Landscape for Murder by Joyce T.Strand 10 Day Virtual Book Blog Tour! @Joycestrand

About Landscape for Murder

A friend’s murder. An unconnected cast of suspects, including the victim’s missing adult daughter. As if that wasn’t enough, Brynn Bancroft’s winery has been broken into. Can she deal with her co-owner ex and help the police find her friend’s murder so she can finally overcome her own troubled past and enjoy family life with her teenage ward?

About Joyce Strand:

Mystery author Joyce T. Strand, much like her fictional character, Jillian Hillcrest, served as head of corporate communications at several biotech and high-tech companies in Silicon Valley for more than 25 years. Unlike Jillian, however, she did not encounter murder. Rather, she focused on publicizing her companies and their products. She is the author of the Jillian Hillcrest mysteries ON MESSAGE, OPEN MEETINGS, and FAIR DISCLOSURE and the Brynn Bancroft mystery HILLTOP SUNSET. Strand received her Ph.D. from The George Washington University, Washington, D.C. and her B.A. from Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA. She currently lives in Southern California with her two cats, a collection of cow statuary and art, and her muse, the roadrunner.

Social Links:

Webpage:        http://joycestrand.com

Blog:                Http://strandssimplytips.blogspot.com

Facebook:        http://www.facebook.com/JoyceTStrandAuthor

Goodreads:      http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5385246.Joyce_T_Strand

Twitter:           @joycetstrand

A Day in the Life of a Mystery Author

Joyce T. Strand

“Good morning, Floyd. Good morning, Brown.”

Two pairs of threatening cat eyes stare at me as I try to get just a few more minutes of sleep. Too late. If I don’t feed them, they will simply start their morning routine of walking over me until I relent. And the small 8-lb brown one isn’t so bad but the 15-lb Tabby can cause some damage.

Besides, today was a writing day – I’d committed to writing 5,000 words. So I begrudgingly rose, fed them, and started the coffee.

I settled into my writing chair, pulling my lap top close by. Oh, look, 170 e-mails. There might be something important.

My oatmeal is ready.

No more e-mails? I’d better check Facebook. I posted the cover of my newest book the previous day. Did anyone LIKE it?

And  I should review the traffic to my blog.

Oh ,I  better check to see if I sold any books since last night.  And there’s some more e-mail.

OK, now let’s see. Where was I in my book? Oh, yes, good for me. I left a plotted scene unfinished to help me get into the writing.  

Terrific-it took me 1,000 words to finish that scene.

Uh oh. One of my characters is not happy with how I wrote her out of that scene. But I’m going to ignore her for now.

However, that gives me a great idea for another scene.  I know what the end of the book will be, but I need a few red herrings along the way that will promote the mystery and give the reader some thought-provoking misleading clues. They love them. If it’s too easy to solve, they lose interest.

Is it time for lunch?

Oh. Look. I just got some e-mail. I better check it.

Yep, it’s a good thing I checked. I need to send a Mobi version of a previous book to a reviewer.—always a welcome interruption!

My cell phone chirped.  The owner of my local book store was calling.  We discussed logistics for an upcoming book signing event at the store.

I eagerly returned to my writing.

It was almost time for lunch and I had only written 1,000 of the 5,000 words . No lunch until I’d written another 1,500. I’ll continue with the idea from the previous scene that my character suggested.

Time for a late lunch. But I’ve actually written a total of 2,500 words. Whew! Quick lunch, no more Facebook. But I’d better check my e-mails. You never know!

Amazon is out of books and needs me to send more. I acknowledge the request. Oh, and the printer of my latest book wants to know how many advance copies of the printed books they should ship. And I still owe an interview to a blogger who is featuring me.

But first I MUST write an additional 2,500 words.

Is the day of this writer almost complete? Hardly, but you get the idea!

Where to Purchase:

Landscape for Murder  Kindle Editions – November 5, 2015  

Amazon

Giveaway:

1^st Prize: Kindle Fire 7” WiFi 8GB Black plus ebook or paperback copy of Landscape for Murder

2^nd Prize: $25 Amazon Gift Card and ebook or paperback copy of Landscape for Murder

3^rd Prize: ebook or paperback copy of Landscape for Murder

a Rafflecopter giveaway