In case you haven't become a fan on the facebook page, you might not have heard the good news.
Just said "yes" to an offer for Books 3 and 4 of the Witchcraft series...is the world ready for more witchy mayhem and mystery? I sure hope so because book two is with the publishers.
Also, I gave a little interview about Secondhand Spirits over here. Check it out!
Did I mention that I am also going to be starting a new series? Not sure who will be signing her name to that one... check me later on that one. More details to come.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Secondhand Spirits Book Tour!
I’m happy to announce that Secondhand Spirits,
the first in my new Witchcraft Mystery series,
will be released July 7!
I hope you’ll be able to join me at an event near you…I’ll be visiting Southern Oregon, Northern California, Southern California, and the Phoenix/Tucson area…see below!
“An enchanting mystery that enables the audience to believe in the supernatural…a terrific urban fantasy.” –Genre Go-Round Reviews
Four Stars – Romantic Times
“SECONDHAND SPIRITS is an excellent blend of mystery, paranormal, and light humor, creating a cozy that is must-read for anyone with an interest in literature with paranormal elements…SECONDHAND SPIRITS has an air of authenticity that leaves many other similar novels in the dust.” --The Romance Reader's Connection
*And please stop by www.awitchcraftmystery.blogspot.com for more information on the series, and witchcraft all over the world*
Tuesday, July 7, 7 p.m.
M is for Mystery
86 East Third Avenue
San Mateo, California
With Ann Parker and Rhys Bowen
Thursday, July 9, 6 p.m.
Barnes and Noble Redding, CA
Churn Creek Rd.
Redding, CA 96003
(530) 222-2006
Friday, July 10, noon
Klamath County Public Library
126 South Third Street
Klamath Falls, OR 97601
541-882-8894
July 10
Bookwagon, 6pm
1652 Ashland Street
Ashland, OR 97520
As part of Ashland Mystery Readers’ Group
Thursday July 16, 6-8 pm
San Francisco Litquake Fundraiser Event: Bodies in the Library
Mechanics Institute, 4th Floor
57 Post St, San Francisco
July 21
Bookshop West Portal
80 West Portal Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94127
With Rhys Bowen and Ann Parker
July 23,
ComicCon, San Diego, Room 10
www.comic-con.org
10:00-11:00 Escapist Fantasy Panel: Juliet Blackwell (SECOND HAND SPIRITS); Marjorie Liu (DARKNESS CALLS); Jackie Kessler & Caitlin Kittredge (BLACK & WHITE); Diana Rowland (MARK OF THE DEMON); Sina Grace (CEDRIC HOLLOWS IN DIAL M for MAGIC); and Harry Connolly (CHILD OF FIRE).
August 11
Readers' Books
130 E. Napa St.
Sonoma, CA 95476
Tel: 707-939-1779
With Rhys Bowen and Ann Parker
www.readersbooks.com
August 13, 7 p.m.
The Poisoned Pen
www.poisonedpen.com
4014 N Goldwater Boulevard, Suite 101
Scottsdale, Arizona
With Sophie Littlefield and Ann Parker
August 14, 6:30 p.m.
Changing Hands Bookstore
6428 S. McClintock Dr.
Tempe, Arizona
Workshop: Action in Every Scene: Keep Them Turning the Pages
With Ann Parker and Sophie Littlefield
Saturday, August 15, 2 p.m.
Velma Teague Library
7010 N. 58th Avenue
Glendale, Arizona
Panel: Strong Female Heroines in Crime Fiction
With Ann Parker and Sophie Littlefield
Sunday, August 16, 12 noon
www.cluesunlimited.com
Clues Unlimited
3146 East Ft. Lowell
Tucson, AZ 85716
Brown Bag Lunch talk with Sophie Littlefield and Ann Parker
The Deadly Combination Tour: SoCal with Anne Parker, Margaret Grace, Sophie Littlefield, and Juliet Blackwell
August 21, 7 pm
Mysterious Galaxy Books
7051 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
Suite #302
San Diego, CA 92111
Tel: 858.268.4747
mysteriousgalaxy.booksense.com
August 22, 12 noon
Mysteries to Die For
2940 Thousand Oaks Boulevard
Thousand Oaks, California 91362
(805) 374-0084
www.mysteriestodiefor.com
August 22, 3 pm
Los Angeles Mystery Bookstore
1036-C Broxton Avenue, Los Angeles (in Brentwood) 90024
(310) 209 0415
www.mystery-bookstore.com
August 23, 2 pm
Book ‘Em
1118 Mission St., South Pasadena, CA 91030
626-799-9600, 1-800-4BOOKEM
www.bookem.com
August 29, 2 p.m.
San Francisco Mystery Bookstore
4175 24th Street
San Francisco, California
With Tim Maleeny, Ann Parker, and Sophie Littlefield
Bouchercon, 2009 World Mystery Convention
Thursday, October 15 to Sunday, October 18
Bouchercon World Mystery Convention 2009
Indianapolis, Indiana
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
More on Salem
National Geographic has an interesting and informative interactive site on the Salem Witch Hysteria.
Now that you know all about the Salem Witch Trials, try your hand at Salem Witchcraft Trials Jeopardy.
Find more information on the Salem Witch Museum here.
Now that you know all about the Salem Witch Trials, try your hand at Salem Witchcraft Trials Jeopardy.
Find more information on the Salem Witch Museum here.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Salem Witch Trials
For some of us, the closest we get to the Salem Witch Trials is an episode of Bewitched where Samantha gets spirited back in time by some jealous witch (male or female). Others may have learned about the trials through Arthur Miller's The Crucible or the more recent movie of the same name. The truth is much more sinister than any Bewitched episode could convey; but the jealous portrayed may not be far off the mark. There is also the small matter of usurping land thrown into the mix.
Called the Salem Witch trials probably because the most famous happened in Salem Village, there were actually trials in four towns in the province. Salem Village had the distinction of being a town in turmoil. Only recently allowed to have their own church, there seemed to be some struggle for leadership.
So, take a town in the middle of a province with changing leadership, hostilities with the natives and a growing shortage of land with a growing population and mix in some religious fervor and a mysterious affliction and you get the Salem Witch Trials. Frenzy usually feeds on the baser of human emotions like greed and jealousy. It just may be that land, deeds and inheritance motivated the witch hunting more than a desire to expel the devil.
At the center of the drama is the Parris family. Reverend Samuel Parris is the newly elected minister of the new Salem Village. He wasn't the unanimous choice and there were those who were not pleased that he was given the deed of the parsonage as part of his compensation. Just a few years later, his daughter and niece were the first to be afflicted with some sort of bewitching.
Given the laws and a propensity to general anxiety in the province it is not difficult to understand how the most vulnerable became the first accused. The majority of "witches" were unmarried or recently widowed land-owning women. If a land owner died, his/her land passed back to the previous owner. If that owner could not be determined, it passed to the church.
The first three women accused were women with few defenders: Sarah Good, a poor woman known to beg for food; Sarah Osbourne, a woman marked for having sex with her indentured servant and for not attending church service; and Tituba, a slave of undetermined ancestry. Sarah Good's daughter is also one of the accused. Her testimony is used to convict her mother even though Dorothy Good was only four years old. Someone had to be blamed for the affliction of the minister's family.
After the frenzy started, it didn't take long for the land-owning citizens (male and female) to become targets. Of course, there were those that were just named due to the hysteria. Anyone who didn't quite fit in would be a perfect target. Being a witch could explain any oddity or non-conformity with the rest of society. Either people believed these men and women were really witches or they participated in the naming in order to not be named. It was a good way to rid yourself of an annoying neighbor as entire families were named as witches.
In a relatively short period of time, from March 1692 through July 1692, over 70 people were arrested or warrants for their arrests were issued. The accusations and trials lasted through May 1693 with the last cases resulting mostly in acquittals. All in all over 150 people were accused, twenty nine were convicted and nineteen of those were hung. One man who refused to enter a plea was crushed to death. At least five more died while in custody.
As for the four mentioned above: Dorothy Good, the four year old, was released on bond; her mother, Sarah Good, was found guilty and executed on July 19, 1692; Sarah Osbourne died in custody; and, Tituba was never indicted.
Words written by John Greenleaf Whittier and inscribed on a monument marking the grave of Rebecca Nurse, one of the condemned "witches" of Salem.
Sources:
Wikipedia's Salem Witchcraft Trials Page
University of Missouri - Kansas City School of Law Professor Douglas Linder's site: Salem Witchcraft Trials 1692
Salem Witch Museum
Called the Salem Witch trials probably because the most famous happened in Salem Village, there were actually trials in four towns in the province. Salem Village had the distinction of being a town in turmoil. Only recently allowed to have their own church, there seemed to be some struggle for leadership.So, take a town in the middle of a province with changing leadership, hostilities with the natives and a growing shortage of land with a growing population and mix in some religious fervor and a mysterious affliction and you get the Salem Witch Trials. Frenzy usually feeds on the baser of human emotions like greed and jealousy. It just may be that land, deeds and inheritance motivated the witch hunting more than a desire to expel the devil.
At the center of the drama is the Parris family. Reverend Samuel Parris is the newly elected minister of the new Salem Village. He wasn't the unanimous choice and there were those who were not pleased that he was given the deed of the parsonage as part of his compensation. Just a few years later, his daughter and niece were the first to be afflicted with some sort of bewitching.
Given the laws and a propensity to general anxiety in the province it is not difficult to understand how the most vulnerable became the first accused. The majority of "witches" were unmarried or recently widowed land-owning women. If a land owner died, his/her land passed back to the previous owner. If that owner could not be determined, it passed to the church.The first three women accused were women with few defenders: Sarah Good, a poor woman known to beg for food; Sarah Osbourne, a woman marked for having sex with her indentured servant and for not attending church service; and Tituba, a slave of undetermined ancestry. Sarah Good's daughter is also one of the accused. Her testimony is used to convict her mother even though Dorothy Good was only four years old. Someone had to be blamed for the affliction of the minister's family.
After the frenzy started, it didn't take long for the land-owning citizens (male and female) to become targets. Of course, there were those that were just named due to the hysteria. Anyone who didn't quite fit in would be a perfect target. Being a witch could explain any oddity or non-conformity with the rest of society. Either people believed these men and women were really witches or they participated in the naming in order to not be named. It was a good way to rid yourself of an annoying neighbor as entire families were named as witches.
In a relatively short period of time, from March 1692 through July 1692, over 70 people were arrested or warrants for their arrests were issued. The accusations and trials lasted through May 1693 with the last cases resulting mostly in acquittals. All in all over 150 people were accused, twenty nine were convicted and nineteen of those were hung. One man who refused to enter a plea was crushed to death. At least five more died while in custody.
As for the four mentioned above: Dorothy Good, the four year old, was released on bond; her mother, Sarah Good, was found guilty and executed on July 19, 1692; Sarah Osbourne died in custody; and, Tituba was never indicted.
O Christian Martyr Who for Truth could die
When all about thee Owned the hideous lie!
The world, redeemed from superstition's sway,
Is breathing freer for thy sake today.
Sources:
Wikipedia's Salem Witchcraft Trials Page
University of Missouri - Kansas City School of Law Professor Douglas Linder's site: Salem Witchcraft Trials 1692
Salem Witch Museum
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Guesting, guesting, guesting...
When did "guesting" become a verb? As in "to guest"? My guess is around the same time as "to blog" became part of everyday parlance...
Anyway...I'm guesting on two different blogs this weekend! (Which explains, in part, why I haven't written a new post for my own Witchcraft blog!)
Please stop by Poe'sDeadlyDaughters to read a bit about haunted houses and world-building in Urban Fantasy....and drop on by MakeMineMystery to read about hopping vampires!
And on Wednesday, as always, I'll be blogging on PensFatales.
This week's topic is Summertime, and I'll be writing about a cabin in the woods, where I'm not, but I'd like to be....
Anyway...I'm guesting on two different blogs this weekend! (Which explains, in part, why I haven't written a new post for my own Witchcraft blog!)
Please stop by Poe'sDeadlyDaughters to read a bit about haunted houses and world-building in Urban Fantasy....and drop on by MakeMineMystery to read about hopping vampires!
And on Wednesday, as always, I'll be blogging on PensFatales.
This week's topic is Summertime, and I'll be writing about a cabin in the woods, where I'm not, but I'd like to be....
Friday, June 26, 2009
more fun
My good friend, Pamela, is guest blogging at Pens Fatales, please check her out! We're still talking about characters and gearing up for next week's topic.
Um... still need to get my blog posts for this blog out of the drafts pile.
But, in other news, in lieu of a release party for Secondhand Spirits, I will be signing books on the release date (July 7, 2009) -- get your advance copy today! The signing will include Rhys Bowen and Ann Parker at M is for Mystery in San Mateo (California). Rhys and Ann are also releasing books this summer.
Details will be up at the Facebook fan page by Monday. Hope to see some of you there!
Did I mention that there is another review of Secondhand Spirits out there? Take a look.
Um... still need to get my blog posts for this blog out of the drafts pile.
But, in other news, in lieu of a release party for Secondhand Spirits, I will be signing books on the release date (July 7, 2009) -- get your advance copy today! The signing will include Rhys Bowen and Ann Parker at M is for Mystery in San Mateo (California). Rhys and Ann are also releasing books this summer.
Details will be up at the Facebook fan page by Monday. Hope to see some of you there!
Did I mention that there is another review of Secondhand Spirits out there? Take a look.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Planning ... Isn't Doing
The promised blog posts are still drafts waiting to be finished and published... however, I have been blogging over at pensfatales and I was featured here.
Maybe three blogs, two facebook fan pages, guest blogging and two manuscripts due at the end of the summer is catching up with me.
The book tour is shaping up: SF Bay Area, Arizona, Southern California so far. You can find all the info here or over at the FB fan page.
More SOON!
Maybe three blogs, two facebook fan pages, guest blogging and two manuscripts due at the end of the summer is catching up with me.
The book tour is shaping up: SF Bay Area, Arizona, Southern California so far. You can find all the info here or over at the FB fan page.
More SOON!
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