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News, Articles, and Upcoming Books and Events from Cynthia Hamilton

  • Reading And Writing: Unforeseen Benefits Of The Digital Age

    My novel “Lucky at Love” was published in 2006, prior to the release of the first Kindle. In 2011, purely on a lark, I upload it to KDP, Amazon’s ePublishing site. About a month later, KDP rolled out a new program that had benefits to both readers and writers. If a book was enrolled in…

  • Taking Advantage Of Inspiration

    As a writer, I have learned that inspiration, the thing that spurs creativity, is not something you can lay your hands on at will. Rather, inspiration sneaks up on you like a pickpocket. But instead of pinching your wallet, it offers an idea to spark your creative juices. What does this observation say about the…

  • The Art Of Doing Less In Order To Do More

    As I turn over the odometer once again, I find myself more introspective than in the past. One reason for this is a belated recognition that the fifties are galloping by. This begs the question: am I doing what I want to with my life? Sub question: what are my priorities for the remaining years?…

  • A Second Chance…

    How important is a book cover? This question can be debated to some extent, but the truth is the cover is critical to a book’s success. The reason for bringing up this subject has to do with finally taking the time to address an overlooked problem with one of my own books, one that had…

  • The “Independent” Spirit

    I would hazard a guess that nearly all writers who are pleased with their work hanker for it to be published. This is only natural, as writing and publishing are the two halves of book production, which in turn puts books into the hands of readers. As with any manner of goods, without both components…

  • The E-Reader’s Best Friend

    As I’ve battled my way through the challenges of being an independent writer, I’ve had some wonderful experiences that have made the effort so worthwhile. Connecting with readers is at the top of the list; nothing I’ve come across is quite as rewarding as hearing from strangers who have enjoyed my books. I can’t say…

  • The Happy Accidents

    It’s been my experience as I’ve embarked on the Madeline Dawkins series that more concentration on plot is required when crafting a mystery. While writing general fiction, all I needed to certify my leap into a new novel was some well-thought out characters, a good premise, and at least one plausible ending. At that point,…

  • Anatomy of a Mystery

    It was never my intention to delve into the mystery/suspense genre, or write a series for that matter. But now I’ve taken this path, I’m truly loving all the opportunities and challenges that come with the territory. Every aspect of the process is different than what I’ve done it the past; creating a character whom…

  • The Community of Reading

    Though the act of reading a book is mostly a private pursuit, many of us feel the desire to share that personal experience with others. I suppose in that respect, reading is no different than most other pastimes: we like to share and compare our reactions to the things that move us, whether their impact…