Author Genre: Mystery, Suspense
Website: Merle McCann
Linkedin Member
Twitter: @gigimm2
E-Mail: merlemccann7@gmail.com
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Amazon Author Profile
Author Description:
MERLE McCANN is known for her National literature award- winning Longjohners Mystery Series for middle grade readers. She has published many short stories featuring Arizona, Mississippi, and Washington locations. McCann’s work won best in all categories and genres in the Dixie Kane Memorial as well as Arizona Authors Association annual National literature contest. Born in the Yukon, raised in Seattle, she has traveled the United States and Europe with her husband, pursuing their Arabian horse business. She has also worked as a paralegal, event planner, and scenic photographer, and lives with her husband in Scottsdale, Arizona.
SPOTLIGHT Questions and Answers with the Author
What do you have on the drawing board next? Can you tell us the timeline for its release and give us a little tease?
I am just finishing the sequel to Vagabonds & Kings, “Katherine’s Story.” Katherine is the woman Tony married at the end of his story. She is not at all like him. Whereas he was an uneducated man, Katherine was well educated by the nuns and trained to be a concertstage pianist. She was on her way to Europe for finishing her to perform when WWI broke out. She and her mother cancelled their plans immediately and Katherine’s life was changed forever. I’m guessing it will be at least another year before it will hit the market, possibly 18 months.
You have a good following on twitter. Since you started before the social media buzz, what impact has social media relationships had on your current success? How did you build your following in your niche? How much has it changed your book launch process?
Compared to others I don’t think I have a big following on twitter. I seldom post on twitter and rarely go there to read others’ posts. I’m too busy writing, and helping other writers, to spend my time on social media. It has not impacted my book launch process at all. When I believe my manuscript is as good as I can make it, I start the process of getting it published.
You do a lot of book signings, interviews, speaking and personal appearances. When and where is the next place where your readers can see you? Where can they keep up with your personal contacts online?
I am preparing now to do a presentation for the attending writers and shoppers, “Ten Tips for Writing the Best Short Stories”, at Payson’s Book Festival in July. I will be signing and selling the entire day, taking only the time away from my table for the presentation.
You have written several short stories. Can you tell us if they had an impact on the sales of your novels? Are shorty’s one of your styles of writing or are they created to give readers a sample of your work?
I don’t know if the short stories had an impact on my novel sales as I really don’t follow it. When selling “across the table” I am usually talking about my stories and the interesting plot lines, so I’ve not had many mentions of the published short stories. I used to carry copies of the beautiful anthologies in which my stories appeared, but lately the inventory I carry is too heavy to bring along the anthologies, too. The short stories are written for entertainment purposes. I love the challenge of writing with a word cap.
I like the idea of Author bundles. You are a part of an Anthology from Sisters in Crime Desert Sleuths Chapter called SoWest: Killer Dreams and others. What was the impact on your other sales? What was the main objective of bundling your works with other authors? How did they put something like that together?
It takes a lot of work and willing people to create and publish a collection of various writers’ work. I respect the process and the people who do it, so I follow their rules to the letter, including the submission deadline. I think the impact on my other sales has been small. The main objective for me in writing and submitting a short story to any organization planning an anthology is love of the challenge to create a storyline that appeals to the judges and to write it within their word cap. As a novelist, it is an excellent exercise in keeping my writing tight, sleek and clean.
Besides the Sisters in Crime/ Desert Sleuths what other writer support groups do you belong too? Do they help with the writing, marketing and the publishing process?
I belong only to Sisters in Crime/Desert Sleuths. Ever since joining, I have been an active volunteer in all of their efforts to assist writers in the Phoenix Valley. I was a Member of the Board until 2017, when I retired. I continue to aid and assist in all their projects. I’ve kept my memberships down to one organization because were I to join others, it could impact negatively on my work. That is, it would cut into my writing time. I truly love and respect the writing process and won’t permit anything to get in its way.
What is your primary genre? What has been your best marketing approach to this group?
My primary genre is mystery/suspense. My marketing approach is to seek and accept any speaking engagements where I can also sign and sell. I have found if I can speak about my books, people become interested in reading them. There is no higher compliment than when someone buys my book.
What has been your experience in giving your books away free? Have you been involved in any other type of giveaways and how did that work out? What was your main goal in doing this? Did you run into any obstacles?
I have given books away in certain circumstances. I have done it for a specific reason at that time. Sometimes, as with the Middle Reader Books, I want the child to discover The Longjohner Mystery Series and the joy of reading and owning a book. They need to know there is more to life than their telephone. Also, I include many small educational tidbits in their stories, things they probably won’t discover at school. All five in the series are based on a moral principle so kids can discover on their own the importance of being a good person and find the joy in it.
What is your method of getting reviews for your novels? Do you seek professional reviews, use social media or do you rely on your reading audience to supply them
I ask my reading audience to supply them. I have sought professional reviewers for reviews and I have been very pleased with the opinions they have shared regarding my stories and my writing skills. I have never paid for a review and never will.
The Sisters in Crime Desert Sleuths Chapter 2019 - Mesa Public Library - Red Mountain Branch was a special event. A library is a unique selling situation. How did you prepare for the event? Did it meet your goals? If you had to do something different, what would that be?
I never expect to sell many books at a library event so that goal is easily met, although I usually sell several. Most people come there to borrow, not to buy. That said, I believe it is good for both readers and writers to have an opportunity to meet and share ideas. It is also great for writers to meet other writers, especially those who write in differing genres. I think writers could easily talk the night away when it comes to the craft and the creation. We help each other in that way and I feel good whenever I’ve been helpful.
Author's Book List
The Parmeter File
ORIGINAL COVER Someone is out to harm Holly Greer, and she's frantic to know why. Determined to stop the life-threatening madness, Holly sets out on a high-stakes journey to discover what evil provoked the attempts on her life. Her efforts take her far from home as she faces vengeance, manipulation and destruction. Amidst the threats and intimidation, her situation is dramatically changed when the handsome man from Chicago strides into her life intending to have his way in more ways than one. A born survivor, she dodges assassins, discovers blackmail, murder, and fraud within the United States pentagon, and a love is rekindled.
Fast paced, unpredictable and heart stopping, The Parmeter File is pure entertainment to the very last page.
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Amazon
Vagabonds and Kings
- The Legend of Tony LaMontagneIn 1896, teenager, Tony LaMontagne sets out to follow his dreams of a ranch, a beautiful wife and family. With few coins in in his pocket and no prospects, he hops a boxcar in Quebec and lands in Chicago. Immediately embroiled in a fistfight, he saves the life of rich, impulsive and blind Frank Mueller and becomes Frank's bodyguard, driver and companion. Tony lives in Old World splendor, mingles with titans of industry, and gorgeous prostitutes. From Chicago's elegant mansions to the sporting houses in the tenderloin, Tony discovers a life unimaginable in rural French Canada. Still, Tony's dreams haunt him, urging him to go west. Six years pass while Tony works as a cowboy, ranch cook, and hauls freight. Finally, in 1902, he heads for the Yukon goldfields determined to find his destiny. Fast paced, unpredictable, and heart-stopping, Vagabonds and Kings spans the years from the end of the century to WWI. McCann's amazing and enthralling novel proves a determined young man can find his dream, no matter how obscure, if he never stops searching.
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Buy at Amazon
SoWest: Killer Nights
- Sisters in Crime Desert Sleuths Chapter Anthology Book 7The sun descends over the mountains and valleys of the Arizona desert. Under cover of darkness, evil flourishes. Not afraid of the dark? You will be. Desert Sleuths offer 20 tales in the latest edition of their award-winning anthology series. Grab a flashlight. Pull the covers over your head. SoWest: Killer Nights will keep you awake until sunrise.
Authors of the anthology: Shannon Baker, Mary Ball, Rebecca Boschee, Susan Budavari, Bill Butler, Meg E. Dobson, Wendy Fallon, Suzanne Flaig, Connie Flynn, Deborah J Ledford, Sharon Lynn, Merle McCann, Kathy McIntosh, Dana McNeely, Timothy W. Moore, LaDonna Ockinga, R K Olson, Judy Starbuck, Kari Wainwright, JoAnne Zeterberg. Lead Editor: Connie Flynn. Co-Editors: Susan Budavari, Ann Ciemnoczolowski, Meg E. Dobson, Merle McCann, R K Olson.
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Amazon
Barnes and Noble
The Twelve Tears of April
- The Longjohners Mysteries Book 5The Twelve Tears of April delves into U.S. history, and we see first hand how history can personally affect our future.
When the O'Brien's fly to Texas for spring break, they expect only to watch Papa's mare, Miss Devonshire, compete in a championship horse show. None of them anticipate the web of intrigue that awaits them in historic Independence, a town born in the days of Sam Houston.
When young Lanie Polencia discovers her family history may be a lie, placing her future in doubt, she is crushed. Desperate to know if her secret family treasure every truly existed, she turns to the O'Brien's for help. The journal they find that once belonged to Dona Elena Polencia transports them back to pre-Civil War days and pitches Kelsey, McKenna and Michael into a dangerous treasure hunt.
You see, there are others who are willing to kill to possess the treasure that once guaranteed Lanie's future. Set on a hair-raising course of discovery, Kelsey and McKenna take a life threatening chance to help their friend.
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Amazon
Fist Full of Grit
- Cooper Hughes Mysteries Book 1By 1880, the Indian Wars have wound down. Cooper Hughes, a twenty-year-old, scrappy tomboy has inherited one of the finest cattle ranches in the Palouse country of the beautiful Northwest. So, how bad can her life be? She’s about to find out when her entire herd is stolen. Without cattle to sell, her ranch near River Ridge in Washington Territory, faces bankruptcy. The authorities threaten to take her little brother away, and she discovers her best friend has been knifed to death.
Some would give up. Not a survivor like Cooper. She finds a well-paying job, singing in a sleazy stage revue two hours down the Snake River. It means she must live a secret double life if she is to maintain her family’s respectability back home. If anyone can manage it all, she can. That is, until a Harvard man, way too handsome for his own good, walks into her life and they discover a serial killer is murdering young women in the Palouse
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Amazon
Ghosts in the September Corn Maze
- The Longjohners Mystery Series Book 4America was built on strength of character. Ghosts in the September Corn Maze allows the reader to observe strength of character in action. Fourth in the Longjohners Mystery Series, the story is based on the moral principle of love thy neighbor. With mystery and intrigue aplenty, it will captivate and entertain the entire family and open lines of important discussion.
The O'Brien grandkids' summer vacation screeches to a halt when they find two teenagers unconscious from drug overdoses in their grandparents' corn maze. At the same time, ghosts are frolicking in the corn, but whose ghosts are they? As readers witness the rippling effect of drug abuse, they also gain an inspiring view into the world of one homeless family.
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Amazon
The Search for Black January
- The Longjohners Mystery Series Book 3When Michael O’Brien is nearly killed by a mysterious snowmobile, his family has only one vague clue to find the diver who sped into the night. Through it all, they come to understand the meaning of justice and the problem with lying.
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Amazon
The Permanent Solution
Riley Gordon, an Irish immigrant ranching cattle in Central Oregon, believed her life was perfect until she discovered her husband was a bigamist. A heartbreaking problem but one she could solve with divorce. Saving the ranch from foreclosure, after her ex had cooked the books, presented a greater challenge. But with her handsome foreman always at her side, how bad could it get? She was about to find out when John Farber, a man with a penchant for killing his adversaries, came to town.
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Amazon
Midnight at the August Tree House
- The Longjohners Mystery Series Book 2How cool to build a tree house! But what if, from its window, you saw something you weren’t meant to see? The O’Brien’s take a life-threatening chance in order to solve a crime, and see first hand the problem with stealing.
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Amazon
The Mystery of October Island
- The Longjohners Mystery Series Book 1What a blast to camp on a private island--until someone raids the camp. Bizarre clues keep showing up that seem to make no sense at all, until Jazz Marie, the loving Labrador retriever, turns the tide. What a jaw-dropping way to learn it’s best to judge not.
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Amazon
Author Recommended by: HBSystems Publications
Publisher of ebooks, writing industry blogger and the sponsor of the following blogs:
Indie Author’s Corner and HBS Mystery Reader’s Circle
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