by Sparkle Abbey
Today we welcome our friend and fellow Iowa author, Winter Austin! We have some questions for her but before we get started with those, Winter, please share with our readers a little bit about yourself.

I wear many hats; Author, Veteran’s Wife, NG-Army Mom, Awesomest Aunt Ever, Goat & Cattle Wrangler, Fluffy Velociraptor Herder, Dog Mom, and All-Around Butt-Kicker. I’m a long-time resident of the Midwest, mostly living in Iowa, with a decidedly strong lilt to Southern. I’m a self-taught sous chef and darn good customer service representative with a tight hold on my need to be sarcastic or blunt—it’s a struggle, let me tell you. My husband and myself both grew up farm kids, but the military consumed most of our married lives. We had four kids who are all in their twenties now and doing us proud. We’re now settled into the empty nester lifestyle, but I’m trying to drag my husband back into the farming life.
Thanks, Winter. And now to our questions…
What started you on your writing journey? Have you always wanted to write?
I’ve known from an early age I wanted to be an author. The book and author that cemented it was The Black Stallion by Walter Farley. When I read Farley’s bio and learned he was published in his early twenties, I wanted to do that. I couldn’t get published during my twenties, but my thirties saw it come to fruition. I wrote all the time, nonsense stories, a full western by hand in pencil, and a lot of fan fiction. I leaned toward mystery and suspense in my stories. After the birth of my twins, I got serious about being published. Spent many years learning the craft, how to create plot and conflict, and eventually had to learn how to balance suspense with romance—something I was never very strong at writing but managed to pull off. It’s been nearly 12 years since my very first book was published, and now I’m crafting some long desired storylines.
What types of books do you write? And why did you choose that genre or sub-genre?
I’m writing in the mystery/suspense genres in the sub-genres of police procedurals/crime fiction.
These genres have been my schtick for decades, going back to my first story that landed me a coveted spot to go a young writer’s conference in fourth grade—a mystery. I do think I can blame my parents for always having some crime/cop/mystery show on while I was growing up that fed into my wild imagination and stories.
What’s your favorite part of writing?
Creating the characters. I love making people so opposite of myself. I do find I layer in my favorite personalities and characteristics of some of my closest friends and family members into secondary characters in my books, but I always make my female leads women I sometimes wish I could be.
And what’s your least favorite part?
The actual writing, especially on days when I just don’t want to write. I love writing, I love the whole process, but when the words and the ideas just refuse to come, it makes me wonder why I ever thought this was a good idea.
How much planning do you do before you start a book?
My process would drive the majority of writers and authors crazy. They claim there are no true pantsers, but I beg to differ, I’m the shining star of a true pantser. I start with the germ of an idea, but it’s so riddled with holes, I don’t know if it’ll ever work. In the last 6 books I’ve written, I have had no clue who the actual antagonist is and what their motivations for committing their despicable acts. Then comes the agony of getting the opening scene down, the inciting incident to propel the story forward. After that, it’s a free-for-all, no kidding.
Where do your very best ideas come from?
The shower or driving. No kidding. The very places I can’t use a computer to get the scenes and dialogues down, but where the best ideas come. Sometimes I’ll take a break from whatever I’m in the middle of and catch a nap. There have been times where I’ve come awake and realized how things tie in, or why something in a scene I just wrote gave me the final piece of the puzzle I’ve been scratching my head to figure out.
But the plot ideas tend to come from real life events. I just have to find a way to put my own spin on them.
What part of writing is the most difficult for you? Characters? Conflict? Emotion? Something else…?
Action scenes. No kidding. I always have to rewrite those scenes 3 to 4 times before I get them just right. The actions of the characters and the reactions to situations have to make sense and have to work right. I don’t think I’ve written a novel yet without a fight scene or a gun battle of some kind. If I shoot or injure my main characters, I must make sure it’s not something that in real life would actually be fatal, and that’s hard. You can only get away with shooting your MC in the fleshy part of their leg before it gets old.
What’s next for you? Tell us about your next book and when it will be out.
I’m finishing up the first and roughest draft for the first book in my newest suspense series. My publisher and I finalized a title and series title recently and The Stiletto Gang readers get the honor of being the first to know. The series will be called A Bounty of Shadows. Book 1 is Ride a Dark Trail. I get to play around in a modern take on an Old West style of story with my ever-present strong female lead. This book is set to release August of 2025 and I can’t wait. Neither can my editor. When I pitched her the idea of a female bounty hunter she jumped all over it. It took us a bit before we nailed down a story idea that my publisher Tule liked and here we are. Beta readers are already singing praises and they’re getting the worst draft ever on it.
That sounds awesome! Can’t wait to read it. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your story with us and the Stiletto Gang readers.

Here’s Winter’s most recent release A Requiem for the Dead, a Benoit and Dayne Mystery.
And readers if you want to know more about Winter and her books, please visit her website: Author Winter Austin
You can also find her on social media in these spots:
Facebook
Instagram
BookBub
Goodreads
Last Post by Dru Ann
/in Uncategorized/by Dru Ann LoveMy last blog post and I want to wish everyone Happy Holidays! Happy New Year! and I wish you a prosperous and successful 2025.
Dru Ann Love
dru’s book musings
I found joy – as a jellyfish (and other aquatic animals)
/in life, Uncategorized/by donalee MoultonThere were several occasions in the last three decades when I took a yoga class, four by my latest count. Nothing stuck for more than 60 minutes. Now I’m on the mat (as we, ahem, like to say) four or five times a week.
Not sure what happened between decades three and four, but here I am today in my 60s actively seeking out a yoga flow class, searching YouTube for restorative practice and talking retreats with new-found friends. I have blocks, straps, pillows, bolsters, blankets and mats in many colours, designs and grips. I even have a plastic frog in full lotus. Truth is, I have a yoga room.
I’m not an exercise person. I have never had the desire to scale mountains, ski down or hike mountainous terrain. I’m equally averse to water aerobics: surfing, paddling, polo. Give it all the cool names you want – finswimming, aquajogging, wakeskating – and I’m staying on terra firma.
Fact is, I’d rather have an enema than exercise.
Actually, that was the old me. The new me would rather do a downward dog.
I’m not sure which came first – not being good at sports or not being interested in sports. They are indelibly intertwined, like chicken and egg or the yoga pose eagle arms and legs (which I can do).
Regardless, here I am, sports unenthusiast. I want to be healthy. What I’ve never wanted is to work at being healthy because it’s boring and hard (so I had come to believe). Yet, periodically I would propel myself to some gym, some piece of equipment, or even some yoga mat to get my body in shape.
In the case of yoga, that lasted for a full 240 minutes over 30 years. (In the case of lifting weights, running on the treadmill, aquacise, the number is much, much lower.)
The turning point in my yoga journey, it turned out, was around the corner from where I live. An instructor started renting studio space in a new building, and my aunt and I decided to give it a try. We liked it. We really liked it.
I’m not sure why. It may be the variety of poses we learned, that each class was new and different, that we got to know participants. But I had all that before. The reason, I discovered, is not important. The reality is.
At some point, actually several points, my body responded in ways it never had before. My feet touched the mat, both of them, when I did a downward dog; my hands (both of them) held each other doing a bound side angle.
I also noticed a marked improvement in my knee. My doctor had diagnosed a tear in my meniscus and wished me well. When I couldn’t complete a yoga pose because of it, an instructor recommended putting something like a sock between my knee and my bent leg. It worked. As I spent more time on the mat, I used the sock less and less. Today, I get no complaints from my knee, and use socks only to cover my feet.
It wasn’t only my knee that got better. My strength, my balance and my flexibility improved.
Perspective changes on the mat. There is a common yoga pose called child’s pose. You put thighs on calves, buttocks on heels, and fold yourself into a ball. It’s supposed to be a resting position, one you come to after other poses have offended your body in ways you didn’t know existed. For most of us, child’s pose is, at first, the farthest thing from a rest primarily because there is a wide gap between our bottom and our heels. Most of us accommodate, as yoga teaches us. We shove bolsters, blankets and blocks under our rear to close the gap. Still a faint wisp of failure lingers.
I’m in an extended child’s pose during one class and realize I’m enjoying this fetal shape. I am relaxed, breathing deeply, and feeling something new: contentment. I tried to figure out what had shifted and realized, in part, the answer was physical. My rear end was not pointed heavenward; it was nestled on my feet. I was a ball without the need of a bolster.
There are those poses that continue to confound. My legs refuse to rearrange themselves into a lotus, although they are inching closer. Crow pose eludes me. Both feet refuse to come off the floor, but one will, so I’m making progress. And there are those poses I have yet to attempt. Their names will tell you why: formidable face pose, handstand scorpion, destroyer of the universe.
Overall, however, I find a sense of peace and contentment in many poses and in my practice. Indeed, I find more than this. Yoga has taught me that practice is about more than positioning the body. It is about body, mind and spirit. It is about connecting with yourself. It is about finding balance. It is about going to the edge, but not over the cliff. It is about acknowledging growth and recognizing limitations. It is about joy. The joy that comes from sitting on a mat with your heels stuffed into your bottom and your heart soaring.
Ultimately yoga has taught me patience and acceptance. The fundamental reality of any practice is this: yoga teachers cannot count. They put you in a pose, say warrior II, then they suggest you place your right shoulder against your inner thigh while extending your left arm toward the ceiling, bending your elbow, bringing your left arm behind you, and clasping your right hand. It’s like scrubbing the floor while looking at mold on the ceiling.
I can actually do this. And I can hear my yoga instructor saying, “Hold for three breaths,” just before launching into a tale about their morning drive to work. Three minutes later – not three breaths – we unbind and unbend. All yoga teachers are trained to do this.
When instructors tell you to hold for five breaths – a lifetime when your hips are squared, your shoulders flexed, and your legs interwoven – they are lying. Admittedly, they are well intended. Some even come with timers, beacons of false hope.
In the end, it doesn’t matter. I am on the mat, moving in sync with my breath, finding my body moving with me (or against me) and I’m okay with that. I have learned the challenging poses – lizard, dolphin, fish – are friends. We meet here on this rectangular piece of vinyl, and I take pieces of them with me when I roll up my mat, put away my straps and head out the door.
The joy of having been for a time an aquatic animal infuses and informs. It is so much more than legs splayed, ankles nestled, arms extended. And holding for five delicious breaths.
Ish.
A Few Favorite Books by Saralyn Richard
/in Uncategorized/by Saralyn RichardI’m often asked about favorite books, and I consider that an unfair question for someone who reads as much as I do. Practically every book I read is my favorite when I’m immersed in its world, identifying with its characters. I truly have hundreds of favorite books that have touched me at different times in my life.
I love to read various “year’s best books” lists, and I’m delighted when one of mine makes someone’s list. Thanks to Hungry for Good Books, MURDER OUTSIDE THE BOX, is one of the top mysteries of 2024. I’m honored and thrilled.
And if you’re like me, the most fun post-holiday chill-event is reading great books. Here are a few of the MANY books I’ve enjoyed and recommend at this time of year.
I would start with A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. I love all of Irving’s novels and all 54.0his quirky characters, but I could read this book over and over again and find new bits of cleverness each time. Beneath Irving’s sometimes preposterous plot events lie an impressive bedrock of commentary about the absurdity of life and the relationships that make it all worthwhile.
The second book I would choose is Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. Verghese was a protegee of John Irving, and this book, while telling an amazing story of its own, can be read as a tribute to Irving’s body of work. Indeed, there are nods to Irving throughout that bring knowing smiles to those of us who catch them.
Next, I would re-read The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. Kingsolver manages writing in multiple points of view more skillfully than any other writer I can think of. The family of a missionary in Africa during turbulent political times experiences many physical and emotional hardships and deprivations. We see these through different lenses, so the resulting picture is much like that of a kaleidoscope, sometimes beautiful, sometimes horrifying, but always changing.
Finally, I would read William Kent Krueger’s Ordinary Grace. This book nails it all. It’s a compelling mystery that unfolds itself with extraordinary wisdom at every turn. Its characters and the situations they are in are hauntingly familiar and yet fresh and fascinating.
However you’re celebrating and whatever you’re reading this season, I’m sending my very best wishes to you and yours.
Looking Back and Peering Forward
/in Author Life, Inspiration, Paula Gail Benson/by Paula Bensonby Paula Gail Benson
As I reach the end of this year, I take stock of the many changes that have taken place in my life. I’ve mourned the loss of family and friends. I thanked our Pastor for including an extra candle at our All Saints’ Day commemoration to recognize those who were not members of our congregation but who were remembered in our hearts.
I’ve experienced change in my work, in the lives of my family and friends, and in the organizations to which I belong. As things develop, they bring challenges. Just as we figure out how to cope, we often see the circle coming around so that something from the past returns to sustain us.
For me, that happened this year when I reconnected with former classmates at a high school reunion. A few of us stayed late and gathered on a porch away from the music and crowd, so we could spend time talking and catch up with each other. We found we were still the people we remembered ourselves to be, and that was very comforting.
I remain grateful, when confronted with future uncertainty, that I can still rely on the past to give me hope. I am grateful that even with losses, I can celebrate discoveries.
My high school friends and I have been able to get together since our reunion. We plan to continue to do so. I look forward to our remaining close and having many new adventures.
At this time for reflection, I hope your moments of rejoicing may outweigh those of sadness and regret. May you find yourself looking forward to happiness.
Wishing you all the best of holiday seasons.
Calling All Black Utensils – Or Else!
/in Uncategorized/by DebraDo you have any black plastic spatulas, spoons, or ladles lurking in your kitchen? New research shows that they may cause cancer, hormone and thyroid problems, neurobehavioral and development problems in children, and interference with reproductive and immune systems. The causation factor is the possibility for toxic flame retardants (decabromodiphenyl ether – decaBDE) to contaminate your food when you cook with them. Consequently, the scientific conclusion is that you should throw all of them out.
Most of the spatulas, spoons, and ladles in my kitchen drawers were the dangerous black kind. One friend said that because of the way I function in a kitchen –I only occasionally used a few and some never, I didn’t have to worry. Still, I threw my darling spatulas, spoons, and ladles out.
Why?
Better to be safe than sorry.
Sometimes, the same thing holds true in writing. Often extra words contaminate our thoughts as we transfer them to paper or the computer screen. If our work in progress is to be safe and healthy, we must, no matter how much we like them, prune the words. It isn’t easy, but it is a matter of necessity for the successful survival of the piece we are writing.
Have you thrown out your black plastic kitchen utensils? If you are a reader, have you found pieces that are perched precariously because of an overabundance of “bad” words? If an author, can you make the necessary cuts for the health of your writing? Or, in all cases, will you be overcome by the harmful substance you cannot see?
2025 is Coming!
/in Author Life, author promotion, humor, Ideas, Mysteries, Romance, Romantic Suspense/by Bethany Maines2025 is coming for me!
And I am not ready. I’m not ready for Christmas, I barely made it through Thanksgiving and New Year’s is barreling down on me like a freight train. In 2025, I’m trying something new as an author—a release schedule that doesn’t sync up with my work conference season, and a “long” quick release schedule. In romance publishing it’s not uncommon to see authors releasing books in a series mere weeks or a month apart. But I tried that in 2022 and I think I’m still recovering.
In 2025 I’m planning on releasing a complete trilogy, but I plan on doing them three months apart — March, June, and September. This will off-set them from peak seasons at work and also give me a little breathing space, while hopefully keeping readers engaged. But that means that I’m setting up a lot of marketing now in 2024. And if I’m putting my time toward one thing then I’m taking time from somewhere else.
So what should you be doing – if not preparing for 2025?
Christmas shopping! I don’t even have proper list or a spreadsheet! I’m just randomly buying crap and hoping that I’m getting closer to wrapping.
Upon reviewing those last few sentences, I have come to the conclusion that I might be a giant nerd. Does anyone else have a shopping spreadsheet? Just me? OK, well, if you do… nerds unite! You are my people.
But I haven’t even put up a tree. The stockings are up, so we’re not totally without Christmas, but still… The days are ticking by too fast! Although, I can’t tell for sure if that’s true since we didn’t get an advent calendar either. How can I really tell how close we are to Christmas without small amounts of chocolate being continually fed to me?
Meanwhile, I feel like I’m ADHD as I try to wrap up all my writing goals for the end of the year. There’s all the marketing I need to do, a contest I want to submit to that means I have some pages that need polishing, a novel that needs polishing and a paranormal romance that is begging to be written. And every time I work on one I feel guilty that I’m not working on the others.
How am I supposed to get enough family time, let alone Christmas cookies, into my December with that many projects? If you’ve got time saving tips or great gift ideas–I’m all ears.
But what I hear you saying is that there is a new series coming?
Yes. There is! The Valkyrie Brother’s Trilogy! Half rom-com, half mystery and all fun. The series features three brothers navigating reuniting their family, fighting off bad guys, and coincidentally meeting their true loves in elevators all across town. Book 1 – Elevator Ride – will be released in March of 2025 and is currently available for pre-order. If you want to learn more, it was recently featured over at Dru’s Book Musing Blog! And while you’re over there check out Dru’s fabulous reviews and other content.
Learn more about Elevator Ride: https://drusbookmusing.com/cover-reveal-elevator-ride/
Pre-order: https://amzn.to/3AnaMLQ
**
See a few of her books on the Our Books page: https://www.thestilettogang.com/books/
Follow her at: www.bethanymaines.com * Facebook * Instagram
Life’s Little Instructions
/in Author Life, Book Clubs, humor, Mysteries, Mystery Series, New Years Resolutions, Romantic Suspense, Samantha Newman Romantic Mystery series/by Gay YellenAs we complete another rotation around our sun, some of us like to make resolutions for things we’d like to accomplish in the coming year. There are lots of lists out there to guide us: new diets to try and exercise regimens to tackle. New books to read and buckets of travel options to consider.
Or, perhaps we just want to work at developing a new and improved version of ourselves.
The list of 95-year-old William Snell that has been circulating across social media lately seems about right, although I wonder if he meant to number them in order of their importance. At times, his suggestions feel like sly digs at people who make such lists in the first place.
After all, while singing in the shower can truly be a mood enhancing exercise, should it really be first on the list—and followed closely by the caution to never turn down a homemade brownie?
I also ponder his #18 admonishment. Of course, at the Gang, we work to keep our stilettos (and our prose) well-polished. But maintaining shiny shoes in winter can be a challenge for those in northern climes. And in summertime, do we really need to shine our flip-flops?
I’m not exactly sure what Mr. Snell intended with #38. Life as an exclamation? Unfortunately, we can’t ask him about it. A Google search turned up no information beyond what’s on this weathered document, or exactly when the list was first written. But I hope he had a good life.
Still, if you’re looking for a few suggestions on how to live a pleasant life in 2025 and beyond, most of these tips might provide a good starting place. Especially #37.
Cheers!
Which “little instruction” would you take to heart for 2025?
Feel free to list your own tips in the Comments section below!
Gay Yellen is the author of the award-winning Samantha Newman Mysteries *
The Body Business***The Body Next Door***The Body in the News!***
Seasonal Mood Disorder
/in Donnell Ann Bell, Anthologies, Mysteries, Short Stories, Stress relief, The Stiletto Gang/by Donnell Ann BellBy: Donnell Ann Bell
Yesterday, I stared out my great room windows to be greeted with darkness—at five p.m. I was still standing upright, hadn’t made dinner yet, and was beginning to yawn.
Somehow, I created a nice chef salad dinner, finished my friend Author Barbara Nickless’s, The Drowning Game, which is excellent, by the way, and did my physical
therapy exercises. After that, my husband and I played cards and watched a half hour of television.
I did all this because if I went to bed at seven p.m. I would be up at two a.m. So, I worked hard to make it till nine p.m. And despite my best efforts awoke at midnight.
According to Wikipedia, Seasonal Mood Disorder (paraphrasing) affects typically “normal” people with seasonal depression symptoms associated with the reduction and/or decrease in total daily sunlight.
The article also says the following symptoms accompany SAD.
I think it’s ironic that during the busiest time of year, e.g. holiday shopping, Christmas cards, newsletters, parties, travel, in addition to writing a book, my body is telling me to slow down.
I refuse to give in. To combat SAD, I am:
Source: Pixabay Photo by Jonathan Stoklas
If I were smart, I’d give up caffeine, but, hey, I’m only human.
The winter solstice, e.g. the shortest day of the year, is December 21 or 22 and occurs when either of the Earth ‘s poles reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun. (Again Source: Wikipedia).
It could be worse; I could be a bear. Did you know bears hibernate from October, November until April—or when the snow melts?
I think there’s something to SAD. On December 26th, I feel better? How about you? How’s your energy level during December?
Special Guest: Winter Austin
/in Author Life, Guest Blogger, Interview, Mysteries, Suspense/by Mary Lee Ashfordby Sparkle Abbey
Today we welcome our friend and fellow Iowa author, Winter Austin! We have some questions for her but before we get started with those, Winter, please share with our readers a little bit about yourself.
I wear many hats; Author, Veteran’s Wife, NG-Army Mom, Awesomest Aunt Ever, Goat & Cattle Wrangler, Fluffy Velociraptor Herder, Dog Mom, and All-Around Butt-Kicker. I’m a long-time resident of the Midwest, mostly living in Iowa, with a decidedly strong lilt to Southern. I’m a self-taught sous chef and darn good customer service representative with a tight hold on my need to be sarcastic or blunt—it’s a struggle, let me tell you. My husband and myself both grew up farm kids, but the military consumed most of our married lives. We had four kids who are all in their twenties now and doing us proud. We’re now settled into the empty nester lifestyle, but I’m trying to drag my husband back into the farming life.
Thanks, Winter. And now to our questions…
What started you on your writing journey? Have you always wanted to write?
I’ve known from an early age I wanted to be an author. The book and author that cemented it was The Black Stallion by Walter Farley. When I read Farley’s bio and learned he was published in his early twenties, I wanted to do that. I couldn’t get published during my twenties, but my thirties saw it come to fruition. I wrote all the time, nonsense stories, a full western by hand in pencil, and a lot of fan fiction. I leaned toward mystery and suspense in my stories. After the birth of my twins, I got serious about being published. Spent many years learning the craft, how to create plot and conflict, and eventually had to learn how to balance suspense with romance—something I was never very strong at writing but managed to pull off. It’s been nearly 12 years since my very first book was published, and now I’m crafting some long desired storylines.
What types of books do you write? And why did you choose that genre or sub-genre?
I’m writing in the mystery/suspense genres in the sub-genres of police procedurals/crime fiction.
These genres have been my schtick for decades, going back to my first story that landed me a coveted spot to go a young writer’s conference in fourth grade—a mystery. I do think I can blame my parents for always having some crime/cop/mystery show on while I was growing up that fed into my wild imagination and stories.
What’s your favorite part of writing?
Creating the characters. I love making people so opposite of myself. I do find I layer in my favorite personalities and characteristics of some of my closest friends and family members into secondary characters in my books, but I always make my female leads women I sometimes wish I could be.
And what’s your least favorite part?
The actual writing, especially on days when I just don’t want to write. I love writing, I love the whole process, but when the words and the ideas just refuse to come, it makes me wonder why I ever thought this was a good idea.
How much planning do you do before you start a book?
My process would drive the majority of writers and authors crazy. They claim there are no true pantsers, but I beg to differ, I’m the shining star of a true pantser. I start with the germ of an idea, but it’s so riddled with holes, I don’t know if it’ll ever work. In the last 6 books I’ve written, I have had no clue who the actual antagonist is and what their motivations for committing their despicable acts. Then comes the agony of getting the opening scene down, the inciting incident to propel the story forward. After that, it’s a free-for-all, no kidding.
Where do your very best ideas come from?
The shower or driving. No kidding. The very places I can’t use a computer to get the scenes and dialogues down, but where the best ideas come. Sometimes I’ll take a break from whatever I’m in the middle of and catch a nap. There have been times where I’ve come awake and realized how things tie in, or why something in a scene I just wrote gave me the final piece of the puzzle I’ve been scratching my head to figure out.
But the plot ideas tend to come from real life events. I just have to find a way to put my own spin on them.
What part of writing is the most difficult for you? Characters? Conflict? Emotion? Something else…?
Action scenes. No kidding. I always have to rewrite those scenes 3 to 4 times before I get them just right. The actions of the characters and the reactions to situations have to make sense and have to work right. I don’t think I’ve written a novel yet without a fight scene or a gun battle of some kind. If I shoot or injure my main characters, I must make sure it’s not something that in real life would actually be fatal, and that’s hard. You can only get away with shooting your MC in the fleshy part of their leg before it gets old.
What’s next for you? Tell us about your next book and when it will be out.
I’m finishing up the first and roughest draft for the first book in my newest suspense series. My publisher and I finalized a title and series title recently and The Stiletto Gang readers get the honor of being the first to know. The series will be called A Bounty of Shadows. Book 1 is Ride a Dark Trail. I get to play around in a modern take on an Old West style of story with my ever-present strong female lead. This book is set to release August of 2025 and I can’t wait. Neither can my editor. When I pitched her the idea of a female bounty hunter she jumped all over it. It took us a bit before we nailed down a story idea that my publisher Tule liked and here we are. Beta readers are already singing praises and they’re getting the worst draft ever on it.
That sounds awesome! Can’t wait to read it. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your story with us and the Stiletto Gang readers.
Here’s Winter’s most recent release A Requiem for the Dead, a Benoit and Dayne Mystery.
And readers if you want to know more about Winter and her books, please visit her website: Author Winter Austin
You can also find her on social media in these spots:
Facebook
Instagram
BookBub
Goodreads
Clicking Our Heels – Family Stress Points and the Holidays
/in Christmas, Holiday Gifts, Kwanza, Valentine's Day/by DebraAlthough we could talk about the wonderful aspects of the holiday season, we thought it would be fun to discuss what families often sweep under the rug – whether there are stress points that may become a flashpoint during the holiday season.
Mary Lee Ashford – We’ve worked really hard to not have family stress points during the holidays. After years of rushing about and stressing over food and gifts, we now just stay low-key and flexible. It makes it easier on everyone – I hope.
Bethany Maines – In my immediate family, not so much. But holidays during COVID forced some flashpoints within my extended family.
Debra Sennefelder – Yes. Deep breaths and daily (yes, daily) reminders that it’s only temporary.
Donalee Moulton – Fortunately, we have a holiday rhythm that is fluid and meets our needs individually and collectively. We all pitch in, we all come together, we all do our own thing. We laugh.
Anita Carter – Not very often.
Donnell Ann Bell – I am blessed with grown children who are extremely considerate and even-keeled. Outside interference has certainly turned into flashpoints that add stress. By the time this runs, I hope I can report all is resolved.
Gay Yellen – Our holidays are generally pretty serene. Since we don’t see family often, it’s always fun to catch up with what everyone’s doing.
Debra H. Goldstein – Getting together is wonderful. Our problem is trying to balance everything in terms of timing – whether it be necessary naps, squeezing in visits with non-family friends, figuring out when we want to sit down for meals, or things that come up that nobody anticipated. In the end, it all works out.
Lois Winston – Depends on the family members. It used to be really bad when my mother-in-law was still alive. We never got along. I got even, though. She’s the model for Anastasia’s communist mother-in-law in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries. And yes, my mother-in-law was really a communist.
T.K. Thorne – I go into the holidays with the mindset of building treasured memories and relationships. That is a buffer for conflicts. …And I try to sneak in a bit of alone time. 🙂
Dru Ann Love – No.
Barbara J. Eikmeier – I need to bite my tongue or remove myself from the situation or I might say something that unintentionally hurts someone’s feelings.