Happy new story!

Let's start 2013 with a bang.

I've just published a new hard-boiled short story, available through Kindle, Smashwords and other e-book sellers. It's called YVONNE'S GONE, and it's a nasty piece of business, full of jealousy and betrayal and murder.

You can read more about this 99-cent short story by clicking here. The brilliant cover art is by Kelly Brewer.

For me, the story of 2012 was the expansion of our E-Book Empire. Over the past two years, Kelly and I have made a cottage industry out of indie publishing. Thanks to e-books, we can now publish books nearly as fast as I can write them.

In 2012, we published a Bubba Mabry novella (PARTY DOLL), a comic mystery novel (A BOX OF PANDORAS), and three short stories, counting YVONNE'S GONE, which launched on Dec. 31. For full descriptions of those stories (and all my books), go to www.stevebrewer.us.com.

As 2012 wrapped up, we tried something new. A BOX OF PANDORAS, which came out as an e-book in June, soon will be available as a trade paperback. We've been learning Amazon's print-on-demand service, CreateSpace, and PANDORAS is going through its final proofing now.  In the coming months, we'll publish my other e-book exclusives (CALABAMA, LOST VEGAS, THE BIG WINK and FIREPOWER) this way, too. Paperback versions of the books will be available through Amazon, and I'll have copies to sell/display at events like next spring's Southwest Book Fiesta in Albuquerque.

I'm taking it easy today, but the rest of January promises to be crazy busy. Not only am I spending a few hours a day on the paperback project, but I'm starting the first draft of a new novel called DEADPAN. Plus, my new writing class in the Honors College at the University of New Mexico starts Jan. 14. Whee!

We wish you happiness, prosperity and good reading in 2013!

Books and a nice drive

Hey, readers in New Mexico! Take a drive to the East Mountains this Saturday, enjoy the scenery and visit with a couple of local authors.

Thriller writer Joseph Badal and I will be at the Old Schoolhouse Gallery from 1 to 3 p.m., signing books and telling lies. The gallery is at 12504 Hwy. 14, near the turnoff to the ski area.

I'll be selling paperback and hardcover books from among my 25 titles and talking about my recent plunge into e-book publishing. All five of Joe's thrillers will be available.

After the event, we're adjourning to a restaurant next door for drinks and more lies.

Y'all come!

Big e-book price markdown!

Starting today, all my e-books are $2.99 or less. That's 25 titles, including my latest novel, the hilarious mystery A BOX OF PANDORAS, which came out in June. All $2.99 or less.

Kindle users can see my e-books here. If you use another brand of e-reader, go see my page at Smashwords here. Prices are going down at Nook and other retailers as well, but those changes sometimes take a week or more to appear. Remember: you don't need an e-reader to enjoy bargain e-books. The Kindle app is free for PCs, smartphones, etc.

All of us who are publishing e-books have experimented with price points, and I've come to believe $2.99 is the way to go for novel-length fiction. It's only half as much as a paperback, and readers will risk that much on an unfamiliar author, I think. Because the royalty rate is so much better on e-books, the author makes about $2 per e-book at $2.99, about the same as on a $24 hardcover published the traditional way.

My short stories will continue to be 99 cents, which again seems to be the going rate. I've published two new ones in the past month: SHOWDOWN and FOUND MONEY. Enjoyed writing both, and I've started sketching out another one. Short stories seem much more rewarding now that there's a guaranteed market via e-books.

I'm moderating a panel Friday at the Tony Hillerman mystery writing seminar in Santa Fe. The 9 a.m. panel, which is on writing humor, also features New Mexico authors Michael Orenduff and Richard Peck. Looking forward to it.

Now back to writing!

New short story debuts

Encouraged by the response to SHOWDOWN, I've published another new short story on Kindle and Smashwords. It's called FOUND MONEY, and I'm real proud of it.

FOUND MONEY is the suspenseful tale of a briefcase full of drug money, how it's lost and found, and how many lives it takes down along the way. The story was especially challenging to write because it's all in one character's voice, one half of a conversation between cop and crook. I had to cover a lot of backstory in very few pages, and still have a twist in the present.

Give FOUND MONEY a try. I think you'll like it. And it's only 99 cents.

Thanks to e-books, I'll write more short stories and novellas in the future. The market tilts toward shorter works now, after years of going the other direction. Plus, I enjoy writing them. Short stories used to seem so much harder than novels, but I started thinking of them as one-act plays, and that's made it easier.

I've started sketching out a new novel, but it's in the earliest stages right now. Doubt I'll get much done on it this week because I've got lots of chores and meetings, and a stack of papers to grade for my University of New Mexico class. But some part of my brain is always working on the next book.

Looking forward to Halloween. We get lots of trick-or-treaters at our Albuquerque home because the neighborhood park has a "pumpkin glow." Last year, we gave out 10 pounds of candy. One of my chores today is to buy 11 pounds of candy, so I'll be sure to have leftovers for me.

New short story

Two old men sit down together once a week to play gin rummy. They've met for these games at the farm for thirty years. One night, one man reveals a terrible secret from long ago. Revealing a secret always has consequences.

That's the opening premise of SHOWDOWN, my new suspense short story, available at Kindle, Smashwords and soon at Nook and Apple and the rest. It's only 99 cents. Please give it a try and let me know what you think.

I wrote SHOWDOWN after sending my new bank robber novel STASH THE CASH off to my agent. He loved the manuscript, but asked for changes, including a new, grittier title. I'm now feverishly working on the rewrite of  The Novel Formerly Known as STASH THE CASH. It's even darker than before.

The new working title is DUKE CITY SPLIT. You like?

My most recent novel-length e-book, A BOX OF PANDORAS, is still selling briskly, thank you very much. It's gotten excellent customer reviews, except for one complaining about the few scattered curse words. Apparently not allowed in cozies. Damn.

My "New Noir" class at the University of New Mexico is keeping me hopping, adding to my usual reading load. And I'm reading and planning for next semester's Honors class, a first-time offering called "Become a Better Writer."

My SouthWest Writers mystery-writing seminar last weekend went very well. Sixteen students managed to stay awake while I talked faster than an auctioneer for four hours. We all went away exhausted, yet energized about writing.

Busy, busy, busy. Next public appearance is at the Tony Hillerman Writing Seminar in November in Santa Fe. I'm popping in on Nov. 9 to preside over a humor panel with fellow New Mexico authors Richard Peck and Michael Orenduff. Should be a hoot and a half.

Now stop reading this and go read SHOWDOWN.