Aaron Paul Lazar

Spring is sprung, Mazurka will be published, and Keuka Lake will host a Murder Mystery Tour next weekend.

Spring is well on its way in upstate NY. The crocuses are up (or is it croci?), the lawns are starting to green up a bit, and the daffodils are poking up about four inches in my garden.



Today, one week after our big snowstorm last Saturday, I planted the shell, snow, and sugarsnap peas; golden and red beets, three kinds of lettuce, and the Bright Lights Swiss chard. The ground was still a bit too wet, but we're going to be gone next weekend for the Murder Mystery Tour on Keuka Lake, so I wanted to get them started.

This is the plot I used for the Knight shell peas.






I received some wonderful news this week. Mazurka has been offered a publishing contract by Twilight Times Books, under the Paladin Timeless Books imprint. Mazurka is the third book featuring Gus LeGarde and his family, a European mystery. It takes place in Paris, Germany, Vienna, and the Austrian woods. Gus, Camille, and Siegfried battle neo Nazis and race across the continent while uncovering a link with the potential to change classical music history forever.

Lida Quillen, owner of Twilight Times, will publish Mazurka as an ebook in April, 2008, and the print book will follow. Meanwhile, the print version of Tremolo is due in August of this year. If you would like to purchase it through me, I'd be happy to autograph it for you. Just let me know. Here's my placeholder cover design. Let me know what you think of it?



This weekend should be a lot of fun. Here are the details:

Murder Mystery Tour
Saturday, Mar 31, 2007 through Sunday, Apr 01, 2007
Contact: Keuka Lake Wine Trail
Email: info@keukawinetrail.com
Phone: 800-440-4898
Website: http://www.keukawinetrail.com
Looking for some April Fool's Day fun? Join the merriment and mayhem at the KLWT's sixth Murder Mystery Tour. A homicide in Hammondsport sends CSI in pursuit through Keuka Lake's wine region for clues to apprehend the culprit. Meet real live mystery writers who will share their findings and thoughts as to "who done it".

Purchase your tickets now by calling 800-440-4898 or visit www.keukawinetrail.com. Tickets are also available at Wegman's. Tickets are $20 per person in advance; $25 at the door.

Hours of Operation: 10AM to 5PM Saturday; Noon to 5PM Sunday

Designated Driver tickets are available at a 25% discount. ***

I'll be selling and signing books at Hunt Country Vineyards on Saturday, and Heron Hills on Sunday. If anyone would like to stop by to say hello or try to solve the crime, I'd love to see you. First prize involves a complimentary stay at the Esperanza - a gorgeous inn overlooking Keuka Lake. If you haven't tried their lobster bisque, you're in for a real treat. ;o)



Take good care, and remember, take pleasure in the little things. Open your eyes. Reel it in. Absorb the beauty around you, whether it's the flash of love in an old woman's eye, or the fragile petal of a new snowdrop (above). Allow yourself to be in that moment, record it in your soul, and when you need it the most, resurrect it for the joy it will bring.

- Aaron