Dear Stiletto Gang Readers: I am pleased today to welcome Author Annette Dashofy to The Stiletto Gang blog. I’ve beta read her Detective Honeywell series and all I can say is you’re in for a roller coaster ride treat! ~ Donnell Most writers I know share one common problem. Character names. Not only do we […]
By: Donnell Ann Bell Years ago, I belonged to an online mystery critique group in which I met my good friends Annette Dashofy, Rosemarie Szotak, as well as various critique partners in Australia, Canada, and beyond. There was one individual in our group who was a terrific writer and well versed in geography and military […]
By: Donnell Ann Bell Years ago, when I left my newspaper job and turned to fiction, I was forced to become educated in a short amount of time. I also can assure you during that period, the self-assured nonfiction writer was humbled (Please note: I’m already pretty humble!). WHAT I LEARNED: There is a huge […]
by Donnell Ann Bell You’ve heard of How I Met your Mother? Well, today I’d like to talk about How I Met the Coroner. If you’re a mystery writer, chances are you need knowledge of bodies now and then, or perhaps you need to know how to bump somebody off. When I began my […]
by Donnell Ann Bell One of the greatest rewards in life is if a person can go to work every day and enjoy what they’re doing. I had such a job during my tenure at the Colorado Springs Business Journal. It was a place I learned the ins and outs of the Associated Press Stylebook […]
By Donnell Ann Bell “It is never too late to be what you might have been.” ― George Eliot “ “It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.” ― Andy Warhol I didn’t go to Harvard. I write a character that enjoys a sterling curriculum vitae, but unlike […]
by Donnell Ann Bell Well, it’s happened. I survived my sixth book release. I wrote blogs, put out a newsletter, attended Facebook parties, attended a fantastic Zoom presentation with the Corrales Community Library (near Albuquerque), appeared on my local community radio program, worked on my own blog, and made some valuable and very sweet connections […]
Happy Monday, everyone! Along with Stiletto Gang, which I’m pleased to belong to, I’m on a Facebook group with several romantic suspense, paranormal romantic suspense, and mainstream suspense authors. After pouring our hearts and souls into a novel, promotion is one of those pesky details we authors do, lest no one learns anything about […]
Good Monday morning. I slept like the proverbial rock last night. Perhaps it’s because I spent the last month in flux—a weeklong trip to Colorado, followed by page proofs due in a week, out-of-town company, followed by loading my car with water bottles and pre-packaged snacks for my anticipated trip to Left Coast Crime in […]
When Stiletto Gang Blog members suggested interviewing fellow blog members, it only made sense for me to partner with author Lois Winston. After all, as critique partners, we know where Author Lois Winston the bodies are buried (so to speak). I feel fortunate to have Lois as a critique partner. She has an outstanding brain, is […]