On Tour With Michelle Cox

Many authors  promote their books through book tours. Author Michelle Cox gives MapYourMystery an idea about how she organizes her book tours.

How did you decide which places to visit?
The first “tour” that I did around the release of A Girl Like You was set up by my publisher, She Writes Press, though the authors did have input into the cities we were assigned. They highly encouraged us to choose places where we might have friends or family to come out and support us, so I chose Chicago (of course!), Boston, Seattle and Los Angeles for that reason.

The other “tours” I’ve done have been organized by myself and/or other authors banding together. Usually the location was simply based on where my collaborative authors were located, such as the little mini-mystery tour I did in San Francisco.

I’ve also spent a lot of time traveling to conferences in different states and even in Canada in the last year or so because I was either receiving an award or because it seemed like a good venue at which to promote my books or network, or both. The first year, especially, I devoted a lot of time to these because, as a newbie, I was trying to meet other authors, editors, readers, agents and just trying to learn more about the industry in general.

Other times, I’ve chosen places because a bookstore or library reached out and invited me or because it was at the special request of friends, family, or fans asking me to come to a particular city. I usually go wherever I’m asked to go, especially book clubs! Hint, hint . . .

How many states have you been to?
Specifically related to the book, I’ve been to: Oregon, Washington, California, Arizona, Minnesota, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Canada. This year I’ll add Florida, Indiana and possibly New York.

Who is your audience at the events? Mystery readers or your fans or both?
My audience is usually a mix of both fans and mystery readers, though sometimes there are other writers in the crowd, too, who’ve come out to add support. And usually, depending on the event, there are people in the crowd who might be there to get advice about writing or publishing.

How did you promote the appearances?
Good question! I’ve tried many different methods as time has gone on. I used to create a Facebook event, but I’ve found that those don’t seem to be as effective. Also they’re a little annoying. I mean, I don’t like getting constant pop-ups on FB reminding me of events, so I assume others might feel the same way. I seem to have a better response by simply boosting a post from my author page and making sure I target people who live in the area I’m going to be traveling to.

I also put it up on the events tab of my website as well as my newsletter and twitter. Also, the bookstore that is hosting me usually does a little PR on their end, too. In some locations, I’ve also added the event to the online or print editions of the local newspaper or journal event calendars, but I’m not sure how effective that really is these days.

I do have a contract with a PR company, Booksparks, out of Arizona that I can turn to if I really need some help. Often times, especially with my first book, they reached out for me to various bookstores that I wanted to go to and made all the arrangements. I’m more than capable of doing that now on my own, but if there’s a bookstore that’s really hard to get into or there’s a special panel spot at a conference I really want, I might ask them to step in for me—they’ve got more clout than I do! Usually, though, I try to save my budget dollars with them for other things.

What is your favorite experience from these trips?
That’s a hard one! I think Bouchercon 2017 in Toronto was definitely a highlight because I got to personally meet and talk with so many of the mystery greats! – Rhys Bowen, Hallie Ephron, Hank Phillipi Ryan, Deborah Crombie, Louise Penny, Karen Robards, Charles Todd, Charles Finch, Simone St. James . . . the list goes on and on. That was a real treat, and I really learned so much.

A close runner up experience, though, was being interviewed on KPFA radio in Berkeley for Women's Magazine. We recorded in a very old art deco building, which was right up my alley, and it was a very fun, relaxed interview to do with Kate Jessica Raphael, who asked some great questions.

How did the tour impact your book sales?
Who knows? Since I don’t have access to my sales data, it’s hard to know what the long reach is for these types of events. I certainly don’t usually sell a lot at the events themselves, but bookstore owners have told me that they have residual sales long after the event. The best events in terms of sales are usually when I speak to a particular group, like the Nineteenth Century Club in Oak Park, Il. or when I did a panel event for the AAUW at the Budlong Woods Library in Chicago. Both of those events were very well attended by women who love to read and who like to buy books! A great combo!

What would you do differently?
I’m trying to get away from solo events. It’s really hard to get people to come out to any event at all these days. I myself have attended several bookstore or library events of some rather big-name mystery authors and was shocked to see such a small crowd even for them. It made me feel better, however, about some of my more lack-luster events. I really try to do panel events now, which can sometimes draw a bigger crowd, either at bookstores, libraries or conferences. Meanwhile my publicist is urging me to do more “live” events on FB and Twitter rather than bookstore appearances. That concept makes me a little nervous, but it might very well be in my future. We have to keep changing, I’m told. So, stay tuned!

Fatal Flip

Katelyn Baxter flips houses for a living or at least trying to make this a job. Unfortunately she finds a body hanging in the attic of her newest house in Fatal Flip by M.E. Bakos. Crocus Heights, Minnesota doesn't seem like the spot for murders, but Katelyn soon finds more than she expected.

While the police investigate, Katelyn's flip house is closed to repairs and she has to find a way to earn a temporary living. She decides to answer an ad for two jobs no one really wants and finds herself stopping people in the mall to survey the and also working as at a wine sample table. Mixed results on the jobs.

As she works, she thinks about why the body was in her house and how it could have been missed during the inspection. When a second body is discovered in another foreclosed home, Katelyn decides not to wait for the police to solve the case. She dives in.

She discovers a connection with her former employer, a large medical facility, and the victims.

That's sends her on the path to find who is causing her such distress. When another person dies, Katelyn realizes this is serious, but that doesn't stop her investigation to the chagrin of handsome, blue-eyed Sheriff Don Williams.

Complications ensue including an open house with bizarre visitors, the reappearance of Katelyn's ex-husband Eddy, a shady neighbor and the family of the victim.

After the antics in Fatal Flip, I am anxious to see how Katelyn gets herself into trouble again in the next book.

Interview with Alexia Gordon

What is the title of your newest book? 
My newest book, my third, is Killing in C Sharp, published by Henery Press in March 2018

How did you become interested in writing?
I’ve been interested in writing since childhood. As a kid, I made up stories in my head to entertain myself. Sometimes I wrote the stories down in books I made from notebook paper and scrap cardboard, complete with felt-tip pen illustrations.

How do you choose your location? Do you use real people and places as models for your books?
I chose Ireland because I’m a Hibernophile—I love Irish music and culture and language. I created a fictional village so that I could place buildings and roads and train stations where I needed them to be without worrying someone would correct the geography of a real place. I may base a character on a broad “type” of real person, or borrow part of a real person’s name, but I don’t base characters on specific real people.

Your character is very musical. Do you have music talent and how do you select the music

Gethsemane hears before there is trouble ahead?  
I have more talent as a music patron than as an actual musician. But, hey, someone has to buy tickets. I chose Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique” as Gethsemane’s internal warning system (which she usually ignores) after listening to several tracks on Spotify until I found one that “clicked”.

What is a day in the life of an author like? Do you write a certain number of words, do you write in the morning or evening, etc?
I have a full-time day job, so I write whenever and where ever I can, usually by hand because a notebook and pen are easier to whip out during a down moment than a laptop. There’s no set schedule. I have to make time to write, mostly on weekends and in the evenings.

Do you plot the entire book first, then write or plot as you go?
I’m a planster—I write a sketchy outline (that I may or may not stick to) to figure out things like who’s a victim and who’s the murderer and how do the murders occur, before I start writing the novel, but I figure out the dialog and other details as I go.

Who is your favorite author?
My favorite authors include Agatha Christie, Rex Stout, M.R. James, Lewis Carroll, and Edgar Allan Poe.

How do you promote your books?
I promote my books mainly on social media. Having a full-time day job means I can’t take extended periods of time off to go on book tours. I do attend as many conferences as my budget will allow. Speaking on panels is a great way to meet new readers.

A Killer Kebab

Georgie's divorce from her husband Spiro is nearly final and she is relieved to move on. In A Killer Kebab by Susannah Hardy, Georgie manages her mother-in-laws Greek restaurant in Bonaparte Bay, NY, on one of the Thousand Islands. During the winter, Georgie decides to make some renovations to Bonaparte House.

When she discovers the body of her divorce attorney in the under construction restroom with a shish kebab skewer in his back, she is sure she is cursed. In the past few months, she has stumbled on more corpses that she'd like and even the 9-1-1 operators recognize her voice.

Her life is complicated enough without another murder. Recently her mother who she had not seen for nearly 20 years turns up and Georgie leans about a "soon to expire trust" that could be worth millions. Unfortunately neither of these experiences will benefit Georgie.

Her mother is a pampered diva TV soap opera star and she refuses to discuss the trust. Of course

Georgie sets out to discover how many others are involved and also learns, she is not included. Jim McNamara, the body in the restroom, had been the administrator of the trust, but now after his death, some irregularities have been discovered.

It seems Georgie's mother, Melanie Ashley, and a recently discovered cousin Liza are the only heirs found so far to the Elihu Bloodworth lumber baron trust. They are both recovering from the flu at Liza's island spa. When the investigation into Jim McNamara's death and the assistance of her accountant friend, Georgie discovers the trust account has very little money in it and she wonders if their sudden illness might be prompted by something else.

A fast paced mystery set in the beautiful Thousand Islands area between the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario. There's even a mystery surrounding the invention of Thousand Island dressing and some great Greek recipes too.

The Trophy Wife Exchange

Bank manager Sandy Warner is stunned when one of her former customers enters the bank to close her account. In The Trophy Wife Exchange by Connie Shelton, it seems Mary Holbrook has fallen on hard times because of her divorce. When Sandy learns the depths of Mary's husband's deception, she enlists the Heist Ladies to assist Mary.

For over 20 years Mary and her husband Clint owned and operated a small kitchen-and-bath business, but one day left her, took all their money and hooked up with a new trophy wife. Sandy believes her friends can find enough of the money Clint secreted away in other accounts to have the divorce settlement reopened.

Once Penelope Fitzpatrick, Gracie Nelson and Amber Zeckis join forces with Sandy to discuss the situation with Mary, then Amber can use her magical computer skills to locate the accounts and justice can be done to help Mary.

One problem: it seems Clint has expanded his business and has deposited money in banks in China.

He and his local TV news personality second wife take off for China and the fun begins. With Pen's usual skill and maneuvering they are able uncover a sneaky shell game involving Clint and his money as well as his possible issues with the Chinese mob.

Clint leaves his wife at a spa and takes off to go on a fishing trip. When he is presumed dead after falling off the boat, Pen and the Heist Ladies fear all might be lost. This leads them to dig deeper and discover the real game plan.

Another terrific adventure with the Heist Ladies in the middle of stolen money and a scorned ex-wife. I want to be Penelope Fitzpatrick when I grow up.