When I was a kid, poppies were the evil flowers that threatened the lives of Dorothy and her friends in the Wizard of Oz movie. And these days the word “poppy” often brings to mind the killer seeds of the opium crisis. But the starkly bright poppy blossom, often blood red, represents something much, much more: a remembrance of lives lost in battle against foes both seen and unseen. Continue reading Poppies
The other day I read a piece in the LA Times in which the writer advocated dressing up to Work From Home. Actually, he used the acronym WFH, which stumped me for a moment a two. (I kept reading it as WTH, which is something else entirely, also not to be confused with WTF). Anyway, he was outfit-shaming people for not looking “professional” enough for … Continue reading We’re Gonna Zoom, Zoom, Zoom-a, ZOOM!
Lisa here, with my annual St. Patrick’s Day post–because ’tis all life as usual, right? I had planned to fly straight from Left Coast Crime in San Diego to celebrate with my sister in Florida, where she is renting a house near the beach for a month. Things didn’t quite turn out, though, so here I am, lifting a cold mug of badly-brewed coffee to you from a very sober New England. We could all use a little levity right now, so here’s to you and here’s to me– let’s get the party started! Continue reading Cheers, It’s Virtual Almost-St.-Paddy’s-Day!
Yep, it’s cold, brutal, boring February. But there is one bright spot, in addition to watching Groundhog Day on endless loop: It’s International Typewriter Appreciation Month! Maybe you already know that, because I first wrote this post many Typewriter Months ago. But because I owe a lot to typewriters–in fact, I might not even be here on this earth without one–I thought I’d share it again.
Whether you’ve already seen Greta Gerwig’s new Little Women movie, or you’re still planning to, I promise: No real spoilers here. Of course, the book has been out for about a century and a half, there have been multiple previous film versions, and if you weren’t exposed to the general storyline through those, you probably saw the Friends episode where Rachel spills the beans about one sister’s fate to a devastated Joey. Continue reading Chasing Amy March
Yep, it’s Cyber Monday. Lisa here, and I have no special deals or discounts or super-jolly ads to offer you. Yes, we authors always love it when readers buy our books, ho ho ho. But this short post is dedicated to those of us who love the holidays, but hate the pressure. Continue reading It Takes a Village
When it comes to obsessing over great orange gourds, Linus Van Pelt has nothing on me. Forget about the candy and costumes and cats. In my view, Halloween is all about the jack o’ lanterns. It’s also about my dad, but I’ll get to that later. Continue reading Pumpkins I Have Known
Lisa has been running behind on everything all summer–including last week’s celebration of International Angela Lansbury Appreciation Day. Since further festivities are in order, and Angie herself is not adverse to re-runs, here’s an encore post Lisa wrote about the beloved detective who never missed a deadline: J.B. Fletcher of Murder She Wrote. Continue reading The Romance of Jessica Fletcher
Lisa here, furiously throwing clothes (we won’t call them actual outfits) into a suitcase. Ellen and I are switching coasts this week–I’m headed West and she’s Eastern-bound. We’ll just miss each other! I hope y’all enjoy this updated encore post as you sip that late-summer lemonade… Continue reading Detectives on the Catwalk: Who Wore it Best?
It’s July, and many of us authors are packed off, some kicking and screaming, with our manuscripts to virtual Camp NaNoWriMo for a marathon month of “focus.” Lisa has fallen behind, so she is cheating by posting her required letter home from 3 years ago (with a few updates). Please cheer her on–and for the love of Fluffernutters, don’t tell her counselor! Continue reading This Summer, at Writing Camp: A Letter Home from NaNoWriMo
Greetings, Mystery Fans, from the Acela Express! Lisa here, chugging home from the annual Malice Domestic conference in Bethesda, MD. I haven’t even begun to process all the amazing events of the weekend–but here are just a few from my Chicks highlight reel. Continue reading The Chick on the Train (from Malice 2019)
Five little Chickies went to Left Coast Crime. One little Chickie went on an awesome family camping trip. And the three little Chickies who stayed home went wah-wah-wah! all weekend–and did their best to keep up with all the news from afar. Continue reading What Did (NOT) Happen at Left Coast Crime
