Honorable Mention

How can Great News get better? When Great News Town receives recognition in the current issue of Writer's Digest Magazine. Great News Town is one of eight books to receive Honorable Mention in the Genre Fiction category of the magazine's annual Self-Published Book Awards. With more than 2,500 entries, the competition was stiff and we're glad to receive a mention in this fine company.

Book club bonus

The Xtra Edition of Great News Town, with discussion questions and a preview of the next book, One Shoe Off, is now available at Lulu.com. Also, in response to reader requests, I've added a character directory. You'll recognize the new version of the book because it has an Xtra logo on the front.

Black Friday in Great News Town

All you sale seekers out there take heed! Lulu is having a 30 percent off sale through Tuesday, Nov. 27. So if you've been intending to buy a copy of Great News Town, now you can get big savings on the brand new Xtra edition (with discussion questions for your reading group and a preview chapter of the sequel, One Shoe Off). This is the biggest sale I've ever seen at Lulu. And the sale on photo calendars is even greater. To get the sale discount, go to lulu.com, choose the books you want, just type in DELIRITAS,  all in caps, at the check out. And enjoy!

It's a Shoe in!

Great News Town has a baby sister! One Shoe Off officially hits the bookstores December 1 with a book signing at Schuler Books and Music in Grand Rapids, Mi. from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. But fans will find it's already available at Create Space. Just click on the book cover at left. In this sequel, city editor Josie Braun finds a shoe that reopens the mystery of Zelda Machinko, a crime-fighting editor who disappeared 30 years before. As the spirit of Zelda reveals her tale, the problems of the past intertwine with the people and places of the present. The gritty gangsters of Zelda’s world in the 1950s collide with the government graft uncovered by the Jordan Daily News in the 1980s.

Lost "Shoe"

Got a call today from a fan in Illinois wondering when the sequel to Great News Town will be available. At a book signing in Joliet last October, I had told people to expect One Shoe Off to hit the shelves about June or July. Well, I was a little off. Looks like it won't be released until November. But don't worry. It is coming. More about that later!

Book Club Extras

Had a great visit last week with a book club in Jenison. The ladies  had read Great News Town and gave me lots of positive feedback. They agreed a Book Club Edition with a list of characters and discussion questions would be helpful so I plan to work on that right away (in between work on the new serialized edition. )

Clydesdale Cogwheels!

Duke's creative cursing challenge is really picking up steam. Here's a few entries that have already made it into my sequel: One Shoe Off.
Dragon Drool.
Son of a poodle's paramour
Turtle Curdle
And here are a few Duke originals: gnat scat, spider spindle and iguana guano.
Top that, creative cursers everywhere. If you have a curse word to suggest for Duke, just post it here in the comment section. If I use it in One Shoe Off, you get a free copy of the book and recognition in the book credits!