It’s that time of year when “yard sale” and “garage sale” signs are a common sight. One man’s junk is another’s treasure, and I’ve bought my share of both junk and treasure over the years. We all have knickknacks and odd items scattered in our homes, neither beautiful nor particularly useful, which guests could never guess the true value of. My brother bought this cut-glass … Continue reading Priceless Junk
I’m wrapping up my “Sofa-Surfing Book Tour” for One Fete in the Grave, the latest in the Liv & Di in Dixie mystery series. First thing in the morning, hubs and I hit the road heading home to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The trip has taken us southward through Chicago and St. Louis to Memphis, road-tripping and crashing with friends and family along the way. It’s … Continue reading Sofa Surfing USA
I get asked this question and related questions —Why did you become a mystery writer? How did you end up being a mystery writer? — quite a bit. The short answer is that it’s cool, frustrating, exhilarating and infuriating in turns, and sometimes all at the same time. But since I was always better at multiple choice questions than essay, I’ll try to address the … Continue reading What’s it really like to be a mystery writer?
Tomorrow I’ll get on a plane, like many other authors and fans, and make the annual pilgrimage to Bethesda, Maryland for Malice Domestic, which celebrates cozy mysteries. I have exactly 463 things on my to-do list to accomplish before then. I have important stuff I need to do, like write five times my usual daily word count on the manuscript which is due June 1 … Continue reading Does This Boa Make Me Look Cheap?
So, here’s a conversation I had recently with my main character, party planner Liv McKay. (WARNING: Making sausage can be hard to watch. Some of you may enjoy the books more if you’re blissfully unaware of the author’s process). Me: The writing is going painfully slow. Why are you not talking to me? Liv: Do you really have to ask? Me: Apparently. Liv: You are … Continue reading Liv Inside a Mystery Writer’s Head
Yesterday was Fat Tuesday, the all-you-can-eat buffet of calories, as well as any bad habits we’ve been clinging to. This is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. Today many of us fast, abstain from meat, get ashes crossed on our foreheads and kick off a season of reflection and a spring-cleaning of the mind and soul. A bit of trivia: Lent is 40 days, if … Continue reading Giving It Up For Lent
In my Liv and Di in Dixie series, Liv’s husband is always at work on never-ending renovations to their Victorian home. Larry Joe insists on being a do-it-yourselfer despite being not-so-handy. Since the first book came out, a number of friends and acquaintances have asked if Larry Joe is based on my husband, and is he really that hopeless with repairs. No and yes. Hubs … Continue reading Liv and D.I.Y. in Dixie
Chicks on the Case 