Beth Groundwater's Blog, page 10

Tomorrow's Guest: Deborah Sharp

Tomorrow, fellow Midnight Ink mystery author Deborah Sharp will guest on my blog. She answers my interview questions, and I'm sure you'll be intrigued and amused by what she has to say. Also, Deborah will run a contest for an autographed copy of the latest release in her comedic Mace Bauer mystery series, Mama Gets Trashed . She will choose the winner from among those who leave a comment.

A former USA Today reporter, Deborah Sharp traded sad news stories for funny fiction with her Mace Bauer Mysteries, featuring Mace's wacky Mama. Deborah rode a horse across Florida for one book. For another, she was interviewed by Al Roker on the Today show. She was a lot less nervous about the horse. Married to TV reporter Kerry Sanders, she lives in South Florida, where she spends her spare time chasing iguanas out of her hibiscus. Mama Gets Trashed is the series' fifth book. 

Planning a Book Tour on the Cheap

I'm at Inkspot, the blog for Midnight Ink authors, today, with an article about "Planning a Book Tour on the Cheap". I hope you'll read it and share there any good ideas you have for book touring on the cheap!

Today's Mystery Author Guest: Mario Acevedo

As promised yesterday, fellow mystery author Mario Acevedo is visiting my blog today, with answers to my interview questions. To read his bio and see his photo, please page down to yesterday's post. Also, Mario is running a contest for a free electronic copy of his latest release, Good Money Gone , the cover art for which appears above. Mario will select the winner tomorrow evening from among those who leave a comment today or tomorrow and will announce the name in a comment on this post.

Good Money Gone takes place in the country of Panama, a tropical paradise with an anything-goes attitude. Bring your wish list. It’s a place to start. Or to start over. Where the best of intentions are dazzled by the glitter of easy money. Steven McKay chases the quick bucks in offshore finance, playing fast and loose with his scruples until he discovers he’s merely one cog in a vast Ponzi scheme. Even as his paranoid boss puts the screws to everyone inside the conspiracy, McKay races to save his clients--and his skin--before the rotten machine grinds to a halt under the weight of sleaze, greed, and criminal investigations. He realizes too late that his dream for wealth and fortune was nothing but Good Money Gone.

Sounds like a thrilling read to me! Below are Mario's answers to my interview questions.

1. Who or what inspired you to start writing and when did you start?

When I was in the sixth grade, I started writing a science-fiction epic story that got too big for my English assignment. That story kept evolving in my head for years, and I found myself always working on a what-if scenario. After college I thought I was going to write non-fiction but I was too much of a liar to pen anything but fiction.

2. What tools and process do you use to “get to know” your characters before and while you’re writing the books?

I find someone who reminds me of a character. I stalk that person and murder them. Then I go to the cemetery at midnight and hold a séance over their grave. Then I simply dictate what the dead tell me and use that to better know my characters. Some of them are understandably very bitter with me.

3. How do you construct your plots? Do you outline or do you write “by the seat of your pants”?

I’ve been at this long enough to recognize the value of an outline. I do that because my Muse is very lazy.

4. In the age-old question of character versus plot, which one do you think is most important in a murder mystery and which one do you emphasize in your writing? Why?

Plot keeps the story moving forward but we read because we care about the characters. It’s a balance.

5. What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced as a writer and what inspires you and keeps you motivated?

This is a tough business. There’s a lot of luck and fickleness involved. We all know of big books that make us go "Huh?" over what the fuss is all about. And we also know many authors who aren’t getting anywhere near the recognition they deserve. What keeps me going are these voices in my head that won’t shut up, and that I’m a relentless optimist.

6. What is a typical workday for you and how many hours a day (or week) do you devote to writing?

I write from 8AM-Noon most days. The afternoons and evenings are for the extra stuff like this interview. Nights are for drinking.

7. What advice do you have to offer to an aspiring author?

Be delusional in your abilities as a writer.

8. Now here’s a zinger. Tell us something about yourself that you have not revealed in another interview yet. Something as simple as your favorite TV show or food will do.

My guilty pleasure is watching HG TV whenever I have access to cable.

9. What are you working on now and what are your future writing plans?

Presently I have an ebook available, Good Money Gone, that I co-authored with Richard Kilborn who worked as an inside man in a huge Ponzi scheme. It’s a fictionalized account of his misadventures and is a story I’m very excited about. The plot is ultimately one of treachery and redemption. And there’s a failed romance in there as well. I’m hard at work finishing the next book in my Felix Gomez detective-vampire series. The story is Rescue From Planet Pleasure and aims to tie up many of the big loose ends from the previous books. I’ve also got some short stories that I’d like to bundle as a collection.

10. Is there anything else you would like to tell my blog readers?

My books contain the answers to all your problems. Check me out at my website, my Facebook page, or the Good Money Gone website.

Thanks, Mario! Now, who has a comment or question for Mario Acevedo? Good luck in the contest!

Tomorrow's Guest: Mario Acevedo

Tomorrow, fellow mystery author Mario Acevedo will guest on my blog. He answers my interview questions, and I'm sure you'll be intrigued and amused by what he has to say. Also, Mario will run a contest for an electronic copy of his latest achievement, Good Money Gone . He will choose the winner from among those who leave a comment.

Mario Acevedo is the master of disguise and intrigue. When he is not fighting the forces of evil, he writes fantasy and mystery novels. He is the author of the bestselling Felix Gomez detective-vampire series from HarperCollins. He is also the co-author for the financial thriller, Good Money Gone. His debut novel, The Nymphos of Rocky Flats, was chosen by Barnes and Noble as one of the best Paranormal Fantasy Novels of the Decade. His short fiction is included in You Don’t Have A Clue: Latino Mystery Stories for Teens and Hit List: The Best of Latino Mystery from Arte Publico Press. He lives and writes in Denver, CO.

Today's Mystery Author Guest: Susan McDuffie

As promised yesterday, fellow mystery author Susan McDuffie is visiting my blog today, with answers to my interview questions. To read her bio and see her photo, please page down to yesterday's post. Also, Susan is running a contest for a free autographed copy of the third book in her Muirteach MacPhee series, The Study of Murder, the cover art for which appears above. Susan will select the winner tomorrow evening from among those who leave a comment today or tomorrow and will announce the name in a comment on this post.

The Study of Murder pits Scottish sleuth Muirteach MacPhee against a mysterious adversary in medieval Oxford. Muirteach and his wife Mariota accompany the Lord of the Isles’ son, Donald, to Oxford. Shortly after their arrival, Donald involves Muirteach in the disappearance of a winsome tavern maid. Although Muirteach attempts to help Undersheriff Grymbaud with the investigation and keep Donald at his studies, he has little success with either venture, while Mariota yearns to attend medical lectures at the schools. When an Oxford master is found bludgeoned to death, Grymbaud asks Muirteach to investigate. The arrest of a servant for the crime stirs up ever-simmering discord between town and university, culminating in riots. Another killing occurs, and Mariota vanishes.
Gleaning clues from a cryptic manuscript and aided by three teenaged boys, a frantic Muirteach determinedly tracks a wily killer through a twisted labyrinth of deceit to unmask the slayer.

Sounds like an exciting read to me! Below are Susan's answers to my interview questions.

1. Who or what inspired you to start writing and when did you start?

Actually, I owe it all to the Santa Fe Public Schools! I always was an avid reader but did not start writing until I was about thirty-six. I was working as an occupational therapist for the schools, a job that I persevered in for twenty-five years, although I found it emotionally draining. After a particularly hard day in 1988, I visited the paperback exchange shelf at my office, picked up a Harlequin romance and thought to myself “Oh, I could do this!” Needless to say, when I actually did start writing I found it much more difficult—and rewarding—than I had ever imagined. And I had to learn from experience that it’s best to write what you love to read. For me that’s historical mysteries.

2. What tools and process do you use to “get to know” your characters before and while you’re writing the books.

First the characters emerge. Once they’ve surfaced I keep track with a character worksheet which includes an astrological chart, enneagram personality type and other details, including physical—height, weight, eye and hair color, ways of moving, habits, etc.  This is particularly important with recurring characters in the series.

3.  How do you construct your plots?

Often the spark and germ of the story emerge through research.  I tend to be a fan of faux-history and an obscure historical detail or incident often serves as the takeoff point for each book. I’m pretty much of a research nut.  Some other authors and I have a Facebook group titled “Research Rapture” which interested folks are invited to join.

The first Muirteach mystery, A Mass for the Dead, was inspired by stories of my McDuffie ancestors and their role as “keepers of the records” for the medieval Lords of the Isles. The Bridget Cleary murder case and stories of fairy changelings sparked The Faerie Hills, second in the series, and winner of “Best Historical Novel” in the 2011 New Mexico Book Awards. For The Study of Murder, the third Muirteach MacPhee mystery (release date October 9), I found inspiration in the Voynich manuscript, a mysterious encoded manuscript that continues to defy cryptographers. The fourth Muirteach mystery, currently in progress, started with the stories of Henry Sinclair’s discovery of America and the Knights Templar, although research for that book has led me far afield to Norse Greenland and beyond!

When it comes to the actual writing process, I make a rough outline (sometimes several) and a storyboard, sometimes multiple storyboards for different subplots in the novel. Although I do need to have a rough outline to feel comfortable starting the book, more often than not the plot changes as I do the actual writing of the book.

4. In the age-old question of character versus plot, which one do you think is most important in a murder mystery and which one do you emphasize in your writing? Why?

A clever plot is certainly vital to any mystery but I find I enjoy books more when the characters are well developed. I don’t intentionally try to emphasize one aspect over the other in my writing, striving instead for a cohesive, balanced book. However, as the Muirteach mysteries are an ongoing series, I do have fairly large character arcs for Muirteach and other main characters, particularly his female partner Mariota, and envision them evolving quite a bit as the series continues.

5.  What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced as a writer and what inspires you and keeps you motivated?

My biggest challenge is fighting my own tendency toward procrastination! Or perhaps it’s not procrastination as much as it is fitting everything in to the twenty-four hours of the day. (Well, actually some of it is procrastination.) What keeps me motivated is my ongoing desire to create a world to escape into for awhile, and, of course, sharing this world with readers is very rewarding as well.  It is such a thrill to learn that your stories have touched someone!

6.  What is a typical workday for you and how many hours a day or week do you devote to your writing?

I do have one of those “ pesky day jobs,” so on those days I unfortunately get less writing done. However, every day I do something writing-related, such as researching, posting on my author page, answering emails, etc. A lot of my reading tends to be research-related, as I get fascinated by obscure tangents and find they can often lead to story lines and subplots. So on days when I’m not actually writing, I’m often researching. I find my most productive time to write is in late morning into the afternoon. I don’t wake up too quickly, I confess!

7.  What advice do you have to offer an aspiring writer?

Write!  And write the kind of books you love to read. Also join local writing groups, a congenial critique group if you can find one, and if possible submit your work to writing contests. That will get you used to submitting a professionally formatted manuscript, and also get you used to feedback and criticism.  Of course, these days folks have many more options in terms of publication. If you decide to self-publish, get some objective feedback and professional editing done before publishing.

8. Now here’s a zinger. Tell us something about yourself that you have not revealed in another interview yet. Something as simple as your favorite TV show or food will do.

I am quite a Luddite and one of the ways I most enjoy writing is to write in longhand with a fountain pen.

9.  What are you working on now and what are your future writing plans?

Currently I am working on the fourth Muirteach MacPhee mystery.  I’m playing around with a few ideas for other projects, although I want to continue this series as well.  Maybe another historical mystery series, or a ‘bigger” book.

10.  Anything else?

Please visit my website or Facebook page. Please “like” my author page there if you’re so inclined—I try to post interesting writing and research related tidbits a few times each week. I’m also on Goodreads, although one of my perennial resolutions is to keep that more up to date.

Thanks, Susan! Now, who has a comment or question for Susan McDuffie? Good luck in the contest!

Tomorrow's Guest: Susan McDuffie

Tomorrow, fellow mystery author Susan McDuffie will guest on my blog. She answers my interview questions, and I'm sure you'll be intrigued by what she has to say. Also, Susan will run a contest for an autographed copy of her soon-to-be-released The Study of Death, the third book in her Muirteach MacPhee series. She will choose the winner from among those who leave a comment.

Susan McDuffie has been a devotee of historical fiction since her childhood, when she believed she had been born in the wrong century.  She now writes historical mysteries set in medieval Scotland.  The Muirteach MacPhee Mysteries include A Mass for the Dead (2006), The Faerie Hills (2011--  Winner of NM Book Award “Best Historical Novel” 2011) and The Study of Murder (October, 2013).

Lamenting the Loss of Colorado's Independent Bookstores

On November 8th, the third book in my Claire Hanover gift basket designer series, A Basket of Trouble , will be released. Normally around two-three months before a book release (about now), I start planning quite a few bookstore appearances in my home state of Colorado, so I can meet readers, talk about me and my books, and autograph a few copies.

I've developed strong relationships with independent Colorado bookstore owners who have hosted me over the years. Sadly though, many of them have closed their stores or are in the process of closing their stores. These include Reader's Cove in Fort Collins, High Crimes Mystery Bookstore in Boulder, Murder By the Book in Denver (which still has an on-line presence HERE), Beth Anne's Book Corner and Book Sleuth Mystery Bookstore in Colorado Springs, Black Cat Books in Manitou Springs, and Weber's Books and Drawings and Hamlet's Bookshoppe in my hometown of Breckenridge.

I will be contacting those Colorado bookstores that are still open where I have signed in the past to see if they want to host an event, but the numbers are dwindling. That means the number of appearances I'm making is dwindling, too. In 2007, when the hardcover edition of the first book in the Claire Hanover series, A Real Basket Case, was released, I made about 25 personal appearances, not including book club visits. For Fatal Descent, my most recent release in June of this year, I made about 12 personal appearances. I really would like to do more!

 If you live in Colorado, do you have a favorite local bookstore that you think I should visit? If so, please give me the name of the store, a point of contact, and the store's location in a comment on this post, and I'll follow-up. Thanks!

Today's Mystery Author Guest: Colleen Collins

As promised yesterday, fellow mystery author Colleen Collins is visiting my blog today. To read her bio and see her photo, please page down to yesterday's post. Also, Colleen is running a contest for a free electronic copy of her latest book, Secrets of a Real-Life Female Private Eye , the cover art for which appears above. Colleen will select TWO winners tomorrow evening from among those who leave a comment today or tomorrow and will announce the names in a comment on this post.

Secrets of a Real-Life Female Private Eye is a part-memoir, part-reference nonfiction book based on the experiences of a professional private investigator and writer. Audiences: researchers, writers, detective-fiction fans, armchair detectives and anyone curious about the real world of private investigators!

"As an experienced private detective and a skilled storyteller, Colleen Collins is the perfect person to offer a glimpse into the lives of real female P.I.s."
~ Kim Green, managing editor of Pursuit Magazine: The Magazine of Professional Investigators

Sounds like a great read for anyone interested in learning more about what P.Is do! Below is Colleen's guest article.

Paranormal Investigations: Do Ghost Hunters Really Find Ghosts?by Colleen Collins
Besides being a writer, I co-owned a private investigations for a decade in Denver, Colorado. In my last two guest posts at Beth’s blog, I’ve written about the work of a legal investigator and the importance of “MOM”--motive, opportunity and means--in a criminal proceeding. This time I’m talking about something lighter…so light that some people swear they can see right through this subject, if at all.

I’m talking about ghosts.

More specifically, ghost hunting or paranormal investigations. I write about paranormal investigations, among many other investigative topics, in my new nonfiction ebook, Secrets of a Real-Life Female Private Eye.

Now let’s kick off our discussion with a definition.

What Is a Paranormal Investigator?

Most paranormal investigators are people who are certified in parapsychology, or who have studied paranormal investigations. Their goal is to help people in need, and often paranormal investigators do not accept money for their services (although they may accept donations for travel, lodging and expenses). Some paranormal investigators make money through writing books, conducting "ghost tours," giving workshops, or even starring in TV reality shows about ghost hunters.

At my agency, we specialized in legal investigations, and occasionally other types of case work, such as background checks and infidelity investigations. A few times people called, asking if we could investigate a ghost.  We’d tell them no, we didn’t, and offer some tips before hiring one.

Tips for Hiring a Paranormal Investigator

Look up an established paranormal investigations organization in the area. For example, the National and International ParaHaunt Paranormal Family Network gives referrals to paranormal investigators throughout the U.S. and the world.

Check the background of the paranormal organization or investigator before you retain their services. Contact the Better Business Bureau, research the organization/person on the Internet for news stories and client referrals, review their website and contact any former clients for recommendations, or hire a private investigator to double-check the paranormal investigator's background (especially if you’re inviting this person into your home).

Personally, I don’t believe in ghosts.  On the other hand, I’d become a believer if I captured evidence of one. Which I tried to do a few years back…


My Informal Investigations at Three Haunted Hotels

Several years ago, I visited the Stanley Hotel here in my state of Colorado and took its Ghost Tour. The "Stanley" is known for its Room #217, where Stephen King first began writing his book The Shining, later made into a movie starring Jack Nicholson.

My Digital Photos Caught “Orbs”

I took photos during this Ghost Tour with my digital camera, and others in the group (including the tour guide) said I had captured orbs, which supposedly indicated the presence of spirits.  The Paranormal Encyclopedia says that "both skeptics, and many ghost hunters, agree that photographic orbs are most often, if not always, caused by natural elements such as dust, pollen, or water vapor."  I don't know what caused the orbs, but if I'd seen, oh, a spectral figure in the photo…well, then I'd believe I'd captured evidence of a ghost.

Claims of Ghosts, But When I Visited...

I've visited other supposedly haunted hotels and buildings around Denver, Colorado, starting with the “Brown.”

The Brown Palace Hotel

I've taken the ghost tour two times at the Brown Palace Hotel, built in 1892.  Both times, the guide told us fantastic stories about ghosts and ghouls who haunt the hotel, from a long-dead string quartet that still practices their music to a ghost-like train conductor who walks through walls. I would have loved to have seen or heard one of these apparitions, but I didn’t. Neither did anybody else on the tours.

Although one of the tour guides swore that late one night she saw a “black mass” of vapor swirl up to the ceiling and disappear.  Hmmm.  Shame no one got a picture of that.

House of Mirrors

Seven or so years ago, I was writing a novel that featured a ghost character who lived during the late nineteenth-century silver-boom days of Colorado.  During this era, there was a famous madam, Mattie Silks, who supposedly still haunts her old living quarters in Denver (called the House of Mirrors).

One spring afternoon, I visited the House of Mirrors, which had morphed into a bar/restaurant. The business was closed, but a friendly bartender let me in to walk around and look at spots where the madam's ghost has been seen and heard (several people claimed to have heard her whispering on a certain staircase).  Did I see or hear any ghostly goings-on?  Unfortunately, no.

The bartender wanted to share his personal ghostly tales with me. Claimed that late at night, when he was alone cleaning up, sometimes the elevator would suddenly start working, its doors opening...and no one would be inside.  And then there was the night when, alone again, an entire shelf, out of the blue, crashed to the floor.

I wish I could imagine ghosts in those happenings, but it seemed to me that both the shelf and elevator had been in serious need of repair.

Would You Hire a Ghost Hunter?

If you heard mysterious noises or voices, would you hire a ghost hunter?  Or, have you ever witnessed a ghost?  Please post your answer in a comment. 

Thanks, Colleen! Now, who has a comment or question for Colleen Collins? Good luck in the contest!

Tomorrow's Guest: Colleen Collins

Tomorrow, fellow mystery author Colleen Collins will guest on my blog with an article titled "Paranormal Investigations: Do Ghost Hunters Really Find Ghosts?". I'm sure you'll be intrigued by what she has to say. Also, Colleen will run a contest for two people to win an electronic copy of her latest nonfiction release, a combination memoir and reference book,  Secrets of a Real-Life Female Private Eye . She will choose the winners from among those who leave a comment.

Colleen Collins has written several dozen novels for Harlequin and Dorchester, including her indie mystery The Zen Man, a semifinalist in Best Indie Books 2012, as well as three nonfiction novels on private investigations.

A Winning Weekend!

My husband and I had one lucky weekend! It all started with an email to me from Jack Calverley, the host of Crime City Central. The website hosts a weekly audio narration of a crime short story. The stories are donated by authors to the site, with the hope that listeners will seek out and buy novels and other short stories written by them. Back in April, I donated the text to one of my previously published short stories, "The Murder Cache." The story proved to be very popular with listeners and was selected as one of five finalists for best story of Crime City Central's first year in existence. Listteners then voted for their favorite.

Jack's email was to tell me that "The Murder Cache" won the honor of being voted the best story out of the whole 52 weeks! And he sent a photo of a virtual trophy for the award (see above). My story beat out stories by fellow crime writers whose work I admire greatly, such as Lawrence Block, Steve Hockensmith, Beverle Graves Myers, Reed Farrell Coleman, Carolyn Hart, and more. I'm absolutely thrilled! You can listen to the story HERE. I'd love to get some feedback from my blog readers on what you think of the story after you hear it.

The next good news email came from my writer friend Kevin Paul Tracy. He held a contest for people who liked the Facebook page of his upcoming novel, Rogue Agenda , to be released in October. I liked it, and lo and behold, I won the first place prize--a 5 lb gummy bear!! I have no idea what I'm going to do with it when it arrives, but the first thing will HAVE to be to take a photo of me with it. :)

The final and biggest good news came to my husband Neil. He has been diligently entering a local contest this summer put on by Shock Top Beer, the very tasty Belgian white wheat beer. The prize was a $4000 Yeti mountain bike, and you could enter the contest at each of three Vail Resorts' bars (T-Bar, Sevens, Park Avenue Pub) each day over the summer. The final drawing for the winner was held at the T-Bar at the base of Peak 8 of the Breckenridge Ski Resort yesterday at 5 PM, and you had to be present to win. We were there early and shared a Shock Top beer for good luck. Neil's name was drawn as one of five finalists!

The five of them then had to run the maze at the Peak 8 Fun Park, and the first person out would win the bike. Neil has run the maze in past years and watched our kids run it many times, so he understood the whole concept of finding the four stations with the letters M, A, Z, and E and stamping his card before heading for the exit. Also, we live at Breckenridge's high altitude full time, unlike the other finalists, who were all tourists. So, that was an advantage, though the other finalists were all much younger than him. Once "Go" was yelled, Neil took off and methodically worked his way through. I watched and cheered from the observation deck with the other families, and about halfway through, I heard one of them yell to their finalist, "Follow the old guy! He knows what he's doing!" And Neil did. He stormed out of the exit first and claimed the prize. Needless to say, he was very happy and excited (see below).