Month: May 2026

An Oldie But a Goodie: In the Crosshairs: The Body on Leffis Key by M.S. Spencer

Posted on by Chelsey M. Ortega

Wednesday is the 2nd book birthday for In the Crosshairs: The Body on Leffis Key by M.S. Spencer! Ms. Spencer is celebrating this special milestone here on my blog. I had the honor of asking her a few questions about her book.

How long has your book been out? When was it originally released?

This will be In the Crosshairs’ second anniversary. It was published by The Wild Rose Press on May 27, 2024.

Can you tell us about your story, world, and characters?

In the Crosshairs: the Body on Leffis Key, combines several interests of mine—Florida, birdwatching, and national politics. It takes place on a small key adjacent to Longboat Key, on the gulf coast of Florida. A strip of low dune and mangrove swamp, Leffis Key is home to the Marine Rescue Facility and a nature walk. Palmer Lind, the heroine, is a birder on a trek down the east coast after losing her husband. The stranger who helps her is a refugee from Capitol Hill, hiding from those who may have murdered his boss, a senator. He rents a conch house and owns one each of many vehicles, from planes to boats to a refurbished classic Airstream camper.

That sounds fascinating! What inspired this story?

I started writing this book after I came across an obscure news item about the Chinese buying up US farmland. It intrigued—and concerned—me. I decided to insert it as a plot element in a novel—and what to my wonderment should happen but two years later it’s a full-blown global issue!

I set In the Crosshairs on the gulf coast of Florida because that’s where I live. Let me explain with a short excerpt from the book: 

“A beam of red light shot through her window. Sunset already? She got up, fixed herself a drink, and took it to the balcony. She watched as the sun sank into the gulf, long, needle-like pincers of light stretching out as though it wanted to hook the horizon and hang on for dear life. Like Kilroy, whatever was pulling it from below won the battle and the sun dipped, leaving its signature green spot as a token of affection for the world.”

This is what it’s like to live on the Gulf Coast of Florida. By day the sky is the deep blue of Paul Newman’s eyes; at close of day it’s flooded with a full palette of reds, oranges, pinks and purples. Put it this way: I have a lot of pictures of my children—I have even more pictures of sunsets in Sarasota!

View from Leffis Key

That does sound beautiful. I would love to make it to Florida one day. Can you give us a brief look at your writing process? Are you a plotter or pantser? How much time did you spend on this project? What is your writing schedule like?

I have the luxury, being retired—kids grown, husband looking down on me from above, no mortgage—of being able to write whenever I want. Which usually means every day for at least four hours. Producing a full-length novel takes about a year, from first draft to release. My first draft is usually an expansive outline, about 30,000 words. After the plotline is set I can focus on building the characters and elaborate on the setting and atmosphere. Once those are established, I concentrate on ironing out any inconsistencies, creating red herrings, and refining the mystery. So I guess you could say I’m a plontster. 

I love that combination word. I think most authors are somewhere between the two. Is there anything else you’d like to share?

My interest in national politics stems from my years working on Capitol Hill—for the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, as a speechwriter for a Senator, and then at the Dept. of the Interior. Once you’ve seen the inner workings of federal government, you’ll never believe a single news article again!

Palmer Lind, recovering from the sudden death of her husband, embarks on a bird-watching trek to the Gulf Coast of Florida. One hot day on Leffis Key she comes upon—not the life bird she was hoping for—but a floating corpse. The handsome beach bum who appears on the scene at the same time seems to have even more secrets than the dead man.

His story begins to unravel as the pair search for answers to a growing pile of dead bodies. Spies, radical environmentalists, and wealthy businessmen circle around each other in a complex dance. Which one is lying? What do a seemingly random group of individuals have in common, other than being targeted by a crossbow?

Pick up a copy of In the Crosshairs: The Body of Leffis Key at your preferred retailer:

Amazon  Barnes&Noble  ITunes  Kobo  Google  BooksAMillion

Books2Read  WildRosePress    AmazonCA   AmazonUKAngus&RobertsonIndigoGooglePlay

Librarian, anthropologist, research assistant, Congressional aide, speechwriter, nonprofit director—M. S. Spencer has lived or traveled in five of the seven continents and holds degrees in Anthropology, Middle East Studies, and Library Science. She has published eighteen mystery or romantic suspense novels. She has two children, an exuberant granddaughter, and currently divides her time between the Gulf Coast of Florida and a tiny village in Maine.

Follow M.S. Spencer on your preferred social media:

Blog: https://msspencertalespinner.blogspot.com 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/msspencermysteries

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/msspencerauthor

GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/msspencer
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/msspencerauthor/

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/m-s-spencer

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B002ZOEUC8

BookDNA: https://bookdna.com/search/author/21204

New Release: Twice in a Lifetime Series by Jana Richards

Posted on by Chelsey M. Ortega

Today’s guest author has not one, but three new books to talk about. Her Twice in a Lifetime series released in March of this year. Please welcome Jana Richards.

Hi, I’m romance writer Jana Richards, and my latest releases are the three books in the Twice in a Lifetime time-travel romance series. Gabriel Daniels finds himself in a waiting room next door to Heaven after being involved in a car wreck. In order to earn his wings and a place in Heaven he must help three mortals get a second chance at love. Senior angel Thomas will act as Gabriel’s guide and mentor on this journey. And if he’s successful, he’ll be allowed to watch over the people he loved back on Earth.

There’s a catch: Gabriel must examine events of his own life before reaching Heaven. Thomas argues he won’t be ready to accept the perfection of his angelic life until he recognizes and accepts the mistakes he made in his mortal life, especially his mistakes with love. Gabriel isn’t happy about having to relive painful events, but since it’s the only way he can help his family, he agrees. 

And then they’re off. In I’LL BE SEEING YOU, Thomas and Gabriel’s first challenge is to take World War Two veteran Frank back to 1944 to help him correct the biggest mistake he made with love. In NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE, Gabriel takes Joanna back to the 1970s and convinces her to help the fiancé she broke up with when she became paraplegic. In the final book, WHEN I WAS YOUR MAN, Gabriel takes his client Sam back in time ten years to convince him to marry the woman he jilted at the altar. As his clients learn and grow and make new decisions, Gabriel faces his own past and begins to see his mortal life differently. 

What Inspired the Series

I’ve been inspired by World War Two stories most of my life, since my father was a WW2 veteran. I am drawn to stories of romances hastened by the danger of war. I’m especially fascinated by romances between men and women from different countries who never would have met if they hadn’t been thrown together by war.

When I first began writing what eventually became I’LL BE SEEING YOU, I never thought of the book as part of a series. I wrote Frank, the World War Two veteran, as the main character and everything was told from his point of view. But then I began to think that a more interesting perspective might come from Gabriel, the angel. What was his story? How did he end up becoming an angel? Writing from Gabriel’s point of view also gave me the opportunity to create a series in different time periods. So, I sketched out a very brief outline of what a series of three books would look like. And then I set those ideas aside till I could get back to them. I didn’t know it would take almost ten years to do so. In between I wrote several other books, but I always had the Twice in a Lifetime series in the back of my mind, waiting patiently for its time to shine.

Bringing the Series to Life

Finally in early 2024, I had the opportunity to delve back into this series. I started with an unfinished manuscript that I had to rework, and two paragraphs outlining the next two books. It took a lot of work, but finally in March 2026, the Twice in a Lifetime series was released. 

Since I self-published this series, I had several additional tasks, aside from the writing. Of course, every writer needs to work with a good editor. There were two rounds of professional editing for each book. Then I consulted with a cover artist to get the feeling I wanted to achieve with these books. After that I formatted the interior of the books for both paperback and ebook formats, and finally uploaded them to retailers. 

Self-publishing is definitely not for the faint of heart. It’s a lot of work. But it is also very rewarding, especially for someone like me who’s a bit of a control freak when it comes to my work. 

My Writing Process

I admit my writing process can be somewhat chaotic. My desk ends up littered with multiple pieces of scrap paper with scribbled notes about plot points and character traits. I’m sort of organized in that I always begin by writing an outline of the main plot of a story so that I have a place to start, and something to refer back to when I get stuck. It’s my way of telling myself the story. But the outline isn’t written in stone. If some new, better ideas occur to me as I’m writing, I’ll follow them if they make the story better. I consider myself a cross between a plotter and a pantster. 

When I’m in the thick of a writing project, I try to work at it consistently, at least five days a week. It’s the only way I know to get the work done and to stay in the flow of the story.

Outside of Writing

I retired from my day job as bookkeeper/admin assistant in December 2021 so now I can write almost full-time. But I leave time for other things, like family, especially my three-year-old granddaughter. I also spend summers volunteering at my local zoo, which I enjoy very much. And somewhere in between I try to make time for exercise and a social life!

Thanks for having me on your blog, Chelsey!

As a former history teacher, this series sounds intriguing! I also love a good WWII story as that’s the era of my great-grandparents romance as well. Here is some more information about Jana and her writing:

Jana Richards has tried her hand at many writing projects over the years, from magazine articles and short stories to full-length contemporary romance, paranormal suspense and romantic comedy. She loves to create characters with a sense of humor, but also a serious side. She believes there’s nothing more interesting than peeling back the layers of a character to see what makes them tick.

When not writing up a storm or dealing with dust bunnies, Jana can be found pursuing hobbies such as golf (which she plays very badly) or reading (which she does much better). 

Jana lives in Western Canada with her husband Warren and a senior cat named Layla. You can reach her through her website at https://www.janarichards.com