#MyWritingProcess Blog Tour

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Mary Griggs, Publishing

I was tagged in the #MyWritingProcess blog tour by author, Tonie Chacon who has a book coming out next year – Struck! A Titanic Love Story. She’ll be at the GCLS Literary Conference in Portland, too, so stop by and check her out then.

Here are my answers to the four questions:

1) What am I working on?

I’m going back and forth between two projects – one is a sci-fi story of tragic loss and finding love while the second is a New Orleans based mystery/romance that takes place over Mardi Gras.

2) How does my work differ from others in the same genre?

Hmm, part of the difference in the sci-fi story is that I’ve got an empath learning to interact with those without her talents and a little more than a bit of judgement about her culture.

The mystery/romance not only takes a look at post-Katrina New Orleans and the craziness of Mardi Gras but is made possibly by the unique geography and policing structure of the city.

3) Why do I write what I do?

Because the stories demand to be written! I love reading speculative fiction, romance and mystery and I’ve been encouraged by the readers response to my work to try my hand at other genres.

4) How does my writing process work?

Typically, I try to write everyday. This spring has been crazy making for me with the work I’ve been doing at the Louisiana legislature and balancing my paid employment with my volunteering but I’m still trying to devote time to getting all the characters and dialogue out of my head and onto the page.

Thanks so much, Tonie, for tagging me. I’m looking forward to reading your book!

 

Pre-Orders for the Golden Crown Literary Conference

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GCLS, Mary Griggs, Publishing

The Golden Crown Literary Society’s Annual Literary Conference is one of my favorite conferences. Not only do I get to improve my craft at the workshops and hang with many of the authors I admire (and meet many more who are new to me), it is a major destination for readers of lesbian fiction, too.

This year, from July 9th to 13th in Portland, Oregon, readers will be able to find me at the Bella Books table – just drop by to see the schedule of when your favorite authors will be there. I’ll be hanging around at other times, too.

During the conference, I am participating in the Author Chat (with Bev Prescott, Marianne Banks, Jove Belle, Elizabeth Sims and MJ Williams) on Friday, July 11 at 4pm followed by the Author Autograph Session at 5:15pm (catch all your favorite authors there). I’m also on the the Eat Your Heart Out Panel (writing/reading about food) with Georgia Beers, RG Emmanuelle and Karin Kallmaker (moderated by Lynn Ames) on Saturday, July 12 at 10:15am. Of course, please feel free to stop me to chat most anytime. See the Conference schedule for more information.

I’ll mainly have copies of my newest book, In the Midst of Tribulation, but if folks are interested in buying the others (Unbroken Circle and Crash Stop) and getting them signed, I’ll be happy to bring them, too.

Because I need to know how many of which to bring, I’m going to start taking pre-orders for books to be delivered to the conference. Contact me via email, Facebook or Twitter with the title by Monday, June 9th and I’ll bring the books to Portland and sign them when you pick them up.

I look forward to seeing you there!

THE MISSION OF THE GOLDEN CROWN LITERARY SOCIETY    

The Golden Crown Literary Society (GCLS) is a non-profit, volunteer organization whose mission is for the education, promotion, and recognition of lesbian fiction and creative non-fiction. Our goals are to:

1. Provide learning opportunities, encouragement and assistance to new and established authors in developing their craft;
2. Support and strengthen quality lesbian writing by providing educational programs and creating opportunities for readers and writers to interact; and
3. To recognize and promote lesbian literary work.

Saints and Sinners

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Mary Griggs, Publishing

The 2014 Saints and Sinners Literary Festival is scheduled for Friday, May 16^th – Sunday, May 18th at the Hotel Monteleone (214 Royal Street) in the French Quarter.

I will be there to sit in on some panels to improve my craft, to do a reading from In the Midst of Tribulation, and have a lovely conversation about Love in Literature. See below for the details or check out the Saints and Sinners website for the complete schedule.

SAINTS AND SINNERS READING SERIES: WRITERS READ
Saturday, May 17 at 4 PM
Hotel Monteleone, Cabildo Room

Festival authors debut their latest works in our annual reading series. Expect to be entertained, engaged and thrilled by the written word read out loud by authors Dale Chase, Mary Griggs, William Holden, David Holly, Thomas Keith, Kelly McQuain, and Jerry Rabushka.

Sponsored by The John Burton Harter Charitable Trust.

 

ENGAGING NARRATIVES: LOVE IN LITERATURE
Sunday, May 18 at 1 PM
Hotel Monteleone, Royal Salon C,D

“We are all fools in love,” wrote Jane Austen, one of literature’s greatest chroniclers of love, in Pride and Prejudice. Love is one of our most consuming obsessions, in real life, as well as in between the covers of novels. In this panel, four contemporary writers discuss the course of love, and it’s role in their fictional works. These authors have written about the dramas of gay men looking for love in the afterlife, lesbians finding each other in a very small Southern town, big cities, and across borders, a young “cub” finding himself in the world, amongst other narratives. Join them for craft wisdom on making readers fall hard for your literary characters, affairs, and plots.

Panelists: Melissa Brayden, Mary Griggs, Kevin Klehr, and Jeff Mann.

Moderator: Anne Laughlin

I hope to see y’all there!