Malice Domestic 29 is officially a wrap and it was a historic weekend for the Chicks on the Case, including celebrating Cynthia’s Agatha for Best First Novel! Continue reading A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Malice Domestic
Today is a special day here at Chicks, because for the first time ever, all six of us will be in the same place at the same time. We’re a far-flung group representing California (both NorCal and SoCal), New Jersey, Colorado, New Hampshire and Michigan. But for two glorious days, the planets will align and we’ll come together in a burst of Chicky goodness. With any … Continue reading Greetings from Malice!
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?
On Thursday, I take off for the Malice Domestic mystery convention. Four years ago, I didn’t know what the h-e-double hockey sticks Malice was. This year, I’m a nominee and a mentor – along with author Susan Van Kirk – to some poor, unsuspecting author. (Hi, Mary Feliz!) As my mother would say, “Go figure.” Now that I’ve discovered mystery conventions, I’ve been traveling so … Continue reading Malice Bound! Or Unbound???
If there’s one question you need to have an answer to when you’re in kindergarten, it’s “What do you want to be when you grow up?” In fact, it’s practically impossible to make it out of grade school without being questioned about your future plans. So did we know early on that we wanted to be mystery writers, or did that come a little later? This week, the Chicks are talking about our early ambitions.
So…. I may or may not come from circus folk. Find out about that time I was researching my ancestors and learned the incredibly true but somewhat exaggerated story of Oscar Kraus, The Kansas Giant, and his ongoing quest for true love. Continue reading “Circus Freak” Seeks Same: A Tall Tale
We Chicks love to read, of course—but sometimes we’re so busy writing that those “to-be-read” piles on our nightstands start growing out of control. Here are a few of the books and series by other mystery authors that we can’t wait to dig into! Continue reading TBR Updates: What’s Next On Our Reading Lists
In the mystery course I recently taught, we found the ending of Agatha Christie’s A Murder is Announced to be both disconcerting and glorious. There are many wonderful aspects to her writing, but we were most engaged by how she gracefully “undoes” the characters we felt we knew because she had built them so convincingly. On the flip side, we were slightly less excited about … Continue reading Endings and Undoings
Of all us Chicks, I seem to be the one who’s always under the wire, holding on for dear life by one claw. Sure, I do plenty of chirping, but it takes a while sometimes for me to work up to the flying part. And of course that includes the business of writing a manuscript, typing “The End,” and sending it winging its way to … Continue reading Hoping for Feathers
Dying on the Vine has been out for three days, and we’re still celebrating! We’re toasting Marla’s wine-country mystery by sharing what wine would pair perfectly with each of our series. And since our friend Nadine Nettmann is not only a mystery writer but a Certified Sommelier, we couldn’t resist asking her to chime in on the topic. Bottoms up!
It’s almost April Fool’s Day! Find out which Chick is most likely to pull a prank or get pranked.
Continue reading April Fool or Fool-er?
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
