They Like me. They Really Like Me. Maybe.

If you've read my books, you know that I write, gulp, stories other than mysteries. Although, I must say that I do have an affinity for writing mysteries more than any other genre. I am currently working on another book in my When The Fat Ladies Sing cozy mystery series. It's titled Weighty Matters and revolves around a murder under the Big Top, when a circus comes to the tiny town of Wachita, AND a Sasquatch sighting. That's right, a Sasquatch sighting. Don't ask me how that's going to work out. You'll just have to read the story:) Heaven knows, I'm having fun with it!!!

In the meantime, I recently finished a contemporary book which fits perfectly in the new NA (New Adult) market which primarily targets, but is definitely not limited to, readers in the 18-30 range. Anyway, the manuscript and proposal for Food Baby are off to my agent and I'm trying to forge on with my other projects instead of obsessing about which publishing house might actually like the story, or if my agent will even like the story. All I know is I like it! I never try to write to a certain market, or a special segment of the population. I just write the story. That's all. Pure and simple.

I can't help daydreaming though. And I soooo want to perform a requiem to Sally Field's iconic Oscar delivery some day. "They like me! They really like me!"

Here is an excerpt from my NA for your reading enjoyment (or not).

An Excerpt from Food Baby, by Linda Kozar:
From Chapter One

Suddenly everything made sense. Kyle didn’t want to be seen with her. In fact, he was ashamed to acknowledge her as his girlfriend in public. Ashamed.

            JoBeth reached for the donuts and simultaneously hung up on her friend. Some people turn to a bottle. Others turn to a little happy pill, or to the bedroom. But what does a good Christian girl turn to when she’s down?  Food.

Ever since she could remember she’d always turned to food. And over the years, food had certainly turned on her. She’d ballooned to a persistent plus size. Not exactly the delicate flower she wanted to be.

She closed her eyes, imagining Kyle and her blissfully in love and married with a couple of kids, a pool, a dog, a goldfish or two and a perfect Mary Poppins life in the suburbs.

But the dream disappeared faster than a puff of powdered sugar.

And on the verge of a very big, ugly demographic change--her thirtieth birthday on April third to be exact, she found herself over-and-out with Kyle, overweight, almost overdrawn, and way out of luck.

She glanced around the room. Besides all that, she lived in a dirty, dumpy rent house that would make Mary Poppins hurl if she saw it.

Of course, maybe Mary Poppins might be onto something. A spoonful of sugar might be just what she needed. While she waited for Rayne’s inevitable knock on the door, she finished the bag of donuts and started on the Little Debbie’s, cotton candy, salted peanuts in the shell, corn dogs and potato chips.

Sorrow snacking, Major League style.

Linda Kozar is the co-author of Babes With A Beatitude—Devotions For Smart, Savvy Women of Faith (Hardcover/eBook, Howard/Simon & Schuster 2009), Misfortune Cookies and Just Desserts (“When The Fat Ladies Sing” cozy mystery series, Print, Barbour Publishing 2008), and Strands of Fate (Hardcover/eBook, Creative Woman Mysteries 2012). Her cozy mystery series again published and expanded as ebooks at Spyglass Lane Mysteries, MacGregor Literary from 2012-2014, and in September of 2014 Linda indie-published and the continues the series: Misfortune Cookies, A Tisket, A Casket, Dead As A Doornail, That Wasn't Chicken, and Felony Fruitcake. Her latest foray into indie publishing, produced Alligator Pear, (a gothic historical romance, 2013), Moving Tales, Adventures in Relocation, (a nonfiction anthology 2013), and Doomsday Devotions (an end times devotional 2014). Linda is an active member of Cozy Mystery Magazine, which publishes an annual Christmas anthology of its contributing authors, A Cup of Cozy (Short Mysteries and Holiday Recipes, 2013) and A Cup of Cozy 2 (Short Mysteries and Holiday Recipes 2014). Her speculative fiction story, Aperture, will release in an anthology book titled Out of the Storm (HopeSprings Books 2015), the proceeds of which will be donated to the ACFW Scholarship Fund. In 2003, she co-founded, co-directed, and later served as Southwest Texas Director of Words For The Journey Christian Writers Guild. She received the ACFW Mentor of the Year Award in 2007, founded and served as president of Writers On The Storm, The Woodlands, Texas ACFW chapter for three years and continues on the board. In addition to writing, Linda has served as Lead Host of the Gate Beautiful Radio Show, on the Red River Radio Network/BlogTalk Radio since 2010. She and her husband Michael, married for over 25 years, have two lovely daughters, Katie and Lauren and a Rat Terrier princess named Patches.

CAN (Christian Authors Network), RWA (Romance Writers of American), NHRWA (North Houston Romance Writers of America), ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers), Writers On The Storm, The Woodlands, Texas Chapter of ACFW, Toastmasters (Area 56) The Woodlands, Texas, The Woodlands Church, The Woodlands, TX.

Represented by Amanda Luedeke, MacGregor Literary.

Linda’s Website: http://www.lindakozar.com

Gate Beautiful Radio Show: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/search?q=gate-beautiful

Babes With A Beatitude: http://www.babeswithabeatitude.blogspot.com

Bookish Desires: http://bookishdesires.blogspot.com

Cozy Mystery Magazine: http://cozymysterymagazine.blogspot.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LindaKozar

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/linda.kozar

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/lindakozar/boards/

LinkedIn: http://tinyurl.com/m8vspxu

Linda Kozar, Author

They like me...they really like me.