Bonjour à tous de France! Yes, I’m currently walking and eating my way around beautiful France with my sister, Laura. We’ve talked about taking this trip for years, and since we were both celebrating BIG birthdays this September (65 and 70; I’ll let you guess whose birthday is whose), we thought this was finally the time to go. Our trip in France started with Paris, … Continue reading Leslie’s in France!
Leslie here, pleased to welcome the marvelous Kim Davis to the coop, with a look at the not-so-fictional town where her Aromatherapy Apothecary mysteries are set. And she’s giving away a copy of the newest in the series, Essentials of Homicide to one lucky commenter! So, take it away, Kim: [The winner of Essentials of Homicide is cherierj. Congrats!] Thank you, Leslie, and all the … Continue reading Guest Chick: Kim Davis
Consider these two sentences: I bet you had two completely different visceral reactions to the word “moist” in those sentences, am I right? moist cupcakes So what is it about that word—moist—that causes such varied reactions? Because supposedly some twenty percent of people shudder when they hear the word (though I’m guessing the number is actually higher). And what about other similarly hated words such … Continue reading What Is It About the Word “Moist”?
I was asked the other day what were my favorite movies that I’d seen in a theater this year. I had to think for a while, but came up with two: The Sheep Detectives and Project Hail Mary. Which then got me thinking about movies in general, and in turn got me thinking about the Bechdel Test. What’s the Bechdel Test? you may ask. Well, … Continue reading The Bechdel Test
I’m a Baby Boomer, I admit it. Born in 1956 with two older brothers to influence me, I fall squarely within the generation of Captain Kangaroo, Hula Hoops and Slinkies, Sputnik, the Sears Catalogue, JFK, Scholastic Book Fairs, and long-play record albums (aka LPs). my childhood lunchbox The digital age arrived when I was in my late twenties—I was 28 when Apple released its first … Continue reading An Analog Gal
I was talking with someone at Malice Domestic a couple weeks back about the use of MacGuffins in mystery novels and films and afterwards got curious about the origin of the term—and the literary device, itself. So down the research rabbit hole I went. First, I wondered, what exactly is a “MacGuffin”? Basically, it’s an object, person, or secret in a story that drives the … Continue reading A MacGuffin By Any Other Name…
Tomorrow marks the official release of my newest Orchid Isle mystery, Murder, Local Style. The book is set in a small neighborhood reminiscent of the street where Robin and I live in Hilo, Hawai‘i, and concerns the local orchid society that my protagonist, Valerie Corbin, joins in order to make some friends in her new-found home. Robin and I adore our neighborhood and are eternally … Continue reading My Mom, the Potter
Before I get to today’s actual post, I want to share a photo from last Saturday night, when I was awarded a real live (okay, not live, live) Maltese falcon for my role as Toastmaster at Left Coast Crime: San Francisco Schemin’, which took place last weekend. The falcon was cast in the same mold as the one used for the movie, and the Black … Continue reading “Gourmet” Doesn’t Quite Say It
My life as an author has been pretty darn busy of late. But I’m not complaining—it’s busy in a very good way. You see, I’m currently working on/dealing with three different books all at the same time. First, I’m thrilled that Waters of Destruction, book two in my Orchid Isle series, has been nominated for a Lefty Award for Best Mystery Novel. The winner will … Continue reading Three Books at Once
There’s a meme going around Facebook these days showing a sign in a bookstore that says “Shoplifters will be forced to read James Joyce’s Ulysses.” I get the joke; really, I do. (Even Louise Penny shared the meme on her FB feed.) But I think bookstores, of all places, should know better. Because, the thing is, I adore Ulysses and think it’s one of the … Continue reading The Best Book Hardly Anyone Reads
I’m thrilled to announce that today, my second Orchid Isle mystery, Waters of Destruction, is being released as a trade paperback, at the new low price of $16.99! So if you’ve been waiting to buy the book until the price came down, now’s the time! Here’s the synopsis: After a vacation of a lifetime in Hilo, Hawai‘i, retired caterer Valerie Corbin and her wife Kristen … Continue reading Paperback Release of WATERS OF DESTRUCTION!
As I was pondering possible subjects for today’s post, I thought back to the wide variety of things I’ve talked about here over the past few years, including: the Earth’s mass, the word “gals,” my newest books, mystery conventions, the Mozart Requiem, life in Hawai‘i, life in Santa Cruz, favorite books as a child, the ups and downs of writing, and even the actor Anthony … Continue reading What Do YOU Want?
