Last year, I put it on my to-do list to release the entire Mailboat Suspense Series in hardback. I was so stoked to hold my books in this new, longer-lasting, display-quality version–and a wonderful friend of mine (who asked to remain anonymous) backed the expenses for the entire project. (Thank you SO MUCH! You know who you are, and I’m sending hugs.)
Due to last year being… the year it was for me… those hardbacks didn’t happen. And I was pretty crushed about it. But it turns out I’m only human, and I had accidentally put a super-human pile of goals on my desk (including moving to Wisconsin).
Wisconsin happened.
The hardbacks didn’t.
But that’s about to change, and I am finally excited to announce…
The Mailboat Suspense Series is coming out in hardback this summer.
There will be boxed sets. There will be individual copies of each book in the series. And I. Can’t. Wait! For you guys to see them for yourselves.
I’m in the middle of laying out the interiors. My amazing cover designer, Maryna Zhukova, marked time on her calendar to transform her art into beautiful dust jackets.
And this ship is finally sailing.
The new hardbacks should release this August, and I’m taking pre-orders NOW!
Be sure to set your name down for an autographed copy so your gorgeous new book can ship as soon as they’re ready!
I can’t wait for you all to see these beautiful new versions of the Mailboat Suspense Series. Anchors aweigh!
Lake Geneva is hosting a city-wide Wine Walk! Registrants will be given a wine glass so they can sample wine at participating stores all over the city. You can find your new favorite beverage, see what Lake Geneva has to offer this spring–and help to raise funds for the upcoming Never Say Never Playland in Lake Geneva!
I’ll be at the Cornerstone Shop from noon to 4pm. Show up any time during the event to chat with me, learn more about the books, and pick up your autographed copies.
However, I did start developing the story while I was trapped in a life of emotional abuse and depression that nearly led to suicide… and creating this story helped me survive.
By popular demand of my fans over on Patreon, we’re going back to the very beginning of the Mailboat Suspense Series for the ultimate Story Behind the Story—starting with Mailboat I: The End of the Pier.
If you’ve been thinking about whether or not to give my Patreon a try, this is a once-in-a-lifetime moment to climb aboard. I’ve made the first two posts open to the public just so you can sample what we’re all about.
What Is Patreon?
I created my Patreon page in response to the most frequent complaint I hear from my fans: Waiting for the next book to come out!
My Patrons get some incredibly cool perks:
Access to every chapter I write, the minute I’m done writing it
Book Club Questions to discuss every chapter together
Behind-the-Scenes posts revealing details like my inspiration, writing process, and thoughts and feelings behind every moment in the story
A lot of my current Patrons followed along as I wrote Mailboat V, and they now know the Mailboat Suspense Series on a crazy intimate level. They’re currently waiting, breathless, to repeat the experience with Mailboat VI.
Why Are We Launching This Cruise Into the Past?
Right now, I’m wading into the lengthy but vital planning, research, and outlining phase for both Mailboat VI and Mailboat VII, and it’ll be a while before I have new chapters to release for the Patrons.
We were all sad about letting our community go dormant. In addition to the delights of reading and exploring the story together, we’ve created an incredibly tight-knit community around our passions for reading, Lake Geneva, and creating a safe space to discuss mental health.
Rebecca—both my untiring publicist as well as one of my loyal Patrons—had an idea. (Yes, another one. It’s like a garden spigot that doesn’t turn off.)
She suggested we could go back to Mailboat Book I and explore the very beginning of the Mailboat Suspense Series together.
I put it to a vote for the Patrons—and they approved it unanimously.
Schedule of Activities
Approximately once a week, I’m going to re-release a chapter from Mailboat I, followed by Book Club Questions to help the readers go even deeper into the experience.
My Patrons say they’re looking forward to the excuse to re-read the series, as well as to learn what their fellow readers think of each moment of the story.
With every chapter, I’ll also include a Behind-the-Scenes Post telling the story behind the story. And I’m planning to go deep.
Way deeper than I’ve ever gone before.
If you’ve been to one of my readings, you may think you know the backstory.
But there’s more.
Patreon has become my safe space to talk about my own experiences with trauma and abuse, and my own mental health journey. And if we’re going to talk about the very beginning of the Mailboat Suspense Series… we’re going to talk about some of the darkest times of my life…
But most importantly, the beauty that grew out of the ashes.
That first behind-the-scenes post is live now, and it’s free.
More Than Complimentary Soaps and Shampoos
The first chapter has already released, and it includes a lot:
A Behind-the-Scenes Post talking about how I encountered the idea for the Mailboat Suspense Series in the first place—and what my life was really like at the time. (Spoiler: It was pretty freaking awful.)
All of that is available now—and yes, I made it available to the public for free as a sample of everything we do over on Patreon. If you’ve been waiting for an excuse to give my Patreon page a try, I can’t think of a more ideal time to come aboard.
We can’t wait to welcome you to this deeper-than-ever Cruise Into the Past. It’s almost summer, and the water is fine. Come join us!
