Two authors share methods to publishing

Two writers – M. A. Harper and R. J. Lee – will speak about their experiences in publishing at two morning presentations on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019, at the East Bank Regional Library, 4747 W. Napoleon, Metairie.

9:30 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019

M. A. Harper: Autobiographical Fiction? Not Recommended. Fiction Colored by Your Own Back Story? Absolutely

M.A. Harper is Annette Harper, a New Orleans-based author who has written five novels. The most recent is “Things That Can Fall,” from 2018, loosely based on Harper’s experiences as a window dresser in New York in the 1980s. Her novel, “The Worst Day of My Life So Far,” is based on her experiences taking care of her mother who had Alzheimer’s Disease.

Harper’s novels have been spotlighted via Barnes & Noble's “Discover Great New Writers” program, the BookSense '76 List, TIME magazine, and the 2015 Digital Book Awards where she was named as one of five finalists for adult fiction.

11 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019

R. J. Lee, Getting a Handle on Today Publishing Market; Winning Tips for Today’s Publishing Market; How to Navigate Today’s Publishing Market

Author R. J. Lee, currently under contract to Kensington Books for the four-novel Bridge to Death Mystery series. “Grand Slam Murders” is the debut title in the series and is his 13th novel. The second novel in the Bridge to Death Mystery series, “Playing The Devil,” will be released in January 2020. Lee has been published since 1993, following in the mystery-writing footsteps of his father, R. Keene Lee, who wrote fighter pilot and detective stories for Fiction House, publishers of WINGS Magazine and other “pulp fiction” periodicals in the late 1940s and 1950s. Lee says he has seen many changes in the publishing industry and he’s had to adapt as it morphs and downsizes. He will explain some of the strategies that have been beneficial to him through the years. 

Lee was born and grew up in Natchez but also spent 30 years living in New Orleans. He is a graduate of the University of the South (Sewanee) and lives in Oxford, Mississippi.

For more information regarding this event, contact Chris Smith, Manager of Adult Programming for the library, at 504-889-8143 or wcsmith@jefferson.lib.la.us.

Louisiana Book News is written by award-winning author Chere Dastugue Coen, who writes Louisiana romances and mysteries under the pen name of Cherie Claire. Her first book in each series is FREE to download as an ebook, including "Emilie," book one of The Cajun Series, "Ticket to Paradise," book one of The Cajun Embassy series and "A Ghost of a Chance," the first Viola Valentine mystery.