Whither the bookstore, great and small?

The fabulous Laura Bradford (one of our fabulous stiletto
wearers) and I had the opportunity to do a book signing at a local independent
bookstore here in the Hudson Valley.  The
bookstore is tucked into a strip of independently owned stores on a lovely street
in a town not far from here, and is a genuine friend to the local—and not so
local—writer.  Every time I’ve asked the
owners if I can sign has been met with a resounding “yes” and they do
everything they can to get people into the store to turn new readers on to
authors they may not know or have heard of previously.
Business was brisk this past Saturday and I was happy to see
that even though I’m sure Saturday is the busiest day for a lot of local
retailers with weekdays being more stress-inducing in their quietude.  I worry a lot about the state of the
brick-and-mortar stores, particularly independents, but even my local Barnes
and Noble where I can be found laden down with purchases when I’m up at the big
strip mall north of here.  But is the
next generation that we’re raising full of the same love of the bookstore or
will they be inured to the pleasures of holding a book in their hands, flipping
through the pages, looking at the cover?
First, our local Borders went out of business, then two
independents in nearby towns.  As someone
posted online, it is a lot more fun to take your kids to a bookstore than to
show them a book on a computer screen. 
It is definitely more enjoyable to hold a book in your hand, or see the
cover in person, than to move it from its place online to your virtual shopping
cart.  In my opinion, anyway.  Are we slowly losing the ability to do that?
I logged on to Facebook today to see that several of my
literary-minded friends had posted that Barnes and Noble is planning on closing
at least twenty stores this year with the goal being to bring their
approximately 680 stories down to 450 to 500 over time. I wondered if this
would be a boon to the independents, the bookstore owners fighting the good
fight all these years against the big-box stores and online retailers or if it
spells the end of the bookstore ultimately. 
I’m a book person; always have been.  Although I now own a Kindle and download my
fair share of books, I still buy books by the dozens every year.  My family is the same way.  There is no feeling like bringing home a bag
of books, a feeling that trumps and Amazon or B&N box arriving on your
front steps.  When I go out of town, I
shop in bookstores, I go to libraries. I know a lot of you are the same way.

So, I wonder about the future of bookstores, big and small, but to be honest, I
am more in fear for the smaller bookstores in our little villages and towns,
the ones where the owner knows your name, what you like to read, if your
favorite author has a new book coming out that you should know about.  Let’s all do our part to keep our indies
alive, and books on shelves where we can touch them and peruse them and admire
their beautiful covers, one and all.
Maggie Barbieri

Awards Shows

I love January because it’s the start of celebrity awards shows. I love watching the Red Carpet show and checking out the outfit the stars are wearing. The whole festivities begin with The People’s Choice, Golden Globes, SAG and then the granddaddy of them all, the Academy Awards.

But let’s not forget the authors, because they have their own award shows (well, that’s what I’m calling them) by way of conventions both for readers and writers. Me, I’m interested in the ones for readers and the two I attend are Malice Domestic, which is celebrating its 25th year and Bouchercon. I would love to attend others, but that thing called work which helps pay for my attendance at the two, needs to take precedence.

Malice was the first convention I attended thanks to the *nudge* by Heather Webber, and I’m so happy for that nudge. Every year I look forward to attending the panels and catching up with friends who I’ve met on blogs and FB and with the authors that I’ve met who have become friends. What I like best about Malice is that it is small and not overwhelmingly crowded. Also, it is held in Bethesda and the hotel is a train ride away from the nation’s capital. Malice is May 3 – 5.

Then there’s Bouchercon where the venue is different every year. So far I’ve been to St. Louis (finally saw the Gateway Arch) and Cleveland (finally saw the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame) and this year it’s held in Albany, the state capital where I live. I’ve never been to Albany, so this will be very interesting for me. What I like best about Bouchercon is I get to travel to different cities that I thought about traveling to, but never got the chance. Bouchercon is September 19 – 22.

Last year I won a free weekend to Thrillerfest and while I enjoyed it, I felt that one was more for writers. Thrillerfest is July 10 – 13.

Other conventions/conferences I would love to attend are: Left Coast Crime, Killer Nashville, Deadly Ink and the Festival of Mystery at Oakmont, to name a few.

So, have you attended convention/conference before and what do you like best about them?

Of Tempests in Teapots, Po-Biz, and a Welcome Return to Sanity

by Linda Rodriguez

I’m a hyphenate writer. Poet-mystery novelist. One foot
stands in the airy-fairy literary world of poetry, where I’ve published two
books, many individual poems, and won some national awards, while the other is
planted firmly in the down-to-earth storytelling of mysteries and thrillers
where all the loose ends have to be tied up or explained and where I’ve been
very fortunate also. Although I love both worlds and have wonderful friends in
both, as well as people who have mentored and helped me, I’ve come to realize
there’s a real difference—and this past week brought that home with a sting.
The poetry world—or “po-biz” as we poets tend to refer to it
to mark the difference between writing the poems and building the career by
publishing, winning awards, getting tenure, booking readings, etc.—is very
competitive. At least, the establishment academic poetry world is highly competitive.
The side niches where you will find most of the African American, Asian
American, Latino, or Native American poets are highly cooperative and
collaborative, real communities, and their members usually don’t get the plum
positions or lucrative honors.
The world of mysteries, where there is more money and a vastly
larger number of readers at stake, is surprisingly not cutthroat competitive,
but much more of a cooperative and collaborative community, even though it
would be considered by the po-biz folks to be pretty establishment. From the
beginning, I was blown away by how generous and helpful major writers were
toward the beginner I was, and as I’ve spent more and more time among the mystery
writers, I’ve seen firsthand how super-collaborative they all are.
I still write and publish poetry. In fact, I have another
full-length book manuscript I’ll be sending out for publication in the near
future—to join my other two published collections, I hope. I negotiate the two
worlds with a shake of my head at the differences, and that’s about all. Until
something like last week happens that really brings home to me the absolute difference
in cultures.
I was thrilled to learn that a dear friend and fellow poet, Richard
Blanco, had been selected as the inaugural poet for President Obama’s second
inauguration. I’ve studied and critiqued manuscripts with Richard, and I know
what a gifted poet he is. He has won some of the po-biz’s major awards,
equivalent to the Edgar or Rita, and continues to study and work hard to
constantly challenge himself and improve his art. Plus he’s a genuinely nice
guy, funny and smart and generous—and Latino and immigrant (at four months of
age) and openly gay. Those last qualifiers guarantee that he’s spent a lot of
time in those side-niche poetry communities I mentioned earlier where there’s
much more community and cooperation.
Before the inauguration even took place, there were
rumblings from certain corners of po-biz about his selection. Award-winner or
not, Richard is not one of the usual recipients of this kind of honor. These kinds
of things, like the poet-laureate position of the U.S., are usually reserved
for a handful of old white guys who went to the “right” schools and studied with
the “right” teachers, etc., etc. So obviously, even though he had great
credentials, he couldn’t possibly be good enough for this job. He didn’t fit
the mold.
I read these carpings with little worry. I knew the quality
of Richard’s work, and I knew he would write and read a great poem. When the
inauguration came, he read with great effect a wonderful poem, in which he did
the almost impossible and caught the essence of America on the page. He brought
tears to the eyes of many Americans with his great poem, which caught perfectly
the mood of the moment that, even after terrible things have happened, we will
all pull together and make our country great.
Bare minutes after he finished reading, the insults and
criticizing began on Facebook and soon moved to prestigious blogs. His poem was
trashed, his performance was trashed, and sometimes he himself was trashed. I
came face to face with a very strong expression of the ugly side of po-biz. One
academic poet even admitted at the beginning of his attack, “I wanted to hate
[the poem.]” He ended with a suggestion that Richard should have inserted some exciting
profanity to liven up the poem and make it a little bit hip (completely
ignoring the occasion for which the poem was written at which “exciting
profanity” would have been totally inappropriate, if very hip).

So this past week I’ve been living more in the poetry world
than the mystery (and other commercial novel) world. I wrote a blog lamenting
the situation and the way poets tend to eat their own at the slightest excuse
and how the egos of poets are so often poetry’s worst enemies.


I’ve had a lot of support for this from poets of the
side-niche, collaborative communities of poetry—and even from some of the
po-biz folks themselves. But I’m ready to quit reading every attack and frothing
at the mouth at the absolute stupidity and cupidity of the remarks.
I’m ready to return to the sane and generous community of
mystery novelists where few, if any, feel that someone else’s professional good
fortune is a threat and an attack on their own lives, where writers are more
likely to extend a hand in congratulations to someone else getting an award
rather than to sling mud at her or him. I’m eager to return to the place where kind
writers with major reputations often offer a hand to those just starting out or
having to start over.
And I’m here to tell my friends who are writers and readers
in this great community—you don’t realize how good we have it here. Just take a
look across the way at po-biz and thank your stars or guardian angels that you’re
novel writers and readers and not poets.

A Heroine to Root For

by Maria Geraci

This Saturday, I’ll be giving a workshop for the Ancient City Romance Writers of America (great group, btw!) on Creating a Strong Romantic Heroine. It’s my contention that the heroine in your romance novel is the back bone of your entire story. If your readers don’t connect with her in a strong way, then your story is going to fall apart. No one likes a wimpy dumb heroine. Nor do they like a Perfect Polly either.

I put together a list of the qualities I most admire/like in a heroine and came up with the following.

Smart.
Capable.
Loyal.
Quirky.
Sense of Humor.
Kind.
Ambitious.

Who are some of my favorite heroines from literature/film? There’s lots to pick from but without a doubt my top favorites are:

 Kathleen Kelly (so wonderfully played by Meg Ryan)  in You’ve Got Mail
 Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice

And last but not least, my personal Fave: Jo March in Little Women

Who are your favorite literary heroines? And what characteristics do you admire most in them?

West Wing or… West Awesome?

By Bethany Maines

I think we all know my resolution a few weeks ago to stop
watching West Wing marathons was merely so much hot air, and in fact the
obsession continues. I admit I watched a few episodes when it was originally
aired, but at the time I wasn’t paying attention to the writing. (Yes, I admit,
I was paying attention to Rob Lowe, but really, weren’t we all?) This time
around I find myself envious, yes, absolutely envious, as the writer’s get away
with things that I have always told not to do. The “errors” these writers
commit would be egregious in the book world. They bring introduce and dismiss
characters at the drop of a hat. They start new plot lines without any warning.
And the characters frequently don’t explain themselves to each other, let alone
to the audience. Basically, the writing hews closer to real life. Is it because
they’re on TV? Is it because they’re better than me? Is it because they’ve got
156 episodes to practice with?
For instance, during one episode Sam Seaborn (did I mention
Rob Lowe’s dreaminess) is upset and off-balance because he recently found out
that his father has been keeping a mistress for decades. Up until that episode,
the audience had never heard mention of his parents, and after that we don’t
hear of them again. But in a real life work place frequently co-workers are
thrown for a loop by family issues. And you do what these characters did, which
is express sympathy and try to prevent them from letting home issues become
work issues.
So the question remains – do the writer’s of West Wing get
away with their realism because they are so good at it?  Or do we allow this kind of realism
because it isn’t on the printed page? Is there something about being in a book
that makes us want storylines and characters wrapped up in a neat little bow?
Admittedly, the very format of a printed page makes things like overlapping
dialogue a little out of reach. However, isn’t there something annoyingly
formulaic about a sequel that inserts a little synopsis of the previous book?
What do you think? Should we challenge readers more than we do?
Update: For those who are keeping track I have released my
first new story of the year! You can find The Dragon Incident at Amazon now for
$.99. It will be available for Kobo and Nook in April. You can learn more about
this new series at www.cityofdestinystories.com.

The end and the beginning

By: Joelle Charbonneau

As writers, we talk a lot about The End of a story and The Beginning of one. Yesterday, I was incredibly fortunate to celebrate a real life event that encompassed both. My mother’s retirement from United Airlines.

 Since United moved its headquarters, we all took the trip downtown to Willis Tower (formerly and yet still fondly known as the Sears Tower) to eat cake, tell stories and laugh with a room packed full of people who worked with my mom. For those of you keeping score, my mother’s world championship artistic roller skating career was the inspiration for the Rebecca Robbins mystery series. Obviously, she didn’t roller skate at United….or at least not much. She held three different jobs in her multiple decades at the company. The last was in corporate recognition where she worked with programs that applauded employees who went above and beyond in their jobs as well as worked to recognize the retirees as they stepped away from their careers. And not only did she formally congratulate people for their milestones and outstanding achievements, she found ways both large and small to make her fellow coworkers feel special and appreciated. Small notes…fun e-mails…Hershey’s Kisses on people’s desk.

Mom lives as she works – by recognizing others.
So—today, I dedicate this blog to my mom, Jaci Charbonneau. Mom, you are the most amazing lady I know. Thank you for the inspiration, your love and for showing me that the best rewards in life come from thinking of others first. The world is a much better place because of you.

Best Friends, Mortal Enemies

By Evelyn David

Jodie Foster’s gracious, thoughtful, clever, impassioned (if
slightly confusing) speech at The Golden Globes captured the interest,
attention, and affection of most viewers. Although she never used the word
“gay,” the audience, both those in the theater and those watching on
TV, understood that it was a deliberate choice she was making in
“outing” herself – and she gave a clear explanation of why she has
chosen to remain private all these years. I admire and respect her as a
phenomenal actress, as well as believe she is a lovely person.

So I gotta ask – how is she friends with Mel Gibson, enough
that he was sitting at her table, right next to her, along with her children?

His arrests, public meltdowns, vitriolic drunken
anti-semitic, anti-gay, racist tirades have appalled most of us. The words he
has used would offend almost anyone. And yet, from the beginning, Jodie Foster
has been a strong supporter of Gibson – and insists that he is not really the
man who spews such hatred. “He’s not a perfect person,” she says. “He’s a
complicated person. That’s why I love him.” In another interview, given as
part of publicity for the film she directed and in which Gibson stars, she
said, “When you love a friend, you don’t abandon them when they are
struggling,” Of course, Mel is an undeniably gifted actor and director,
and ‘The Beaver’ is one of his most powerful and moving performances. But more
importantly, he is and has been a true and loyal friend. I hope I can help him
get through this dark moment.”

I am genuinely impressed by her strong sense of loyalty,
even if I wonder if it’s misplaced.

Then there is the friendship of Antonin Scalia and Ruth
Bader Ginsburg. I don’t think you could find two more divergent jurists. They are
literally at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of judicial philosophy; he
is an unapologetic conservative, she is an equally proud liberal. But these two have
been best friends for more than 30 years. They and their spouses have spent
every New Year’s Eve together for decades. They even take trips together.

Which leads me to ask: what do we expect of our friends?
Clearly, I don’t want a clone of myself. I’ve got friends with whom I never
discuss politics because it will only lead to disagreement. We all know where
we stand on issues. But I also know that even if we don’t agree on candidates
or politics, we share common ground on fundamentals about family, religion,
service to others, or we have similar interests. I am told that Scalia and
Ginsburg both love music, especially opera, and, as Justice Ginsburg has explained, “I
can say one thing about Justice Scalia. He is one of the few people in the
world who can make me laugh, and I appreciate him for that.”

If such ideological opposites such as Foster/Gibson and
Scalia/Ginsburg can be friends, is that something we should all aspire to do?
Or is there a limit to friendship, a line which can’t be crossed?

Your thoughts?

Marian, the Northern half of Evelyn David

 


A Reason to Give Thanks includes: Giving Thanks
in Lottawatah
, Bah, Humbug in Lottawatah, Moonlighting at the Mall, The Fortune
Teller’s Face
, A Reason to Give Thanks, Sneak Peek – Murder Off the Books,
Sneak Peek – I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries

A Reason to Give Thanks
Kindle
Nook
Smashwords

 

Sullivan Investigations Mystery
Murder Off the Books KindleNookSmashwordsTrade Paperback
Murder Takes the Cake KindleNookSmashwords Trade Paperback 
Riley Come Home (short story)- KindleNookSmashwords
Moonlighting at the Mall (short story) – KindleNookSmashwords

 

 

Zoned for Murder
Kindle Trade Paperback


Brianna Sullivan Mysteries – e-book series
I Try Not to Drive Past CemeteriesKindleNookSmashwords
The Dog Days of Summer in Lottawatah KindleNookSmashwords
The Holiday Spirit(s) of LottawatahKindleNookSmashwords
Undying Love in Lottawatah- KindleNookSmashwords
A Haunting in Lottawatah – Kindle – NookSmashwords
Lottawatah Twister – KindleNookSmashwords
Missing in Lottawatah – KindleNookSmashwords
Good Grief in Lottawatah – KindleNookSmashwords
Summer Lightning in Lottawatah – Kindle NookSmashwords

The Ghosts of Lottawatah – trade paperback collection of the Brianna e-books
Book 1 I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries (includes the first four Brianna e-books)
Book 2 – A Haunting in Lottawatah (includes the 5th, 6th, and 7th Brianna e-books)

Romances
Love Lessons – KindleNookSmashwords

Comfort Food

by Laura Bradford

Comfort food.

There’s something about just saying that outloud that gives you warm and fuzzies, isn’t there?

Oh, and if you mix comfort foods with a holiday and they become a tradition…even better.

For me and my girls (and, I suspect, my brother, too), Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls are a must on Christmas morning. We can have other things, too, but those have to be on the table.

When the kids were little, extra salty pretzels made medicine go down easier.

A trip to the bank (even now, with DD # 2 being 14) means a peek at the counter for lollipops.

Feeling blue? Bring on the chocolate (which I know has a physiological component, too).

And when I’m sick, a nice cup of hot chocolate will do.

So how about you? What are some of your comfort foods?

~Laura

What do I do now???

I wish I were the kind of writer who approached a new book
methodically with notes, a plot outline, and a list of characters and all of
their quirky traits noted for consistency.

I wish I were the kind of writer who kept copious notes—a la
Sue Grafton who I heard say that she has countless notebooks dedicated to one
Kinsey Milhone mystery alone!—to refer back to during and after a book’s
completion. (This would be a good way to avoid the dreaded “did I already kill
that character” after a book has gone to the printer.)
Sadly, I’m not. 
I’m the kind of writer who hears a snippet of dialogue and
who closes her eyes, going into a trance, hoping she can remember it. 
I’m the kind of writer who writes brilliantly, in her head,
at three in the morning and promises herself that she’ll remember everything
she wrote and put it to paper the next morning. 
(Usually, what I end up with is a question mark at the beginning of the
page and a random word like “orange”…something that is supposed to jog my
faulty memory.  It never does.)
I’m the kind of writer who when she does have a story in her
head, sits down to write it only to find out her characters have a completely
different idea of what’s going to happen and when.
I’m the kind of writer, who, when asked what her profession
is says “freelance college textbook editor” because I forget that when I’m not
editing college textbooks, I’m creating stories.  Lots of stories.  Some that will never see the light of day.
I’m fascinated by what makes writers tick and the processes
they employ to get their stories written. 
I’m also fascinated by people who can accomplish a lot in short periods
of time.  So, today, as I embark on a new
writing journey—the second in my Maeve Conlon ONCE UPON A LIE series—I ask you,
regardless of whether or not you are a writer: 
what do you do before starting a new project and how has this tactic
proved successful for you?
Maggie Barbieri

Three Highlights of the 2012, Two New Babies and a New E-Book

Justice

We were delighted to welcome two new great-grandbabies into our family. Brings the count to 13.

Aleena  

And near the end of the year I tried my hand at e-publishing one of my books. I was a dismal failure all the way around. First, I couldn’t understand the directions that so many people find so simple. I wrote a desperate email to a friend who was doing great with her self-published book on Kindle. She confessed she wasn’t the one who had formatted her book for Kindle, it was her husband. He took pity on me and formatted the book. My friend went through it and found some errors which I corrected. And of course I needed a cover–someone was recommended to me and I hired her.

Then despite great directions I couldn’t figure out how to put the whole thing up. (Are you beginning to get the idea that I might have a learning disorder?) What I have found is that the older I get the longer it takes me to get the hang of something new. Friend’s husband put the book up for sale.

Of course I promoted like crazy. Sales were just okay, nothing like people have been reporting all over the place. So, I decided to try the free route for two days only. Another thing to figure out. A good friend sent me explicit email directions and I managed to to do it.  Again, lots of promotion. The download numbers were okay, but nothing like others reported. And, I still had no reviews.

Several of my author friends said they downloaded it and I begged for reviews. Finally one appeared. Will all this result in sales like is supposed to happen according to all the successful souls doing this? Haven’t checked lately, but when I did, I had one.

This isn’t the kind of book most of the people who frequent this blog read, it’s what I call a supernatural mystery. It borders on horror and has strong Christian elements.  Here’s the first review:

 
I sat up all night reading THE DEVIL’S FOOTHOLD. That always
happens when I take a “quick peek” at the opening chapter of a fascinating new
book. In a departure from her popular Tempe Crabtree series, Marilyn Meredith’s
new book tackles devil worship in a small town in the Northern California
foothills. The cult has pulled in members of the town elite, motivated by lust
for power, and a few teenagers who just want a little excitement.

The
book has some gruesome aspects and a distinctly religious tone. However,
Meredith is a thoughtful writer with enough experience to make it easy to read.
Fans of the Tempe Crabtree series will appreciate familiar characters — a
female deputy, a romantic pastor, and a lazy sheriff who looks down his nose at
the female deputy. The ending is a humdinger.

And one more tidbit about this book. This began as the first book in the Deputy Tempe Crabtree series. When I wrote the second one, I realized the tone of the book was much different and decided to change this one with a new setting and new characters. I missed one of the names–which Pat pointed out to me. Hopefully, I’ll have that fixed soon–if I can figure out how to do it.

Next up for me will be a new Rocky Bluff P.D. mystery called Dangerous Impulses. This series has been called a cozy police procedural which I write under the name F. M. Meredith.

Marilyn