One Of The Best Things About Nashville...

/

One of this big advantages of living in Nashville is the music. Last night, I had the pleasure of attending an awesome bi-monthly event called EAST SIDE STORYTELLIN’, which is put together by the indomitable Chuck Beard of the very cool East Nashville shop East Side Story. Every event features an author, and a musician. Words, and lyrics. What a beautiful combination.

By the way, Chuck’s bookstore is unique - populated with books by Tennessee authors only. It is a true labor of love, and I can’t recommend buying from him highly enough. Not only is it a cool bookstore, it’s filled with art and love. If you’re in Nashville, stop by. If you’re outside of Nashville - give Chuck a call. He can hook you up with just the right book. Because Nashville - heck, all of Tennessee - is FULL of brilliant writers. We’ve undergone quite the literary renaissance lately, and Chuck has all of us there.

So back to last night - a great match up of words and lyrics. The author was Alecia Whitaker, the music by Alissa Moreno. These two have been teamed together for Alecia’s book, WILDFLOWER, the story of a young singer who’s gotten her big break, and Alissa sang the breakout song that’s featured in the book. There’s even a talent search underway for the next big star, so if you know a great teen signer, send them here. The book itself is the brainchild of Kathryn Williams, developmental editor of Aerial. This is a great example of Nashville teamwork. 

And I officially have a crush on Alissa Moreno. What a voice! You know how some songs, some people, just strike you? Well, you’ve heard her before, too, though you may not know it. She’s one of those amazingly talented singer/songwriters who populate this town. I bought one of her albums, and I’m stoked to go see her around town.

And since this has turned into a linkfest instead of my initial premise, I’ll get to it now. I am not a signer. I have no discernible musical talent. I played a bunch of instruments in school — clarinet, mostly, but sax and flute and drums and guitar, too — but they didn’t speak to me like words, and I had to choose between band and G&T classes, and I chose the latter. As such, I am always fascinated by people who have both words and melody in their heads. It seems such an ethereal gift, less workmanlike, more tangible than words alone. I know I can turn a phrase, but do I give people goosebumps and make tears come to their eyes? 

That’s how I felt last night. That overwhelming spark that sends tingles throughout your body when you hear just the right voice, just the right note, just the right words. I didn’t want the evening to end.

Do check out these extremely talented women, and give Chuck a whirl — you won’t be disappointed.

Have you been moved by anything or anyone lately? 

Guess What’s Available for Pre-Order???

/

WHAT LIES BEHIND, the 4th Samantha Owens thriller, is available for pre-order!

Here’s the jacket copy:

Waking to sirens in the night is hardly unusual for Samantha Owens. No longer a medical examiner, she doesn't lose sleep over them, but a routine police investigation in her neighborhood has her curious. When her homicide detective friend, Darren Fletcher, invites her to look over the evidence, she jumps at the chance and immediately realizes the crime scene has been staged. What seems to be a clear case of murder/suicide—a crime of passion—is anything but. The discovery of toxic substances in hidden vials indicates that something much more sinister is at play… 

As Fletch and Sam try to understand what and who they are dealing with, they are summoned to a meeting at the State Department. High-level officials are interested in what they know and seem to be keeping secrets of their own. It's up to Sam and Fletch to uncover what lies behind the deception as the threat of bioterrorism is exposed, and her boyfriend, Xander Whitfield, may be in the line of fire.

Unsure who to trust, Sam and Fletch find themselves up against very powerful people at every stage in the investigation. No one is who they appear to be and with every minute that passes, the danger escalates. It's Sam's most complex case yet and the terrifying reality is beyond anything she could have imagined.

Sound good? I am stoked about this book. It’s ver intense, and Sam kicks some serious ass. And just wait until you see the cover! I’ll debut it for my newsletter readers first, so if you’re not a part of that awesome community, get thee signed up now!

WHAT LIES BEHIND releases May 26, 2015, in hardcover and digital. This is so exciting!

WHEN SHADOWS FALL Nominated for RT's Best Mystery/Suspense of 2014

/

I am beside myself with excitement - WHEN SHADOWS FALL has been nominated for a RT Reviewers Choice Award for Best Mystery/Suspense of 2014. And what an amazing list of books and authors to share a nomination with! Look at this list! 
 

Do Productivity Hacks Help, or Hurt?

/

I received access to two new productivity helpers today — Desk, a multi-platform blogging tool, and Google’s new Gmail Inbox. 

First up, let’s talk about Desk. The good: It’s beautiful, simple, minimalist, easy to set up, and seems to publish directly to my blog on Squarespace and to Facebook seamlessly.

The bad: I can’t for the life of me find my blog categories, which is driving me mad. I can access the tags on my Dropbox, but nothing inside Squarespace. I’ve sent a help request on that. And, and this is my fault, but… because of the horrifically tiny print on the new Yosemite operating system, when I went into the app store to download Desk, I thought it said $2.99. Since it looked very intriguing, I went ahead and bought it. I rarely pay for apps, because 90% of the time they’re a waste of money, but I like the idea of having a blog record, and since I’m trying to blog more…

Well. You can imagine my dismay when I got the receipt from iTunes and saw that it wasn’t $2.99, but $29.99. Thirty bucks for a freaking blogging app is so far out of bounds - this sucker better make my tea and fold my clothes in addition to ease of use and swanky minimalist looks. And now I’m fully committed because I have to get my money out of it. I’ve had the blog window open all day and have been playing with it - and I must say, so far, so good. I will report back in a month.

On to Inbox. I took one look at it (okay, two or three) and I’m not sold. It’s confusing. But it could also be very very helpful in streamlining email. We’ll see what it looks like tomorrow morning when my usual glut is there. And… it’s only for iPhone now, though if I ran Chrome I’d be able to use it. But I’m a die hard Safari fan, so maybe Inbox isn’t for me just yet.

So while my life may be enhanced by these two new innovations, it is now 1:38 p.m., and I haven’t done any creative writing because I’ve been wrapped up in these two new toys. 

And that’s where productivity hacks become the bane of our existence, rather than the savior. I lost several hours this morning setting up a system that promises to streamline my process. And truth be told, with as much offline work as I do, I can see that Desk will be helpful to that. But the lost hours — if I were a smart writer, I would have waited to play around with the app.

This morning shone a spotlight on my failings as a time manager. 

I am not a smart writer when it comes to hacks. I am a child. I am a magpie. I love shiny objects. I’m constantly chasing after them instead of keeping my head down. Granted, there are a LOT of things going on right now. I’ve overcommitted myself yet again, and I’m trying to dig out from under the pile of yeses that drown me daily. I so hate to say no, to disappoint people, yet I know, I KNOW, I am a better writer, a better friend, a better spouse and daughter, when I do refuse. 

Something to work on, I suppose. What about you? Are you drawn away from your work by inconsequential things? Or do you possess steel in your spine that allows you to focus mercilessly on your tasks at hand?

_____

*For those lovelies among you who expressed worry at my sight issues - I went to the eye doctor to get my glasses RX looked at, because I was convinced I had cataracts or something else equally unsavory. Turns out my Wayfarers had the entirely wrong RX in them. The distance wasn’t strong enough, and the reading area needed a boost. Will that help the hideous Yosemite font? Probably not, but I’ll see better in general.  

** This post was composed entirely in Desk. I will admit, it is pretty.