Which authors have quit writing who you wish would return?
Earlier this year, Liz Carlyle announced on Facebook that she had turned in her last historical romance to Avon. She said that she might self publish some older material or a Kemble based mystery (Kemble was a butler to one of her heroes and then appeared throughout the series at various times. I’ll confess that even though I loved Carlyle’s work, Kemble is not a character I’m interested in following).
Sharon and Tom Curtis had their old books re-released through Sourcebooks and while there were hints that they may be interested in returning to publishing, we’ve seen nothing concrete from that corner.
In 1997, LaVyrle Spencer famously retired from writing. Last year, the prolific author told a reporter from the Twin Cities that she is enjoying her retirement tremendously. “I’ve had the finest years imaginable since I retired,” Spencer said from her North Oaks home. “Now, I itch to sit down at the keyboard and compose songs.”
As a reader I often view authors as writing until they die, their fingers curled over their keyboard or the pen still clutched in the hand. But even if they don’t formally announce their retirement as Spencer did, many authors do stop writing.
According to more than one industry source, Judith McNaught still owes a couple books on a writing contract and we haven’t seen anything new from Jenny Crusie in years. Penelope Williamson is still alive but she hasn’t published a book since 2005 according to Wikipedia.
So my question to you today is what is the one author who has stopped writing that you wish would publish something today. Keishon once suggested we do a “Where Are They Now” feature. If we were to do this, who are the authors you wonder about? Who do you miss? Why?
Dana Warren Smith, Paula Detmer Riggs (her name keeps coming up, doesn’t it?), Michelle Reid, Susan Napier, … But then I think that thirty years have passed since these these authors were first published; anything could have happened in that time span.
I also miss authors who are no longer with us, like Karen Keast/Sandra Canfield, Charlotte Lamb, and a few others I can’t think of at the moment.
On the other hand, there are authors who are still writing, and their current books can’t compare to what they wrote then. My tastes haven’t changed, because I continue to reread the good books until the pages are falling out. I’m not sure if these authors are being pressured to write different stories (I always have to remember that publishing is a business!), but too often lately their attempts fall flat.
@Diana: I’ve been reading this thread (several days old) with great enjoyment, and could add a few of my own favorites, but I had to comment regarding Rett MacPherson, a favorite mystery writer. After several years passed with no Torie mystery, I finally emailed Sharon Shinn (another favorite author of mine), who belongs to the same critique group as Rett. She told me that Rett was trying to find a new writing direction, possibly YA, but did not plan to return to Torie’s crazy world (featuring a genealogist-turned-detective). Sharon and I both thought that was a shame. Rett’s own website had been shut down, and her email address was no longer in existence. Maybe there is new information out there by now, but I wanted to get this information to you before the thread was unavailable to new posts.
Lisa J mentioned Jan Cox Speas, who is also one of my favorite authors. By coincidence, I saw that My Love, My Enemy (set in 1812 in the U.S.) has been released in digital form by Sourcebooks Casablanca Classics (for only $2.99)! That also led me to Susanna Kearsley’s website, where Speas is listed as one of her favorite authors and there’s a bio saying that Speas died in 1971, so no more books to come, unfortunately, but I’m hoping her books set in Scotland get re-issued too. I haven’t read them for years but still have vivid memories of how much I loved them.
Is Bettie Sharpe still writing?
Catherine Hart wrote awesome romances: historicals, a time-travel-with-magic, and a couple of contemporaries. The last of them was released in 1998, so while I’d love more from her, I’m thinking there was a reason the books stopped coming.
@ Nicole OCT 25, 2014 @ 18:40:23
>>>I miss Toni Andrews. Her Mercy Hollings series was one of my favorite paranormal/UF/whatevers, and she hasn’t published one in ages. Her web site is now gone, and although she’s still listed as one of the Deadline Dames, she hasn’t published a post in a really long time. I hope she’s alright.<<<
I actually e-mailed her in July 2011 and I got a reply back. This e-mail is 3.5 years old, so YMMV.
"Subject: RE: No More Mercy Books?
Actually, there will be two more, although in a slightly different format.
The publisher moved me to Silhouette Nocturne, so the books will be shorter
and more romance-ish. The next book will be mostly about Sukey. I don't
have a date yet, but watch http://www.DeadlineDames.com for an update.
I'm so glad you've enjoyed meeting the gang!
Toni"
I think I will contact her again and see if there is any update.
Michelle Reid
Karen Kijewski–I am re-reading all her books as I have all that she has written. I really enjoy her easy-reading style and heart-pounding stories. There’s usually a surprise at the end too.