Sorry I’m late writing this intro, but good news – Mr. Darcy is my BBC husband! Yep, those quizzes that pop up on Facebook all the time are a great way to procrastinate. But we Chicks have found oh, so many other ways to put off our writing. How many? Let us count the ways… which, come to think of it, would be a great way to procrastinate.
Continue reading “Procrastinate Much? Let Us Count the Ways”
In 1984, after a friend’s wedding in Texas, I meandered my way through Cajun Country on the way to New Orleans and came upon a lovely small town on Bayou Teche. With its grassy square and gracious old buildings sporting wrought-iron balconies, the place had the flavor of a petite New Orleans. I carried the memory home with me, and years later fictionalized it as … Continue reading Was it Memory or Fantasy?
You’ve seen the movie Groundhog Day, right? The 1993 classic, with Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell? It’s the story of TV meteorologist Phil Connors, who relives February 2 over and over again—until he gets it right. In honor of next Tuesday’s Groundhog Day, we’re talking about writing do-overs. What would we do differently? And what would we keep trying until we get it right? Continue reading “Groundhog Day”
Over the weekend, my husband and I were taking a hike, and he told me about a podcast he’d been listening to. In it, a Broadway actor named David Costabile—who also played Gale Boetticher on Breaking Bad—told a story about auditioning at the Schubert Theatre, which was the first Broadway theatre he’d ever been in. He walked out on stage and said, “Listen, before I get started, … Continue reading T Minus Two Months to Terror in Taffeta
Attention, Hollywood agents: you may not have gotten the memo, but we’ve pre-cast some of your best clients to star in the as-yet-unsigned movie versions of our books. They’ve already begun doing staged readings in our heads, and sometimes they even help inspire us. Get those contracts ready, and see you at the wrap party.
Gentle readers, this post may be a bit short, and bittersweet. But I promise there will be something warm and fuzzy at the end. A little more than a week ago, my husband and I were cozily binge-watching Longmire on the couch with our Golden Retriever, basking in the glow of a recent holiday season spent with friends and family. My latest manuscript was safely … Continue reading Going to the Mattresses
Hard to believe sometimes, but there are other types of writing out there besides mystery novels. This week the Chicks share what we moonlight as when we’re not penning the crime-solving adventures of our beloved main characters.
Continue reading “Write On: What We Write When We’re Not Writing Mysteries”
Some authors write with a playlist blaring in the background. Others prefer a monastic cone of silence. Is it earbuds or earplugs for the Chicks? And if it’s the former, what’s the soundtrack to their writing success? Continue reading “Silence, or Singing? What We Listen To When We Write”
On a recent trip to Louisiana, I toured several plantations and saw some fascinating nineteenth century artifacts. There was a flycatcher that lured flies with a mixture of sugar and arsenic. (Why-oh-why didn’t I know about this before I used arsenic as a murder weapon in my debut mystery, Plantation Shudders?) A parlor in Houmas House featured extraordinary tapestries that took Ursuline nun novitiates years … Continue reading Magnolia Marie Doucet, Vampire Slayer?
It’s a brand new year, time for black-eyed peas, the Rose Bowl Parade, and new year’s resolutions! Today, the Chicks are ringing out the old and ringing in the new as we talk about our intentions for 2016.
Continue reading “Resolved: The Chicks’ New Year’s Resolutions”
As the year winds down, awards season heats up. And since I’ve yet to be approached about becoming a member of the Academy—nor have I ever voted in the People’s Choice Awards, despite my being clearly qualified as a Person—I’ve created my own awards. Herewith, the Cooper’s Choice Awards. The envelope, please….
It’s the most wonderful time of the year—if you’re lucky enough to avoid travel disasters, family feuds and the worst gift at your office’s White Elephant exchange. Join the Chicks as we relive our worst holiday memories. Continue reading “Holiday Horror: Our Biggest Holiday Disasters”
Chicks on the Case 