My name is Todd, and I am a relapsed blogger. I started blogging in June 2009 after St. Martin’s Press agreed to publish my first mystery, DEATH NOTICE. Since I knew there’d be a 17-month wait between acceptance and publication, I decided a blog would be the perfect outlet for me to talk about how exciting my journey to publication was going to be.

I went at it with zeal, blogging about everything from line edits to cover art to why I liked Lady Gaga.

Then something strange happened: I started running out of ideas. Pre-publication is not the most exciting time for a writer. It’s more about helping usher your baby to print — reading copy edits, looking over galleys, telling everyone you know what your release date is and hoping they actually buy the book. Not exactly prime blogging material.

Plus I had to write a second mystery, which definitely trumped blogging on the priority list. And then I had to start promoting my first, which meant lots of travel and bookstore events and writing guest posts for blogs other than mine. For me, the idea of blogging became as attractive as getting a root canal. I didn’t want to do it. I didn’t have the time to do it. And so I didn’t.

But something happened as I was promoting my first book, prepping my second for publication and starting my third. I realized I was not some newbie tossing his first book out there. I was a (ahem) seasoned writer with more than one mystery under his belt. I was an honest-to-God author. And with that comes the opportunity to share my thoughts and experiences with readers. Night Birds is the end result.

So, first up: Why name the blog Night Birds?

Honestly, I was listening to The Beatles when thinking of names. Blackbird came on, and I was struck by the line “Blackbird singing in the dead of night.” I’ve always been a night owl, and I do the bulk of my writing then. I suspect many writers do — a bunch of solitary people spinning their stories in the dead of night. In other words, it fit.

Next up: What’s going to be on this blog?

I’m going to keep it simple, and on a strict schedule. That’s just how I roll. I’ll post news when I get it, but that will also be posted on Twitter and Facebook. (You ARE following me on Twitter and Facebook, right?) I want this blog to be an exchange of ideas, with a little fun thrown in to keep things interesting. Here’s the lineup I have planned:

Monday: Musings, where I talk about everything from book trailers to conferences to why I write what I write.

Wednesday: Wednesdays With, in which fellow writers answer ten questions. I’ve met a lot of great authors in the past year. They’re cool and interesting people.

Friday: Friday Fun, a grab bag of fun stuff to get you through to the weekend.

And that’s about it. Welcome to Night Birds. Enjoy your stay!