Friday, June 26, 2009

Say a Prayer!

I just got back from the hospital - my daughter Kristin is trying to have her third baby w-a-a-a-a-y too early, and so she, her husband Matt and I were in the Emergency Labor Room all night! Right now all is well, but I've been watching her other two adorable but high-energy kiddos today after that all-nighter which means at this moment my eyes are getting bleary from lack of sleep. So! Please send your good thoughts her way, because we need to keep the new little one cookin' for at least two more weeks!

In the meantime, we had a tornado warning yesterday and another one today, so nothing is calm in Elizabeth. Although...I must say it's the perfect weather to curl up with a good book, and I'm reading one that is amazing! It's called THIS IS WHAT I DID by Ann Dee Ellis. What a fantastic writer! Oh, and be sure to check out THE CHOSEN ONE by the brilliant Carol Lynch Williams. I read it before it was published and I COULD NOT put it down. So I'll grab a book and head for bed. Cheers!

Alane Ferguson

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

So Sorry for the Drought!

Hello to everyone!

So I got an email from my new friend David who said, and I quote: "I'm such a fan. But I have to be honest. You suck at updating your blog. April 26th? That was like TWO WHOLE MONTHS AGO." Me again: That was sooooo embarrassing because it's been sooooo true! My excuses are that I was sick, which you knew, and then I rose from my deathbed to travel again and again in back-to-back trips. When I finally came home my family arrived from all over (five actually stayed with me, but I fed 15 at one point, along with four LARGE dogs who stayed in my home with their masters) and then I was off again (some of my family was still at my house when I hit the airport) to teach the most AMAZING class of writers in Utah, where I met David, who took a picture of me at the conference and used some sort of Power Point drawing-thing to turn me into a bunny! (Don't even ask!) And then we had that humongous tornado on Monday (anyone see it on the news? That was Elizabeth, Colorado, where I live, and it was all over the media, including CNN. Didn't hit my house but what a storm!) And then my daughter Kristin went into premature labor (she's due August 8th) so I've been helping out there. Whew! Okay, enough excuses, keeping up with my blog just got away from me. But I vow (are you listening, David?) to do better in the future!

I got another amazing email from Jessica. She wrote:

Dear Alane Ferguson,

THANK YOU for your amazing novels in the Christopher Killer series. I can't wait for the next one to come out this fall. I never truly got in to watching crime TV shows, but when a friend recommended that I read this series, and then my entire book club started recommending that I read them, I had to pick them up. I'll be honest, I'm a girl who faints at the sight of blood, even my own, but your books truly made me interested about forensic science. Never, while reading your book, did I feel squeamish, but rather enthralled and drawn closer. It's an odd feeling, when you find yourself lost in the world of something you never looked at closely before, but I loved it.

I was wondering if you were going to do a tour when "The Dying Breath" comes out, and if there would be any chance for you to come anywhere near where I live, outside of Chicago IL, so that I could get your autograph and meet you in person. That would be so cool. And if there will be no such tour, or no chance of me meeting you, I would gladly pay postage for you to send me your autograph in the mail, if that would be something you would do. I would love to have your signature!

Oh, by the way, I'm highly frustrated with the end of "Circle of Blood" and the first chapter of "The Dying Breath". Kyle! Oh my gosh! I was freaking out, and I need MORE! As I said, I can't wait for the next book. They are written so well, and greatly detailed and knowledgeable.

Thank you for being such a great author and making me want more,
Jessica


What I loved about her email is that, believe it or not, a part of me is squeamish, too. I am a mass of contradictions! But the way Jessica felt about being 'drawn in' is exactly how I felt when I got to peek into that fascinating forensic world. All those shiny instruments, all of that blood...a body really is a puzzle that needs to be solved. But I have to admit when I come home after an autopsy I want to stay in the shower a long,long time! The smell is the hardest part...

One other thing - Jessica asked about a book tour, and those can get started by fans like you emailing Penguin with a request to have me come to your area. If there's enough interest then I'm all over it!

Also, I'm happy to send out book plates to any of you who might want them. Just email me at aferguson@alaneferguson.com with your address and which books you have and I'll pop the bookplates right in the mail. You can stick them in the front of your books so it's autographed!

Lastly, I would like to thank everyone who wrote to me on the blog while I was gone. It means a lot to me that you're so patient. I'm home now for awhile and I'm crossing my fingers that ABC, who has expressed interest in developing my forensic books into a series, options the books. Keep those fingers crossed and say those prayers for me!

Hugs-from-tornado-alley,

Alane Ferguson