Pimp My Blog: Cheap Indie Author Spotlight

Hello All,

Next on the list is mystery maven Author Wendy Gager (W.S. Gager). Please welcome her to the Cheap Indie Author spotlight. And don't forget to ask questiosns! We can learn so much from each other's experiences. T

1. Tell us about your book(s).

I have two books out in the Mitch Malone Mysteries and a third scheduled for this summer. The first book, A Case of Infatuation, featured crime-beat reporter Mitch Malone. His rules are simple: He never lets the blood and guts he covers bother him. He always works alone. And he hates kids. Mitch breaks all three rules when he unwittingly agrees to smuggle a potential witness out of a suburban Michigan home while police investigate a mob-style-hit that's left two dead bodies. Mitch sends his intern (a real hottie, but nonetheless an interloper) to interview neighbors, hoping to throw her off, but when he finds the pint-sized survivor the killer overlooked, he decides she might be helpful. When the FBI accuses him of the murder, Mitch goes into hiding with the bombshell intern who doesn't talk and the precocious preschooler. Mitch works his contacts to regain his freedom from his roommates only to find they each hold keys to a bizarre story of disappearances, terrorists and the perfect hamburger recipe.

My second book is A Case of Accidental intersection. Mitch Malone hates hospitals, but when a suspicious traffic accident lands a comatose victim in the ICU, he must put that aside to find the truth. The surface looks smooth but the more the crime beat reporter looks the more bodies pop up including a private detectives. Can he get to the truth before the surviving victim is murdered in her hospital bed and an elderly witness has a heart attack? Will he get his exclusive printed before he’s the next victim? A Case of Hometown Blues is the third and Mitch returns to where he grows up and gets arrested for murdering the homecoming queen. In his quest to win a bet with the local news staff, he must get a big story but realizes his career maybe over if convicted. The police chief is his nemesis from high school and enjoys putting the screws to Mitch. Can he get his story, clear his name and get out of the town that haunts him?

2. How did you go about getting your book published?

My path to publishing was a bit different. I entered a contest sponsored by my publisher, Oak Tree Press. I wanted feedback on my manuscript from someone who specialized in mysteries and thought this would be a great way. Turns out I won the contest and A Case of Infatuation took the Dark Oak Mystery prize in 2008 and was published in 2009. My publisher runs a mystery, romance and cop tales contest each year. Deadline to submit is this summer so brush up your manuscripts. You can see more information at www.oaktreebooks.com.


3. Tell us about your marketing strategies.

This is the part that is the most difficult. I try to go to conferences and do speaking engagements to get the word out. I also have a blog, www.wsgager.blogspot.com, and a website, www.wsgager.com. Every Monday on my blog Mitch Malone, my main character interviews other authors. It is a lot of fun and I have gotten good feedback so far. I also try and do a lot with facebook but all the marketing really cuts into my writing time. I'm struggling to balance that.


4. What's the best advice you could give to new writers who want to get published? Start marketing yourself now. Get a author website and blog. Post things. Many publishers including my own look at your presence on the web before taking your work to the next step and offering a contract.


5. What are you reading? (I added this question to give every author the opportunity to lend to support to other authors coming up in the ranks like we are. :)

I just finished a book that was a compilation of mystery writers and put together by Jeffrey Deaver called Watchlist that featured chapters by some of my favorite authors. I have a huge stack of books to be read and received a Kindle for Christmas and have now loaded that. I'm trying to read every night for at least a half hour but it is tough. Some of my favorite indy authors are Marilyn Meredith, Sunny Frazier, J. Michael Orenduff, and am waiting anxiously for Holli Castillo's new book called Jambalaya Justice.

W.S. Gager Author of Humorous Whodunits A Case of Infatuation A Case of Accidental Intersection-Now Available www.wsgager.com Purchase the book today: http://books.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?WRD=a+case+of+infatuation&box=A%20Case&pos=4 http://www.amazon.com/Case-Infatuation-W-S-Gager/dp/1892343584/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246043800&sr=1-1