Bookcast Episode 55: Still I Rise

On Episode 55 of the Bookcast, I talked about the books I read this week, raising my Goodreads annual reading challenge goal and progress against that, as  well as sales on my latest novel Elysium and changing up my marketing strategy for that book (I mean, developing one, because I didn't really have one except for write the book and publish it).  I also talked about the next book, which I start writing next week with the #20Kin5Days challenge. 

I talked about the following books this week:

• Elysium, A Black Diamond Vacation Romance  (happy release week)
• The Guy Next Door (happy 5 year book birthday!)
•  Dead Against Her (Bree Taggert, #5) by Melinda Leigh
• His Favourite Graves by Paul Cleave
• Lie To Her (Bree Taggert, #6) by Melinda Leigh
• Forever Again (The Cordoba Agency Book 5)  by Delaney Diamond
• The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis 
• The Black Angels by Maria Smilios 
• Down to the Wire by Patricia Sargeant
• The Unsettled by Ayana Mathis
• The Other Princess by Denny S. Bryce
• One Last Kill by Robert Dugoni

0:00   Book Cast Episode 55 and Updates

3:56   Supporting Books by DL White

12:22 Book Recommendations and Self-Reflection

25:29 Promoting and Planning Future Books

Transcript

DL White [00:00:00]:

Alright. Hi. Hello. We're in here. I am trying out a new microphone today. So let's cross our fingers that it works. I'm also gonna try out some different settings on Riverside. I've been getting, like, a, like, a glitching popping sound when I record that wasn't there before.

DL White [00:00:23]:

So I feel like Riverside has changed some things. And, what I think is happening is it's over processing, and it's trying to cut out noises that aren't there or something. So I'm just gonna when I finish this, I'm just gonna export it raw and, let, Buzz, cast, bust, who who host my website, Buzzsprout, do the fixing up? I don't know. I'm gonna see how that sounds because when I test it, I don't get that sound, but then after I export it, I hit that sound. So it's something in the export process. I don't know. Live TB. Hi.

DL White [00:01:04]:

Welcome back. To the book cast. This is my platform for sharing short fiction and updates on what I'm reading and writing This is episode 55. We are over the 50 episode hump on our way to 100. Alrighty. I am D. L. White.

DL White [00:01:23]:

I am author of contemporary Southern and romantic fiction novels featuring black men and women. I'm also a big fan of books. So we usually begin with a book report. Then we talk about what I'm writing. I am currently prepping to write still I run. A Potter Lake small town romance. I supposed to start that next week. We'll see.

DL White [00:01:44]:

I need to really, get down with the planning. I already started this book, but it's been a minute since I had it open. So I really need to, go back and start over and, like, really actually do good planning because I just jumped into this with both feet, then hit a wall and quit. As you do. And, so I need to, like, really go back and, like, fortify myself, know these characters, know their back stories, figure out their motivations, what's their goal, what's the conflict, what how why can't they be together? What's keeping them apart? And, like, how do we make our way forward to the end? And, as well, I need to maybe update a little bit on the town of Potter Lake, what's new, what's, you know, what's happening. I think this book is gonna be a bit little bit of a transition from Old Potter Lake to New Potter Lake. The the Cape Kavanaugh administration is doing real good things. And so am, I'm excited to dig into it.

DL White [00:02:47]:

I am not ready, though. So, if I am not ready, I will jump into 20 k in 5 days and just stare my computer for several hours, and that will just be frustrating. So I'm gonna be working on that this weekend to when it came 5 days starts on 3rd day right after I finish a big old, 3 day on-site thing at work. So I'm gonna celebrate, you know, the best way I know how. So, yes. Hi. Welcome back if you're new here, or you're a seasoned listener, Bibliophile, or just looking for a good read. I hope you'll enjoy today's show.

DL White [00:03:30]:

I am happy to have your ears for this time. I'm excited to share my love of reading and writing books with you. I love your support of this podcast. I do currently have one supporter. She is hanging she's hangin' tough. If you'd like to join her, head to my support site at buy me a coffee.com slash books by D. L. White.

DL White [00:03:51]:

There you can offer a one time or recurring monthly gift. I do so appreciate it. And, at some point, we'll get to where I offer, you know, and behind the scenes type stuff. But, right now, I don't have the bandwidth or capacity for that. Like, I don't I currently do not, like, literally don't know I could offer, to, like, kinda plus that up. So if you have ideas, shoot them at me. I'll see what I can do. But for now, if you'd like to support, it's, $5 a month is a great attagirl for me.

DL White [00:04:26]:

It helps to keep this podcast running, and, keeps me in pens and pretty notebooks I won't use. The other way you can support is to buy my books. As always, books by dlwhite.com/books has all the good stuff, including my new release, Elysium, a Black Diamond vacation romance. It's available in ebook and print at books by dlwhite.com/alizium. I don't currently have print copies of that book in my personal inventory. The early list copies appear to be rolling out from Amazon and Barnes and Noble, and you might be able to grab a copy from Bookshop dot org, as well check out resist booksellers in Booksellers. Check out resist booksellers in a bit. They might have print copies coming soon.

DL White [00:05:06]:

As soon as I let Demetrius know that it's a available on Ingram Spark. So he can order them and have them in store. They're very pretty books, very pretty books. We'll talk a little bit about how sales on Elysium are going. So, yeah, looking forward to that. Speaking of books, happy 4th birthday, book birthday, to my gal, the guy next door, that's book 3 in the Pottery Lake Small Town romance series, a sheer delight of a book from cover to cover. A comfort read for a lot of folks. My IG friend, Nikki Read, just told me she's read that book about three times now, and I know Karen reader and summer reads romance have both read it several times.

DL White [00:05:47]:

In real talk, I've read it a lot post publication. It's a really good book, if I have to say so myself. And, and I do. You can stash up copies of the guide next door and all of my titles and ebook print or audio direct direct from my hands at pay hip.com/booksbydlwhite, That puts some money directly into my pocket with no middle man, virtually no middle man, taking up a percentage of the retail price, pay help does still take a percentage. But it's like 5% of my price. So I make literal like, 95% of what is is paid. And then I think PayPal takes out a little bit, but still the if you care, if you care, if you don't coo coo, if you care, the royalties are so much better when you buy them direct, The book is delivered via book funnel. There are instructions to add it to your Kindle, your Nook, your, I think, your Cobo reader.

DL White [00:06:49]:

I think, I have never tried it. I did not have a Cobo reader. I don't read, Cobo. I don't read Cobo books on any kind of reader. I have the app on my phone. By the way, I do subscribe to Cobo Plus. Love it. I have been able to find some books that I can't find anywhere else, so that are listed in Cobble Plus, anyway.

DL White [00:07:10]:

Anyway, it puts some money directly into my pocket. No middle man virtually no middle man taking a large percentage of the retail price. I don't know if y'all know, but Amazon takes 30 to 70% of the retail price drafted digital takes an additional 10% off of that. I don't know how much Barnes And Noble takes because I'm direct with them. I'm direct with Google Play and Amazon and my store and everywhere else I go through Draft to Digital. And so you know, it's it's it's cut after cut before I get paid for the book. If you buy them direct, it's one cut. Maybe 2 because I think PayPal takes a cut as well, but it's pennies, as opposed to dollars.

DL White [00:07:56]:

So there's that. If you prefer to buy them retail ain't no shame in your game, my books are not for sale anywhere. I don't want them to be. So if you wanna buy them retail language a bad self. They're available in ebook, wherever they're sold, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Nook, Apple Books, Cobo Books, Google Play. They are also available via subscription sites like Script and Cobble Plus, and they're available to request at your local library. I recently, I just sent an email actually to draft to digital. I distribute my books to scribd through draft to digital.

DL White [00:08:29]:

Half of my books are not listed at scribd, and I don't know what's going on with that. So it could be a thing where, people aren't reading them listening them, and so they've been delisted, but I don't put my books in Kindle Unlimited because of the exclusivity clause. So having my books available via script means that people can subscribe to a site and read my books and not have to buy them because that has that's, like, that has to work for certain people. So if my books are gonna be randomly not available, then I'm going to distribute to script. I'm just gonna put them at Cobble Plus where all of them are listed, ebook, and audio and you can subscribe to Cobo Plus and listen and read to your heart's content. If script wants to be difficult, that's how we can play that because they don't really pay more than dust anyway. So, I'll keep you posted on that. So, I did also see that I have some books that have been added to Hoopla, which is it's really, really hard to get your books on Hoopla.

DL White [00:09:35]:

They they're the waiting there some books have been waiting years to be put on Hoopla. I'm just saying. So finally got my books on there. So yay. Search there by book title. If you're looking, I'm so excited that my books are on hoopla. That's awesome. Today, we will start with the book report as always.

DL White [00:09:52]:

And then I'm talking prep for 20 k in 5 days. Where I'll be rebooting the work I've done on still I rise, which is the next book in the Powder Lake series. I do not understand why the next book keeps writing myself, writing self in my brain. I keep saying I'm not a series writer, and yet the series just keep coming. I'll also talk a little bit about Elysium on how we're doing on sales and reviews. Today is Saturday, September 9th, 2023. It is 9:12 AM. It's going to be a sunny day in Atlanta.

DL White [00:10:28]:

It feels cool. The weather feels cooler. It's it's like not 99 degrees. I'm I'm just gonna check the weather super quick. It's 71 degrees in Atlanta, and it's going to be mostly sunny, high of 86. Beautiful. Beautiful. I have a mic.

DL White [00:10:44]:

I have a brand new mic, and I hope it sounds good. I won't know until I'm done recording this. I am ready to dig in, but first, let's have some coffee. We'll see how that works. Welcome back. We begin as always with the book report because I'm a bookhead. I would rather be reading than doing anything else in life ever when I'm watching TV, I am thinking about what's gonna happen next in the book I'm reading. If I am doing anything, I am always thinking about how I can put my earbuds in and turn my audio book on.

DL White [00:11:36]:

I'm just brilliant to books. So let's talk about the books I read this week. I have read 123 books of my challenge to read a 175 books this year. I did raise my challenge. Goal. Mhmm. Yes, amen. And, that puts me at only three books ahead on my Goodreads Challenge instead of 17.

DL White [00:11:58]:

That's more like it. I do feel like I'm gonna have to raise it again, but we'll see where I sit when I hit, you know, close to 175. This week, I read 4 books, debt against her, which, by Melinda Lee, which is in the Brie Taggart series. It's number 5. The series is okay. It's just something to pass the time. You're kinda, kinda, I'm kinda getting into it, but, you know, Melinda Lee's a lot like Mary Burton. Like, it if you have a long series of, like, detective private investigator novels, police procedurals, I just put them on and like do stuff.

DL White [00:12:36]:

Do laundry, wash the dishes, wash my hair. It's something to listen to while I do stuff. I also read lie to her, which is pre taggart number 6 by Melinda Lee. I had read forever again, which is number book number 5 in the Cordoba agency, romantic suspense series by my good friend, Delaney Diamond. It was excellent. I love love the Cordoba agency series. You should definitely start with book 1. I can't remember what the name of it is.

DL White [00:13:07]:

I feel like it's like. Something that starts with 2 words like until now, it's not the book, is that book 1? I don't remember, but it's really good. Start with book 1. Make your way all the way through because, Delaney Diamond is quality, quality reading. Love her. I also finished his favorite graves. By Paul Cleave. I said last week, Paul is a New Zealand thriller author who does release books here in the US, this book was so so good.

DL White [00:13:42]:

So good. Like, I don't I don't have words. I don't have words. I wish I could be, like, eloquent with it, but it was, like, at 40%. I was like, what is happening, Paul? I sent him a DM, and I was like, I don't under what is where is this book going? And he's like, I hope you enjoy it. So after 40%, I did in no way predict what was going to happen in the next 60% of that book, all all of it. Twists the twists have twists as usual with Paul. Excellent.

DL White [00:14:21]:

Excellent book. If you're a Paul cleave fan, you're gonna love love this one. If you're not a Paul cleave fan yet, go get the cleaner. Start with the Theodore Tate series. Make your way all the way through that and then do, like, 5 minutes alone. And then maybe, There's another book. I can't think of the name of it. I wish I could look things thing these things up before I start referring to them.

DL White [00:14:44]:

In a podcast, but essentially, I've read everything Paul Cleave has written. And if you if you like thrillers and trust my opinion and you also really like Karen Slaughter, you'll probably love Paul Kleave. Put it into your face. Dig into it. I am having kind of a light reading week weekend. I am, I just finished did I just finish? And even remember 12 tribes of Hattie by Ayanna Mathis. I'm prepping to read her next book, which comes out, I think, September 26th. I do not remember the title.

DL White [00:15:19]:

And I don't wanna look it up, but, next, and Ayala math is is coming up. For some reason, I felt like I needed to reread the 12 tribes of Hattie before I read this next one coming up. I think it's a continuation. If it's not, I'm gonna be mad because I listened to 8 hours of this in audio, and I it's still a three star read for me. I do not like short stories. So, that was a sacrifice for me. And I would like to not read that book again if I'm being, honest. I'm I wanna be done with it.

DL White [00:15:53]:

So We'll see what the next book is. For some reason, I felt like I needed to reread 12 12 tribes of Hattie, say that five times fast. Be because I don't read blurbs, I just be getting books and then opening them up and reading I have no idea what the next book is about, so we'll see. So that's it. This coming week, I don't think I have any don't think I have any arcs coming up, but I'm just gonna look super quick because I can. Going, I'm going to Netgalley to look these up. I usually have them on my calendar, and I know when I did my wrap up last week that I didn't have anything, I don't have anything. I have, something coming up September 19th.

DL White [00:16:49]:

And then September 26th, I have 2 books coming up. So September 19th, The Black Angel by Marie smelios. I don't know why I requested this book, but we're gonna see what it's about down to the wire by Tricia Sergeant is another romantic suspense. And then the unsettled by Ayanna Mathis also comes out on September 26th. So I am looking at this Ayanna Mathis book, and don't I don't think it has anything to do with the 12 tribes of Hattie, so I don't know why I reread that book, but, you know, at least it got read. I am I'm looking further on my list. I do see I have a Robert Dougani coming up. I absolutely ate through the Tracy Cross White series this year.

DL White [00:17:37]:

One last kill is the next book. I think is book 10 in the Tracy Cross White series. I might wait for audio on that one or see if I can get an no arc because I have listened to all of them so far. So I don't know how reading it is gonna go. Also, the other princess by Denny S Bryce is coming up. This cover is absolute gorgeous. I believe it's historical fiction, I believe. Sarah Fourth Banana kidnapped African princess, blah blah, and so such and so.

DL White [00:18:02]:

A novel of Queen Victoria's god daughter. So kind of looking forward to that. That is a historical fiction. So that's what's going on through October 3rd on my arc list. Kinda looking forward to that, I'm going to need some fiction to decompress from all the writing I have to do, next weekend. So There we go. Elysium. So I have not yet sold 100 copies of this book.

DL White [00:18:37]:

I have sold 76 copies in of those, well, 2 of those copies are me. I'm always the first person to buy my book on Amazon just wanna make sure it works, that it looks good before I announce it. And I bought a print copy of the book from Amazon because it was taking too long to get to me from Draft to Digital. The kicker is the Draft little copy will still probably get to me faster than the Amazon copy because they are saying it's gonna be like September 16th. They move real, real slow when you don't go direct So, yeah, the roll out for this book, you know, in in in hindsight, I didn't really do the book justice in the lead up and the roll out I could have taken more time and dragged it out. I could have teased it more during the writing. I think, you know, in my past podcast. I've talked a lot about how I was nervous about that because the text changes so much between the draft the final copy.

DL White [00:19:48]:

I don't wanna put something out there and say, yeah, this is it. This is coming. And then, like, you know, all the samples that I have posted of this book have all changed. They don't look like that in the book. So every time I go over this book, I I layer more. I change. I move things around. So putting out samplers and teasers makes me nervous because that is not what going to see when you open the book.

DL White [00:20:16]:

And also my my first mind when I'm writing a book is not always my it doesn't always match my last mind. I'm always going to have a better way of saying things, a different of saying things when I make my last couple of passes is when I go through and polish and clean up the language and, you know, move things around and, shore things up, cut out words, make things tighter, make sentences more language make things more tempting? Like, does this need to go here? Does this need to be here? I mean, it's super, super, super critical, right, before I go to publish a book. So I could have teased more I could have dragged out the release more. Like, maybe, you know, at least a week, but I was already 4 weeks past when I wanted to release the book because I sent it through a professional edit, which took, 4 weeks, 5 weeks, The book is beautiful. I have not found a single typo, which is awesome. So I'm happy with that. I'm super tempted to send the rest of my books through a professional edit. I don't wanna do that to my editor, but I'm super tempted to do it.

DL White [00:21:39]:

I I don't know. I, I, I feel I'm, I'm a double minded on it. I'm very proud of this book. I love it to pieces. I'm very disappointed in the reception. I did get some feedback from a good writer friend that the cover doesn't match the spice level, When people look at this cover, they think it's going to be a warm, maybe a rom com, a warm, like, women's fiction type book. It doesn't read spicy. And I get that.

DL White [00:22:16]:

Absolutely get that. My My issue, I wanted to change the cover style of this book. I just could not find images that represented my characters that I could afford to buy. The images that I can afford if you have ever looked through deposit photos, it's paltry. This election just isn't there. It's, like, it's, it's hard to make sexy covers for a book. And especially if you have a C like the the for the images should match. You know, ugh, you know, I get it.

DL White [00:23:02]:

I fully get the criticism of the cover. I like the covers. I did the best I could with what I had. Should they be darker? Should they be sexier? Can you do know, can you do, a sexy cover that doesn't have people on it? Sure. But also, they are they're vacation romances. They're not it it's not they're not erotica. They're not, you know, they're they're they're vacation romances. Set on a romantic island.

DL White [00:23:35]:

It's a great summer read. It's beachy. It's vacation y. I don't wanna go completely the other way and misrepresent the book. So best I can do is write the heck out of the blurb and I maybe, you know, in the title and the subtitle, make sure people know this is a vacation romance and, like, you know me as a a writer, I don't often write a book without spicing it. They ain't gonna swing it from the chandeliers, but it's gonna be something going on in the book. So maybe before the 3rd book comes out, I can change the style of the covers. But right now, I like them.

DL White [00:24:19]:

I don't think they are the market for a, sexy romance, and I get that, perhaps the cover just doesn't entice people, the reviews are starting to come in. It's basically from, readers that know me and have read the book and really enjoyed it. I'm I'm happy with the reviews so far. I am thinking about how to push this book further. I did run ads for a week. I just I cannot afford a $100 a day of running ads, you know, to, you know, for it to have a a a big reach. I did run some ads. I I think that helped.

DL White [00:25:05]:

I might set up a little virtual book tour and see if that will get the word out. I I stopped sending the book out to bloggers or pretty early on. I wanna say with Beach thing because I felt like, I felt like the bloggers went into it with, ugh, I guess I'll read this. And then gave a very bland milk toast review of the book, The exception to that is, I think, Audra Russell, red beach thing, and a thin line and then had me on between the reads. And we had such a good conversation about beach thing. Like, that's the that book's maybe 50,000 but we there's, like, so much packed into it. There's Wade and his relationship with his dad and Amina and her relationship with her parents and what she is doing and Wade and Amina's relationship and, like, you know, how will they come together and the choices that they have to make. And, we had, like, such a good robust conversation about this little book.

DL White [00:26:19]:

So I know it is possible to take this book seriously and give it the review that it deserves I feel like asking certain bloggers, bookstagrammers, book talkers to read it after they have read the Natasha Bishops and, Briannaes and, you know, all the other. I feel like asking them to read this after they have all of those other authors, I feel like they get it and they yawn. I don't I don't think that they're interested in it. Which okay. That's why I haven't asked them. So, I I I am, I'm still working through how to really how to promote this book and how to get it out there. I am gonna do a sample Sunday tomorrow and just really start sharing more of the book. Promo is still ongoing.

DL White [00:27:17]:

We're still only week 2 of release, I feel like, I typically I typically sell way more books in week 1 2. Like, dinner at Sam's, I think, sold 250 books in the 1st week. I sold, like, 50 of Elysium. But again, like I think I said last week, beach thing was a sleeper, Beach thing was a real sleeper. And, again, I think the cover doesn't tell people that it's some spice up in here, and you're gonna really enjoy it. So I would love to change the cover style of this book. I just have not found an image that says vacation romance not erotica. When I do, I have no qualms in changing the cover.

DL White [00:28:11]:

So you know, we'll see what comes in the future. But for right now, this is this is what it is. So, I haven't checked my reviews in a while because they stress me out, but I do know several people have reached out to me to tell me they really enjoyed the book, and they gave it a favorable review. Thank you so much to All of the good people that have read and reviewed and shared the book, please keep sharing it. If you have read it and have not yet reviewed, please do so. Accaptually, I do really need those reviews. Reviews are for readers. Just because I don't read them doesn't mean nobody's reading them, and, readers really do use reviews to determine if they're going to read a book.

DL White [00:28:57]:

So despite what the cover be looking like. I do think it's a good cover. At least it's not booty. It's not it's not an ugly cover. It does say beachy romance, I think. So, you know, you know. Anyhow, so that's what's going on With Elysium, we march on. We continue to promo even as we're moving into the next Potter Lake novel.

DL White [00:29:25]:

Still I rise, I think is going to be a fun book. I just I'm I'm at a I hit a wall, once my characters meet in person, which is typically where I hit the wall because I'm like, okay. They met what now. And I the meat happens in, like, chapter 3 of the book, which is very typical for me. It's not gonna be a slow burn, but it's not gonna be like Elysium where there is basically punching on page 1. So my my routine is usually if things are gonna happen, it's before 50%. And then we carry out the rest of, you know, we carry out the rest of the book through acts 23 with whatever conflict that's gonna happen. I I don't see a 3rd act breakup in this book.

DL White [00:30:24]:

But in my mind, like, going through what happens in this book, it's also not gonna be, fairy tale. Brenda Left Potter Lake many, many years ago. She was supposed to get married, left her groom at the altar. She's a runaway bride. And ends up returning to Pottery Lake sometime later. So it's a prodigal daughter returns home kind of thing. She is not planning to stay. She just needs to get her bearings and she needs a job because she cannot work at Helen's kitchen because Helen LeBlanc and Brenda Bell Butheads.

DL White [00:31:07]:

Like, they love each other, but no. Kingston I don't have a last name for him. I don't think if I do, I don't remember what it is, Kingston and his father have recently moved to Potter Lake. His father was a former sports hero and has moved to Potter Lake to work with the same doctor that treated Cade or, I guess, in the same practice that treated Cade's sports injury. So Kingston and his father have moved east, and they're in this, you know, little town. They've decided to kinda settle in. And Kingston took over or opened this little cafe called Stella Arise, which is Potter Lake's answer to Cracker Barrel. So half of it is, like, you know, kitchen knickknacks and newspapers and t shirts and whatnot.

DL White [00:32:07]:

And the other half is, a cafe. So it's a, you know, breakfast and lunch. They open from, like, 6 to 2 pm type of place. Like, Jay Christopher's, if Jay Christopher's was a, crack a barrel. So Kingston runs still at rise and Helen comes into the cafe to ask if Kingston can give her daughter a job. And, Kingston has not met Brenda. Kingston ain't even know miss Helen had a daughter, and so this book is Renda coming back to town, and everyone is like, hey, where have you been? Why did you leave? Lots of stuff has to be uncovered. So I it's gonna be a fun one.

DL White [00:32:51]:

I do need to, like, map things out a bit There's some reveals that have to come. There's some stories that have to be told. There's fences that need to mend. And then you know, is Rhonda gonna stay? Is she gonna leave? Like, what? You know, what happens? What is the story? And I'll be honest, I don't know yet because I am a pancer the story tells itself to me, and then I tell it to you. So as soon as I know what the story is, I'll let y'all know. So that's what I'm gonna be working on today and tomorrow, some of Monday, I guess, Tuesday Wednesday. I have all day meetings at work. So I'm I just really need to get myself together get myself an order before 20 k 5 days begins on Thursday 13th, and then we run 5 days through the weekend.

DL White [00:33:53]:

It's gonna be a good time. I'm I'm looking forward to digging back into it. Another thing I was thinking about while I'm not a series writer, I keep saying, is another book in the Ruby series. I do still have drinks that makes that need to write, which is the true follow-up to brunch at Ruby's, which is the continuation of the story of those three ladies that you met in Ruby's, but also Yvette who was in dinner at Sam's. Like, her story is just screaming at me. She's a private investigator. That Gibson hires to find out what's going on with Vanessa's ex. And I wrote her a real nice juicy backstory, and I really wanna write her I wanna write her story.

DL White [00:34:41]:

She's a private investigator that used to be in the army, and she ends up taking a case for this guy that used to, that she used to serve in the army with. He was an army attorney. They have both separated from the army. She lost her fiance in Afghanistan and So she's all broken up. And he has always had feelings for her, but kinda stood back because she was involved and now that she's not involved, he wants to make his move doesn't know how because she's obviously still very upset at the loss of her fiance, etcetera, and so on. She's a private investigator, and they get on a case together. The story has kind of been scratching at me. And so I'm I'm thinking, like, maybe next year, I might try to write it.

DL White [00:35:35]:

Drinks at Minks does not talk to me at all. Like, I did start that. I have, like, 6 chapters of something, but it just it doesn't talk to me at all. So I don't know that I'm gonna have a follow-up. Like, maybe I'll do a short next year to, like, catch everybody up on the ladies from Ruby's, But I feel like a missing persons is the book that I wanna write with Yvette and Malik not to change his name because I already have him, Malik as a hero. I I I took that name because I didn't think I was gonna write that book and I gave it to Malik who is in Hey Lover. So now I have to think of a different name, and it can't be a m am totally in love with m names. It can't be an m, so I gotta think of I gotta think of a a different name for the hero in missing persons.

DL White [00:36:26]:

But, that's That is, it's kinda it's kinda eaten at me. And also, there's a three book series that I wanna write involving sisters and, like, do I want that to be women's fiction? Do I want that to be romance? Like, to me, I like, I'm bored if there's no romance in it. And so I would love to get away from romance, but I'm I'm I'm bored if there's no if there's no romance angle to it. So, like, maybe I was thinking maybe missing missing persons could be a romantic suspense, but the idea that I have for them, the case I have for them isn't suspenseful. You know? So and then maybe that could lead to a sub series, but I'd, I don't know. I'm just really getting ahead of myself. Anyway, I'm sampling. I am trying to think of anything else that I need to share.

DL White [00:37:19]:

All is good. All is well. I can't believe it's our September. And, like, it's already mid September. Crazy. It's absolutely craziness. So it's gonna be a good week over here in books by D. L.

DL White [00:37:32]:

Whiteland. We continue to pump Elysium. We are prepping to write book 13 We are moving and shaking, and we are having a good time doing it. So That brings us to the close of today's episode. Thank you for joining me for another episode of the book cast. I was so happy have you here. I'll be back next week with a reading update and a writing update because, yeah, I'm gonna be writing. Please please enjoy this weekend.

DL White [00:38:03]:

Have a superlative week, and we will chat again next weekend. Bye bye.