I’ve always been attracted to the amateur protagonist, at least partly because I was very impressed at a young age with Travis McGee, John D. McDonald’s creation, who solved crimes and helped victims without having any sort of legal or official standing. The first entry in my Elder Darrow series is called Solo Act. When …Read More
Shannon Baker’s Upcoming September Book Release!!
Just take a look at the cover art and blurbs for Shannon Baker’s new mystery, Stripped Bare, coming in September (but available now for pre-order): With Stripped Bare, Shannon Baker has penned a compulsive, white-knuckle read peppered with interesting characters, a stunning setting, and a mystery that will keep you turning the pages late …Read More
Take a Leap … by Jenny Sundstedt
Poor February. It’s the little brother of the calendar, never quite matching up to the longer months. But every four years, it puffs up its chest a bit with the addition of an extra day. I love the novelty of Leap Day, even though it occasionally gyps me out of a coveted Friday or Saturday …Read More
Using Personal Experience When Creating Plot and Character … by Betta Ferrendelli
I started my first job as a reporter July 10, 1989 in a small town in northern New Mexico. I had only been on the job for a week when I covered my first murder story of a man who had shot and killed a convenience store clerk as he robbed the store. He was …Read More
6 Secrets of Successful Critique Groups … by Laurence MacNaughton
Some of the worst critique groups on Earth can seem wonderful, at first. They’re friendly. They’re supportive. They make you feel good about your writing. But there may be danger signs. Do they rehash the same tired old stories at every meeting? Do members routinely show up empty-handed? Are they really helping you become a …Read More
Escaping the Corporate Tomb … by Rich Keller
Pat, once again I thank you for the opportunity to spill my words and punctuation on your website. I apologize for what happened to your knee. I meant for it to be slightly bruised – not to be surgically replaced. Apparently, this Tanya Harding person I hired went a bit crazy. And they call figure …Read More
Stretching Boundaries … by Dean K. Miller
Writing is a fickle game, played by many, won by few, and it seems, the rules are always changing. It’s challenging enough to make headway in the game, thing like finding an agent, or a publisher, coming to grips with multiple non-acceptance emails, paying submission fees, and more. Still we play the reasons as varied …Read More
The Message That Demands to be Heard … by Tracee Sioux
The goose bumps on my legs sprouted hair as I absorbed Elizabeth Gilbert’s speech at the inaugural 2013 Emerging Women conference in Boulder. Through a serendipitous series of saying YES! to my Soul I had scored press passes with a VIP tag; front row center. Had I not been in that audience I might have …Read More
How I Wrote a Historical Novel Set in an Era I Knew Nothing About … by Jennifer Kincheloe
Five years ago, I knew nothing about the Progressive Era. I mean naught, nothing, nada. I had some vague notion that they washed their hair with egg yolks and drank Coca Cola laced with cocaine, but that was about it. I ran across a brief article about a police matron, Alice Stebbins Wells, who became …Read More
Getting Back on the Horse …. by Liana Brooks
It has been scientifically proven that good habits are easy to break. There’s rarely social support for “good” habits like eating vegetables, controlling portion sizes, honestly assessing yourself, recognizing your talents, or doing monthly breast exams. We all know these things are necessary, but the stores still sell candy bars at the checkout, the restaurants …Read More