Mike Befeler's Blog, page 50

Platform Tennis Mystery Novel

This week I received advance reader copies of my next mystery novel titled, Court Trouble, a Platform Tennis Mystery. I have played platform tennis for the last twenty years, love the sport and wanted to incorporate it into a mystery novel. The result will be published July 20, 2016.I enjoyed setting a mystery in the world of platform tennis. It’s a racquet sport played with a paddle and specially designed ball. The court is a third the size of a tennis court and surrounded by a wire mesh fence. The rules are similar to tennis except you only have one serve and you can play the ball off the fence (like in racquetball) after the ball has hit the court (you can’t hit the fence first). It’s a great doubles game for players of all ages.In Court Trouble when Mark Yeager’s friend is bludgeoned to death in the dark on a platform tennis court, Mark becomes an amateur sleuth to find which of the four suspects is the murderer. Avoiding attempts on his life, he must crack the case and figure out how to save the courts from being shut down by the city while waiting for doctor’s results on whether he is cancer-free after his bout with prostate cancer.  

The Great Bean War - A Memory of Childhood

Friendships can begin in strange ways.  That’s exactly what happened with Ronald Morgan and me.
A large shower tree dominated our yard.  When it blossomed, the sky came alive with yellow flowers.  The branches meant adventure for a young climber, providing a platform for forts or a place to spy upon people walking below.  But one of the unique aspects of this shower tree was the size of the hard black beans.  Up to two feet long and one inch in diameter, these objects were a nuisance to anyone mowing the lawn but a delight to me.  I’d crack them open and extract the sticky seeds, leaving a succulent mess on the lawn.  On more than one occasion these beans became weapons of mass destruction: swords, missiles, guns, and led inexorably to the great bean war.
Eleven-year olds are territorial.  I guarded my yard and shower tree against stray cats, dogs and, of course, uninvited human intruders.  So one day this new kid in the neighborhood showed up and stood across the alley staring at me.  Someone stuck out a tongue, someone called the other a name.  We faced each other like gunfighters in the middle of a dusty western town.  I reached down, picked up a bean and hurled it at the evil stranger.  He dodged, retrieved the bean and shot it back just missing my head.  The duel was on.  We assumed positions, me behind the trunk of my trusty tree and the invader behind a wall across the alley.
It was the right season to stock us with an ample supply of ammunition.  Beans began to fly back and forth across the alley.  We both intended to draw blood, inflict a severe wound, make the other cry and beg for mercy.
I was never so alive, intent upon victory, dancing, ducking, daring my enemy to show his face.
Then someone grabbed my arm.  “What do you think you’re doing?” my mother screamed.
How could I tell her that it was my sacred duty to protect the old homestead from cattle wranglers or space invaders?
“Just a little bean war,” I said, biting my lip.  She dragged me out into the alley and called out to my antagonist.
“You boys quit this fighting and shake hands,” she commanded.
We eyed each other like we had seen something a dog left on the curb.
“Shake hands,” came the repeated command.
Two dirty hands unwillingly reached out and grasped.
That was the beginning of a wonderful friendship.

Left Coast Crime Conference Was a Blast

It has taken be several days to decompress from the Left Coast Crime Conference held this last week in Phoenix. I had the pleasure of speaking with many mystery fans and authors and participating in numerous events. I like collecting sound bites at conferences. Here are a few for you:
“Being an athlete is a moratorium on growing up.”
“Write what you want to know.”
When commenting on writing standalone versus series, Thomas Perry said, “One at a time is good fishing.”
One author commented on a reader who said, “I got to page 321 of your 325 page book and just couldn’t read any farther.”
“Writing is like digging a hole with your face.”
“Mysteries are writing to heal the world.”Here's the audience at the Meet the New Author's Breakfast, which I had the pleasure of moderating:  

Political Christians

I’m dismayed at the mean-spirited politicians who claim to be Christians. They certainly aren’t following the teachings of Jesus who advocated inclusiveness, forgiveness, compassion and love. His message was one of including others whether of different backgrounds or occupations. He reached out to people in need rather than advocating sending them back where they came from. He taught love your neighbor and enemy not berating them at every chance. It’s too bad these teachings from two-thousand years ago have been lost in political rhetoric.

Meet the New Authors Breakfast at LCC2016

I have the honor to host the Meet the New Authors Breakfast at the Left Coast Crime Conference in Phoenix on Friday morning, February 26 at 7:30. This will be the ninth year of the breakfast event featuring authors who have a first mystery/crime/thriller novel published between January 1, 2015 and the end of February, 2016. When we first held the event in 2008, there were fifteen new authors. As of right now, we have thirty-seven new authors for this year’s event. Each of the new authors will have one minute to tell the audience the most important thing to know about their debut novel. Our illustrious time keeper is Rochelle Staab, author of the Mind for Murder Mystery Series. Rochelle has a stop sign that she waves when the one minute is up. Stay tuned for further reports after the conference.

Left Coast Crime Conference

One of my favorite events is the Left Coast Crime Conference, which takes place in Feb or March in the western part of the country. This year it’s Feb. 25-28 in Phoenix. I’ll be moderating the Meet the New Authors Breakfast Friday morning at 7:30. Right now we have 37 new authors with a first mystery published between Jan. 1, 2015, and the end of Feb. 2016. They will each give a one minute presentation on the most important thing readers should know about their debut novel.
I’ll also be on a panel Sunday morning at 9:30, titled Murder on the Go —Mysteries with Travel and Transportation Themes, with authors Stacy Allen, Janet Dawson, Patricia Gulley, Nancy G. West and Philip Reed.
Phoenix here we come.

Watching Myself

Do you ever find that you’re watching yourself?
I’ve had this experience.  I’ll be in a meeting or writing event and suddenly, I find I’m observing myself and what I’m saying as if I were an impartial third party.  I wonder what he’s going to say.  Oh, that’s how he sounds.  He’s making a good point.  How will the others respond?  That’s a stupid thing to say.  Will others catch it?
Or when playing sports, I’ve found myself “watching” my pickleball strokes or the way I hit a golf ball.
Or at a party I suddenly am observing myself and listening to what I’m saying.
It’s like a mini-out-of-body experience, watching myself as an independent observer.
And what do I discover?  I’m just like everyone else, no better, no worse.No brilliant repartee--just making my fair share of comments, some on track and some not.

Perspective

Perspective changes over time.  The view I had of the world as a child, as an adult and now in retirement has changed.  True, there are some basic core beliefs that have remained unchanged, but time does sand the wood block of our minds.  If I divide my life into the rough three period of under twenty, twenty to fifty-five and over fifty-five, there are defining events that dictate the overriding perspective I held at each period.  The first period was growing up.  In the second period I was an adult getting married, raising children, pursuing a career.  In the third period change is taking place once again.  The kids are gone, off establishing their own lives, and I have retired into writing.
So how do some simple concepts look through the same pair of eyes from each of these three different perspectives of time and age?  Take a home.  As a child we lived in the same place all my growing up years.  It was the base.  It was just there, and I didn’t question it.  As an adult it was up to my wife  and me to make it happen.  We lived in two apartments and two houses.  What has been common with my youth is to keep it as a base.  But now in the third stage, I have a different perspective about our home.  After thinking we would never leave Boulder, Colorado, we moved last June to Lakewood, California to help with child care for our grandson born in June. 
School is another activity that I’ve had very different perspectives on during the three stages.  In stage one I was attending.  It was something I was expected to do and did.  It was the center of my life except when escaping during the summer.  It was my job.  On the whole I enjoyed school.  It was the focal point for achievement and preparation for the future.
In stage two school became where my children lived.  I went to teacher conferences, plays, concerts and sporting events there.  I helped out periodically.  Then I got into teaching at the University of Colorado.  This was a chance to give back and also learn from the students.  School in this stage was something I either observed or conducted.
In stage three I went back to school taking a fiction writing class for two semesters.  The University of Colorado let’s residents audit courses for free if they are over fifty-five  and get the instructor’s permission.  I enjoyed being back and learning and this helped launch my writing career. So elements of my perspective have changed over time as I’ve developed more life experience to play upon, but there remains the continuity of essential core values.

Challenges Authors Face in the Publishing World

I have listened to the stories of fellow authors who have been orphaned by their publishers or had to deal with publishers discontinuing publication. This is a common occurrence in today’s publishing environment.
I have the good fortune to have seven mystery novels published through the Five Star (a part of Gale/Cengage Learning) mystery line. This includes six books in the Paul Jacobson Geezer-lit Mystery Series and a standalone, Mystery of the Dinner Playhouse. I also have a historical mystery, Murder on the Switzerland Trail, published through Five Star’s Frontier Line of western books. Unfortunately, Five Star has decided to exit the mystery publishing business while continuing with the western line. I had high hopes of continuing to publish mystery books with Five Star, but this will no longer be possible after one final book, Court Trouble: A Platform Tennis Mystery, that is still scheduled to be released in July, 2016.
So for my final Five Star publication, here is what you can expect: When Mark Yeager’s friend is bludgeoned to death in the dark on a platform tennis court, Mark becomes an amateur sleuth to find which of the four suspects is the murderer. Avoiding attempts on his life, he cracks the case, saves the courts from being shut down by the city and learns that he is cancer-free after his bout with prostrate cancer.

Things

I’m not into things.  I don’t have a desire to own or collect things.  I don’t feel any compunction to get a bigger house, fancier car, new furniture, expensive adult toys or stylish clothes.  What I have right now is just fine, thank you.
At the heart of it, I hate to shop.
When it’s time to get a new car, I usually dread the experience, then finally get involved in the project of researching options and finally take care of it.  But my reaction isn’t, “Oh, boy.  I get to buy a new car.”  Instead I feel, “Groan, I have to buy a new car.”
Whether I need a new pair of pants or shoes, I want to rush into the first store I find, grab the first thing I see off the shelf and get out.  I don’t enjoy window shopping or shopping for what’s behind the window.
Consequently, if I never had to buy anything again, I’d be perfectly happy.  Part of it is I don’t like spending money, but mainly I’m not interested in things.
Even when playing sports, I’m not interested in the equipment.  If a pickle ball paddle lasted forever, that would be just fine by me.  I tend to use things until they fall apart.
I don’t collect stamps or coins, but I do enjoy collecting shells when I’m at a beach.  That’s more like finding unexpected treasure.
So when I die, my kids shouldn’t expect to inherit much in the way of accumulated material objects of value.  We saved money for retirement so whatever is left, they will get, but other than the house, that’s about it.
I had a lot of books at one time, but when we moved last year, I gave most of those away. 
For birthdays or Christmas I’m no longer interested in getting things.  I have what I need.  Sure I like new books, will wear the clothes I’m given and love the chocolate while it lasts, but the present mentality I had as a kid has been tempered over the years.  I look forward to our family gatherings when we’re able to get together.  I prefer presence to presents.