Dirty Water: A Red Sox Mystery

Hartford Saturday

2009-06-05T20:35:00.000-04:00

We will be doing a signing (no reading this time) at Bookworm Bookstore in Hartford, CT, at noon on Saturday (June 6th). Come by and pick up Dirty Water: A Red Sox Mystery, and we will personalize it to the dad of your choice. (Or whoever.) Father's Day is around the corner.

Bookworm
968 Farmington Ave # 1
West Hartford, CT 06107

Aunt BEA

2009-06-01T18:02:00.001-04:00

A little summary of our BEA experience is up over at my main blog....

In Hartford Tonight

2009-05-28T11:10:00.000-04:00

If you've got a book you want signed, or if you haven't picked up Dirty Water yet, come out to our reading/talk/signing at the Goodwin Library tonight between 6 and 8. Details here. Directions here.

Dirty Water on TV

2009-05-11T21:14:00.001-04:00

If you're in Connecticut, check Jere and Mary-Ann out on channel 30 tonight on the 11:00 news. The interview aired at 6:00, too, and I heard it came out great. It will also be on next Sunday if you miss it tonight.

When we were at the studio for the interview, I told Kevin Nathan how the only Sox games I saw growing up were pretty much the Friday and Sunday games on channel 30. I'm happy to report that he said he's amazed by how many people associate his channel with Red Sox games, even though it's been decades since they've shown any.

If you saw us on TV tonight and are coming here for the first time, welcome. You can buy our book at pretty much any bookstore in New England, or on any of the online booksellers. Get it here on Amazon.

Watch this space for news of upcoming readings/signings.

--Jere

Us On TV

2009-04-29T11:55:00.002-04:00

We'll be interviewed for a Connecticut TV station soon. Details of air date to follow!

THIS WEEKEND, APRIL 18 AND 19: MYSTERY 203

2009-04-13T15:37:00.003-04:00

All you mystery fans can still get in on "Mystery 203," a two-day festival on Saturday, April 18, at the Easton Library, followed by a move on Sunday, April 19, to the Westport Library. (In case you're wondering, 203 is the area code.) Just think--48 hours of mingling with fellow enthusiasts plus panel discussions, book signings, writing tips from the pros to those who will be pros; raffle and auction; and a big party--"Cocktails and Crime"--Saturday night. Check it out at www.murder203.com.

I'll be on two of those panels: Saturday at 11:15, Easton Library, the topic, "Do Crime Writers Have to Be Forensic Specialists?" with me and three tough guys--D.H. Dublin, Chris Grabenstein and Larry Goldstone. (Sparks will fly, I promise.) I'll be zeroing in on my latest mystery, DIRTY WATER: A RED SOX MYSTERY. (My collaborator, Jere Smith, can't come--he'll be at Fenway enjoying and covering Sox games for his blog: A Red Sox Fan from Pinstripe Territory.)

Next day, Sunday at 2, Westport Library, the topic, "We're Not Making This Up" with yours truly, again, along with the equally brilliant and good lookin' Kate Flora and Mathew Phelps. We three write true crime, my contribution, GIRLS OF TENDER AGE: A MEMOIR, which centers on a tragic crime that turned my childhood, my family and my community upside down.

Final note: This is especially wonderful for writers as we get to emerge from our caves and interact with the very people we seek to entertain and maybe enlighten.

And did I say the keynote speaker is LINDA FAIRSTEIN?!?!?! Hope to see you there. Go to www.murder203.com and sign up!

--Mary-Ann

ROSLINDALE LIBRARY (BOSTON) COMING UP

2009-04-05T11:53:00.001-04:00

Will be joining my fellow Sisters in Crime for a panel on writing true crime called, "We're Not Making This Up," at the Roslindale Library, Roslindale being either a neighborhood or suburb of Boston--I can't figure out which is which when it comes to Beantown. Hope you'll be there: Wednesday, April 6, at 6:30 PM.

Village Books will have all the authors' books available including my memoir: GIRLS OF TENDER AGE. (Support your local bookstore!) In addition, they will also have DIRTY WATER: A RED SOX MYSTERY there--first five purchasers receive a bar of "Big Poppy" soap (Dominican mango with poppy seed exfoliant) compliments of Stella Marie Soap. My Sox collaborator, Jere Smith, will have signed the books earlier; he can't be at the event because he'll be at Fenway enjoying the game and taking notes and pictures for his blog: "A Red Sox Fan from Pinstripe Territory," www.letsgosox.blogspot.com.

I will join him after the library panel, missing just a couple of innings.

Hope to see you at the library or the game, or both!

--Mary-Ann

A New Season

2009-03-12T16:06:00.002-04:00

Since our book came out in October, we've yet to have a baseball season of promoting it. Opening Day is a few weeks away, so we're thinking of it as if our book is just now coming out. We've got events lined up for April and beyond. We'll keep you posted here.

Then it's on to the paperback, and next holiday season...and then another baseball season to promote the paperback...

I've got my Fenway tickets already. See you at the ballpark and in the bookstores in '09!

Yale

2009-03-03T13:06:00.002-05:00

We had a great time in New Haven. Thanks to the Yale Bookstore for having us.

We also did an interview that day with John Valeri of the Hartford Examiner (pictured between Jere and Mary-Ann), and part one of that interview appears here.

We'll have more events in April. We're also excited about being a part of the BEA convention in NYC in a few months. Stay tuned for the full schedule.

Best Seller!

2009-02-28T21:05:00.002-05:00

Not nationwide, but on the South Shore of Massachusetts. Hey, it still counts.

Hope to see you all Sunday at 2 PM at the Yale bookstore in New Haven.

Yale This Sunday

2009-02-24T13:00:00.002-05:00

Sunday, March 1st, 2:00-3:00 PM, Jere and Mary-Ann will be at the Yale Bookstore for a reading and signing. Hope to see you there.

If you're itchin' for baseball like the rest of us, the first real spring training game is tomorrow night--on NESN, or, if you're outside NESN's territory anywhere in the country, MLB Network will also be showing it. Woohoo!

Scituation Normal

2009-02-08T23:47:00.002-05:00

Mom and I had fun at our reading/signing at Scituate's Front Street Bookshop.

(I like how the book "Punk" is right next to my head, and a little further to the right, one on The Clash.)

Our next one will be in New Haven on March 1st. Details to come.

Coming Soon To The South Shore

2009-01-19T15:43:00.003-05:00

On Friday, February 6th, at 7 PM, we'll both be at Front Street Books in Scituate, Mass., for a reading and signing of Dirty Water.

More info is at their website--you can also order our book online there. Hope to see you on the 6th.

I like how we have this event on that day--it's Truck Day! If you're not familiar with this, "Truck Day" is the day all the Red Sox' equipment is packed up at Fenway Park and sent south to Florida in a huge moving truck, as spring training starts shortly thereafter. It's the type of event that probably makes the local news in most baseball cities--but only rabid fans, like Red Sox fans, will actually go to Fenway to send the truck off personally.

********

What a great review we got on Amazon from Mary Whipple, who is listed as one of their "Top 10 Reviewers." Click here.

3

2009-01-10T21:06:00.002-05:00

For a long time we've had only two customer reviews on our Amazon page, but finally we've got a third, and it's a good one. But we know more than three of you have finished the thing by now, eh? Leave your review on our Amazon page and we'll.....be very grateful. Thanks!

Another Good One

2009-01-01T22:50:00.001-05:00

Great review by Paul Steven Stone up at Doug Holder's blog!

Illegal Review?

2008-12-30T17:55:00.000-05:00

Check out the review of Dirty Water in Spitball Magazine.

Saturday

2008-12-15T20:52:00.002-05:00

This Saturday (Dec. 20th), from 11 AM to 1 PM, mom and I will be signing books at the Bookworm in West Hartford. Hope to see you there.

Also, check out my mom's contribution to this Reader's Digest article.

A Holiday Message From Roy Blount, Jr

2008-12-12T11:37:00.001-05:00

I've been talking to booksellers lately who report that times are hard. And local booksellers aren't known for vast reserves of capital, so a serious dip in sales can be devastating. Booksellers don't lose enough money, however, to receive congressional attention. A government bailout isn't in the cards.

We don't want bookstores to die. Authors need them, and so do neighborhoods. So let's mount a book-buying splurge. Get your friends together, go to your local bookstore and have a book-buying party. Buy the rest of your Christmas presents, but that's just for starters. Clear out the mysteries, wrap up the histories, beam up the science fiction! Round up the westerns, go crazy for self-help, say yes to the university press books! Get a load of those coffee-table books, fatten up on slim volumes of verse, and take a chance on romance!

There will be birthdays in the next twelve months; books keep well; they're easy to wrap: buy those books now. Buy replacements for any books looking raggedy on your shelves. Stockpile children's books as gifts for friends who look like they may eventually give birth. Hold off on the flat-screen TV and the GPS (they'll be cheaper after Christmas) and buy many, many books. Then tell the grateful booksellers, who by this time will be hanging onto your legs begging you to stay and live with their cat in the stockroom: "Got to move on, folks. Got some books to write now. You see...we're the Authors Guild."

Enjoy the holidays.

Roy Blount Jr.
President
Authors Guild

Kate's Wrapup

2008-12-08T11:30:00.002-05:00

Kate's party was a fun time. Hundreds of people came and kept the fairly small bookstore jammed for four hours. Here are some highlights:

We met author Robert Parker--took a picture with him.

David Laurila stopped by. I'd only talked with him online before--he wrote this book, which is a compilation of interviews he's done with people in the Red Sox organization.

Got to meet Hank Philipi Ryan in person. You know her from Jungle Red among other things.

I met a woman who used to live in Danbury, CT, and knew almost the entire cast of characters I knew while I was living there.

We chatted with a woman who is probably the biggest mystery fan in the world. She had things for my mom to sign that we'd never seen before.

Saw Dave Zeltserman again--he was with us when we had our release party at Murder Under Bones.

Our next event will be a signing at the Bookworm in West Hartford, CT, on Saturday, December 20th, from 11-1.

Boston-Area This Friday

2008-12-02T00:11:00.002-05:00

We'll be signing at Kate's Mystery Books in Cambridge this Friday night, December 5th. This is Kate's annual holiday party, and will feature lots of authors. We're in the 6:30-7:15 slot. Click here for the full schedule. Directions to Kate's are here.

See you there.

ProJo Review

2008-11-30T13:54:00.001-05:00

We just found this little but great review from the Providence Journal from October.

Mom's Amazon Blog

2008-11-25T22:04:00.001-05:00

Click here for mom's blog on Amazon (which has recently been hijacked by the more computer-savvy me).

Product Search

2008-11-25T02:54:00.001-05:00

If you do a Google product search, you can see all the crazy places that sell our book online. "Looney Tunes CD store." What??

Last Week In Real Life

2008-11-24T00:31:00.003-05:00

Good week in Dirty Water land--the Colin McEnroe show was fun. He's really anti-Joe Lieberman, and not afraid to say so. I kind of wanted to join in that discussion, but I figured I'd better talk about the book as planned.

Then we had our event at Broad Street Books in Middletown. Everyone there bought a book--one woman bought six. Another had come to our Hartford signing but came to Middletown to get more copies! Awesome. After our reading, we had a really good Q & A, too. One guy was an old Brooklyn Dodgers fan, and was aware of the old Hartford National League team from the 1870s.

And today, the book had a serious spike on Amazon! Thanks to all of you. Nice job.

More events coming soon....

This Week In Real Life

2008-11-16T15:02:00.002-05:00

We'll be on Colin McEnroe's radio show on WTIC-AM 1080, which you can listen to online if you're not in Connecticut, Tuesday, November 18th at 3:30 PM.

Then we'll be reading and signing books at Broad Street Books in Middletown, CT, Thursday, November 20th, at 7 PM.

Found a brief mention of Dirty Water in the Seattle paper. Thanks, Danielle Dreger-Babbitt.

And also in Washington, we have a page on the Tacoma Library's site (which shows the Booklist review that normally requires a subscription.)

Sales

2008-11-14T13:04:00.005-05:00

It's so funny the way I constantly check Amazon to try and figure out how well the book is selling. There are websites which try to explain the true meaning of the sales rank number--it's almost like the way scientists monitor lists of random numbers for decades trying to unlock the pattern. But from what I can tell, the number basically tells you how recently you've sold a book. Every time your number spikes, you've made a sale.

I think.

But there are other things to watch. The list of "people who bought this book also bought" is fun, because the more that list grows, the more books you can be sure you've sold. It was fun to watch that list go from just a couple to now 15 pages worth (6 to a page.) Of course, technically, that could just mean one person bought our book in an order with 90 other books. And the fact that when I click on one of those other books, our book isn't necessarily in their list. Who knows.

But I was very happy to see a new thing on our page today. It said "customers bought these two things together," and showed our book next to the 2009 Red Sox wall calendar. It didn't go so far as to offer a sale price for buying both together, but it did give the option of adding both to your cart at once. You know what this means, though? Why do you buy a wall calendar? As a holiday gift. And people buying our book as a holiday gift is exactly what we're looking for. When you've got a baseball-related book out after the baseball season ends, you've at least got the holidays going for you.

90 Miles

2008-11-09T23:06:00.002-05:00

One of the storylines in our novel involves the smuggling of Cuban baseball players. Our book is fiction, but part of the story is inspired by the case of Gus Dominguez. Gus is in jail right now. He was an agent for Cuban players like Yuniesky Betancourt. He was accused, and convicted, of smuggling, transporting and harboring Cuban players.

It's a long, complicated story, and I'll let you do the research on your own, but whether you are for or against what he did, I think we can all agree that this story has been swept under the rug by Major League Baseball.

Jungle Boogie

2008-11-06T11:51:00.005-05:00

Today I have a guest blog up on Jungle Red Writers. Check it out, and feel free to leave a comment over there.

I wanted to put some other pics in there, but we couldn't work them in. So I'll post them here. First, my mom when her first book, The Book of Phoebe, came out, at the party her friends threw for her:
Check out those frames! Oh man, my mom's gonna kill me when she sees this up here.

And here's the shot of my sister and I in her memoir, Girls of Tender Age:

Us On (Internet) TV

2008-11-05T11:34:00.002-05:00

Check out the podcast of mom and me on Henry Delangelo's internet TV show, "HDTV." It was a fun interview with a fellow Sox fan who like me has lived in both Rhode Island and Fairfield County, CT. I like the way he did the podcast, with pictures shot by me in a slideshow, since we were on the phone, not with him in studio.

Thanks, Henry!

Shrinky Dinks

2008-11-02T23:49:00.002-05:00

When I got the book from Amazon, I noted it was shrink-wrapped. What I didn't realize was that they're all shrink-wrapped. Yes, the ones that got shipped to stores, too. I couldn't believe my eyes when I went into the local Barnes & Noble and saw my book for sale on a shelf for the first time...and it could not be opened. (I don't know if you know this, but a key element in the reading of a book is the ability to OPEN IT.)

Of course, I ripped the thing open--and you should, too. If you see it in a store, rip it from its cocoon. I'm the author, I authorize it. Turns out our distributor does art books, which are normally shrink-wrapped and...I'm not even gonna finish this explanation because I've already wasted enough time unwrapping books. But the key is, all printings from now on will come without the dreaded SW.

Oh, and here are some more indy bookstores who we support and who support us (and who have some de-shrink-wrapping to do. Ugh.)

Mystery Loves Company, Baltimore

M is for Mystery, Palo Alto, CA

Clues Unlimited, Tucson, AZ

Mystery Lovers Bookstore, Pittsburgh

New Comment Section Too Scary?

2008-10-31T10:48:00.002-04:00

I saw the other day that Blogger came up with a new option for allowing comments--letting you type it right onto the window in a box. I've received plenty of comments since then, but I have also heard of people having trouble. So, if you have tried and can't comment under the new system, e-mail me and let me know. Two2067 at aol dot com. I do have moderation on, so you should at least get the "comment awaiting moderation" notice if you try to comment. So if you haven't commented in the last few days, do a test one and see what happens.

Thanks. Happy Halloween.

(Ooh, new top banner at redsox.com.)

Options

2008-10-31T01:27:00.002-04:00

I was thinking, what are the other big national booksellers besides B&N and Borders (and Amazon)? I actually had to look it up. Turns out the next biggest is Books-a-Million. They've got our book, and their on-line "club member" rate is a couple cents cheaper than Amazon's. So, you can choose them, or one of those others, but we hope you'll get it from an independent bookstore like Kate's in Cambridge, Bookworm in West Hartford, Broad Street Books in Middletown, CT, or Murder by the Book if you happen to be in Houston, Texas.

I've had a lot of really cool experiences with putting out my first book, but one I haven't had yet is seeing it for sale in one of the chain stores--B&N shows every New England store having Dirty Water in stock, so I'll have to check out my nearest one tomorrow.

Ya Gotta Have Hartford

2008-10-29T01:35:00.004-04:00

Last night in West Hartford was fun. I posted about this one at my main blog. At our reading, I told people about where I'd just been--at the old home of the Dark Blues, Hartford's only major league baseball team, from back in '76. 1876, that is.

We also had a great time doing Robin's radio show a few days back. I'll post the link to our interview when she puts it online. And we had fun on Diane & Ray on WTIC--Diane was there tonight and has been hyping our book on air, despite being a Yankee fan.

Our next event will be another Connecticut one--details coming soon.

Reading/Signing This Tuesday In West Hartford, CT

2008-10-26T19:07:00.003-04:00

Tuesday, October 28th, 7 PM, we'll be at the West Hartford Library for a free reading/signing. Come on down and listen, chat with us, or whatever. If you buy a book, we'll be happy to sign it. We'll also be doing a little cross-promotion with my girlfriend's soap company, Stella Marie Soap. The first 50 people to make a purchase will get a "Big Poppy" soap. (Her soap smells so good, you'll want to eat it.)

Details from the library's website:

"Author readings are held at the Noah Webster (Main) Library, 20 S. Main Street, West Hartford, Connecticut. Readings are free but seating is limited. Parking is also free for those who park in the Isham Garage and bring their parking ticket to the event. Books will be available for purchase at each event. For more information, please call the library at: 860-561-6990."

Reading With Robin

2008-10-24T12:50:00.004-04:00

Tomorrow, Saturday, my mom and I will be interviewed on Reading with Robin, on 920-AM Providence. It's also on the web here. Her show runs 7-8 AM. I think we'll be on around 7:20 or so. If you miss it, it'll be available on Robin's site eventually.

It's a call-in show, so prepare to call and ask us a question!

We'll also be at the West Hartford Library this coming Tuesday night, 10/28. More on that soon.

The Big Day

2008-10-22T18:05:00.003-04:00

The interview on WTIC (the station I grew up desperately trying to pull in over static to hear the Red Sox games on) went great. My mom and I were on from our separate houses, and we didn't talk over each other once...

Then at Redbones, lots of people were there, lots of books were sold and signed, and everybody seemed to have a good time. Kate of Kate's Mystery Books, who puts on these parties, was really nice, and invited us to sign at a holiday party at her store. We met a lot of other really nice people, too. Even though I used to live right near Redbones, I never knew how Red Sox-y their bar was. The owner showed us around--they have these giant posters with every Sox player's stats, and trivia questions on the wall. I'll have to watch a game there next year. (She assured me they have some good vegetarian stuff.)

We got to sign a book for Stephen King! Granted, he hasn't gotten it yet, but Kate said he does go to her store sometimes--so if he does, he'll get our book. That would be the holy grail, right there. Of course, his buddy and ours, Stewart O'Nan, gave us a blurb for the jacket, so maybe Stephen will see our book, turn it over, and say, "Ah, approved by Stewart....I wonder if these authors would like to sit with me in my sweet box seats at Fenway...." (Notice where my priorities are. Then again, I'd be happy with a signed copy of The Shining. With Red Sox tickets inside. There's a lot of ways he could go, really....)

[Update: Terribly, I forgot to mention I also got to meet Bill Nowlin, and sign a book for him!]

Season Over

2008-10-20T01:01:00.002-04:00

The Red Sox season is officially over, as they finish a game away from the World Series. We are bummed, but remember, in our book, which takes place in 2007, the Red Sox win in the end. No matter how many times you read it.

The book is finally listed as "In Stock" on Amazon--I'm glad we got to see that before the end of the baseball season. If you ordered a while ago, because of the delays, you may have to go and "approve" your shipment. So if you get an e-mail from Amazon, read it carefully.

If you're in Connecticut, flip on the Diane & Ray show on WTIC-1080 AM Tuesday morning around 8:20 AM, as we'll be getting interviewed.

That night, we'll be at Redbones in Somerville, Mass., 5:30 to 7:00 PM for a signing/release party. Free appetizers!

Release Date

2008-10-16T12:39:00.002-04:00

The release date put up by Amazon was October 12th. That date has come and gone, but the books are currently being distributed--so if you ordered through Amazon, they should be shipping it soon, despite the fact that you'll probably get the "sorry, this title has been delayed" e-mail.

If you're looking to get the book at an actual store, go ahead and try it--let us know when your bookstore gets it. I can't wait to see this thing on a shelf!

Schedule

2008-10-07T13:08:00.003-04:00

Sat, 10/11, 7:00 PM: Professor Thom's, New York City (signing before Sox-Rays, ALCS Game 2) (more info here)

Tues, 10/21, 5:00 PM: Redbones BBQ, Davis Square, Somerville, MA. (book party by Kate's Mystery Books, reading/signing, on eve of World Series)

Tues, 10/28, 7:00 PM: West Hartford Library (reading/signing)

More details on each appearance as they get closer.

Rocky Mountain High

2008-10-02T19:52:00.002-04:00

Nice review in the Rocky Mountain News. "Grade: A." I haven't gotten an A since fifth grade!

"The New Phonebooks Are Here!"

2008-09-30T21:58:00.002-04:00

We have received real-life, actual copies of the book. Well, my mom has--I will see them soon. But she says they look great. She's had this experience plenty of times (though I'm sure it never gets old), but I can't wait to see a finished copy of my own book!

I should probably "act like I've been there before," shouldn't I?

Screw that, I'm psyched!

Shipping Up To Boston--And To A Bookstore Near You!

2008-09-26T14:53:00.002-04:00

Copies of Dirty Water are officially being shipped. Finally! Start bugging your local mom and/or pop about it today....

NEIBA

2008-09-20T22:55:00.001-04:00

Thanks to everyone I met at NEIBA '08 today! I had a great time. Hope you enjoy the book.

World Series Eve Party

2008-09-15T13:29:00.002-04:00

On Tuesday, October 21st, from 5:30 to 7:00, we'll be at Redbones in Davis Square in Somerville, MA for a book party for Dirty Water, hosted by Kate's Mystery Books in Cambridge. It's free. Stop by if you can.

If all goes well, the following night will be Game One of the World Series at Fenway Park.

Weakly

2008-09-04T14:12:00.007-04:00

Our Publisher's Weekly review is here. (In the mystery section, a little over halfway down the page.) I guess PW giveth but taketh away, too. The review starts out good, but ends saying that some parts of our book act like a rain delay in the middle of a Sox-Yanks game. And they don't even mention the fact that a blog runs through the whole book!

Anyway, I guess it's good that they start with the good--if I know people, they only read the first sentence of anything before they go and check their myspace or whatever.

And by the way--I love rain delays! I'm like Brer Rabbit to that reviewer: I was born in a rain delay. If you can't find the beauty in this:

or this:

or this:

or this:

or this:

or this:

...then you've got problems.

[all photos by me]

[Also note PW shows an October 29th pub date--I still don't know the exact date, but it should be earlier than that. Stay tuned.]

Outdoor Blogging

2008-09-01T22:54:00.003-04:00

Click here for our great review in the Hartford Courant! (Note: The Courant doesn't let you see old links--try here for the cached version of the review.)

We've had some others recently, which I will post on the right side soon. My girlfriend and I have just moved to Providence, and we won't have internet until Thursday. So right now I'm sitting in the back yard in the dark, since this is the only place I can get a signal on my laptop. It's weird being on the computer and seeing a shadowy figure appear at your feet. I think it was a possum. I'm goin' inside....

Good/Bad

2008-08-20T22:11:00.002-04:00

The bad news is: Our pub date has been delayed a little. We're looking at early October now.

The good news is: If you buy the book, we'll throw in the last chapter for free.

All About the Amalies

2008-08-15T13:05:00.003-04:00

Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe figures into the plot of our book. But only now did I find out this about her, from the Extra Bases blog:

Benjamin grew up in Newton and has been following the Red Sox since ... well, before she was born. Her mother was in labor and ready to leave for the hospital but her father wondered if he would be OK to wait until Yaz batted in the next inning before they left.

Nice!

Light Tower Power

2008-08-12T12:25:00.002-04:00

The light towers have become our "mascot," so here are some shots I took recently at Fenway. Above, the tower from atop the Green Monster. Click to enlarge.

Below, me atop the Monster with tower above. (Don't look at this one too long, you'll start thinking about the un-even-ness of nostrils, and you don't wanna do that....)

And finally, a Fenway hawk landing on a tower.

New Review

2008-08-08T12:29:00.001-04:00

A new review is in from the great NYC Sox-blogger, Mighty Quinn. Check it out.

All of our online reviews so far are in the column over to the right.... --->

Actual Dirty Water

2008-08-07T11:39:00.003-04:00

Naturally, I've been doing a lot of web searches on "dirty water" to see when and where our book is getting mentioned. And I have to say, I'm learning a lot about dirty water! (The stuff, not the book/song...)

Did you know that in Baghdad, two-thirds of the raw sewage produced flows untreated into rivers and waterways?

Or that Doheny State Beach in California exceeded maximum allowable levels of indicator bacteria in 55 percent of the samples taken in the past year?

Let's clean the earth's water, people. You can start by ordering TWO copies of Dirty Water, the book--one to read and one to display in your window to warn everyone of the dangers of unclean water supplies...

By the way, thanks to everyone who's pre-ordered already. It amazes me how many we're selling considering it's not even out yet! And even more thanks to people who have promoted it already on your websites.

Events

2008-08-06T15:12:00.001-04:00

We are already planning readings, signings, etc. One very special event will be at a Red Sox bar in New York City. Stay tuned for all the details...

M Words

2008-08-02T21:17:00.002-04:00

The Amazon and B&N pages for our book now feature a cover image. While it's not the final version, it's close.....

And to continue on the topic of the last post, another part of the '07 season is history, as Manny has been traded. Despite that my mom and I are huge Manny fans, his part in our book wasn't too big. But, again, our book takes place during the '07 season, not "today." So it's okay. At least that's what I keep telling myself....

Ch-ch-ch-changes

2008-07-22T11:19:00.005-04:00

It's so weird how things keep happening that go against what we've written in our book, OR that we in effect predicted in our book--but since they happened before the book actually hit shelves, may appear as if we were influenced by them. Does that make sense? I just really want the baseball side of our book to feel authentic. So every time something in the Red Sox world changes, I feel like it takes away from the authenticity. I just have to keep telling myself: Our book is based on (a mythical version of) the 2007 season. But I just fear that people will see something in 2008, having just read our book, and say, "That book was wrong!"

I wish I'd been keeping a list of things that have changed or that happened after we "made" them happen. But here are a few examples:

1. In our book, we had Papi shooting a commercial in Portland. In real life, since then, Papi has both shot a commercial (which was a bit controversial at the time, as people felt he shouldn't have been doing that and that it somehow caused his early-season slump--people are stupid) AND gone to Portland, in this case to play for the minor league team as part of his rehab.

2. In our book, we mention the Red Sox' alternate red jerseys--the "Sunday" jerseys. This season, they have broken them out on a Saturday.

3. Okay, here's one for the book jacket--we have a blurb from Jeff Goldberg of the Hartford Courant. Jeff, along with almost everybody else at the Courant, was forced to leave the paper the other day. So when our book hits shelves, it'll show Jeff working for the Courant, when in reality he'll be somewhere else.

4. We have Papelbon's wife rocking a baby in our book, thinking about being a mom. Now, she's pregnant.

5. There's one big one. It has to do with the plot, so I can't say what it is. Let's just say something at Fenway that's been constant since I was born has changed, months before our book comes out describing things in what's now the "old" way.

There are a lot more. It seems like every day something changes or something happens and I say, "We thought of that first!" It's like how my mom, in one of her books, gave the president a dog named Buddy. And then Bill Clinton came along with his dog--named Buddy. (Something like that.)

The key is, our book is about the '07 championship Red Sox. So everything will always be accurate to that season--though we moved the schedule around a little to fit the plot. Hey, if you're gonna complain about that, complain about the fact that there never really was a baby found in the clubhouse--again, it's a "mythical" 2007. Players are naturally gonna come and go. The only way we could've kept the players current for all-time would've been to not refer to them by name: "The shortstop said to the right fielder...." And you can see how dumb that would've been...

Reviews

2008-07-14T00:41:00.001-04:00

We're already starting to see reviews posted online--check out the new section at right.

Update

2008-07-12T00:16:00.001-04:00

Book available for pre-order at Barnes & Noble. Click here.

Also, we supposedly got "great reviews" from two major publications. More on those when they're released.

Quote From Stewart O'Nan

2008-07-07T13:20:00.004-04:00

"Dirty Water takes us inside the Sox clubhouse and out into the neighborhood around baseball's little green chapel. Having spent far too many hours pacing that pavement, I can verify that Mary-Ann Tirone Smith and Jere Smith know the territory. This one's fun for mystery fans and Sox fans, and even more so if you're both."

--Stewart O'Nan, Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season (written in collaboration with Stephen King)

Thanks, Stewart!

Another Quote

2008-07-03T01:14:00.002-04:00

Melinda Boroson, author, 86 Years: The Legend of the Boston Red Sox on Dirty Water:

"These authors know Boston, they know baseball, and they definitely know the Red Sox. Real-life Red Sox players walk out of the clubhouse and right onto the pages of this murder mystery--along with bloggers, bad guys, and Boston's finest. An essential addition to any true fan's bookshelf."

Cover Photo

2008-06-24T11:46:00.001-04:00

Our "people" are hard at work working on the cover photo. See the pic above in the banner? I took that a few weeks ago. The purple camera on the map below is where I was standing...

View Larger Map

A lot of our book takes place in this area, plus it made for a great picture, we thought, showing the light tower with the reeds in front of it.

Quotes

2008-06-18T11:56:00.002-04:00

Check out the praise we've gotten so far. Thanks Karen, Allan, and Jeff....

“DIRTY WATER is like a David Ortiz at-bat with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth. The Smiths provide a unique take on the 2007 championship season, weaving mystery around the mystique of Fenway Park. Score this one a hit.”
Jeff Goldberg, Red Sox beat reporter
The Hartford Courant

"DIRTY WATER is a solid intricately plotted mystery speckled with the 2007 World Championship Red Sox and a backdrop of Fenway Park. What more could you want?”
Karen E. Olson
The Annie Seymour mysteries

“DIRTY WATER features murder, blackmail, a blog and baseball, and expands to include the seamy underside of recruiting foreign ballplayers. The narrative coalesces in a finale as intense and satisfying as a Red Sox-Yankees September showdown.”
Allan Wood
“The Joy of Sox” blog

On Amazon

2008-06-15T14:37:00.001-04:00

Seeing your name on Amazon.com is pretty cool. My mom's been on there for years, but now I get to see my own name there. Weird. Here's the Amazon page for our book.

There's no cover image yet, and at first the title was listed without the subtitle. And when you click my name, two books come up. Dirty Water, and a Yoga book. Apparently, someone with my name contributed to a book about doing Yoga while driving. Surely, some people will think I'm the same guy. Kind of like how there's another Jere Smith in Seattle who does artwork--I'm guessing at least one person who knew me in the past has written to this guy thinking it was me.

It will also be fun to check the sales rank. When it first appeared, we were in the millions. One pre-sale we knew about kicked it up to around 150,000, before it slowly fell all the way back. Of course, we haven't even started promoting, and the book doesn't come out until August, so I'm not too worried about the ranking at this point. But if one sale put it that high, imagine what even ten sales will do. That's the thing about their ranking system--it's very "what have you done for me lately."

Of course, we encourage everybody to buy the book at their local bookstore! I'll post some of those and their site addresses as they get the book in....

Book Update/Mitchell Report

2008-06-12T16:11:00.001-04:00

We have galleys! Also known as advance reading copies of our book, Dirty Water: A Red Sox Mystery (by me, Jere Smith, and my mom, "real" writer Mary-Ann Tirone Smith). We'll be sending out copies to some of your more famous types hoping to get some good quotes. My mom has some great connections what with her being a legit author for the last few decades. So we know we'll get some good ones--in fact, we already have gotten some that appear on the galley itself, from Allan Wood (Joy of Sox), Jeff Goldberg (Hartford Courant), and Karen Olson (mystery writer). As well as a couple quotes hyping my blog from Michael Leggett (Random Fandom) and John Quinn (Quinn Media Machine). Thanks to all of those people, and we'll see who else we'll end up with... (Amazing Larry called it a real snoozer...and no that's not the "real" cover in the pic, obviously.) The book will be available in August despite the "official" pub. date of September. Lots more news to come.

Last night, the Institute for International Sport (whose publishing arm is Hall of Fame Press, the publisher of our book) held the launch party for the '08 US Scholar-Athlete Games in Providence. I went down and met my mom there (she was honored as "author of the year"), and we got to meet your favorite ex-senator and mine, George Mitchell, who delivered the keynote address. He was really nice, accepted our galley, and told me he'd gone to a couple of Sox games this past weekend. It was weird to be one minute shaking hands with "the senator" while a cameraman filmed away, and then next wiping your mouth with your tenth napkin over at Johnny Rocket's. (They have an awesome veggie burger now).

Anyway, George is a pretty funny guy. During his speech he talked about growing up the younger brother of super-athletes who were local legends. As he grew up he realized he couldn't play like his siblings, and quickly became known as "Johnny Mitchell's little brother, the one who's no good." So now he's quite proud to be elected into the Scholar-Athlete Hall of Fame--he finally has something he can rub in their faces, sports-wise. (But come on, how many pages is the Johnny Mitchell Report?)

Welcome

2008-05-29T12:38:00.003-04:00

Hi. Welcome to our blog. My mother and I have co-authored a book, Dirty Water: A Red Sox Mystery. The book will be in stores August 2008, and is the story of how a Boston detective tries to solve the puzzle of a baby found in the clubhouse at Fenway Park, with the help of an anonymous Red Sox blogger.

My mom is Mary-Ann Tirone Smith, author of eight novels and most recently a memoir, Girls of Tender Age.

I am Jere Smith, writer of the real-life blog, A Red Sox Fan From Pinstripe Territory, for more than four years.

Our publisher is Hall of Fame Press, which is the imprint of Dan Doyle's Institute for International Sport.

Review copies are available now. E-mail Jere at Two2067 at aol dot com, or Mary-Ann at tironesmith at aol dot com to get yours or with any other questions. We are also available for interviews, appearances, or anything else.

Watch this blog for updates, and we hope you enjoy the book. Thanks for reading!