Happy Post-Holidays, Reader!

Happy New Year, Fur-iends!

Hopefully your December rocked, or at the very least rolled along smoothly. Maybe even rocked and rolled? No, that was weird, let's pretend I didn’t do that.

To all the newbies here (which is… some? IDK, the email hosting technology bamboozles me. The subscriber number emails are like “new subscribers”, “just kidding”, “no really!”) WELCOME! I’m Noelle, aka the writers E. N. Crane and Noelle Rider, and the only human employee of Perry Dog Publishing. The other employees are Perry (obvs), CEO and character art model for Winnie, and Padfoot, CCO and the character art model for Ruger and Grim.

II write plus-size, caffeine addictive, pet-loving women who are smart, sassy, and pain-in-the-ass-y. LOL. But accurate. We're also all "woke", mostly because it's hard to sleep with all the coffee and whatnot.

I'm a plus-sized, neuro-divergent dog mom, city government employee, wife, reader, and step-ladder substitute for short people who need help. I love coffee, Peeps, cheese, wine and dogs.

Soo…. Some updates! They are going to surgery my ankle sometime this year and I will then have to re-learn how to walk, and exist before they do the other one. When that happens, all of this that isn’t already scheduled and paid for might change. For now…

Breaking News: The tentative schedule for 2026!

January 17: Kraken game in Utah (this is not author related, it’s just going to be my first time seeing my favorite team live, and I want you all to know)

January 28, 29 & 31: Henderson Silver Knights, LV Golden Knights Hello Kitty Night, and Kraken at LVGN… again, not book related… but… HELLO KITTY AND HOCKEY! Also, if you’re in the Vegas region, I’m going to see if I can do something at XOXO bookstore, so stay tuned.

February 14: Romance Author event at Barnes and Noble Boise (I don’t have details yet, but the manager asked me to come back for a special Valentine’s romance event and I said yes.)

February 28: Blood Widow Release (or at least ready for print to take with me to Book Lovers Con)

March 8-11: Women in Publishing Summit! Where I learn all the ideas that fire up my brain and turn me into a massively super-productive gremlin and might result in a website overhaul (again)

March 26-29: Book Lover’s Con Las Vegas! You can get tickets here, and if you’re already going and want to make sure I have your favorite book, you can pre-order here (or reply to this email to pre-order direct). I’m cooking up a special box set, with this insanely cool shelf display box set that should hold books 1-10. I’m still waiting for the proof sample. It’ll be event exclusive, so let me know if you need an email when it’s available for pre-order!

June 30 or July 15: Licking Crash Landings and Huckleberry Hollow #3 Release! (I’m still workshopping the name… for details, check Instagram and Facebook… this whole witchcraft idiom business is hard)

July 25: Cosma Con Day Zero (Boise!): A new local even with live music and artists. No idea what the day will bring, but look into it if you’re local and need an air conditioned July experience.

August: Pending applications for events in Chicago (Inked & Enchanted… because fantasy romance and tattoos are my jam!) and Massachusetts (Sinners & Stardust)

No books released after August! Doing Kicking Holly Jolly Killers during the holiday season nearly killed me.

October 21-25: Bouchercon in Calgary, Alberta, Canada! I might not be speaking, presenting or signing, but I will be there, and if any of my Canadian fur-iends want to say hi, I’m down! To me, Perry, or Padfoot… though meeting Perry requires planning, bribery, bribery, and a neutral meeting location because she has reactivity issues. But… we still love her.

Personally... I'm an Ultimate Book Nerd

I’m an Ultimate Book Nerd! The City of Boise Library! does this annual challenge to read 50 books in 50 different categories. Most of which are random, challenging and not something I’d ever read. This is my third year attempting it, and my first time succeeding! The category list is here, but to keep this email short, I’ll only share my Top 5:

3. Read a Book from NPR Books we Love: The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang

This is the third in the The Kiss Quotient series and pretty amazing. I love this author, she expands my knowledge of Vietnamese culture, makes me feel seen with the inclusion of neurodiverse characters, and has lots of humor and spice to fill out the genre between emotionally damaging moments.

17. Read a Book Without Reading the Blurb: Kiss and Spell by Celestine Martin

Found this one by walking into the romance book aisle from the cover side. This one was on the end cap, having a witch pun title, a couple kissing-ish over a crystal ball and they weren’t white. I love reading non-white-European magic because it gives another perspective on magic and culture through the lens of fiction. This magic system is rooted in nature, there’s fae and family drama… it’s so good. I also have Deja Brew, the next in series, and can’t wait to read it.

27. Read a behind the Scenes Memoir or Biography: The Boy Who Lived-When Magic and Reality Collide by David Holmes

This was a slog for me. Not because it was a bad book, but because the problem with non-fiction is you know how it ends. The main character was always going to end up with spinal paralysis, he was never going to get to finish stunting the Harry Potter movies. And hearing about the behind the scenes antics and bullying, it wasn’t interesting, it made me angry and depressed. But feeling things is the point of books, so it did its job, but not one I wanted filled.

41. Read a Book Told in Flashbacks: Oye by Melissa Mogollon

This was a trip. It wasn’t available as an ebook so I read it in audio and I don’t know if it should be read any other way. The book is a story of multi-generational trauma told in a high school senior’s phone conversations with her sister who’s left for college. Again, the feels, the familial trauma, and just reading about someone’s life in layers of having the curtain pulled back as they go through cancer treatment. It was definitely a book hangover book for me that has been living in the back of my mind.

45. Book Recommended through Personalized Picks: Big Trouble in Little Italy by Nicole Sharp

Personalized Picks is a library feature where you fill out a questionnaire on the website and a librarian emails you some suggestions. This one was the top of my list because 1) I owned a signed copy (but I bought the eBook to read) and 2) Nicole is PAWSOME! She’s a local author who does a lot of events with me. This one was a wild ride from start to finish. Drunk rambling on an airplane, surprise marriage discovery, and a baggage free trip to Italy that ends up with a CIA kidnapping and then a mob abduct-ish? I laughed so hard.

So, what’s your favorite book you read last year? Let me know!

Padfoots Pals / Periodicals

Thank you for the fur-baby love! I tried to reply to everyone but then my brain wandered away for awhile and I wasn't sure how long is too long to reply to an email. Like if I had said something three weeks later, is that cool or weird? Where is your socially acceptable to respond line? Because I don't have one, so please just know that I love seeing every one of your pets and appreciated all the birthday wishes. Skating and going to the romance book store were amazing.

Visited my boys Teddy, Cassius, and Dax at Zoo Boise on December 26th.

And we took Perry and Padfoot to help my mom with her hip surgery and they got to hang with Belle, Max and Beverly!

Love,

Noelle, Perry & Padfoot