It's ready. Now what?

Dear Readers and Mystery Fans,

I received my proof copy of Hit or Missus yesterday, and I must say, it's really just damn fine looking. Writing the second book in my Peri Minneopa mystery series frightened me. I was afraid of the sophomore jinx. I tossed and turned, worrying about the plot, then fought my way through the writing. I can't even tell you how long it took me to write the last 20,000 words. All I can compare it to is that dream where you're running toward the door and it's getting further away at each step.

You've never had that dream?

Trust me, it sucks. No matter how much I wrote, I kept looking at the storyline, thinking, damn, I'm not done yet.

But now it's here and I actually love it. At the LA Times Festival of Books last weekend, I got to practice my elevator pitch, until I found one that worked:

"In Hit or Missus, my private eye is hired to spy on a wealthy, possibly cheating, wife, but the wife's girlfiriends have other ideas. Because, as you know, a friend will help you move. But a good friend will help you move a body."

How's that sound?

So Hit or Missus is ready to go. The paperback looks good. The e-book files are ready for upload to Kindle Direct and Smashwords. I could green-light them all right now.

The question is: Should I? Or should I hold back a little, until I've got the celebration planned, so that I release the book during the release party?

I've got the question up on Facebook, and I'm putting a poll on this blog. What say you?

Warmest regards,

Gayle
Author (of multiple books!), Columnist, Maven-in-Training