Announcing . . .

Call me superstitious (I’m not really, just careful), but I didn’t want to say anything until it was officially official. Now that I have my contract in my hot little hands, I can finally announce the sale of a new mystery series!

It’s called the League of Literary Ladies and is set on South Bass, the biggest of the Lake Erie islands. Main characters are three neighbors who are "sentenced" to be a book discussion group by a magistrate who’s tired of hearing their complaints against each other and convinced they need to sit down, talk, and get to know each other.

There’s more to the concept, of course, but I’m going to keep the details secret. At least for now. I can tell you that book #1 is tentatively titled "Mayhem at the Orient Express" and that it looks like it should hit shelves summer, 2013.

I can also say that I’m thrilled to have an excuse to visit the islands. Haven’t been there for a couple years, but you can be sure that once the ice breaks up on Lake Erie this coming spring, I’ll be jumping on the ferry and heading over to dig into South Bass Island history, and its secrets. I sure hope that one particular winery is still open, the one with the lovely front porch and the excellent sangria. Served in pitchers.

Ah, the things authors must endure for their art!