why I finally updated my website and got a new blog post written after two years

So I was lucky enough to meet Charlaine Harris at World Horror Con/Stoker Awards 2015 in Atlanta.  I’ve always heard about what a lovely and gracious person she is from the folks at one of my favorite indie bookstores, Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego, so I gathered up my courage and introduced myself at the hotel bar (writers really do congregate at the bar at conferences) Saturday night.  She was indeed really nice and down-to-earth. There’s nothing better than finding out that an author whose work you’ve always admired and enjoyed is as enjoyable as their writing!  And just in case there’s someone reading my blog that hasn’t read her Sookie Stackhouse novels, you might recognize the television series adaptation TRUE BLOOD.

Even cooler was the fact that Ms. Harris (okay, Charlaine!) bought one of my books and asked me to autograph it the next day.  Geek fan girl SQUEEEE here.  Very loud SQUEEEE.  The type that makes my cats bolt out of the room.

And even COOLER cooler than that?  I was checking my email the other day and saw one with the subject header: Out of Date!  At first I though it was one of the many political/environmental activist/petition/donation type emails I get (you sign one petition, you are on their lists for life). They tend to use catchy/casual subject headers so you think you’re getting email from friends or family.  I’m glad I didn’t delete this one before reading it because it was from Charlaine (okay, Ms. Harris), telling me she’d checked out my website to see what I was up to and found it…er.. well, two years out of date.  And that she’d enjoyed my Ashley Parker series and read all three.  She even mentioned them in her blog, which … well…  seriously, it’s like being a mystery writer and having Sue Grafton praise your work.  Or a horror writer and having Stephen King say “Well done!”

But then there was the pesky matter of my out of date website.  My web designer, the awesome Leslie Keats, had even updated it to a platform (or whatever the word is I’m looking for here) that would enable me to do revisions myself. Easy peasy.  She did this…er…two years ago.  My excuse for not getting right on it?  Fear of technology, I suppose.  I hate having more than one television remote to deal with.

How long did it take me to update at least the essentials once I found my user name/password in my email folders?  Less than a half hour.  I am both relieved and embarrassed and probably way too proud of myself for getting it done so quickly and painlessly.

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“Will you marry me?”

So… thank you, Charlaine Harris, for your graciousness when I went all fan girl on you at WHC (I like this picture – it looks like I’m proposing to you); for taking the time to read and then post about my books;, and for that much needed kick in the butt to update my website!