Kate Collins's Blog, page 169

GIVE GENEROUSLY, BUT WISELY

by Mary Kennedy                                  
    These days a lot of people have their hands out, eager to take your money. Have you heard of "crowdfunding?" Perfect strangers feel free to ask you to donate to whatever makes them happy. It could be plane tickets to take the family to Disney, a mere $500 to contribute to "the pot" so they can fork over 10 grand to a vanity press, or hotel and registration fees for a conference. They must think I'm the banker in Monopoly!                                                             (In case you think this is too far-fetched, these are all real-life examples. I've been asked to "contribute" to all three "causes.") If you're astonished at the sheer nerve of the people begging, I was too! At first I thought it was a joke and then I realized it was true. Writers are generous folks and most of us contribute to our favorite charities, whether they are animal shelters, literacy movements, shelters for abused women and so on. I thought it might useful to give a few tips on giving wisely. 1. You have to research where to put your money and where it will do the most good. One very important question is: how much of your donation is actually going to "the cause" and how much is going to the group doing the collecting. Charity Navigator will tell you exactly what percentage of your donation is going to the "cause" and what percentage is being eaten up by executive salaries. Charity Navigator is a good site to know about because they also suggest "alternative charities" that are devoted to the same cause but have a higher "rating."                                                          2. Some police and firefighters often use "for-profit" fundraising services.  Be very careful of phone solicitations. I was disappointed to learn that some of these "for profit" groups keep almost ALL the money collected and the police and firefighting organizations only receive pennies on the dollar. Yes, pennies on the dollar!! When they call with their phone pitch, be careful and do some research. Don't just blindly give away your money to them. 3 An interesting site is GIVEWELL , which searches for well-organized, but underfunded charities that desperately need help. These are charities that are well established and have a proven track record. 4. Every little bit helps. Don't worry that the amount is too small, many charities operate on a shoestring and are desperate for money. One of our local animal shelters sent out an e-mail alert that they were completely out of canned cat food. That meant they couldn't medicate cats (because they need wet food to add the crushed pills to) and they couldn't feed sick cats with dental problems. I rushed over with a check. They literally needed the money right then and I couldn't stand to think of the animals going without their medication over the week-end. 5. If you can't donate money, think about donating your time. Many of my writer pals are animal lovers and routinely donate their time and talent by writing press releases for animal shelters, writing fund raising letters for animal charities and even writing speeches for shelter directors. This is another way of giving and I bet you can think of some special "talent" that you can donate.                              6. This is a good time to organize your donations for 2015 . If you can give a little to your favorite charity every month, that is very valuable. Charities need to know what their operating budgets are and having a steady source of donations really helps them. Good luck and happy giving!Mary Kennedy

It's all fish to me!

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

Here in Western New York, we have a thing called the Friday Fish Fry. A lot of places have beer-batter fish fries, and it's no secret that my favorite place to go is in East Aurora, NY. A restaurant known as Tony Rome's Globe Hotel. OMG -- it's de-lish. (And it's available every day of the week!)  Google "Buffalo fish fry" and guess what?  One of my photos comes up. This one, in fact. (My favorite local watering hole, where the martinis come with sidecars, Bernard's Grove , has a pretty darn good fish fry, too.)  But most Friday's Mr. L makes the fish dinner.

My brother is going on some kind of screwy diet, but at least it says he should eat fish. So yesterday we went in search of fish to the Rochester Public Market.  I bought three HUGE slabs of cod for ten bucks.  Then we went to my favorite little market (Gates Big M) where I like to buy meat, and I bought more cod.  You see, the little guy sells cod for $5 a pound cheaper than our big local chain. (I love Wegmans, but man is their fish expensive.)  Guess what.  The $5 cheaper a pound fish tastes just as good. So we're good to go for the next couple of weeks.

(BTW, I've been in other parts of the state--and across the country--and the fish is dirt cheap.  What's with that?)

My former workmate, Jean C. (Hi, Jean!) was married to a chef at the same company where we worked.  She told me how her husband cooked fish.  "Just put come mayonnaise in a bowl, toss in some dill weed,  spread it over the fish, and bake. Then broil for the last minute or so." So with those minuscule instructions, Mr. L figured out how to make a wonderful Friday night dinner. We use cod, Sorry I don't have a real recipe.  Mr. L wings it about 35-40 weeks of the year. The other 10-12 weeks a year click this link and it's essentially the recipe.  Here's a video to show you how

Fish is supposed to be really good for you (and me!). What's your favorite fish recipe?

Kicking the Bucket List

 By Mary Jane Maffini aka Victoria Abbott
In the last couple of years, I’ve been keeping a bucket list. No doubt that all started on a gloomy day when I’d heard some bad news about a friend and it hit me that I might not have forever to get things done.  Time to pick up the pace!  What hadn’t I done? Where hadn’t I been? Get at it! Of course, the list was endless.  
There was a time when my goal was: write a book. That changed to get published.  And then, stay published.  I didn’t have any idea that when I was able to finally achieve those things (and a few more) that dozens of new ones would spring up to take their place.  Can’t a girl have a break?  I found my bucket list started to loom, taking away from the joy in everyday life.













Many people seem to have fifty things on their lists. When they cross one off (say, perch on the edge of a live volcano or zipline between New York skyscrapers), they still have 49 breathing down their necks.  Climb a mountain! Learn Mandarin!  Swim with the sharks! Where’s the fun in that?
I’ve decided to dump that list! Yes. I’m tipping over the bucket (not the same as kicking it).  There are things I’d like to do, sure.  I’ll take vacations, but I don’t want to feel that my vacations are tightly scheduled or scripted or there’s pressure to keep up with someone else’s idea of a good time. But there are not many things that I want to HAVE to do.
Looking back, I realize how many of the activities I take for granted would have seemed like impossible dreams many years back. After many years of juggling jobs, education, family and writing, I now work at home.  I have just one job and it’s one that I love.
  Maybe I need a reverse bucket list to appreciate what I love about my life.   Something like this:  Writing the type of mysteries I like to read
Being married to a man who loves to books
Enjoying a supportive family  Spoiling beloved dogs















Getting to feed the birds


















Having fun with my friends (all readers and many are writers too!)
Collaborating with my daughter













 Reading what I want, when I want to
Having a bit of time to ‘play’ in the kitchen













Knitting up a storm.
Puttering in the garden or fiddling with flowers

















I could go on, but you get the picture. There may not be visits to Buckingham Palace or Dubai, Porches or a weekend place on the French Riviera, but I wouldn't change things for the world. Well, possibly winter.
Full disclosure: I left out the piles of crumpled paper, the early rejections, the heart-stopping deadlines, the fallen souffles and the chair legs gnawed by the beloved pets or any differences of opinion about the book collector mysteries. Forget all that.















 I don’t want to trade my life for pie in the sky.  There are only two things that I really have on my current ‘Must Do’ list and that’s to get a good shot of the gorgeous pair of cardinals that flit shyly though our backyard every week and to finish the current Work in Progress When I get them done, I’ll share the news with you.,

What about you? To ratchet up that bucket list or relax and live in the moment?  There’s no right answer but I’d like to know what works in your life and what makes you feel lucky and grateful.  

I wish I were there!

I’ve been trying to get the forever shoebox of pictures in some kind of order. These are from back in the day when I actually had physical pictures to put in shoeboxes.
There are the usual pictures of the kids born, growing up, first day of school etc and then there are the pictures I inherited, stuff that happened before my time. Pictures are great, reminds us of what was but nothing beats actually being there.
There’s this picture of my parents wedding. I wish I could have been at the wedding. They look so young and happy and full of life.
And there’s a picture of grandpa Angelo’s store on Canal Street when we had canals in Cincy. Wish I could have shopped there...and ridden on a canal boat.
There’s a picture of my uncle coming home from WWII. I would have loved to been in NYC for that parade and been a part of the end of WWII. Maybe stand beside that sailor kissing the girl. Heck I would have love to be that girl! 
And what about when Mr. Hershey made his first kiss! He had to know that was a game-changer. 

There’s a clipping of the first moon landing. I sure would have been neat to be standing on the moon too. Then there’s that newspaper clipping of the Titanic. I’m glad I wasn’t there for that one!

I would have like to have been in the shop or whatever when Gutenberg printed his first something on the printing press. I bet they all held hands and did the Snoopy dance ‘cause they had to know they were really on to something.

I know I would have liked to witness firsthand the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Talk about some brave dudes. High treason is dangerous business.

So what about you? Is there something you would have liked to have witnessed up-close and personal? Something you wish you’d been a part of? Maybe Adam and Eve in the garden…pack your fig leaf? Maybe pet a dinosaur? Maybe watch Babe Ruth smack a homer to left field? 

Molly Malone Returns

by Maggie Sefton



For those of you who’ve had a chance to meet Molly Malone,  the heroine-sleuth in my suspense novels DEADLY POLITICS and POISONED POLITICS, the third in the Washington, DC-based series is now out.  BLOODY POLITICS is available in trade paperback and E-book versions from bookstores and online retailers.  


Here’s a hint of what’s happening: 
The jogger’s throat was cut leaving a pool of blood on the pedestrian path. Molly Malone could tell by the neon yellow running shoe dangling off the end of the stretcher that the body belonged to her friend Natasha Jorgenson.
A junior congressional staffer, Natasha was on her way to meet with Molly to hand over important research on an international banking bill. Natasha was the third person who knew of the research to die. Molly fears she won’t be the last.
As she and her colleagues are targeted by break-ins, wiretaps, and harassment, Molly discovers that powerful players are working out a plan to change the course of history . . . and they will stop at nothing to make sure they succeed.

THE SIBS AND I

by Kate Collins

It’s over today, our annual sibling get-together/getaway, and I think I speak for all three of us, my sister, my brother, and me, when I say, Phooey!  It went by too fast.
We’ve done this sibling reunion ever since our mother passed on nine years ago. On our first trip we headed south to my other hometown, Key West, as a way of honoring Mom, who was a strong believer in “family first.” That trip turned out to be such a rewarding and relaxing experience that we decided to do it every year, and we’ve stuck to that goal. There were just a few years when my sister wasn’t able to make it because of some family issues, so she was joyous that she could rejoin us this year.

These photos are of my sister and brother and my sister and me ready for a trip out on the Glass Bottom Boat, headed to the third largest coral reef in the world.
 
What makes it fun is that we all love getting away from a harsh winter and into the sun, exploring the wonderful island cuisine, taking in a local play, and walking or biking everywhere – no cars involved. What makes it interesting is that we have individual tastes and preferences in what we like to do and eat and yet we manage to make it work because our similarities, especially our wacky senses of humor, outweigh any differences. We can, and do, always find something to laugh about.
We tried a few new restaurants this year, some featured on the TV show, Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, (we weren’t disappointed) and we returned to our favorites – El Meson de Pepe, Blue Heaven, Santiagos, and Mangoes.  The photo of the “Mile High Key Lime Pie” was taken at Blue Heaven. It’s one of their specialties. We watched sunsets from the famous Mallory Square and saw the Key West Cat Man and his infamous rescue cats perform. I’ve included those photo, too. (The lady in the foreground is a stranger.)
And I had to add a photo of the latest addition to my Key West friends, a young iguana who perches on the beautiful bougainvillea just beyond my deck railing. 
I know this kind of togetherness won’t work with every family, but I highly recommend giving it a whirl. What a great bonding time it is. Bring old photo albums to share and a deck of cards in case of rain. Be prepared to compromise and then just enjoy your time together. Life is short. Make the best of it.
Have you ever taken a trip like this or would you like to? Would it work for your family? Where would you go?

When Will I Stop Getting Lost?

by Leann

If you're on Facebook, you probably know that I adopted a darling kitten on Friday. His name is Lynley for DCI Thomas Lynley in Elizabeth George's series. It's a favorite and I have read every book more than once. Cutie pie, huh?

But this is about what happened after I was on my way home with my new little friend. I went to Greenville in South Carolina, about a 70-90 minute ride from Greenwood where we live. The animal shelter there is wonderful. But I am very unfamiliar with Greenville. I go to the doctor there and that's about it. And I had a doctor's appointment that day and went to the shelter afterward.

The place is on the north side of town and when the mountains of paperwork to "foster to adopt" were done, the crying cat and I were on the way home. Or so I thought.  I programmed the GPS for home. In my defense, the sun was very bright and my GPS screen was impossible to see for most of the trip. So I listened to the
lady tell me where to turn. After all, she'd gotten me from the doctor to the shelter without a hitch, even though it was a circuitous route.

So when the machine led me in a different direction (though still west, which was right) I trusted that darn thing. But when I saw a sign for Clemson University, I began to get nervous. Surely this new route didn't take me through the north part of South Carolina! Finally, I pulled over after traveling at least twenty miles, maybe more. I put on the sunglasses and took a good look at the road we were on and it was very unfamiliar. So I decided to reprogram the thing. Maybe there was a glitch--and I had NO IDEA where I was.

And that's when I learned that there are two streets with the same name that include my house number, but in different towns--towns very far apart. My heart sank. Somehow, when I'd tapped "previous destinations" the street in the OTHER town was programmed in and that's the one I chose. How did THAT happen? I have no idea. But the biggest shock was when the GPS "recalculated" and I learned I was 66 miles from home--farther away from home than when I'd started
out at 8 AM in the morning. Yup. I was lost. To say the rural roads in South Carolina are all very much alike is an understatement. I now believe they all look EXACTLY the same.

Needless to say, I made it home with a very sleepy, sweet kitten. My next challenge is to figure out how to delete that wrong address from my GPS. Ever had anything like that happen to you? Or are you far smarter than me?

FEEDING, PROTECTING (AND COUNTING!) OUR FEATHERED FRIENDS

by Mary Kennedy     
                     

Whether they're exotic parrots or "ordinary sparrows," birds are fascinating creatures. We can watch them for hours, enjoying their antics as they scramble for food, show "dominance" behaviors, and sip water from our backyard bird baths.  In an earlier blog, I offered some suggestions for making your backyard "wildlife friendly."
During the winter, wild birds need our help. Temperatures drop in many parts of the country (I live in the Northeast) and the frigid cold means lack of food for birds and possible hypothermia. Seeds are developed to target certain species of birds and you can decide which birds would most benefit. Usually I buy a mixture. Try to place the seeds under an overhang, if you can, so they don't get buried in the snow. Refill water dishes frequently as the water tends to freeze. Suet and seed cakes are good choices.                                                               It's best to put suet in specially designed cages, otherwise the squirrels will run off with them.  (Don't worry, I'm not depriving squirrels of food, I buy peanuts in the shell and dried ears of corn for them--much to the dismay of my neighbors!).                          
                                                        
Did you know that vertical uncapped pipes can be deadly to wild birds? Please check your yard to make sure you don't have any.                                                           
All across the country, as temperatures drop, millions of birds and small animals climb into pipes for warmth--and can't get out. Some states (California and Nevada) have tried to combat these wildlife deaths by legislating against them. They've forbidden the use of new, uncapped pipes as mining claim markers. It's a good law, but almost impossible to enforce.Uncapped pipes are used to vent plumbing, link fencing, survey land, stake signs and more. Birds are trapped in the narrow shaft--they can't spread their wings to escape and die a slow death.You may think you don't have any uncapped vertical pipes or structures in your yard, but please take a closer look.                                                               

Do you have a chimney with no mesh screen on top? Remember that plastic piping you put up last summer to service as a lattice work for plants? Does each pipe have a cap on it?  If not, they could be deadly.                     
Would you like to join the Great Backyard Bird Count and help scientists better understand the wild bird population?                                                     
It's fun, it's easy to do and you'll be helping a good cause. This project of the National Audubon Society goes back to 1998 and over a hundred thousand people have already participated. You could be one of them! Last year, people in 111 countries counted over 34 million birds. This could be a fun project for you and the kids.                                                          
Go to the Great Backyard Bird Count and agree to watch birds for 15 minutes a day from Feb 13-16 and then record your findings. You'll be helping scientists learn how weather and climate change affect bird populations as they compare migrations with past years.
Thank you for helping protect our feathered friends and next year, our backyards will be filled with the lovely chirping of happy, healthy birds.
Mary Kennedy

Cry, baby

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

This is the model typewriter I learned to type on.I have been awash in typos lately.  The thing is, when I'm working on a story, I type my butt off--as fast as I can to get my ideas down before I lose my train of thought.  Back in high school, when I was learning to type (keyboard, for you youngsters), they stressed not only accuracy, but more importantly SPEED.  So usually we were trying to type as fast as we could (on horrible MANUAL typewriters) which ruined our accuracy.  But ... that's how they judged you.

Grrrrr.

So, during the past month or so I've been proofreading my butt off. (And boy do I wish that I could actually trim inches that way.) I've read Evolution: Jeff Resnick's Backstory FIVE TIMES. (And re-read two of the short stories yesterday and STILL found three instances that I thought should be changed to be more precise.)  That book means something very special to me, and I want it as perfect as I can make it.

Will I read it again?  I have a feeling I will.

I'm currently working on proofing the Tales of Telenia: THRESHOLD manuscript or the upcoming print and audio editions.  Man--I'm changing so much, plus have found all kinds of nit-picky errors.  how can it be that after having beta readers go through it, AFTER Mr. L and I went through it--and much more than once, there are still errors?

This week I've been working on the copy edit of A Fatal Chapter (Booktown Mystery #9), and am wincing at the errors. I'm going through and checking the changes the copy editor made (and I found more than a few she missed) and putting them in my copy of the manuscript, which I intend to print out and read again (with a bookmark under each line to make sure I read EACH AND EVERY WORD).

I've got a new Jeff Resnick short story coming out on February 3rd called Crybaby.  Every night for the past two weeks I've read the story, printed it out, made changes, printed it out and read it again.  EVERY NIGHT FOR TWO WEEKS. (It's enough to make you cry!)  Last night, I read it one more time and STILL made tiny tweaks.  This has got to stop.  We all want our work to be the best we can make it, but when it comes to commas, sometimes I think we're being just a little too anal.

Still. I do want my work to be the best it can be.  It's what I expect when I read the work of any other author. But man, how can anybody make so many typos?

Do you notice typos when you read a book?

The January 2015 Report

* * * * * * * * * *Welcome to Dru's Cozy Report: January 2015. This month we have three recently released new series for your reading pleasure. Enjoy!

* * * * * * * * * *Feta Attraction by Susannah Hardy
Series: Greek To Me #1
Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime

Georgie Nikolopatos manages the Bonaparte House, a Greek restaurant and historic landmark in beautiful upstate New York rumored to possess ghosts and hidden treasure. But when her husband disappears and her main competitor is found dead, it’s up to Georgie to solve a big fat Greek murder.

With her husband, Spiro, inexplicably gone for days, Georgie has her hands full running the restaurant and dealing with the crew of the TV show Ghost Squad, called in by Spiro to inspect the house for haunting. So when she has a chance to take a boating excursion on the St. Lawrence River with her friend Keith Morgan, she jumps on it. But their idyll is quickly ruined when they discover the body of rival restaurant owner Domenic “Big Dom” DiTomasso floating in the water.

When the police start asking questions, it doesn’t help that Spiro can’t be found—and with Georgie on their suspect list, it’s up to her to find her missing husband and find out who killed Big Dom before someone else’s order is up.

Missing husband and lost treasure are the premise in this new cozy mystery featuring Georgie N. who leads a complicated life near the Canadian border. This was a good mystery that quickly became a page-turner as I was interested in what the treasure was and if she would find her husband. I enjoyed how well the chapters flow with the introduction of some of the cast that interacted with Georgie, especially Inky, who is a lovable soul. A well-planned mystery with suspects that kept me guessing and a few twisty turns, created a pleasantly appealing whodunit that I look forward to more exciting adventures in Bonaparte Bay.

Reach out to Susannah at susannahhardybooks.wordpress.com

Snow Way Out by Christine Husom
Series: Snow Globe Shop #1
Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime

Curio shop manager Camryn Brooks thought she’d seen every kind of snow globe—until she saw one depicting a crime scene. . .

Ever since she was a child, Cami has loved the sparkling beauty of snow globes, and now, she sells them. In fact, they’re so popular, Cami and her friend—coffee shop owner Alice “Pinky” Nelson—are hosting a snow globe making class.

After the flurry of activity has ended and everyone has gone off with their own handmade snow globes, Cami spots a new globe left behind on a shelf, featuring an odd tableau—a man sleeping on a park bench.

On her way home, she drifts through the town park and is shaken to come upon the scene from the globe—a man sitting on a bench. But he isn’t sleeping—he has a knife in his back. When the police arrive, it’s clear they consider Cami a little flaky and possibly a suspect. After her friends also come under suspicion, Cami starts plowing through clues to find the cold-blooded backstabber—before someone else gets iced. . .

I love the comfortable tone and how easily the chapters flow from one scene to another. I enjoyed learning about the protagonist and her friends and I enjoyed how the solving of this mystery played a role in nicely done whodunit. I like how the mystery was set up to give us an idea of who could or could not be the killer and it was fun watching all the pieces fall into place, especially when the killer was identified. It was fun getting to know the backstory of Camryn’s life with her friends and family and I enjoyed the small-town atmosphere, the lovable cast of characters and the easy-going dialogue. This is a pleasantly appealing and delightfully charming addition to the cozy mystery genre and I can’t wait for my next visit to Brooks Landings.

Reach out to Christine at christinehusom.webs.com

Twisted Threads by Lea Wait
Series: Mainely Needlepoint #1
Publisher: Kensington

Returning to the quaint coastal town of Harbor Haven, Maine—a place she once called home—Angie Curtis finds her memories aren’t all quite pleasant ones. . .

After leaving a decade ago, Angie has been called back to Harbor Haven by her grandmother, Charlotte, who raised her following her mother’s disappearance when she was a child. Her mother has been found, and now the question of her whereabouts has sadly become the mystery of her murder.

The bright spot in Angie’s homecoming is reuniting with Charlotte, who has started her own needlepointing business with a group called Mainely Needlepointers. But when a shady business associate of the stitchers dies suddenly under suspicious circumstances, Charlotte and Angie become suspects. As Angie starts to weave together clues, she discovers that this new murder may have ties to her own mother’s cold case. . .

Where else will you find a daughter who comes home to find a mother lost many years ago only to discover that she was murdered? With a powerful first line, this drama with all its charm pulled me in and I felt every emotion that Angie felt as she took on the role of solving not one, but two murders. Expertly written by the author with a comfortable tone and a slew of suspects, it was quite enjoyable watching all the pieces come together as long buried secrets played a role in her mother’s murder. Splendidly executed with great dialogue and a marvelous cast of characters led by Angie and her grandmother, this was a great read and I can’t wait for the next book in this terrific series.

Reach out to Lea at leawait.com