Lea Wait's Blog, page 274

Six Lessons – Part Two (with more to come . . .)

By Brenda Buchanan

Last month I shared three important lessons I learned while writing my first three books. Barbara  Ross summed them up nicely in her comment: Make time. Make space. Seek balance.

My intention with this month’s post was to offer three more and complete the sextet, but once I got writing I realized I had more to say than I thought. (This is not an entirely new experience).

Today I’m going to focus on how I learned to embrace the process of revision. Next month, I will get into Lesson #5—getting over the things that turn you into a fraidy-cat—and perhaps even Lesson #6, which is about being true to yourself. But for now, let’s talk about revision, shall we?

Lesson #4:  Revision is More Fun than You Think

In my pre-published years, I felt about revision like I feel about dusting—that it was a necessary chore, the kind of task that invites procrastination. Sweeping the garage, cleaning out the fridge and washing the kitchen floor are reasonably rewarding exercises. Dusting makes the furniture look better only until the next sunny day, when the beams coming through your windows show more gray fuzz on the end tables. When dusting, I grit my teeth and force myself to be thorough, when my natural inclination is to give it a lick and a promise.

The difference between dusting and revision is that I now embrace the opportunity to make my words shine. My blog sisters Kate Flora and Barb Ross—the Queens of Revision—have inspired this attitude adjustment. On this blog and in workshop settings, both Kate and Barb have shared systems they have devised to tighten their prose, smooth awkward transitions and amp up tension. I don’t do exactly what they do, because their weaknesses (to the extent they have weaknesses) are not necessarily my own.  But like them, I have created for myself system to help me strengthen my stories.

I have created a worksheet that I complete with a sharp pencil, because writing by hand puts me in an analytical head space. This is critical during revision. I was frustrated when I attempted to revise solely on the keyboard, because that process didn’t allow me to break out of my intuitive writing mindset. But writing and revision are two different things. It was a big day when that important truth dawned on me.

Here’s a photo of my worksheet, which allows me to take my work apart one scene at a time. The worksheet page is geared to chapters, but my analysis is always scene by scene.

 

Brenda’s Revision Worksheet – fill out with #2 pencil for best results

In case the questions aren’t readable, at the top I note the day of the week and date when the action occurs, to keep my timeline in order. If I’m writing in more than one voice (as in Quick Pivot and again in the soon-to-be-released Truth Beat) I jot that down that as well. This allows me to sort the chapters by voice and review and revise what is going on from each character’s perspective separately. Then I ask five key questions:

Does the opening grab the reader?
What happens/what are the key plot developments?
What new characters are introduced? Am I giving the reader enough information about them in this chapter/scene? Too much?
What creates the tension?
Is the kicker (end of chapter or scene) strong enough?

Questions 1 and 5 are a standard part of the curriculum of the arrive late/leave early school of suspense writing.  My best chapters/scenes open in the middle of action and end with a strong hook. In the beginning I had a new writer’s tendency to set the scene, but I’m learning to break that habit. It is fine for me to think about what Joe Gale would do while he got ready for a big day. But my readers don’t need to see him getting dressed or driving to an interview. Better to jump into the action, whether it’s a skull tumbling out of a collapsing wall or a tense interview with someone who knew a murder victim. Similarly, the last passage of a chapter or scene has to pull the reader into the next chapter or scene. A flat ending encourages the reader to set the book down. My goal is to keep ‘em reading.

Question 2 and 4 also are close cousins. Making myself write out what happens allows me to chart the action. Is there enough going on? Too much at once?  Then I analyze the chapter in terms of tension, again breaking it into scenes. Every single scene needs to have some tension. Sometimes it’s at a screaming pitch and sometimes it’s on simmer, to allow the reader some respite. But tension must be constant. Using a worksheet to chart the tension level has been an enormous help for me.

As for Question 3, I list the characters introduced in each scene to sharpen my awareness of pacing. Am I throwing new characters into the mix rat-a-tat-tat, so fast the reader can’t connect with them? Or am I being too measured, which can rob energy from the narrative?

The questions on this worksheet reflect the areas where I tend to get into trouble if I don’t watch myself. Your tendencies may differ, and thus the questions on your worksheet. But I do recommend creating a tool to help with the process of reflecting with clear eyes on the quality of your work.  It has turned me into a revision believer.

But I still disdain dusting, so don’t hold your breath waiting for a post from me on the merits of  microfiber vs. feather dusters.

As the holiday season settles upon us, I’m feeling deep gratitude for the many wonderful things that happened in my life in the past year.  I thank all of my MCW colleagues for their support and friendship, and wish for them and all of the readers of this blog a peaceful season filled with love and joy.

 

 

 

 

Weekend Update: December 5-6, 2015

Next week at Maine Crime Writers there will be posts by Brenda Buchanan (Monday), Chris Holm (Tuesday), Vaughn Hardacker (Wednesday), Kate Flora (Thursday), and Kaitlyn Dunnett/Kathy Lynn Emerson (Friday).

In the news department, here’s what’s happening with some of us who blog regularly at Maine Crime Writers:

from Kaitlyn Dunnett: I was all set to tell you that both Kilt Dead and Scone Cold Dead, the second in the Liss MacCrimmon series, were on sale in December, Kilt Dead everywhere, and Scone Cold Dead only at Amazon. I even had a link to the Scone Cold Dead Kindle page. Then I checked again a couple of days later and, lo and behold, Scone Cold Dead was no longer priced at $1.89 but was back up to its usual $4.61. BUT Scotched, #5 in the series, had dropped to $2.20. What??? It’s Christmas season. Let’s confuse the shoppers! So, dear readers, the best I can do is tell you that Kilt Dead, together with the other Kensington titles by Maine Crime Writers and our sisters at Wicked Cozy Authors (see below) is on sale at all ebook outlets all month long. Any other sales are Kindle specials of some sort and don’t appear to last more than a day or two. On the bright side, if you go to look for Scotched and it has gone back up in price, there may be another of the titles in the series on sale. You can find out by going to my author page at Kindle. Here’s the link: Kindle Author Page

 

Lea Wait: Saturday, December 5, from 9 until 2,  I’ll be selling and signing my books at the Holiday Fair at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Brunswick, Maine, on 1 Middle Street. Come to meet crafters .. buy holidays greens or books .. and enjoy home-baked goodies at the cafe. Shop local!

 

 

An invitation to readers of this blog: Do you have news relating to Maine, Crime, or Writing? We’d love to hear from you. Just comment below to share.

And a reminder: If your library, school, or organization is looking for a speaker, we are often available to talk about the writing process, research, where we get our ideas, and other mysteries of the business. Contact Kate Flora: mailto: kateflora@gmail.com

 

Spotlight a reminder that mysteries, journalism are entwined

Hi, Maureen here. Just back from seeing the movie Spotlight.

I grew up reading newspapers. I’m the daughter and granddaughter of newspapers editors. We always had them in the the house, for many years getting two or three a day delivered.

I can remember having the Sunday comics read to me and thinking I couldn’t wait until I knew how to read so I could read them myself.

I’ve been drawn since I learned how to read to stories of carnage and tragedy, people’s lives upended and sudden unthinkable events. But I’m equally drawn to stories about liars and cheaters and abuse of power being uncovered. Any story where human beings behave in inexplicable ways — though I want that behavior explained.

The Life magazine story about the My Lai massacre, printed in December 1969.

Whenever I hear mention of the Kent State shootings, I have a vivid memory of being home from school that day and reading the story in the Dayton (Ohio) Daily News. I still remember the layout of the page. I was nine at the time. The other night I was watching an American Experience episode about the My Lai massacre and had a memory just as vivid as the Kent State one of reading about it in Life magazine. Minutes later, that very story popped up on the screen in the documentary. I later found a picture of the page online and realized I was eight when that story was published. But I remember looking at the pictures endlessly, and reading the story, horrified and fascinated by it.

I was also an avid mystery reader from the moment I realized mystery books existed. Starting with Encyclopedia Brown and Mary C. Jane and discovering Dorothy L. Sayers at the age of fourteen. I honed my taste for mysteries even tighter than my taste for newspapers stories. I wanted character interaction. I didn’t want horror and violence for the sake of horror and violence, I wanted people to behave in complex, tragic and haunted ways and that behavior to have an impact on those around them. And I wanted others to behave in brave and righteous ways, even if they were misunderstood. Sometimes especially if they were were.

Driving home after seeing Spotlight, I realized that there isn’t a lot of difference between good journalism and a good mystery. It’s no surprise I’m so drawn to both.

Spotlight — it’s great by the way — is a lot like my until today favorite newspaper movie All The President’s Men. It starts out with the reporters discovering information that many dismiss. No one recognizes the tip of the iceberg. But a dogged few feel in their gut there’s more there. And by the end, despite the forces against them, the good guys win and corrupt institutions topple. Sorry for the spoiler, those of you who haven’t seen Spotlight. On the other hand, if you don’t know how it ends, you haven’t been paying much attention over the last twelve or so years anyway.

I always knew that when I finally started writing mystery novels for real they would have a journalism angle. Every writer knows that if the protagonist is an amateur sleuth, there has to be a compelling reason she gets involved in a murder investigation. Journalism is a great vehicle for that. What better excuse to stick your nose where it doesn’t belong?

But it was more than that for me. I not only wanted to write a mystery, I wanted to write about journalism. There are a lot of crime writers working right now who get it right — Gerry Boyle and Brenda Buchanan who both post on this blog are two of them — but I’ve read a lot of books over the decades that got it wrong.

The even bigger issue is the same one that drives me to be a career journalist. There’s a truth that needs to be told and I want to be the one to do it. When we do journalism right, it can change the world. The Spotlight team’s work to uncover the priest abuse cover-up by the Catholic Church certainly did that. But even when it’s a micro-issue — which is what most journalists deal with — it’s a public service, a voice of the people, a watchdog over government and those in power.

The Boston Globe reporting on the priest abuse scandal and its coverup by the Catholic Church, dramatized in the movie Spotlight, is journalism at its best.

I know that sounds high-falutin’ and some may think I’m a little to full of myself and my colleagues. I’m not saying we get it right all the time. There are plenty of rewritten press releases, one-source stories, articles that pander or promote when they should be digging deeper. But the overall goal is to get it right and that’s why many of us stick with it.

When I started writing my debut mystery novel, Cold Hard News, I had some characters in mind and interactions I wanted to write about. I’m fascinated by people, how they relate and why they do the things they do.

But I also had bigger things I wanted to say about the damage people in power can do when everyone just goes along with them, how the old boys’ network can control things, how people make assumptions about those around them based on position in society and other superficial factors instead of digging deeper.

On top of it, there was a specific incident in New Hampshire that happened a few years

Franconia, New Hampshire, police officer Bruce McKay pepper sprays Liko Kenney in 2007 in this police cruiser video image released by the NH attorney general’s office at the time. Moments later, Kenney shot McKay. The aftermath inspired a central plot piece in Cold Hard News.

before I started writing. A Franconia police officer and a local young guy who didn’t get along were both shot dead. The cop was shot by the young man, the young man by a passerby. I was bothered to the point of anger at how that second  shooting was resolved. I couldn’t change reality, but I could make my own. And I hoped through fiction, I could tell some truth.

So, yeah, journalism in way, even though I made stuff up.

I highly recommend Spotlight. I loved it for the journalism story. But I also loved it for the mystery, even though I new who the bad guys were from the start and how it would end. And I really, really loved it for the truth: that journalists and other people who believe in what’s right no matter what the common accepted believes are, who won’t take no for an answer and who won’t let the people in power get away with abusing it, triumph in the end.

CRIME WRITERS NOTE: If you’d like to do some Christmas shopping or just say hi, fellow Maine Crime Writer Kate Flora and I will be at the Belgrade Holiday Craft Show, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, at the Community Center for All Seasons, Route 27, Belgrade, Maine.

Stop by and chat about mysteries or whatever, take a look at our books, pick up some bookmarks for stocking stuffers. We’d love to see you.

Maureen Milliken is the author of Cold Hard News. Follow her on Twitter at @mmilliken47 and Facebook at Maureen Milliken Mysteries. Her website is maureenmilliken.com

 

 

Have You Been Booked Recently-a few suggestions for gift giving

John Clark offering some suggestions for those with readers of all types and ages on their Christmas lists.

First up is a great blend of romance, mystery and historical fiction from Jenifer Donnelly, author of A Northern Light and Revolution. These Shallow Graves (Delacorte Press, 2015, ISBN 9780385737654) is the story of Jo Montfort, a young lady from a wealthy New York shipping family who is pulled out of her life of comfort and constraint when her father dies in his study from a gunshot wound. When the police and her uncle announce it was an accident, Jo is shocked and saddened until she discovers evidence that starts her on a trail of discovery, convoluted family secrets and a slap-in-the-face exposure to how brutal life for those less fortunate in 1890s New York City really is,

When Jo visits the editor of a newspaper owned by her late father to deliver an item bequeathed to him, she overhears a young male reporter talking to his peers, claiming her father’s death was a suicide, but the police are covering it up. Her first reaction is indignation, but the more she listens and the more she looks at Eddie, the young reporter, the stronger her interest and attraction become. After finding money and her father’s missing agenda book in his office, she decides that enlisting Eddie’s investigative skills are in order.

Sneaking out of her mansion unaccompanied would have been unthinkable before her father’s death. Indeed, her life was headed toward an arranged marriage and a fancy wedding, followed by days of luxurious boredom, having children and doing the right things per society’s expectations. However, That’s exactly what Jo begins to do and as she enlists Eddie’s help, he introduces her not only to a new world, but a cast of characters, some memorable, many scary or pathetic. There’s awkward, but brilliant Oliver, a medical student who moonlights in the morgue where he hones his skills as a forensic pathologist before the profession was even conceptualized. Another person who stands out is Fay, an orphan like Eddie who was rescued from the streets by Taylor, a Fagan clone. She’s sassy and tough, but there’s a connection between her and Jo that transcends the huge gap between their lives.

As Jo and Eddie begin to unravel the secrets surrounding her father’s death and the mystery of a tattooed man long believed lost at sea in the Indian Ocean, who reappears after seventeen years, their attraction grows, even though Jo’s family constraints scream that it’s doomed from the beginning. What happens to them, to her family and the way the two young lovers deal with some pretty dark events, makes this 500 page book seem a lot shorter. It’s a great blend of romance and mystery, garnished with a really intense and accurate view of what life was like for classes in New York near the turn of that century. It includes a reading list at the end for those curious for additional facts about the details in the book. If you have someone on your list that loves any combination of the themes here, you’ll have a winner for certain.

Juvenile fans of historical fiction will be interested in The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz, Candlewick Press, 2015. ISBN: 9780763678180. Here’s a brief review of that one.

When your mom dies suddenly and you’re twelve and living on a hardscrabble Pennsylvania farm with your perpetually angry and demeaning father, what happens? You’re verbally abused, no longer allowed to attend school and have to assume all the work your deceased mother was doing. This is the reality in 1911 for smart, but impetuous Joan Skraggs. When her father tears up and burns her only three books, now fourteen year old Joan takes the money her late mom sewed into an apron and runs off, hoping to find work and a new future in Baltimore. Arriving at night and frightened when a man tries to take advantage of her, She’s rescued by a young Jewish man who takes her to his home. His parents, the wealthy Rosenbachs, give her shelter and then employment as a hired girl. Her job is to do whatever the elderly Malka, who has been with the family since Mr. Rosenbach was a boy, cannot or will not. She changes her name to Janet and tells the family members that she is eighteen.

There’s a steep learning curve because of her impetuosity and complete ignorance of Jewish customs and religious practices, not to mention her infatuation with David, the older son, as well as her determination to become a confirmed Catholic. Told through the entries in her diary and dialogue with others, this is an excellent historical novel for curious and smart juvenile and teen readers. They will cringe when Joan rushes into numerous situations with the best of intentions, only to be like a bull in a china shop and they will cheer as she survives and even thrives as she learns from her mistakes and is treated ever so kindly by the caring and understanding people who have employed her. It is a perfect addition to any library interested in adding a worthwhile title to their historical fiction collection.

Another choice for juvenile readers is Clementine For Christmas by Daphne Benedis-Grab, Scholastic 2015 ISBN: 9780545839518. This is a feel-good book about Josie who is extremely shy at school, but shines in her volunteer role, cheering up kids on the pediatric ward at the hospital with her dog Clementine. While there she is a different person, able to dress in costumes, sing and feel good about herself. It involves losing her dog temporarily while gaining confidence, understanding other kids and making new friends. It’s a perfect holiday read.

For those looking to thrill an avid teen reader, I suggest the Starbound trilogy (book three comes out today and arrives tonight!) by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. I devoured the first two and can’t wait for the final installment. These are science fiction blended with intrigue and romance at its best. Titles are These Broken Stars: A Starbound Novel, This Shattered World: A Starbound Novel and Their Fractured Light.

For adults I have three suggestions, If you have a police procedural lover on your list, check out Brian Thiem’s first book Red Line (Crooked Lane Books (August 11, 2015) ISBN: 9781629531946). I picked up a copy at the New England Crime Bake and read it right after I got home. After 25 years as a homicide detective in Oakland, Brian knows his stuff. I’ve attended two programs he’s done at Crime Bakes and came away impressed both times. The book only increased my respect. It’s a great read and he’s got more to come.

Sometimes I pick up books on impulse, reading the first few pages to see if there’s a really good hook. I brought my music CDs to Bull Moose for store credit and had to wait for a while so they could process the big box. I picked up The Consequences of Revenge by Rachel Van Dyken, Skyscape 2015 ISBN: 9781477830642. It turned out to be a total bed shaker, one of those books that has you laughing so hard the bed shakes so much your significant other keeps waking up and asking what you’re reading. Max Emory drifted through college, content to get okay grades while enjoying Milo’s (a girl) company and sorta hoping the friendship might blossom, but when she marries another of his friends, he’s in a complete funk. Despite having a fortune, thanks to his family hotel empire, Max holes up in his apartment, ignoring hygiene and tries totally lame pickup lines just to keep in contact with the world. This act blows up at a coffe shop when the barrista cuts him dead. Next thing Max knows, his friends have forged paperwork and he’s the bachelor star on an island with 24 single women as part of a reality show. One of the girls is Becca, the barrista. What follows involves creepy and desperate females, a goat and shark phobia, as well as a plan to foil any future zombie apocalypses. The story is funny, sexy and there are pieces of dialogue that would make even Ebeneezer Scrooge cackle with glee. If it’s a hit with the recipient, the author has a couple dozen more in print.

Lastly is a feel-good ebook for the folks on your list who prefer reading in this format, Holly Schindler’s Fifth Avenue Fidos: A Modern-Day Fairy Tale with “Bite” Mar 20, 2015. The description at Amazon.com says it perfectly: “Mable Barker, a frizzy-haired mongrel from Queens with no real life direction, is never going to snag a man like Jason Mead, a purebred Upper East Side veterinarian. Or so she thinks. Even in her daydreams, the infatuated-with-fairy-tales Mable imagines herself as a princess with a crooked tiara and a whole orchard of poison apples. Then again, Jason isn’t exactly traditional prince material himself. The shy but adorable Dr. Mead’s awkward ways around women have him substituting the search for his lifelong human companion with playing canine matchmaker—breeding blue ribbon champions. Jason’s first breeding attempt yields Innis, Fifth Avenue’s snarliest Pekingese. A dog whose temperament, it appears, will never fit show-dog standards…until he meets Mable, whom Jason hires as a dog walker. Could Mable actually have what it takes to handle Innis and Jason? Can three imperfect beings ever come together to create utter perfection at the Westminster Dog Show—and beyond? Will Mable and Jason ever trust their feelings, allow love to be unleashed? Will Mable ever see herself as a princess capable of riding off into the sunset?”

If you get some of these for yourself or as gifts, let me know what you think.

Why It’s “Read My Book,” Not “Buy My Book”

Hi. Barb here, covered in flour from head to foot from the Christmas cookie baking.

We’ve talked and written many times about how annoying it is to have writers, particularly writers you don’t know, shouting through their various social media outlets, “Buy my book. Buy my book. Buy my book.” It’s not that it’s impolite. “Please, please, please buy my book,” is arguably worse, because of the desperate, needy stink.

It is partially because of the used car sales approach of close, close, close, which is, of course, the entirely wrong way to sell a book. People buy from people they trust, and an author you don’t know, whose opinion about his own book is undoubtedly suspect, is the last person you’d trust for a book recommendation. Instinctively, we recoil.

Who do you trust for a book recommendation? People you know, especially people who have similar taste in books. These may be people you spend time with in the carbon-based world–your family, friends, co-workers, hairdresser, trainer at the gym. Or they may be people you spend time with online in discussion groups about–books, among other things. But in either case, you know them and you trust their taste.

The very best recommendations come from those who have read and loved a book. Which is more likely to cause you to act? “Have you read Joe Schmoe’s latest?” “No, you?” “No, me neither. It’s on my bedside table, though.” OR “Oh, my gosh, did you read Kate Flora’s latest Joe Burgess? I finished it before work this morning. It kept me up half the night.”

Recommendations are good, but the number one reason (by a huge margin) fans of mystery, thriller, suspense and romantic suspense buy a book is because they have read and loved another book by the same author.

So you see the similarity here? In both cases, the reason crime fiction readers buy a book is because someone has actually read the book. Books that people buy and leave moldering in their TBR piles, or in the huge, overstocked libraries on their e-readers, do the author almost no good at all. Because if buyers haven’t read the book, they can’t recommend it. And if they have it sitting somewhere waiting to be read, they’re unlikely to buy another book by the same author. Librarians are the same. If a book achieves next to no circulation, it’s likely to be pulled from the shelves and additional books are unlikely to be bought. All of this goes double, or triple or quadruple for series.

When I was in the software business, we had a name for this–shelfware–software that was purchased, but never installed, or never rolled out to its intended audience. Our software was sold on an annual license basis, and in the rare cases where we ended up selling shelfware, the transaction was regarded as an unmitigated failure. We knew we’d never sell that customer consulting or training or any other follow-on products. And when the annual license was up, the customer would never renew. Honestly, we believed that it wasn’t worth the time or effort it took to sell that initial license, even though we’d collected a hefty fee for it.

Which is why an author’s message should always be, “Read my book” and not, “Buy my book.” Because books that are purchased and not read are next to useless. (Of course, like good authors, we do not tell people to read our book, we show them how compelling and emotionally involving it is. After all, when we ask people to read our books, we’re asking for something more precious than their money. We’re asking for their time. But that’s another post for another day.)

Instinctively, writers know they are looking for readers, not buyers. This is why we speak at libraries where people have ready access to our books for free. And why we speak to book clubs where everyone attending probably already owns it. This why we go to bookstores and chat up the owner, even if no one shows up for our signing. We’re not looking for lots of people to buy our book. We’re looking for one or two people to read and love, love, love our book–and then to tell everyone they know about it.

Writers know this, but over the last decade or so, some of us have become distracted, by the pressure on the publishing industry, the message that we’re responsible for our own success and by the occasionally overt pressure to “sell.” We’ve focused on the sales in the back of the room, instead of the fan we created up front. And that’s a wrongheaded way to look at it.

I hear you screaming from the back, “What about my next book contract? I won’t get another one if nobody buys.” Or, “What about all the publishers today who are going three and out on series books? There isn’t time to build that fanatical audience.”

And that’s a problem. It’s a structural problem in the publishing industry and it’s a fact of our lives. But that doesn’t mean we should do the wrong thing. We’re looking for readers, not for buyers, and our conversations with readers should give them reasons to read, not buy, our books.

12 Things I Can’t Live Without

Lea Wait, here. One of the magazines that appears regularly at our house (for some reason I can’t quite fathom) is Elle Decor. I usually glance through it, drool a little over the homes pictured, and then it goes in the recyclable pile.

But one column I always read. It’s titled “12 Things He (or She) Can’t Live Without,” and in it famous people — usually those in the arts — list such critical items as their favorite champagnes or kid gloves or small restaurants in Paris or … And I drool again.

But, after all, we all have our favorites. So today I’m sharing the 12 things (note: this excludes people, which is sad, but, after all, they’re not THINGS) I can’t live without.

LL Bean flannel shirts. I wear them ten months of the year. In winter, I especially love those that are fleece lined.
“World’s Softest Socks”. Yes — there is such a thing. They come in lots of colors, and, again, with my “problem feet” I wear them every time I’m not wearing sandals.
Massages. Because people aren’t supposed to be on this list, I won’t mention Darlene Terry’s name, but having a massage in the comfort of my own living room at least once a month helps keep stiff necks and migraines at bay after days of sitting at a computer. Plus — did I mention how good a message feels??
Cayenne and cinnamon. (Not usually together.) Cayenne jazzes up almost anything that doesn’t involve sugar – and then cinnamon takes over. Plus, cayenne is supposed to raise your metabolism a tiny bit, and cinnamon fights glucose levels. Have I mentioned this old body needs all the help it can get?
Bookcases. Floor-to-ceiling bookcases are in every room (except the bathroom) and most hallways in my home. Filled bookcases, of course. For obvious reasons.
Sunsets over the river I can see from most rooms in my house. In all seasons, they give hope and beauty.
The smell of salt water mudflats at low tide. I’ve always loved it. When I was a teenager I wondered how to bottle it …
Birds. Growing up, I had parakeets as pets. Today my favorite birds flock to the feeders close to the house. I especially love hummingbirds and woodpeckers and cardinals and goldfinches and chickadees  … and the great blue herons and cormorants who live nearby and fly over.
Scented hot baths. They’re my cure-all.
Water: the sea, rivers, waterfalls, lakes. Love them all. But especially the ocean. (And hot baths.)
Independent bookstores. Of course. Where else do they know you by name and suggest books … and sell the ones my friends and I write?
Christmas. It’s my favorite holiday, and just thinking about it makes me smile.

What can’t YOU live without?

Learning to Enjoy What Comes

Kate Flora: We had a quiet post-Thanksgiving weekend. No trips to the Mall. No frenzy of on-line shopping. Just walks in the autumn woods and plates of leftover turkey and of course, pie for breakfast. I used to love the crescendo of color that fall brought, but I’ve never been able to embrace November. It has always seemed to me to be a month of browns and grays, of fading and decay. And as the years has passed and I’ve become less of a spring chicken and more of an old hen, fall can be a reminder that time–like the days–is getting shorter.

Since my impetuous premature birth one July day many years ago–startling a mother who’d just moved into a farmhouse on Sennebec Hill and who was expecting a baby in September, I’ve been rushing through life. Once I described it as going through life the way I walk on ice, going quickly over it so I’ll be on the other side before I fall down. But rushing through life comes with a price: too often, it means not seeing what is around me. So this fall, instead of rushing, I’m slowing down. I’m remembering to be present at the holiday table instead of worrying about the next course or the dishes. I’m trying to see the world I’m in instead of rushing toward the next season.

Slowing down and seeing lets me enjoy the more subtle tones of November. Instead of dismissing this world as ugly and dull, and sighing for the new greens of spring or the vibrant colors of my summer garden, I am seeing the beauty in shapes. In subtlety. In the surprises of a lingering mum or a rose that doesn’t want to stop blooming and the enormous hen of the woods mushroom that’s popped up in my lawn. I am looking at the seedpods of the ligularia and the gorgeous tassels on my grasses and making a different kind of bouquet. Without the distraction of green, tree bark is revealed in all its textured glory and different varieties of trees show their own distinctive shapes. I walk on carpets of leaves and scuffle like a child through drifts of fallen pine needles and feel how different they are beneath my feet.

Do people raised in cities or suburbs also feel this? Are their ears attuned to the different bird calls and notice who is around? Why are there so many more blue jays around? What does all the bird chatter mean? I need to dive back into a book I found recently, What the Robin Knows, and learn to pay attention to the different songs birds use as they go through their days.

I’ve been frustrated at my desk for several weeks, not getting much done and struggling to find my way into the work. Now I see that I need to carry this lesson of slowing down and enjoying what I’m doing and where I am back into my work. Instead of my usual insane rush through story, I need to slow down and enjoy the process. Not rail against my mind or my attention span because the work is going slowly and the words are hard to find–always part of the challenge of writing nonfiction–but just let it happen. Watch the story unfold, as I’ve learned to do yet keep forgetting, so that you, the reader, can be captured by it, immersed in it, and see how the world is for the characters. The characters are real, yet it is my “writer’s job” to help you see them. Now, it seems that perhaps the lesson of November is there if I will learn it: Notice. Be attuned. Slow down. Appreciate. Let the story speak the way I am letting the world speak. Then share what I am seeing.

Weekend Update: November 28-29, 2015

Next week at Maine Crime Writers there will be posts by Kate Flora (Monday), Lea Wait (Tuesday), Barb Ross (Wednesday), John Clark (Thursday), and Maureen Milliken (Friday).

In the news department, here’s what’s happening with some of us who blog regularly at Maine Crime Writers:

from Kathy Lynn Emerson: December 1 is the official publication date for Murder in the Merchant’s Hall, the second of my Mistress Jaffrey Mysteries, set in England in 1583. Of course, Amazon had been selling the hardcover for a couple of weeks, and it came out in England earlier this year, but it IS the launch date for the ebook in both Kindle and Nook formats. I’ll be blogging on that day at Severn House blog, Lady Killers and Wicked Cozy Authors.

Lea Wait: Congratulations, Kathy! Really looking forward to reading it! This next week is a busy one. Tuesday afternoon/evening December 1, I’ll be signing with other writers at the Barnes & Noble in Augusta, Maine, from 4 p.m. until about 7:30. The event is a benefit for the Manchester (Maine) Elementary School.

Then Thursday evening, I’ll be at Mystery Night at the New England Mobile Bookfair, 82 Needham Street, Newton Highlands, Massachusetts along with other Maine Crime Writers including Barbara Ross and Kate Flora. My signing time is 6-7, but there will be dozens (yes!) of New England mystery authors signing from 6 until 8 — plus you can enjoy refreshments while chatting with your favorite writer. Not to be missed annual event for anyone who loves mysteries — or has mystery lovers on their holiday gift list.

Then Saturday, December 5, selling my books and signing at the Holiday Arts Fair sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Church in Brunswick, Maine, from 9 am until 2 pm.

Maureen Milliken and Kate Flora will be at the Belgrade, Maine, Holiday Craft Fair from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.  Saturday, Dec. 5, at the Belgrade Community Center for All Seasons, about 15 miles north of Augusta on Route 27. It’s a great craft fair with a wide variety of gifts — aside from some very excellent Maine Crime Writer books, of course.

Kate is the award-winning author of the Joe Burgess mystery series as well as the true crime books “Finding Amy” and “Death Dealer.

Maureen is the author of Cold Hard News, the debut novel in the Bernie O’Dea mystery series, and will also be selling her non-fiction books “The Afterlife Survey” and “Get it Right: A Cranky Editor’s Tips.”

There’s also a gingerbread house making contest and food. Stop by and say hi!

 

Barb: Kensington, which is my publisher, and one of Lea and Kaitlyn/Kathy’s publishers, is having a big ebook sale in December. EBooks by all three of us will be on sale, along with a host of other New England Authors. If you’ve been resisting our charms, now may be the time to try one out. Sale starts 11/29.

 

 

 

An invitation to readers of this blog: Do you have news relating to Maine, Crime, or Writing? We’d love to hear from you. Just comment below to share.

And a reminder: If your library, school, or organization is looking for a speaker, we are often available to talk about the writing process, research, where we get our ideas, and other mysteries of the business. Contact Kate Flora: mailto: kateflora@gmail.com

One Scene at a Time

Kaitlyn Dunnett/Kathy Lynn Emerson here, blogging today about what, for lack of a better word, I’ll call the milestone I aim for when I sit down to begin my day’s work. I gather I’m a bit of an oddball. Most writers I know set a daily goal of a certain minimum number of words. A few go by page count. Some devote a set period of time to writing each day.

I aim to complete a scene during each writing session.

When I outline—which, granted, I tend to do after I’ve roughed out that section of the book—I break chapters into scenes. Usually, but not always, there are three scenes to a chapter. In some of my historical novels, which have shorter chapters, each scene is a chapter. Scenes vary in length. They are moved around in the text when I revise, sometimes more than once. Each scene is presented in a single point of view and, generally, it takes place using only one setting. When my characters move to another time and/or place or the pov character changes, that signals the start of a new scene.

In each scene, something is accomplished: the plot is advanced, a character is developed, or an important clue is planted. Sometimes a scene tells a mini-story within the story. Step by step, scene by scene, I advance toward the end of the tale, but there is an added bonus. At the end of each writing session, I have a real sense of accomplishment. I have completed something—a whole scene—rather than just reaching an arbitrary word or page count. That is a very satisfying feeling, one I can enjoy even when I know that the entire novel will not be finished for many months to come.

Oddly enough, this sense of completion comes through even when a scene ends with a cliffhanger.

I usually finish a writing session by making a few notes about what happens next. On rare occasions, I am inspired to go on and write a second scene, but I find I am more creative when I take a break before going forward, especially if the next scene involves a shift in point of view from one character to another.

Not every day’s writing goes as smoothly as I’d like. Some scenes just don’t work. Others feel incomplete even when they take the action and the characters where I think I want them to go. That’s okay. Everything will undergo several revisions anyway. What’s important is to keep moving forward, at least one new scene a day, until the proverbial lightbulb goes on and I know what to do to make earlier scenes better. At that point, I usually go all the way back to the beginning and work my way forward again to the place where I stopped. If all goes well, I am psyched up to continue on, armed with fresh ideas about where the story is headed.

This past week, I’ve been revising the three chapters I’ll include in my proposal for a new cozy mystery series. I revise by hand on a printout, then make further changes when I type them in. The first day, I got through all of Chapter One. On day two, barely a word escaped unchanged and I was back to one scene at a time. Here’s what a typical hand-revised page looks like:

So, that’s how I organize my writing sessions. For me, setting a time limit on how long I spend at the keyboard would be counter-productive. Setting a minimum word or page count goal might work, so long as I didn’t let myself fall into the trap of stopping when I hit the minimum. I can’t imagine that would be very satisfying. I’d also end up having to go back and find my place in the scene before going on again, something I’d rather not do until I’m ready to revise. Would trying to write the rough draft of an entire novel in a single month work for me? I doubt it. That doesn’t seem to leave any room for inspired revisions.

Would writing scene by scene work for you? The only way to find out is to give it a try. Every writer has to experiment at first to find what best suits him or her.

Do you have techniques or a writing routine you’d like to share? If so, I hope you’ll leave a comment below. One of the best things about the writing community is that we can learn from each other.

 

Kathy Lynn Emerson/Kaitlyn Dunnett is the author of over fifty books written under several names. She won the Agatha Award in 2008 for best mystery nonfiction for How to Write Killer Historical Mysteries and was an Agatha Award finalist in 2014 in the best mystery short story category for “The Blessing Witch.” Currently she writes the contemporary Liss MacCrimmon Mysteries (The Scottie Barked at Midnight) as Kaitlyn and the historical Mistress Jaffrey Mysteries (Murder in the Merchant’s Hall) as Kathy. The latter series is a spin-off from her earlier “Face Down” series and is set in Elizabethan England. Her websites are www.KaitlynDunnett.com and www.KathyLynnEmerson.com

 

Senebec Hill Stuffing

Mrs. Clark with family

Today we feature a “Ghost post” from John Clark and Kate Flora’s late mother, A. Carman Clark. Country living writer, journalist, newspaper editor, and, late in life, a mystery writer, Mrs. Clark always had a wry way of looking at tradition.

Sometimes I think an extra question should be added to personnel files, marriage ceremonies and partnership contracts. Namely: What kind of stuffing do you prefer in your Thanksgiving turkey? Stuffing preferences, built up through years of holiday associations, resist compromises.

The best turkey stuffings I’ve ever tasted were made by my friend Everett who financed his college education working in Chinese restaurants. Ev’s cleaver minced celery, onions and mushrooms with rhythmic speed while oysters simmered and butter melted. That man could stuff a bird and whip the kitchen counters back to order in less time than I could cube the bread. A touch of sage and thyme to enhance but not dominate. Sometimes he added chestnuts. Turkey broth or cider to moisten the mixture. Elegant.

Enjoying the feast on Sennebec Hill

The mother of a college friend made the worst stuffing while repeatedly proclaiming that her way was the only way turkey stuffing should be prepared. Piles of dark toast were broken into milk and then wrung dry with twists which could have strangled a tiger. One onion. Never use more than one onion. What she called stuffing looked like chunks of damp plaster and tasted like warm sawdust.

Our Sennebec Hill stuffing developed gradually. The dry bread filling, which I was told good Maine wives were supposed to make, became a bit more moist and flavorful each year as additions were secretly added. Extra onions, sautéed in butter with celery, and several beaten eggs lightened the dressing. Then each year an increased amount of country sausage, cooked, drained, and crumbled, was mixed in with chopped tart apples. I copied Ev’s method of moistening the dressing with broth or cider and added parsley and herbs from the garden. Sometimes I mixed a bit of hot peppers to the portion used to stuff the neck cavity. Guests, accustomed to Southern cornbread and bacon stuffing or Pennsylvania Dutch potato stuffing, take second helpings. I’m thankful for guests with a willingness to try something new.

My friend Molly’s husband didn’t have that quality and that was why one Thanksgiving Molly allowed herself to have a sinking spell. In the Victorian era such spells were known as “having the vapors” — a brief time of weakness during which ladies are unable to carry on routine tasks. That year Molly had her sinking spell none of their children were able to get home for the holiday so she suggested going out to dinner. On Thanksgiving? Absolutely not. They would have turkey and lots of stuffing if he had to cook it himself. He did. Molly had planned on a brief relapse but she languished for four days because it took Herb that long to clean up the kitchen.

Not too many years ago, country turkeys were stuffed before they lost their heads. About six weeks prior to Thanksgiving, the chosen bird was caged to preserve its energies. A diet of nuts, cracked corn, onions and apples was gradually increased until the gobbler became heavy and well-flavored throughout. Children weren’t given these feeding chores. Even a Tom turkey, destined for the holiday dinner, can seem like a pet when it responds to the daily fattening-up routine.

Meanwhile, sage clipped from the herb garden dried in the warming oven with slices of homemade bread. Children shelled out beechnuts. Northern Spy apples ripened on the kitchen counter, onions cured on the attic floor, and the last celery plants were mounded with hay to keep them from freezing.

There’s a sameness to the herb-seasoned dry bread now packaged and sold for stuffings, although using these saves time and mess. I prefer a mixture of whole wheat and white bread, cubed and dried and my own measures of fresh herb seasonings. Years of getting turkeys stuffed and in the oven by 7 a.m. have given me an eye for quantity and proportions. I no longer measure but I protect my image by making sure there will be enough stuffing to put into post-Thanksgiving sandwiches for 10 adults. If that amount won’t fit inside the body and neck cavities (leaving room to expand), I bake the extra in a separate casserole.

Each November, wherever I go, I ask for and listen to tales of memorable stuffings, the tastes and textures of the dressings others prepare or expect to find baked in the bird. Some grandmothers toss in a cup of chopped cranberries saying that these cut the fatty taste of a big turkey. Many families look forward to the textures which chopped walnuts, peanuts or pecans add to the stuffing. James Beard once published a recipe for a moist, meaty dressing which incorporated a pound of ground fresh pork stir-fried with onions and mushrooms before being mixed with coarsely ground dried bread, chopped parsley, and hot broth.

One neighbor showed me how she slides her hands between the turkey’s skin and breast and then pushes a layer of stuffing in to help keep the white meat moist. Another said she roasts both turkeys and chickens with the breast side down so the juices flow into the white meat. Both ideas are worth trying. These turkey conversations, at Thanksgiving or when the markets advertise special low prices, include comparisons of open basting vs. foil-wrapped birds, timing, and favorite family recipes for using leftovers.

I’ve tried many methods for roasting turkeys. The children and their families come to the farm for Thanksgiving so we need a 23 pound bird. Wrapping such a creature in heavy duty foil and placing it on a rack is easiest for me. Another keep-it-simple idea for this holiday is thawing turkey “juice” from the last bird and making the gravy ahead of time. Call it riding the gravy train. I’d rather spend time with my grandchildren than fiddle with gravy.

Someday I’m going to slip the carcass of the Thanksgiving turkey into a trash bag and haul

Sara Lloyd’s signature pie: cherry-raspberry

it off to the dump. Or ask someone to carry it away so I can’t change my mind enroute and bring the bones home for turkey soup. I’d like to be able to yell, “Hey, gulls, you pick this one. I’ve done it for 44 years. It’s your turn.” But each year I bring forth the lobster kettle and face the whole mess again.

Even after the midnight and breakfast turkey sandwiches, the carcass of a 23 pound bird yields enough meaty pieces of many winter meals, from Cornish pasties to gobbler chili. Through the years, I’ve filled a file with recipes for using left-over turkey. Sloppy Tom, a variation of the Sloppy Joe hamburger and tomato sauce mixture. Gobbler chili, made with hot peppers, garlic, kidney beans and tomato sauce is welcome after too many meals of bland turkey. With lots of tender, crisp vegetables, julienne-cut turkey fits into oriental meals flavored with ginger, soy sauce and a touch of molasses. I freeze broccoli stems, Swiss chard and kohlrabi for these quick stir fries.

The list goes on and on. The motto, “Waste not, want not,” embroidered and framed, hung on the walls of most homes when I was growing up during the Great Depression. I think it’s etched in my brain. So, although I have the urge to be a wastrel, a turkey carcass pitching wastrel, I still crack the bones for the stew pot and try new recipes for using the meat and the broth. By January, I’ve forgotten the mess and can be thankful for the holiday bird’s contributions to a fine Armenian pot pie with whole wheat pastry crust.

And now, dear readers…what kind of stuffing or dressing does YOUR family prefer? Cornbread? Oysters? Wild rice? And do you have a relative who was absolutely certain her way was best?

And here’s a family secret: Once, on Thanksgiving, John made the turkey and forgot to make stuffing. Many years later, he still gets anxious calls ahead of time, reminding him to make stuffing.