Wednesday, September 20, 2017

A NEW WORLD RECORD

With school back in session this fall, how about a little quiz?

TRUE OR FALSE: A book published by Dogwood Press is poised to enter the Guinness Book of World Records.

Uh, I wish. Maybe one day ...

TRUE OR FALSE: A Dogwood Press-published author is included in an anthology of 100 stories from 100 authors, which should indeed eclipse the previous record (50 stories from 50 publishers).

Yep, that's true! John Floyd's story "The Tenth Floor" is in CEP Greatest Anthology Written, published by Celenic Earth Publications. The book will feature authors from South Africa, UK, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Hungary, Nigeria, Mexico, Bolivia, and Switzerland. An official launch event is scheduled for September 30 in Cape Town, South Africa, where the book will be “authenticated and verified” according to specifications by Guinness. To attain World Record status, 500 print copies and 500 e-book copies of the book must be sold. 

Pretty cool, huh? Pre-order through Amazon.com to reserve yours, and help get the book -- and John's story -- into the Guinness Book of World Records!  

Ladies and gentlemen ... a new world record! (We hope!!!)

Speaking of John's short stories, his "Rooster Creek" graces the pages of the all-new Black Cat Mystery Magazine! Also, BCMM has already committed to another Floyd piece for their second issue. Way to go!

Looks like a cool mag ... and John is in on the ground floor!


Back to the story "Rooster Creek" ... it's time for the big reveal: The next John Floyd collection of short stories, entitled The Barrens, will be published by Dogwood Press in summer 2018 ... in time for the annual Mississippi Book Festival! The Barrens will contain 30 stories, and not only will all be mysteries, of course, there will be an element of crime in all. Can't wait!

Now for another big reveal: My own new Oakdale series novel, 40 Days, will be released in March 2018. It's my first book in three and a half years, and a bit different from previous Oakdale volumes. Yes, there's still the seemingly serene little town with all kinds of crime and dysfunction bubbling below the surface, lots of folks still up in each other's business. But 40 Days has not only a faith-based element to it, there's a supernatural component to the story as well. It takes place in 40 days of real time and ties into the season of Lent. I'm really excited about it.

Meantime, Susan Cushman is making stops all over the southeast in support of Cherry Bomb. In October she'll visit Pass Christian Books on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and a stop at Page and Palette Books in Fairhope, Alabama, isn't far away. She'll also visit several north Mississippi libraries in the near future, including the Webster County Public Library in Eupora on Monday, November 9 at 11:00 a.m. 


                                    Susan reads from Cherry Bomb at Burke's Books in Memphis. 

And Valerie Winn's long-awaited sequel to Forsaking Mimosa is definite for fall 2018, meaning we're going to have a very busy and fast-paced 2018. But that's true of this fall, too -- the Dogwood Press authors will be out pounding the pavement, selling books and giving talks and meeting fellow readers and writers. There's nothing better! 

Remember that if you do your reading on a Kindle, we have you covered there, too. Here's what's available from the Dogwood Press catalog:

SUSAN CUSHMAN - Cherry Bomb (coming September 25)
JOHN M. FLOYD - Dreamland
JOHN M. FLOYD - Fifty Mysteries
JOHN M. FLOYD - Deception
JOHN M. FLOYD - Clockwork
VALERIE WINN - Forsaking Mimosa
JOE LEE - Director's Cut
JOE LEE - Last Chance Texaco
JOE LEE - The Long Road Home
JOE LEE - The Magnolia Triangle
JOHN LEE - The Legend of Roger (perfect for your middle-schooler!)
RANDY PIERCE - The Peter Bay
RANDY PIERCE - Pain Unforgiven
RANDY PIERCE - Magnolia Mud

Download now, and start reading, as they say, in about a minute! And please visit the Dogwood Press website at www.dogwoodpress.com for author appearances. We would love to see you. Have a great day, and thanks for your time!