Saturday, September 29, 2012

Meet MARILYN MEREDITH -- ta da!


THE FABULOUS FRESNO FIVE -- undated photo
All smiles after a presentation in Fresno, Calif. are mystery writers (from left) Marilyn Meredith, who writes the Deputy Tempe Crabtree series; Victoria Heckman, whose series features Honolulu PD officer Katrina Ogden; JoAnne Lucas, co-author of VALLEY FEVER, a collection of short stories set in the Fresno area; Lorie Ham, author of the series featuring gospel singer Alexandra Walters and editor/publisher of the e-zine Kings River Life; Pat Browning, author of ABSINTHE OF MALICE, first in a series. 


It’s a pleasure to introduce Marilyn Meredith, a longtime friend from California. We both belonged to San Joaquin Sisters in Crime, headquartered in Fresno. We did book programs together. We showed up at some of the same conventions.

Marilyn is the author of nearly thirty published novels, including the award winning Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery series. She’s a member of EPIC (Electronically Published Internet Connection), three chapters of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America. She is also on the board of the Public Safety Writers of America.


Marilyn Meredith Series Books:
Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery series:
Raging Water 
Invisible Path
Dispel the Mist
Deadly Trail
Deadly Omen
Unequally Yoked
Wingbeat
Calling the Dead
Judgment Fire
Kindred Spirits

Rocky Bluff P.D. Crime series
An Axe to Grind
Final Respects
(Not currently available)
Bad Tidings
Fringe Benefits
Smell of Death
(At this time the trade paperbacks are only available from the author from this website.)
No Sanctuary
(Available for this website, Oaktreebooks.com and from Kindle)

Marilyn says: I know there are some people who like to read a series in order, but let me reassure you that every book is complete. Though the characters grow through each book, the crime is always solved. Here is the order of the books for anyone who wants to know: Deadly Trail, Deadly Omen, Unequally Yoked, Intervention, Wing Beat, Calling the Dead, Judgment Fire, Kindred Spirits, Dispel the Mist, Invisible Path, Bears With Us, Raging Water.

Marilyn is a tried-and-true veteran of electronic publishing. While her first e-book could be called accidental, she liked the format so much that she stayed with it. Her e-book KACHINA SPIRIT was a finalist for an Eppie Award, given for the first time in the year 2000 by Electronically Published Internet Connection, or EPIC.

Since that time, other books have been a finalist for the Eppie award, including JUDGMENT FIRE in the Deputy Tempe Crabtree series and both NO SANCTUARY and AN AXE TO GRIND in the Rocky Bluff P.D. series which she writes under the name F. M. Meredith.

Writing as F. M. Meredith, she has been compared to Joseph Wambaugh. The cops of her fictional Rocky Bluff PD have lives that extend beyond the chase and the crime scene. They struggle to raise their children, deal with leaky faucets, and pay their mortgages. They have hopes, loves, fears, and nightmares. They come across like real people, with real lives.



 
HAP AND MARILYN MEREDITH -- A “TEAM” FOR 61 YEARS AND GOING STRONG. Here they are at EPICon 2004, the electronic publishing convention which took place at the Westin Hotel in Bricktown, Oklahoma City.

Marilyn and her husband Arnold--known as Hap to their friends--met on a blind date 60 years ago. "He was a cute sailor from the Port Hueneme Seabee base and I was a high school senior in Eagle Rock," she recalls. "Three of my friends met me with their dates, also servicemen, and we all took the streetcar to Chinatown in downtown Los Angeles, where we ate, danced and got acquainted.

"We took a taxi back to one girl's home, where someone was to come and drive me home--about three miles away. When it got late, we decided to walk. It never occurred to me to call my folks. We got home about three A.M. My parents were wild. I asked if Hap could spend the night, since he had no transportation. They let him stay on the couch in the den."

A few months later, Marilyn and Hap were married. Now retired, they live on the Tule River in Central California's Sierra foothills. Marilyn makes good use of California locations in her books. The Rocky Bluff P.D. series is set in a fictional beach community located between Ventura and Santa Barbara. The Deputy Tempe Crabtree series has a striking resemblance to the foothill community where Marilyn lives now and includes the nearby Tule River Indian Reservation.

Marilyn says her first dealing with an e-publisher happened by accident. “I submitted a book to a publisher, and I didn't know he was an e-publisher until he sent me a contract. I thought, ‘Why not?’ He was a bit before his time, and before hand-held readers. He eventually went out of business.

“My second e-publisher also bit the dust. But then others came into the field with a little more knowledge about formatting the books for the new e-readers, and how to publicize them. And now, of course, nearly everyone is savvy about e-pubs and e-readers.”

Her view of the writing life:
“I have a home office, and I do some form of writing every day. If I wrote for the money, I'd have quit long ago. I write because I have to. The story pops into my head and I have to put it down on paper. There are many perks to writing besides money--the people you meet, both readers and other writers.”

Anything additional you want to share with your readers?

Yes, I'm running a contest. The person who leaves comments on the most blogs will have his/her name used for a character in my next book—the winner can choose if you want it in a Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery or a Rocky Bluff P.D. crime novel.
  
Thank you, Marilyn, for stopping by, and best of luck with your next book -- I know you're working on something, right?





The view of the Sierra foothills from Marilyn's bedroom balcony!

12 comments:

  1. Thank you, Pat. You know way too much about me. (Grin) This has been fun and a perfect person to end my tour with.

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  2. I so agree with your last statement! If any of us were in it for the money, we'd never have continued. It's a nice thought, but we all write because we can't not write! (I used the double negative deliberately.)

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  3. Pat and Marilyn, What a lovely post. And, Marilyn, I hated blind dates until I met my husband on one.

    I didn't know you started with an epublisher. You were ahead of your time, too.

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  4. A wonderful post, great pictures--I especially love The Fabulous Fresno Five! Way to go!!!!!

    Madeline

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    1. Hi Madeline, hope your event was successful! Thanks for coming by'

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  5. Marilyn, dear friend, it's always a pleasure to touch base with you. You are such an inspiration -- you've had a successful life and a successful career -- or two! Best of luck with your book sales. Hope all your hard work on the blog tour pays off big!
    Pat Browning

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  6. Lorna,
    Marilyn tells it like it is! Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment.
    Pat Browning

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  7. Marja, I know from my days with San Joaquin SinC that Marilyn was always a few steps ahead of everyone else. It was kind of an affectionate joke -- "When one of Marilyn's publishers drops dead she just steps over the body and finds another publisher." :--)

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Pat Browning

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  8. Madeline,
    I love that old photo. I have lost track of when it was taken but I keep resurrecting it! We do look on top of the world, don't we?
    Thanks for coming by.
    PatBrowning

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  9. I want to thank each of you for coming by, Lorna,Marja,and Madeline, but I am having problems with this tiny computer I'm using. I'm at our family reunion now.

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  10. It was a fun learning about you and Temple on your tour. Hope it results in lots of new readers.

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  11. Hi, Kathleen, see you found your way. Pat and I have had some good times over the years. I miss having her nearby.

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