Meet Lady Excitement: Diane Rapp

I discovered Diane Rapp through her High Seas Murder series a few years ago--and became an instant fan. I liked her polished, professional style and her tempering the traditional 'cosy' with a modern edge. How did she come to write these books?

I became an entrepreneur when I started a dog grooming salon in Santa Barbara, California. I spent the next thirty years as a small business owner; I sold real estate, owned an office supply/copy center, and performed free-lance advertising design. During those hectic years I wrote stories as a cure for insomnia. After onsite research and writing a Caribbean tour guide together, my daughter gave me the idea of writing a mystery set on cruise ships. Although part of a series, each book is a stand-alone novel.

                                                                 *****

                                          BRAND NEW RAPP EVENT!

Diane has some exciting news for fans of the series--and for those who've yet to discover the thrills of the High Seas. Her new book is at once a fourth series entry and a bold departure.

I've set November 30 as the release date for GOLDEN LEGACY.  I've decided to list all 3 of the HIGH SEAS MURDER books for a 99c sale starting November 27 thru Dec. 4 and have loaded the book for Pre-Order sales.

Pre-Order Legacy
http://amzn.to/1Pq9foR

How is this new book a return to form and a new departure?

Golden Legacy blends historical adventure with modern-day mystery in an exciting novel that follows two time lines. Embarking on a harrowing treasure hunt, two daring heroines tackle the hazards of gold country more than a century apart. Although a stand-alone novel, readers who have already met Kayla and Steven in the High Seas Mystery series, may enjoy their continued love story in the Rockies. See real places around Ouray, Colorado through actual photos within the narrative.

Ginny is a “modern” English gentlewoman traveling alone in the year 1888. At the age of twenty-five, she deems herself a spinster, admitting the condition results from her own decisions. After Ginny gains control of her own money, she sets out to travel the world, hoping to publish a series of travel journals. Upon landing in San Francisco, Ginny’s aristocratic life drastically changes course when she learns that miscreants shot her twin brother, Johnny. Ginny journeys by train from San Francisco to Ouray, Colorado, faithfully recording events in her journal. After tending to Johnny in hospital, the gutsy woman strikes out to locate his hidden gold mine, armed with courage, a fountain pen, and two sharp hatpins. It is her duty to deliver supplies and information to Nick, her brother’s business partner and dear family friend.

In modern day action, Kayla and Steven deal with aftermath from the aborted murder attempt on Kayla after their wedding. Plagued by turbulent dreams of drowning, Kayla develops a paralyzing fear of open water. She’s summoned to a dying aunt’s bedside and jumps at the chance to trade life at sea for the comforts of home in Colorado. To inherit the family legacy, Kayla must solve clues and locate the family gold mine. After reading Ginny’s journal and searching for clues scattered throughout a charming Victorian house, Kayla and her friends endeavor to find the mine. They cross hazardous terrain through wild country and face tricky problems inside the derelict mine. Old generators lie dormant, and they need to activate a trompe to open the “safe” inside the mine. Clues purloined from the house might guide disgruntled heirs to steal the treasure for themselves.

Kayla struggles to decipher the mystery before snow falls, testing her courage, ingenuity, and honesty to qualify for the golden legacy. Can she overcome fear to reveal what is most important to her future?

Previous entries in the High Seas Mystery series, priced at $.99 November 27 through December 4.

Murder Caribbean-Style is the first book in the series.
Readers meet the main characters and learn about life aboard a ship while solving the murder of Kayla’s ex-lover, Patrick. He’s made plenty of enemies as Chief Purser on the cruise line, including Kayla. She must learn what caused him to become a womanizer and thief before her friends are accused of the murder. When she teams up with Steven Young, a handsome British magician working undercover for Interpol, danger and romance are mixed with the action.
http://tinyurl.com/q5fxdzo

Murder on a Ghost Ship is the second novel in the series. 
Kayla is summoned back to work by cruise line Chairman, Emily Schultz. Emily bought a new ship for the cruise line but learns there is a ghost aboard, a very unhappy phantom. Emily is desperate to uncover the identity of the “Lady” and why she’s stuck aboard before the bad investment sinks her career. When Steven’s partner in an Interpol smuggling investigation is killed, Steven gets fired. He arrives onboard the ship to help Kayla solve her ghost problem, while the smugglers track him down and plan to kill him.
http://tinyurl.com/qhjz42f

Murder for Glacier Blue is the third novel in the series. 
Kayla and her friends gather together on a “working” vacation to Alaska while preparing for her wedding on Glacier Bay. The team must guard six valuable paintings displayed next to authorized copies that will be auctioned for charity, six chances for thieves to score. The perfect wedding hits a snag when Steven’s ex-wife arrives on the arm of a childhood friend, and she’s intent on creating trouble. Enjoy photos of actual Alaskan attractions mixed into the narrative as you take a virtual cruise and solve an art heist and murder.

http://tinyurl.com/nk34uqr

                     JOIN THE AUTHOR IN HER WORKSHOP

On the Golden Legacy page of her website, Diane discusses the book's genesis and the challenge of writing a mystery with a dual story line: half told in the present and half in an old journal. Enjoy this rare chance to visit the author in her workshop:

bit.ly/1kpMy6U


                                                                          *****


                                                 Links

The High Seas Mystery series introduced me to her work. When I learned of her fantasy writing, I decided to give it a try though I don't often read in that genre. I'm glad I did. Really good writers can hook us whatever they've chosen to do--and Diane Rapp is one of the best.

To learn more about all of her books, here's the link:
www.quicksilvernovels.com

Also, to connect with Diane:

Facebook: 
https://www.facebook.com/quicksilvernovels

Twitter:
https://twitter.com/DianeRapp

In Praise of The School of Hard Knocks

The last two lines contain the key: an ongoing curriculum.

On this cold, wet Sunday in the city of Seattle, I find myself thinking about this today: appraising my first year in the city...and my three years as an ebook author--after four published books and then 25 years in The Desert.

Conclusion: I have aced some  essential courses...but I am not, as I had thought, a PhD from this rough school. In fact, I've flunked a few courses and have more years of hard study ahead. Plus, some still worse knocks, I'm sure.

Literary and office politics (or politricks) continue to confound me, despite the progress I've made at writing, editing, cover designing, event promotions, online presence, etc. I've developed substantial followings on Twitter and Facebook. And I've continued to work on my usage of both. At the same time, I've revamped my resume for another job search.

Yet in this last month I've tanked in two job interviews. The numbers of my book reviews pretty mirrors their sales. I am no less mystified by cold shoulders from writers I've championed.

But, as a continuing student, I vow: no more miserable report cards like this:




For the new semester, which has just begun--only in MacRathWorld can a semester begin in November!--I have a new instructor.

He was prominently featured in my last post on Authors Electric. His name is Balthsar Gracian and you'll find your introduction here:

http://authorselectric.blogspot.com/2015/11/books-youll-be-killed-if-caught-reading.html

Gracian's little book, The Art of Worldly Wisdom  is subtitled  A Pocket Oracle. And it is exactly that.

http://tinyurl.com/oha4u6u

More than an oracle, or a manual, it is also the perfect antidote to the chief pop power guides, Machiavelli's The Prince and Robert Greene's 48 Laws of Power. What I love about Gracian's The Art is its unique dual focus on material success and personal excellence.

It contains 300 pithy aphorisms. I plan to study one each day, then take the remaining two months every year for an intensive review.

Oh, the School of Hard Knocks will continue to deliver its tough, bruising lessons. But Gracian seems an excellent guide for dodging the worst of those lessons and enduring the handful that one can't evade.

Goal for my first years' tutelage under Gracian: to become an upperclassman in the hard knockin' school all attend.

For Real--Danger Man Has Arrived!

The big post has gone Live today on Authors Electric!

http://authorselectric.blogspot.com/2015/11/books-youll-be-killed-if-caught-reading.html


Join me in my quest to make the world a better place...by Sharing this post with your friends!

Oh-Oh, Danger Man's Arrived!

In the past two weeks I've tried three times to write a dangerous post. Each time I began I backed off form the fray I knew that it would cause.

Finally, I've written it--but not for publication here. You'll have to wait just a few more days till it appears on a larger forum.

It's about power--how ruthless bastards steal it and try to keep you from getting your share.

It's about two books you'll be killed if you're caught reading.

It's about three camps of losers who are making one author dirt rich. But, joy, it is also about a fourth, exclusive, club of Enlightened Worldly Warriors who'll welcome you into their fold if you enjoy breathing more rarified air.

It's about refusing to give up what it is yours.

It's about reclaiming what you were foolish enough to renounce.

D-Day is:

August 12.

Where:

Authors Electric

Link: to be provided.

Be careful. I've just had a birthday and this one's a dangerous post.