Happy Thanksgiving week, y’all! For several years now, we’ve had a Thanksgiving Day tradition that’s involved a few of our closest friends, comfy pants, bad movies, and, of course, a turkey dinner. It’s fun and low pressure, and while it’s not heavy on tradition, we always take a moment to reflect on what we’re thankful for. It’s a little rude to hog the mic when … Continue reading ‘Tis the Season — for Gratitude
I love a good ghost story. I’ve always wanted some great gather-round-the-campfire story of my own. One time my stepsister told me a story that was my go-to because it really seriously happened to someone I knew. Years later, after dragging it out at every slumber party ever, I mentioned it to her. She crinkled her nose and laughed and said, “I told you that? That’s hilarious.” Continue reading It’s October — Bring on the Ghosties!
Have you ever impulsively raised your hand and volunteered to do something, then later wondered what you were thinking? Yeah? Well, me too! Last January, at our Sisters in Crime chapter’s board meeting, our president asked if anyone would like to be in charge of our bi-annual mystery writing workshop. I thought about it for all of ten seconds, maybe twelve, then raised my hand … Continue reading That time I planned a workshop…
I’ve always had a thing for old cemeteries. (That doesn’t make me weird does it? No? Okay, good. Whew.) And while I’ve visited a lot of fascinating cemeteries, I now officially have a new favorite, and it’s just a few miles from my house. This is the kind of cemetery they give tours of twice a month — yes, it’s that good — and last weekend … Continue reading A Tomb With a View
Lately I’ve become a writing class junkie. In the last six months, I’ve been to three day-long writing intensives as well as a weekend-long writing conference in Austin with nonstop craft classes. What a fun excuse to hang out with other writers and hear really smart people saying really smart things! I end up taking copious notes during the classes. Sometimes I capture brilliant nuggets … Continue reading Writing Conference Wisdom
Happy summer! Okay, so summer doesn’t officially start until [checks Google, does spit take] … June 21st!? I mean, I knew it didn’t literally start today, on Memorial Day, but let’s face it, it should. Even though we have almost a month left, I refuse to believe that it is not summer right now.
Right at this very moment, the random files sitting on my computer are a near-perfect representation of the things that have been going on in my life for the last month: active projects, miscellaneous pictures, screenshots of things that amused me, a mai tai recipe…. It’s like my own personal time capsule of April, 2018. So if you were to peek at my desktop, what … Continue reading A writer’s laptop junk drawer
Occasionally, for fun, I like to browse the real estate listings in cities I’ve thought about moving to. Move back to Austin? See if I can take the rain in Portland? Try out a small town like Auburn in Northern California? That’s how I stumbled across my future mansion. I don’t throw around the words “my future mansion” lightly. I’m not really “mansion people.” Give … Continue reading My haunted mansion/ B&B / writers’ retreat / wedding venue
When you’re planning a wedding, nothing is supposed to go wrong. But when you’re writing a mystery series about a professional wedding planner, you want everything to go wrong. In addition to scouring Pinterest for wedding inspiration, I’ve spent my fair share of time Googling “wedding horror stories” just for fun—errrr, I mean, research. And I’ve noticed that there are some common threads: Minor details. … Continue reading Wedding Horror Stories
It’s no surprise that when I sat down to write about a murder that takes place at a wedding, the first image that came to mind was of a bridesmaid dress. Because let’s face it, they can be awful.
I’m still not over my first. I was a flat-chested pre-teen with braces and a bad haircut, and I had to wear a powder-blue polyester dress that only exacerbated the situation. Thank God the pictures are tucked away in a box somewhere, because, seriously, no one needs to see that. But not everyone is so lucky. Thanks to the internet, a lot of bad bridesmaids’ dresses are just a Pinterest-search away. Continue reading Bridesmaid dresses: A motive for murder?
Happy New Year! I mean, sort of. I know we’re already eight days into this shiny, new year, but I’m still feeling the little spark of optimism I get each year around this time. This year will be DIFFERENT! This year will be BETTER! This year I will be MAGNIFICENT!
For at least three weeks or so.
I have a deep and abiding love for all things Halloween-related. So when the always-awesome Kim Davis asked me to be part of Kathi Daley’s “Halloween Spooktacular” on Facebook, of course I said yes. A Facebook party with a whole bunch of mystery writers and a whole lot more Halloween hijinks? No way was I going to miss that. Since I didn’t know what the other … Continue reading A Killer Halloween Wedding
Chicks on the Case 