This great story idea came to me in the shower almost a year ago. I’ve heard stuff like that happens a lot at least to novelists, songwriters and screenwriters. It’s supposedly because our minds are more relaxed in the shower or the bathtub. Continue reading It Sounded Better in My Head
I have a confession to make: I’ve never understood fairy tales.
When I was little, my parents read to me each night before bed. Often they read fairy tales, and I liked some of them. (I was especially fond of “The Shoemaker and the Elves.” Who wouldn’t want clever elves doing their work for them at night? Continue reading Guest Chick: Lisa Harkrader
I used to enjoy The X Files. You probably remember it. It’s the science fiction series that ran from 1993 through, I think, 2004. It starred David Duchovny as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder, Gillian Anderson as FBI Special Agent Dana Scully and Mitch Pileggi as their boss, FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner. Mulder and Scully were partners assigned to investigate cases that defied traditional … Continue reading Didn’t See that Coming…
I recently retired as a K-9 handler. The company I co-owned and worked for, Sherlock Hounds Detection Canines, had friendly dogs (usually Labs) that helped detect and deter drugs, alcohol and gunpowder in schools. Sometimes, teachers would ask me to do a guest presentation for the students. During these presentations, one of the questions I was often asked was “Do you have dogs that flunk out and what happens to them?” Continue reading Guest Chick: Kathleen Donnelly
Dialogue can make or break a story. Would you agree?
There are so many rules to writing good dialogue. Characters have to sound different enough from each other that readers would know who’s speaking without reading the dialogue tags. Continue reading Talk to Me
When I first sat down to pen my debut mystery novella series, I had a head full of tangled plot threads and characters who wouldn’t stop talking to me. Like many writers, I was driven by an almost compulsive need to get these stories out of my mind and onto the page. But as I reflect on my journey as a mystery author over the years, I’ve come to recognize how much my purpose—my “why”—has evolved. Continue reading Guest Chick: Barbara Howard
Chicks on the Case 