Ducal Detective Mystery # 5 is on the way...
Greetings, friends!
I know I've been rotten about keeping in touch. 2018 has been really busy thus far, and right now, it shows no signs of slowing down. I spent most of January and February refining and retooling my query letter for a brand new series I've been working on, in the hopes of catching the eye of a literary agent. After numerous rejections, so much so that I started to wonder if I had any talent at all, I am delighted to announce I will be working with Blue Ridge Literary Agency on a brand new cozy mystery series! I'll be sharing more about the querying process in upcoming posts because it's a huge deal for an author to find representation for their work. It's also really hard to prepare your work for query and I figured I'd share some tips I found to be useful.
In parallel to querying my new contemporary cozy mystery series, I've been working on Book 5 in the Ducal Detective Mysteries. If someone had told me last year that I'd wind up writing 5 books based on a little novella I decided to experiment with, I would have thought they were crazy. But it seems I can't let these characters go! Jax and her friends were never meant to be a long series, maybe two or three short stories, but it seems she has more adventures to share. As I was writing Book 5, I began wondering how I was going to wind down the series at the end of this particular installment; my original plan going into this book was to wrap things up for my readers so I could focus on other projects. Yet, as I continued to unravel the plot and characters, I realized I couldn't say goodbye to Jax, Perry, Uma, and George. They still have so much to do in the Realm of Virtues! So, as a little spoiler for those reading this, rest assured, Book 5 is not "The End" for the Duchess.
And now for the name! Book 5's naming convention differs slightly than the rest of the series. Many of you have noticed that the tone shifted in "A Summit in Shadow," as Jax faces not only a mystery but a large political hurdle. Book 5 continues in that same vein; Jax is growing into her role and has plans of her own for the Realm of Virtues. Therefore, I am excited to announce "Throne of Threats" will be joining the series on April 14, 2018. Preorder information will be up next week. Check back tomorrow for the book's description to see what trouble the Duchess has uncovered this time...
Arms around,
S.B.