Clicking Our Heels – Challenges Being a Female Writer

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Clicking Our Heels – Challenges Being a Female Writer

Sisters in Crime was founded when Sara Paretsky and other female mystery writers saw a lack of parity between male and female authors. A later advertising slogan claims: “You’ve Come a Long Way Baby.” But let’s look at reality. What has been one of your challenges in being a female mystery writer, and how have you dealt with it?

Donalee Moulton – Ironically, perhaps, the challenge I find we face as female mystery writers is convincing agents and publishers we are not all the same. As writers, we bring our own voice to the conversation and that voice is singular regardless of our gender, our age, our place of residence.

Mary Lee Ashford – One of the challenges with being a female mystery writer (and especially an older female) is that you are constantly dealing with assumptions. I have to say that I think it’s gotten better and organizations like Sisters in Crime have helped. But it’s often still a challenge to be taken seriously.

Anita Carter – Balancing the day job, family, marriage and writing. There are many times I feel pulled in all directions. I’m sure that’s not only indicative of female mystery writers, but probably just writers in general.

Debra Sennefelder – Honestly, I’ve dealt with challenges so many other authors have dealt with like getting an agent, getting an editor to fall in love with my book idea. I kept working hard. I don’t recall a situation where being a female was an added challenge to my pursuit of writing. Thanks to all those who have come before me for that.

Donnell Ann Bell – Because I’m a woman I have a tendency to put other people’s needs before my own. If I am to grow this career, I need to develop a bit of selfishness. Not rudeness or lack of consideration, you understand, but an ability to know my own limits and to realize I can’t help everybody as much as I want to.

Gay Yellen – When my first book was published, a few acquaintances confessed they wouldn’t be reading it because they were only interested in reading non-fiction or “literary” fiction. Their genre prejudice was a shock I soon got over. As for being female, I’m aware of the historic bias of mainstream publishers which made it difficult for women writers to achieve contract parity. Change is slow, but it’s happening, I hope. The antidote is to write the best book I can and, hopefully, earn validation that my work is worthy.

Debra H. Goldstein – Breaking out of being stereotyped in my work.

Lois Winston – Trust me, it was worse being a female romance author, especially when my husband’s male coworkers would ask how I research my sex scenes. (This occurred every year at the company holiday party after they’d downed one too many egg nogs!) Now I worry the FBI will come knocking because I’m researching different ways to kill people. I employed sarcasm to deal with the former, and I keep my fingers crossed to deal with the latter.

T.K. Thorne – Women writers in the genre struggle to get equal recognition, reviews, etc. as documented by groups like Sisters in Crime. When I started writing (several decades ago) I was keenly aware of this, and I think it fed into my decision to write under my initials (T.K).

Dru Ann Love – So far I have not experienced any challenges.

Bethany Maines – I think there are loads of female mystery writers and in general no one even blinks. I think it’s when the genre starts to skew more toward thriller or crime and away from cozy that readers might start to think “those are masculine!” But I think that the rise of indie publishing has sort of stomped down a lot of the genre/gender barriers. It’s one of the great benefits of indie publishing that I don’t think enough people are looking at.

Barbara J. Eikmeier – I’m still working full time so always my biggest challenge is carving out time. Not just for the writing but also the agent search, finding first readers and follow up on so many little things.

Saralyn Richard – Ironically, I detest violence of any sort and faint at the sight of blood, yet I love mysteries. Sometimes my characters put me in uncomfortable situations, and I have to write my way through.

 

 

 

 

 

Writers Without Borders

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Of the many reasons I love living in Colorado, the Jaipur Literature Festival is one of them. Wait a minute. Jaipur? Isn’t that in India? And they have a literature festival? Yes, they do. Known simply as JLF, it’s the world’s largest, un-ticketed event free to all, no matter how rich or poor.

 

The motto of the festival is “Stories Unite Us.” Geographically, Boulder, Colorado is 7,825 miles from Jaipur, but each year JLF brings the city a wealth of international writers, humanitarians, business people, artists, and philosophers. Boulder is one of five locations in the U.S. to host the event, much more convenient for me to participate in this feast of ideas.

This year, JLF Colorado in Boulder was awash in brightly colored banners and saris. Vibrant music and tantalizing smells of Indian food filled the air along with animated discourse. Among the speakers were local authors David Heska Wanbli Weiden and Margaret Coel discussing the crossroads of crime—a topic near and dear to my writing.

 

 

I was fortunate to attend a talk by the famed writer and JLF founder Namita Gokhale. A journalist and award-winning author, she recalled growing up in the mountains in India with her grandmother, who believed a tablespoon of brandy was the cure to all illness. Many of her works dealt with how a culture’s mythology defines behavior. When asked what was a writer’s responsibility, she replied, “A writer’s responsibility is to be irresponsible.”

A simple statement, which at first, struck me as an oxymoron. However, the more I consider her viewpoint, the more I agree. As writers, we need to challenge our strongly held cultural myths, to take risks, to shake our own convictions. That is the true power that all art wields.

For more information on JLF, please see https://jlflitfest.org.

What’s on Your Nightstand?

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By Lois Winston

I’m an extremely eclectic reader. There are a few genres I don’t read because they turn me off. My apologies to the vampire and werewolf fans out there, but I just don’t get the allure of falling for someone who wants to drain me of my blood or sup on my entire body.

I used to read a wide range of science fiction and fantasy, everything from The Lord of the Rings Trilogy to Arthur C. Clark’s Space Odyssey series to the Harry Potter books. At one point in my life, I devoured books by Leon Uris and James Mitchener, then Michael Crichton.

These days, though, besides reading books by other cozy authors, I find myself drawn to novels featuring historical people, women’s fiction, literary fiction, and books that cross genres. For my post today, I thought I’d tell you about some of my recent reads, all in different genres, and what I enjoyed about them.

The Unexpected Mrs. Polifax by Dorothy Gilman

I don’t know how I didn’t know about this series of books, but I’m so happy I stumbled upon them. Mrs. Polifax is a New Jersey widow who walks into the CIA one day and offers her services as a spy. Surprisingly, they take her up on it! And that’s the start of a very entertaining book featuring an extremely endearing character. The author wrote fourteen books in the Mrs. Polifax series before her death at the age of eighty-eight in 2012. I’ve already started the second one.

 

 

 

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

If a book doesn’t draw me in by the third chapter, I won’t waste any more time on it. There are too many books to read and not enough leisure hours in my day. Even so, there are books I finish but soon forget. Then there’s The Dutch House. I first picked this book up because it takes place in a town where I went to college and later lived for several decades. But I kept reading because the author is so adept at crafting both characters and plot.

 

 

 

11/22/63 by Stephen King

I bought this book several years ago but just got around to reading it this summer. At 880 pages, it’s quite intimidating and requires a huge commitment of time. Because I don’t care for horror stories, I’d never read anything by King other than his book on writing. However, I’m old enough to remember the day Kennedy was shot, and the concept about a man who goes back in time to prevent the assassination fascinated me. I flew through it, unable to put the book down until my eyelids grew heavy each night.

 

 

The Colony Club by Shelley Noble

Disclaimer: the author is a dear friend, and I was lucky enough to read this book prior to publication. Daisy Harriman, one of the main characters in the book, was a real person. When she requested a room for the night at the Waldorf Hotel, she was turned away because she wasn’t accompanied by her husband. Appalled by her treatment, she set out to change history, creating The Colony Club, the first woman’s club of its kind in not only New York but the world. The novel also incorporates other historical people of the Gilded Age, including Stanford White, who designed the building, and actress-turned-interior designer Elsie de Wolfe, who decorated the Colony Club’s rooms. The author is a meticulous historian who creates a richly accurate depiction of the times, especially in the treated of women, making the book extremely au courant for today’s readers.

What’s on your nightstand? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free download of any one of the first ten audiobooks in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website www.loiswinston.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter and follow her on various social media sites.

FROM HUNG OUT TO DIE

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I’ve been doing a lot of book readings recently from Hung Out to Die, my first mystery book. I thought I’d share the scene where the main character, Riel Brava, finds a dead body — and finds himself a suspect.

COVER of Hung Out To Die I’m reaching for the hallway switch when I notice a light three doors down. That’s Norm Bedwell’s office. And that’s unusual. Our comptroller is typically among the last to arrive. Only a fresh honey cruller from Tim Hortons has ever changed his timeline.

I’m running to Norm’s office now, tirade at the ready. The only thing that can prevent the outside security system from working, aside from someone hacking into our server, is if the door doesn’t latch firmly behind the entering employee. A loud audible click lets you know the system is armed, and then you can move forward. Employees are trained to wait for the click; if they don’t, an alarm will sound for two minutes, albeit relatively soft as alarms go. But at this time of day, no one is around to hear it.

It must be Norm’s fault, which may mean the system has only been down for minutes if he just arrived. It’s a question I’m tossing at our comptroller even before I’ve stepped inside his office.

Norm doesn’t answer.

He can’t because he’s swinging from a rope tossed over an open beam (the designer’s brilliant idea), a noose tight around his neck. He’s blue, but not as blue as I believe a dead man should look. This poses a dilemma. I need a few moments to assess my options and identify the safest and most effective course of action. However, I am aware I don’t have the luxury of time. I’ve seen enough Law and Order episodes to know if you don’t call the cops immediately, the delay in time will get noticed, and you’re more likely to find yourself on the suspect list.

Dammit. I’m a suspect.

This realization hits at the same time I’m dialing 911. The perky young woman on the other end asks how she can help.

“I’m in the administrative office of the Canadian Cannabis Corp., and my comptroller appears to have hanged himself. He is dangling from a noose and turning blue.”

“Sir, I have radioed for police; they are on their way,” she says, inhaling to continue with her script.

I cut her off. “Look, I know I shouldn’t disturb anything, but Norm may be alive. I’m going to grab his legs, so the noose doesn’t cut into his windpipe.”

Great, now she knows I understand how hanging kills someone.


It doesn’t matter. I’m going to reduce the pressure around Norm’s neck. His feet are tucked into the crease in my left arm, his testicles on par with my bottom lip. I’m not a small man, 6’2”, and I work out regularly, so I can maintain this, albeit a distasteful posture, for quite some time.

I hear sirens, and it hits me. The police won’t gain access to the building without destroying expensive technology. I explain this to the 911 operator. She is not that interested in the cost of our tech.

“I’m going to get someone to open the gate for the police,” I tell her. “That means I’ll have to hang up. I’m on the third floor of the admin building, inside the only office with a light on. My name is Riel Brava. I’m the CEO.”

donalee Moultondonalee Moulton is the award-winning author of Conflagration! — a historical mystery that won the 2024 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense (Historical Fiction). Her other books include a mystery novel based in Nova Scotia, Hung Out To Die,  and a non-fiction book about effective communication, The Thong Principle: Saying What You Mean and Meaning What You Say. As a freelance journalist, donalee has written for over 100 publications across North America. You can catch up with her on X, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Surviving the Storm

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Ever heard of a derecho?

I hadn’t, until recently. It’s related to a tornado, and can be just as deadly. Instead of twisting up everything in its path and tossing it around, a derecho’s furious winds wreak devastation in a straight line, like a giant hundred-mile-an-hour freight train.

Last May, one barreled through two hundred miles of Texas, including our neighborhood. It tore through swaths of open landscape and mowed down houses and other buildings, leaving hundreds of thousands electricity customers in the dark.

People died from falling trees. If you want to know what our derecho was like, these videos from the Houston Chronicle pretty much gives you a taste. Yes, it was scary.

In our neighborhood, it was mostly the trees, those majestic century-old oaks in our urban forest that suffered the greatest damage.

And then in July…

Hurricane Beryl hit us with howling winds and high water. Thousands of homes were ravaged. Thousands of businesses lost power—many, for weeks. People lost their lives from the sweltering heat.

After two previous summers of drought, the May derecho, and July’s hurricane, many more stately trees succumbed. Some, still standing, are leaning at ominous angles over homes and streets and sidewalks. Others are stripped down to mere skeletons of their former lushness. So many sad sights where once there was beauty and abundance.

We’re used to summer storms around here. The Body in the News, Book 3 in my Samantha Newman Mystery series, revolves around the aftermath of one of the worst hurricanes to hit these parts in recent history.

Clean-up and repairs from the May derecho weren’t completed when the July hurricane hit. We’re now two months beyond Beryl, yet a walk around the neighborhood still bears sad reminders of the destructive forces of nature. And now…

Here comes another one!

As I write this, the weather service is serving us updates on Francine, the tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico that’s expected to become a hurricane today. It, too, is headed our way, or somewhere between us and New Orleans. In case it arrives ahead of schedule, and we lose power again, I’ll wrap this up and get it posted. But before I sign off, there’s one more thing… 

I’ve come to understand the therapeutic benefit of immersing oneself in a leafy retreat, which is why I mourn losing so much of the neighborhood greenery. However, in the larger scheme of things, life can hit us with more serious hardships at any time, so, it’s important to keep this in mind:

Trees can be replanted. Lives lost are irreplaceable.

Instead of wringing our hands over what is lost, or what may happen next, let’s celebrate the people and things that bring beauty to our lives today.

Let’s appreciate what we have with with renewed attention and open affection.

And, if the mood strikes, while you’re hugging those dear to you, it might also help to hug a tree. Turns out, they can be as fragile as people.

Have you ever weathered a scary natural disaster?

Please leave your comments below…

Gay Yellen is the award-winning author of the of the Samantha Newman Mystery Series: The Body Business, The Body Next Door, and The Body in the News.

 

 

 

Photo of author Catriona McPherson

Special Guest – Catriona McPherson

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by Sparkle Abbey

Today we welcome a very special guest back to the blog and she’s chatting about the latest in her Dandy Gilver series – The Witching Hour. Plus let’s talk about in-laws…

Catriona take it away!

“Two houses both alike in dignity” says Shakespeare of the Montagues and the Capulets at the start of Romeo and Juliet. (Off topic, but “Juliet Capulet” has always bugged me; I’d have swapped their names in the edit.)

And I suppose two houses can easily be alike in dignity but not in much else. When you’re wee, you think your family is normal and quite possibly all families are similar to it. But when you grow up and especially when you join families in a marriage . . . Well, I can’t be the only one who reads Carolyn Hax in the Washington Post. Second only to destination weddings – a pox on all of them, right? – her column is full of in-laws as far as the eye can see.

As THE WITCHING HOUR (Dandy Gilver No.16)  opens, Dandy and Hugh are gearing up to meet a prospective daughter-in-law. They’ve weathered one dynastic alliance (and survived the awkwardness of a corpse at the engagement-do) but now in the spring of 1939 their younger son is bringing a girl home and his track record is  . . . not unblemished.

Cover of book - The Witiching Hour

I love this jacket!

‘Cartaright?’ Hugh said. ‘Not Cartwright?’

‘Nor Carter-Wright,’ I assured him. ‘Teddy wrote it down for me to address the envelope.’

‘What address?’

‘London,’ I told him. ‘A 3F, I’m afraid. A flat. But north of the river. It’s so hard to tell these days. She could be anyone.’

‘Dolly Cartaright,’ said Hugh. ‘She sounds like a barmaid.’

‘I don’t care if she is a barmaid,’ I said. ‘Or a chorus girl, or even a . . .’ My imagination ran out.

‘An artist’s model,’ said Hugh. ‘Like What’s-her-name.’

‘I think she was a muse,’ I reminded him. ‘Although that might be the same thing, now I consider it at a distance. She was very . . . limber.’

Hugh rewarded me with a snort of laugher.

‘And I mean it. I don’t care. If she marries our son-’

‘If marriage isn’t too old-fashioned for her,’ Hugh chipped in.

‘And the call goes up for single men first-’

‘It won’t or only very briefly.’

‘-then she could pull pints of beer in the Atholl Arms for all our friends and I’d drive down to pick her up at closing time and offer a lift home.’

‘What friends of yours drink pints of beer in the Atholl Arms?’ Hugh asked me.

I rewarded him with a little snort of my own.

I remember meeting my in-laws. I was dressed all in black with a crew-cut and an attitude. They can’t have been thrilled, but Neil and I were only nineteen so they no doubt thought I’d soon be gone. Ha! How’d that work out?

Young Catriona and Neil

We were infants!

I do remember a formal meeting of in-laws in advance of one of my sisters’ weddings. My mum prepared an elegant meal then my dad came home with a punctured tyre, brought his bike into the kitchen and turned it upside down in the middle of the floor. A lively debate ensued.

I also remember sitting awkwardly in the living room at home with a set of in-laws-to-be in advance of a different wedding when a knocking noise came out of nowhere and all four of us girls stood up and left the room. There used to be a door there, see, and the wall is hollow so, when dinner was ready, my dad would knock on the hollow bit instead of shouting through the house. Seemed perfectly normal to us; looked like The Village of the Damned to strangers.

Then there was the fact that my dad didn’t drink either coffee (normal for Brits born in the 1930s) or tea (outlandish for Brits born anytime) so when visitors, including prospective in-laws, came and orders for hot drinks were taken, he was missed out and passed over. It wasn’t until someone said “Your mum looks so innocent but she rules with a rod of iron, doesn’t she?” that any of us realised the impression being given of a downtrodden and thirsty husband.

Library Offering

This was offered to me at a library once.

But that’s nothing, when it comes to food and drink and new alliances. I’ve got an American pal, Jewish, from Boston (these details are because I have no idea where her norms come from!), who married a Turkish bloke and, upon meeting her prospective family-in-law, politely cleaned her plate making yummy noises. Her mother-in-law-to-be replenished her plate. She cleared it. It was replenished. It was cleared. It was replenished. It was cleared. Only when the bloke started paying attention, which was thankfully before his mother had to send out for more food or his fiancée burst, did he say, “Oh yeah, babe? She’s gonna keep filling your plate till you leave something on it. And, anne, she’s trying to show she likes the food by eating it up.” Relief all round.

My sister’s mother-in-law is no longer with us so I can tell tales of her legendary and misguided culinary confidence without causing upset. You’ve heard the expression “a plain cook”? Well, this lady took it to soaring heights. She once opened a storage jar in my sister’s kitchen, saw muesli, pondered a while, recognised the rolled oats in the mix and made porridge with it. (I realise that this story is very British. The US equivalent would be making grits with granola.) Another time, she looked in my sister’s crisper drawer and found a head of broccoli. She thought Well that can’t be right and put it straight in the bin.

Photo of broccoli

It wasn’t even Romanescu!

All the weird and even annoying clashes of family norms become funny stories in the end, eh? I’d love to hear yours, Stiletto Gang. Can you remember meeting your in-laws? When did you realise you were in-laws? What’s the equivalent for single people? I know there’ll be one.

Here’s a little bit about The Witching Hour

It’s the spring of 1939 and Dandy Gilver, the mother of two grown-up sons, can’t think of anything except the deteriorating state of Europe and the threat of war. Detective work is the furthest thing from her mind. It takes a desperate cri de coeur from an old friend to persuade her to take on a case.

Daisy Esslemont’s husband Silas has vanished. It’s not the first time, but he has never embarrassed her with his absences before. It doesn’t take Dandy and her side-kick, Alec Osborne, long to find the wandering Silas, but when they track him down to the quaint East Lothian village of Dirleton, he is dead, lying on the village green with his head bashed in, in full view of a row of alms houses, two pubs, a manse, a school and even the watchtowers of Dirleton Castle. And yet not a single one of the villagers admits to seeing a thing.

As Dandy and Alec begin to chip away at the determined silence of the Dirletonites, they cannot imagine what unites such a motley crew: schoolmistress, minister, landlord, postmaster, park-keeper, farmworkers, schoolchildren . . . Only one person – Mither Golane, the oldest resident of the village – is loose-lipped enough to let something slip, but her quiet aside must surely be the rambling of a woman in her second childhood. Dandy and Alec know that Silas was no angel but “He’s the devil” is too outlandish a claim to help them find his killer. The detecting pair despair of ever finding answers, but are they asking the right questions?

Thanks so much, Catriona, for stopping by. We love stories set in Scotland and we love Catriona! So needless to say, we already have our copy of The Witching Hour. How about the rest of you?

Photo of author Catriona McPherson

Serial awards-botherer, Catriona McPherson (she/her) was born in Scotland and immigrated to the US in 2010. She writes: preposterous 1930s private-detective stories, including September 2024’s THE WITCHING HOUR; realistic 1940s amateur-sleuth stories about a medical social worker; and contemporary psychological standalones. These are all set in Scotland with a lot of Scottish weather. She also writes modern comedies about a Scot out of water in a “fictional” college town in Northern California. She is a proud lifetime member and former national president of Sisters in Crime.  www.catrionamcpherson.com

 

 

Check Your Rearview Mirror

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I adore mysteries. As a reader, I carefully scour the page for clues and try to figure out “who done it.” Part of the fun is deciphering which are red herrings. If the ending has a surprising twist, I search out the breadcrumbs leading to the solution. If those tiny hints don’t lead me to an “A-hah” moment, I feel cheated. As a writer in this genre, I strive to balance a surprise conclusion without giving away the ending or misleading the reader. And sometimes that’s a hard thing to do.

Have you ever imagined an ingenious crime and know how the villain did it, but haven’t the foggiest idea of how to solve it? That’s where I recently found myself.

This Photo by Unknown Uthor is licensed unced CC_BY_SASo I decided to borrow an old screenwriter’s trick. In the mystery genre, the reader expects the stalwart detective to have discovered all clues and put them together by the end. So rather than driving my story engine from beginning to end, I threw it in reverse. I wrote the climax first.

Now that I knew how the mystery was solved, I could envision what must have happened immediately prior to that point and write that scene. I repeated this process. By retracing the steps that must have been taken, and only could have been taken to arrive at the ending, I dribbled out the clues in previous scenes. The middle of the story magically filled itself in.

But what is a mystery without red herrings? Just like authentic clues, the false trails can be reverse engineered and sprinkled throughout. The same goes for the B and C plots.

This technique may not work for all writers, but I found it a handy tool. First check your rearview mirrors before shifting into high gear.

Killing It at Killer Nashville

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At the Killer Nashville book signing

By Lois Winston

Most writers are introverts. We spend much of our days alone with only our laptops or computers (or paper and pen for those who are still old-school) and rarely step foot into the real world. We’d rather spend our time in the world of our imagination with the characters we’ve created. However, every now and then, we venture out onto Earth One and mingle with actual humans.

One of the best places to do this is at a writers’ conference. Hanging with our peeps is our happy place in the real world because they’re the only people who truly “get” us. Because they’re just like us. Writers’ conferences are a chance to spend time with others of our special community. We renew friendships, make new friends, network, learn from some, and teach others. Conferences also occasionally give us a pat on the back, validating that this odd life we’ve chosen, with all its solitary hours of clicking away at the keyboard, is worthwhile.

Such was the case this past weekend when I attended Killer Nashville. Once upon a time, I attended three or four writers’ conferences a year. Then, life changed. I made the decision to “go indie” and no longer had a publisher willing to pick up some or all the expense of attending conferences. Between the conference fee, airfare, hotel, and meals, conferences are not cheap. I cut back drastically, only attending local conferences.

And then Covid hit.

As some of you know, in the middle of the pandemic, my husband and I made the difficult decision to pack up and move to Tennessee to be closer to family. Within days of settling into our new home in July of 2021, I discovered that after a two-year hiatus, the annual Killer Nashville writing conference was about to take place less than two miles from where I now live. Serendipity!

With few exceptions, most writers are introverts. Hence, those writer caves. But I missed my writing peeps in New Jersey. Killer Nashville gave me a chance to connect face-to-face with many other writers I only knew from online writing communities. I also made some new friends and have continued to do so each year I’ve attended since 2021.

The 2024 Killer Nashville conference was this past weekend, and it was a blast, even for this confirmed introvert. On Friday, I was on a panel discussing Writing Compelling Synopsis, Back Cover Copy, and Design. Saturday, I was on two panels, One Trait at a Time: How to Build a Character and Not Just One Book: Writing a Series. I was also one of ten authors who allowed attendees to pick our brains for four minutes each during Speed Date your Way to Author Marketing Success. On Sunday, I was on the Creating an Irresistible Hook for Your Book panel and the Writing Strong Protagonists panel.

Vertically challenged Lois and Gay during an after-dinner stop for ice cream

And then there was Saturday night. Author Gay Yellen and I, along with our husbands, went out to dinner, something we’d also done last year. Upon returning to the hotel, our husbands headed for the bar while Gay and I ducked into the awards ceremony. Not ten seconds later, Clay Stafford, MC for the evening and Killer Nashville head honcho, announced the winner of the 2024 Silver Falchion Award for Best Comedy. Much to my surprise, he called my name!

I never expected to win. With few exceptions, throughout my writing career, I’ve always been the bridesmaid, rarely the bride. I hadn’t prepared any remarks because the one time I had attended the ceremony back in 2021, no one made any remarks. Winners were handed their awards, shook Clay’s hand, and a photographer snapped a picture. Maybe it was because we were all still coming out of Covid.

This time, I was expected to say something. My mind still reeling over actually winning, I stepped up to the mic and thanked whoever it was who’d determined that A Crafty Collage of Crime, the twelfth book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series, deserved the award this year. As I walked away, I heard Clay tell the audience that I was a woman of few words and there were probably plenty of people who wished that he was! (a person of few words, that is, not a woman!)

With my Best Comedy medal the next morning

Well, at least I didn’t bore anyone in the audience by droning on and on by thanking everyone, going all the way back to my kindergarten teacher!

Writers, what’s your favorite aspect of conferences? Readers, have you ever attended a readers’ convention or other book event? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free audiobook of any one of the first ten Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website where can also sign up for her newsletter and find links to her other social media: www.loiswinston.com

photo of umbrella and sun

Nancy J. Parra and the Dog Days of Summer

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with Sparkle Abbey

Today we’re thrilled to welcome longtime friend and fellow author Nancy J. Parra aka Nancy Coco aka Nell Hampton to the blog.  She’s a USA Today Bestselling Author and has over thrity-five published novels including five mystery series. And she’s also party to many of our conference adventures.  Nancy take it away…

Photo of Bichon FriseHi, ya’ll, thank you for letting me visit. I can’t believe how quickly summer has flown by this year. We’re in the dog days of summer now, which are technically July 3rd until August 11th, although that date has changed with the changing of the calendars. It’s still the hottest time of the year for the northern hemisphere. Are you feeling it? It’s hot and muggy here and it’s so easy to get heat stroke if you’re not careful.

I’ve been wondering for a long time why we call the hottest days the dog days. I mean, doggies are cute and sweet and silly. Then why name the hottest days after them? So, I looked it up.

It’s a very old idea whose history tells the tale of cultural minds. The whole thing began when we looked up in the sky and observed the dog star rising. People associated it with drought, storms, heat, human ailments, and mood changes. One culture said the dog days “made women wanton and the men feeble.”

But for us, it’s simply the hottest time of our year.

Still, it would make for an interesting twist in a mystery, wouldn’t it? Book cover for Three Fudges and a Baby

Allie McMurphy from Three Fudges and a Baby doesn’t think so. She has enough twists on her hands. Especially with handling her best friend, Jenn Christensen’s erratic moods. In her last few weeks of pregnancy where all she wants to do is get the baby out, Jenn’s doula is arrested for the murder of her fiancé.  Jenn has a meltdown. She’s tired of waddling, being unable to see her own feet and struggling to get up out of chairs. But she won’t have the baby without her doula and demands Allie as her best friend and the baby’s godmother to find the real killer. Perhaps the “dog days” could explain Jenn’s moods but nobody would dare tell her that. Besides it’s early May.

It’s a good thing Allie has her own cute pup who helps sniff out a killer before they all end up in the doghouse.

Tell me, how do you feel about the hottest days of the year? Are you someone who lives for them? Or are you ready to collect Halloween décor or start Christmas shopping?

Let me know your thoughts below and one lucky commenter will win a signed copy of Three Fudges and a Baby!

Nancy J Parra Photo

 

USA Today Bestselling Author, Nancy Coco AKA Nell Hampton AKA Nancy Parra is the author of over 35 published novels which include five mystery series: The Oregon Honey-comb Mystery Series (Kensington), The Candy-Coated Mysteries (Kensington), The Kensington Palace Mystery Series (Crooked Lane), The Wine Country Tours Mystery Series (Crooked Lane) The Gluten-free Baker’s Treat Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime), and The Perfect Proposal Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime).  Her writing has been called witty and her protagonists plucky by reviewers around the world.  Nancy is a member of Sisters in Crime and loves to hear from readers.

You can find her at:

Website

Facebook

Bookbub

 

Thanks for hanging out with The Stiletto Gang today, Nancy! We’ll be interested in everyone’s thoughts on the hottest days of the year. We’d have to say that we’ve had some challenging weather here lately and we’re definitely ready for some cooler days.

Wishing you and the rest of the gang a great rest of the summer!

Sparkle Abbey 

And the Short Story Award Goes To . . .

/in , , , /by

by Paula Gail Benson

It’s awards season again. Here are short story and anthology categories for Macavity, Anthony, and Silver Falchion awards. I’ll also note that the Short Mystery Fiction Society is currently polling its membership concerning a new anthology category to be added to the Derringers.

Many events on the horizon!

Mystery Readers Internation Macavity Awards Finalists

Best Mystery Short Story:

  • Barb Goffman:“Real Courage” (Black Cat Mystery Magazine #14, Oct. 2023)
  • Curtis Ippolito:“Green and California Bound” (Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, Sept/Oct 2023)
  • Dru Ann Love & Kristopher Zgorski:“Ticket to Ride” (Happiness is a Warm Gun: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of The Beatles, ed. Josh Pachter, Down & Out Books)
  • Lisa Scottoline:“Pigeon Tony’s Last Stand” (Amazon Original Stories)
  • Stacy Woodson:“One Night in 1965” (More Groovy Gumshoes: Private Eyes in the Psychedelic Sixties, ed. Michael Bracken, Down & Out Books)

Anthony Award Finalists (to be given at Bouchercon)

BEST ANTHOLOGY/COLLECTION

  • School of Hard Knox, edited by Donna Andrews, Greg Herren, and Art Taylor
  • Here in the Dark: Stories by Meagan Luca
  • Happiness Is a Warm Gun: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of The Beatles, edited by Josh Pachter
  • The Adventure of the Castle Thief and Other Expeditions and Indiscretions by Art Taylor
  • Killin’ Time in San Diego: Bouchercon Anthology 2023, edited by Holly West

BEST SHORT STORY

  • “Real Courage” by Barb Goffman
  • “Knock” by James D.F. Hannah
  • “Green and California Bound” by Curtis Ippolito
  • “Ticket to Ride” by Dru Ann Love and Kristopher Zgorski
  • “Tell Me No Lies” by Holly West

Silver Falchion Award Finalists (to be given at Killer Nashville)

BEST ANTHOLOGY (AWARDED TO INDIVIDUAL AUTHOR OR COLLECTION EDITOR)

  • The Black Hole of Pastrami by Jeffrey Feingold
  • There Is No death in Finding Nemo by Jeffrey Feingold
  • Paper Walls/Glass Houses by Richard Helms
  • Blues City Clues edited by Carolyn McSparren, Angelyn Sherrod, and James Paavola
  • Obsession by Multiple Authors
  • Hook, Line, and Sinker: The Seventh Guppy Anthology edited by Emily Murphy