22 West Express
Volume I, Edition 2
April 2007
Hello Readers,
Happy Easter!
Welcome to the spring edition of 22 West Express. We just returned from the Dominican Republic where they experienced the most prolonged period of rain any of the locals could remember. We talked to one poor guy who opened his door one morning and was met by a flood of water a foot deep that carried frogs, bugs and floating debris into his room. His flip-flops nearly floated away. Not a pleasant way to wake up!
We were much more fortunate. Our room was dry and we had fun pineapple bowling, playing volleyball and even building sand castles when the sun eventually came out. We're back now and ready for spring!
The 22 West Books website has gotten a makeover in the last few weeks. I hope you like the new look! Some early viewers have noticed that the color scheme matches the cover for Taking Stock. I'm thrilled with the work our new cover artist has done and I guess the color scheme is my joy leaking over onto the website. If you take a moment to visit the photo gallery (please tell me you like it because it took hours to program), inside you'll see some photos of the setting for Taking Stock.
Sin and Vengeance is also getting a new look. Sarah, our new cover artist, is working on a new cover. The book will also get larger print and expand to 368 pages. We hope this will make the book easier to read and help those of you working on the Hidden Code Contest.
And finally, a new contest that gives anyone a chance to win a copy of a signed CJ West novel. Starting May 1, 2007, we'll be randomly picking one newsletter subscriber each month and sending a signed copy of a CJ West novel to them or someone of their choosing. Tell your friends to sign up now!
Thanks for reading,
CJ
Inside this Issue:
Taking Stock: The inside scoop
Contest Corner: Hidden Code Contest 18 months Old!
Coming This Spring !!!
Originally conceived in 1999, this was the first novel I undertook. In 2003, I thought I'd finished. I'd gotten great feedback from a number of early readers and I set it aside while I went to work on Sin and Vengeance. The feedback on Sin and Vengeance was so positive, that I published it right away and then took another critical look at Taking Stock.
In late 2005, I made the painful decision to start over from scratch with the original characters and a slimmed-down plot. It was a hard decision and not one I'm sure I could make again, but I scrapped 100,000+ words of text and started again with a blank page. At this point, I'm glad I did. The book is in its final proofing stages now.
The genesis for the story was a woman that worked for me a number of years ago. She was smart, attractive, well educated and very nurturing. My children absolutely adored her (and still do). Her boyfriend at the time was a fantastic guy, who was kind, successful and turned heads when he visited the office. The thing that struck me most about this couple was that he was the one eager to get married and she was lukewarm to the whole idea. Ok, it's old-fashioned thinking on my part, but these old ideas usually have some basis in reality.
From this couple, I created Erica Fletcher and her love interest. Unlike my colleague, Erica has good reason to fear marriage. She focuses her life's energy on becoming the most able person she can be. She's smarter, stronger and more committed to her goals than anyone around her. She's a powerful force on any team, but she's impossible to control.
Erica works for a tyrant boss at a money management firm in Boston. When she discovers he wants her out at any cost, she takes a hard look at why she has become who she is and what she's missed along the way.
More to come soon...
Newsletter Contest
If you're getting this forwarded from a friend, make sure you subscribe to the newsletter to be eligible for the free monthly drawing!!
The Hidden Code Contest
The Hidden Code Contest is nearly a year and a half old and still unsolved. The press release I sent in November has been decoded. I did give Betsy a few clues via email, so to be fair, I'll pass them along to everyone.
The press release commemorates the 1 year anniversary of the Hidden Code Contest. One year could also be 365 days, 52 weeks, 12 months, 4 seasons... One of these intervals will help you crack the code. Think about how many letters might be buried and how they would need to be spaced in so short an article. The code begins at the very beginning of the text at Many....
Still no one has hit on the MAJOR clue that I have given just about everyone on this list. The coded message in the press release is a road map to find to that clue. If you don't have a signed copy of Sin and Vengeance, you can get a bookplate by sending a self-addressed, stamped envelope to:
Bookplate
22 West Books
P.O. Box 155
Sheldonville, MA 02070
Hint: You might also want to take a good look at the leader board!
Good Luck!!!
© 22 West Books 2006.
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