Last year I wrote a novel titled "A Thousand Cherry Trees," a thriller set in a tiny southern California desert town. My agent and I were very excited about it, and the editors who received it thought it was just great, yet none opted to publish it.

"A Thousand Cherry Trees" made them uneasy. It can't be neatly tucked into any particular genre; teens will love it but it wasn't necessarily written for them. It doesn't have a girl torn between two guys (and SO close to prom!) and has only two or three shades of grey, at the most.

(What it does have is an accidental murder, a couple of intentional ones, a '58 Buick Special filled with rattlesnakes, the true account of the first Thanksgiving, a corrupted reality and one boob.)

With my first novel, my goal was just to get you to read all the way to the end. This one, I want you to read it twice. It will be a completely different novel your second time around, I can promise you that.

I'll be making "A Thousand Cherry Trees" available on Tuesday, September 29th, in all ebook formats ($4.99) as well as paperback ($9.99) via Amazon, B&N, iBooks, and all the usual outlets.