This is a story of rejection, perseverance, and generosity. A few years back, the mystery writers convention Malice Domestic announced that the subject for their next anthology of short stories would be food and cooking. I’d never penned a short story before, but given my love of all things culinary, I thought, “Great! I’ll try my hand at it and write a one about food!” … Continue reading Long Story, Short
Welcome to “Chicks Celebration,” our fun new Chicks on the Case feature! Join us as we Chicks share what we’re currently celebrating (book release, new idea, recent read)… 1. Which Chick is celebrating? Jen 2. The reason for the celebration? the launch of Ill-Fated Fortune (Feb 20th) 3. What did you do? As always, I had a fabulous blog tour with Great Escapes Book Tours, organized by Lori … Continue reading Chicks Celebration: Launch of ILL-FATED FORTUNE
Jen here. A very warm welcome to Tara Lush; I was lucky enough to spend time with her at the inaugural Ashland Mystery Fest last year. I so relate to her gardening (un)skill. Take it away, Tara! A Bean to Die For Tara Lush The inspiration for my book came from my backyard. No, I’m not some amazing, award-winning gardener. I’ve actually killed succulents, cacti, … Continue reading Guest Chick: Tara Lush
Hurrah! It’s release day for Ill-Fated Fortune! This is the first book in Jen’s Magical Fortune Cookie series. Praise includes: “This first in a new series featuring a likable Chinese American heroine will appeal to fans of Jenn McKinlay, Eve Calder, or Joanne Fluke.” ―Booklist “I enjoyed all aspects of the pleasantly appealing whodunit.” ―Dru’s Book Musings ABOUT THE BOOK The first in the heart-warming … Continue reading Happy Book Birthday to ILL-FATED FORTUNE
I’ve never been fond of Alice from Lewis Carroll’s ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND. She’s easily bored, asks endless questions, and she’s often cross and disrespectful. In short, a brat. Continue reading Chasing Rabbits: Me, Myself & Alice
Ah, Hawaii… land of gentle breezes, Aloha spirit, and irritable dinosaurs. The latter reserved for the big screen, of course. I just returned from a lovely Oahu getaway with Ian, during which we went to Kualoa Ranch, a full-time ranch and sometime film location known as the backlot of Hawaii. What surprised me–in addition to how many people love George of the Jungle–was how often … Continue reading Movie Magic
Today the Chicks are pleased to present the fabulous (and prolific) author Maddie Day, who also writes as Edith Maxwell. Her newest mystery, A Case For the Ladies, featuring sleuth Dot Henderson and pal Amelia Earhart as they investigate the murders of several young women in 1926 Boston, releases next month, and we can’t wait! And she’s giving away of a copy of the new … Continue reading Guest Chick: Maddie Day (aka Edith Maxwell)
It seems my home in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is receiving what lots of people across the nation were hoping to hear from Punxutawney Phil, the world’s most well-known groundhog — that there’s going to be an early spring. As Joni Mitchell famously said, “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.” Hey, Phil, can we take it back? According to the news, Punxutawney … Continue reading Don’t Know What You’ve Got
Growing up, we didn’t usually eat dessert or get it when we went out—except at Chinese restaurants, which gave us treats for free. Sometimes we’d receive orange slices, but other times, we got fortune cookies! Not only did I enjoy crunching into them, but I also appreciated the fortunes inside. I started amassing the messages. It helped that when we got into the restaurant business, … Continue reading Fortune Cookie Message Collector
We’re thrilled to welcome Julie Mulhern back to the coop! Today the multi-talented, multi-series-writing author gives us the long and short of writing shorter form fiction–complete with a prequel preview. Take it away, Julie! Part of the Process It’s a truth universally acknowledged, at least at my house, that it’s harder for yours truly to write a short story than a novel. Novels allow space. … Continue reading Guest Chick: Julie Mulhern
Hi, Ellen here. See all the vintage cookbooks lining the top two shelves of one of our many bookshelves? Here’s what used to occupy them… You’ll notice the bags and boxes are filled with nothing but scripts. Scripts from forty-plus years ago. They were once so important to me that they made the journey across the country when I moved from New York to Los … Continue reading Purging the Past.
Welcome to “Behind the Book,” our fun new Chicks on the Case feature! Join us as we Chicks share the real stories behind our stories: Inspiration, motivation, frustration, jubilation– research, rewrites, tidbits– you’ll find them all right here… I visited a fortune cookie factory for book research. With a new series called Magical Fortune Cookie novels, I had to. Yeah, it’s a tough job, but someone’s … Continue reading Behind the Book: Ill-Fated Fortune
Chicks on the Case 