Writers in the Storm

By Miffie Seideman

The other day I found three little blue pills strewn on the ground at my local gas station. As soon as I saw them, my heart skipped. As a pharmacist, I can spot oxycodone tablets a mile away -- little round blue tablets with an “M” imprinted on one side, and “30” on the other.

But the coloring on these were off…just enough.

These were lethal fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone, the pills causing fatal overdoses in high schools and showing up in national headlines. Just one can kill an adult, so imagine what these three could do to a passing kid or dog.

The police confirmed my fears and came to scour the area for more.

Sure, we’re all authors looking for great new plot twists, and this would surely count. But we also need to know the facts about fentanyl for the safety of ourselves and our loved ones.

Important Questions and Answers

Would you know how to save your loved one’s life, if they overdosed on fentanyl?

If not, keep reading. It no longer matters if that person would never touch fentanyl or street oxycodone. Finding those tablets so close to home highlighted that real and present danger for me.

Here are 3 things you need to do regarding fentanyl and opioid overdose dangers:

• Arm yourself with knowledge
• Arm your family with an open door to discussion
• Arm yourself with the antidote

1. Arm Yourself With Knowledge

I asked several authors what they wanted to know most about fentanyl. The top seven answers are below.

What is fentanyl?

• Medical fentanyl is an opioid painkiller 100 times more potent than morphine. It is completely synthetic (made in a lab).

• Illegal ‘street’ versions of fentanyl (and some of its cousins) are even more potent than medical fentanyl and are being laced into street drugs. One cousin is carfentanil(a large animal veterinary tranquilizer) 100 times stronger than fentanyl.

Yes, that should scare you. Elephant tranquilizers are ending up in street drugs.

Fentanyl and its cousins are now responsible for the majority of opioid-related overdose deaths:

• At least 50% of all opioid deaths in 2018 involved fentanyl(s)
• 36,000 US overdose deaths in 2019 involved ‘synthetic opioids’, such as fentanyl
• Overdoses soared by 38% during covid, heavily boosted by fentanyl-related deaths

What does fentanyl look like?

Well, that’s a tough one. Fentanyl comes in several forms: injection, skin patch, nasal spray, and a lozenge. Illegal fentanyl also comes as a powder.

The real question isn’t what does fentanyl look like, but what are street fentanyl(s) laced into?

It’s a long list, including marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine (‘meth’), heroin, fake Xanax, fake Vicodin, and fake Adderall* (the ADHD drug), among other drugs. Fentanyl powder has been colored, pressed, and imprinted to look almost identical to real oxycodone (OxyContin). This so-called “Mexican Oxy” is what I found at the gas station. (*Fake Adderall has also contained lethal amounts of methamphetamine).

Why is fentanyl so dangerous?

• Used the right way, medical fentanyl isn’t.

It’s great for severe pain, during surgery, and some cancer pain. But it does need to be measured carefully, since just 2 mg can be fatal to an adult.

• The true danger comes from street fentanyl(s).

Drug traffickers aren’t exactly worried about careful measuring- they get paid all the same. Some street doses have very little fentanyl. Some have been found with 5 mg of fentanyl in a single tablet- more than twice a lethal dose. With carfentanil, a dose the size of a grain of salt can be lethal. How are they going to measure that safely?

• Toxic doses of fentanyl(s) make the body stop breathing. If breathing isn’t restarted rapidly with naloxone (Narcan), the brain dies from lack of oxygen. It has taken 4-5 doses of Narcan to save some victims of these potent street drugs. In some cases, even that hasn’t been enough.

Why would a lethal drug get added to street drugs?

It’s all marketing and profit. If traffickers add the right amount, the fentanyl gives the drugs a bigger kick, a bigger high, and it’s cheap to add. A bigger high also raises demand. Users just hope they get a great high. Some are willing to buy it knowing the risk of a poorly measured batch. In some cases, fentanyl leftover from a previous counterfeit batch contaminates a new batch made in the same container.

How are people getting it?

• Most abused fentanyl is from street drug supplies.

In the US, most of these supplies come across the Southern border. Some comes from China. From there, supplies flow to other markets in the US.  

• Some users actually seek out fentanyl-laced batches!

Buyers and sellers can even connect via social media apps and subgroups, using special emojis.

• But most people getting fentanyl don’t even know until it is too late. By then they could be dead or addicted.

It could be in the heroin they bought. It could be in the pain pill the football player bums from a friend so he can make it through the game. It could be in the weed at a weekend party.

Or little Timmy could pick up a little blue-grey tablet off the ground at the gas station while Mom is turned away for a second or two.

So…how much is actually getting into the US?

Much more than is being stopped. If you have a strong countenance (or a good glass of scotch), do a quick google search of your own state. I did that for Arizona and the data was pretty sobering:

• 170,000 fatal fentanyl doses found in one drug bust (Jan 2020)
• 22 pounds of fentanyl found (enough for 4 million lethal doses) on one traffic stop (June 2021
• Another 22 pounds of fentanyl powder captured just last month

What do I look for in my kid, friend, spouse?

• Similar to other abused drugs, the basic recommendations include (see full check list here):
  • Changes in mood (depression, mood swings, anger, hostility)
  • Changes in behavior/ sleep patterns
  • Drop in school grades/school attendance
  • Changes in friend circle
  • Missing money/ increased need for money
  • Odd smells in room or clothing (or sudden use of scents to mask smells)
  • Secretive conversations

2. Arm Your Family With an Open Door to Discussion

• It’s never too soon to talk to kids about drugs

The National Institute for Drug Addiction has sobering statistics for 8^th graders (Yes, that’s 8^th grade – 13 year-olds!):

• 15% admit to having used illicit drugs in 2020
  • Almost 3% have used Adderall when not prescribed
  • 2% have used hallucinogens

ANY of these drugs could have been fentanyl-laced.

• Open a door to safe communication

Share the dangers of drug use. Let them know they can talk with you openly about drugs, what they see at school, and ask their questions without judgment. Let them know that door is open, even if they make a mistake and try drugs. They need to know you will be there to help them.

If that door is closed, they will go somewhere else.

My family and friends know they can call if they are in or near this kind of danger or have had too much to drink. We will come get them any time of day or night. We won’t judge. We just want them alive. If you offer this, make sure you follow through. Or that door will slam.

• Educate yourself about drugs

The best way to talk to your loved ones is by having at least some basic information. What is going on in your neighborhood? Your local schools? What do those drugs look like and what are the dangers? It’s a bit scary to read at first, but it’s better to know and be prepared.

It’s easy to get overwhelmed. So, pick just a few drugs to get started. I might suggest: oxycodone, fentanyl, Adderall, marijuana, and methamphetamine.

These sites can get you started:

• https://www.drugabuse.gov/drug-topics/trends-statistics/monitoring-future/monitoring-future-study-trends-in-prevalence-various-drugs 
• https://www.getsmartaboutdrugs.gov/

3. Arm Yourself With the Antidote

• Get Narcan (naloxone) AND learn how to use it!

• Narcan is available at many pharmacies without a prescription. State programs or insurance often cover the full cost and some drug manufacturers offer free naloxone.

• Have the pharmacist show you how to use it or watch an online instruction video. You do not want to start figuring it out when someone you love has stopped breathing.

Plotting with Fentanyl

While I am passionate about the drug overdose problem, I’m still a writer at heart!

After the initial shock of finding street oxy (literally on the street) at my regular gas station, I started plotting the incident into a scene.

How authors can weave a few basics into plots:

1. Use your imagination to decide how your character gets exposed to fentanyl.

Is he smoking tainted marijuana? Did he bum some tainted Adderall off another student? Inject fentanyl-laced heroin?

2. Give your character some basic quick symptoms.

Your character can develop some basic symptoms that evolve over several minutes, including feeling that euphoric ‘high’, difficulty concentrating, and feeling very drowsy. Are you putting the character into lethal peril? Does the reader know the batch was tainted?

This is where you can have you character progress to unconsciousness and more toxic symptoms, with your reader at the edge of their seat.

3. Use current news headlines.

For additional scene ideas, contemporary news headlines are unfortunately full of drug busts and local cases to pick from. In my own town, street oxy was recently handed out at a teen party. No one knew it was fentanyl-laced until 4 teens died.

4. Research historical drug use.

Historical searches may also be useful, such as the famous Moscow Theater attack by Chechen rebels in 2002, ultimately resulting in Russian forces releasing carfentanil into air vents, killing about 129 hostages and 33 rebels.

Have you seen this growing fentanyl danger where you live? Have you addressed it in conversation or in the pages of your story? Please share your experiences with us down in the comments!

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About Miffie

Miffie Seideman has been a pharmacist for over 30 years, with a passion for helping others. As a published non-fiction author, her articles have appeared in several professional pharmacy journals. When not training for a race, her writing projects include a (soon to be announced) writer’s handbook and a fantasy adventure that started as “What if Romeo and Juliet didn’t live happily ever after they died?” An avid triathlete, she spends countless hours training in the arid deserts of Arizona, devising new plots.

Miffie can be found hanging around her blog onwemerrilystumble.com examining the intersection of triathlon and writing and on Twitter @MiffieSeideman…you know…tweeting.

by Lisa Norman

I'm expecting my first grandchild in a few days. When I hold her in my arms for the first time, I'm not going to be judging her ability to run a marathon or write novels. I'm going to be happy if she looks up at me. If I keep our first encounter simple, connected, and welcoming, it will be the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

When authors build their first website, sometimes they want their website to be as fancy as big-name authors' sites - and I'm not saying they can't be - but this is a distraction.

The important thing is this: Be there. Now.

On occasion I do consulting for Search Engine Optimization specialists. I was called in to consult for a big firm that had an absolutely stunning website. Problem: they weren't getting new customers.

Meanwhile, their tiny upstart competitor with a plain website was getting more work than they could handle. Why?

Because the simple website was first on the search results. The fancy website didn't even show up. Why? The fancy website was full of gorgeous video. Moving pictures. Immersive.

But search engines can't see pictures. Search engines see words.

What does your website really need?

For this post, I want to talk to you about the absolute minimum you need for a functioning website. I'm going to tell you my favorite plugins where appropriate but understand: these are not the only options. They're just my favorites.

I'm not going into detail about hosting and domain name here, because those are choices you want to make based on your budget. Generally, you want to get your name or your pen name as your domain name, and before you pick a hosting company, read a lot of recent reviews.

A website needs a place to live on the internet (hosting) and a domain name that people can type in to get to it.

If you don't want to spend any money, WordPress.COM is essentially a hosting company that only runs WordPress software. They will give you a free domain (yourname.wordpress.com) and set you up with the basics. This is the internet equivalent of living in your parents' basement. You live by their rules, but you are safe and you won't starve.

Once you get your own domain name (yourname.com - for example) you'll need to start paying them rent, and then it is cheaper to move out and live in your own space. The good news is that you can take all your furniture with you.

I'm a huge fan of WordPress because I've never seen an author outgrow the platform. I've seen a lot of folks outgrow other platforms and struggle to move their content. But if you are using something other than WordPress, most of the points that follow still apply. Just ignore the names of specific plugins.

(Note: on WordPress.com, you can not add plugins. Just use what they provide, it is sufficient.)

Your Necessary Seven Items

1. A Security Plugin

When my daughter moves out, she wants to get a German Shepherd. Wordfence — even the free version — acts like a big, protective barking dog. You can turn off the notifications if the barking bothers you, but it is handy for reminding you when to do your updates! This is the first plugin I install on any WordPress website. It will keep you safe from hackers.

2. A Contact Page 

This page needs a form and some type of anti-spam so that people who you do want to talk to can reach you easily while spammers get stopped.

On WordPress, this may look like Contact Form 7 with the CleanTalk plugin to block spammers. (CleanTalk is one of the very few paid plugins that I recommend strongly. If you get just the basic package, you can get it for under $7/year. That's a bargain for keeping spammers away from your website!) Contact Form 7 generally sets itself up correctly when you install it. Pop the form onto a page and be done.

3. An "About me" Page

Include a simple bio with a headshot — this is what will be used to introduce you at speaking engagements or harvested by media personnel when your book hits the NYT bestseller list. Have fun with it. Headshot is optional, but great to add when you can.

4. A newsletter signup form on EVERY page

There are many options here, depending on what you want. I love the Newsletter plugin for a free version that keeps the emails on your website, but MailChimp and other well-known brands work, too. Newsletter will walk you through the basic setup when you install it.

5. A Privacy Policy

This one scares a lot of authors, but it shouldn't. Treat it like a writing exercise. By current law, a plainly written one is much better than a bunch of legalese.

Write something that sounds like you, something that sounds like your books. And if you are completely terrified of this, WordPress includes a sample and information to help you. I actually know someone who got a contract because an agent loved their privacy policy.

6. A Home Page

This can be a simple "welcome to my website, I'll put something cool on this page eventually" or it can show your blog posts if you are up to writing one every month or so. (Hint: hide the dates!)

7. A theme you can live with

My current favorite is Kadence. Not too hard to set up, and it covers the basics that people ask me for most often. If you want something easier to set up, try Bard.

Final Thoughts

A website doesn't have to be hard. If I have the author's bio and a few words of welcome, I can build a website with these bits in well under an hour.

I had a client who needed a website urgently. I built her one in 2 hours and she used it successfully for over 10 years. Sure, I have some know-how, but I share it in my classes. I promise you, anyone can build a website these days.

You may be thinking that you want so much more for your website. But like my soon-to-appear granddaughter, give your website time to grow and develop. Meanwhile, NOW is the crucial time for connection. A baby website is better than no website at all. And ask yourself: Is there anything easier to fall in love with than a baby?

Are there items that you think should be added to the must-have list? What are your author website challenges? What questions do you have for Lisa? Please share them down in the comments!

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About Lisa

Lisa Norman's passion has been writing since she could hold a pencil. While that is a cliché, she is unique in that her first novel was written on gum wrappers. As a young woman, she learned to program and discovered she has a talent for helping people and computers learn to work together and play nice. When she's not playing with her daughter, writing, or designing for the web, she can be found wandering the local beaches.

Lisa writes as Deleyna Marr and is the owner of Deleyna's Dynamic Designs, a web development company focused on helping writers, and Heart Ally Books, an indie publishing firm. She teaches for Lawson Writer's Academy.

Upcoming Classes

• August: Social Media for Authors
• September: Maximize your Crazy Easy Author Website (Advanced)
• October: Crazy Easy Awesome Author Websites (Beginner)

By Melinda VanLone

Writing a series is a smart way to build both your brand and your career as an author. If you’ve done that (or are attempting to do that now), the next thing to do is capitalize on that effort. After all, there’s a ton of readers out there who read series almost exclusively.

Your readers have two main questions when they see a book cover they think is part of a series:

Do I like this series? Have I read this particular book?

Your cover needs to walk a tightrope with duplicating elements on one side and diversity on the other if it has any hope of attracting someone looking for a fun new series to read. 

So how do you do that? 

Consistency and Cohesiveness

Spend quality time on the design for the first book in the series and you’ll make designing the rest of the series a whole lot easier. The important thing is that the look across the entire series be familiar, so that readers see a bond holding all the books together. This is a case where repetition is the word of the day. Choose elements that will repeat from cover to cover and you’ll have instant brand recognition. Some of these elements include: 

1. Typography

One way to build a series brand is to focus on two typographical elements that will be on every book: the author’s name, and the title. 

Once you’ve found a place and font for the author’s name, keep it exactly the same on every book in the same series. This will give the reader something to hang their hat on. “Oh, this book is by that author I like!” Brand yourself first and always, rather than one book or even one series. If they remember your name, they can always find your books! If all they remember is a title, they could find some other author’s similar book instead. We don’t want that.

The same idea can be used with the title of the book as well. 

For example, Edwina’s covers feature her name at the bottom of the page, in the same font, arranged the same way. The title is always in the center of the book, with the same font treatments. See how that lends consistency and tells you right away that these books belong together? Even if other elements around the title change, the reader knows they all take place in the same story world.  

While this post deals specifically with design, keep in mind that you can build brand consistency with the words you use for the title as well as the placement itself, as Edwina did by repeating the word “prince.”

If you’re not a fan of keeping the title in one spot across several books, you might also use the same type treatment for the title, but shift the location depending on the background image.

2. Tone/Color

Another way to build cohesiveness in a series is to be consistent with the tone/mood of the artwork and graphic elements. You can even go so far as to use the exact same artwork on every cover, but vary the color of it to show it’s a different book.

3. Graphic Elements

Sometimes a graphic element can lend brand cohesiveness. Use the same cover model, for example, or the same treatment for the subtitle, or some other graphic element that makes sense for the genre. Catie’s covers feature smoke, and the same model, on every cover, though the background and pose changes.

All of these elements combine to form a parade of covers that clearly belong together, yet are different stories. Readers love knowing that the book they’re buying belongs to a set, and they love knowing that they have the whole set. Do them a favor by making it easy to tell that your series is, in fact, a series and they’ll reward you by clicking the “buy” button on every book.

What pushes you to buy a book? Do you prefer reading series vs. stand-alone books? Most important: do you have questions for Melinda? Please share them with us down in the comments!

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About Melinda

Melinda VanLone writes urban fantasy, freelances as a graphic designer, and dabbles in photography. She currently lives in Florida with her husband and furbabies.

When she's not playing with her imaginary friends, you can find Melinda playing World of Warcraft, wandering aimlessly through the streets taking photos, or hovered over coffee in Starbucks.

Her elementary fantasy series, House of Xannon, begins with Stronger Than Magic. For more information on covers, visit BookCoverCorner.com.