Guest Post

Guest Chick: Marie Sutro

Happy Wednesday! Patricia here. I’m thrilled to welcome award-winning, best-selling author Marie Sutro back to Chicks on the Case. Grab your morning beverage of choice and join us. Welcome back, Marie! You’ve got the mic!

Felines and the Fates: The Not-So-Glamorous Life of an Author

Before I became an author, I held the common assumption that authors live seriously cool lives. In fact, I felt pretty darn confident they lived glamorous lives.

It may be true for some authors. As for me, I’ve come to accept the old adage—you can’t fight City Hall. (Okay it sounds a bit off. But seriously, the futility of me reaching for the glamorous life is spot on.)

Take my home life for example. I’m forever in humble service to my benevolent feline dictators. Daily battles include trying to sandwich writing time between hairball cleanups and umpteenth explanations of why they receive one lunch and not three.

Fortunately, their domain is limited to the confines of our home. Sadly, there is no respite beyond our walls. When the business side of my author life forces me out, the three fickle Fates take over.

I know better than to set my sights on tier one stuff like glamour. For public appearances at conferences, book festivals, signings, etc., my target is always capable and professional. Sometimes they won’t even let me have that.

As far as I can tell, their whims depend entirely on what kind of day they’re having. If it started with rainbows and ambrosia, I should be okay. However, if one of the demigods used the last of Aphrodite’s signature scented shampoo, and the Fates fell for the empty container routine, I’d better just pack it in. Their wrath always comes in one of three forms.

The first is the unwitting participant. A few years ago, I was standing at the perimeter of a conference bar, when a full pint of beer was accidentally poured down my shirtfront. If the Uber driver who took me back to my hotel wondered why I stunk like a defunct brewery, he was kind enough not to ask.

Nature is another one of the Fates’ favorite go-tos. Such was the case at a prominent book festival earlier this year. When the skies cleared after dropping enough for Noah to start building again, I figured it was safe to leave my raincoat in the car. The Fates weren’t having it. I arrived at my booth looking like a waterlogged rat.

Their final (and perhaps most insidious) manner of meting out humility is self-infliction. In spring, I was on my way back to a convention hotel to moderate a panel. I’d made it about halfway through a public courtyard, when I suddenly went flying headfirst into home plate. No serious injuries, but I looked like I’d been wrestling Wilbur while Charlotte kept score on her web. I’m still surprised the hotel staff let me in.

Do all the lessons in humility make my writing life any less rewarding? No. They make it more real. But real life is not always easy. It’s good to have something to laugh about…even if it’s me. Besides, glamour is overrated, right?

Readers, where do you stand on “glamour”? Is it overrated or is it a goal you still hope to achieve?

Marie Sutro
Dark Reckonings coming soon.

Marie Sutro is an award-winning, crime fiction author. In addition to her Kate Barnes series of novels, she periodically pens short fiction for magazines and anthologies. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, her writing is inspired by three generations of family service in law enforcement.

When she’s not writing or reading, Marie interviews authors on her podcast, Twisted Passages. The show takes a deep dive into psychological thrillers with the authors who write them. She also serves as Secretary on the national board of Bouchercon and has served as Vice President for her local chapter of Sisters in Crime.

Marie resides in Northern California with her husband and three well-loved felines. The next book in her Kate Barnes series, Dark Reckonings, will be released in 2026. For more about Marie, visit mariesutro.com.

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46 thoughts on “Guest Chick: Marie Sutro”

  2. MARIE: You always look professional & prepared when I saw you at conference panels. But now I know you’ve had to battle weather deluges & falls to make it! xxx

    As for glamour, that is definitely not my style, but I admire people who pull it off with ease.

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    2. Thank you, Grace! It’s not my style either. Like you, I admire those who are blessed with it. In the meantime, I’ll settle for rolling with the punches and laugh at myself when I can. 😉

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    1. It seems like a lot of work, but perhaps it comes naturally to others. I was always in jeans and a tee shirt growing up. Things haven’t changed much. 😉

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  7. Glamour is not me, either. A pair of bluejeans and a black T-shirt are more my style. And maybe a sharp blazer and pair of red sneakers to add a bit of color. But I do enjoy watching others who can pull off the glamour look.

    Thanks so much for visiting the Chicks today, Marie, and hurray about your upcoming new book!

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    2. Thanks, Leslie! I’m with you. Jeans and tee shirts all week and twice on Sundays! Everyone need a pair of red sneakers…now I’m on the hunt. 😉

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  9. Hurrah, Marie! Thanks for being on the Chicks & congrats on your upcoming release!

    I like the idea of glamour but not sure I can pull it off. I’m settling for a relaxed vibe when it comes to the author life. Not that I wouldn’t mind if some Hollywood glitz came my way!

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    1. Hi Jennifer! Thanks so much for having me here!!

      I’m with you on the relaxed vibe. The author life is hectic enough.

      Would love to see your stories on the big screen! You’d be great on the red carpet. I’d be lucky not to trip and accidentally take others down with me. 😉

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  10. Glamour is definitely not for me. Never mind intervention of the Fates: I’m not able to get out of my own way.

    And since I routinely have to stuff writing into my lunch hour of the day job and around letting the dog in and out (and his scheduled snacks, which he does not fail to remind me of), I’m not sure I ever thought I’d achieve the “glamourous” writing life anyway. 🙂

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  11. I love the concept of glamour because it feels like something from the past now. I can’t think of anyone I’d call glamorous these days. For me, the last truly glamorous women were the Swans in the mid-sixties.

    I did work with one actor I’d call glamorous: George Hamilton. He was soooo cool!! I worked on a sitcom he was on (Jenny) and we had Vegas showgirls on an episode and no joke, he left at the end of the day with one on each arm.

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    1. Agreed. I still drool over those amazing black and white stills of stars from the 30s and 40s. Glam and then some!

      That story is totally on brand for George Hamilton!

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  13. I so relate to this! I had a job interview in downtown San Francisco once. I was wearing my favorite blouse, running 15 minutes early, and feeling generally really good about myself, when I took a swig of my Peet’s coffee and the lid popped off. I drenched my favorite blouse and showed up to the interview with a huge stain and smelling very caffeinated. Just the fates trying to remind me that glamour is not my style.

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  17. I love glamour, but it ain’t going to happen anymore. I know, I used ain’t. It seemed to fit. I am retired and I wear my jeans and Columbia Bahama Shirts. I have many colors but that is all I need. We never go out where I need to dress up and I am comfortable.

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