A New Entry in the Endings Series
On September 17th the FOURTH book in the Endings series will be flying into your hands. This year is going so fast, that feels like just a minute away!
The book is called Insensible Loss and it takes the beleaguered hit woman we met in Endings way back in 2021 to places far beyond those I had previously thought possible. Those who have read the book have said it is the most cerebral of this series to date. (And I’m pretty sure they meant that in a good way.)
The book takes place mostly in the desert, in a place so remote it barely has a name. A world class artist plays a part (hence the blood-tipped paintbrush, so there’s a clue) and — of course — the dog survives this episode, too. (Just to reasure you: the dog will always survive. Even if no one else was left standing, he’d still be there.)
If you are curious or want to be kind, you can preorder the book. As I’ve told you before (and as you probably already know anyway) a preorder is every author’s very favorite thing. That’s because it tells all the publishing powers-that-be that people care about this author and their books at a time when decisions about next books might be getting made.
A Softer Way of Doing Things
The week before book four in the Endings series appears, book three, Dead West, will come out in paperback.
Dead West was a heartbreaking book for me to write. I was working on it at the same time I was writing Wild Horses: Running Free and the persecution that American Mustang horses are experiencing at present sometimes filled my heart with tears. At those times it seemed impossible to work on the non-fiction Wild Horses, so I’d turn to fiction and burn off some of the pain. The result is a book that’s filled with a sort of angry, raw passion. In his beautiful blurb for the book, William Kent Krueger said:
“Linda L. Richards delivers yet another riveting entry in her hired killer series. Set mostly in Arizona desert country, Dead West is a dust devil of a story, twisting in wildly unpredictable ways and with a powerful emotional center. But this book isn’t just a marvelously compelling thriller; it also cries out passionately for protection of the endangered wild horses of the West. Kudos to Richards for seamlessly weaving an important message into the fabric of a terrific tale.”
You can preorder the paperback version of Dead West here.
Spring Break for Writers
Don’t get me wrong: I loved the splendid isolation of the pandemic as much as anyone. (!) But, like a lot of people, I’ve been really digging the gradual reintroduction to the things we all took for granted in the time before.
Remember all those small, sweet, and entirely valuable writer’s conferences we used to take part in on a regular basis? Well, they’re back. I’m looking forward in particular to one I will take part in next weekend, Spring Break for Writers: Creating a Career of Success as an Author! April 26 to 28 at the Scottsdale Marriott Old Town in Scottsdale, Arizona.
This will be the first ever in-person event hosted by Grand Canyon Writers, a chapter of Sisters in Crime that was actually formed during the pandemic. (Which, I guess, is why all these pandemic-time memories are rolling in. It’s been a long road, kids. I’m happy we made it here.)
If you’re planning on being at the event, I’ll be on hand for pretty much the whole thing. I don’t know the schedule yet, but when they tell me to start talking, I’ll be hosting a session on finding your path to publishing success. (See image above.)
If you’d like more information on the event, you can find it here.
And Speaking of My Sisters…
It’s good to have friends. Good, also, to be part of something larger than oneself. I have been on the national board of Sisters in Crime for a couple of years now, and I am still astonished to find that the available resources through this organization seem bottomless. Just when you think you know pretty much everything possible and on offer, something else appears. That’s a rich and wonderful feeling.
If you are on any part of a path to finding your way in publishing, it is not possible to go wrong with a membership in Sisters in Crime. Whatever questions you have, there are answers here. It is nothing short of incredible and includes full access to a web site that Writers Digest recently ranked as a top writing resource.
Feel like racing off to sign up? You’ll find out how to do that here.
Thanks for hanging around! I remain grateful for your attention. Have a beautiful day!