Tag Archive for: Clicking Our Heels

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Clicking Our Heels – Favorite Musical Instruments – One We Dream of or One We Actually Play

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Clicking Our Heels Featured ImageClicking Our Heels – Favorite Musical Instruments – One We Dream of or One We Actually Play

donalee Moulton – If I could play a musical instrument, and sadly I don’t, I’d like to think it would be something offbeat and out there, like the glass armonica invented by Benjamin Franklin. Most likely, when forced to make a decision, I would opt for something more practical and familiar, like the piano. But I would rest a wine glass in the corner to remind me of what could have been.

Mary Lee Ashford – I play piano – not well but I play – but only with sheet music in front of me. I very much wish I could play by ear. I envy those who can hear a song and pick it out on an instrument after hearing it. My husband can do that. And his late sister, Joy, was a master at it. What a gift!

Gay Yellen – I would have kept up my piano lessons.

Bethany Maines – I think if I was forced to pick, I’d like the cello. I love the deep, resonant sound it produces. That being said, learning any instrument just looks hard. My daughter took up clarinet last year, and I was impressed that her instructor got any noise out of them, let alone an entire classful of kids to make a recognizable song. I think music is one of the miracles of human existence.

Lois Winston – Piano, but I wound up taking violin lessons because a relative had a violin that wasn’t being used, and my parents wouldn’t buy a piano. After my husband and I bought our first house, we purchased a used upright for $75, and I began taking lessons. Then I became pregnant, and it was just too tiring to work all day and come home to practice in the evening

Debra H. Goldstein – I’ve always thought the harp has a romantic look to it, but being practical, I play piano.

Judy Penz Sheluk – I wish. In grade 9 we had to pick an instrument. By the time I sauntered in, the only one left was the viola. Let’s just say “resin your bow” became my teacher’s desperate plea. I’m sure he was grateful I dropped the class in grade 10. But since then I’ve seen fabulous violin/viola players in rock bands and folk groups. Maybe if I’d stuck with it…but then I remember that I always forgot to resin my bow.

Kathleen Kaska – I’ve always wanted to learn how to play the piano.

Saralyn Richard – I’ve played the piano since I was five years old, but not consistently, and not very well. I don’t have my piano anymore, but keep thinking that one day I will get another one and resume lessons.

T.K. Thorne – I play the piano, and I wish I could play it.

 

 

 

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Clicking Our Heels – Some of Our Favorite Things

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Clicking Our Heels

Some of Our Favorite Things

Welcome to 2026. This year, the gang wants to give you more insight into all of us. That’s why our theme each month will address something personal or share some of our favorite things. This month, the topic is what would surprise you, our readers, most about each of us.

T.K. Thorne: I am a short, grey-headed, sweet old lady, and I get a chuckle out of the typical disbelieving reaction when people learn I was a police captain.

Saralyn Richard: I’m super organized when it comes to my house, my closet, and my former work as a school administrator and consultant, but my writing desk and first drafts are rather chaotic. I can’t explain this dichotomy, except that creative work may involve the opposite side of my brain.

Kathleen Kaska: I’m a Yankees fan.

Judy Penz Sheluk: Probably that I listen to talk radio while I write. And that I can’t write if there’s music on in the background because I find it too distracting.

Lois Winston: I hate peanut butter! Can’t even stand the smell of it. It triggers my gag reflexes. When my kids were little, I had to hold my breath while making them PB&J sandwiches.

Bethany Maines: I think that most readers would be surprised by how instantly anxious I get when someone says those fearsome words “I read your book.” Because I never know what is going to come next.

Gay Yellen: Readers seem to love the passages in my books involving food. But I do not cook. I just like to eat, and so does my protagonist!

Mary Lee Ashford: I’m not sure readers would be surprised by much of anything because I share a lot of things about my crazy life and my loves with them. I guess I don’t talk much about what I did before retirement because boring… So I guess readers might be surprised to know I spent 30 plus years as a public servant, at first in Customer Service aka complaint central, then as a Management Analyst/Congressional Liaison, and then a Business Analyst, and finally as the Deputy Director of Information Technology.

Donalee Moulton: That depends, to a certain extent, on what book they’ve just read. If it’s Hung Out to Die, my first mystery novel, readers will be surprised to learn I do not drink coffee (at least with caffeine) and I do not like donairs. (I hope they would not be surprised to learn I am not a psychopath.) Readers of Bind and Melt might come to believe I have a penchant for PowerPoint presentations. I do not.

Debra H. Goldstein: That I’m shy.

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Clicking Our Heels – Jobs Each of Us Would Never Want

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Clicking Our Heels Featured ImageClicking Our Heels – The Job Each of Us Would Never Want

In addition to being authors, many of the Stiletto Gang members have or still are working other day jobs. Some of the jobs include government worker, judge, graphic designer, police officer, newspaper reporter, and realtor. Because most of us thrived with our chosen duo career paths, we thought an interesting Clicking Our Heels would be what job or profession each of us would never want.

Donalee Moulton – Cod dewormer. Really, really don’t want to do this.

Gay Yellen – Garbageman. Imagine smelling the stink of it all day, every day, for years and years.

Judy Penz Sheluk – Flight attendant. I absolutely hate airports and flying, not to mention that I’m a complete homebody. Plus, I’d have to put up with all sorts of rude or entitled behavior, and smile while doing it. Not sure I’d be equal to that task.

Anita Carter – Anything medical. I don’t have the stomach for it.

Debra H. Goldstein – Being only a retiree. I’d go crazy.

Mary Lee Ashford – I know some people say they would never want to waitress. Or work in retail. Or man a front desk. I’ve done all those and found them both challenging and entertaining. They are fabulous jobs for observing people. There are a couple of professions that I would not want to take on, though: Stockbroker – too stressful. Factory worker – too monotonous. And I think I’d be horrible at both.

Paula Benson – I admire greatly the women who were the “human computers” in Hidden Figures, but I could not imagine undertaking their responsibilities.

Bethany Maines – Anything in corporate middle management. The cubicle is not my friend.

Donnell Ann Bell – I don’t think I would want the job of a police officer. They require nerves of steel, a heart of gold, patience of a saint, and courage when they’re most afraid.

Saralyn Richard – When I taught public speaking to high schoolers, I challenged them to come up with an occupation that doesn’t require good speaking skills. To my surprise, one student said, “I know one! A fisherman.” I had to smile. Although I pointed out that the fisherman must use speaking skills to sell his fish, the student had a point. So, I wouldn’t want to be a fisherman. Hours of silence would not be healthy for a person with many stories to tell. Also, I wouldn’t want to bait my own hooks.

T.K. Thorne – A cashier has always seemed an awful way to make a living, but my cousin has done it for many years and enjoys the interactions with people, so maybe it is not as bad as some jobs where you are isolated from that altogether. Our world has changed with the ability to work remotely, but I think that may take a toll on us eventually. Like everything else, it has positive and negative consequences.

Lois Winston – I would never want to be a politician because no matter what you do or don’t do, you always have too many people angry with you.

 

 

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Clicking Our Heels – Our Thoughts on the Most Beautiful Thing in Nature

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Clicking Our Heels Featured ImageClicking Our Heels – Our Thoughts on the Most Beautiful Thing in Nature

Some of us are city folks, some love the outdoors and nature. Today, the gang members share our thoughts on what we each believe to be the most beautiful thing in nature.

Donnell Ann Bell – Banff Canada and the amazing waterfalls and hiking trails. Zion National Park in Utah for its colorful rock formations. The Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. The wildlife in my former neighborhood, everything from deer, bobcats, bears, turkey, geese, oh my!

Bethany Maines – Probably Bryce Canyon. It’s unforgettable, unique and different in every light. Go visit.

Gay Yellen – Almost any National Park will do, but back when there were actual glaciers in Glacier National Park, every sight was breathtaking.

Mary Lee Ashford – There are so many beautiful places and gorgeous spaces around us. I’m a beach person and the first thing that came to mind with this question was a particular sunset in Hawaii. The colors were mind-blowing, the sea air was so soft, and the sound of the waves so calming that it was like time stood still for a breath.

T.K. Thorne – I have written about beauty and how it is entirely a construct of our minds. It does not exist outside of our interpretation of the world. LOL, that is a “TK answer,” isn’t it? Most beautiful things I have seen: a baby’s first smile; missing my father and stumbling upon a field of sunlit blue wildflowers; the majesty of the Grand Canyon and New Zealand’s Milford Sound; and the ever-changing diversity of my little garden pond.

Lois Winston – A star-filled sky. Because of ambient light, it’s been decades since I’ve seen one.

Saralyn Richard – The calving of the Hubbard Glacier in Alaska. It was an extraordinarily hot day, and the pieces of ice literally exploded from the glacier, forming smoke, shapes, and splashes.

Paula G. Benson – A clear, blue, sunny sky—what my Grandfather called, “October’s bright blue weather, after Helen Hunt Jackson’s poem.

Judy Penz Sheluk – Watching the sun set while sitting on our waterfront deck on Lake Superior, especially in summer. It’s a new view every night, and it’s almost always spectacular.

Anita Carter – The Redwoods. It’s vibrant, lush, and surprisingly quiet. So quiet you can hear nature grow. Absolutely amazing.

Donalee Moulton – Sable Island, Nova Scotia, a thin crescent of shifting sand at the edge of the Continental Shelf that wild horses, grey seals, and one-of-a-kind plants, birds, and insects call home. There are also more than 350 shipwrecks surrounding this Graveyard of the Atlantic.

Debra H. Goldstein – Niagara Falls.

 

 

 

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Clicking Our Heels – Secret Passions

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Clicking Our Heels Featured ImageClicking Our Heels – Secret Passions

Judy Penz Sheluk – I’m addicted to watching competition baking shows, though bran muffins out of a boxed mix is about as adventurous as I’ve gotten. But I’d love to learn to create wonderful cakes and cookies.

Mary Lee Ashford – Not really a secret passion or at least not in terms of a hidden talent or something I could reasonably pursue. I love music and sure wish I had some talent there. But sadly, that gene skipped me. I will say that I’ve always loved to travel and while we took trips when we could, careers and raising a family took priority. So now in retirement, I’m hopeful that maybe that passion for exploring the rest of the world can take on a new life.

Debra H. Goldstein – To write the great American novel – or at least to keep writing books and stories readers enjoy for a long, long time.

Anita Carter – I enjoy cooking and baking when I have time, but I’m not great at either. Maybe when I retire I should take lessons.

Gay Yellen – I’ve done my share of exciting things in life, and I hope there are more to come. But if I had one wish, I’d love to win the biggest lottery in history and use all the money to improve education and healthcare in this country.

Donalee Moulton – I would love to be a rock star. One problem: I can’t sing.

Lois Winston – Two, but neither will ever come to fruition. I’ve always wanted to go up in space, but I’m too prone to motion sickness for that to ever happen. I also wanted to star on Broadway, but Broadway isn’t interested in singers who can’t sing, dancers who can’t dance, and actors who can’t act.

T.K. Thorne – I think I always wanted to be a visual artist. I never considered I could do it, actually. Until Covid, that was a dormant desire, but I tried it, and no one was more surprised than I was by what has come from it!

Saralyn Richard – My passion for writing had to take a back seat for decades, when I was a teacher, administrator, and school improvement consultant. Finally, in 2013, passion and aptitude met opportunity, and eight books later, I’m living my best life.

Donnell Ann Bell – Not really. I’m a pragmatist. I would like to meet a former critique partner who I lost contact with years ago. He was such a mystery in the first place I would have no idea where to start. He belonged to my online mystery critique group and simply disappeared. He was a great critique partner – helped many of us out, especially when it came to geopolitics and geography.

Bethany Maines – I don’t know about dormant, but I would like to do more travelling, but the budget does not always accommodate my desires.

Paula G. Benson – I’m fortunate to have indulged in my secret passion of performing, writing, and directing theater productions. I’m grateful my church allows me to organize its drama ministry.

 

 

Clicking Our Heels – Do You Prefer Amateur or Professional Sleuths?

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Clicking Our Heels Featured ImageClicking Our Heels – Do You Prefer Amateur or Professional Sleuths?

Lois Winston – I prefer to write about amateur sleuths because I find them fun to write. The amateur sleuth is the quintessential fish-out-of-water story, and as a writer, I can be very creative with that sort of character.

T.K. Thorne – I prefer professional sleuths because, as a former one, I get frustrated with how amateurs have to do things!

Saralyn Richard – Each has its place in the mystery genre. I love the fresh perspective of an amateur sleuth, who stumbles into solving a mystery, but I’m also intrigued by the many strategies a professional detective can use to find truth and bring about justice.

Donnell Ann Bell – It depends. Sounds wishy washy, right? But sometimes light reading is just what the doctor ordered. There are also times a cozy author surprises me by allowing an amateur sleuth to get into some harrowing misadventures (Lois Winston is a great example). But I admit I love thrillers and police procedures. I just finished Barbara Nickless’s The Drowning Game, largely set in Singapore, and I did a beta read for Author Joyce Woollcott whose police procedure is set in Ireland. These authors are so good I feel like I’ve traveled 😊

Bethany Maines – I personally find the research required to make a professional sleuth character believable daunting and prefer amateurs. I also like the element of uncertainty an amateur brings to the table. The reader doesn’t expect them to be Sherlock Holmes and have it all figured out. Being an amateur allows my characters to make mistakes and mistakes make for more interesting reading.

Paula G. Benson – I grew up loving amateur sleuths, but VI Warshawski convinced me that professional sleuths, particularly female ones, were fabulous. Now, I must have both.

Donalee Moulton – At present, I’m leaning toward amateur. I have more freedom and flexibility with how my characters do things – and how they can mess up. But there is a shift in the wind. I have been writing short stories with two new main characters: one is a lawyer and the other a private detective.

Gay Yellen – Samantha Newman, the main character in my mystery series, is an amateur sleuth. However, I enjoy reading other novels that feature professional detectives, too.

Judy Penz Sheluk – No preference. I’ve written and read both. Amateur can be easier, because the author can take more liberties with solving the crime. That said, professional sleuths can be both educational and entertaining.

Debra H. Goldstein – Amateur sleuths come more naturally for me because if the character makes a mistake (because of how I write), it happens. If a professional makes a mistake, I’ve missed something in my research and the readers can rightfully complain.

Mary Lee Ashford – I really do like both for different reasons. The amateur sleuth can fly under the radar on an investigation and often uncover clues that may not be apparent to the professionals. Often they are more adept at getting people to talk and so it can make for some very interesting investigations. On the other hand, the professionals don’t have quite the same restrictions as the amateur. The investigating detective has access to all sorts of intel that isn’t available to the amateur sleuth. Which is probably why so many of us pair the two in order to take advantage of the strengths of both.

Anita Carter – Amateur sleuth. I love reading and writing about the everyday person rising to the occasion and solving the puzzle.

 

 

 

Clicking Our Heels – Reflections on Being a Member of the Stiletto Gang

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Clicking Our Heels-Reflections on Being a Member of the Stiletto Gang

As we begin a new year as the Stiletto Gang, we took the time to reflect on what we each like best about being part of the gang. We also wonder what you, our readers, like best about the Stiletto Gang?

Barbara J. Eikmeier –  I really enjoy the community and how I’ve gotten to know the other gang members through their blog posts even though I’ve only met one in person.

Saralyn Richard – Getting to know other mystery authors who share the milieu with me. We are all different, but we share many of the same values and aspirations.

Dru Ann Love – I like the variety of genres that the group writes.

T.K. Thorne – The comradery of the group. We support each other in lots of ways. And the fact that being responsible to others lights a fire under my butt to write something for my day… sometimes even on my day, but I get it done.

Debra H. Goldstein – I value the friendship and respect we have for each other plus the way we support each other behind the scenes.

Lois Winston – The comraderie and support I receive from my fellow Stilettos. Many have become dear friends, some personally and unfortunately, others only virtually.

Lynn McPherson/Sydney Leigh – It’s the comraderie. Writers supporting writers.

Gay Yellen – It’s the camaraderie. We may be separated by geography and backgrounds, but we share a kinship that seems to deepen as we reveal more about our lives, our thoughts, and our common goal to write good books.

Donnell Ann Bell – I love that the Stiletto Gang members are a great support group. Whether celebrating one another’s joy, or commiserating over someone’s loss, The Stiletto Gang are a compassionate, intelligent, and talented bunch. I’m proud to be listed among them.

Debra Sennefelder – Being a part of a group of wonderful, supportive writers. Community is everything in this business.

Anita Carter (1/2 of Sparkle Abbey) – I love the support and camaraderie of other women mystery writers. It’s a fabulous community! And I find great books to read.

Mary Lee Ashford (1/2 of Sparkle Abbey) – What I love best about being a Stiletto Gang member is the camaraderie and support that the group provides. The publishing business is brutal and having a group of fellow authors who understand and care is priceless.

Bethany Maines – Being exposed to so many great writers!

Clicking Our Heels – Our New Year’s Resolutions

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Clicking Our Heels – Our New Year’s Resolutions

Every year, we make New Year’s Resolutions (or at least most of us do). This year, we are going to share our resolutions with you and have the courage to check back and report to you how we did later in the year.

Kathryn Lane – Balancing work and play, being consistent about exercising, and making time to relax.

T.K. Thorne – I want to spend less time on a computer.

Shari Randall/Meri Allen – I’m the worst about resolutions. My resolution is not to make any!

Mary Lee Ashford – 2022 was a big year for me as I retired after 32 years of working in local government. So needless to say, it’s been an adjustment year for me. In the past, I’ve always started the year with a list of goals – some work related, some writing related, and others more general and personal. This year my New Year’s Resolution is to slow down and take time to focus on the most important things.

Donnell Ann Bell – As I write this, I am really working hard at diet an exercise. (I’ll let you know how I’m doing by New Years. I have a book due!

Lynn McPherson – My New Year’s Resolution is to be more organized. Yes, it’s been on the top of the list before and I have yet to succeed, but maybe this year I’ll sort myself out. I also want to bake more. Cupcakes, muffins, and cookies. Fresh baked everything is my favorite!

Debra H. Goldstein – To relax and accept what I cannot change, but to go full steam ahead with the things I can control.

Barbara J. Eikmeier – I don’t make Jan 1 resolutions.  I use my birthday as my personal New Year and I do make a list of “goals”. They generally have to do with wellness but in 2011 I set of a goal of teaching myself how to bake pies!

Debra Sennefelder – I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions. I stopped that a long time ago. Instead, I focus on goals. Right now I’m in the process of working on my goals for the upcoming year.

Dru Ann Love – I learned not to make resolutions.

Lois Winston – I gave up making New Year’s resolutions years ago.

Linda Rodriguez – I’ve stopped making New Year’s resolutions. I do always try to take the last few days of year to do some reflecting over what has happened during the year and what I feel about it and also to look at things I would like to carry with me into the new year. So, rather than resolutions, I tend to set one or two guide words or phrases for the coming year, such as Peace, More Pleasure, Health and Strength, etc.

Saralyn Richard – My most memorable New Year’s resolution was made when I’d lived in Chicago for about three years. I promised myself I wouldn’t complain about the winter weather. (Complaining accomplished nothing, anyway.) What I found when I stopped complaining was that the winter months went by quite painlessly. I don’t live in Chicago anymore, but my resolutions are always based on that theme–I try to be as grateful as possible throughout the year, no matter what befalls me. Gratitude is my resolution.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clicking Our Heels – Fall is Here!

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Clicking Our Heels – Fall is Here!!!

Fall is here! It should be no surprise that each member of the Gang has a different thought about Fall.

Debra H. Goldstein – Although I hate to see the leaves drop, Fall means I don’t have to worry about keeping my white pants clean.

Shari Randall/Meri Allen – Fall has the most beautiful weather, yes? I love the changing leaves and swishing through piles of fallen ones.

Kathryn Lane – The turning of the aspen in the mountains of New Mexico.

T.K. Thorne – In addition to escape from the Alabama summer heat, I love the colors, goldenrod abloom in the fields, and riding my horse in the woods. Fall was my mother’s favorite season and I try to inhale it for her.

Mary Lee Ashford – I absolutely love fall! It’s my favorite season. I love the brisk temps, the gorgeous fall colors, and all the fall activities. When I was younger fall also always meant back-to-school and unlike some kids I looked forward to returning to school. To this day, I still get excited when they start advertising school supplies. So, give me a steaming cup of cider, a thick cozy sweater, and a bonfire and I’m content. Oh, and a book, of course!

Lynn McPherson – I love the colors and the weather. Time for hot chocolate, fireplaces, and a good book.

Debra Sennefelder – Where should I start? Fall is my favorite season. Boots. Sweaters. Pumpkin everything. Halloween-themed mysteries. I could go on.
Lois Winston – The cooler temperatures, especially since I’m now living in the south. And I thought August in New Jersey was bad!

Linda Rodriguez – Fall is my favorite season. I don’t know if it’s because my birthday is in fall, or because school starts in fall, and in my childhood, school was a sanctuary and a blessed place. I love the colorful leaves, the cooler temperatures, the crisp air, the beautiful skies, and the sense of being on the cusp of something brand new and exciting that fall always brings. Fall is the traditional New Year time for the Cherokee.

Saralyn Richard – When I was teaching in the Midwest, I used to love the crisp chill in the air and the crunching of leaves underfoot, the sweet, juicy apples, and the anticipation of new relationships and experiences that come with another year back at school.

Dru Ann Love – Get to wear a coat and can use staying indoors as an excuse.

Donnell Ann Bell – Cooler weather. I live in the Southwest. Our falls are gorgeous and so are the sunsets.

Clicking Our Heels – Physically Moving Outside Our Comfort Zones?

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Clicking Our Heels –
Physically Moving Outside Our Comfort Zones?

In last month’s Clicking Our Heels blog post we
discussed our favorite forms of exercise. Our answers were quite varied, but
what if we had an opportunity to physically move outside our comfort zones?
What if we had the option to skydive, bungee jump, mountain climb, or ??? –
would we or would we opt to be couch potatoes?

 

Mary Lee Ashford: Oh, no. No skydiving, bungee jumping, or
mountain climbing for me. Boating could be a yes, but I would undoubtedly take
a book along.

 

Bethany Maines: I’ve been indoor skydiving (total blast), I
would go bungee jumping given the opportunity, I’ve hiked up a few mountains,
and I like being a couch potato but usually someone in my family is hogging it.
Frequently, it’s the dog.

 

Gay Yellen: The beautiful city park across the street makes
for easy, almost daily walking jaunts.

 

Lynn Mcpherson: I’ve been skydiving three times. It was
amazing. I’m not good at sitting around. I like to get outside and have some
fun.

 

Donnell Bell:  I love
taking hills, not necessarily mountains-I tried that and lost two toenails!!

 

Barbara J. Eikmeier: I would be willing to go zip lining.

 

Lynn C. Willis: Oh, mountain climbing! I have books on
training to climb Everest but have recently realized I don’t like the cold.

 

Lois Winston: None of the above. However, I do love to take
long walks.

 

Robin Hillyer-Miles: I like hiking. I am not a dare devil!

 

Dru Ann Love: Definitely a couch potato. Give me a sci-fi
movie and I’m in heaven.

 

Kathryn Lane: Love mountain climbing!

 

Debra Sennefelder: No to everything in that question. LOL I
won’t climb a mountain, but I love a good hike. So there you have my level of
adventure.

 

Anita Carter: If those are my only choice, I guess I’m a
couch potato. LOL The most adventurous active I’ve ever done was ziplining.

 

Linda Rodriguez: I love the idea of bungee jumping with my
walker with specialized support for my wrecked shoulder. I think I’ll go with
that.

 

Shari Randall: No, thank you! Couch for me!

 

Debra H. Goldstein: All of these require exertion – even
getting on and off the couch. I think I’ll take a long hot bath while reading a
good gossipy magazine.