Marilyn Brant's Blog, page 29

I've been thinking about this post for a couple of weeks now, mostly because, when any book is released, readers have certain expectations. That's always been true for me as a reader, no matter what genre I pick up. Of course, with a "mystery," I know there will be a crime and it'll get solved somehow. With a "romance," I'm sure there will be a love story with the hero and heroine winding up together in the end. The "women's fiction" genre may leave a few additional doors open, but it's still...

I have a visitor this morning that I've been looking forward to hosting on Brant Flakes for a few months, the lovely Therese Walsh. She's the founder and president of our new RWA Women's Fiction chapter (yay!) and an incredibly talented writer. Her debut novel, The Last Will of Moira Leahy (Shayne Areheart Books) is out TODAY, and it's a book Publishers Weekly praised as being a "pleasing blend of mystery, romance, and the supernatural."

Welcome, Therese!!

1. Can you tell us the premise of...

On Wednesday, October 7th, I had the honor of being asked to speak at a local library about my writing journey. Afterward, I had the further delight of getting to go out with friends for margaritas! What a wonderful group!!
(pictured left to right: me, Janice, Ann, Anne, Heather, Karen, Sarah, Lisa, Erica and Joyce)


But the fun for the week was just getting started. Yesterday, October 10th, was my first big book signing! It's been in the works for months, so it was exciting to finally have a ch...

Last night, I had the pleasure of visiting the Grayslake Public Library and doing a little program on my journey toward publication for the patrons. It was SUCH a nice evening, largely due to the wonderful friends who showed up to support me, the library staff's incredible sense of organization and the tremendous spread of treats brought in by both the librarians AND my friends! OMG the chocolate!! Plus, it was really wonderful to have a chance to meet some new readers and aspiring writers. H...

This week, I have the pleasure of being a guest on Stephanie's Written Word, where I wrote a post about my experiences taking a class on Jane Austen...in England...with my husband... Note the picture of us playing croquet on the university lawn. (Yes, I was a dozen years younger then--sigh--and thinner, too. :-) This is the "nice" photo, by the way. We were behaving ourselves and attempting to look very proper. I also have another one--locked deep in our family photo album--of me holding the ...

Today, the lovely and talented Therese Walsh, author of the soon-to-be-released novel The Last Will of Moira Leahy (can't wait to have her visit here on 10/13!) is interviewing me on Writer Unboxed. Please stop by--not only to read the Q&A but to take a look at the wealth of helpful posts geared toward writers. It's an outstanding site.

Also around the blogsophere, Margay Leah Justice has a very nice review up on Moonlight, Lace & Mayhem (yay!), and I'm continuing my Girlfriends Cyber Circuit ...

Release Day for ACCORDING TO JANE is finally here! (Yes, I'm having an O.M.G. moment. ;)

I'm celebrating by attempting to be everywhere in the Blogosphere at once. In a "Where's Waldo?" kind of way, you'll find me bopping all over the place today...and tomorrow...and Thursday. And well into October, too. Here are some links to get you started. (And I'll probably update these throughout the day, if only so I can help myself remember all the tour stops...)

First, I'm the 007 Bond Sister on call t...

Okay. Let me explain something. My debut novel, According to Jane , is coming out TOMORROW! Yes, within 24 hours it'll be on the shelves (fingers crossed!) in every major bookstore in the country. To say that I'm going into my book launch as a well-rested and relaxed citizen of the greater Chicago area would be a more blatant act of fiction than the stuff I've been writing. Truly, I don't think I've gotten a good night's sleep since sometime in June--and I credit that one restful night to the ...

I have another post--a long one--that I've been working on. One that was intended to go up this morning, but I haven't been able to finish it yet because I heard some very sad news today. Kate Duffy, beloved longtime editor at Kensington, has passed away, due to complications with the cancer she was battling.

I don't know many details and, to me, they aren't the significant part of the story anyway... But here's what is: Kate was an incredible force in the publishing industry--one of the first...

I've been a proud member of the Girlfriends Cyber Circuit for a year and a half now, and I've had the privilege of getting to host lots of wonderful authors as they toured their novels. What a pleasure that's been! But, now, it's my turn to tour and, I can tell you, I feel as though I've already been around the world and back :).

There will be about 25 stops just on the GCC tour, in addition to fun visits at a number of awesome blogs this week. In between popping into bookstores to stare at my...