ebook sale – Mystery Deb

Talking About Romance in Mysteries, and a New Promo

Recently, I participated in a panel discussion with three other mystery authors. This is part of a series sponsored by Crime Writers of Canada, where authors from all over the country talk about various aspects of crime writing. The topic for our Western Wing group last week was writing romance in mysteries.

My protagonist, Casey’s personal life is an important part of the series, although I don’t devote many pages to romance. She and her love interest, Lou, see themselves as practical, hard-working people whose view of romance has been skewed by past experiences. For Casey, it’s a failed marriage and a mother who left her and her dad. Lou’s parents also divorced when he was a young teen. Still, they’re both optimists in their own way, and their romance slowly progresses throughout the books.

If you’d like to view the hour-long discussion, there are two links. One is the video link which you can find HERE. The other is Crime Writers of Canada’s Facebook link, which is HERE.

Now that we’re in April, I have another BookFunnel promotion this month, this time for the latest book in the series, The Blade Man, on sale for $.99. In this one, you’ll also find out if an engaged Casey and Lou actually make it to the altar this time. Here’s a shortened version of the blurb:

Who is the Blade Man and why has this mysterious loner been attacking Mainland Public Transport bus drivers? And who is trying to burn MPT down? The company’s president orders security officer Casey Holland to launch an internal investigation or face termination. Convinced she’s being set up to fail and with her wedding only weeks away, Casey desperately needs answers. Forced to take deeper risks, how far can Casey go before someone dies?

The link to the promo is HERE, and thank you!

Series Promo Event is Up and Running!

Marketing guru David Gaughran has long advised authors to offer their first book for free when promoting a series. Given the tough financial circumstances many readers face these days, it sounds like a good idea to me, so I signed up to be featured on a book promo site called FreeBooksy on Saturday, March 27^th.

Because things can always go wrong with changing prices, especially since I need to rely on Amazon’s cooperation to make the book free, the changes have already been made and are now in effect until April 5^th. I contacted Amazon on Monday and requested a price match. This is the only option that authors with wide distribution have to make their books free for a short time period. The tricky part is that Amazon can always say no. I had to provide links to their competitors’ sites, showing that the book is indeed free elsewhere. Luckily, I corresponded with a really helpful person, who made the book free the same day.

So, I’m giving away Book #1, The Opposite of Dark. Book. #2, Deadly Accusations is now at $.99.. #3 Beneath the Bleak New Moon is $1.99, #4, The Deep End, is $2.99 as is #5, Knock Knock. My latest, The Blade Man is $3.99.

One of the cooler things Amazon does is to provide a link to the entire series so readers can purchase all six books with just one click. Right now, the entire set can be purchased on amazon.com for $10.35 US! You can find the link HERE.

The books are also available at:

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/the-opposite-of-dark-2

Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/id1151714413

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/opposite-of-dark-debra-purdy-kong/1101958680?ean=2940153393650

The cost of this Freebooksy campaign is $170.00 US, however, with the Canadian exchange I have to pay over $200, so we’ll see what happens. As Gaughran says, a large part of marketing is all about experimenting, trying new things to see what works and what doesn’t. I still need to put more focus on ads, but I’m not quite ready until I have a clearer understanding of how they work. Wish me luck!

Imajin Book’s Spring Sale!

April is here! If I can make it through the first three months of a cold, wet dreary Vancouver winter without disaster or perpetual moodiness, then the rest of the year is a bonus.

To that end, my publisher has launched a spring book sale on all Imajin Books titles. My two novellas, Dead Man Floating and A Toxic Craft are only $.99 US (which works out to about a $1.28 Cdn.) now until April 15^th.

Here’s the blurb for Dead Man Floating:

One wrong decision…

Security guard Evan Dunstan didn’t expect to find a body floating in a campus stream. An empty vodka bottle nearby suggests that the highly despised George Krenn, head of the plumbing department, had drunkenly fallen in. Refusing to let the death of a vile man ruin his romantic plans, Evan decides to leave the body for the next shift to find.

One friend in trouble…

When it’s discovered that Krenn was murdered, Evan has a lot of explaining to do. So does his friend Sully, Krenn’s least favourite student. Evan uses his hacking skills and campus knowledge to keep them both out of jail, but the investigation forces him to question Sully’s innocence.

One mystery to solve…

Uncovering the truth proves to be more than challenging. It may cost Evan his job, his friendship, and his woman. Will Evan find the killer, or will the killer find him first?

And for A Toxic Craft:

A crafty senior…

Evan Dunstan’s spunky grandmother is giving him major headaches. As organizer for the seniors’ Christmas craft fair, Gran faces warring vendors and acts of vandalism that threaten to ruin the event. When nasty knitter Cora Riddell is knocked unconscious and her water spiked with a hallucinogen, Gran begs Evan to find out who’s responsible before more harm is done—or someone dies.

A daunting task…

In charge of the fair’s security, Evan faces a challenge that grows more difficult by the hour. His boss expects him to find the culprit before police are called in and Southwest Trades & Technology’s reputation as a safe campus is destroyed.

A friend or foe?

A search for answers reveals the disturbing possibility that even friends and coworkers hope Evan will fail. Is the culprit closer to him than he thought? Whose startling secrets must be exposed to find the truth?

If you have any trouble with the links, please let me know, and thank you!

http://getbook.at/DeadManFloating

http://getbook.at/AToxicCraft