Debbie Viguié's Blog

I love writing trilogies. Beginning, middle, and end are each fully represented. My husband jokes that even when I try to write a standalone book it turns into a trilogy. When James Tuck and I were shopping Robin Hood, our agent was pitching it as a single novel. Titan, the publisher that snatched it up, asked if we could make it a trilogy instead. I was shocked. It was funny because I’d been telling my husband just a couple days before that he was wrong about me not being able to write a standalone. So, I had to go downstairs and tell him that Robin Hood was suddenly going to be a trilogy. He laughed so hard he ended up having a coughing fit. I just kept saying, “It’s not my fault! I tried!”

So, I love trilogies and, apparently, they love me. For me the perfect trilogy has always been the original Star Wars films which I saw when I was very little. I believe it sums up the arc beautifully. At the end of the first installment the good guys have to win a battle in the larger war. At the end of the second installment the good guys have to take some serious losses (lives, limbs, liberty, etc.) and/or discover horrible secrets (I am your father). Then the final installment has the good guys triumphing in the war, coming back and winning against incredible odds.

I bet some people are thinking, “But what about the Psalm 23 Mysteries, there are going to be 23 of those! So much for trilogies!”

Here’s where I let you in on a little secret. It is a trilogy. Books 1-7 are Part I. Book 7 ends on a high note with Geanie and Joseph getting married and Cindy and Jeremiah really starting to realize how much they care for each other. Everyone looks like they’re about to live happily ever after.

With the release of Book 16, Anointest My Head With Oil, we have the end of Part II (books 8-16). In these books Jeremiah’s secret identity is finally revealed as are the feelings between him and Cindy. The books end with a significant loss AND the realization that the worst is yet to come.

So, now we are about to embark upon Part III (books 17-23). The stakes are higher, the danger more intense, and the real enemy’s face finally revealed. In the original Star Wars trilogy the emperor was not seen in the first film. He was heard as part of a hologram in the second film. He was fully revealed and seen in the flesh in the third film.

So, what can readers expect of these last seven books? There will be highs and lows, victories and defeats, and much, much more as we race to the final showdown. Are you ready? Strap yourselves in!

There’s a quote in some movie that says there are no coincidences, just plans other people make and don’t tell you about. I always found that really funny. In my work as a writer I have found a number of coincidences and odd connections that I always find fascinating. I thought I’d share some of those with you.

My first retold fairy tale was Midnight Pearls which is the Little Mermaid story. A large, black pearl plays a key role in the story. A few months after the book came out Pirates of the Caribbean: the Curse of the Black Pearl hit theaters and my husband and I laughed because outside of Polynesia you never hear about black pearls that often. When the fourth Pirates movie actually featured mermaids it made us smile again.

When signing books at my first Comic-Con I was sitting next to a fellow writer. We got to talking and realized we both had pitched a story to the exact same editor at Simon & Schuster within the past month. Both of us had pitched retellings of Little Red Riding Hood which featured an actual werewolf playing the part of the wolf who was also the love interest for Red. One key difference was mine was set in a fairy tale setting and his was a modern day story. We had never met before and yet we were stunned at some of the similarities between our books.

It was while working on Scarlet Moon that my editor left the company and another one was assigned to me to finish the book. She was also the Charmed editor and she bought Charmed: Pied Piper from me. (Which has the character of Piper suddenly being the Pied Piper of children and deals with the Pied Piper fairy tale.) Because I had written a Charmed novel I was invited to write an essay for an anthology dealing with the television series. I wrote mine on fairy tale elements in the show.

Of course, writing these two things for Charmed was great fun because my parents were fans of the television show and because I had just finished writing the Wicked series with Nancy Holder (which is all about witches).

We mention the existence of Cursed Ones in the fifth Wicked book, Resurrection. They are vampires. The Cursed Ones are the villains for the Crusade series. The prequel to the series is a short story called Passing which was in an anthology and which is now available by itself as an ebook. The Crusade series has a werewolf as a key character. Wolf Springs Chronicles is all about werewolves. While Wicked is like Romeo and Juliet with witches, Wolf Springs Chronicles is like King Lear with werewolves. Don’t look for an overt Shakespeare theme in Crusade, though, since it’s patterned more off of events of World War II.

And for the final connection I’m going to mention (though certainly not the last there is), for a guest blog post on the Damned blog tour for the Crusade series, I wrote a ghost story dealing with our werewolf from Crusade and the fairy tale character of Little Red Riding Hood.

What connections/coincidences have you noticed in my books?

Welcome to the brand new Debbie Viguie.com site! This site is designed for you in mind, giving you access to all of Debbie’s vast catalog while providing you interesting tidbits of information and learn a little more about our favorite author.

In addition to all of the new features, we have more ways to interact with Debbie including her social media links, her upcoming events, videos, audio and more.

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New Site Specifics:

Modern Home Page

The new modernized homepage gives you the ability to find information about Debbie’s latest books and featured series. It also provides you more information on upcoming events and social interactions.

Book Product Pages

These pages will give you the low down on each and every book in Debbie’s vast catalog and more importantly – read the first chapters! You get a feel for whether the book is your speed right from the start.

About Me Pages

Find out Debbie’s writing process, how she comes up with her ideas, her other interests and more.

Book Series Pages

Debbie has 11 book series (and more coming very soon), it can be daunting to find them all. Now, they’re all collected together in handy pages with reviews and access to the first chapters.

Debbie’s Good Reads Blog

Read from the author herself on life, writing and so much more.

Shop

Again, all of Debbie’s books in an easy to navigate shop.

We hope you enjoy the new experience! Let us know how we did.

 

 

 

Some of my readers might have figured out that I love holidays. After all, I have two series that prominently feature holidays (Sweet Seasons and the Psalm 23 Mysteries) and holidays crop up from time to time in most of my other series as well. I love holidays because they force you to do something new, change up your perspective, and allow scheduled time for fun, relaxation, family, and a host of other things. My dad worked terribly long hours when I was a kid and was constantly on call. He would get home after I went to bed and leave for work before I got up in the morning a good deal of the time. Holidays meant I was usually guaranteed to see him all day which already made them magical and special.

One of the other things that I really love is that anything can and does happen on holidays. It feels like the normal rules of daily life are suspended and the potential for craziness is in the air.

Growing up my family loved celebrating holidays. Fourth of July we’d have friends and family over at our house for all day celebrating. The job that I had ever since I was about seven was picking out which sodas to buy at the grocery store. It felt like a sacred trust that I got to choose for all of the twenty or so people that would be coming to the party. What made things even cooler was that we acquired an old-fashioned Coca Cola machine, the kind where you lifted the lid and would get a glass bottle out of it. We’d get to bury the assorted cans in the ice in that machine.

My family loves games so games were also a big part of the day. Out in the backyard we’d set up croquet. Inside on the dining table we’d have Nerf ping pong. My parents were both fantastic at it and watching the two of them play each other was always like watching a battle of titans. Since you needed two points more than your opponent to win a game, sometimes they played into the thirties before someone would manage to get two points in a row. One of our best friends was a tennis player who played at the professional level. Even he would fall to my mom at ping pong, though it would be a tight game.

One year, in an effort to get inside her head and mess with her, he pulled a prank. My mom was terrified of mice. There’d been a mouse in the house about a week before the Fourth of July. It had been caught, but she was still jumpy. While she was in the kitchen talking with someone I watched while our friend got down on the floor behind her and crawled on his belly so that she couldn’t see him. He got up behind her and touched her ankle. She screamed and leaped straight into the air because she thought it was a mouse. I laughed until I nearly passed out.

Another year we had a new puppy. When we went to set out the croquet field a couple of days before the holiday we discovered that he’d been busy digging holes in the lawn. It wasn’t going to be possible to play around them so my dad grabbed a post hole digger, rounded out the holes, and turned the backyard into a mini golf course instead. Everything was perfect until we woke up Fourth of July morning to discover that our dog had “helped” by creating a bonus hole! It was hilarious! Anything can and does happen on a holiday. When else could you take your pet’s destruction of the yard and turn it into an attraction?!

I love holidays and Fourth of July will always hold a special place in my heart. That’s why it had the honor of being the featured holiday for The Shadow of Death, the most pivotal book in the Psalm 23 Mysteries series! It was the book where two people shared their first kiss. Come to think of it, the Fourth of July was also the day where Candace had her first kiss in The Summer of Cotton Candy. Hmmm… maybe it has something to do with the fireworks! I hope everyone enjoys the holiday this year. I know I will!

The latest Psalm 23 Mysteries book is out! Jeremiah and Cindy are embroiled in another mystery as they search for an arsonist targeting Jewish synagogues. Check out Annointest My Head With Oil, available on Kindle, Kobo and Nook. Print versions coming soon!

 

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I've decided to offer an unprecedented level of access and information to writers wanting to improve their craft AND aspiring writers. I encourage anyone who wants to write, or knows someone who wants to write to check out my offer. I'm having a sale right NOW to kick off the new version of this course!

Learn every aspect of writing from a NYT Best Selling Author
Learn to write better and faster
Get industry insights
Get Debbie’s Tips and Tricks
Get 2 private Skype sessions with Debbie
Get 15,000 words of your manuscript critiqued in detail with actionable advice on how to improve it
Get PUBLISHED in a short story anthology book at the end

On special sale TODAY for $145.
Limited to 20 students.
To sign up send payment via Paypal to debbie@debbieviguie.com and provide name, email address, and whether this is for you or someone else.

Since there seems to be interest, I’m going to do a Superfan contest like I did a couple years ago. A limited number of fans will be inducted into the Superfans of 2015 Group. What exactly do you get for being a Superfan? Well, you get:

– 1 free autographed book of your choice from the books coming out in 2015

– Special custom designed autographed bookplates for each book coming out in 2015

– A thank you in the acknowledgement section of one of my books

– Special thank you gift

– 2015 Halloween gift (new!)

– Exclusive 2015 Christmas ornament designed by me

– A half hour Skype call with me (new!)

Sound pretty awesome? Here’s how you become a Superfan:

– By New Year’s Eve you have to have read:

The Psalm 23 Mysteries

The Sweet Seasons series

The Kiss Trilogy

And at least two of the following: (Witch Hunt series, Crusade series, Wolf Springs Chronicles series, three Retold Fairy Tales, or Tex Ravencroft and the Tears of Poseidon)

– Send me a private message on Facebook or an email through my website here telling me which books you have read and why you want to be a Superfan

– Agree to tell friends and family about my books (which I know most of you do already)

I only have so many slots I can fill and it’s better to reply sooner rather than later, but I will take entries up until the last minute of 2014. Good luck!

Oh, and don’t forget to get your Christmas book orders in! Links are below if you need them.

Sweet Seasons (4 books) $40

Fun for all ages, Great for teens, chick lit readers, Disney and theme park lovers.

Retold Fairy Tales (3 books) $35

Fun for all ages. Great for fans of fairy tales, romance, princesses, mermaids, werewolves, Disney movies, and Once Upon a Time viewers.

The Kiss Trilogy (3 books) $40

Great for readers who enjoy vampires, historical fiction, romance, and urban fantasy. Great for fans of Sleepy Hollow.

Crusade Trilogy (3 books) $45

Great for readers who enjoy vampires, werewolves, magic, fantasy, war, and survivalist fiction. Great for fans of The Walking Dead, Supernatural, and The Hunger Games.

Wicked (all 5 books in 3 volumes) $45

Great for readers who enjoy dark fantasy, historical fantasy, magic, and forbidden love such as that of Romeo and Juliet.

Witch Hunt (3 books) $40

Great for readers who enjoy thrillers, mysteries, urban fantasy, police procedurals, and magic. Great for fans of Harry Dresden, Supernatural, Sleepy Hollow, Grimm, and Constantine.

Psalm 23 Mysteries (books 1-3) $50

Great for readers who enjoy mysteries and thrillers. Great for fans of Castle.

Psalm 23 Mysteries (books 4-6) $35

Psalm 23 Mysteries (books 7-9) $35

Psalm 23 Mysteries (books 1-10) $100

Archaeology Duo! Archaeology in Fiction and The Tears of Poseidon $30

Great for fans of fiction and non-fiction who enjoy archaeology, history, historical mysteries, adventure, conspiracy theories, and science fiction. Great for fans of Indiana Jones and National Treasure.

Mix-n-Match any 3 Debbie books $40

Mix-n-Match any 6 Debbie books $70

Don’t forget to buy signed books for you or a loved one!

Now through December 7th you can buy books for those on your Christmas or Hanukkah lists. Or you can let friends and family know that this is what you want for Christmas! Each order comes with a SURPRISE GIFT! Need help deciding what books to get someone? I’ve provided a guide for each series. All books will be mailed out by December 10th. Prices below include shipping.

Sweet Seasons (4 books) $40

Fun for all ages, Great for teens, chick lit readers, Disney and theme park lovers.

Retold Fairy Tales (3 books) $35

Fun for all ages. Great for fans of fairy tales, romance, princesses, mermaids, werewolves, Disney movies, and Once Upon a Time viewers.

The Kiss Trilogy (3 books) $40

Great for readers who enjoy vampires, historical fiction, romance, and urban fantasy. Great for fans of Sleepy Hollow.

Crusade Trilogy (3 books) $45

Great for readers who enjoy vampires, werewolves, magic, fantasy, war, and survivalist fiction. Great for fans of The Walking Dead, Supernatural, and The Hunger Games.

Wicked (all 5 books in 3 volumes) $45

Great for readers who enjoy dark fantasy, historical fantasy, magic, and forbidden love such as that of Romeo and Juliet.

Witch Hunt (3 books) $40

Great for readers who enjoy thrillers, mysteries, urban fantasy, police procedurals, and magic. Great for fans of Harry Dresden, Supernatural, Sleepy Hollow, Grimm, and Constantine.

Psalm 23 Mysteries (books 1-3) $50

Great for readers who enjoy mysteries and thrillers. Great for fans of Castle.

Psalm 23 Mysteries (books 4-6) $35

Psalm 23 Mysteries (books 7-9) $35

Psalm 23 Mysteries (books 1-10) $100

Archaeology Duo! Archaeology in Fiction and The Tears of Poseidon $30

Great for fans of fiction and non-fiction who enjoy archaeology, history, historical mysteries, adventure, conspiracy theories, and science fiction. Great for fans of Indiana Jones and National Treasure.

Mix-n-Match any 3 Debbie books $40

Mix-n-Match any 6 Debbie books $70

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