My long-awaited cover-reveal for Chained Birds is here! And fun fact — this is actually my second cover! Let’s back up to September when WildBlue Press’ talented designer Elijah Toten produced a cover that incorporated the original artwork by Kevin Sanders (the inmate at the heart of my story), a sketch titled Chained Bird. I believe my exact words to the

My upcoming book, Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir, received a five-star review this week from the Manhattan Book Review, which launched squeals and gasps in my household (okay, this was just me; my husband is more measured). The reviewer, Philip Zozzaro, called my debut “a future true crime classic,” and I would like to send him a bouquet of flowers, or a

Anyone curious about an upcoming book project of mine (Spoiler! It involves true crime!) can check out my first Author Interview on a book blog hosted by author and book promoter Vinny O’Hare. I discovered Vinny in my Goodreads Mysteries & Thrillers group, where he helps promote new authors writing in the genre. As a new author myself on Goodreads,

It’s been a steep learning curve since I signed a book contract with WildBlue Press last December. This year, I completed the manuscript (the book was sold on proposal) and collaborated with my wonderful editor, Rowena Carenen, who helped shape Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir into the breakout debut we all hope it will be. (Publication day is 11/12/24.)

I’m especially fond of this review blurb that landed in my inbox this week because it mentions the genre-bending aspect of Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir. I’ve been asked on numerous forms and submissions to check the genre box(s) that most apply to this debut book of mine, and the answer is—sometimes there weren’t enough boxes. I’ll begin with

I’m excited to share an early access link where curious readers can sample the first dozen pages of Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir. In partnership with BookFunnel, a secure delivery service for advanced reader copies (ARCs)—and so much more!—readers can view pre-release content that includes the book description, i.e., what will appear on the back cover, the preface, the

More early praise continues to roll in for my debut, Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir, launching November 12, 2024, with WildBlue Press. Is it okay to stop pinching myself now? As I mentioned in my post about getting my first “highly recommended” and 5-star editorial review from Readers’ Favorite, I am slowly recovering from the impostor syndrome that afflicts many

It’s no spoiler to reveal that my true crime memoir Chained Birds is also part exposé of the horrific experimental prison program that operated at Pennsylvania’s Lewisburg Prison from 2009-2018. One of the book’s main characters, federal inmate Kevin Sanders, was my inside source who helped me chronicle the cruelty and bloodshed inside Lewisburg as he was swept up in

Imagine my euphoria after opening my inbox and seeing this 5-star review from Readers’ Favorite this week. And the fact this is my first editorial critique makes it all the more special. As a debut author trying to navigate the publishing world amid a wee bit of imposter syndrome, this review by Carol Thompson validated everything I set out to

Prison artist sketch inspires book title and cover design (cover reveal coming soon!) The November 12, 2024 launch date of Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir is just around the corner! Manuscript editing is complete. My publisher, WildBlue Press, has begun its marketing efforts. And soon, I’ll be revealing the cover design that will incorporate my most cherished piece of

I’m thrilled to announce my debut true crime memoir, Chained Birds, has found a home with WildBlue Press and will be published this November! I signed with WildBlue Press at the end of 2023 following two weeks of dialogue with press co-founder (and author) Steve Jackson. Steve and I dove deep into my book’s details to ensure it would meet

For purveyors and consumers of true crime and other documentaries, the film Subject is a gripping, must-see examination of everyone’s role in this burgeoning infotainment landscape. An award-winning 2022 film just released on Amazon this month, Subject features participants from a handful of nonfiction films and their wide variety of personal fallout. The outcomes range from devastating to exonerating and

I never knew what a mood board was until I decided to enter a couple of X (formerly Twitter) book pitch contests this fall. Because I love tinkering with graphics, I dove into creating my first-ever mood board for November’s #MoodPitch contest — a contest that ended up getting canceled. The volunteer contest organizers decided to pull it from X

In 2014, inmate Kevin Sanders stepped off a ConAir flight from Pennsylvania to Orlando and, on the tarmac, met an “old timer” in an orange jumpsuit wearing the same belly chain and shackles. The ornery felon with a sharp tongue and Southie Boston accent turned out to be the notorious Boston mobster Whitey Bulger. Kevin and Whitey were slated for

The Washington Post’s George Will was out with an important op-ed this week that shines a spotlight on the legal loophole of “qualified immunity,” a principle that gives lawsuit protection to government workers acting in an official capacity. Will’s piece centers on a U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that prevented a family from suing anyone in a South

Welcome to my digital home! This space is devoted to tidbits about my book in progress, Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir, my publishing safari, anything that catches my fancy in the true crime world, and posts about prison reform and the criminal justice system — a central theme to Chain Birds’ story. More than ten years in the making,