Friday Midday News: Joy and Tragedy in the romance community
Fatin, aka mad4rmbks, has been a long time member of the romance community. On Tuesday morning, some horrible coward shot her husband in their store. Fatin’s husband was the kind of guy, as his customers said, to give you the shirt off his back and the change in his pocket. His senseless death leaves Fatin to raise their four children alone.
If you want to help, you can donate something to the auction being held to benefit Fatin and her daughters or you can bid on the auction items. Or you can pray or send positive waves of thought her way. Read more about the effort to assist Fatin here.
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Our celebratory news involves Wendy, Super Librarian. Wendy received the news on Tuesday that she had been voted Librarian of the Year by RWA. Congratulations Wendy.
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Reader PZ sent me a heads up about the release of a recent Mills & Boon documentary. I would really like to see this as it sounds like a pretty even handed look into a handful of readers and writers pertaining to the genre with a very broad worldwide scope. The filmmaker says her favorites are Penny Jordan, Kate Walker, and Gil Sanderson’s medicals.
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This is what I hope to see more of in the self publishing market: great books that can’t be published because they don’t fit into any predetermined slots. Miracle Jones received a response from an agent rejecting his work:
To cut right to the chase, this is quite literally like nothing I've ever read before, both for better and for worse. Which is to say, it was a refreshing change from the predictable stuff that usually comes across my desk. But it's also just not really my kind of book. I don't think it even is a "kind' of book (or if it is, I've never read those kinds of books). I admire your talent and most of all your imagination, but I quite literally have no idea who would publish this. Which is not to say someone won't-’only that it's far enough outside of the kind of fiction I tend to represent that I wouldn't know what to do with it
So Miracle Jones self published his book on smashwords.
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I found this tidbit interesting. Last week marked the first time that a J.D. Robb title was on #1 on the USA Today list. Treachery in Death is a pretty good entry into the Eve Dallas series. And you had better start calling it the Eve Dallas series because beginning with the nex book, “In Death” will no longer be in the title. Speaking of Nora, Chasing Fire is calling my name. Have a great weekend folks. Don’t forget to SPRING forward with your clocks. Stay safe.
Send to Kindle
Mar 11, 2011 @ 12:06:28
O_o Did they run out of words to precede in Death?
Mar 11, 2011 @ 12:11:09
Jane, Nora’s site says that the New York to Dallas title is a ONE TIME occurrence.
Those of us who like to take a simple statement and run wild in the streets with it are hoping that story will tell the ‘missing’ parts of Eve’s years. Probably not since I’ve never been able to second guess my fav authors.
Mar 11, 2011 @ 12:11:57
Thank goodness. I can’t keep track of the books. In order to be sure I’m buying the right one I need to open the quick list from the JD Robb site to see the titles, open my Kindle to see what I just read, then triple-check I’m getting the right book on Amazon!
Mar 11, 2011 @ 12:17:54
We heard about Fatin’s loss on the loop, my thoughts and prayers have been with her and her children ever since.
Mar 11, 2011 @ 12:26:33
I was so sad to hear about Fatin’s loss. She used to review my books and I’d lost touch with her. I would love to send somethign for the auction but the link didn’t help me with where to send – I’m from the UK. Please could someone tell me an address to donate so I can help.
Thanks
Kate
Mar 11, 2011 @ 12:50:43
My heart goes out to Fatin and her family.
Thanks for the reminder, I didn’t realized that we Spring ahead tomorrow night.
Mar 11, 2011 @ 12:55:34
Kate:
Here’s the link to the information site:
http://novelthoughts.wordpress.com/2011/03/11/how-you-can-help/
I’m also one of the auction coordinators and would be happy to take your donation info. You can email me at jaci AT jaciburton DOT com
Thanks!
Mar 11, 2011 @ 12:59:37
It’s not going to be “In death” on the next book?
I almost feel like jumping on that crazy 2012 bandwagon now, for this is surely a sign of the end times.
Mar 11, 2011 @ 13:33:57
I believe it’s From New York to Dallas–Eve visits Dallas, deals with some stuff from her past. The following book already has an In Death title, however. So maybe time burps, looks like the end times, then reverts to normal.
Mar 11, 2011 @ 14:09:27
From the Nora’s News newsletter…
Mar 11, 2011 @ 14:14:55
@Jaci Burton:
Thanks Jaci – I heard from one of the other organisers and I’ll put together a package to contribute
Mar 11, 2011 @ 14:22:16
Ok, the tags for Miracle Jones’s book are: cats, unicorns, cooking, desert, cockroaches, serial killers, orphans, dune, tijuana bibles. How could I not at least download the sample from Amazon?
Mar 11, 2011 @ 14:49:44
So sorry to hear about Fatin’s husband.
The blurbs for New York to Dallas are out. From the Piatkus site: Twelve years ago, Eve Dallas was just a rookie NY cop when her instincts led her to the apartment of Isaac McQueen, a man she discovered to be a sick murderer and paedophile, who was keeping young girls in cages. Now a homicide Lieutenant, Eve is one of the most distinguished officers in the city – and then she learns that McQueen has escaped from jail. Bent on revenge against Eve and with a need to punish more ‘bad girls' McQueen heads to Dallas, Texas – the place where Eve was found as a child, the place where she killed her own abusive monster when she was only eight years old. With Eve and Roarke in pursuit of McQueen, everything is on the line and secrets from Eve's past are about to be shockingly revealed.
And From Putnam: The number-one New York Times-bestselling author J. D. Robb presents an intense and terrifying new case for New York homicide cop Eve Dallas, one that will take her all the way to the city that gave her her name-’and plunge her into the nightmares of her childhood.
When a monster named Isaac McQueen-’taken down by Eve back in her uniform days-’escapes from Rikers, he has two things in mind. One is to pick up where he left off, abducting young victims and leaving them scarred in both mind and body. The other is to get revenge on the woman who stopped him all those years ago.
Mar 11, 2011 @ 14:50:44
Okay, tried to do those in quotes and it didn’t work. I really miss the preview and edit features.
Mar 11, 2011 @ 15:38:42
I’m glad to see that word is getting ’round about Fatin. That girl is hardcore Old Skool in the online romance community. I first “met” her when I hopped on the romance bandwagon in 1999, and she was kicking around well before that. She flat-out seems to know everybody, and I’m glad to see the community rallying around her right now.
Many thanks for the congratulations on the RWA honor! I’m still finding the whole thing a bit…well…surreal :)
Mar 11, 2011 @ 20:53:21
I read the online sample of “Sharing”, the ebook self published by Miracle Jones. Wow, it’s so very strangely bizarre. I can understand the agent’s comments in his rejection letter. I’m considering buying the book to finish it because I have absolutely no idea where he’s headed with it. I can tell there’s a train wreck coming but I don’t know how it’s going to play out.
So very, very sorry to hear about Fatin’s husband. My heart goes out to her and her family.
Mar 12, 2011 @ 12:09:53
I’ll be going to see GUILTY PLEASURES at the Durham Full Frame release. I’ll try to take notes and write a review of it.
Mar 13, 2011 @ 05:57:55
I have been out of town and just read this news about Fatin’s husband. What a terrible tragedy. Fatin has been such a wonderful supporter of romance writers. Thanks for posting this info.