Kate Collins's Blog, page 121

Getting to Know You…

Say hello to  John Presler.  










-Where do you live now?   Miami, OK - Our house is right on the Historic US Route 66.

-Where were you born?  Portland, OR
-Pets? We have 2 cats (Mischief and Rascal) and they both work hard to live up to their names.


Kids?   Our kids are all grown with families of their own. They live in California and Oregon.
Hobby?  My hobbies include building / working on web sites and reading cozy mysteries (especially with animals in them).  I also enjoy working on old cars. I made a trade with a friend to get a 1958 Ford Thunderbird. It is kind of buried right now, but when it gets here, I will start restoring it.
-What do you do for fun?    During the summer, I love to ride my Toy (the front end is an ’83 Gold Wing and the back end is a ’71 Karmann Ghia). I also like to go to motorcycle rallies.  The first web site I built was for motorcycle apparel and accessories (RiderStop.com)
-Do you travel? My wife and I love to travel.  Got a fav place?  We have a couple of favorite places. One is Branson, MO - It is close, offers a wide variety of entertainment, and has numerous museums (we love visiting museums).  We also like the area around Manitou Springs, CO - There you will find The Royal Gorge, Cave of the Winds, Garden of the Gods, Seven Falls, Manitou Cliff Dwellings, and Pikes Peak.  There is so much to see and do in a fairly small area.
-How did you come to reading mysteries?  My mother was an avid reader and she got me hooked on reading and mysteries, in particular.
-Do you have a fav mystery show? Movie?  My favorite mystery shows are the oldies like Columbo, McCloud, Murder She Wrote, Ellery Queen, and Nero Wolfe.  For Mystery Movies, I especially like The Thin Man movies and the Sherlock Holmes movies with Basil Rathbone.
-Do you have a fav book that you reread from time to time?   Some of the classic books I never tire of reading are Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe series and J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit / Lord of the Rings series.  For more current authors, I like Duffy Brown’s Consignment Shop Series, Leann Sweeney’s Lexi Baker Series, K. J. Emrick’s Darcy Sweet Series, The Mrs. Murphy Mysteries by Rita Mae Brown, and E.J. Copperman’s Haunted Guesthouse Series. I usually go back and re-read earlier books when a new one comes out so I can be sure I don’t confuse one set of characters with another.
-Do you remember the first mystery your read?  I don’t remember the exact title, but I know it was one of Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe Mysteries (I have all but one or two of his books in my collection).
-Is there a character in a book or movie that you whish you could pal around with?    Some of the characters that I would really like to get to know are Columbo, Darcy Sweet, and Archie Goodwin.
-Tell us anything else about yourself.  We all love meeting new friends. 
In 2011, I was offered an early retirement option (I was 63 at the time) and it was such a great offer, I could not refuse. It turned out to be a win-win situation, as the company was preparing to lay off some workers. As a result of taking the early retirement, I got to spend time going to motorcycle rallies and building up our own business (RiderStop) and a younger person (who probably had a family and needed to work) got to keep their job.  We ended up selling the business in late 2012 to some friends, but we still help them with some of the rallies and I still maintain the web site. The best part is that my wife and I can now do some traveling and sightseeing around the country.

The Spotlight is on Victoria Square

by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett

Ah, Victoria Square, the quaint little shopping district in the village of McKinlay Mill, New York. It's a place that anyone would love to visit.

Of course, the anchor is Artisans Alley, the arts and crafts arcade that's owned and managed by Katie Bonner. It's about 30,000 square feet of handcrafted items, like sculpture, jewelry, wooden furniture and other items, pottery, woven items, and much, much more. You could easily spend the better part of the day examining all the treasures. But then ... you might get hungry.

While the Square doesn't yet have a full-service restaurant, it does boast two eateries. Afternoon Tea is the tea shop, which serves--what else?--afternoon tea, complete with delicate sandwiches, heavenly scones, and decadent desserts all served on bone china dishes. They also sell blended teas and other teatime items. Then there's Tanner's, which is part bakery-part cafe. It's a great place to grab breakfast or lunch.

Quilters from around the area are drawn to The Quiet Quilter, where proprietress Nona Fiske is not only knowledgeable about quilts and their history, but she's an able quilter herself.

Wood U is a shop filled with handcrafted wooden items from around the world, but also contains items made by its owner. The shop is currently closed (thanks to a devastating fire), but will reopen in the near future with a new owner.

A favorite of the villagers and visitors is Sweet Sue's Confectionery. Handmade chocolates, truffles, fudge, and specialty items are available year round, and the scent of chocolate in the air pleases everyone on the Square.  Better order early for holidays, because the shop is often mobbed.

Booth's Jellies and Jams is also a favorite place to visit. Owner Charlotte Booth stocks the shelves with a variety of jellies, jams, and marmalades made in small batches from her family recipes. Although the jams are made offsite, they are made in a commercial kitchen by members of the Booth family, and Afternoon Tea and Tanners both feature Booth products.

Need the perfect bottle of wine to accompany a special meal? The Perfect Grape is the place to get it. Sommelier Conrad Stratton is only too happy to make suggestions to enhance your wining and dining experience.

Need a gift? Gilda's Gift Baskets is the place to go.

That's just a quick tour of Victoria Square. If you'd like to know more, please click this link and investigate the Victoria Square mysteries.

What shop would you like to visit on Victoria Square?

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Coming December 6th:  Dead, Bath and Beyond, Victoria Square Mystery #4.  (Now Available for Pre-Order.)

Have you moved!

by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett

My last several day jobs revolved around numbers. Be they catalog numbers or numbers used internally to track vendor MSDS (material safety data sheets). To other people, it was the most boring job in the world, but I didn't mind it. Mostly because I only had to use part of my brain on the job and could use the rest of it plotting stories.

I guess I'm good at that kind of data collection because I still do it--only now I do it for the Cozy Chicks. (No paycheck involved, darn it.)

One of the jobs I handle for the Chicks is their mailing lists -- both snail mail and email.  Holy cow, you wouldn't believe how often people move or change their email addresses and forget to tell us. It gets a little pricey when scores of emails bounce and when hundreds of postcards get returned as "return to sender" or "not deliverable as addressed."

In fact, that just happened this week. It was startling to see how much mail came back with and without forwarding addresses--but mostly without.

My first step is to see if any of these people belongs to our Facebook Cozy Chicks Group.  (Do you?  If not, you're missing out on a lot of fun and great discussions with the Chicks and our readers! You can find us by clicking this link.)

But surely I could find these people on Facebook to ask them if they've moved, right?

Not exactly. Even if you think you have a unique name -- chances are there are at least 20-30 people with the exact same name.  (Last time I looked, there were at least twenty Lorraine Bartletts.)

Another problem? If you message people you aren't somehow connected with (say friends, or friends of friends), your message goes into a mailbox that most people don't know about. (The fact that they keep changing the name of it might be part of the problem.)  I know about mine, and do I ever think to look? Nope. Also, if you message too many people you don't know, Facebook will suspend you. I was once locked out for three weeks because I couldn't identify pictures of my friends.  Since I have over 3,000 friends, it's not surprising I don't recognize everyone by their faces ... or a picture of their cat, dog, child, or grandchild.

 I've put together a list of names of people whose addresses have changed and we have no idea how to find you. After our next newsletter, I'll put together a list of people whose email addresses have bounced (or are deliverable).

So, are you, or someone you know, on the list?  You can check it here.

(P.S. This is a private page and only available by the above link.)

How can I not love those spies?

By Mary Jane Maffini aka Victoria Abbott


I have been bewitched by a period of history I know little about: the Revolutionary War.  Up here in Canada, we learned British history and a smattering of Canadian history and some background about our province.  I loved history and ate it up, so I know I didn’t just ignore it.  For sure, the date 1776 was bandied about, but that was about it.  


 We have been watching documentaries about the Civil War and the Roosevelts and getting to know more about America’s past.  Then along came TURN (try to imagine a backwards “N” here).   This is the story of General George Washington’s spies during the long conflict that was the American Revolution.  As a mystery writer, I loved the idea of the uses of cryptography, invisible ink, and other ways of getting messages through undetected or if detected unbroken.  Who wouldn’t be fascinated by false pretences, deception and skulking around in the dark dodging redcoats?  
The show focuses on the real life Long Islanders Abraham Woodhall,  Anna Strong, Caleb Brewster who made up the essence of the “Culper Ring”,  run by their long-term friend,  the admirable Benjamin Tallmadge.  Added to them was the Quaker, Robert Townsend, the most reluctant of spies, and then you really had a crew worth watching.  None of them were ‘professionals’, (except for Tallmadge who was a soldier). They were in it because they truly believed in the cause and aside from recovering expenses, eventually if they were lucky, they were not paid.  Being caught meant being summarily hanged so the stakes were high. The communities were divided between Patriots and Loyalists: with many on both sides not quite what they seemed. 
We were hooked and remain so as the third season is now on.  Even better, the program was based on a book: Washington’s Spies, by Alexander Rose.  I borrowed the book from the library, couldn’t put it down and now will just have to go get a ‘keeper’.   The real stories are just as interesting and perhaps even more so.  

Part of the fun for us was watching the good and the bad on both sides:  we were fascinated by elegant and dashing Major John André, head of British Intelligence, also a real character. Some of the senior British officers, including General Cornwallis and the much detested Colonel Simcoe were sent north after the war ended, to foment a bit of trouble and civilize the north.  Simcoe, portrayed as a psychopath (boy did we hate him!) in the television show, was instrumental in the abolition of slavery in Canada and the implementation of trial by jury in Upper Canada. He has a lake, a university and a county named for him. Talk about mixed reviews! 
History as they say is written by the victor and it depends on who is doing the writing where. 
What about you?  Are you interested in historical drama based on real life?  If so, what era (s) do you find fascinating?  Do you like television or films based on books?  Lots to discuss on this topic.

You really really need to read the directions.

Hi all you parents and once upon a time kids. Duffy Brown here.

 I have a two-year-old grandson—baby Jack--with flaming red hair (from his mamma) black eyes (from is daddy) and he’s climber (I think he gets that from me. I wish! LOL). (just as a side note I think baby Jack will be baby Jack till he’s forty) 
Nothing deters baby Jack. If he wants it he climbs for it. Store something on top of the fridge...good luck. He pushes the chair over, drags the toaster across the counter and...ta-da...he’s on top of the fridge.

His poor mom.
In an attempt to keep Allison from going completely gray, she and my son bought a jungle gym for baby Jack. This sounds like a great idea but now it has to be put together. Okay, I’ve seen toys to put together but this is crazy!
When my kids were little where were none of those neat wood things they have today. We had metal swing sets that if you didn’t anchor the legs in the ground the whole thing darn-near flipped over if the kids all started swinging in the same direction at the same time.
Today of course there are these wood jungle gyms that cost as much as my car. They are amazing with climbing walls, curly slides, clubhouse, ladders, etc.
My question to you is, have you ever put a jungle gym together for your kids? Did you nearly go nuts putting the thin together? Did you have one when you were growing up? And were you a climber and drive your poor mom nuts?
I’ll give away two Braking for Bodies pens with builtin flashlight from the answers. 

Another Mother's Day Tribute

by Maggie Sefton


My mom cooking in our modest little kitchen in our house (built in 1910 in Arlington, VA).  It's a nursery school now---Blue Bird Nursery---and painted Robin's Egg Blue.  :)  This photo must have been taken in 1965.  


Hey, Everyone---You'll have to forgive me but I couldn't resist the opportunity of the
recently-passed Mother's Day to take time to salute my dear mom, Benny, who passed away last year.  She was 95  years old.

I'm still here in Northern Virginia, staying with my dear childhood friend Diane and husband Les in their lovely home in Vienna, Virginia (that's a suburb of Washington, DC, which was my old "hometown"). Diane and her sister Nancy and I grew up together across the street from each other in Arlington, Virginia----years ago.  Both my mom Benny  and Nancy/Diane's mom Olive were Single Divorced Working Moms in what was then an "Ozzie and Harriet" world.  For those of you who are too young to know that Ozzie and Harriet was a family TV show in the 1950s, think of Richie's family in "Happy Days."

My mom Benny and my friends' mom Olive both worked for the Federal Government as Civil Servants, secretaries to be exact, and they worked for over 30 years each.  Single, divorced working moms did NOT have it easy in that world.  They were actually considered Scarlet Women who couldn't "keep" their husbands.  Hard to believe now, isn't it?  But that was their world.

My mom didn't marry again until much later in life after I was already married and raising a family.  Mom married an old family  friend who had lost his long-time wife to cancer the previous year.  Since she knew what kind of wonderful man Stetson was, my mom Benny married and was finally able to enjoy the extra special things in Life like traveling to Europe and Hawaii and Canada and take cruises.  I always told her she "deserved" it.  She was a very special woman who worked very hard in her life and deserved to enjoy the fruits of her labors.  She was a wonderful mother who loved me very, very much and adored her grandchildren.  I was very lucky to have her.  Happy Belated Mother's Day, Mom!   Have any of you lost your mothers?

I GET QUESTIONS--WEIRD ONES!

By Mary Kennedy                         

Writers are used to weird questions (seriously, we are!) To some degree, it goes with the territory. Tell people you're a mystery writer and suddenly a floodgate opens and you find yourself engulfed in a tsunami of strange comments.
                                                            
   
Here are a few questions I've been asked at book signings and interviews. Some odd, some snarky, some just plain weird.

1. "So, you're a writer.  Have I heard of you?"
      After trying out various witty replies, I usually just shrug and say, "Probably not."
                                                         

2. "I've had a fascinating life. Would you like to write my life story?"
      Again,  I try to go for a kind reply, rather than a snarky one, and stress the idea that I write mystery novels, not memoirs.

3.  "I've always wanted to write a book."  Someone asked Jessica Fletcher this question on an episode of Murder She Wrote and she answered briskly, "Then you should, my dear, you should!"  And then she kept right on walking.
                                                       

4.  "So you write mysteries. Do you ever wish you could write a real book?"  This is a tough one and it's hard to be polite, but you must! It's rather a baffling question and I usually look surprised and point out that the Dream Club Mysteries and the Talk Radio Mysteries are "real" books, with characters and plots and timelines and a beginning, middle and end.                   

5. (from a television reporter in a teeny, tiny market). "So you're a mystery writer. Do you ever wish you were Tess Gerritsen?" Ack. This time my manners failed me. It was late in the day, I had a splitting headache and had had nothing but coffee and breath mints since breakfast. "No, I don't. Do you ever wish you were Katie Couric?" Not as snarky as it looks in print, because I did manage to smile when I said it. The reporter chuckled so I assume she wasn't too offended.
                                                     

6. "Do you get paid a lot?" For some reason, people think it's perfectly all right to ask writers about their finances. After experimenting with different answers, I finally decided that simple is best. "Not nearly enough," I say cheerfully.

7. And along the same lines, "Do you ever feel like an overpaid hack?" Answer: "No, I feel like an underpaid one."

8. "I'd like to collaborate on a book with you. How does that sound to you?" 'If you're Janet Evanovich or Nora Roberts, it sounds terrific!"

9. And the inevitable follow-up, "No, I mean I'll give you the ideas, you write them up and we'll split the profits fifty-fifty." I usually pretend to ponder this and then act as if I've had a sudden (and brilliant) idea. "Wait, how about this?" I ask. "I'll come up with the ideas, you write the book and we'll split everything fifty-fifty." Hmm. No one has ever taken me up on that offer, I wonder why.

10. "Is this the only book you've ever written?"Again, this is baffling. Can't they see that I'm surrounded by a TON of books?  I've written over 40 novels. Why would I be signing someone else's books?                 
                                                     
 I hope you've enjoyed this little glimpse into the strange questions I've encountered. If you have some "strange/weird/bizarre" questions people have asked you, I'd love to hear them. Thanks for stopping by!  Mary Kennedy 

A Yummy Spotlight

Braking for Bodies is the second book in my Cycle Path mystery series. 
Its set on Mackinac Island, a chunk of land where Lake Michigan meets Lake Huron. The island has two main directions...up and down and with no cars that means everything is hauled by horses or bikes or on foot. If you live on the island for any stretch of time you’ll be in the best shape of your life from walking the hills or riding your bike because these are some hills!
And this is a really good thing so you can walk off all that fudge! Yep, today’s spotlight is on Mackinac Fudge!
Mackinac Island has mainly two streets, Main Street and Market Street. Main faces the water and the one street back is Market. There are the usual tourist shops of t-shirt etc but the one thing that will capture your attention right away is that there are 18...yes 18!...fudge shops in town. 
Ryba’s, JoAnn’s, Murdocks, Mackinac Fudge...you get the picture
Inhale the mouthwatering aromas. Partake in the deliriously delicious confectioneries. Revel in the experience – your palate will think it won the lottery! The Island doesn’t claim to have created fudge. But after one taste, you’ll agree that it was perfected here. The flavors are to die for.The tourist center says… Born in the years following the Civil War, the tradition of fudge making is stronger than ever and fudge remains the Island’s most popular and tastiest souvenir.   I think they sell TEN tons of the stuff a year. That is a LOT of fudge. And of course there are a bazillion kinds of fudge. In addition to perfecting recipes, the art of fudge making also plays an important role on the island besides eating it...you can watch it being made. There is actually a Fudge Festival every year. Holy cow! Nothing better than a fudge festival!All the fudge shops have big windows where you can watch men…usually it is the guys doing this ‘cuse tossing fudge is hefty work. They throw big kettles of fudge onto big marble tables then use a thing that looks like a canoe paddle to flip the fudge up onto itself. This creates one big huge loaf of fudge. 
Then they toss in nuts and chocolate bits and bits of maple and toffee and cookie and peppermint etc…you get the picture on to the loaf as they flip it over and over and over as it cools. Once it does cool they cut the loaf into half-moons and sell it to the salivating customers lined up at the counters.
Sooooo, after all this talk about fudge, what is your favorite? Chocolate-chocolate, maple, Oreo, lavender (yep, it really tastes like lavender) peanut butter, pumpkin pie, turtle, raspberry, blueberry (it’s really blue!)
Tell me your fave flavor and share this blog on FB or twitter and I’ll give away two Braking for Body totes from the answers.
Here is a recipe from Irma who owns The Good Stufffudge shop in the series.
Irma’s Drop Dead Decadent Rum Fudge… From her fudge shop…The Good Stuff…on Mackinac Island
1 pound quality semisweet chocolate chopped fine (please do not use chocolate chips for this one) 1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk 4 Tablespoons Dark Rum pinch of kosher salt1 tsp. vanilla
Directions:Line 8 inch square pan with wax paper or parchment paper. You want it to hang over the edge of the pan so you can lift it out.  Lighlty grease (butter or baking spray) the 2 sides of the pan that the sling is not touching.  This will make it easy for you to remove the fudge later.
In double boiler first put in the chocolate, then dump in the condensed milk, and then the rum,  vanilla and salt.
Stir over medium low heat. Do not let the water below the pot boil; you don’t need to let the water get that hot as you are looking for a slow melting. You don’t want to burn the chocolate
Dump in prepared pan and smooth it out. Let the fudge sit out overnight or several hours. Lift out the whole “sling” and then peel off the wax paper and cut it into small squares. It’s rich, so cut small squares.
Irma says: Irma won the Gold Ribbon at the Mackinac Island Fudge Festival with this recipe. Her secret…This fudge gets better with age. It’s best the second day.

This was no eency weency spider!

by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett

The thing I REALLY don't like about spring?

Spiders.

They lurk. They sit there on the ceiling ... and then suddenly DROP right on the counter where you're making breakfast. (They seem to show up early in the morning...a LOT.)

I don't know where they've been all winter, but I wish they'd stay there. In fact, as I dispose of the bodies (after many screams that Mr. L says for sure are going to send him to an early grave), I tell the lifeless (usually squashed) corpse that it could have "lived a long and happy life" if it had only stayed OUTSIDE.

I know, I know--spiders are good. They eat the bad bugs (and also poop everywhere. See little black spots in the corner near a web? I rest my case).

This is the time of year when other bugs make their reappearance, too.

Ants; centipedes, pill bugs, flies ... the list goes on and on.

I remember my first trip to Northern California. Everyone had their windows open and nobody had screens.  Why?  No bugs.

Is there something about spring that bugs you, too?

P.S.  As I typed this -- a spider started crawling on my wall.  I screamed -- and it fell off the wall. I guess I scared it as much as it scared me.


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P.P.S.  The paperback edition of A Fatal Chapter came out this week. If you haven't caught up on Tricia's and Angelica's latest paperback adventure, you can do it now!  (P.P.P.P.S. the price of the ebook edition also dropped.)

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books A Million | Book Depository  |  Chapters  | Indie Bound

Kindle US  |  Kindle Worldwide  |  iBooks  |  Kobo |  Nook

What is a mother?

 By Mary Jane Maffini aka Victoria Abbott
What’s a mother? When Mother's Day rolls around each year, I always ponder that. 

I don’t know who or where I would be if a tall, beautiful lady hadn’t been hoping and longing for a baby for many years. Her husband took a lot of convincing, and her mother-in-law completely disapproved of the idea and tried to exercise her veto!  Luckily, that instinct to mother overcame  objections and two good-looking dark-haired people became the very excited parents of a very tiny six-month old babyl  
  That baby won the jackpot!  Mum appears to have bought this hat to celebrate.  I know some of you have seen it before.  
Three years later, she spearheaded the adoption of a baby boy.  Now, she was the mum of two kids and deliriously happy.  Of course, kids being kids, we presented many challenges (code for bratty at times)  
Get your own fish!

For the rest of her life, she would continue to dish out love, support and great food to her often challenging daughter and her son.  Despite my desire to know where I ‘came from’ and if I had any siblings, my mother was the person who read me stories, dried my tears, made my favorite meal, invited my friends for homemade spaghetti back when that was exotic. Don't you love the boys in suits?  
 She gave me a wonderful warm home full of books which is probably the greatest gift a parent can give.. 
She did her best to get me into hats for teas!

We loved her to bits and so did her grandchildren.  I have to say it was mutual:  here’s mum (aka Gram) with Victoria 'a while back'.


Our mum and Victoria’s Gram lives on in our hearts and memories.  Mother’s Day is always bittersweet for us.
Some of you have seen some of these photos before, but you can tell they're important to me.  Now it’s your turn:  come by and talk about your mum or your adoption or anything else that's important to YOU on this topic.