THIS WEEK'S BOOK WINNER

Thanks to all who stopped by this week at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers. We hope you'll come back often and also tell your friends about us. We have lots of exciting posts and guests planned for the months ahead. I’d also like to thank CJ Lyons for being our Book Club Friday guest and offering a copy of Critical Condition to one of our readers who posted a comment this week. The winner this week is Janet. Janet, please email your mailing addresses to me at anastasiapollack@gmail.com, I’ll forward the information to CJ, and she’ll mail the book to you. 

BOOK CLUB FRIDAY -- GUEST AUTHOR CJ LYONS

Today at Book Club Friday we’re happy to have back author CJ Lyons. As a pediatric ER doctor, CJ Lyons has lived the life she writes about.  In addition to being an award-winning medical suspense author, CJ is a nationally known presenter and keynote speaker. 

Her first novel, LIFELINES (Berkley, March 2008), received praise as a "breathtakingly fast-paced medical thriller" from Publishers Weekly, was reviewed favorably by the Baltimore Sun and Newsday, named a Top Pick by Romantic Times Book Review Magazine, and became a National Bestseller. 

Her award-winning, critically acclaimed Angels of Mercy series (LIFELINES, WARNING SIGNS, URGENT CARE and CRITICAL CONDITION) is available now.  Her newest project is as co-author of a new suspense series with Erin Brockovich.  You can learn more at CJ's blog and for free reads, "Like" her at http://www.facebook.com/CJLyonsBestsellingThrillerAuthor -- AP

PARTNERING WITH A STAR

CJ Lyons

Would you say no to Erin Brockovich?

I couldn't -- in fact, I could barely suppress a squee of fan-girl delight when I learned that Erin not only enjoyed my medical thrillers but that she'd chosen me as co-author of her new suspense series.

When we spoke -- well, she talked, I could barely string words together, I was so excited! -- she said that she enjoyed my strong female protagonists and how they let nothing stand in their way of doing what was right. Turns out we both feel the same way about our fiction -- heavy on the characters and their relationships, light on the plot devices, and as fast-paced as possible.  

During that first conversation we began to talk about our personal life-views and philosophies and I mentioned how the entire reason I write what I call "Thrillers with Heart" is because of my belief that we are each our own hero. And Erin finished my sentence for me--because she shares the same viewpoint!

Of course we gave our main character, AJ Palladino, that life philosophy as well. Only for AJ it gets her into a lot of trouble along the way!

It was easy to develop AJ Palladino (her name kinda says it all, doesn't it?) as a real "people's champion" like both Erin and myself (as a pediatric ER physician, I specialized in child advocacy). But what should our first novel be about?  

A few weeks earlier I'd traveled to teach a writing workshop and my flight had taken me over the Appalachian Mountains. Being from central Pennsylvania, I'm no stranger to strip mining, but this was my first time seeing the ravages of mountain top removal mining up close.  

I wept. Yes, tough, ER doc me, not bothered by blood, guts, or gore--and I actually was crying!

Staring out the plane's window, my stomach lurched, my very soul fought for balance as I looked down on the man-made travesty that had once been beautiful, life-sustaining mountains. It was so very wrong on so many levels that it made me physically ill.

I shared this with Erin. She had also seen the destruction first-hand and thought mountain top removal mining was a fight worthy of our protagonist. And so, ROCK BOTTOM was born.

But I think what became important about ROCK BOTTOM, even though it was inspired by the passion Erin and I felt about mountain top removal mining and the damage it does to the people of Appalachia, was that at its heart, it's really the story of an adult child returning home and learning the true meaning of family.

And haven't we all shared that experience? Coming home and realizing that it's not the "home" we've fantasized about while we were out in the "real" world?

Of course, AJ's homecoming also involved murder and mayhem!

What kind of homecoming surprises have you had?

Share your story in the comments and you'll be entered to win a copy of the finale of my Angels of Mercy series, CRITICAL CONDITION.

Thanks for reading,

CJ

Okay, readers, let’s hear from you. I can tell you from personal experience that CRITICAL CONDITION is a fabulous read, and I can’t wait to crack open my copy of ROCK BOTTOM. -- AP

BOOK CLUB FRIDAY -- GUEST AUTHOR CJ LYONS

Our Book Club Friday guest today is medical suspense author CJ Lyons. As a pediatric ER doctor, CJ Lyons has lived the life she writes about.  In addition to being an award-winning medical suspense author, CJ is a nationally known presenter and keynote speaker. 

Her first novel, LIFELINES (Berkley, March 2008), received praise as a "breathtakingly fast-paced medical thriller" from Publishers Weekly, was reviewed favorably by the Baltimore Sun and Newsday, named a Top Pick by Romantic Times Book Review Magazine, and became a National Bestseller.  CRITICAL CONDITION, the final book in her award-winning, critically acclaimed Angels of Mercy series was just released.  CJ’s newest project is as co-author of a new suspense series with Erin Brockovich.  To learn more about CJ and her work, visit her website.

CJ has graciously offered a copy of URGENT CARE, the book that sets up CRITICAL CONDITION, to one of our readers who posts a comment to the blog this week. -- AP

STILETTO HEELS OR COMFY SLIPPERS?

The past  few years I've been privileged to judge several contests: the Ritas, Daphne published, the Golden Heart and the Thrillers. That adds up to almost 500 books I've read searching for excellence in fiction.

Did I find it?  Yes, but it was few and far between.

I don't think I'm an overly-harsh judge.  But maybe I've read too much?  So many of the books blend together—flat, cardboard characters following clichéd, over done plots to the point where I have to double check my score sheet.  Did I read this book already?

No, it's just like all the others is all…..

Many of these books are by multi-published best selling authors.  Some broke new ground with their early books but now continue to follow in their own footsteps. 

I can understand that—if you find what works for you and have a large following of fans wanting you to do the same old thing and paying you lots of money for it, who could resist?

And, many readers DO want the "same thing, just different". They demand it, complaining if "their" author tries a new direction. They like having expectations fulfilled, rather than being surprised.  Reading is a comfortable escape for them, not a challenge or adventure.

I confess, I'm more of a thrill-seeker when I choose my books.  Maybe because I now have so little time to read, every book I do finish must promise something new and exciting.  Many don't deliver on their initial promise and end up being unfinished, but that's fodder for another post! 

I think there's a time and place for both kinds of books.  And bravo to everyone who is reading instead of watching TV or living their lives on-line!!

But as a writer, it's scary to think about.  Your gut tells you to go one way, your brain tells you to stick to "what works", your heart wants to head in a totally other direction…what to do?

My last book in the Angels of Mercy series is out December 7^th.  With each book, I've upped the bar as far as intensity and giving the reader an adrenalin rush of a thrill ride.  Book #1, LIFELINES, was pretty much pure thriller with increasing stakes until the entire city of Pittsburgh was at risk.

Book #2, WARNING SIGNS,  was a different kind of challenge: combining a coming of age story about a medical student suffering from mysterious symptoms with the whodunnit mystery behind the deadly symptoms.

URGENT CARE, book #3, was a true book of my heart and the toughest to write--in it, I explore the psychological effects of surviving a trauma.  It's a dark, gritty suspense, very emotionally honest.

So for CRITICAL CONDITION, the finale of the Angels' quadrilogy, I wanted to go back to the intense pacing of the first book.  Only I set myself an even bigger challenge--instead of taking place over 4 days, this book takes place over four HOURS!

Yep, you got it--you'll pretty much read this book in real time--which means juggling not only four characters and their story arcs but down to the second timing between each scene.

Plus, after the dark intensity of URGENT CARE, I wanted to give readers a bit of a smile, so there are all sorts of unexpected happenings (unexpected even to me, lol!  Don't you love it when that happens; you're just writing along and you surprise even yourself?  Talk about chaos!) and fun twists and turns.

But….there's always a but, isn't there?...will CRITICAL CONDITION excite and satisfy my readers as much as it did me? It's fresh, different, pushing all the boundaries…but is that what readers want?

What do you want from a book?  A comfortable, familiar sweater that you know will fit perfectly? 

Or a snazzy, new dress that may itch at first but gives you that feeling of ohlala?

Thanks so much for stopping by, CJ! So readers, which are you? A comfortable sweater or a snazzy new dress? Don’t forget to post a comment to be entered in the drawing for URGENT CARE, and check back tomorrow to find out if you’re the lucky winner. -- AP