I have signed up to participate in a one-mile open water swim in the Gulf of Mexico off Clearwater Beach, Florida on May 5, 2012. The swim is to raise money to FIGHT cancer through the “Swim Across America” organization, and I need your support!

On August 8, 2011 my dear friend, Greg Gartley, lost his four-year battle with brain cancer. Greg was only 43 years old when cancer took him from us. My wife and I had been close friends with Greg for 22 years. I miss our almost daily phone conversations, annual NFL picks, and filling out the NCAA basketball bracket, This horrible disease, cancer, robbed Greg of the opportunity to marry, have children, and see his beloved nephew grow up.

In December, 2011, my wife’s mother, Selma Leach, was diagnosed with Lymphoma. The wonderful folks at Moffitt Cancer Center here in Tampa are treating her and her prognosis is good. Last week she had her third round of chemotherapy and she is fighting hard.

As you can see, cancer hit my family hard last year and I want to fight back and raise as much money as I can by swimming in the inaugural Tampa Bay Open Water Swim. Please support me by sponsoring my swim and making a gift. The money you give will go towards cancer research at Moffit Cancer Center.

Please click here to donate.

Thanks,
Dan

My post is a personal account of why the work on my follow up book to The WILCO Project suddenly stopped and what I am doing to start writing again.

You can check out the guest post here:

http://www.ciaraknight.com/2011/12/05/guest-post-with-dan-springer/

Thanks again to Ciara for hosting me and helping me jump back on the writing saddle!

Dan

Thanksgiving for me means food, family, and football. As a kid I remember driving to my grandparents farm in rural Ohio to spend the holiday. The men and boys spent the morning out in the woods cutting and splitting firewood for the upcoming winter. Early afternoon, we would return to the farmhouse and enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving feast with our grandparents and all my, aunts, uncles, and cousins. After the meal, we all stretched out in front of the TV to watch the afternoon football games with most everyone falling asleep! Later that evening all the leftovers would be pulled out and everyone would feast again.

Throughout this glorious day, my family constantly stressed the true meaning of the holiday–giving thanks for all the blessings bestowed on us. To this day I marvel a how fortunate I am. I have a wonderful family, a successful career, my health, and (sometimes) my sanity. For all of this, I am thankful!

Lastly, thanks to all of you out there that have read my book. There are no words to adequately express my gratitude–all I can offer is: THANK YOU!

Dan

“THE WILCO PROJECT combines murder mystery with elements of a technological thriller, blending the genres in a deftly written manuscript. The author provides a gripping opening with a female college student murdered while playing a mysterious campus-wide game in the woods. Readers are soon introduced to the rest of the cast of characters: Dr Steven Archer, former Internet entrepreneur turned professor, who leads a team of young computer programmers in the creation of the ultimate cell phone game; Bobbi, a school reporter, determined to find out the truth about the murder, even if it means putting her own life in jeopardy; Jonathan Holden, creator of the game and all around cad; Patricia, the angry assistant on the team who is sleeping with the head of the wireless company, Larry Hershman; and finally, Peter, a techno-geek who is invisible. After Archer discovers that the dead girl is Jonathan’s ex-fiance, he realizes that the The Wilco Project is a game of hide-and-seek, in which players use the phone to locate and destroy enemies. As Archer finds himself investigating the first murder and a subsequent one, he is led down one path after another. While this plot is a new take on an old thriller genre, the author delivers a well-executed thriller.”

Please tell you friends and neighbors about this sizzling, summer sale!

Dan

As I made my way into the lobby of Plant Hall, the main building on campus that features the trademark UT silver minarets, I felt like an undergrad again, my backpack slung over my shoulder, hustling to class.  At first glance, things appeared to be almost the same as 25 years before with all the colorful banners hanging in the lobby and the familiar racks filled with copies of the student newspaper, The Minaret. Having been the news editor for that publication, I was happy to see the paper still in production. The only differences that I noticed from my days of roaming Plant Hall were the abundance of students hanging out using laptops and talking on cell phones, devices not prevalent back in my stone age days.

Talking with the next generation fiction writers was an absolute blast for me. Of course, I droned on and on about my writing, the book, and my opinions on the publishing industry–I hope the students found at least some of it interesting and useful. My thanks to Kathleen Ochshorn and Andy Solomon for inviting me and to the students for listening, it was an honor and a privilege going back to school!

Dan

As the event drew closer I felt like a kid waiting in line to ride a giant roller coaster, the closer I inched toward the ride, the more exited and nervous I became. What if they didn’t like my story, or found problems with the novel? Some of the same insecurities that I felt just before the novel released came flooding back. What if my writing wasn’t good enough?

A week before the chosen date my friend and I finalized the time and location. We chose to conduct our discussion over lunch. This would be perfect, I thought, I would be able to calm my nerves with a big old glass of Merlot!

I had experienced anxiety at my first couple of book signings. How do I sign? Don’t misspell the person’s name! But with three of those under my belt, I am an old pro ;’) At book signings the questions and discussion is high-level–no time for in-depth analysis. This event would be different and new. An hour and a half dedicated to talking about the story, how and why I wrote it, character analysis, etc. Yes waiter, I’ll have another glass of wine!

I did all that worrying for nothing as the lunch was fantastic! The ladies had great questions and really seemed interested in how and why I wrote the book, how long it took me to write it,  what was the process to get published, where I got my ideas for the story, what books do I read, etc.  I had so much fun! Yes, I drank that Merlot, but I did not drink it to calm my nerves, I drank it to celebrate! These ladies liked my writing!

I also want to thank each of them as I sort of took advantage of the situation. I brought with me fifteen pages of my new story and forced them to read it! This is not normally something I would do as I have a select few readers I use to test out new material. In fact, before this lunch, only two others have read the opening pages of this new book. I have a huge smile on my face as I type this…they liked it!

You know the euphoria you feel as the coaster eases back into the station after the ride is over? The nerves that built while waiting in line and peaked as the car inches up that first giant hill are long gone, replaced with the adrenaline high. That’s how I felt driving home after my first book club meeting!

Thanks Patty, Kathleen, Kathy and Doris for a great lunch, it was indeed an honor!

Dan

http://www.ciaraknight.com/2011/02/18/friday-ficiton-with-daniel-springer/

I would like to express my sincere thanks to Ciara for allowing my ugly mug and rambling thoughts to appear in her fine blog. :’)

Please check out the interview and leave a comment!

Also, for anyone in beautiful, sunny Florida, don’t forget my book signing tomorrow at Circle Books in Sarasota, FL from 11am – 1 pm. Come to St. Armands Circle and see myself and fellow Solstice Publishing thriller authors, Kelly Abell and Steve Bederman.

Dan

Have you ever visited St. Armands Circle in Sarasota, FL? If you have not, you really should experience this beautiful area. Hey, why not make it next Saturday and drop by Circle Books for my next book signing? Circle Books is a classic independent book store with a tremendous selection of books minus the sterile, boring persona of the giant, chain stores. Come by and say hello then walk over to the Columbia restaurant for a cup of black bean soup,  an authentic Cuban sandwich and a glass of Sangria!

I will be signing my bestselling thriller, The WILCO Project. Also on hand will be fellow Solstice Publishing authors Kelly Abell and Steve Bederman. Kelly will be signing her “In Lies” series of thrillers, Sealed In Lies and Captured In Lies, and Steve Bederman will sign his smash hit corporate thrillers, The CEO and Executive Execution.

Hope to see you Saturday, Feb 19th!

Dan

Happy New Year!

I am pleased to announce that The WILCO Project just received a “4 Cup” review  from the Coffee Time Romance & More website. Check out the full review here. The reviewer writes:

“The characters are likable and are depicted with believable goals, aspirations, motives and characteristics. The dialogues sound authentic and are helpful in moving the story forward. I especially like the description of the game and its various play modes. It seemed like a game that college age students, in particular, would enjoy playing. All-in-all, I found this novel to be a nicely-structured mystery that conveys a realistic and quite visceral sense of atmosphere throughout. For example, in the huge, ice-cold room filled with the ear-deafening noise of enormous mainframe computers, I could feel the goose bumps rise on my arms as Bobbi gleams information from an unattractive computer geek. Later, playing the game, she is outside in the hot humidity of a dark night. Running across campus, I felt my heart-pound and my pulse race right along with hers, as she races to capture the prize. The realistic descriptions kept my eyes glued to pages as I read with a voracious, gluttonous appetite, greedily devouring the words until, at last, reaching the thrilling conclusion, I was sated.”

What a great way to start the new year! I am so pleased.

Dan

Th ebook is now listed on “Top eBooks” section of the site’s home page which could boost it even more! Thanks again to all for the great support!

Dan