Are you good at judging books by their cover?

Welcome everyone to the last month of spring, and welcome especially to new subscribers of the Mickey Picayune.

Vaccinations Are A Good Thing

My wife and I went to a restaurant this past weekend, continuing our slow return to pre-pandemic activities. We sat outdoors. It was a bit warm but I was more comfortable there, rather than inside. Then I remembered something about going to restaurants: loudmouths at nearby tables.

There was a middle-aged white guy, on the heavy side, his face flush from the heat or maybe the beers, at the table next to ours. He had his wife and two adult kids with him, and a son-in-law. I say “with him” because he was dominating the table. Talking loudly, explaining everything, and checking up on who was still eating, and who needed another drink. It was amusing to witness, at first; then it became tiresome.

We live in the capitol so we encounter a lot of consultants and lobbyists, along with the occasional legislator. The way he had an answer for everything makes me think consultant (full disclosure, I’ve done it, and can conjure an answer to almost any question). It’d be nice, if people don’t wear masks, that maybe we could ask them to turn down the volume.

People Watching

But I shouldn’t complain. I was outside, among humans, and my wife and I are healthy. We were enjoying that sport made popular back in the 1980s of “people watching.” That sport reached its zenith with the launch of Instagram, and then jumped the shark when it became hurtful posting pictures of people in Walmart.

They say you shouldn’t judge a book by a cover, but they’re wrong. Snap judgments are the whole point. The trick is to get good at it so you don’t misjudge people. I’ll leave that exercise of perfecting your ability to judge for you to do on your own time.

Judge a Book By Its Cover, Please

Two months ago, I re-released my romantic comedy, now called The Forgettable Marriage of Lina and Joe, and I’ve joined a group promotion of similar stories. These promotions are offering the books (for free) to you in the hope of getting reviews. What we authors get out of it is an expanded audience.

It’s safe to say that there’s something for everyone. Give it a click, see if a cover catches your eye, download it and read.

These books are an advance review copy, which Amazon, for instance, allows as part of the editorial process. A review, good or bad, is important for a book to find its audience.

You also get to calibrate your ability to judge a book by its cover!

Click here to view the Sunshine & Stories books…

Click here to view the Comic Stories books…

Meanwhile, at My Writing Desk…

If you’re still reading this instead of those books, I’m wrapping up work on a new crime story, which will be offered in a similar group promo as you see above. So you can look for that in a future Picayune.

Upcoming Books and Stuff

The anthology of fairy tales, fables and myths I’m in will be released next month, as well. That book will be for sale, with all proceeds donated to charity. Should be a hoot to read (I’ll show you the cover, and you can be the judge.)

Next Month

I’m traveling to see family two of the next three weeks, so I’ll probably have a story or two about that, which I’ll share in July. I’ll also tell you about the two suspense novels I’m reading right now.

As Spring draws to a close with swamp-ass temperatures here in Michigan, I hope you have a chance to enjoy family, as well.

Thanks for reading the Mickey Picayune

All the best,

–mickey