It’s three days before the election, and those of us hoping for a change in the presidency are constantly being admonished not to be complacent. Above all, we’re told, we absolutely must vote and not take anything for granted. Of course, I agree and have already double-checked that my absentee ballot was received and recorded.…
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Just when I was about to slide into one of my “My life has been cancelled and I miss my grandkids” breakdowns, some lovely things happened this week. First off, I typed “THE END” on the first draft of my fifth novel, tentatively called Missed Clue. It needs tons of work. But, as I learned…
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In some ways, this was a good week. It was exciting to open a package containing copies of Malice Domestic’s 2020 anthology, Murder Most Theatrical, in which my short story, “Missed Cue,” appears. I was also able to push ahead on my work-in-progress, writing several thousand words as I near the novel’s climax. But it…
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I admit it. With the election looming less than a month away and this global pandemic showing no signs of magically disappearing anytime soon, I’m on edge. Every time I see folks in the grocery store ignoring the “mask required” signs prominently displayed, I want to scream. But what good would that do? These folks…
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In my last blog, I talked about my strong feelings about supporting and encouraging marginalized writers to share their stories, as well as my commitment as a white author to write books in which all young people can see themselves represented and affirmed. A great resource is the nonprofit advocacy group, We Need Diverse Books…
Read MoreI’m excited to share that at long last, Malice Domestic’s anthology, Murder Most Theatrical, is available for pre-order from Wildside Press and will officially come out on October 1st. My short story, “Missed Cue,” appears in the anthology, and its setting in a dance company reflects my love of the dance world I spent decades…
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Like so many in America and around the world today, I mourn the death of a genuine hero, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose decades as an attorney and Supreme Court Justice advanced human rights for everyone, most especially women. I recall reading that she was always amused by the frequent question from children visiting her at…
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I can always tell when I’ve read a wonderful novel. Days afterward, I’m still thinking about the characters and wondering what they’re up to! Such was the case this past week when I inhaled Sarah Dessen’s 2019 novel, The Rest of the Story. The novel centers around seventeen-year-old Emma Saylor Payne. When her father…
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Determined to support our football-playing grandson, my husband and I ventured across the Ohio River into Indiana to see him play his varsity game last night and JV game this morning. All I can say is I have now witnessed close up why it took less than two weeks for our grandson’s high school to…
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Like all fiction writers, I strive to create characters readers will care about. But that only works if I care about the life experiences that have shaped them. To do that, I’ve found it essential to delve deeply into their backgrounds. Much of what I learn will never appear in my novels, but my characters’…
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