Kate Collins's Blog, page 260

Good-bye Texas!

by Leann

I have been packing boxes for more than six months in anticipation of our move. Wexford helped along the way, Rosie was nervous and watched everything with worried eyes. When you read this, I will be in South Carolina with Rosie and Wexford starting on the next great adventure in my life. My husband drove me here and flew back to finish up the move--to dot the i's and cross the t's.

We moved to Texas from western New York many, many years ago. My son was six weeks old. My daughter was born in Houston. Many wonderful things happened here. I wrote 12 novels in our Texas home and too many short stories to count. I watched my children grow into amazing adults, go to college in Aggieland (and had one defect to the University of Texas for a couple years). The kids got married and moved far away. I have two granddaughters I hardly get to see. My friends, aside from my fantastic writer's group, left here long ago. The life of a writer is lonely, but mine has been especially so because invisible fatigue-causing illnesses have imprisoned me. 

In South Carolina, I will have friends right around the corner--friends we've had for more than thirty years. The air is free of chemicals, I will see the leaves change every year again, and I will write my books looking out on a beautiful lake (once we get our house built--next challenge!) And though sometimes there are soaking rains due to East coast hurricanes in South Carolina, we won't have tropical weather uprooting giant trees in our backyard. We won't have to race north up the freeway when there's a storm in the Gulf. I won't miss the big storms. Not one bit. But a part of my heart will always be in Texas. See, I leave behind my three wonderful cats--Indigo, Archie and Agatha--who are buried in the flower garden. I will always think of them when I think of Texas.

What about you? Have you faced major transitions in your life where conflicting emotions make you just a little crazy?

THE Heather Blake Interview - By Ellery Adams

Ellery: I am so excited for the August release of A Witch Before Dying: A Wishcraft Mystery. Do you do anything special to celebrate a new release?
Heather: I wish I did! I think I should. Maybe I should start having celebratory pie (banana cream is my current favorite).  Any reason to have pie is a good reason, right?
Ellery: Darcy Merriweather must be a delight to write – she has so much fun! Can you give us a sneak peak about something she gets into in A Witch Before Dying?
Heather: Darcy is an interesting character. She’s new to the whole witch thing, so we as readers are learning the ropes along with her. In the first book she’s struggling to figure out who she is and what she can do, but in the second book she’s really starting to embrace her heritage.
She works for her aunt Ve’s business (a personal concierge service), As You Wish, which is appropriate since they’re witches who can grant wishes (Wishcrafters). In this book, As You Wish is hired to clean out the house of a missing hoarder, and Darcy ends up granting a wish that reveals where the woman is—under the piles of clutter. But her death is no accident.
Ellery: Tell us something Darcy would do that you would never do.
Heather: Ha! Probably hang out with a talking mouse and a chatty macaw with a movie fetish. I love the familiars in these stories—they’re some of my favorite characters.
Ellery: Is Miss Demeanor (Missy) modeled on a real life pooch? Do you have any pets at home?
Heather: She’s not and for specific reasons (no spoilers here!), but I always have pets in my books. I think they tell a lot about the characters who interact with them. Personally, I don’t have any pets right now (unless you count the wild bunnies and birds we feed). I’m about to have an empty nest (next year), and I think a pet is on the horizon...
Ellery: Is there a magic food you reach for when you’re working on a Wishcraft novel? Something that really gets you going need you need a little boost of energy?
Heather: It’s not a food, but I’m addicted to Dr Pepper and always have some when I’m on deadline (and by “some” I mean it’s practically an IV drip).
Ellery: The Wishcraft mysteries seem like a blend of several genres. Can you explain which ones you’ve mixed together to create the setting for the Enchanted Village and unforgettable characters like Harper and Aunt Ve?
Heather: Technically it’s a paranormal romantic mystery, though the mystery element is the strongest. Paranormal because of the magic—the wishes granted, other Crafters (witches) who can disappear into thin air, the familiars, etc. Romance because Darcy is discovering love again after a nasty divorce, but the man who’s knocking down the walls around her heart has his own secrets. And of course the mystery—the driving theme that brings it all together.
I think the common thread in all my books (magical or not) are the characters. I try to write characters who readers can relate to in one way or another. Ones who are flawed yet likable. Who will make you laugh—or cry. Really, they’re like old friends.
Ellery: If you had to cast a famous actress as Darcy, who would you pick?
Heather: I haven’t quite found one yet who matches the character in my head. But I’m open to suggestions!
Ellery: And lastly, have you made a wish recently? Did it come true?
Heather: I have and it did! Maybe I’ve got a little magic in me, too. :)
---
Leave a comment (with an email address so Heather can contact you if you win) for a chance to win a bound galley copy of A WITCH BEFORE DYING, Heather’s new release that hits shelves on August 7th!

A Witch Before Dying - Pre-Order on Amazon or BN.com
When Darcy is hired by Elodie Keaton to clean up her missing mother’s disorderly home, the Wishcrafter is certainly up for the task. After all, the motto of her Aunt Ve’s personal concierge service As You Wish is “No Job Impossible.” But beneath the piles of old newspapers and knickknacks, Darcy discovers something much more disturbing: Patrice Keaton’s body.
Darcy’s determined to give Elodie peace of mind by investigating her mother’s disappearance and death. Patrice was last seen over a year ago after a fight with her Charmcrafter boyfriend. Was her murder a crime of passion? Or were Patrice’s troubles caused by the Anicula, a wish-granting amulet? Now Darcy has to find not only a killer but also the Anicula— before the power of ultimate wish fulfillment falls into the wrong hands…
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Road work ahead!

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

[image error] What is it with men and their toys?  I'm taking about bulldozers and machines that eat up the asphalt, spitting it into big dump trucks.

At this moment, my street is hemmed in by construction.  To the south, they've got traffic going one way east.  To the north, they've got four lanes narrowed to two, with so many back ups you have to sit for a good ten minutes to turn left--that is if some kind person will actually LET you out. I wish I had the option of staying home for the foreseeable future, but there are chores to be done (grocery shopping), and other places I need to get to.

What idiot in the highway planning department decided it would be good to tear up two parallel roads at the very same time?  Two very BUSY parallel roads? I travel both roads often and while the one to the south was a bit dodgy, the one to the north appeared perfectly fine to me.  Mind you, a section of the one to the south had work done several years.  Traffic was tied up for months while they scraped up the asphalt, put in new curbs and then put down new asphalt.  Pity that while they had it torn up they didn't actually fix the road, which is still so bumpy driving down it feels like a carnival ride.

[image error] Whose bright idea was it to start major construction on these roads at the end of July?  This tells me they will be frantically trying to finish the job(s) come November.

We have two seasons here, winter and construction.   What season are you living in?
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What will they eat?

by Julie Hyzy

Today I'm in Muncie, Indiana leading a workshop on Writing the Cozy Mystery. I'm thrilled to be part of the Midwest Writers Workshop this year and I'm loving the opportunity to talk writing - both the craft and business side - over the next few days. You know what's really exciting, though? I'm not in charge of food - the workshop provides all that. Woo-hoo! Love it when someone else is cooking!

While I'm gone, my husband and one daughter will be left to their own devices with regard to food. Oh boy. My husband doesn't cook. He doesn't even grill. We've tried several times. It's bad. Inside is no better. Whenever I've been out of town before (and the kids were much younger) I've come home to hear stories about how Dad served only Tater Tots and ice cream.

The only daughter home this time is 20 years old (and vegetarian). You'd think she'd be adept in the kitchen. Not so much. She'd much rather be out having fun filming her home-made Superhero movie.      Here's an action shot --->

Although she's a Dean's List student and has plenty of academic achievements to her name, she's a goofball when it comes to cooking. We still talk about the time she mistook flour for powdered sugar when making frosting. Blech! And the time she thought that 2 1/4 cups flour meant two one-quarter cups. She brought me the recipe and asked, "Why don't they just say a half cup, then?" Yeah, she's *that* bad. But we love her anyway.

I'll be gone until Sunday and when I get home I won't be in any mood to cook. We'll go out. No question about that (evil laugh). What I'm most interested in is how the two of them will manage food-wise while I'm gone. Will they starve? Definitely not. But I'm sure they'll have lots of interesting survival stories for me when I finally get home.

Are you the main chef in your family? What happens when you take time off from the kitchen? And do you have any suggestions for my hungry husband and daughter as they scavenge through our leftovers?

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Retirement Planning Already?

by Hannah Reed/Deb Baker
I’ve had major focuses over the decades, probably much the same as yours.
In my teens it was all about boys and dreaming of a life free of parents and all their rules.
Twenties were devoted to men, sorting through the lot of them to find the right one for me. They sure do take up a lot of time, don't they?
Thirties were a blur of activity, raising the kids the best I knew how while maintaining 'us' as a couple.
My forties were devoted to plotting to get rid of the kids while wondering what to be when I grew up.
Next (boy, those years are flying by) the fifties, when I launched my writing career. Yes, I was exactly 50 when my first mystery was published.
Now in six months, the big 6-0!
And what am I thinking about the most? Having fun in work and play.
What am I supposed to be thinking, or rather, worrying about, according to the nay-sayers? Retirement, that’s what.
I love my job, have no plans to retire, but I’m researching a little and starting to plan.
As with everything in my life, I’m a late bloomer.
The experts say I should have started saving in my twenties? Really? But I was busy and broke for most of it. Since I didn’t do it right, I’m supposed to cut back, put it all away, stop eating out, no more vacations? You have to be kidding.
I’m afraid to take the online calculator test. You know, the one that tells you how prepared you are. I’m here to tell you, I do not have five years of income put away. Geez.
I hope the key ‘later’ in life, is to find something to do that you really love, something that brings out your passion. And make some cash doing it. That's my whole plan - write stories until the very end.
In my sixties, I am going to put a little more away and learn to live with less. But I’m also going to remember what George Burns said, “Retirement at sixty-five is ridiculous. When I was sixty-five I still had pimples.”
Have a great day no matter where you are in your journey. [image error]

California. . .Here We Come!

by Maggie Sefton


Yes, I'm about to travel again.  To California, this time.  East Coast last week.  West Coast this week.  And in case you wondered, yes. . .the time difference always messes up my sleep schedule after I return from every trip.

The "we" is me, moi, Maggie. . .and hundreds and hundreds (about 3000 usually) readers and writers who will flock to Anaheim, CA and the Marriott Hotel to attend the Romance Writers of America 2012 Conference.  It is probably the largest reader/writer conference in the country every year.  Back in the days when I was writing historical romances (1990s+) I attended RWA every year.  Wouldn't miss it.  RWA had the very BEST workshops and sessions on all aspects of the writing business and the craft of writing good fiction.  No matter what genre, the principles of good fiction remain the same.   I was unable to attend after 1997 (due to a severe shortage of funds following my divorce.  :)  And once I started writing mystery and selling mysteries, I was too busy attending mystery conferences to go to the considerably more expensive RWA conference.

But----I had missed those large gatherings of readers and writers.  Mostly readers, though.  I always met the most interesting people at those gatherings.  And made friendships.  And they were a lot of FUN, too.  So----this year I decided to re-join the organization and register for the conference.  I'll be promoting and handing out postcards for both the new Molly Malone Suspense series, DEADLY POLITICS, as well as the Kelly Flynn Mysteries, and the latest CAST ON, KILL OFF.  I'll be participating in two large signings while there---Wednesday night, July 25, 5:30--8:30pm, Literacy Signing.  All proceeds go to a local literacy group. And Berkley Prime Crime is having a signing on Saturday, July 28, 9:00--10:30am.  And starting Thursday there are workshops and sessions of every description and interest.  No exaggeration.  This is going to be so much fun.  :)

If any of you live near Anaheim and want to meet at the Marriott Hotel, Convention Center, email me.  There's a large Starbucks there.   I love to meet Cozy Chicks Bloggers.

Round the Clock Coverage ….. Again!

by Kate Collins



The tragedy in that Colorado movie theater was horrific. No one will argue that, and I know your heart and mine went out to those injured and those left bereft.  Having lost my beloved soulmate, I know the terrible, ceaseless heartache death brings. But really, did all the television channels have to cover it all the time?
Maybe it’s just me, but my sense of it was that of a piranha feeding frenzy. The news shows, the morning shows, the evening news, couldn’t wait to get their top reporters out there to interview everyone even remotely connected to the shootings. Hour upon hour of it.
After one entire morning of it, I just got angry and turned the TV off. The news media took what was indeed a true horror and made it into a side show. Sure I wanted to know what was going on, but after the first full morning of coverage, couldn’t we just get updates?
Do you feel that way, or am I off base?

British Invasion

by Leann

The Olympics are coming and with it, amazing stories, athletic genius, views of London we rarely see in our insulated country and, of course, addictive TV. But first, comes The Open Championship. (It's a golf tournament and for many of you, not very interesting, I know.)

But here I am with my life an open book. So I must tell you I am connected to Britain and to golf. My father was in the service and we moved to a town called Chelsea near Liverpool when I was a toddler. I am one of the fortunate (and sometimes unfortunate) people who has very vivid memories of many things going back a long way. I crossed the ocean on the Queen Elizabeth I and lived in England between the ages of two and four. And I loved it.

So what's the connection to golf? Well, my father was an avid golfer. When he wasn't golfing on the weekends, he was watching golf on TV and I sat with him. I loved Arnie and Jack and if you don't know those names, it's okay. It's not really about golf. It's about England and my dad and some of the best memories I have. I need those good memories. I cling to them. Even though my father and I became estranged when he married a crazy woman after my mother's death (yes, crazier than my mother), I carry the memories of watching golf with my dad (and baseball and hockey). I love sports to this day and that love brings my husband together in conversation all the time. We are both addicts!

My last visit to England was in 2001. We did the tourist thing in London and then took a train across the countryside to the west coast and stayed at a 5 star hotel. We could afford it because it was off season for--you guessed it--GOLF. We stayed on a little links course in an out of the way place called Budock Veen. Best vacation ever. Tea, scones and clotted cream every day at 2 PM, 5 course meals in the evening and the beautiful English countryside to look out on. And every day, when we walked out along the stream a hundred feet from the hotel, admiring the flowers and the scent of the ocean lapping the cliffs not far away, a beautiful cat would appear. I would sit on a rock and pet her. Ah, memories. You see why it was a perfect vacation? I'll be watching The Open Championship and the Olympics and remembering.

What about you? This is vacation season. Any trips you've taken that you will never, ever forget?


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How a Mistake Turned Into A Friendship

By Heather
***Scroll to the bottom to see how you can win an early autographed copy of A WITCH BEFORE DYING, my new release coming out August 7th!***
Waaaaay back when, a long, long time ago, I was waiting for my first mystery, A HOE LOT OF TROUBLE,  to come out. I’d been eagerly anticipating the galley copies of the story (now called pass pages, which is basically just the last look-through of the pages for mistakes before they go to print) to arrive when a package from the publisher came in the mail.
I tore into the package and found...the galleys for Death byDeep Dish Pie by Sharon Short.
Huh.
I quickly sent a note off to my editor, who admitted her assistant mixed things up a bit. Turns out forty minutes north of me, Sharon (who I'd never met before) was having her own package-ripping moment, only to find the galleys for HOE.
Somehow or another, it was decided that Sharon and I should just meet up and swap our copies instead of shipping back to NYC, then having them ship them back. So, we met up, swapped, and have been the closest of friends since. That was eight years ago.
We’ve both had highs and lows in our careers and our personal lives, and it’s always nice to have a friend who understands both those worlds. A few years ago, Sharon decided to focus her writing on another genre (mainstream fiction), which pretty much meant starting over, which is never easy, but Sharonhandled it with grace and her ever-present humor.
And now all that hard work is paying off. Her book club novel, MY ONE SQUARE INCH OF ALASKA, debuts in February. As someone who’s read an early copy of this story, I can tell you, it’s good. Really good.

From Sharon’s website:
“This coming-of-age 'book club' novel is about a pair of siblings in a gritty 1953 paper mill town in Ohio, yearning to break free of the strictures of their family, their times, and their town. When Donna's little brother Will decides that he wants to earn a deed to one square inch of the Alaskan Territory through a cereal company and TV show promotion, Donna at first finds his quest childish. But when he becomes ill, she decides to help him fulfill his quest... and his dream to actually visit his land. In so doing, she learns to reconnect with her own dreams and to understand how the unfulfilled dreams of those around her impacted her family's life and tragic past. This is a novel from my heart, about the power of dreams, and how believing in them can set us free.”
Did I mention how good it was? So. Good.
I’m thrilled for Sharon, and I can’t wait to hear what all of you think of the story, too. If you loved Saving Cee Cee Honeycutt, you’ll love this book.
To celebrate Sharon’s good news—and the way we met—I’m giving away a bound galley copy of A WITCH BEFORE DYING. All you have to do is leave a comment with the title of the book you’re reading right now. Simple. I’ll randomly pick a winner at 8 PM (EST) tomorrow night and then update  this post with the name of the winner, so check back tomorrow night!
Good luck and happy reading! 

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Business is Business is ... goofing off?

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

[image error] Yesterday I had lunch with a friend from out of town. She's unpublished, but working on several writing projects, and we talked writing and business.  And it was the business end of things seems that seemed to fascinate her the most.


It got me thinking that some days (actually most) I spend more time working on the business end of writing rather than the writing itself.  I can't say I don't enjoy it, either.  I keep spreadsheets on my sales--both for my traditionally published books (think the Booktown and Victoria Square mysteries) and or my indie publishing projects (short stories, my Jeff Resnick mysteries, and my cookbook.  And BTW, did you know that my first Jeff Resnick mystery is free for a limited time on Kindle, iTunes, Kobo, and Smashwords?)

Some days I tell myself I'll dabble with email etc. until noon and then start writing.  But then I get emails that answered the emails I sent earlier in the day and the next thing you know, it's time to quit for the day.  I send out a lot of bookmarks and bookplates, and even doing one or two a day takes 30 minutes or more by the time I record the addresses, sort out the bookmarks, sticker and stamp the envelopes, and hustle them out to the mailbox. 

[image error] Some days I spend way too much time on Facebook.  I try to limit my time on Pinterest to Sunday mornings. I try to retweet messages for friends and colleagues on a daily basis, but I know a LOT of other writers and some days it's overwhelming.  It feels like I'm wasting away in Margaritaville.

But I guess overall I like what I'm doing and I can't seem to stop it.  Of course, I'm currently trying to write the first couple of chapters of two different books, and that's the part about writing I hate the most -- the beginning of the book.  I don't know where they're going.  I don't know what new characters will show up.  And I face the blank text document with fear.  Will I remember how to construct a book?  Will it be okay?  What if people don't like it?

[image error] But then I know I'll eventually hit the 40,000 word mark and everything starts to snowball.  The story takes off, I regain my confidence, and all is right with the world.  But in the meantime ... I guess I should just get back to my Facebook pages.

What keeps you from starting or finishing what needs to get done? 



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