Edith Maxwell's Blog, page 127

Our Strange New World

I’ve started and stopped writing this post so many times. Should I be upbeat? Should I lay it all out there? And even as I write this I’m not sure where I’m going.

[image error]I backtracked through emails to see how the pandemic unfolded for me. March 4th I took my daughter shopping and we had a great time. After we went to the grocery store and we stocked up on a few things — just in case. My March 5th post for the Wickeds was about the Kensington Cozy Con that was supposed to be this weekend. By March 6th I was pondering if it was safe to go to a book fest on March 20th and wondering if I should cancel. It was canceled. March 7th I realize the CDC thinks I’m elderly – what???!!!! March 8th my husband and I went to the winery where our daughter works. March 12th I saw my friend and neighbor Mary – I haven’t seen her since. By March 13th I’d started self-isolating. Our daughter was laid off on March 15th. My husband started working from home a few days later.

So here we are. Our strange new world.

But there are upsides. It’s spring and we can be outdoors. I’ve seen way more families outside together. Last weekend the Wickeds got together via Zoom and it was fabulous to see their faces. I’ve seen lots of people saying they haven’t been able to read, but that hasn’t been a problem for me. I just finished Mimi Lee Gets A Clue by recent guest Jennifer J. Chow and just started Julie Hyzy’s Virtual Sabatoge. (I confess to a little whiplash from going from one genre to another, but love both books.) Writing on the other hand – that isn’t happening. But I know I’ll work through that too!

I gave my neighbor’s daughter (she’s seven) the first four books in my favorite childhood series by Maud Hart Lovelace and got this sweet note back.

[image error]My twenty-seven year old daughter has taken social distancing seriously and isn’t out running around. She’s sad that she doesn’t have a job right now. But there is a bright side — she likes to cook so we are having excellent quaran-eats.

Shrimp, mushroom, and spinach pasta:

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Nachos with leftover steak:

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And when she ask what to do with the extra blueberries, I suggested scones. She’d never made them before but they were delicious! Blueberry scones with a strudel topping and icing!

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And since she misses her job she set up a wine tasting for us! It’s a Petit Manseng — the grapes grow well in Virginia. It has a floral nose, fruit flavors. It can be sweet but the three we tried were made in a dry style.

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A last minute update. Yesterday before I set out on my late afternoon walk with Lily, I sent Mary a text and asked her to meet me outside her house in a few minutes. It was great to see her face from an appropriate distance. [image error]

Readers: How are you doing? What’s pulling you through? What’s making you grumpy? (Barb’s daughter-in-law had an “it’s okay to be grumpy” post on Facebook the other day and I loved her philosophy of yes there are many misfortunes, but it’s okay to be grumpy too. Trust me I contributed to that post.)

Wicked Wednesday: Daffy for Taffy

[image error]I think we’ve all been pranked sufficiently by 2020 that we can bypass April Fool’s. Instead we’re continuing our celebration of Maddie Day’s brand new release Murder at the Taffy Shop.

So, I have to ask you Wickeds: Taffy–love it or hate it? Does it bring back happy memories of childhood days at the seashore or adult woes of lost fillings and crowns? What’s your favorite flavor? Spill your guts on the subject of taffy.

Liz: Congrats, Edith! Looking forward to getting the new book! I love taffy… when I was a kid, my grandparents would bring me to Salisbury Beach in the off season if they felt like taking a drive. We would go to the taffy shop and get a big box with all the flavors and eat half on the way home. Now every time I see it I have to buy some.

Barb: I love salt water taffy. We used to get it when I was a kid in the summers at my grandparents place in Sea Girt, NJ. In Boothbay Harbor the taffy shop has big windows so you can watch the stretching machine at work. It was a huge hit with both my kids and now grandkids. My favorite flavor is licorice. I hate banana. There’s always a pile of them left in the box.

Jessie: Congratulations, Edith! I love this question, Barb! I love taffy! There is a candy shop in Old Orchard that has a whole wall of bushel baskets filled to overflowing with colorful nuggets of the stuff wrapped charmingly in waxed paper. I even love Laffy Taffy in either sour apple or grape flavor! It is not as classy as the salt water variety but it has a charm of its own, at least to me!

Sherry: There weren’t any taffy shops in Iowa (when I was growing up) that I can recall. But I do have a hazy memory of pulling taffy at some event — probably either Girl Scouts or a church group. I remember we all had to butter our hands and took turns pulling. It was delicious. In February I was at a candy store in Tarpon Springs and one of my friends bought some salt water taffy. I agree with Barb that the banana flavor is awful. I’m so happy for you, Edith!

Julie: Sherry, I’ve always wanted to pull taffy. Maybe we need to try it at our next Wicked retreat. I love, love, love taffy. Probably because it reminds me of vacations at the beach. When I was little, we lived near the ocean and went to the beach all the time. But when my family moved to Maryland, going to the beach became more of an adventure, and I learned all about boardwalks, Thrasher’s fries, Grotto pizza and the wonders of real salt water taffy. It isn’t kind to my fillings, but I still love it.

Edith/Maddie: Thank you, gang! I also love taffy – except for banana flavor. I think I like peppermint and peanut butter the best, oh, and lemon. And… I remember making taffy with my mom and sisters once. My mother had a major sweet tooth, and it was fun buttering up, pulling, and tasting, of course. Any time I’m in a coastal town I always try to bring home a box of salt water taffy, from Oregon to Cape Cod.

Readers: How about you? Taffy yay or nay?

Edith, Tace, Maddie, and 20 Mysteries

Edith here, also known as Tace and Maddie, having a big old party complete with giveaways!

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Murder at the Taffy Shop releases today – and its my 20th novel. I’m still in wonder that this has even happened, so I thought I’d share a timeline of how my alter-egos and I got here.

1961: “The Viking Girl” wins a children’s fiction contest in the Pasadena Star News. Age 9, I’m paid $2. I write stories all the time until high school, then turn to nonfiction.

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1994: Younger son goes off to kindergarten. After being home with babies for four years, I start writing a cozy mystery because that’s the kind of book I like to read. I’ve never studied creative writing and know nothing about the craft, but I join a critique group. I complete 2/3 of a farm-based mystery (which ends up becoming A Tine to Live, a Tine to Die).

1995: I return to the salaried workforce and can’t find time (or mental space) to finish the book.

1996: I keep writing short fiction. “The Odaku Line” wins a holiday flash fiction contest from North Shore Newspapers.

2001: “The Taste of Winter,” a story of love and loss in later life, is published in the Larcom Review, Fall/Winter 2001.

2004: My first crime story, “Obake for Lance,” is published in Riptide: Crime Stories by New England Writers (Level Best Books). I go to my first New England Crime Bake. I join Sisters in Crime, attend my first New England chapter meeting (at Kate Flora’s house), and start taking workshops.

2008: I’m laid off the hi-tech documentation job I’ve had for fourteen years. I write short story about murderous revenge after layoff (giggle), then start writing a mystery, which ends up being Speaking of Murder.

2009: I get another job but have Fridays free to write. I use them. I keep studying the craft, writing short stories, attending Crime Bake. And I start meeting the Wickeds.

2010: “Reduction in Force” (that layoff story, now for free on Smashwords until 4/20) is published in Thin Ice: Crime Stories by New England Writers (Level Best Books). I join the Guppies, the online SINC chapter.

[Right about now you’re saying, “But she said she was going to tell us how she got to 20 books, not short stories.” Patience, Grasshopper. Practice is a good thing.]

2011: I finish and polish Speaking of Murder, give up after 50 agent rejections, and look for a small press.

2012: An agent comes looking for authors. I (and all the Wickeds, eventually) sign a contract with him. I sign with Kensington Publishing for three Local Foods Mysteries. Barking Rain Press offers me a contract for Speaking of Murder. Kensington says I need to use a pen name for it. Tace Baker is born. Speaking of Murder releases in September. I write books around the edges of a now five-days-a-week job.

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2013: I take the plunge and leave the day job. A Tine to Live, a Tine to Die releases. I write a second Tace Baker book, more Local Foods mysteries, and “Fire in Carriagetown” (free on Smashwords until 4/20) about 1880s Amesbury (the story was published as “Breaking the Silence” in Best New England Crime Stories 2014: Stone Cold from Level Best Books).

2014: The historical characters and setting refuse to go away. I invent midwife Rose Carroll and write Delivering the Truth. I sign a three-book contract for the Country Store mysteries. My editor wants a pen name. Maddie Day is born.

2015: I sign a three-book contract for the Quaker Midwife Mysteries with Midnight Ink. Flipped for Murder, the first Country Story Mystery, releases.

2016: Delivering the Truth, the first Quaker Midwife Mystery, releases.

2017: I sign a three-book contract for the Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries, also to be written as Maddie Day. The Local Foods Mysteries end after #5, Mulch Ado About Murder.

2018: Midnight Ink ceases mystery production. I move the Quaker Midwife Mysteries to Beyond the Page Publishing for two more books, because I wasn’t done with the series. Murder on Cape Cod, the first Cozy Capers Book Group mystery, releases on the last day of the year.

2019: My first novella, “Christmas Cocoa and a Corpse,” appears in Christmas Cocoa Murder with two other authors. This throws off my book count and is why you see 21 books in my latest shelfie, not 20!

2020: “One Too Many,” comes out, my first short story to appear in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine. Another appears in The Beat of Black Wings and one more is under submission. I kept writing short crime fiction throughout all these years, and it keeps my mind sharp for new ideas and voices. See the rundown of stories here. Murder at the Taffy Shop, out today in a one-year Barnes & Noble exclusive, tips the novel count to 20.

So that’s how I got to this point, with twenty books in print, all traditionally published. I have four more in production and will start writing #25 tomorrow. I seem to thrive on writing three books a year, plus short fiction. Right now I’m noodling an idea for a new project. Stand by for news.

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I wouldn’t be here without readers – including librarians and booksellers – who love my books (and review them). Without my agent. Without editors who see the potential in my writing. Without my Sisters in Crime tribe, my cherished Wicked Authors, my faith community, and my supportive family. Thank you, all!

Readers: Do you follow an author all the way through a series? Through all her series?

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I have an ARC of Nacho Average Murder (Country Store #7) to send one of you, and one of Taken Too Soon (Quaker Midwife #6) for another (US only, please). You might as well get started on books #21 and #22, right? Let me know if you have a series preference.

Welcome Back Guest Lynn Cahoon

I’m not sure where Lynn and I first met, but I always love seeing her at events. She’s hardworking, funny, and insightful! Deep Fried Revenge is the fourth book in Lynn’s Farm to Fork Mystery series.

Working from home – a novice’s report.

[image error]To give you some background, yes, I am what others would call a full-time author because I write so much during the year. This year, I have 8 releases. However, I still have my day job. Financially, I could replace my day job with my author earnings except for one thing – insurance.  Well, two – bills for toys like the side by side and the RV. Therefore, I stay at the day job. (Modify the 7 dwarfs song – I owe, I owe, so it’s off to work I go…)

At the beginning of March (or before the world changed), my schedule was as follows: work 7:30 – 4pm with at least an hour to two-hour commute back and forth. The author time fell between. First thing in the morning (if I got up on time and limited my Facebook scrolling.) First 15-minute break, lunch, second break, then finish the words as soon as I got home. Dinner and crash to start the routine again the next day.

I typically got 5-10K a week this way. Unless life got in the way. Like dinner with my husband. Or picking up the truck from an oil change appointment.

Last week was different. My governor put in a stay at home order. The day job had already set us up to work half time at home. Now, it was full time.

At home.

At my computer.

In my office. Alone.

Except for a cat and two needy dogs.

As I’m writing this, I’ve only had one day to practice, and I still had commute time that day. I went in and an hour later, I was home working. I took my lunch at my desk and carved out my break time for writing. The dogs kept me busy. “Time to go outside.  Or Hey, you’re home, can we play?”

This coming week, I probably not only have my dogs, but my husband at home as well. Maybe they can entertain each other. I’m doubtful.

On the other hand, I’m hopeful. I think it’s a great test of not only a full-time author life, but also for my ability to eat healthy at home. I snacked on fruit all day at the office. Can I replicate that at home? Can I get my words in during what used to be my commute time so when I turn off the day job, I can also turn off the author gig? Or at least work on something more fun than a word count. Like marketing meme’s? Or planning my world domination of the cozy genre? (Insert evil laugh here.)

I’m not a change for change sake kind of girl. I like stability in my life. My first ‘real’ job I stayed in eighteen years. Just about the same amount of time for my first marriage. I know I’m going to be a little stressed with this change.

I’m also grateful. Right now, I still have a day job and money coming in to work on my retirement plans. I still have insurance. I still have food (and toilet paper.) And I still have my imaginary friends to keep me company as I write their stories.

I know I can do this. Okay, so I’m pretty sure.

Welcome Guest — Debut Author Erica Ruth Neubauer

Last year I went to the fabulous Murder and Mayhem in Chicago conference and while I was there I met the equally fabulous Erica Ruth Neubauer! And I’ve been anxiously awaiting Murder at the Mena House since then. Here’s a bit about the book:

[image error]Well-heeled travelers from around the world flock to the Mena House Hotel—an exotic gem in the heart of Cairo where cocktails flow, adventure dispels the aftershocks of World War I, and deadly dangers wait in the shadows . . .

 

Egypt, 1926. Fiercely independent American Jane Wunderly has made up her mind: she won’t be swept off her feet on a trip abroad. Despite her Aunt Millie’s best efforts at meddling with her love life, the young widow would rather gaze at the Great Pyramids of Giza than into the eyes of a dashing stranger. Yet Jane’s plans to remain cool and indifferent become ancient history in the company of Mr. Redvers, a roguish banker she can’t quite figure out . . .

While the Mena House has its share of charming guests, Anna Stainton isn’t one of them. The beautiful socialite makes it clear that she won’t share the spotlight with anyone—especially Jane. But Jane soon becomes the center of attention when she’s the one standing over her unintentional rival’s dead body.

Now, with her innocence at stake in a foreign country, Jane must determine who can be trusted, and who had motive to commit a brutal murder. Between Aunt Millie’s unusual new acquaintances, a smarmy playboy with an off-putting smile, and the enigmatic Mr. Redvers, someone has too many secrets. Can Jane excavate the horrible truth before her future falls to ruin in Cairo . . . and the body count rises like the desert heat?

A question that no one has asked me yet, but that I’m dying to answer is: Why set your series in the 1920’s? Well, I’m glad you asked.

The Roaring Twenties has a certain cache, doesn’t it? It immediately brings to mind flappers dancing the night away in short beaded dresses with a flask on their hip. Red lipstick, hot jazz and characters like Zelda Fitzgerald with their bobbed hair and fast-talking slang.

[image error]That really sets a scene, doesn’t it? And it was certainly fun to bring elements of all that into the story, although my protagonist Jane Wunderly isn’t a flapper herself—I wanted to make her a little older, a little more world weary—but she comes up against those Bright Young Things, whether she wants to or not. In fact, it’s one of those young flappers whose death gets Jane in the pickle she finds herself in—suspected of murder in a foreign country.

But another reason that I wanted to write about the 1920’s was because it was a time when women were starting to push against formal social conventions—they won the vote early in the decade, and more and more were joining the workforce. Their hemlines were high and their hair was short, and they weren’t afraid to have a good time. And while traditional roles were still the norm, it was a time when there was a burgeoning sense of freedom and change. And Jane is definitely a woman taking advantage of that—reclaiming her maiden name and pushing back against all her aunt’s schemes to see her married off again.

[image error]And who can forget Tutmania? The 1920’s saw an incredible interest in all things Egyptian, and this was reflected in clothes and jewelry throughout the decade. Starting from a young age, I was also interested in ancient Egypt and all the discoveries that had been made in those long-hidden tombs. I devoured books about the ancient pharaohs and the archeological exploits of men like Howard Carter. So, combining my interest in the decade with my interest in Egypt itself seemed like an excellent plan. And so, MURDER AT THE MENA HOUSE was born.

[image error]READERS: What time period do you especially like to read about or imagine yourself living in?

[image error]Erica Ruth Neubauer spent eleven years in the military, nearly two as a Maryland police officer and one as a high school English teacher before finding her way as a writer. She has been a reviewer of mysteries and crime fiction for publications such as Publishers Weekly and Mystery Scene Magazine for several years, and she’s a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America. Erica Ruth lives in Milwaukee, WI.

www.ericaruthneubauer.com

https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Mena-House-Wunderly-Mystery/dp/1496725859/

https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781496725851

Welcome Guest Jennifer J. Chow with a Giveaway!

I am so delighted to welcome Jennifer J. Chow to the Wickeds blog! Look for a giveaway at the end of the post! Mimi Lee Gets A Clue is the first book in the new Sassy Cat mystery series. I’m reading this right now and it’s a balm for all that’s going on in the world! Mimi and her cat Marshmallow are so funny. I love the premise for this series: Mimi Lee is in over her head. There’s her new Los Angeles pet grooming shop to run, her matchmaking mother to thwart, her talking cat Marshmallow to tend to—oh, and the murder of a local breeder to solve…now if only Mimi hadn’t landed herself on top of the suspect list. 

[image error]Mimi Lee hoped to give Los Angeles animal lovers something to talk about with her pet grooming shop, Hollywoof. She never imagined that the first cat she said hello to would talk back or be quite so, well, catty—especially about those disastrous dates Mimi’s mother keeps setting up. 

When Marshmallow exposes local breeder Russ Nolan for mistreating Chihuahuas, Mimi steals some of her cat’s attitude to tell Russ off. The next day the police show up at Hollywoof. Russ has been found dead, and Mimi’s shouting match with him has secured her top billing as the main suspect. 

Hoping to clear her name and save the pups Russ left behind, Mimi enlists help from her dreamy lawyer neighbor Josh. But even with Josh on board, it’ll take Mimi and Marshmallow a lot of sleuthing and more than a little sass to get back to the pet-grooming life—and off the murder scene.

My Love for Talking Animals:

Hands down, the best Christmas present I ever got as a kid was a stuffed pig. The fact that he was bigger than my entire body only added to his appeal. I promptly named him Wilbur because I was fanatical about Charlotte’s Web at the time.

I liked dragging him all over the house. We would even have dinner together. For a while, I boycotted eating pork. My mom, though, figured out a way to get around my picky eating. She’d cover Wilbur’s eyes with a cloth whenever she served anything that might be offensive to him.

The thing I liked the most about Wilbur was (just like in the book) his ability to talk. I’d tell him about my rough days at school, and he’d totally understand and give me comfort.

Sometimes I’d play superheroes with my brother, and we’d get to choose our own powers. I’m sure he picked something exciting like super strength. I wanted to be able to speak with animals (well, that or the power to fly).

When I grew a little older, well-meaning adults would ask me that most important of questions: “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

“A vet,” I said because I loved all things feathered and furry. And although I’d grown out of believing that animals could speak, I still thought they might have a language of their own—if I could only crack it.

Spoiler alert: I didn’t grow up to be a vet. Instead, I’m a writer. However, I’ve come full circle and am writing stories featuring animals that can talk to each other—and one sassy telepathic cat who can speak with his owner, Mimi. He’s also the cat’s pajamas in the sleuthing department. He pairs up with Mimi when she gets implicated in a murder and needs to clear her name.

So, who says you can’t keep your childish wishes? I’m living mine out right now.

Readers, how have you kept your childhood hopes going in your life? Giveaway: A physical copy of MIMI LEE GETS A CLUE (US only) through random selection from a comment on the blog. Ends one week after the post (April 2nd).

[image error]photo credit: Julie Daniels

Bio:

Jennifer J. Chow writes the #ownvoices Sassy Cat mystery series (Berkley/Penguin Random House) and the Winston Wong Cozy Mysteries under J.J. Chow. She’s active in Sisters in Crime and Crime Writers of Color.

Connect with her online at www.jenniferjchow.com.

Wicked Wednesday — Our History — Camps

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We are celebrating Women’s History Month by sharing bits of our history.  This week we are talking about our camping history or lack there of. Wickeds answer the following questions:

1. Did you ever go to a overnight or day camp when you were growing up? How old were you?

Jessie: I went to overnight camp three different times. I was late elementary and the first year of middle school, I think.

Barb: I went to Camp Betsey Cox in Vermont the summer between seventh and eighth grade.

Julie: Overnight camping with the Girl Scouts a couple of times. Day camps when I was young. And I went to a 2 week camp when I was a exchange student in Belgium.

Liz: I’m sure you’ll all be surprised but…never.

Edith/Maddie: Overnight camp the summer after fourth grade. Otherwise town summer recreational programs held at our school, and vacation Bible school a few times at the Congregational Church.

Sherry: I went on a couple of overnight camps — church and girl scouts. Vacation bible school and Brownies day camps. After my senior year in high school I went to a week long Young Life camp in Buena Vista, Colorado. It was so much fun.

2. What kind? Did it have a theme like sports or the arts?

Jessie: They were camps associated with the churches my family attended when I was growing up.

Barb: The camp website says, “Betsey Cox is a camp for girls and young women who intend to make a positive difference in a global world and to have fun doing so.” However for my parents the theme was, “Betsey Cox is a camp that is cheap.” (The secret was they didn’t require uniforms, eliminating that whole expense.) Also, my good friend Hilary Hinds went there. Her parents had selected it for the same reason.

Julie: The day camps were Christian. I think our neighbor ran them. They had a bit of everything. Arts. Swimming. Singing. The overnight camping was part of being a Girl Scout, even the Belgian camping experience.

Edith/Maddie: Overnight camp was Girl Scouts. I adored it. The first year my mom was working at the camp and I attended three sessions in a row. After that I went on my own. My older sisters were there for a year or two but I kept going even when they didn’t.

Sherry: Barb, that is so funny. This is what the website says about the Young Life camp: Frontier Ranch is Young Life’s original old Wild West camp dating back to the 1920s. We’re located south of Denver and west of Colorado Springs in Buena Vista, CO. At the base of Mount Princeton in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, our spectacular setting includes stunning views, rugged high cliffs, majestic pine trees, and a seasonal mountain stream. It was very outdoorsy.

3. What was the best thing? What was the worst?

Jessie: Archery was the best thing, hands down! I loved it! The worst thing was being an introvert in such an extroverted environment. I always wanted to have fun but it was just not my way of doing so.

Barb: The worst thing BY FAR was when you had the chore of putting the chickens to bed, a short straw I drew frequently. You would get three in the coup, and then you’d herd another group of them over, lift up the coop and the original three would run out. It was a truly endless task. The best thing, for an observer of life like me, on the cusp of teenagehood, was observing the other girls who came from all over and had all different kinds of families. The girls who came from Greenwich Village and rode the subway to fancy private schools uptown absolutely enthralled me. It was like watching The World of Henry Orient, only for real.

Julie: Oh Barb, putting the chickens to bed. I can just imagine you earnestly trying your best. I’m not a big camper, so my worst time (and the reason I don’t camp now) is getting food poisoning in Belgium when I was a foreign exchange student. This was real in the woods camping, so needless to say it was horrifying.

Liz: Chickens, Barb! LOL.

Edith/Maddie: Horseback riding! I LOVED learning to brush the horses, to put on their tack, and trail riding. I was such a peewee they always gave me the shortest horse. I also loved flag flipping, singing after meals, learning to canoe. All of it. Bliss. The worst part? “Bug juice” – that insipid red pseudo Kool aid they gave us to drink.

Sherry: Oh, Edith it’s so funny that you loved horseback riding because I hated it. At Young Life camp we had to get up early one morning to ride up the mountain for breakfast. My huge horse was named Widow Maker and it tried it’s best on the way home. It decided it want to go and I just clung bouncing around like mad. The best thing was all the wonderful people I met, swimming, singing around a camp fire. Oh, and the view at the breakfast was spectacular.

4. If you didn’t go do you wish you had? What kind of camp would it have been?

Julie: Glamping became a thing recently, and if I could have glamped I would have been all over it. Maybe camping on a sailboat? That would be a blast.

Barb: As adults we camped with our kids many times and then later with my husband’s entire extended family when cutthroat cooking competitions were the norm. We’re returning to our favorite campground this year, but because I’m no longer willing to sleep on the ground, we’ve rented a cottage.

Liz: I never had the desire to go camping or go to a summer camp. It was probably the introvert in me but I would have much rather stayed home with my pile of books. The one time I did sleep in a camper (not on the ground) was at the Salisbury Beach State Reservation when I was 19 or 20. Aside from the fact that I slept on a pull-out table and fell off a moped that weekend, the fact that it was the ocean made up for it!

Edith/Maddie: No more falling off mopeds, Liz! I grew up tent camping with my family every summer in the Sierras amid the stately Sequoia trees. Liz, we always brought books on our family camping trips (and probably to Girl Scout camp, too). We camped when my sons were young, but in the east you always have the chance of rain and it’s NOT fun camping in the rain. When I took my sons to Sequoia National Park a decade plus ago, I rented a cabin. No more sleeping on the ground for me.

Also – an aside from this Californian to my New England peeps: when I moved here and people talked about going to their “camp” in Maine, I thought, “Wow. They own an entire camp?” Later found out they actually meant “summer cottage.” Oh.

Sherry: I wanted to go to the camp from The Parent Trap.

Readers: Answer the questions!

Grounding

By Liz, sheltering in CT

This past week, I had a coworker ask me a question while we were on a call. She said, “Are your days really any different now, since you work from home anyway?” She asked because, like the majority of companies with the capability, mostly everyone in my place of employment is working remotely for the foreseeable future. It was a good thing we weren’t on a video conference so she couldn’t see me roll my eyes.

I am incredibly lucky to have a day job where I can work from home. And of course, my writing job means I work my second job from home as well. But as I reminded my coworker (while trying to tamp down the sarcasm), I do leave the house most days to do things. Things like the gym, dinner, yoga, writing at a cafe, taking my dogs out, going to concerts, you know, normal things.

So last week was, as it was for everyone, weird and unsettling and anxiety-causing for me. CT was one of the states who shut most things down pretty quickly. As a result, I’m going out only for groceries, taking the dogs for walks, and like everyone, mapping out a plan for when the TP eventually runs out, as it surely will.

On the other hand, I’m not one of those people experiencing an overabundance of free time. If anything, my workdays have gotten longer and more nonstop because of the crisis (and I’m not complaining – I know I’m lucky to have a job) so it makes the days seem to blend together even more while keeping the crisis top of mind. When I do need to make a run to the grocery store, I’m quickly reminded of what’s going on when I have to be counted to get inside and need to stand behind a yellow line when checking out to maintain the proper distance between me and another shopper. It feels like one of those movies that I usually avoid because they give me anxiety – I’ve never been a fan of end-of-days types of movies, and I couldn’t even watch Birdbox. My trains are still running outside my window, which is comforting.

I haven’t watched the news much. I’ve contemplated turning my news alerts off, but feel like I need a heads-up if someone decides the world is literally ending. I hate being caught off guard for things like that. I’ve also not been writing. Which has bothered me all week, but then I decided that I had to be nicer to myself. I watched a video of Gabby Bernstein and Glennon Doyle where they talked about this very thing. I’m paraphrasing Glennon, but she said we have to take care of ourselves and should never put aside our feelings because we think we have to create the next great piece of art. Sometimes, we need time to adjust to what is. Then we can create.

(By the way, every woman should pick up Glennon’s new book, Untamed. Reading it was one of the things I accomplished this week and it was worth not making my word count.)

So I’m going to start fresh this week – writing my daily word count, online workouts, getting outside more. I’m also going to be kind to myself if I need a break, and keep watching and reading uplifting things. I may go out to try and find toilet paper.

But the answer to my coworker’s question is a resounding yes. Of course my days are different. Not as different as our healthcare workers, or retail and restaurant workers, or anyone else whose work life has been upended by this. Even if I’m still inside most of the day, working on multiple computers, everything around me – around all of us – has changed.

We need to be smart, and take care of each other, stay grounded and keep ourselves emotionally and spiritually healthy, so we can keep our physical health. We need to be kind to ourselves and others. We need to support local businesses as much as we still can, even if it’s ordering delivery for dinner tonight.

And for the love of God, we need to stop hoarding the toilet paper.

Readers, share what you’re doing to keep yourself sane and healthy during this crazy time.

Isolation: Good, Bad, and Ugly

Edith/Maddie here, self-isolating like everybody else I know.

No, that’s wrong. Health care providers, grocery store workers, my friend who works for TSA, garbage collectors, and many, many others don’t have the luxury of staying home and away from everyone except family.

But let’s start with The Good. All my many in-person spring events are no longer on the calendar. And that means I can relax, stay home, and write the next book. This is good (for me). So much more available time to read is good. Neighbors offering to take care of the elderly and neighbors in need is good. This crisis is not without the proverbial silver lining. I have flour, beans, chocolate, and wine in plentiful supply. I can last for a while, as long as the electricity doesn’t go out.

[image error]Laptop and chocolate

The Bad. Library is closed. Favorite restaurants are closed. Schools are closed, so parents trying to work from home with children at home are losing their wits. I can’t go visit my squishy delightful great-goddaughter and my bestie, her grandma (see This is Not a Snow Day). None of my guests think they should come for our annual cherished Easter brunch. When my son and his wife popped in for a quick visit last weekend, we all acted responsibly and DID NOT HUG. All my six in-person book launch events are canceled. And, sniff, Malice Domestic is postponed and the Edgars banquet canceled. It’s all bad – but necessary.

The Ugly. People are sick from this virus, and people have died. Almost everyone is fearful. Businesses small and large, local and national, are worrying about going bankrupt. The stock market has tanked. Those who are homeless and (or) with precarious health are at much higher risk. There is no vaccine. Medical equipment is in short supply. Doctors, nurses, home health aides, EMTs – all are in danger. And some people…are ignoring the danger and continuing to gather in crowds, which is even more scary. This is a tremendously terrifying time with many unknowns.

So – back to the Good. What can writers who are able to stay home do with all this? We can capture feelings of fear and frustration – ours and those of others – and bring them into a story. We can use real acts of radical generosity and communities pulling together in our fiction. We can be generous to our peers whose appearances have been slashed. We can appreciate beauty around us.

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And seriously? We can buckle down and write our brains out, getting ahead of deadlines. Maybe we’ll try some new creative venture. Writing dark short fiction when we usually pen lighter and funnier? Working up a proposal for a series outside our comfort zone? This is a rare opportunity.

Whatever you do with your self quarantine – or your public service job, many blessings upon you – I wish you the best, and continuing health.

Readers: What are you doing during your own social distancing? Writers: plans for productivity, or is it just too hard to focus? Anybody else stress baking?

Opening Lines

Write an opening line for the photo below!

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Jessie: One minute, she had been standing hand in hand with Ralph wondering if he might be “the one”. The next, a beam from above lifted him from his feet and pulled him into a silvery craft hovering above their heads. Sadly, it was not the worst way one of Janine’s dates had ever ended.

Edith/Maddie: In Jimmi’s long career as a detective, she’d occasionally been hit with a bolt of inspiration from the other reality, but this was the first time the aliens had appeared to her directly. Sure enough, the bloody knife was under the petals behind the fence.

Barb: “Go toward the light.”

“Are you urging me to let go and accept my death?”

“Geez, Mom, no. Just stand over there so I can take your photo. You’ve been crazy paranoid since you won the lottery.”

Julie: It would have been pretty, except it was midnight and she couldn’t figure out where the light was coming from. She started to run, but then one of the trees grabbed her and a vine began to wrap itself around her throat.

Sherry: I wasn’t afraid of the light, until the theme to Star Trek started to play. I swear I heard someone say, “Beam me up, Scotty.” Then I realized I was wearing a red shirt.

Readers: Add your opening line!