New Release Delay, Book Giveaway, Kitty Social Distancing & More!
Published: Tue, 04/21/20
Hello from Western Australia - where, like the rest of the world, we are all staying at home and social distancing as much as possible (and sadly, also fighting for toilet paper!)
I hope you are all staying safe and healthy. Thank you for the lovely messages of concern that many of you have sent "checking up" on me.
I'm sorry I've been so quiet - to be perfectly honest with you, I've been having a bit of a rough time mentally & emotionally. My husband is a hospital doctor and I've been very scared about him being exposed on the frontline in the current coronavirus pandemic.
Like many countries, Australia has had a shortage of tests, masks and other protective equipment, and there were so many awful stories from Italy and other
countries where healthcare workers were getting sick and dying, even if they were young & fit, just because they were in such a high risk environment.
But things have got better here in the last few weeks since the local government imposed strict restrictions and overall, infection numbers seem to be stabilising in Australia. They have also managed to acquire more PPE so doctors are more protected now. We're not out of the woods yet, but things seem to be more under control - so I'm feeling a lot less stressed now.
So forgive me for not being very sociable lately - I know most people seem to find comfort from engaging with others on social media & messaging apps when things get scary, but I just want to withdraw and hide away, when I'm feeling scared and anxious. I suppose we all deal with things in different ways. But I'm now forcing myself to rejoin the world! ;-)
Of course, Muesli hasn't got a clue what's happening and is enjoying life as usual. Ah, wouldn't it be lovely to be a spoilt pet cat right now? :-)
Cover Reveal & Pre-Order Delay:
Well, as you can probably guess, I've been really struggling to concentrate on the book in the past few weeks. In particular, it's very hard to write lighthearted, humorous scenes when you're feeling very scared and anxious yourself! 😝
So it's taken me much longer than normal to finish writing my current book- I've only just completed the first draft and the manuscript will now have to go through the usual process of beta readers... revisions... editor... and proofreader. (Meanwhile, my poor editor is in New York - his
neighbourhood is actually in the epicentre of the outbreak - and things have been quite tough for him...)
So unfortunately, all of this means that my next release, TROWEL AND ERROR (English Cottage Garden Mysteries ~ Book 4), has been delayed.
It was originally supposed to be released on April 15th but has now been postponed to early May.
I'm sorry about the delay but I hope you will understand.
(** Yes, it will be on Audible as well but the audiobook will take a bit longer to produce. My narrator, Pearl Hewitt, will start recording in early May and hopefully, the audio version should be out by early Jun)
PRE-ORDER DISCOUNT:$1 (£1) off the usual new release price. You can pre-order it now for $4.99 and it will be delivered straight to your Kindle when it is released. The price will go up to $5.99 after release (it will also be available in Kindle Unlimited after release).
Oh, but I'm pleased to tell you that I finally finished designing the cover for the book. What do you think?
As you can probably guess, the story has an autumnal theme ;-)
GIVEAWAY!
To celebrate the upcoming release, I'm giving away 5 sets of the first three books in my English Cottage Garden mysteries!
(Winner's choice of ebook or paperback format)
A great gift for family or friends if you've already read the series yourself... or a chance to own the books in print form, if you've already got the ebooks!
To enter, simply answer a few questions about the kinds of books you like to read: CLICK HERE
DEADLINE: 30th Apr 2020
(winners will be notified by email & announced in the next newsletter)
A new German book coming soon!
For all my German-language readers, you'll be pleased to know that my translator is currently putting the finishing touches to the second book in my Oxford Tearoom Mysteries and that should hopefully be releasing in early May too.
You can pre-order it now:
TEE MIT MILCH UND MORD
(Ein Oxford-Tearoom-Krimi 2)
I will mention it here when it is released but you can also sign up to my German books newsletter for information just about my German editions: www.hyhanna.com/german-newsletter
Oh, finally - a note for all those who have been asking after my mother. Thank you for your concern! She is still in rehab in Taiwan after her spinal operation, but otherwise she is healthy & well.
She normally lives in Dubai (U.A.E.) and only returned to Taiwan to treat her health issues. With flights being cancelled and borders closing, she has been forced to remain there... but ironically, she is probably in one of the safest places in the world, right now. Taiwan has been amazing in its success at containing the virus, especially considering how close it is to China and the high density of people on
a tiny island.
Taiwan has the same population as Australia (24 million), but is only 1/4 the size of Florida... and it has managed to keep infections below 400 cases, plus only 6 deaths so far (compared to Australia which has 6,500+ cases) due to quick action with testing & quarantine back in Jan.
Because of its early response, Taiwan hasn't had to impose the kind of lockdown that most other countries are facing now - restaurants, schools, retail shops and offices have remained open and so my mother has been very lucky. She tells me that life is largely continuing as normal, albeit with a lot of face masks and sanitiser out in public!
Well, I do hope this email finds you well and coping with the madness going on in the world right now...
A lot of advice I've read says it's important to find little moments of delight and joy to help keep your spirits up - so I wanted to share this with you before I go.
This was taken at sunset, in my garden, a few days ago. I looked up from potting a plant, to see the sky filled with pink, orange and gold. Western Australia is renowned for its beautiful sunsets and although the photo doesn't quite do justice to the amazing colours, I hope it captures a bit of that magical moment to share with you...
