Tag Archive for: Judy Penz Sheluk

When One Thing Leads to Another by Judy Penz Sheluk

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I’m delighted to welcome Judy Penz Sheluk as my guest to talk about her new release: Finding Your Path to Publication: A Step-by-Step Guide. Because I’ve loved her two fiction series: The Glass Dolphin mysteries and the Marketville mysteries, I know this will be a valuable non-fiction tool for writers. See you next month!  —Debra H. Goldstein

When One Thing Leads to Another by Judy Penz Sheluk

I’m new at this. Oh, I don’t mean I’m new to blogging. I’ve been writing a blog for my own website for years, and I was a Stiletto Gang member for a time until life got in the way (thankfully, they invite me back every now and again, for which I am grateful).

I don’t even mean that I’m new to shameless self-promotion, though it never seems to get any easier (I can always hear my mother saying, “never forget where you came from,” “where” in our world being a very humble place).

What I do mean is that I’m not used to blogging about a how-to book. It’s not like I can be cutesy and write this from a character’s point of view or get all authorly and talk about the narrative arc. Hmmm…maybe I can talk about how one thing led to another.

Okay, that’s settled. It all started when I led a NaNoWriMo debriefing in November 2021 at my then-local library. I’ve attempted NaNoWriMo a few times but have never yet completed the 50,000-words-in-a-month challenge. The librarian thought that made me more accessible. I’d tried and “failed,” and yet I was a published author.

What I learned from that event was that the attendees were more interested in how-to get published and publishing options than whether I (or anyone else) had succeeded at NaNoWriMo. That led to the librarian asking if I might be willing to prepare a presentation on the topic. I remembered how much I’d learned since signing my first book contract in 2014, and not all those lessons came easy. In fact, some of them were downright painful.

The presentation—Paving Your Path to Publication—had record attendance, with more questions than time to respond. It also gave me an idea. What if I wrote a book based on it? I’m a total pantser when it comes to writing mystery fiction, but here, at least, I’d have an outline.

After months of research (I knew virtually nothing about social publishing platforms like Wattpad or Hybrid/Assisted publishers, and was surprised at how much I still had to learn about traditional and self-publishing platforms) and vetting every chapter with my front-line editor (also an aspiring author from a very different generation than mine), the result is Finding Your Path to Publication: A Step-by-Step Guide, which released on May 2 in trade paperback, large print, hardcover, and e-book. It’s the sort of book I wish I’d had back when I was starting out, but then again, I wouldn’t be where I am today without experiencing the highs and low of my journey as an author.

After all, one thing almost always leads to another. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Readers: Have you experienced “one thing leading to another” in your life? If so, how’d that work out for you?

 

About Finding Your Path to Publication: The road to publishing is paved with good intentions…and horror stories of authors who had to learn the hard way.

For the emerging author, the publishing world can be overwhelming. You’ve written the book, and you’re ready to share it with the world, but don’t know where to start. Traditional, independent press, hybrid, self-publishing, and online social platforms—all are valid publishing paths. The question is, which one is right for you?

Finding Your Path to Publication is an introduction to an industry that remains a mystery to those on the outside. Learn how each publishing option works, what to expect from the process start to finish, how to identify red flags, and avoid common pitfalls. With statistics, examples, and helpful resources compiled by an industry insider who’s been down a few of these paths, this is your roadmap to decide which path you’d like to explore, and where to begin your author journey.

Available in trade paperback, large print, hardcover, and e-book. Universal buy link: https://books2read.com/FindingYourPathtoPublication

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A former journalist and magazine editor, Judy Penz Sheluk is the bestselling author of two mystery series: The Glass Dolphin Mysteries and Marketville Mysteries, both of which have been published in multiple languages. Her short crime fiction appears in several collections, including the Superior Shores Anthologies, which she also edited. Judy is a member of the Independent Book Publishers Association, Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she served on the Board of Directors for five years, the final two as Chair. She lives in Northern Ontario. Find her at www.judypenzsheluk.com.

 

Creating (and Eliminating) Secondary Characters by Judy Penz Sheluk

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Delighted to welcome Judy Penz Sheluk as my guest this month. The characters in her books are always so realistic and fun that I was thrilled she picked them to talk about. Enjoy! – Debra

Creating (and Eliminating) Secondary Characters by Judy Penz Sheluk

Several years back I had the pleasure of attending an event that featured Giles Blunt, author of the much-lauded Detective John Cardinal mystery series (if you haven’t read him, or watched the TV series, Cardinal, based on his novels, you must). At one point in the evening, an audience member asked Blunt why he’d killed off Cardinal’s wife, Catherine, in By the Time You Read This, the fourth book in the series. Blunt had laughed and then said, “Truthfully, I got tired of writing about her.”

Maybe it’s “fourth book syndrome,” but I felt the same way about the cast of secondary characters I’d created for my Marketville Mystery protagonist, Calamity (Callie) Barnstable as I started to write Before There Were Skeletons.

If you’re not familiar with them, they included: Misty Rivers, a self-proclaimed psychic; Chantelle Marchand, Callie’s best friend, also a personal trainer and budding genealogist; and Shirley Harrington, an archives librarian. All three of them served important roles (with varying degrees of involvement) in the first three books, but with the last book (A Fool’s Journey) released in 2019, it just seemed to me that by 2022 their lives would have changed.

Of course, I didn’t ditch them without a mention—that would be unfair to the characters, as well as to followers of the series—and unlike Blunt, I wasn’t ready to kill them off. After all, I might want to bring one or more of them back some day. And so, I gave Misty a very small, but important role, allowed a glimpse into Chantelle’s new life, and retired Shirley (literally), sending her to winter in Florida (hey, she’s Canadian and snowbirds love Florida).

Dispatching those characters felt liberating, but it also left me with a hole to be filled. Enter a tech-savvy twenty-four-year-old woman currently employed as a waitress at her stepbrother’s diner, Eggstravaganza, and, thanks to an ex-boyfriend who drained their joint bank account, is also living in an apartment above the diner.

What this new character lacks in investigative experience will be made up for in her enthusiasm to learn from Callie while doing boring grunt work, like digging through newspaper archives. This works well in two ways: it frees Callie up to tackle more interesting avenues, and since the story is told from Callie’s point of view, I can also spare readers the tedium of the archival research.

In addition to creating a past and a present for my new character, however, I also needed to come up with a name. I had the last name, Hopkins (in homage to a late friend), but hadn’t quite come up with a first name. And then, while reading the closing credits of Yellowstone, I spotted the name Denim Richards (a fabulous actor who portrays ranch hand Colby Mayfield).

Denim Hopkins, I thought. No reason Denim couldn’t be female. In fact, it was perfect. And her half-brother, the one who owns the diner? Levi, of course. As Denim explains to Callie, “I guess you could say my mama liked the blues.”

Early readers of Before There Were Skeletons seem to like Denim, and as an author, I can envision several directions to expand on her role in the future. What those directions are, only time, and my imagination, will tell.

 

About Before There Were Skeletons: The last time anyone saw Veronica Goodman was the night of February 14, 1995, the only clue to her disappearance a silver heart-shaped pendant, found in the parking lot behind the bar where she worked. Twenty-seven years later, Veronica’s daughter, Kate, just a year old when her mother vanished, hires Past & Present Investigations to find out what happened that fateful night.

Calamity (Callie) Barnstable is drawn to the case, the similarities to her own mother’s disappearance on Valentine’s Day 1986 hauntingly familiar. A disappearance she thought she’d come to terms with. Until Veronica’s case, and five high school yearbooks, take her back in time…a time before there were skeletons. Universal Book Link: https://books2read.com/u/mqXVze.

 

About the Author

A former journalist and magazine editor, Judy Penz Sheluk is the bestselling author of two mystery series: The Glass Dolphin Mysteries and the Marketville Mysteries. Her short crime fiction appears in several collections, including the Superior Shores Anthologies, which she also edited.

Judy is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she served as Chair on the Board of Directors. She lives in Northern Ontario on the shores of Lake Superior.

 

Photo (if you choose to use it) is of Denim Richards, the inspiration behind the name of Denim Hopkins.

Moonlight & Misadventure

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 by Bethany Maines

One of the best parts about the Stiletto Gang is the chance to meet and work with other mystery and romance writers. I have made many lasting friendships and learned a great deal from my fellow gang members. And last year, when Judy Penz Sheluk, a former Stiletto Gang member, posted about an opportunity to be a part of the Moonlight & Misadventure anthology, I quickly submitted my story – Tammy Loves Derek.

Tammy Loves Derek does indeed contain moonlight and more than a little misadventure, as well as some revenge and a heaping helping of just-desserts. I wrote the story intending to read it at the Seattle Noir at the Bar, but then COVID hit and so did about an extra 1500 words (it’s the COVID 15 of writing!).  So now I have a lovely little tale about, Tammy Lee Swanley, who has a med-spa job, a cheating boyfriend, and a plan—a five-step, sure-fire plan to wealth and happiness.

Moonlight & Misadventure will be available at retailers everywhere on June 18.  I’m thrilled that Tammy is in such good company and I can’t wait to read all the other stories!

Moonlight & Misadventure: 

Whether it’s vintage Hollywood, the Florida everglades, the
Atlantic City boardwalk, or a farmhouse in Western Canada, the twenty authors
represented in this collection of mystery and suspense interpret the
overarching theme of “moonlight and misadventure” in their own inimitable style
where only one thing is assured: Waxing, waning, gibbous, or full, the moon is
always there, illuminating things better left in the dark.

Featuring stories by: K.L. Abrahamson, Sharon Hart Addy, C.W.
Blackwell, Clark Boyd, M.H. Callway, Michael A. Clark, Susan Daly, Buzz Dixon,
Jeanne DuBois, Elizabeth Elwood, Tracy Falenwolfe, Kate Fellowes, John M.
Floyd, Billy Houston, Bethany Maines, Judy Penz Sheluk, KM Rockwood, Joseph S.
Walker, Robert Weibezahl, and Susan Jane Wright.

PRE-ORDER TODAY: https://books2read.com/Moonlight-Misadventure

Release Date: 06.18.21


**

Bethany Maines is the award-winning author of the Carrie Mae Mysteries, San Juan Islands Mysteries, Shark Santoyo Crime Series, and numerous short stories. When she’s not traveling to exotic lands, or kicking some serious butt with her black belt in karate, she can be found chasing her daughter or glued to the computer working on her next novel. You can also catch up with her on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and BookBub.

When Ideas Have Ideas of Their Own

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While Linda Rodriguez continues her Stiletto Sabbatical, look for guest authors on the first Friday of each month. Today’s guest is a special treat – former Stiletto member Judy Penz Sheluk.

When Ideas Have Ideas of Their Own by Judy Penz Sheluk

People often ask where my ideas come from. Sometimes they
come from stories I’ve read in the local paper:

·      
The building of a megabox store, possibly
threatening the independent shops in a small town, and the vocal opposition
from residents and local businesses (The
Hanged Man’s Noose).

·      
A young man who left home fifteen years earlier
to “find himself.” No one, not friends or family, had seen or heard from him
since (A Fool’s Journey).

But sometimes, ideas come from watching television. Such is
the case with my latest novel, Where
There’s A Will, the third and final book in my Glass Dolphin cozy mystery
series. I was watching an episode of Antiques
Roadshow and I thought: That’s it! I’ll have an Appraisal Day at the Glass
Dolphin antiques shop. Maybe someone will bring an object (to be determined)
and later on it turns out to be a murder weapon. That could work.

But here’s the thing about ideas. They often start off one
way and, because I’m a complete pantser, they

end up going in an entirely
different direction. That was the case with Where
There’s A Will. The book starts off with shop owner Arabella Carpenter hosting
an Appraisal Day, but instead of a murder or a murder weapon, there’s a
mysterious young woman who has been watching the appraisals all day from the
sidelines.

Who is she and what
could she want? I wonder, happily pantsing away.

It turns out the woman’s name is Faye Everett, she’s
inherited the old Hadley house, and she wants to hire Arabella to appraise the
contents.

There has to be a
catch, I muse, still pantsing away. What if Arabella’s ex, Levon
Larroquette, has also been hired for the appraisal, meaning the pair will have
to work side-by-side? It’s always fun to write about those two and their
on-again, off-again relationship.

What if Arabella’s business partner, Emily Garland, is
getting married? That’s it. She’s been house hunting with her fiancé and, after
dozens of “not quite rights,” she falls hard and fast for the Hadley house. Could
the Glass Dolphin’s appraisal involvement pose a conflict of interest?

And what’s this about Miles Pemberton wanting the house for
his reality TV show, Pemberton on
Property? Can Emily compete in a bidding war?

It’s not much yet, but
it’s a start. And then I remember this whole thing started with an
inheritance. Where There’s A Will, I
think, and keep on pantsing my way to The End.

 

About the Book:
Emily Garland is getting married and looking for the perfect forever home. When
the old, and some say haunted, Hadley house comes up for sale, she’s convinced
it’s “the one.” The house is also perfect for reality TV star Miles Pemberton
and his new series, House Haunters.
Emily will fight for her dream home, but Pemberton’s pockets are deeper than
Emily’s, and he’ll stretch the rules to get what he wants.

While Pemberton racks up enemies all around Lount’s Landing,
Arabella Carpenter, Emily’s partner at the Glass Dolphin antiques shop, has
been hired to appraise the contents of the estate, along with her ex-husband,
Levon. Could the feuding beneficiaries decide there’s a conflict of interest?
Could Pemberton?

Things get even more complicated when Arabella and Levon
discover another will hidden inside the house, and with it, a decades-old
secret. Can the property stay on the market? And if so, who will make the
winning offer: Emily or Miles Pemberton?

Find the book

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08KFLQ6KH

B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/where-theres-a-will-judy-penz-sheluk/1137780682?ean=2940162992455

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/where-there-s-a-will-87

Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/where-theres-a-will/id1533844283?ls=1

About the author: A
former journalist and magazine editor (including Senior Editor for New England Antiques Journal), Judy Penz
Sheluk is the author of two mystery series: the Glass Dolphin Mysteries and the
Marketville Mysteries. Her short crime fiction appears in several collections,
including The Best Laid Plans and Heartbreaks & Half-truths, which she
also edited.

Judy is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller
Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where
she serves as Chair on the Board of Directors. Find her at
www.judypenzsheluk.com.

 

 

Announcing Release of the Heartbreaks and Half-truths Anthology!

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by Paula Gail Benson

I’m very proud to be among the authors whose stories are
in Heartbreaks and Half-truths, an
anthology selected (from over 100 submissions) and edited by Judy Penz Sheluk,
noted for her novels, for her anthology The
Best Laid Plans (2019), and for recently being elected the new chair of
Crime Writers of Canada Board of Directors. Available on June 18, 2020, Heartbreaks and Half-truths features
tales from different time periods and locations, all considering how half-truths
contribute to heartbreak and often lead to other consequences.

Here’s the description of the anthology found on Amazon,
where it may be pre-ordered as Kindle or Paperback:
“Whether it’s 1950s Hollywood, a scientific experiment,
or a yard sale in suburbia, the twenty-two authors represented in this
collection of mystery and suspense interpret the overarching theme of ‘heartbreaks and half-truths’ in their own inimitable style, where only one
thing is certain: Behind every broken heart lies a half-truth.
“And behind every half-truth lies a secret.”
Following are brief summaries for each story, just to
pique your interest!
KM Rockwood, “Burning Desire”– a jilted
bridegroom gets a 50th birthday party and hopes for cash gifts to
pay off his gambling debts
Peggy Rothschild, “The Devil’s Club” — a woman
being blackmailed by the man who helped her get rid of her abusive husband must
now find a way to be rid of the blackmailer
John M. Floyd, “Blackjack Road” — a man who lost
his family meets a stranger who makes him question his fate
James Blakey, “The Greatest Secret” — a PI
hired to track down a crime boss’ wife’s lover finds it difficult to reveal the lover’s
identity
Edward Lodi, “So Long” — the story, told in a
series of phone messages, reveals the relationship between a woman and a doctor
intent on making her into his greatest experiment
Kate Flora, “Afterlife” — a new widow watches
out her window as a love triangle develops between two lobstermen and a
beautiful woman
Buzz Dixon, “Tongor of the Elephants” — a “lost”
film in a movie archive reveals an actor’s death and more
J.A. Henderson, “The God Complex” — people
plugged into a quantum computer have the opportunity to relive the past, or a facsimile
of it
Christine Eskilson, “For Elizabeth” — unrequited
high school love has higher stakes when the two remain friends later in life
Robb T. White, “See You in Court” — a down on
his luck defense attorney has to prove his client’s innocence after refusing to
be involved in a deal
Rhonda Eikamp, “In the Halls of Mercy” — the
chief psychiatrist becomes another inmate in his ward of patients
Sharon Hart Addy, “Near Warrenton” — a woman
hopes for some monetary support by tracking down a former lover
Tracy Falenwolfe, “Exposure”– a former cop
turned PI is hired to find another suspect in a murder case, but he may have
some secrets closer to home
Paula Gail Benson, “Living One’s Own Truth,” — in 1931, lives change at a boys’ school due to a teacher’s daughter bred
to be a heartbreaker and secrets among the faculty
Susan Daly, “Deep Freeze in Suburbia” — a new
member of parliament has no time to enjoy her success before a secret from her
past comes to light
Chris Wheatley, “The Angel of Maastricht” — a
reporter revisits a case as the convicted murderer completes his sentence
Joseph S. Walker, “Pink Hearts Pierced by
Arrows” — after promising her mother never to let a man make a fool of her, a
woman tries to help her friend with a cheating husband
Blair Keetch, “Deadly Cargo” — a pilot
narrates his strategy for killing his wife, but reality deviates from his plans
Steve Liskow, “Ugly Fat” — two women, both
dumped by their husbands, confer over the yard sale of one ex-husband’s
personal items
Gustavo Bondoni, “Checkmate Charlie” — a
computer gaming system helps a wife to get rid of her husband
James Lincoln Warren, “The Short Answer” — two
1950s Hollywood PIs are mixed up with blackmail and murder

Judy Penz Sheluk, “Goulaigans” — a man returns an
empty canoe to the trading post owner, who stole the man’s wife

Judy Penz Sheluk

Whether you’re sheltering in place or taking a
vacation, this volume is the perfect summer reading companion. Just pick up a
copy, relax, and enjoy it with your favorite beverage!

So Long, Farewell…but not Good-Bye

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By Judy Penz Sheluk

It’s been a couple of years since I joined The Stiletto Gang, thanks to Debra Goldstein’s efforts to recruit me at Bouchercon Toronto in 2017. While I’ve had an absolute blast, I’m at the point in my life where something has to give, at least if I want to keep writing books (I do).

The turning point came in June 2019, when I was elected as Vice Chair of Crime Writers of Canada. I’d been on the CWC Board since 2017, first as a Regional Rep for Toronto/Southwestern Ontario, and then as a Director for the Region, but the appointment of Vice Chair added an entirely new layer of responsibility, and the role of Chair for the 2020-21 fiscal year (eff. June 2020) will demand even more of my time and energy. Fingers and toes crossed that I do a good job for a great organization and its many fabulous members.

After careful consideration, I handed in my Stiletto Gang “blogging notice” in October. As such, this will be my final “First Monday of the Month” post, though I hope to return as a guest in future (hopefully with news to share about Book 3 Glass Dolphin, which I wrote about last month in my Do You NaNoWriMo post). In the meantime, you can always find me at www.judypenzsheluk.com and on Goodreads.

Until our paths cross again,

Judy

Do You NaNoWriMo?

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By Judy Penz Sheluk

For those of you unfamiliar, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. It began in 1999 as a daunting but straightforward challenge: to write 50,000 words of a novel during the thirty days of November.

This year, I’m committed to working on the final book in my Glass Dolphin Mystery series and this is just the push I need to get serious! I know exactly where I want to leave Arabella Carpenter, Emily Garland, and Levon Larroquette in their lives.

All that said, I am most definitely a pantser (meaning I have no idea how I’m going to get Arabella, Emily, and Levon to THE END) and I almost never write 1,666 words a day (the required amount to reach 50,000 words). Add to the mix that I have multiple events happening in November—including
leading a NaNoWriMo session at the Angus Public Library on Saturday, November 16 from 2 to 4 p.m.— and you might ask why I’ve decided to sign up. 

The answer is that even if I don’t meet the 50k word count, I’ll be further ahead with book 3 Glass Dolphin series than I would be if I just kept saying, “tomorrow, next week, next month.”
If you have a novel burning in your brain, consider signing up for this year’s challenge. It’s free and it’s not too late! https://www.nanowrimo.org

You can Follow my progress here. 


Find Books 1 and 2 in my Glass Dolphin Mystery series in e-book, audiobook, or trade paperback at your favorite bookseller, including Amazon. 

Remembering the Dead: Penny Brannigan #10

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Judy Penz Sheluk here. Today is the first Monday and I should be posting but when I heard that Elizabeth Duncan was releasing Remembering the Dead, #10 in her fab Penny Brannigan mystery series set in North Wales, I had to invite her to take my spot. Today, Elizabeth joins us to answer the question, “Why Wales?” 

Why Wales? I get asked that a lot. 
Do I have family there? Sadly, no. Friends? Happily, yes, I do now.
In the spring of 2004 I fell in love with the North Wales town of Llanrwst. Situated on the bank of the River Conwy, with its thirteenth century teahouse, three-arched seventeenth century bridge, cobbled town square, and grey stone buildings with slate roofs, Llanrwst (pronounced Clan-roost) struck a nostalgic chord. What a perfect setting this charming place would make for a cozy mystery, I thought. At the time, I had no intention of writing a book, but then … a few months later, and out of nowhere, I started writing The Cold Light of Mourning, which became the first book in the Penny Brannigan mystery series. And without giving the question of where to set the story a moment’s thought, I dived right in because I knew exactly where the story would take place.
That was 15 years ago, and since then, I’ve come to know my bit of North Wales well. I now spend five months there each year, exploring those lush green hills and forests, enjoying the natural beauty of the area’s rugged good looks, and looking for the right location to hide a body or stage a murder. Although I’ve fictionalized the town as Llanelen, local landmarks, including Conwy Castle (A Killer’s Christmas in Wales), Gwrych Castle (Murder Is for Keeps), St. Gwrst Church (The Cold Light of Mourning), the Llechwedd Slate Caverns, near Blaenau Ffestiniog (Slated for Death), and Lake Sarnau (Murder on theHour), to name just a few, have all figured prominently in the novels.
I didn’t know back in 2004 what I know now. How important setting is in establishing atmosphere and mood, bringing stories to life, and captivating readers. But it’s about more than a geographic backdrop: it provides the social context for the characters — so important in the cozy mystery genre, where the setting is usually a small town, and the characters all know one another. Llanrwst ticks all the boxes.
Literary considerations aside, it’s important for an author to like the place where her books are set because one way or another, she’s going to spend a lot of time there. Either literally, or in her head. Fortunately for me, North Wales has become not just a big part of my writing, but the best part of my life. 
ABOUT ELIZABETH J. DUNCAN: A two-time winner of the Bloody Words (Bony Blithe) Award for Canada’s best light mystery, Elizabeth J. Duncan is the author of two series of traditional mysteries: the Penny Brannigan series set in North Wales and Shakespeare in the Catskills featuring costume designer and amateur sleuth Charlotte Fairfax. A former journalist, public relations practioner, and college professor, Elizabeth is a faculty member of the Humber School for Writers. She divides her time between Toronto, Canada, and Llandudno, North Wales.
Her books are available at all online and brick-and-mortar bookstores.
Connect with Elizabeth J. Duncan around the web:
Follow her on twitter: @elizabethduncan

#Lake Superior

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Judy Penz Sheluk


I’m lucky in that my husband and I own a camp on Lake Superior, near Sault Ste. Marie (pronounced Soo), Ontario. The US (Michigan) side is known as the Upper Peninsula (known as the UP).
Now the downside is it’s a long way from where we live (about 8 hours by car) so it’s not the sort of place you drop by for a weekend. I’ve just come back from 6 weeks there and let me tell you, it’s hard getting back to reality,
In the meantime, here are some facts about Lake Superior you might not know:

1. Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes, shared by Ontario to the north, Minnesota to the west, and Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to the south.
2. The Ojibwe name for the lake is kitchi-gummi or gichi gami, meaning great sea or great water. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote the name as “Gitche Gumee” in The Song of Hiawatha, as did Gordon Lightfoot in his song, The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
3. According to the University of Wisconsin, the Objibways believe Lake Superior is protected by Nanabijou, Spirit of the Deep Sea Water.
4. The average depth of Superior is about 500 feet. The deepest point in Lake Superior (about 40 miles north of Munising, Michigan) is 1,300 feet (400 meters) below the surface.
5. Superior holds about 3,000 cubic miles of water— enough to fill all the other Great Lakes plus Lake Erie three times over. Its volume is second only to Russia’s Lake Baikal.
6. The surface area of Lake Superior (31,700 square miles or 82,170 square kilometers) is greater than the combined areas of Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New Hampshire.
7. The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum approximates 6,000 ships and 30,000 lives lost in Lake Superior shipwrecks. Thanks to Gordon Lightfoot, one of the best known is the Edmund Fitzgerald, which lost her entire crew of 29 men on Lake Superior November 10, 1975, 17 miles north-northwest of Whitefish Point, Michigan.
8. Because of its location north of Lake Huron, which was discovered first by Brûlé, the lake’s name comes from the French word lac supérieur, which means “upper lake.” 
9. The lake is about 350 miles (563 km) in length and 160 miles (257 km) in width. If straightened out, the Lake Superior shoreline could connect Duluth and the Bahama Islands.
10. In the summer, the sun sets more than 35 minutes later on the western shore of Lake Superior than at its southeastern edge. 

And one final fact: my publishing imprint, Superior Shores Press, will be releasing A Fool’s Journey, book 3 in my Marketville Mystery series on August 21st. Pre-order on Kindle or in trade paperback at your favorite online bookseller.
About the book: In March 2000, twenty-year-old Brandon Colbeck left home to find himself on a self-proclaimed “fool’s journey.” No one—not friends or family—have seen or heard from him since, until a phone call from a man claiming to be Brandon brings the case back to the forefront. Calamity (Callie) Barnstable and her team at Past & Present Investigations have been hired to find out what happened to Brandon and where he might be. As Callie follows a trail of buried secrets and decades-old deceptions only one thing is certain: whatever the outcome, there is no such thing as closure.
“A missing man, a case gone cold, and a trail potholed with lies, A Fool’s Journey is a classic mystery with a twist. It needs a determined detective who won’t give up or give in. Whip-smart and with a heart for adventure, Calamity Barnstable is on the case, and is certainly nobody’s fool.” —Laura Benedict, author of The Stranger Inside

Welcome Guest Blogger Vicki Batman

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Judy Penz Sheluk here, except, well…I’m not really here, I’m at our camp on Lake Superior in Northern Ontario, hopefully enjoying a hot, sunny Canada Day. And because I wasn’t sure if I could check in, I’ve invited my friend Vicki Batman to guest blog for me. Of course, like all best laid plans, Vicki’s life recently underwent some unexpected twists. Here she is, talking about “The Aftermath.”

Weather is very interesting and certainly so where I live in Texas. Last Sunday, we experienced a “rain bomb,” a kind of microburst storm. I’d gone to church, and on the drive home, I noted the lightly graying skies. Surprising because the weather people said no precipitation—they are known to be wrong on multiple occasions. My brother and sister-in-law were visiting. Where they live, eastern Washington state, they don’t have big storms like we do, in fact, having far less rain than here. That shocked us. Most of their water is irrigated from the Columbia River. 
Anyway, they came in the house, saying the skies were very dark north of us. Then boom! Rain fell from multiple directions. The wind swirled. I had never seen anything like this. I did know it wasn’t a tornado.
In the aftermath, lots of trees came down. My neighbor lost a huge branch off his tree next to his pool and yes, the branch fell across and into the pool. I saw a fallen tree, its roots pulling driveway with it. Limbs entwined with power lines. No traffic lights. Limited phone service. AND no power.
Fortunately, the temperature dropped to the low eighties. I’d stuffed the fridge with bags of ice. We listened to a battery-powered radio for updates. We carried flashlights everywhere (even the bathrooms). Utility companies drove in from many states to help restore power. Mine came on two days later. My kids got theirs three days later. 
No power meant finding unique ways to work. When the phones operated again, I did a lot of emailing. I typed documents directly in the email body. 
And I indulged in reading. It was glorious until…
the gas company sliced into the newly installed fiber optic line. LOLOL. Ah life.
Have you had power outages? Were you prepared? Did you run around frantically or relax a little?
Many of you like reading, too. Let me share a bit from “Temporarily Employed,” my romantic comedy mystery: 
No frisking and no arrests were–so far, in my book–a good thing. As Sarah Anne’s older brother, I found it easy to eliminate him from the stalker, murderer, and rapist categories. The something in the truck line sounded similar to approaches used in past dating experiences. For instance: 
“Want to come up and look at my etchings?” 
Translated: A roll in the hay.
Or the ever popular “Would you like to meet Mr. Lizard?” 
Translated: Mr. Wiggly Worm.
“How about coming to my place for a drink?” 
Translated: To ply me with multiple drinks and the requisite roll in the hay.
I hadn’t fallen for those then and wasn’t going to be a sucker now.
He stuck his hands on his hip and said, “I know what you’re thinking. I’m not a stalker, murderer, or rapist.”  
Apparently, he could read minds. 
“Just a minute.” I closed the door partially to release the chain, then opened it. “Why can’t you just tell me whatever it is?”
“No. I want to show you—” 
“Not a Picasso?” I asked.
“No.” 
“Not an iguana?”
A perplexed expression crossed his face. “A what?”
“Not your pet worm?”
“What pet worm?”
“Not—”
“Look, I don’t know what you’re thinking. The only worms I know about are for fishing.”
Find Temporarily Employed
Award-winning author and bestselling author, Vicki Batman, has sold many romantic comedy works to magazines, several publishers, and most recently, a romantic comedy mystery to The Wild Rose Press. 
An avid Jazzerciser. Handbag lover. Mahjong player. Yoga practitioner. Movie fan. Book devourer. Cat fancier. Best Mom ever. And adores Handsome Hubby. 
Most days begin with her hands set to the keyboard and thinking “What if??” Find her at vickibatman.blogspot.com