I'm Back!!!!

There is a gap in my blog posts because I have been completely consumed with writing Haunted Cotswolds and Haunted Cheltenham. So sixty thousand words and one hundred and twenty photographs later I have come up for air. But it was a lot of fun.

Sixty photographs were required for each book. My husband Randy Montgomery is an ace photographer so he took those. We spent last summer having a great time touring the Cotswolds in England taking photos of the ghost story locations and meeting all the locals who had scary stories to tell.

Haunted Cotswolds is slated for publication in June 2010 and Haunted Cheltenham in September 2010. Now that the manuscripts of these two books are with the publisher I feel, dare I say it, a little bit like Julie Powell as she is portrayed in the movie Julie and Julia -----Yeah! I’m a writer! Although unlike Julie I have no desire, as of now, to write a novel. I guess non-fiction is my thing and as I wrote earlier author Bill Bryson is my inspiration.

BIG NEWS!

I got not one but count'em two book deals. I actually got them last summer ('08) but have been too busy to actually post this info on my blog. Too busy writing the first one.

Last summer I was looking for a publisher for my comedic memoir Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries and submitted the manuscript to History Press when I was in England. They turned this down as they do not publish memoirs but liked my writing so much that they offered me a book deal writing Haunted Cotswolds - a book of ghost stories set in the Cotswolds - the most beautiful part of England. This book is to be part of an ongoing series that is currently in publication by History Press and other titles in the series include Haunted London, Bath, Birmingham etc., After I had written a number of stories for the book History Press looked at what I had and then offered me another book in this same series - Haunted Cheltenham. Cheltenham is another town in the Cotswolds.

I am having a lot of fun writing them. I am weaving the history of the area in with the ghost stories and I sure am learning a lot. Also keeping it lighthearted.

So when these books are published I will have three in print - The Comedy Group Book (Smith & Kraus) being my first book - although I have co-written three plays which are currently published by Samuel French.

The other big news is that I just acquired a New York literary agent for my memoir Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries.

Meanwhile, however, if anyone has any connections with a publisher let me know. This book is making readers laugh out loud. I guess I should be able to write funny - this is what I do for a living.

Also Randy and I have completed episode 9 of our Internet/mobile phone series Film Noir for Dummies - only one more episode to finish editing before we are done. The first episode is posted on YouTube under the same title as above.

And the play that Randy and I are writing together is now being readied for a workshop performance on 29th March - at a theatre in NoHo - so email me if you would like to come.

Film Noir for Dummies

Sex For Dummies

The Comedy Group Book