Some things to know . . .

cj Sez:  “We are like books. Most people only see our cover, the minority read only the introduction, many people believe the critics. Few will know our content.”  ― Émile Zola

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For writers and readers

Buy She Had to Die now

  Rebecca Barrett’s latest Hugo August novel, She Had to Die, is more than a murder mystery. It’s an exposé of people who will go to any lengths to hide indiscretions and preserve illusory reputations. 

 

  And now, readers have an opportunity vote for the readers' choice for the Silver Falchion award at Killer Nashville. Down there in the list of Bs (for Barrett) is Hugo's latest case, She had to die. 

  Here's the link to vote and I hope you will . . .

  2026 Killer Nashville Readers' Choice Ballot

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  Do commercials rush the season or what? I saw this Facebook ad, complete with photos, on June 25, 2026:

  “No matter your space or style, there’s a Balsam Hill tree made just for you. From grand living rooms to cozy corners, find the perfect fit and make every room a little more magical this Christmas.”

/ / /

https://janefriedman.com/why-you-should-focus-on-local-book-publicity-first/

  The post is an excerpt from Think Local, Sell Global: How to Build Author Buzz in Your Backyard by Penny Sansevieri.

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  A US District Court judge has granted final approval of the landmark $1.5 billion Anthropic copyright infringement class action settlement. 

  The Writer Beware website has some interesting analysis and comments: https://writerbeware.blog/2026/07/23/anthropic-settlement-update-final-settlement-approved/

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  cj Sez: That’s it for this month’s post. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same.

cj

Available at these ebook sites:  

https://books2read.com/u/bxL9xv 

On Hoopla in your library,  

and in paperback wherever books are sold

  Stop by my Amazon author page for a listing of all my books: Amazon Central Author Page )

  Just a reminder: Lyrical Pens blog for readers and writers is a monthly issue, kind of like a newsletter. I’m aiming for the first of the month, whatever day that is, so watch for it please. That said, thank you for stopping by Lyrical Pens today. I really do appreciate every one of my visitors. Drop me a comment or a question, and we’ll talk.

➜ Follow me on   

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➜ Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fcN3h6

Could you be a Killer Nashville scholar?

cj Sez: SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE for Killer Nashville:  Deadline July 5, 2019. 

“The annual Killer Nashville International Writers’ Conference was created in 2006 as a way to give back to the writing community and educate/empower writers in all stages of their careers. In that spirit, and thanks to generous donors, Killer Nashville is offering several scholarships in 2019.” 

   For more information and to apply, go here:  https://killernashville.com/killer-nashville-scholarships/

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   Mobile has had wind gusts reaching fifty-plus miles an hour and (yesterday) two inches of rain in a forty-five minute period. Yep, there were trees and limbs down and flash-flood warnings for a lot of city streets because of this storm. On the plus side, the temperature dropped from 94 (heat index of about 100) to the high 70s.

   Thunder and lightning is not good for my writing progress, however. “I have to shut down the computer when lightning starts marching in with the rain,” says the procrastinator. Actually, I’m doing okay. One short story submitted, another in process, and a novel rotating in that endless edit cycle I seem to go through. I also have two other stories percolating (i.e., a few chapters written).

   Are you aware there’s a story arc that readers/agents have come to expect?

According to author/editor Ramona DeFelice Long, 
    "For a 400 page MS: 
          Act 1 is 1/4 of the story, so 100 pages
       Act 2 is 1/2 of the story, so 200 pages
       Act 3 is 1/4 of the story, so 100 pages 
                (Act 3 includes a denouement)
     You can adjust the math, but the 1/4 + 1/2 + 1/4 is the guiding formula."

   Have you ever analyzed a story, yours or someone else’s, to see how they fit into that three-act arc?

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMERICA!

   On July 4, 2019, the United States of America celebrates its 243 rd birthday. It started with a revolutionary war and a constitution: 

     We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

   When you celebrate the holiday this year, please take a moment to remember the great personal sacrifices that made us a free nation and have kept us free for more than two centuries.

   That’s it for this week’s post. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same.

cj

  Amazon Kindle price is 99 cents!

In the midst of prospectors, treasure hunters, and shoot-outs in the old West, there is a love story in“Bad Day at Round Rock,” my short story in the Western anthology THE POSSE. Excerpt:  Seventeen-year-old Lilly Malmstrom thought morning calm was the best time of any day—before the sun burned away the cool of the night, before hot winds drove the fine Texas sand under the windowsills, before the town of Round Rock fully awakened. By seven a.m., when she stood on tiptoe to twist the key in the wall clock to wind it, she had the doctor’s instruments scalded and air-drying on the table and fresh-washed huck towels hanging on the line behind the building. To mark the end of the work week, she drew an “X” through the date on the calendar with the stub of a lead pencil and sighed.

“July 19, 1878,” she said, pronouncing the month as ‘yulie’. “One year. One whole year.”

It’d been exactly a year since she’d left Sweden, but her new life hadn’t turned out exactly as she’d planned. Now she had a new plan.   

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For your summertime/beach reading pleasure, stop by my Amazon Central Author Page = https://amzn.to/2v6SrAj  — at the time of this post, CHOOSING CARTER and DEADLY STAR are free on Kindle Unlimited.

To order an autographed copy of CHOOSING CARTER, DEADLY STAR, HOMETOWN HEROES, and THE POSSE, contact The Haunted Bookshop here: The Haunted Bookshop  Angela Trigg, the awesome owner and a RITA Award-winning author in her own right (writing as Angela Quarles) will be happy to ship you the book(s) of your choice.

If you send me a note, I’ll personalize your choice, and drop it in the mail to you (cover price plus mailing).

Sign up for my quarterly newsletter here: cjpetterson@gmail.com 

Visit me on Facebook at:   cjpetterson/author on Facebook  

Applause for Killer Nashville awards nominees

cj Sez: The dog days of summer were historically the period following the heliacal (sunrise) of the star Dog Star, Sirius. Greek and Roman astrology connected Sirius to heat, drought, sudden thunderstorms, lethargy, fever, mad dogs, and bad luck.

According to the Farmer’s Almanac, “the 40 days beginning July 3 and ending August 11” are the traditional timing of the Dog Days. As if tradition has anything to do with the weather. 

Suck it up, Buttercups. There’s more hellacious heat and humidity to come.

In the more important news for writers, Killer Nashville (www.KillerNashville.com ) announced the finalists for its 2017 Claymore Award and the Silver Falchion. The winners will be announced at the Killer Nashville Awards Dinner at its International Writers’ Conference on August 26, 2017, in Nashville, TN. 

Do you see anyone you know on these lists?

Top 20 finalists for the 2017 Killer Nashville Claymore Award:  

The 2017 Silver Falchion Award finalists:

CONGRATULATIONS to all on being nominated…and a special fins-crossed-hoping-for-a-win shout-out to my fellow Sisters in Crime/Guppy members I see on the list. WooHoo!

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NEWS NOTE: A request for submissions from Hallmark  . . . and here are the guidelines taken from the website:

“If your book seems like a Hallmark movie or TV series, it might be right for us! We’re looking for male/female romance novels and cozy mystery novels of around 70,000-85,000 words in length. We love romances and mysteries that also celebrate friendship, family, and/or community ties. All stories must have happy endings.” (cj emphasis applied)

http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/hallmark-publishing/write-for-us 

That’s the post for today, folks. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same.

cj

Please stand by for a word from my sponsors:

NOW ON AMAZON:  A really amazing, super-duper deal for your summer romance reading.  A Crimson Romance bundle of 10 novels about athletes and the sports they love, Bodies in Motion, includes my novel, Choosing Carter.  10 wonderful reads for 99 cents on Amazon  Other ebook bundles still available on Amazon:  More Than Friends and California Kisses 

My “Bad Day at Round Rock” short story is in The Posse anthology @ http://amzn.to/2lQRvcD  (8 short stories, still at 99 cents)

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Simon&Schuster Author Page     Amazon Central Author Page

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