Kathleen (a.k.a. Kathy) here, coming at you from the fast and furious first days back at school. (For my kids, not me. Although I do love a good pencil case.) In last month’s post, I mentioned that the secret sauce in my recipe for sanity includes time parked in front of the television. After a few years sans TV, I’ve been making up for lost … Continue reading The Beauty in Ordinary Things
Ellen here, and I’m so happy to welcome J.C. Kenney to the Chicks for the first of what we hope will be many times. J.C. writes The Allie Cobb Mysteries. Do you love cats? Read this flat-out charming post, my friends… Happy Birthday, Maria! Hi, folks! I’m J.C. Kenney, author of The Allie Cobb Mysteries, and I’m so excited to be hanging out with you … Continue reading Guest Chick: J.C. Kenney
Every picture tells a story, even the outtakes — or sometimes, especially the outtakes. I was recently sorting through some of my “author” photos. You know, mug shots, pictures of me at events, signings, and other promotional type stuff. It occurred to me that “the Cloud” enables me to hang on to crummy photos almost indefinitely. I’m not terribly vain, so I decided to share … Continue reading Behind the scenes: Author “glamour” shots
Lisa here, thrilled to welcome Judy Penz Sheluk back to Chicks on the Case today to tell us the intriguing story behind A FOOL’S JOURNEY, the latest in her wonderful Marketville Mysteries series. Take it away, Judy! Continue reading Guest Chick: Judy Penz Sheluk
Leslie Karst here. I’m pleased to welcome today Nancy Lynn Jarvis, one of my fellow members of Santa Cruz Women of Mystery, whose new book, The Glass House, has just been released. And I’m also tickled that, back in my days as a research and appellate attorney, while spending long days researching cases at the county law library, I too became friends with the fabulous … Continue reading Guest Chick Nancy Lynn Jarvis: Sometimes Characters Surprise Their Creators
Join the Chicks in wishing a Happy Book Birthday to Ellen! FATAL CAJUN FESTIVAL, Book 5 in her Cajun Country Mysteries, is now available wherever books are sold! USA Today bestselling and award-winning author Ellen Byron cranks it up to eleven in the fifth fast and funny Cajun Country mystery. Louisiana B&B owner Maggie Crozat kicks up her heels at a country music festival–but she’ll have … Continue reading Release Day: Fatal Cajun Festival
FATAL CAJUN FESTIVAL, My fifth Cajun Country Mystery, launches tomorrow and I cannot believe I’m saying that. But I am. And it’s awesome. There are people who say covers don’t sell books. I heartily disagree. I know I’ve stumbled upon an author only because I was seduced by a great cover. My series is the lucky beneficiary of some gorgeous art painted by Stephen Gardner … Continue reading Cover Me
Becky here, jumping up and down, waving wildly to get your attention. Have I got it? Good. Now I can introduce you to Samantha Lien. She’s a dynamo in the best sense of the word. When I was looking to hire a publicist, I put out the word and everyone pointed me toward Sami. She definitely knows her industry, so I wanted to make sure … Continue reading Guest Chick: PR Maven Samantha Lien
Today the Chicks are thrilled to welcome Elka Ray, who lives in and writes about both Vietnam and Vancouver Island. Her new Toby Wong novel is DIVORCE IS MURDER. So glad you could visit us here, Elka! When my daughter was five or six, like many little girls, she said she wanted to be an actress when she grew up. She’s a great mimic with … Continue reading Guest Chick Elka Ray: On Character Diversity
Let’s take a moment to acknowledge that writing can be very challenging. There are days when it seems extremely difficult to create something from nothing…or even downright impossible to wrangle words effectively. In such cases, the words of others who have engaged in the business of writing may be helpful, whether as commiseration or inspiration. I think the hardest thing about writing is writing. ~ Nora Ephron … Continue reading In Good Company
It’s been a busy couple of weeks in BeckyLand. On August 16, my seven siblings and I gathered for a reunion with our spouses in Manitou Springs, Colorado. We took over the entire Avenue Hotel Bed & Breakfast, a fantastic place to stay. We’d planned the reunion long before my dad died, so used the opportunity of having us all together to conduct his inurnment … Continue reading One Chapter Ends While One Begins
Bob Dylan famously proclaimed to the world that “he not busy being born is busy dying,” thereby dividing life into two segments: the period when we consistently make the most of our life and move forward, after which we merely exist and begin marching towards our grave. But now that I’m in my sixties, and thus entering the last third of my existence, I’ve been … Continue reading Learning, Working, Resting
