7 Reasons to Sign Up for My Newsletter, Freebies and the Latest News!

Sisters. Revenge. Murder.

Hi Gobsmacked Loyalists!

I launched my NOIR TRAVEL STORY SERIES with “Revenge in Paris,” and the reviews are streaming in! Here's one that gave me the good kind of goosebumps.

Do you have post-holiday hangover? Maybe you need to hunker down. If so, just make sure you read “Revenge in Paris”, the first installment in the travel noir series by Valerie J. Brooks. This story isn’t a marathon–it’s a fast-paced, sweaty-palms, heart-racing holiday sprint around the festive City of Light, told through the eyes of a wannabe killer. The plot winds through Parisian streets and cafes and museums, and into the crooks and crannies of the cold, calculating, passionate, and unmedicated mind of “Helen Craig”. You’ll wince at the glitter and feel the crush of holiday crowds. You’ll want to get up and pour yourself a Scotch. But don’t bother to guess the finale. Brooks will ambush you with it. 

—Tom Titus, author of Blackberries in July: A Forager's Field Guide to Inner Peace

I’m ready to pour myself a whiskey and salute Tom!

ANOTHER GIVEAWAY!

Yes, I'm doing it again. This time I'm giving away an Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (or an e-reader of your choice)! Get in on this. Drawing takes place around the Ides of March. 

To enter, sign up at MY WEBSITE

GIVE A FREEBIE to FRIENDS!

Don't you just love freebies? Well, here's one that will make you feel good. Send this postcard to friends and family! They get the free story "Revenge in Paris" and are entered in the drawing for an e-reader! 

Spread the love. Just drag and drop the postcard below into an email and add your own personal message. Don't forget Valentine's Day! What better way to say I love you than to send them a story of revenge and murder?

7 REASONS TO SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER!

• If you missed downloading the free first story "Revenge in Paris"
• Discover who shows up in "Portland Prey," the second story of my noir series!
• Hear about freebies & contests, and enter drawings for cool stuff!
• Be the first to hear news about the series.
• Learn what weird things I'm forced to do as an author.
• Find out what makes me tingle with excitement in all things noir.
• Read about my favorite noir podcasts, tv shows and movies. 

Click on the Cover to Sign Up on My Website

Thanks for following! If you have a favorite social media, you can follow me there for everything noir. 

I love the dark. How about you?

Ciao!

Valerie

p.s. "Revenge in Paris" will soon be available at your favorite bookseller site. Stay tuned! 

MY WEBSITE AND NEWSLETTER SIGNUP

Why I Hate Writing

            I’m a scallywag for saying I hate writin’. Aye, ‘tis a bold faced lie. I’ll ‘fess up to being frustrated at times, at others, near death apoplectic, when a story takes a bad turn or characters won’t come out of hidin’. It can turn a writer wicked mean when lost at sea with no stars to guide you.

            The truth? What I hate has nothin’ to do with the writing itself. And I’ll bet a hogshead that there are a few of you who’ll know where I’m headed soon enough.

            But first, how in Hades did I board this writing ship in the first place? Here’s my tale.

One of my favorites

            Early on, it was an artist’s life for me. My love was working with live models in the studio around other artists who felt the same. Comin’ away with a stack of sketches gave me a swagger and somethin’ to show my mates and acquaintances. In my quarters, I’d work my charcoal and pencils to nubs, sometimes working the watercolors, too. I sold some pieces with little effort. Few can render an expression of a sad wench’s face or capture a body in movement, even if I do say so myself. For a final in a UO Advanced Drawing class I hung a series of large drawings of a friend I’d photographed, leaping off a couch, naked. The professor pulled a simple still life ink drawing from my pile of sketches and said, “Why didn’t you choose this one?” I wanted to say, Because it took a bloomin’ minute, max.

Bloomin' Ink Sketch

            Instead, I said, “Because it’s people and the human form that fascinate me.”

            He shook his head and said, “You’re better than you think you are.”

            So he thought I was insecure? No, my good man, your backhanded compliment missed the boat. What I wanted was someone to answer my unspoken question, “Why wasn’t I lovin’ the life?” I wanted someone to ask, “What are you doing here? Do you really want to be an artist? What are you passionate about?”

            Years later, I wondered why I had no drive to be an artist full-time, make a career of it. How in hell had I ended up there?

            Oddly and obviously, I learned through writing that we sail in certain directions for a variety of reasons, and those reasons become clear when something is closely examined. What is that “something?”

            Three clues, me hearties:

Glenn Close as Patty Hewes

            What should writers pay attention to in discovering their characters?

            What are therapists looking for when they’re digging around in their clients’ problems?

            What makes the Glenn Close character Patty Hewes on the brilliant show “Damages” so ruthless? (Yes, pirates watch TV. They’re lyin’ if they’re denyin’.)

            Answer?  Motive. Motive. Motive.

           

            Motive is the reason for doing something. And usually, the motive is hidden or not obvious. So why had I become a visual artist? What was my motive?

            Expeditions like this take years. Not ‘til long after schoolin’ or bringing in the doubloons in non-sailin’ jobs did I find the answer. When I finally dragged up a motive from the murky sea floor, there was my truth, aye, staring me in the face like a—

            Ey! What do we have here? A good mate has brought me my lunch, and I fear I’ll have to leave you hangin’. A hungry captain … well, is a dangerous captain.

            So, stay on board. I’ll be getting’ back with ya next week to finish this tale. (Hey, I’m a pirate! What did ya expect?) And I’ll be at the coast for a week of breathing salt air and doing that hated writing, har, har.

            ‘Till then, thanks heartily to the sixty-eight mates who have joined this expedition. You make me proud!

            And ye gentle men and lasses of fortune, stay away from bad motive people, you know, the kind who bring you or others misfortune. Thar are plenty of them on the high seas.

            To our sweet trade,

            Captain Val

Coming Up!

“The Tale, Continued”

“Sink or Swim: the Dangers of the Writing Life”

"The Fountain of Creative Ideas, or Why My Resume Wouldn't Land Me a Normal Job"

 "Platform, Flatform"

... and an interview with Jessica Maxwell of Roll Around Heaven