WELCOME TO THE TEAM!

Greetings! I'm delighted to announce that Stephen Beam of Sumrall, Mississippi, is joining the Dogwood Press family of authors. I can't wait for the release of his first novel, The Death Letter, a who-dunnit set in rural northeast Mississippi that will hook you on the first page with a brief but haunting prologue. Suspense builds as several of the characters, you'll come to realize, are not what they seem. It's a novel absolutely soaked in small town Mississippi life, warts and all. Be sure to tell your friends!

Watch for The Death Letter in August 2023!

Thanks again to our wonderful friends at the Bonfire Book Club in McComb, Mississippi! Candace Cox Wheeler spoke in October, and I look forward to visiting in January and discussing my Oakdale series prequel, Resting Place. As I've said in this space more than once, books clubs are absolutely crucial toward getting the word out about what we do and the Bonfire group, which only began in the last year-plus, has a large membership and really rolls out the red carpet for their authors. 

Speaking of book clubs, Candace was delighted to learn that her fine debut novel, Cradle in the Oak, was selected a few weeks ago by the South Baton Rouge Literary Guild in neighboring Louisiana. That book club has been around for 23 years, and we really appreciate your interest!

Thank y'all!!!

In addition to book clubs, many public libraries are re-opening their doors to in-person author talks. Several weeks ago I thoroughly enjoyed a multi-author presentation in Sumrall that was surprisingly well-attended given the monsoon-like conditions, and librarian Nel Ducomb and her devoted Friends of the Library team in Kiln (known to Coast locals as "The Kill") are putting on terrific luncheons once again. I had a wonderful time there earlier in November, and Candace visits on December 7 at noon. She'll share background about the critical scene in Squall in the Gulf that took place in The Kill! 

Speaking in Louisville, Mississippi. A wonderful experience.

Also, watch for Candace this Saturday, December 3, at the Biloxi Main Street Christmas in the City event from 10-4. You'll be able to purchase autographed copies of both of her terrific novels!

 

Santa Claus is coming to the Coast. You better not pout!

You've heard much about Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday in recent days, and here's a way you can still take part in both: visit the Dogwood Press website at dogwoodpress.com and tackle the rest of your shopping list! All titles you order will be signed, and you'll have them in just several business days, leaving you plenty of time to get them wrapped and under the tree! If you do your reading through a device, we've got you covered, as just about all Dogwood Press titles are available for download through Amazon Kindle.

That's all the news that fits. Thanks so much for your time. Happy reading!

FUN IN THE SUN

The Mississippi Book Festival made a glorious return in 2022 with 6,200 who enjoyed the wide range of author panels, and that total doesn't include the throng of folks who browsed the beautiful Capitol grounds and met dozens of Mississippi authors. Dogwood Press is proud to have taken part, and we had a wonderful time seeing old friends, making new ones, and selling books along the way. Even the mid-afternoon downpour which effectively ended our day couldn't dampen our joy!

A beautiful day to visit with book lovers!

We're off to a great start with Candace Cox Wheeler's Squall in the Gulf and my own Resting Place. Both of us are delighted to hear kind comments about our new books, but what really does my heart good is seeing so many people attending in-person book events again.

Candace launching her new novel at the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum ... 

 

... and with author Valerie Winn at Hillyer House of Ocean Springs.

Joe signing Resting Place at Lemuria Books of Jackson ...

... and discussing the book at the Starkville Public Library

One of the most interesting book signings Candace has is at the Ground Zero Blues Club in Biloxi on Wednesday, September 28. It will start at 4:30 p.m., and in addition to live music to follow, Candace's talk about her new book will be especially relevant because of the land on which the new club was constructed. Let's just say you'll be fascinated! She and I will also do a combo event at Bay Books in Bay St. Louis on September 28 at 11 a.m., she'll visit Page and Palette Books of Fairhope, Alabama, on October 1, and I'm headed to Tupelo, Mississippi, on October 20 to sell copies of Resting Place at the annual Celebration Village.

John Floyd, meanwhile, continues to write quality short fiction at something approaching warp speed these days. He has had stories published in recent issues of Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Weekly, Woman's World, and Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine as well as a dozen upcoming anthologies. John also received a fifth Derringer Award several months ago, becoming the ONLY writer to have won five Derringers. As I have said before in this space, the Derringer is to short mystery suspense fiction what the Grammy is to the music industry, and what the Oscar is to the film industry.

Yep, John has a story in there. Just stay away from the guy on the cover!

Order signed copies of all books in the Dogwood Press catalog by visiting dogwoodpress.com, including Resting Place and Squall in the Gulf, and say hello at an upcoming book event soon. Need a speaker for a talk to your book club or civic organization? Just get in touch. Also, we're being asked when the Kindle versions of Resting Place and Squall in the Gulf are coming, and the wait is almost over. However you do your reading, whether on a device or from a physical book, we are grateful for your interest in our work.

Thanks for your time. Have a wonderful day!

  

BOOK CLUBS

I absolutely can't overstate the importance of in-person book clubs. Nearly every Dogwood Press author has been invited to one or more clubs over the years, and there is no better feeling for an author than when a group of 10-20 readers has read your work and invites you to discuss it. In addition to the copies sold, the tremendous word-of-mouth that stems from such events is incalculable. Book club appearances are very similar to well-attended events at public libraries in that way.

The Bonfire Book Club in south Mississippi recently hosted Randy Pierce for a presentation about Missy, which most all of the members had read by the time Randy arrived several weeks ago. The attendees raved, and I'm thrilled that they've since booked Valerie Winn for the month of August and Candace Cox Wheeler for October. What's interesting is that the club selected Valerie's first book, Forsaking Mimosa. That one celebrates its tenth anniversary this year and will be in a third printing by the time Valerie visits in August, and it just goes to show how timeless a good book really is.

Also, Candace Cox Wheeler visits the Langley Point and Friends Book Club on Saturday, August 13 to discuss Squall in the Gulf and Cradle in the Oak.

Many thanks to our new friends at the Bonfire Book Club!

Dogwood Press rolls out two new titles in August, the Candace Cox Wheeler thriller Squall in the Gulf and my new Oakdale series mystery, Resting Place. See if you've heard this before: We are hopeful that we've seen the last of the pandemic and that in-person gatherings later this year -- especially the Mississippi Book Festival on August 20 in Jackson -- will take place as planned. Ever the optimist, I am scheduling events for the Dogwood Press team as if things will unfold just like we hope.

Hmm ... wonder what's down there ...

Featuring an appearance by lovable Al Capone! 

Valerie Winn recently put on a writing workshop that touched on the many elements of creating good fiction: plot development, character development, sense of time and place, good dialogue, and point of view. I keep up carefully with these events because a name you'll recognize in this blog -- Candace Cox Wheeler -- attended one of Valerie's workshops before submitting the Cradle in the Oak manuscript to me in 2019. Good luck to all of you who just finished Valerie's workshop several weeks ago. I have no doubt you learned a lot!

A future bestseller in this group? Don't rule it out!

A big congratulations to John Floyd for winning a 2022 Derringer Award in the Flash Fiction category for "Tourist Trap", and the hits just keep on coming: he has a story entitled "The Dollhouse" in the May/June issue of Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine and a selection in the upcoming 2022 Bouchercon anthology. As I've said before in this space, if you've never read short fiction, John is a true master. And you'll have no trouble finding his work: in addition to eight books of his short fiction published by Dogwood Press, visit any bookstore and consult the magazine section. His short stories are in most of them and add a lot to those publications.

Be sure to read John's Sleuth Sayers blog each Saturday on Facebook!

There are graduation gifts and Father's Day presents to be purchased, and we can take care of you with one quick visit to dogwoodpress.com. You'll receive signed, first edition copies when you order, and you'll have them in just a couple of days. If reading on a device is your preference, most of our catalogue is available for download via Amazon Kindle.

Thanks so much for your time. We hope to see you soon.

COMING ATTRACTIONS

Yes, two exciting new Dogwood Press titles are coming soon! The first is Squall in the Gulf, the sequel to Candace Cox Wheeler's critically-acclaimed historical fiction debut, Cradle in the Oak. Squall is set at the height of Prohibition on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and rumrunning, or the transportation of contraband liquor, is making some very powerful people a lot of money (such as Al Capone, who once owned a home in Ocean Springs), as well as causing good folks to make dangerous choices. Cradle heroine Carrie Burns and husband David Tauzin return, but it's the next generation that steals the stage in a thriller you won't be able to put down. Like its predecessor, this book is layered with the unique history of Biloxi that made Cradle such a terrific read. Watch for Squall in the Gulf on August 1.

You can almost hear the wind blow!

My own new novel, Resting Place, is my seventh Oakdale series installment and ninth book overall. It's a prequel to the series and set in 1984, which made it great fun to research. If you've never set foot in my fictional town of Oakdale, it's a seemingly serene little place in northeast Mississippi, but under the surface it's loaded with old money, crime, skeletons in most closets, and everyone up in everyone else's business. Billy Joe Stone, the grizzled Smart County sheriff in my 2014 novel Director's Cut, is a very young sheriff's deputy in Resting Place who must deal head-on with a web of corruption when his mentor, incumbent sheriff Robert Glass, suddenly goes missing. A fast-paced, atmospheric story of power, greed, loss, and redemption, Resting Place also comes out August 1.

 

Welcome back to Oakdale!

We'll hope for the best on things returning to normal as 2022 unfolds, and if all goes well there will be many more in-person book talks and signings than we've seen in the last two years. One event we can't wait for is the return of the Mississippi Book Festival on Saturday, August 20. It had grown by leaps and bounds from 2015-2019, and I would expect a huge turnout if this year's show goes forward as planned. But we were able to get out and do a few events in late 2021, including a fun late-December multi-author signing at Lemuria in Jackson, Mississippi.

Great friends as well as great writers!

I was honored to have been asked by Dr. Mark Lehman, retired professor of Accounting at Mississippi State University and a prolific textbook author, to edit his debut novel, The Anderson Conspiracy. This fast-paced, fun tale follows the lives of a high school friend group into their professional lives, but when police are unable to solve a crime committed against one of the friends, the group is forced to use their collective business and legal skills to unravel the mystery. This one will arrive in April and was supposed to coincide with the new major league baseball season getting underway. Let's hope it does!

It's a home run!

Don't forget that most Dogwood Press titles, including Candace Cox Wheeler's Cradle in the Oak, are available for download via Amazon Kindle. In the meantime, we look forward to seeing you soon. For signed copies of all Dogwood Press titles, visit dogwoodpress.com to order a Mother's Day gift, or a neat surprise for the graduate on your shopping list! Thanks for your time, and have a great day!

ESCAPE

I'm sure you remember the old Calgon TV ads with that unforgettable tag line: CALGON, TAKE ME AWAY! A good book also provides a wonderful escape from the grim realities of today. For me, nothing beats becoming so immersed in a good story that I'm not even aware of turning the pages.

The delta variant COVID spike wiped out our author appearances for summer and fall, including the  2021 Mississippi Book Festival, but there are in-person events taking place here and there at brick-and-mortar bookstores and other venues. One of them is Dogwood Press Day at Lemuria Books of Jackson on December 20! Candace Cox Wheeler will sign copies of Cradle in the Oak, Randy Pierce will autograph Missy, and John Floyd will sign Lighten up a Little. This is a great opportunity to pick up a trio of outstanding reads you may have missed because of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, our team is taking every opportunity available to safely meet and greet new readers. When the annual Cruisin' the Coast classic car festival took place along the Mississippi Gulf Coast earlier this month, Valerie Winn set up shop at Pink Rooster Art Gallery in Ocean Springs and sold copies of The Dance Between and Forsaking Mimosa to folks who were in town for the festival and soaking up the Coast atmosphere. 

What a great day to be out and meet a Mississippi author!

One of my favorite aspects of working with Candace Cox Wheeler on Cradle in the Oak was the time we spent trying to perfect that just-right mix of suspense and layered-in history in her historical fiction novel. Set in the early twentieth century in Biloxi, Mississippi, Cradle really captures life in that fascinating Coast town, and there has been tremendous local response. We thank the Biloxi Public Library for including Candace's book in a display of local interest reads, and we're hearing that it is almost always checked out!

An education about Biloxi you won't find in a textbook!

Speaking of Biloxi, John Floyd's "Biloxi Bound" was selected for inclusion in The Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2021, published in September and edited by one of my very favorite authors, the great Lee Child. John continues to write prolifically, and you'll find his story “Friends” in the Sept./Oct. issue of The Saturday Evening Post. He also has a number of stories coming during the fourth quarter of 2021 and early 2022, such as “Escape Claus” in the December issue of Woman’s World, and "Mayhem at the Mini-Mart" (what a cool title!) in the Jan./Feb. issue of Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine. Also, be sure to watch for Sleuth Sayers, John's weekly blog, on his Facebook page. 

 

For me, this is a must-read each year!

I've had the privilege to serve as editor on a pair of very recent books that are worth your time. Karen Brown's A Year-Long Honeymoon is a brief but fascinating look back at the year she and her husband, Don, spent in Europe in 1968-1969 while he was on active military duty. You talk about being taken away, as a reader, from the everyday--you'll feel like you're right there in Germany and France as the young married couple motors along in their Volkswagen and has all sorts of fascinating adventures.

   

                                                That's Karen at far right with husband Don in the middle.

Likewise, it was great to work with Stuart Kellogg on his brand-new non-fiction book, The Post-COVID Church. Stuart, a former television executive, has a multi-media background and developed a book after launching a successful podcast about what the future of the Church might look like in a post-COVID society. Loaded with comments and insights from a wide variety of theologians and clergy, this brief but powerful read pulls no punches about the need to act now.

Definitely a read that will make you think. 

Yes, supply chain issues are a serious problem right now, and shipping times are unpredictable. A suggestion: shop now, as in ordering signed copies of Cradle in the Oak, Missy, and Lighten Up a Little from the Dogwood Press website, as well as any other titles that strike you. Visit us at dogwoodpress.com with your shopping list in mind, and I bet you'll find a few books that will take the reader on your list away! Also, most Dogwood Press titles are available for download via Amazon Kindle, so if that's your preferred way to read, we've got you covered.

Thanks for your time. Stay safe, and keep reading!

LET'S GO!

Like a lot of us, I suppose, I spent the spring of 2020 thinking the pandemic would last several weeks, maybe a couple of months. I still felt that way even after more than a dozen John Floyd events to support his book Lighten Up A Little were wiped off the board. Then came, in May, a blast email from the good folks at the Mississippi Book Festival announcing that the 2020 event had been cancelled. What felt like a lead weight seemed to drop inside me.

But there's good news: the 2021 MBF is definitely on, as of this writing. It's Saturday, August 21 at the Mississippi State Capitol, and if you're comfortable getting out and about, I sure hope you'll make plans to attend. Candace Cox Wheeler, Randy Pierce, and John Floyd will join me in the Dogwood Press tent for a hot, humid day of visiting with old friends and making new ones. Look up the MBF website and take in the vast array of talent on the many author panels, and please plan on supporting a signature Mississippi event that should make all of us who love the Magnolia state proud. You'll really enjoy it.

As things gradually open back up, John Floyd and I look forward to his visit to the Webster County Public Library in Eupora for an author talk on Monday, August 9 at 1:30 p.m. This appearance is noteworthy because it's the first event of any kind in support of Lighten Up A Little. Those who attend will be in for a treat, as the humorous poems in the book are a hoot to begin with, and John really brings them to life with his energetic readings.

Up, up, and away! Can't wait!

Candace Cox Wheeler had a very successful signing at Page and Palette Books in Fairhope, Alabama, and met lots of nice people. You'll really enjoy meeting her at the MBF, and we're getting wonderful feedback about Cradle in the Oak, her excellent work of page-turning historical fiction that's set in Biloxi, Mississippi, in the early twentieth century. 

A book you wouldn't be able to put down!

Cradle in the Oak is one of many Dogwood Press titles available for download via Amazon Kindle. If that's your preferred method of reading, grab a copy and start reading in literally a minute or so. Or visit dogwoodpress.com for signed copies of everything in our catalogue, and remember that when you order directly from us, you'll have your purchase in hand in just 2-3 business days. 

I hope to see you at this year's Mississippi Book Festival. Thanks for your time!

INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORE DAY

Wanting to support Lemuria Books in March 2020 as the shutdowns began, I ordered a couple of books through their website and drove to pick them up. Following their instructions, I called the store and said I was in the parking lot, out in front of the bakery one floor down from our beloved independent bookseller in Jackson's beautiful Banner Hall. The bakery was closed, and my car was the only vehicle in sight. Worse, it was a gloomy, overcast day, lending an almost apocalyptic feel to the normally bustling surroundings. 

As I write these words this morning, it's a gorgeous and unseasonably crisp spring day, the brilliant reds and whites of the azaleas a wonderful contrast to the healthy green grass and flowering plants all around. More and more people are venturing out, having been vaccinated, and I think my heart grew three sizes when the announcement was made recently that our Mississippi Book Festival is definitely on for August 21 at the state capitol.

If you're comfortable getting out this Saturday, I sincerely hope you'll support Independent Bookstore Day, wherever you are, whether shopping in person or online. Here in Mississippi, we're blessed to have wonderful stores like Lemuria, Square Books (Oxford), Turn Row Books (Greenwood), The Book Mart and Cafe (Starkville), Main Street Books (Hattiesburg), Pass Christian Books, Southern Bound Books (Biloxi), Bay Books (Bay St. Louis), Friendly City Books (Columbus), Impression Books (Flowood), and Cotton Row Books (Cleveland). All of these stores took a hard hit during 2020, and Independent Bookstore Day is a way to say thanks for keeping our Mississippi literary traditions alive during a truly difficult year.

As you might imagine, I have some shopping suggestions! Try the red-hot Cradle in the Oak from Candace Cox Wheeler. She had two outstanding in-person events on April 17 (in Ocean Springs and Biloxi, Mississippi, respectively), and Coast residents are absolutely enthralled with Candace's riveting historical fiction tale set in early twentieth century Biloxi.

Being interviewed by WLOX TV

Signing Cradle in the Oak at Hillyer House

Also consider Valerie Winn's The Dance Between. She's pictured here and her book is available at many of our state's fine independent stores. The same is true of Randy Pierce's wonderful novel Missy, which you may not have picked up late last year upon release.

Valerie's coming-of-age novel is a great Mother's Day idea!

Then there's John M. Floyd, who was taking part in a Zoom literary conference but may have been dreaming up another riveting short story plot! His fine work continues to grace the pages of Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, Woman's World, and many other widely-read publications and sites. You can also catch his weekly Sleuth Sayers blog each Saturday on Facebook, and PLEASE grab a copy of his wonderful volume of humorous poetry, Lighten up a Little. This little book is a treasure, and because of COVID restrictions at the precise point the book was released, there's a very good chance you missed it.

Maybe a plot about an abducted Zoom meeting host?

In our immediate future, Candace Wheeler will speak to the Biloxi Lions Club at the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum (where we launched her book this past Saturday) at noon on Wednesday, April 28. On Saturday, May 1, she'll appear at the Lynn Meadows Discovery Center's 23rd Birthday Tea Party Under the Oaks from 10am-12pm. A very special event for both young children and their parents/grandparents, Candy will share some essential Biloxi history with attendees and sign books. 

Again, please support Independent Bookstore Day this Saturday, wherever you are, and be sure to put August 21 on your calendar and join us for the Mississippi Book Festival. You can order signed books from the Dogwood Press website (dogwoodpress.com) anytime and have your purchases in hand in just a couple of business days, and you can download most Dogwood Press titles to your Kindle.

Thanks for your time. Keep smiling, and keep reading!