Ordinary or Extraordinary by Carl Brookins

Do you ever feel as though you are being watched? We’ll get to that later.

We lead wildly varied, compelling, interesting, fascinating weird and frustrating lives. We are authors.

We meet and talk with top law enforcement people, hobnob with some of the worst criminals of the era and we are privy to many government secrets. We are authors.

We spend our lives in mean garrets, chewing beef jerky strips and slurping weak tea, or sitting pool-side with slippered feet, being served mimosas and crumpets by a bevy of nearly dressed models. Yes, we are authors.

None of these scenarios are, in my experience, wholly accurate. Neither are they entirely incorrect. In my admittedly limited experience, authors are likely to be a broad mix of life’s experiences. Indeed so, and I’m limiting my remarks here to my personal life and observations of authors of crime fiction. Your experience may vary.

A friend who has achieved broad success as an author has a fairly precise routine. In the morning, he repairs to a nearby coffee shop to write, often long-hand, for a few hours. Every day. Even when he travels, he tries to find the time, in the morning, to write. I have a similar routine. Because I started my fiction writing while I was employed full time, and because I wanted access to most of my psychic energy, I established a routine of rising early in the morning and writing for at least two hours before leaving for the college. Now retired, I still spend at least a couple of hours in the early morning, at my computer, writing a story or working on my current novel. Or, like this particular morning, working on the draft of this article.

So, here’s my typical scenario. I consider myself a typical (hah) author of crime fiction. I’m also a small-time publisher and I review crime fiction for several sites.

Mornings, because my energy levels are higher, I write. Most mornings I’ll work at any of several writing projects that are current. I have no specific goals—number of words, number of pages—so I accomplish whatever I accomplish.

Afternoons I read, do research, write reviews or short pieces, address a variety of tasks associated with being a writer and publisher. The telephone, rings, the carpet needs vacuuming or dishes must be washed. Yes, it may surprise some, but most of the working authors I know, those who try to publish a new book every year, also have ordinary or routine lives. And they travel to make presentations to groups, appear at conventions, answer fan mail and attend to family life.

Readers of this piece should not be surprised to learn that most active authors of crime fiction lead fairly ordinary lives, although we may sometimes experience a heightened level of frustration at our experiences with the publishing world. Be that as it may, among the joys of being an author, is our opportunity to do research. We develop access to experienced members of the legal, law enforcement and business communities that many citizens may never experience. Such contacts are not always in the most pleasant circumstances, visits to autopsy labs, for example. But in general, most of the successful authors I know like to learn things and we are always watching and listening. Waiting at the airport to board an airplane, I overheard a six-word jargon-laced phrase from a passing vendor. That phrase triggered an explanation of important actions in a story I was working on at the time.

Yes, when you are around authors, if you get the feeling you are being carefully watched, it is probably true.

Brief bio and links for Carl Brookins:

Before he became a mystery writer and reviewer, Carl Brookins was a counselor and faculty member at Metropolitan State University in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Brookins and his wife are avid recreational sailors. He is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and Private Eye Writers of America. He can frequently be found touring bookstores and libraries with his companions-in-crime, The Minnesota Crime Wave.

He writes the sailing adventure series featuring Michael Tanner and Mary Whitney. The third novel is Old Silver. His new private investigator series features Sean NMI Sean, a short P.I. The first is titled The Case of the Greedy Lawyers. Brookins received a liberal arts degree from the University of Minnesota and studied for a MA in Communications at Michigan State University.

http://www.carlbrookins.com/

https://www.facebook.com/carl.brookins?fref=ts

@carlbrookins

Buy links:

Reunion https://www.amazon.com/Reunion-Marston-Mystery-Carl-Brookins/dp/0985390697/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1492621250&sr=8-3&keywords=reunion+brookins

The Inside Passage https://www.amazon.com/Inside-Passage-Whitney-adventure-Adventures-ebook/dp/B00I9GXW4I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1492621221&sr=8-1&keywords=The+inside+passage+brookins

The Case of the Yellow Diamond http://www.amazon.com/Case-Yellow-Diamond-Sean-Mystery/dp/0878398163/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1448218939&sr=8-1&keywords=the+case+of+the+yellow+diamond

The Case of the Stolen Case https://www.amazon.com/Case-Stolen-Carl-Brookins/dp/0985390689/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1483908318&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Case+of+the+Stolen+Case+Brookins

Come and enjoy a time of conversation with author Carl Brookins as he talks about translating his sailing adventures to fiction and creating fictional characters that feel like old friends. Brookins is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and Private Eye Writers of America. He can frequently be found touring bookstores and libraries with his companions-in-crime, The Minnesota Crime Wave.

Guest Post Author John R. Beyer

I am pleased to have author John R. Beyer as my guest today. John is the author of "Operation Scorpion". He is a writer of Thrillers and Suspense. 

Research and Imagination

A Writer’s two best friends

When Dracula was published in 1897 by Bram Stoker there was something amiss. The writer had never even visited Transylvania let alone the castle depicted so hauntingly in his famous work. A best seller, to say the least, the novel went on to sell tens of millions of copies and has never been out of print since the day it found its way into bookstores. But how could a person write such a novel without every visiting the place so well described between of the covers of his book?

It is the imagination of the writer to concoct situations which seem real not only to themselves but to their readers. Growing up in Ireland, Bram was well familiar with dark forests and nasty weather so there isn’t much of a leap to incorporate that prior knowledge into his work of fiction. Just as for the castle attributed to Dracula – there are hundreds of ruined and not-so-ruined castles on the Emerald Isle. So, he had the forests, the castle and of course the myths that make Ireland famous which in turn he used for the myth of the vampires flapping around the countryside.

Now he needed the Count himself. Ah, Vlad Dracul III came to the mind of the scribe. That infamous Wallachian prince of the fifteenth century who terrified friend and foe alike with barbarous antics like impalements, skinning alive, and supposedly drinking the blood of his enemies. True or not, it created the foundation for Stoker’s world-renowned Count Dracula.

All the ingredients were there for a novel – he penned it; it was published and the rest is literary history even though he never really reaped the rewards. He died almost penniless on April 20^th, 1912 in London.

So, a writer needs to research and then come up with ideas which will inspire people to read their works.

Research is so much more readily available today than it was one hundred and twenty years ago in the United Kingdom. A punch of a key here or there brings immediate responses from Mr. Google and there you have it – answers to questions to the point it can make a writer seem like he or she is a genius.

The value of research cannot be overrated. Think of Stoker sitting day after day in darkened libraries jotting down notes in a ledger. I’m not sure if that’s exactly how he did the vast the majority of his research, but hard research, coupled with pub conversations, had to suffice before the advent of the internet.

The use of the imagination, solid research, compelling characters (who seem real according to Ernest Hemingway), interesting settings, and believable plots can go a long way in inducing a person to read a writer’s work. If those components aren’t there then the chance of seeing that writing before the public is not very likely.

As I’ve always believed – a writer writes to tell a story and that story must be written to make people want to read it.

Former street cop, training officer and member of SWAT John Beyer has been writing most of his life. He’s traveled to at least 23 countries (and was actually shot in the head in Spain in 2000 during a march between Neo Nazis and Communists two days after running with the bulls in Pamplona). He was caught in a hurricane off the coast of east Baja (Bahia de los Angeles) while kayaking and lived to tell about it. Essentially, it’s hard to tell where experience leaves off and fiction takes over. You’ll want to read his books.

Website URL: http://johnrobertbeyer.weebly.com/

Blog URL: http://jandlresearchandexploration.blogspot.com/

Twitter: @Drjohnrbeyer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-john-r-beyer

Operation Scorpion buy link:

https://www.amazon.com/Operation-Scorpion-John-R-Beyer/dp/1626945969/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1485558943&sr=8-1

Michael Phillip Cash Author Guest Post

 I am participating in a Virtual Book Tour. I have read and reviewed this book. Today I have the privilege of having a guest post from this wonderful author. Enjoy!

“Ghosts of Our Past” by Michael Phillip Cash

I’m sitting here in my den, laptop where it should be (on my lap), and I’m watching my new (old) favorite channel – MTV Live. I grew up on MTV. It was Channel 29 for the first 20 years of my life and it was on 24/7.  Then, for some generation-killing reason, some corporate guy at Viacom decided to stop airing music videos, so they went full on into reality TV. 

I don’t like anything about reality TV, except a Tony Robbins show on NBC that aired many moons ago. I love music, and I love watching live shows, so this channel has become my therapy for when I’m writing – which is what I’m doing now. 

One of my favorite bands, Eagles of Death Metal, is on MTV Live right now. They’re playing live in Paris, and they’re wearing red feathers on their shirts. I liked the Eagles of Death Metal in the past, but watching them playing now, live, I LOVE THEM. Absolutely love them! 

 I’m not one to point out something negative, but the Eagles of Death Metal were playing during the Paris terrorist attacks in November 2015 at The Bataclan. I remember watching the news thinking of the horror everyone at the concert was going through. People lost their lives that night because of a senseless act of violence. But now I’m watching this band play live on MTV and let me tell you they are tighter, better and stronger than ever. This band witnessed hell in front of their eyes and here they are, playing harder and louder than ever before.

Should the ghosts of our past stop us from moving forward from accomplishing what we were born to do? The answer is a resounding HELL NO! Nothing, absolutely nothing, should stop you from doing what you love. I’ve personally had some setbacks in life, sour life changes that made life a bit more difficult. Our past should not represent our future. Anthony Robbins said that. We must forge ahead and create our future.

When you write, it’s easy to get caught up in the emotions of the past. Your characters could have been people you knew, loved or hated. Stopping what you love because of a setback is not living. Curling up and not moving forward is not what we are intended to do.  Everyone has setbacks. All setbacks are simply stepping stones to getting where you want to be. No past-life ghosts should haunt you for more than ten minutes. Life is too short to be dwelling on ‘what happened’ in the past. The past is prologue to your life now.

If you are reading this, you are alive, and breathing, and well. Life is good and you should be grateful that you have an opportunity to wake up every day and thank everything and everyone for taking those first steps in the morning. Every day above ground is a good day. Anthony Robbins said that too.

Now, please excuse me. This live performance from the Eagles of Death Metal has gotten my blood so pumped up, I have to continue writing more of my current manuscript.

“And then we dance all through the whole night.” – Eagles of Death Metal

--END--

ABOUT MICHAEL PHILLIP CASH

Michael Phillip Cash is an award-winning novelist and screenwriter. His novels are best-sellers on Amazon under their genres – Young Adult, Thriller, Suspense, Ghost, Action Adventure, Fantasy, Paranormal Romance and Horror. Michael writes full-time and lives on the North Shore of Long Island with his wonderful wife and screaming children. You can follow him @michaelpcash.

Guest Post: Judy Alter author of Murder at Peacock Mansion

Living—or Writing—My Dream  by Judy Alter

I learned to cook well before I was ten. My mom was a terrific cook with an intuitive sense about flavors and textures and what works together and what doesn’t. She was also a nurturer, as eager to feed her maiden lady friend who didn’t eat properly as she was twenty of Dad’s colleagues.
At ten I was first assist in the kitchen for dinner parties, specializing in appetizers but always alert to what Mom was doing with a roast or mashed potatoes or whatever the menu called for. While my parents entertained guests, I cleaned the kitchen. By the time the guests departed, there was little left to done in the kitchen. Except the night it got to be eleven and the guests hadn’t left. “Well,” my dad said rising from his chair, “I guess I’ll vacuum the floor.”
My first specialty was a blue cheese dip that mixed the cheese with sour cream, cream cheese, and scallions seasoned with dry mustard, Worcestershire, and whatever else caught my fancy. Guests loved it, but one close friend of the family swore I didn’t give here the right recipe because it was a disaster when she tried it. Actually, there is no recipe—it was and is only in my head.
In creating Kate Chambers of the Blue Plate Café Mysteries, I called up these childhood memories. Kate inherits half her grandmother’s café in the small Texas town of Wheeler and buys out her twin sister’s half. Kate will leave her high-powered job and the unsatisfactory singles life in Dallas to return to her hometown and the café where she spent her early days watching Gram cook and beginning her own first ventures into food service. My mom was nothing like Gram, but they serve the same purpose in the young girls’ lives.
Kate inherits a café where chicken-fried steak and fried catfish are the staples, pies are store-bought, and the tuna salad comes straight from Sam’s. She works to upgrade the menu without driving off the locals who are loyal to Gram’s food. One recipe she introduces is Shepherd’s Pie, an English dish that combines hearty foods café patrons relish—ground beef, vegetables, cheese and potatoes.
In her personal life, Kate resigns herself to a lack of social life in Wheeler, and she is surprised when she finds not one but three men vying for her attention. To see who wins out,
you’ll have to read Murder at the Blue Plate Café. Kate cooks to win hearts, and her small-scale entertaining—one man at a time—gives her a chance to. fix the more elaborate dishes she’s come to love in Dallas, such as Scallops Saint Jacques. Unfortunately, this part of Kate’s life does no mirror my own.
Oh yes, Kate has mysteries to solve. Small towns are supposed to be idyllic and peaceful, but Kate soon learns Wheeler is not the comfortable place it was when she grew up. First there’s Gram’s sudden death, which leaves her suspicious, and then the death of her married sister’s lover. Kate must defend her sister against a murder charge, solve a food poisoning charge to keep her business open, and figure out where the café’s profits are going. Even Kate begins to wonder about the twin sister she has a love-hate relationship with. Gram guides Kate through it all, though Kate’s never quite sure she’s hearing Gram—and sometimes Gram’s advice is off the wall.
Shepherd’s pie
Mashed potatoes, made of about 1⅓ lbs. red potatoes. (Kate doesn’t skin them to mash anymore.) A good trick: put some garlic cloves in the water when you boil the potatoes. Another good one: as you add butter, salt, and pepper, substitute sour cream or cream cheese for the milk.
½ c. shredded sharp cheddar—stir into hot, freshly mashed potatoes and set aside
1 lb. lean ground beef
2 Tbsp. flour
4 c. frozen mixed vegetables (Kate prefers corn, green beans, and sweet peas.)
¾ c. beef broth
2 Tbsp. ketchup
¼ c. shredded sharp cheddar
Heat oven to 375°.
Brown meat in nonstick skillet (an iron skillet is always best). Stir in flour and cook briefly. Add remaining ingredients and cook, stirring, for five minutes.
Spoon into 8 in. square baking dish. Cover with mashed potatoes. Bake 20 minutes. Sprinkle remaining cheddar over the top and bake another 3-4 minutes, until cheese melts and casserole is bubbly. Serve six, but only if they’re not hearty eaters.

Author Bio

An award-winning novelist, Judy Alter is the author of several fictional biographies of women of the American West. In The Gilded Cage she has turned her attention to the late nineteenth century in her home town, Chicago, to tell the story of the lives of Potter and Cissy Palmer, a high society couple with differing views on philanthropy and workers’ right. She is also the author of six books in the Kelly O’Connell Mysteries series. With the 2014 publication of The Perfect Coed, she introduced the Oak Grove Mysteries.

Her work has been recognized with awards from the Western Writers of America, the Texas Institute of Letters, and the National Cowboy Museum and Hall of Fame. She has been honored with the Owen Wister Award for Lifetime Achievement by WWA and inducted into the Texas Literary Hall of Fame and the WWA Hall of Fame. http://judyalter.com/

Blog URL: http://www.judys-stew.blogspot.com

Facebook URL: https://www.facebook.com/judy.alter

Skype: juju1938

Buy link for Murder at Peacock Mansion:

https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Peacock-Mansion-Plate-Mysteries/dp/0996013156/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1485799111&sr=1-1&keywords=murder+at+peacock+mansion

Buy link for The Gilded Cage

http://www.amazon.com/Gilded-Cage-Judy-Alter/dp/0996013121/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1460738028&sr=8-1&keywords=the+gilded+cage+alter

Guest Post: The Secret of Bramble Hill by Sue Owens Wright

MYSTERY GOES TO THE DOGS

by

Sue Owens Wright

When a writer and lifelong dog lover has been owned by a total of thirteen dogs over the years, it’s reasonable to assume that they might end up being written about.  If that person is a mystery writer, like I am, her dogs can end up as a character in a series, like Cruiser, the canine sleuth in my Beanie and Cruiser Mystery Series.  The Basset Hound breed, whose scenting ability is second only to that of a Bloodhound, seemed to be the perfect sidekick for my human sleuth, Elsie “Beanie” MacBean.  In my first book, Howling Bloody Murder, Cruiser sniffs out the first victim while he and Beanie are hiking on the Tahoe Rim Trail.  He’s been helping Beanie track bad guys (and gals) at Lake Tahoe ever since.  Cruiser and Calamity, his new canine partner in crime in Braced for Murder and the upcoming Ears for Murder (Black Opal Books 2017), also provide some comic relief in these tales of murder in the High Sierra.  With their sausage-shaped bodies, short, crooked legs, and Dumbo ears, bassets are just natural born clowns.

My own dogs have never failed to provide me with a wealth of material for my books.  They are always doing something amusing or remarkable that ends up in the plot. My fictional dog, Cruiser, is most like my first male Basset Hound, Bubba Gump.  He was a great guy and lived to the ripe old age of 14 years.  He became Cruiser in my mind, gentle and easy going but ready to protect his mistress if called upon.  I remember the time my Bubba once chased a paramedic, who had come to our house in an emergency, and ripped the seat of his pants.  The surprised man bolted out the front door, with Bubba hot on his heels, and cleared our picket fence in the nick of time.  I was shocked!  I didn’t know the old boy had it in him to be so protective of his mom.  In my mysteries, Cruiser does the same for Beanie on numerous occasions.  Bubba was a wonderful companion to me, just as Cruiser is for Beanie, a widow who lives alone in her secluded mountain cabin.

My newest stand-alone novel, a paranormal romance titled The Secret of Bramble Hill, is a different kind of story than I usually write, but dog-loving readers won’t be disappointed. There’s also a faithful canine that figures largely in the book.  Gemma the English Springer Spaniel may not be a Basset Hound like Cruiser and Calamity, but she provides the same unconditional love and companionship as any other breed of dog.  

     

 About the Author  

Sue Owens Wright is an award-winning author of fiction and nonfiction. She is an eleven-time finalist for the Maxwell, awarded annually by the Dog Writers Association of America (DWAA) to the best writer on the subject of dogs. She has twice won the Maxwell Award and earned special recognition from the Humane Society of the United States for her writing. She writes the acclaimed Beanie and Cruiser Mystery Series, including Howling Bloody Murder, Sirius About Murder, Embarking On Murder and Braced For Murder, which is recommended on the American Kennel Club’s list of Best Dog Books.

Her nonfiction books include What’s Your Dog’s IQ?, 150 Activities for Bored Dogs, and People’s Guide to Pets. She has been published in numerous magazines, including Dog Fancy, Mystery Scene, AKC GAZETTE, Fido Friendly, The Bark, and Animal Fair. Her work also appears in several anthologies, including PEN Oakland’s “Fightin’ Words,” along with Norman Mailer and other literary notables. Her newest novel is The Secret of Bramble Hill.

Website URL: www.sueowenswright.com

Blog URL: http://dogearedbooks.blogspot.com/

Facebook URL: https://www.facebook.com/sue.o.wright

The Secret of Bramble Hill buy link:

https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Bramble-Hill-Owens-Wright/dp/1626945861/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1485128293&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=the+secret+of+bramble+hill+weight

Guest Post by Larry and Carolyn Watts

HISTORY AND COPS

Cop stories are some of the most written about and filmed topics in the shelves of bookstores, the television programming guide and at the movies.  They are either glamorized and worshipped as heroes or demonized and castigated as part of what's wrong with our society.  Neither the defenders nor the detractors look for middle ground.  But looking back at history can tell a very different story.  Once the emotion of the time and the news media attention has subsided, which sometimes takes many years, a different story emerges than that reported and discussed at the time of the events.

Our book, Dishonored and Forgotten, is an attempt to take a fresh look at an old news story that had political and law enforcement leaders in Houston, Texas engaging in a fierce battle with the federal government and some of its own officers.  A police chief, who media and courtroom testimony accounts labeled as an abuser of illegally obtained codeine, lost his job after his department was embroiled in a narcotics scandal that left one detective shot dead and others with permanent blemishes on their reputations.  But years later the City of Houston named its new police academy building in his honor.  Some never accepted that there were criminal acts by high ranking Houston cops. A single detective was sent to prison, causing some observers to believe he was the sacrificial lamb. 

More than sixty years later, Dishonored and Forgotten is an attempt to tell the story of Houston's first major police narcotics scandal with a dispassionate voice, reconstructing from actual documents and newspaper accounts of the time a story of what might have really happened.  Certain people who were considered traitors then are cast in a more positive light; some of those who defended the actions by officers involved in the scandal get a second look without the pressure of having to defend what they may have been involved in themselves.

As we are overwhelmed today with news accounts of officers being attacked, and others caught on camera mistreating and even killing citizens, a look at history will remind us that in real life heroes are flawed and nearly all villains have some redeeming value.  As you read Dishonored and Forgotten, try to remember that more often than not, the true story is usually somewhere between the two extremes promoted by those who have agendas.

Larry and Carolyn are Texas authors who have teamed up as authors for the first time to write Dishonored and Forgotten.  Larry’s career in law enforcement began in Houston, Texas, as a police officer. He became active in police labor issues and served on the board of directors of the Houston Police Officers’ Association and the National Association of Police Associations.  He retired after 21 years and began working for a state-wide association representing law enforcement officers throughout Texas, eventually becoming the chief of staff.

Carolyn worked for Continental Airlines for 16 years.  She was a flight attendant scheduler early in that career and worked in Continental's Public Relations Department before returning to school to attain a BS in Psychology and an MS in School Psychology. Her professional career has spanned positions in education, a non-profit counseling center and shelter for victims of domestic violence, and a private practice that enabled her to fulfill her desire to work with couples and their children. 

Dishonored and Forgotten is their first team venture. Larry and Carolyn live on the Texas Gulf Coast where they spend their time writing, enjoying family and attempting to capture all that life has to offer.

Website URL: www.LarryWatts.net & www.CarolynWatts.net

Blog URL: blog on website

Facebook URL: https://www.facebook.com/LarryWattsnovels/

Twitter: @LarryWatts2

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larry-watts-3800a336?trk=hp-identity-name

            https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolyn-ferrell-watts-06184a53?authType=NAME_ 

Buy link for Dishonored and Forgotten

https://www.amazon.com/Dishonored-Forgotten-Larry-Watts/dp/1533524629/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1484177587&sr=1-1&keywords=dishonored+and+forgotten

Guest Post: Maria Grazia Swan Author of Gemini Moon

Fiction versus reality.

I’m often asked where I get my ideas for the stories I write. What can I say? From everyday life. And not just ideas, objects and locations also.

Take my Lella York Mysteries series, let’s compare some of her everyday items with my own, past and present. 

Her car; she drives a Mustang. For years I drove a silver Mustang with custom paint job on the hood. The young men at the car wash would argue for the fun of taking the car through the wash. It was that cool. Later on I traded it in for a 2 door black Infiniti, but that's another story...

Her townhouse. Yes, I'm describing the gated complex I lived at while in Dana Point. Common garage and even the views. Eventually I moved south.

Mission San Juan Capistrano. I was a volunteer there for a couple of years, and did everything Lella describes...including answering the phones on Swallows day.

Flash the cat? The name of my black cat was...Cat. RIP.

All the restaurants and places named in the book are real. Some are now gone, like the bar where Lella first met Ruby. Quiet cannon is now called Cannons, and my beloved Sarducci moved from across the Mission to the train depot.

But don’t take my word for it…read the books and then you’ll have a good reason to visit Orange County, the old Mission and the wonderful beaches from San Clemente to the South to Seal Beach to the North. Believe me, you’ll be happy you did.

Author Bio

Award winning author Maria Grazia Swan was born in Italy, but has also lived in Belgium, France, Germany, in beautiful Orange County, California where she raised her family. She is currently at home in Phoenix, Arizona.

As a young girl, her vivid imagination predestined her to be a bestselling author. She won her first literary award at the age of fourteen while living in Belgium. As a young woman Maria returned to Italy designing haute couture. Once in the U.S. and after years of concentrating on family, she tackled real estate. These days her time is devoted to her deepest passions: writing and helping people and pets find the perfect home.

Maria loves travel, opera, good books, hiking, and intelligent movies (if she can find one, that is). When asked about her idea of a perfect evening, she favors stimulating conversation, Northern Italian food and perfectly chilled Prosecco.

www.mariagraziaswan.com  

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Guest Post by Carl Brookins

More Random Musings from a writer.

On the second hottest day of the summer, I opened an email query. Essentially, the writer wanted to know how one of my plots had surfaced. I told him the truth. I couldn’t remember precisely, so I temporized. Now, new plot ideas are flitting around.

So far, we’ve had a hot and fruitful summer and now the days are shorter, rainy and colder. Is it out of the ordinary? I don’t actually know. We seem to have attracted more birds than usual. Not long ago I observed two hummingbirds, flying wing to wing like fighter planes in formation. They roared in across the yard like a scene from one of those old black and white films about dog fights during WWII. I was about to duck when they diverted and whisked away overhead. Impossible to follow against the hot blue sky. I think they were checking out the feeders, although I don’t expect to find hummers at the seed feeders. Impertinent little buggers.

I sometimes like to read, relaxing on our deck. One day I glanced up from the page to find a humming bird hovering about a foot from my forehead. I am not hummingbird food. Did the bird want me to read it a story? No hawks so far this summer, so when I sit outside in the heat to read, the critters, aloft and underfoot show up. It isn’t me that attracts them, it’s the seed and old bread. When the popcorn I supply to my writers’ critique group grows stale, I cast small handfuls on our deck and lo, overnight it is gone. Rabbits.

Crows sometimes visit. Since they are shy or skittish, we rarely see them up close. Crows are fierce-looking creatures. It is fun to watch them maneuver about the yard. First one or two sail silently to perch up in the big pine. After a few minutes of observing the many cardinals, finches, sparrows and woodpeckers in the yard, one makes a pass over the deck, scattering the smaller birds to the bushes and sending chipmunks and red squirrels under cover. The lead crow lands and struts about, picking up corn and sunflower seeds. It lifts its head, eyes me through the glass of the sliding door and calls. Its companion, waiting in the tree, repeats the call. There is a raucous response from overhead and suddenly a dozen of the big black, sharp-eyed avians are all over the yard, the trees, the grass, the deck. Noisy, strutting, picking at seeds, flowers, grubs and worms in the long grass. And overhead, maybe two hundred feet in the air a black crow circles, silently, watching. It is obviously looking for danger. Two days ago I went into the yard to move some trash to the compost. A crow high overhead began to cry. The calls went on for the entire time I was in the yard, at least twenty minutes. I wonder if the crows ever get hoarse.\ Time passes. The lookout notices something. What, I don’t know. These are urban crows, used to traffic and close human interactions. The circling crow dips a wing, sends out a loud call, and the dark flock rises almost as a single creature and swiftly departs for places unseen. Plot points abound.

I recall some of our encounters with gulls on the seas and lakes where we sailed. It was not unusual for a gull to roost on the gunwale or cabin of our sailboat for several minutes as we went along, hitching a ride for a time.

The crows will be back, and meanwhile, the populace of smaller birds and the unwinged return to their feast. The scene suggests a story plot. I noodle it a bit and make a note for reference. A robin, thrashing about in a basin, reminds me it’s time to refresh the birdbaths.

Now, fall has descended and the days are shorter, colder and at times more depressing. But winter with sparkling crisp snow and ice will soon appear, and the cycle will renew. Its time to start a new book.

Author Bio

Before he became a mystery writer and reviewer, Carl Brookins was a counselor and faculty member at Metropolitan State University in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Brookins and his wife are avid recreational sailors. He is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and Private Eye Writers of America. He can frequently be found touring bookstores and libraries with his companions-in-crime, The Minnesota Crime Wave.

He writes the sailing adventure series featuring Michael Tanner and Mary Whitney. The third novel is Old Silver. His new private investigator series features Sean NMI Sean, a short P.I. The first is titled The Case of the Greedy Lawyers. Brookins received a liberal arts degree from the University of Minnesota and studied for a MA in Communications at Michigan State University.

http://www.carlbrookins.com/

https://www.facebook.com/carl.brookins?fref=ts

@carlbrookins

Buy links:

The Case of the Yellow Diamond http://www.amazon.com/Case-Yellow-Diamond-Sean-Mystery/dp/0878398163/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1448218939&sr=8-1&keywords=the+case+of+the+yellow+diamond

Come and enjoy a time of conversation with author Carl Brookins as he talks about translating his sailing adventures to fiction and creating fictional characters that feel like old friends. Brookins is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and Private Eye Writers of America. He can frequently be found touring bookstores and libraries with his companions-in-crime, The Minnesota Crime Wave.

Guest Post: Clyde Linsley

“Tinkering” with History

I was in a large bookstore a few months ago and had one of those unfortunate experiences that are commonplace among us “midlist” authors. (“Midlist” is, incidentally, a common euphemism in the publishing business; it’s a relatively nice way to say “bottom of the pecking order, and apparently it applies to everyone who has had a book published but who cannot retire in luxury from the proceeds.)

In other words: nearly all of us.

We who reside on the midlist are doomed to haunting the bookstore aisles in search of prospective readers who seem to be searching for reading matter, with an eye toward enticing them into picking up our latest effort and, perhaps, falling in love with it. It happens just often enough to raise our hopes and fails to happen just enough to plunge us into despair.

She followed me eagerly as I led her to the books that had my name on them.

“I think my books might interest you,” I said. “I wrote a number of books with historical settings, mostly American and mostly set before the Civil War. My protagonist is a New England lawyer, a friend of Andrew Jackson, who . . .”

“Oh, I don’t care for historicals,” she said. “I want a nice murder mystery!” And off she went.

Um. Well.

By the time I had formulated a suitable response, she was gone. I’m still unsure that I would have come up with a suitable response, but it seemed appropriate at the time. I’d be interested in what – if anything – I might have said. In any event, I doubt that it would have mattered.

This wasn’t the first time I’ve come up against this objection. Readers of cozies (as traditional mysteries are sometimes characterized) seem to think historicals lack the requisite romance element, as if the whole boy-girl thing began with Rock Hudson and Doris Day. Readers of romances apparently believe that historical mysteries produce an insufficient number of ripped bodices.

Of course, murder is a fact of life today, as it was in the past. Regardless of what we may believe about the “rightness” of it, murder happened, and it happened frequently.

The fact is that we are all to some extent the products of our previous thoughts and actions. And not only our thoughts and actions.

 Everyone’s past is our present. As an example, I present to you the subject of my current book, the Mississippi River.

The Mississippi River: native Americans called it the “Father of Waters.” It served the youthful United States as a major transportation artery in a time before the existence of railroads, aircraft and Interstate highways. It fostered territorial expansion, watered any number of farms, and developed international trade. It also led to the development of steam-powered railroads and riverboats and made the United States a major exporter of agricultural commodities.

But Americans are tinkerers by disposition, and we couldn’t leave well-enough alone. We took over the river and systematically “improved” it by removing logjams, deepening channels, and straightening many of the river’s twists and turns – in the service of efficiency.

In the process, we very nearly destroyed it. We didn’t foresee the inevitable consequences of our efforts, which would have been disastrous for New Orleans – not to mention for the millions of people who depended on the river for their livelihood.  

The Army Corps of Engineers recognized the problem, fortunately, and cobbled together a solution that has held the river in check for half a century. But it’s only a temporary solution, and it could easily be reversed. My new book, Old River, is a fictional conjecture about an attempt to do just that.  I think (he said modestly) that, in telling a fictional story. it explains the problem and the possible consequences of inaction.

Old River, as I said, is fiction. But it could be fact with a little bit of tinkering. And Americans – as I believe I’ve said – are tinkerers.

Author Bio:

Clyde Linsley was born 1942 in Little Rock, Arkansas. He graduated from Little Rock Central High School in 1960 (at the height of the desegregation controversy). Linsley attended Little Rock University (one year), then transferred to the University of Missouri. There, he received a Bachelor of Journalism degree from the Missouri School of Journalism in 1964. That was followed by two years of graduate study in theology and social ethics at Colgate Rochester Divinity School where he didn’t get a degree but gained interesting knowledge and significant expenses and considered it worth every penny.

When asked what inspires his writing, Clyde quotes a favorite writer:

“William Faulkner wrote that the past isn’t irrelevant, and that it is “not even past.” As a Southerner who has lived most of his adult life in the east, I keep finding the past encroaching on the present, wherever I go. If there is a single theme to my books, it’s probably that what happens tomorrow is directly related to what happened yesterday. Europeans are probably more aware of this, because they have so much more history, but it’s just as true on this side of the pond.”

Most of his stories have echoes from the past.

After school, he worked on state and national political campaigns, two presidential inaugurations, and wrote radio news for a small New Hampshire broadcaster. He was also a reporter for a (now defunct) daily newspaper, a freelance writer and a mystery novelist. Clyde is married with three offspring (now adults) and lives with his wife in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC.

Guest Post - Radine Nehring

I am pleased to have Radine Nehring write a guest post for me.  When I read it I immediately thought, "this is exactly the way to speak to my students who think I am crazy when I talk about hearing voices."  Please enjoy the post and check out her book.

A discussion of writers as "weirdos" because they hear voices in their heads has been going 'round Twitter recently.

As a famous heroine in fiction would say--"Fiddle de-de."  Nothing weird about voices in our heads. Truth be told, which of us does not hear interior voices?

Some of the time they are us speaking silently to ourselves. "Whew--look at those tattoos. What will they look like when she's 80?"  "Sheesh, another one who ran a red light on the end of yellow."  "I used to be slender, and look at me now. Still--the extra weight gave me worthwhile cleavage." "What am I gonna do about _____________?" (Fill in the blank.)  And, "I miss her so much, but at least I can still hear her voice. I pray that memory never fades."

Admit it. You, too, hear those "yours alone" voices--or at least your non-verbal voice and the voices of those close to you. That is NOT weird.

Yes, I am a writer and yes, I hear voices in my head. Some are me speaking to myself about my work as an author, and, at other times, about my life in general. These voices make no outward sound. In addition, when I'm working on a short story or novel, editing my work, or just reading something I wrote, I definitely hear my characters as they speak their lines. Thing is, would they come out as believable if their voices weren't heard somewhere? Do they sound like real people? Is her voice distinguishable from his? Call it playing God if you want, but fiction writers are in the business of creating quasi-real characters, whether earthlings, or a being from a galaxy far, far away. My friend, those beings HAVE to communicate--first, to their creator, and then to everyone who reads their story.

Is that what makes up a writer's voice--which is something we hear talked about frequently? Partly, yes, but the term is usually applied in a more generic way. A writer's voice is a composite of all that person is as a writer, plus the words they put in the mouths of their characters. I wonder--How often do people reading a series of books by one of their favorite authors have a feeling of closeness to that author simply because they are steeped in a special series of voices the writer has created? 

Brief bio and links for Radine Nehring

For more than twenty years, Radine Trees Nehring's magazine features, essays, newspaper articles, and radio broadcasts have shared colorful stories about the people, places, events, and natural world near her Arkansas home.

In 2002, Radine's first mystery novel, A VALLEY TO DIE FOR, was published and, in 2003 became a Macavity Award Nominee.  Since that time she has continued to earn writing awards as she enthralls her original fans and attracts new ones with her signature blend of down-home Arkansas sightseeing and cozy amateur sleuthing by active retirees Henry King and Carrie McCrite King.

Website URL:  www.RadinesBooks.com

Blog URL:  http://radine.wordpress.com

Facebook URL:  www.facebook.com/RadineTreesNehring

Twitter:   @RTNehring

LinkedIn:  www.linkedin.com/in/radine-trees-nehring

Buy link for Portrait to Die For

http://www.amazon.com/Portrait-Die-Radine-Trees-Nehring/dp/1610092228/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1457470278&sr=8-1&keywords=Portrait+to+die+for+nehring

Guest Post by Vicki Hinze

INSPIRATION AND LEMONADE:

The story behind Beyond the Misty Shore

By

Vicki Hinze

Into every life, lemon juice does pour.  If you’re lucky, you learn to love lemonade. I’m lucky. And it’s a good thing because…

I was having a pitcher-full and a truth about life and lemonade settled in:  Loving lemonade is a choice.  I mean, we can’t avoid lemon juice any more than we can avoid challenges. We can fight it, but we are going to lose. Lemon juice will be poured; it’s inevitable. But that doesn’t mean it has to be bitter. We can make a different choice. Sprinkle in a little sugar or Splenda, so to speak, a little water, and we’ve got lemonade, which tastes quite good and, on a hot day, it’s amazingly refreshing.

So I got juiced. I was at this crossroad in my life, debating which way to go, and this lemonade truth kept stealing my attention. I refilled my glass with half-a-pitcher to go, and another thought came to mind.  We have a choice. When life throws us lemons, we can choose to make lemonade, or not. Another thought chased that one:

What if we couldn’t?

What if we didn’t have a choice. Or the choice wasn’t ours to make. We’d be stuck. Literally swimming in lemon juice without lemonade or a solution or resolution in sight!

I didn’t care for the feeling, and it shot holes in my theory that I had at least a little control in my life. Don’t you hate it when that happens?  When your illusions are shattered and as leaky as a sieve?

I more than didn’t like it, I hated it…but I was intrigued. So I thought about it.  Okay, so you have not a pitcher full of lemon juice but a barrel full. You’re already banged up.  (Can anyone get to adulthood in life without getting banged up?  Unlikely.  Rare, even.) So you’re chugging lemon juice from the barrel, eager to drain it and get the nastiness behind you.  You’ve deciphered your problems and have progressed to looking for solutions, and you’re feeling good about that because, while the bad stuff isn’t behind you yet, you’ve made progress.  You’re on your way to getting rid of it.

Only you’re not. You’ve wracked your brain and there just are no solutions. Not even one. Worse, not only have you been robbed of a solution, your choice in what to do has been stolen, too.  Now what?  What do you do?

That was the situation I found myself in that led me to write the Seascape novels, and Beyond the Misty Shore specifically.

Being stuck doesn’t exactly inspire you to be in the most receptive frame of mind. Sunshine is arrogant when you’re grieving, right? But isn’t it true that the worst possible time is always when important things happen? When life-changing things happen?

That’s been true in my life, and so I made it true in TJ MacGregor’s life, too.  He is the hero stuck at Seascape Inn in Beyond the Misty Shore.  Add more lemon juice in the form of Maggie Wright, a woman who loves to hate him, and Miss Hattie, the wise Seascape innkeeper (who seems to know everything about everything but won’t just tell anyone anything because “some things are best learned firsthand”), a colorful cast of local characters, Maine cliffs, and a little otherworldly intervention, and, well, T.J. has his work cut out for him, doesn’t he?

He did, and so did I. But don’t feel too bad for him.  We’ve all tasted the tart of the juice and, you know, sometimes when we’re broken, we have to really hurt to ever get beyond the pain. We have to figure out that we can heal before we do heal.

Eventually, we get it. And when we do, magic happens. We no longer just survive. We truly live.

Like you and me, he’ll figure it out… eventually. So will Maggie.  And what fun to watch without personally sucking lemons!

I’m getting a little misty here. I think I’ll pack a bag and go visit Seascape Inn again . . . just as soon as I finish this glass of lemonade.  Care to join me?

Vicki Hinze’s Seascape Trilogy is on sale through March 1^st! Pick up these paranormal romances today!

Beyond the Misty Shore – Free!

Whimsy. Serenity. And a Touch of Magic. The Seascape Inn.

Marketing executive Maggie Wright and artist T.J. MacGregor are linked by a mysterious car accident that killed Maggie’s cousin, Carolyn, T.J.’s fiancée. When Maggie arrives on the Maine coast determined to get answers from T.J., she discovers a tortured man who is bound to the Seascape Inn by supernatural forces.

Despite the tragedy that stands between them, Maggie and T.J. begin to fall in love, seeking answers and a healing spirit they may never achieve.

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Upon a Mystic Tide – Only $1.99!

With their painful divorce looming on the horizon, radio psychologist Bess Cameron and her soon-to-be-ex-husband, John Mystic, meet at Maine’s Seascape Inn to finalize the terms of a property settlement. Bess believes John is in love with someone else, and she’s determined to move on without him. Their marriage appears doomed until the Inn’s matchmaking ghost, Tony, and its irrepressible owner, Miss Hattie, take matters in hand.

 Sometimes you have to leap upon a mystic tide and have faith the sand will shift and an island will appear . . . The second book of bestselling author Vicki Hinze’s Seascape Trilogy brings readers back to the gentle magic of a place where love is always stronger than the fragile boundaries of life.

                

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Beside a Dreamswept Sea – Just $5.99!

Welcome to the third book of The Seascape Trilogy, three mystical romance-mystery novels by bestselling author Vicki Hinze.

New love isn’t on the agenda for widower Bryce Richards, who comes to the peaceful Seascape Inn with his three children, hoping the ethereal setting will help them recover from the death of their mother. Likewise, fellow inn guest Callie isn’t looking for romance either; she’s recovering from an emotionally abusive marriage.

It will take all the matchmaking skills of innkeeper Hattie Stillman and her ghostly assistant to bring Bryce and Cally together.

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Check out my post tomorrow where I review all three books in the trilogy.

About the Author

Raised in New Orleans, Vicki Hinze began writing before Kindergarten but her journey to writing books included a lot of corporate pitstops. Eventually, she settled in and her first novel landed an array of awards and on the bestseller list. With nearly 40 books published, she's been back many times with awards in multiple genres and appearances on multiple bestseller lists, including USA TODAY. Vicki is recognized by Who's Who in the World as an author and an educator and is best known for chilling suspense, trailblazing, and creating series that genre-blend. Her works include suspense, mystery and romance. Since 1994, this former VP of International Thriller Writers has written heavily about military and military families and in nearly all genres except horror. Hinze is a Floridian married to a former Hurricane Hunter/Special Operations Officer. She constantly pushes the boundaries on existing genres, opening the door for new novel blends.