reading – Gwenn Wright

The Review That Made Me Cry

Posted on February 13, 2021 by Gwenn

I wasn’t looking for another review and, honestly, I cringe every time I load the Amazon page for Dacie Mae: Midnight Under the Magnolia. Every time, I’m waiting for that inevitable scathing review. Happily, we’re still sitting at seven, unsolicited five-star reviews. How do people manage to get solicited reviews, anyway? Short of paying for them?

Last month I went to Amazon to get my link and there was a new review. It was so unexpectedly wonderful, I actually started crying. Dacie Mae is my best work yet. It took six years (on and off) to overhaul it and seamlessly add 30,000 words. Mind you, I’ve had two more sons in the past six years. This rewrite was no easy thing. So, to see someone take of their time to not only read my work but to leave such a wonderful, thoughtful review, really touched me. It also happens that on that same day, I was once again telling myself I was awful and not very good at storytelling anyway. Readers, reviewers, you have no idea how important your words are to us who are struggling to bring stories alive for you. Thanks to all of you who take the time to leave thoughtful, constructive reviews. (Please note: this is the last weekend Dacie Mae will be available on Kindle Unlimited.)

“So Unexpected

Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2021

It isn’t often that I will forgo sleeping to stay up late and then wake up early to finish a book that I just could not stop thinking about. I had to know how it ended, it wouldn’t let me rest until I did.

Everything about Dacie Mae captured my attention from the very first few chapters and pretty much insisted that I do nothing but read it (or think about it) from that time forward. It haunted me when I wasn’t reading it and left me finding any little bit of lag in time to pick it back up and sneak just one more page. I devoured it as fast as I possibly could and thought for sure once I finished it, I would be satisfied and would be able to go on with my day. And while the ending did leave me satisfied, I was far from thinking about it.

I am STILL thinking about it.

About Hank. About Henry, about Dacie Mae. I want more and I don’t think my poor brain will rest until I get it.

I love a good mystery that will keep me guessing. I love good characters that stay with you long after their story is over. And I love writing that flows smoothly right off the pages and into your very heart. I got all of these in Dacie Mae. I loved her wit, her southern sass and the town that promises to hold so many more adventures to come. I truly can not wait for more. Ms. Wright is definitely an author I will be keeping an eye on. It’s been a long time since I have been this excited about a good indie mystery writer.”

Amazon Store

Everything is in progress

Posted on February 11, 2021 by Gwenn

I am so very awful at staying engaged here and I apologize. Not everyone is on Instagram and I need to honor that. Dacie Mae book 2 is at about 21k words right now, as is Book 4 of The von Strassenberg Saga. I’m also working on a project for traditional publication. Hyperactive? Apparently I am. I write books the same way I read them: eight at a time. It may not seem efficient but if I get hung up or burdened by one story, I can always pluck away at another. I AM behind where I intended to be by now, but not horribly so. It’s just I’ve been overwhelmed with my Scouting and (old-school) homeschooling responsibilities. I’m always overwhelmed in the Spring. I would like to share that my second son, who is a high school senior, just earned his Eagle Scout rank! My third son is still working on his Eagle rank. As a merit badge counselor I have been revisiting some of the merit badge requirements I’m responsible for helping teach and serve as a guide through. It’s just been a LOT of actually important stuff distracting me lately. Even if I’m not typing, I’m always working, plotting, finessing, sorting things out, scrapping scenes. By the time I actually get to the typing, it’s often a breeze because I’ve sorted it all out in my head. I also wanted to say I’m thinking of removing Dacie Mae from Kindle Unlimited soon. There just isn’t enough profit being made to justify keeping Dacie Mae from other platforms.

Haven’t read Dacie Mae: Midnight Under the Magnolia? Here’s an unsolicited review that actually made me cry:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

So UnexpectedReviewed in the United States on January 15, 2021It isn’t often that I will forgo sleeping to stay up late and then wake up early to finish a book that I just could not stop thinking about. I had to know how it ended, it wouldn’t let me rest until I did.

I am STILL thinking about it.

About Hank. About Henry, about Dacie Mae. I want more and I don’t think my poor brain will rest until I get it.

See on Amazon

I promise to be better at keeping everyone here up to date! Stay warm!

Parallel Lines

Posted on August 30, 2020August 30, 2020 by Gwenn

The von Strassenberg Saga is a dark and twisty soap opera of a book series. That’s the best way of describing it. You might think I had it all intricately plotted out beforehand. The reality is much more baffling. It just happens. Very rarely do I plan it out, it just happens, and it’s happening again with book 4, The Devil’s Children. There are explosions going off in my brain as I realize what’s happening and wondering if it will all tie together nicely in the end. It always does, so I’m just trusting the process. I had no intention of making Peter and William have these parallel experiences but I’m here for it, it’s brilliant. I just wish I could take the credit but I didn’t PLAN it. It’s just happening. I’m so excited.

Cover Reveal: The Devil’s Children

Posted on August 12, 2020August 12, 2020 by Gwenn

I know I’m supposed to wait closer to my publication date and there’s supposed to be a lot of build up to this, but listen, people have been anxiously awaiting this book for 7 YEARS and I’m not going to play with their emotions any more than I already have. So, without any fanfare, I give you the cover to book 4 of The von Strassenberg Saga.
The story picks up right where we left off…in 2010. I’d tell you more but it would all be spoilers for any potential new readers. The one thing I can tell you is that when I wrote some of the von Strassenbergs into Dacie Mae: Midnight Under the Magnolia, it was just for fun but now those characters have become a major plot point in The Devil’s Children. I don’t have a release date yet and won’t really have an idea of when until the first draft is complete. Right now we’re at 14,000 words and 90,000 is my goal.
I hope you like the cover! I promise to keep you posted!

New Book Release!

Posted on August 11, 2020August 11, 2020 by Gwenn

Now in paperback and on Kindle Unlimited! Dacie Mae: Midnight Under the Magnolia is a coming of age story wrapped in a mystery. Filled with slow-burning romance and emotional entanglements, Midnight Under the Magnolia introduces us to the small-town world of twenty-two-year old Dacie Mae MacIver who dreams of making it to the big city one day. When her past comes strolling back into town, he’ll either prove to be the boost her career needs or the unveiling of her deepest secret. Buy here

Favorite Reviews: Filter

Posted on July 2, 2018July 2, 2018 by Gwenn

This (somewhat ancient) review of Filter: Book One of The von Strassenberg Saga had me laughing out loud. Bunny Cates is delightfully crazy.

“Seriously! OMGosh you guys. When I finished reading this book, it was like 3am. I ran upstairs where my Mr. was in his office and tossed the book in his lap, then I just started telling him about it. When I get excited I talk REALLY fast and I forget to breath. So, when I was finished, I leaned against the door and fake smoked a fake cigarette with a HUGE intake of air. He just looked up at me and said “So… you liked it then?” UGH!!! I could’ve punched him in the face! haha!!!”

CLICK FOR FULL REVIEW CLICK HERE TO BUY

A Thousand Words a Day

Posted on July 2, 2018July 2, 2018 by Gwenn

A line of dialogue drifted through my head tonight. A line spoken by Tess to Josepha in what will be the fourth book in The von Strassenberg Saga. From that one line the whole story went spinning but the pieces all fell happily into place, not just with this series but with the Dacie Mae spinoff. It felt amazing to open my laptop and have my von Strassenberg Saga playlist looping in my ears as my brain just took that line and ran with it. I ignored all the desperate wonderings, “How will this fit? Where will this go?” And just kept writing through it. Rewriting Dacie Mae has shown me that the magic is truly in rewriting. It’s okay just to vomit this first draft out. With so many different storylines and eye colors and plot twists to keep straight it can be tempting to just stop and check on something but I won’t let myself. As we say in filmmaking, “We can fix it in post.” Let’s finally get this done. A thousand words a day. Ninety days. That’s a novel. With some persistence I can manage a thousand words a day. They may not always be great words, especially if I have to wait until 11:30 at night to write them, but they’ll be words and in the beginning that’s all you need. BUY The von Strassenberg Saga here!

When Worlds Collide

Posted on February 2, 2018February 2, 2018 by Gwenn

A month or so ago I mentioned that I would be weaving the world of the von Strassenbergs into the world of Wallace County. I’ve finally made it happen. It’s been an exciting task, weaving the two together, making sure the plots line up and the characters are solid and consistent. It’s like old times. I certainly have missed the creepiness and soap opera drama of the von Strassenbergs!

For those who don’t know, I’m developing a series called Dacie Mae. It’s about a young woman, Dacie Mae MacIver, who wants to be a big-time journalist but is stuck in a backwoods town at a small newspaper. I’ve also written four books in The von Strassenberg series. The von Strassenberg Saga flows back and forth through time as a centuries-old family mystery begins to unravel and catch up with present time. (Interested? You can read it in both paperback and kindle/nook formats CLICK HERE…All four books are available in a digital bundle that will save you a few dollars CLICK HERE TO SAVE!)

I promised my faithful fans a snippet of the introduction of the von Strassenberg family to Dacie Mae. So here it is!

DACIE MAE: MIDNIGHT UNDER THE MAGNOLIA

“Tell your, Chief,” she says, rising to her feet. “That I would be willing to give an exclusive in exchange for an above the fold story.”

I am stunned when she unfurls herself to her full height. Even with her shoulders stooped a bit she is taller than myself. Not that I’m like an Amazon by any means but I am five-eight. To see a woman who is old and arthritic stand inches above me is just, well it makes her even creepier than she was sitting down.

“An exclusive?”

She shrugs one bony shoulder and the lacy shawl slips down her arm. “There are things people want to know about our family. About the house. I would be willing to exchange some of that information for some publicity.” The entire county and followers of the few blogs surrounding the spooky side of Wallace County and the rest of Missouri would be more than happy to make the deal. The history of the Strauss House has been one of the most closely guarded stories for more than a century. This could be big. For the paper. For me. But I’d have to come back. That’s the price of ambition. Dealing with hex-eyed old women who look like they can curse you is just part of the job. Next maybe I’ll be interviewing serial killers.

“Miss MacIver,” she snaps her fingers under my nose.

“Yes ma’am, I’ll ask.”

She looks pleased with my distraction. She probably already knows that I’m all in. She hasn’t sold me on the pie, but this, this I’m willing to do.

Her thin, pale lips pull into something like a smile. “Perhaps you would like a tour of the house?”

I look down at my watch, part reflex, part instant excuse. This time though I’m actually interested but low on time. I’m also supposed to meet with one of the county fair judges later. Another unusual request in what has turned out to be one of the weirdest days of my life.

“Maybe a quick tour. I have another interview this afternoon.”

“Of course you do,” she smiles. Olivia Strauss moves toward the French doors, slowly to be sure but still very elegant in her movements. “Harlowe,” she calls once she reaches the threshold. “Harlowe come down and show Miss MacIver the house.” We wait through a long awkward silence. “Harlowe!”

More silence. I shift and rehearse how I’m going to tell her that it’s totally okay, the house tour can wait.

“Yes, grandmother!?” The words are respectful but the tone beneath them is not so much.

“I want you to give Miss MacIver a quick tour of the house.”

I expect an insolent, “Why?” It never comes. Harlowe pounds down the steps and stops in the foyer, giving me a look that says, “Let’s get this over with. You’re ruining my day.”

“The whole house,” she asks her grandmother. A weird undercurrent passes between. Olivia never says anything in response but from the shift in Harlowe’s expression her grandmother is obviously giving her the evil eye.

….

“That’s my sister, Ellis. Don’t talk to her.”

From between the clumps of her red hair one of Ellis’s pale eyes rolls in my direction. She stops swinging and raises her head. The long, unkempt hair falls back from her face. It is Harlowe’s face but thinner, paler. They are Harlowe’s eyes but there is missing from them. The intelligence is there but not the warmth. Her full, bottom lip quirks up in what I suppose is a smile but beneath those eyes it has quite the opposite effect. “I said don’t talk to her,” Harlowe pulls me away.

“Why not?”

Creak. Creak. Creak.

“She doesn’t want you to.”

“Identical?”

“Yes but different.”

“Then you aren’t identical.”

“We are but we aren’t.”

………..

That’s all for now! My baby is ready for bed and letting the whole house know it! Please let me know what you think!

Where has Dacie Mae Gone?

Posted on October 3, 2017October 3, 2017 by Gwenn

Dacie Mae MacIver.

22.

Journalist. Kind of.

Beloved daughter, colleague, friend and lover (maybe??).

Has gone missing.

Dacie Mae: Midnight Under the Magnolia is no longer available for sale at this time. I have found a rather reputable agent who will actually look at previously self-published work (please don’t ask yet, I’m still very self-conscious during this process and am not ready to share). Dacie Mae is, I think, my strongest work to date but the market is flooded and I suck at self-promotion so Dacie Mae can’t get no love. For this reason I have removed Dacie Mae from all available platforms and am editing, bolstering and lovingly crafting her into a novel-length tale of lust and deception and, of course, murder. To be martleable as a mystery novel she needs about 40,000 more words. That’s equal to a few more characters meeting an untimely demise I would think. I honestly don’t have a lot of time to sit at my laptop these days. I often only have one arm available as I’m breastfeeding my fifth son who is only eight weeks old at this time. Also my brain function, not so good. Sleep deprivation is a powerful thing. So I’m working slowly, and hopefully methodically, on my phone….typing with my thumbs. I had already started on book two when I decided to check into finding someone who would represent Dacie Mae. After I finish the rewrite I’ll most likely let her rest while I work on book two and when that’s done I’ll go back and reread the first book. Curious about this? Check out my “My New Editing Process” post. Anyway, nap time is over, back to momming. Check back for more updates on Dacie Mae!