I almost cried when I heard my local library was reopening. Not curbside service but actual in-person browsing. Why? Because I’m a bonafide book nerd. I didn’t realize there was a term for this before, but it explains a lot of things. Reasons I know I’m a book nerd? Needing to finish another page, even in the dimmest of light Mispronouncing words because I originally … Continue reading Book Nerd
Jennifer here. Super excited to introduce you to Mia P. Manansala, whose debut book, Arsenic and Adobo (May 4, 2021), is getting a lot of well-deserved buzz. Filled with great food, nosy aunties, and a cute Dachshund, what’s not to love? The role of food in a murder mystery By Mia P. Manansala Food and murder. What a combination, right? Who thought to create an … Continue reading Guest Chick: Mia P. Manansala & Giveaway
Got ya with the title, didn’t I? It’s a good one. A really good one. The trouble is, that’s all I’ve got. At least, so far… Recently, for the first time in six years, I suddenly found myself between projects. Free time meant I had no excuse not to go through the twenty-plus years of accumulation that make our house look like it belongs in … Continue reading Eight Ways to Die
Cozy readers—and especially Chicks on the Case readers—are some of the most creative folks on the planet so we’re asking you to play Chick Pic with us! Give us a couple of sentences … who is this character? What’s their back story? Victim, murderer, nosy neighbor, innocent suspect? The more ridiculous the better! Each comment can build on the next until we have a fully-fleshed … Continue reading Time for a Chick Pic
We are so excited to welcome SG Wong, author of the Lola Starke mysteries and current president of Sisters in Crime! The Lola Starke series is set in 1930s-era Crescent City, a fictionalized “Chinese Los Angeles” in an alternate history in which China established a city-state colony at the start of the Gold Rush. This alternate history also contains ghosts and magic, historically-accurate fashion, and plenty of … Continue reading Guest Chick: SG Wong
Order item, which you need by Friday. Check online tracking service on Wednesday and see that it has already arrived in your city. Receive nothing on Wednesday. Receive nothing on Thursday. Email customer service at store: explain that the item was in your city on Wednesday and was supposed to be delivered on Thursday but now it’s Friday and you haven’t heard anything. Receive no return … Continue reading How to Get a Delivery Appointment
In August 2006 my daughter Jessica and I took a road trip from Colorado to Oregon where I was going to deposit her at Pacific University, a small private school in the cute little town of Forest Grove. My credit card and I would be there for a few days, making sure she had what she needed, then I’d turn around and drive home. I … Continue reading My Periwinkle Fleece
By Alicia Beckman aka Leslie Budewitz Our first Christmas together, Mr. Right and I drove over the mountains to spend the holiday with my brother, his family, and my mother. Mr. Right carefully packed two identical long narrow boxes in the car, each with a red bow on top. Into the big apple basket crammed with gifts, he tucked two small identical cardboard boxes, also … Continue reading If a Tree Falls . . .
Sue Grafton loved to explain that she kept her private investigator heroine, Kinsey Millhone, locked in the 1980s so that Kinsey wouldn’t have the luxury of such technology as cell phones and laptops to assist in her investigations. And I have to say, I sometimes wish I’d done the same with my sleuth. In fact, at the time I was writing the first in my … Continue reading The Trouble With Tech
Journeys in publishing (and life) can be rocky. Sometimes we need an extra sprinkle of fairy dust or luck to make it.
Today, we talk about how luck has—or hasn’t—played a role in the publishing and non-publishing aspects of our lives.
Hi! It’s Jennifer. I’m happy to host Amy Pershing today. She’s written a great post on all the weird (read: amazing) jobs she’s had. Welcome to the Chicks, and congrats on your debut, Amy! Always raise your hand for the weird job I’m sometimes asked how I got into this mystery writing gig. I get it. It’s a weird job. But I’ve always raised my … Continue reading Guest Chick: Amy Pershing
As I pen this post from my New Hampshire kitchen, it is a quiet Easter morning—sunny peacefulness broken only by muffled sounds of cursing outside the window. Yes, over my pitiful objections, my husband is taking down our outdoor Christmas lights from the roof. And yes, I know what you’re about to say, dear readers. APRIL? The Shock. The Horror. The Disgust. But wait, hear me out… Continue reading In Defense of Spring Hygge
Chicks on the Case 