Edith Maxwell's Blog, page 77

Wicked Wednesday: All the Impressive Women

Edith/Maddie here, excited to kick off Women’s History Month with a series of Wicked Wednesdays celebrating the ladies who went before. We’re also going to have a slew of impressive authors who write historical mysteries visiting us on other days.

The Wicked Authors wanted to call this month’s theme, “Badass Bi***es of the Before Times.” One of our faithful readers and frequent commenters found that middle word offensive, and we aim to please. So, Wickeds, today let’s dish on one real-life impressive woman from 1950 or before who is not related to you – some other badass woman you admire. Go!

Jessie: I really admire Victoria Woodhull. She had a varied career as a patent medicine huckster, a psychic medium, a stockbroker (which is a sort of psychic huckster, I suppose) a birth control advocate, a suffragist, and a presidential candidate. She did all of these things in the 1800s, well before women had won the right to vote. If she interests you, I commend to you the book The Scarlet Sisters by Myra MacPherson.

Edith/Maddie: Woodhull sounds amazing, Jessie. I know Amelia Earhart is well-known and widely admired as a female aviation pioneer, but as I researched her over the last year, I learned so much I didn’t know. She was a a true badass advocate of educating girls, of teaching science to women, of women’s rights. She wrote poetry. She worked as a teacher and social worker to immigrant women in Boston. And, sixty years before I arrived in the city, she lived only a mile from my first apartment in the Boston suburb of Medford.

Liz: I recently came across Vera Atkins, a British intelligence officer, while doing some research, and she’s definitely badass! She was born in 1908 and emigrated to Britain in the 1930s. Edith, she was a linguist! She joined the Special Operations Executive Branch of British Military Intelligence, the branch that trained and sent agents overseas. After WWII, she worked on the British War Crimes commission and went on a journey to find 118 missing officers. She tracked all but one and was awarded a medal for those efforts.

Julie: Do you all listen to the podcast The History Chicks? I was driving my niece home from college in December, and we listened to an episode about Sarah Berhardt. I thought I knew about her, but it turns out I didn’t. She was born in 1844, we think. There’s a lot about her life that’s a little hazy. She figured out how to make her way in the world–not easy for a woman back then. Best known as an actor, she did tours in England and the United States that sold out, despite the fact that she performed in French. Mark Twain said of her: “there are bad actresses, fair actresses, good actresses, great actresses – and then there is Sarah Bernhardt.” There are some early movies of her, but she was a stage actor. I wish I could go back in time and see her perform. She was also a very gifted sculptor. This week’s History Chicks episode was about another sculptor, Edmonia Lewis, who was also born in 1844. Well worth the listen to both episodes.

Sherry: Rosa Parks. She had more courage in her little finger than I do in my entire being. Thanks to Julie I know about The History Chicks podcast and the one about Rosa Parks fascinating.

Readers: Who is the badass woman from the past you admire?

Guest J.C. Kenney plus #giveaway

Edith/Maddie here, writing on the first day of a new month from north of Boston.

I’m thrilled to welcome J.C. Kenney back to the blog. J.C. has a first book in a new series out today, and I can’t wait to read it!

Here’s the blurb:

When the manager of Marysburg Music, Darcy Gaughan, returns to work after a vacation, she expects to jump right back into work as the store gets ready for the upcoming Record Store Day celebrations. She’s also celebrating five years of sobriety and is confident that there are good things in her future. She doesn’t expect to find her boss in his office, dead from an apparent self-inflicted stab wound.

The police rule the death a suicide. Darcy, who knew her beloved boss better than anybody, knows better. She vows to get to the truth of the matter before the murderer can get away with the crime and the record store is closed forever. Along the way, she uncovers secrets and shady deals certain town residents would rather keep hidden. Secrets some would commit murder to keep under wraps. Can she assemble the clues and put them in just the right order so everything comes together like a classic jazz album? And how is she supposed to focus on finding a killer when she also needs to figure out a way to keep the record store open? Follow along as Darcy searches for the truth while learning the greatest gifts are truly those that money can’t buy.

Lucky Number Thirteen – And a Giveaway!

Hi, friends! It’s such a thrill to be visiting with the Wickeds again. How about a round of applause for them and all they do for the writing community?

I’m in the mood to celebrate and I hope you’ll join me because Record Store Reckoning, book 1 of my brand-new Darcy Gaughan Mysteries, is out today! Cue the confetti and brass band! Yes, I know I’ll probably need a new keyboard key for the exclamation point after today, but like Kool and The Gang said, celebrate good times!

How about that cover? Not too shabby, I think. One of the things that makes today so special is that Record Store Reckoning is my thirteenth published novel. Now, I know the number 13 is considered unlucky in a lot of circles. In case you didn’t know, there’s even a term for the fear of the number – triskaidekaphobia. Come to think of it, I believe Lucy mentioned the term to Charlie Brown in Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown.

In my house, it’s another matter entirely. In fact, thirteen is quite the lucky number. To begin with, my lovely wife Nancy’s birthday is on the 13th. But wait, there’s more. She was born on a Friday the 13th. Some folks might feel a little triskaidekaphobic about that. Not her. She’s proud of it. And she’s the greatest thing to ever happen to me, so I think it’s pretty cool, too.

A few other fun tidbits about the number 13. It is both a prime number and a number in the Fibonacci Sequence. Each of the four seasons are 13 weeks long. There are 13 cards in each suit of a regular deck of cards. Oh, and there was a little mission to the moon called Apollo 13. That flight started out kind of rough, but what a testament to human ingenuity that everyone came home safe and sound.

Given all that, I don’t think it’s surprising that I consider 13 a lucky number. Especially when Record Store Reckoning joins that esteemed crowd of interesting tidbits. I’d like to think that means good things are in store for it.

So, how about you? Do you have a lucky number or a keepsake like a rabbit’s foot that brings you positive vibes? Tell me about them. I’m giving a signed, paperback copy of Record Store Reckoning to a lucky commenter. (U.S. only, I’m afraid) Until next time, may the Luck o’ the Irish be with you!

You can purchase Record Store Reckoning wherever books are sold or at Amazon by going to the following link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09NQFH65V

J.C. Kenney is the Amazon and Kobo bestselling author of The Allie Cobb Mysteries and The Darcy Gaughan Mysteries. His debut, A Literal Mess, was a finalist for a Muse Medallion from the Cat Writers’ Association in mystery fiction. When he’s not writing, you can find him following IndyCar racing or listening to music. He lives in Indianapolis with his wife, two children, and a cat. You can find him at www.jckenney.com.

Forty Years in New England

Edith/Maddie here, writing in a snow-covered Massachusetts.

Where I have lived for forty years. Wow! I realized recently I had missed the anniversary of my arrival in the Boston area.

But first: I almost didn’t schedule this post, which I had ready to go. The invasion in Ukraine has upset me greatly, and possibly, you as well. But what could I say, other than wishing the Ukrainian people safety and peace and an intact country? You might be looking for a little respite for the news, anyway. So I’m going ahead with today’s regularly scheduled broadcast.

Rewind to forty years ago:

On New Year’s Day, 1982, I rolled into the suburb of Medford, Massachusetts. I had a shiny new doctorate in linguistics and drove an old red Volvo sedan packed with books, houseplants, and everything else I owned (it had an infinite-capacity trunk).

1980 Edith learning about snow at Indiana University, on her way to her doctorate

Accompanying me was a brainy, absent-minded boyfriend in his own packed car towing a homemade little trailer (we lived on a grad-student shoestring). A Maine native, Henry was returning to Boston. For me, it was the farthest east in the US I had ever lived.

Henry, 1981

We settled into a rental apartment. He started his ethnomusicology doctoral research on the concept of talent. I commuted by bike or bus to MIT to a postdoctoral fellowship in the speech technology group, where some of the pioneers in speech synthesis (as in, your GPS voice) and speech recognition (as in, Alexa) worked.

This fourth-generation Californian, who had arrived in the Boston area via five years in Indiana and two in Japan before that, suffered SO much culture shock. I had crisscrossed the country solo several times in that old Volvo, but I was terrified to drive in Boston (unlike in California, it felt like there were no rules for drivers in Boston at the time, except “The biggest bully wins” – which might still be true). The little Girl Scout in the convenience store sounded like a gangster. When I called for a bus schedule, the woman on the line was so rude, I burst into tears.

But I stayed. I found a karate dojo and resumed my practice from five years earlier in Japan, eventually earning my black belt.

I like to call that my Baader-Meinhof head shot, for those who get the reference.

I found my nerve and started to enjoy figuring out the most direct route from point A to point B via four towns. I’d learned about snowy winters in Indiana (see previous photo), but in Massachusetts I also came to love cross country skiing, sledding, and making snow people, not to mention the rush of spring flowers, yummy summer produce, and the glory of fall leaves.

Time went by. I worked for one of the pioneers in speech recognition, a Kurzweil company. I was part of an active home birth support movement and gave birth to two baby boys (except not at home, as it turned out). I owned and worked a small organic farm, taught childbirth classes, returned to work as a documentation expert in hi-tech, and ended up writing mystery fiction in a historic mill and factory town.

Four of the mystery series I’ve written, plus another book not yet under contract, are set in the Commonwealth. I think I’ve kind of gotten the hang of writing New England settings, although I haven’t brought regionalisms into dialog as much as I do in the Indiana-based Country Store Mysteries. I still say rubber band instead of elastic, drinking fountain instead of bubbler, milkshake instead of frappe, shopping cart instead of carriage, and trash can instead of barrel.

Nobody asks me anymore if I think of going back to the southern Golden State to retire. For one thing, I have no plans to retire. For another, while I love the Pasadena area, it’s way too populated for me to feel comfortable living there after hanging out in small exurbs north of Boston for the last few decades. Third, all my remaining relatives (except my sisters, who live elsewhere) and college friends are northward, in the San Francisco area.

California cousins (from the tall branch of the family), brother, uncle – and me, December 2021

Still, when I fly west and cross the Rocky Mountains, I can finally take a deep breath. I feel at peace and at home in California. I do dream about living in one of the underpopulated areas, and maybe you’ll hear about a new series set out there sometime soon.

So, even though I’ve now lived in New England almost twice as long as in my home state, maybe I’m still not quite a Yankee!

Readers: where do you feel most at home?

A Wicked Welcome to Delia C. Pitts **plus a giveaway**

I am delighted to welcome Delia Pitts back to the blog today! Her most recent book, Murder Take Two, was released this week. Today I thought it would be fun to get to know her better, and she was kind enough to answer our questions.

Name (s): Delia C. Pitts

Genre(s): Private Investigator; Contemporary Noir

Delia, what drew you to the genre you write?

Whether in book form or in film and TV, I’ve always been intrigued by the private eye. This is the lone enforcer, equalizer, or avenger who rights the wrongs of a flawed society. The fact that this character is damaged yet takes on the sins of a corrupt world will forever draw me to the private eye character. I like reading about duality in people. I’m interested in the push-and-pull between contending desires or codes which leads some good people to make bad decisions and some bad people to make good choices. For example, in Casablanca, I secretly loved Captain Reynaud as much as Rick Blaine. I also enjoy the opportunity afforded by the private eye genre to write in first person. Using limited, but vibrant language to get under the tough skin of a taciturn, wounded individual will always give me the best kind of chills.

Tell us about your series.

I write the Ross Agency Mystery series, novels focused on the cases of a tiny neighborhood detective agency based in Harlem, New York City. The central character is SJ Rook, who is a novice investigator when we meet him in book one. He quickly becomes involved in the cases of his mentor Norment Ross, who is the founder and lead investigator of the agency. And Rook falls hard for his other boss, Norment’s daughter, Sabrina Ross. Brina, as she’s called, is a tough, savvy private eye in her own right. The mission of the agency is to provide fix-it services to people in their hardscrabble neighborhood. Rook and the Rosses are detectives without portfolio. They look into the puzzles, trials, debates, and tensions that fall below the radar or interest of the police. They offer security, confidence, protection, and peace-of-mind to clients whose lives often lack these basic comforts. Murder isn’t usually on their agenda, but when it happens, they rise to the occasion.

What sets your book apart from what is out there?

Rook and his partners are African Americans; he is of mixed Black and Mexican heritage. The people in their Harlem neighborhood are diverse in every way you cut it: ethnicity, age, economic and immigration status, language background, sexual identity, religion, and regional origin. Rook’s best pal is NYPD homicide detective Archie Lin, an American born son of Chinese immigrants. Archie’s wife, who is Brina’s best friend, is Pinky Michel, a jazz singer of Haitian background. So, diversity is an integral hallmark of the neighborhood. These books aren’t about diversity per se, they are about ordinary people going about their usual — and unusual – lives.

Another distinguishing feature of this series is how it challenges the conventional tropes of the private eye genre. Rook doesn’t have all the usual signifiers of masculinity in detective fiction. He is not able-bodied; his war-related limp is a significant element in his life and in his approach to crime investigations. Because of his war experiences, Rook refuses to carry a gun. He feels that carrying a lethal weapon is an invitation to violence and he won’t dance at that party. Rook doesn’t have a car, a college education, lots of money, or lots of women. In fact, his enduring love relationship is with his boss and crime-solving partner, Brina Ross. The tension in their evolving romance is an ongoing theme of the series. In the office, Rook is low man on the totem pole with two bosses. At home, he is even lower: he has a cat who is the boss of him.

You’ve just published the 6th book in your series, Murder Take Two. Is there an arc for Rook, or will you keep writing the series for as long as you’re inspired?

There is definitely an arc for Rook. When we meet him in book one, Lost and Found in Harlem, he is at the nadir of his personal collapse. One step removed from the gutter, he lives in a flophouse with prostitutes for neighbors. Rook learns how to be a good PI through the course of the series. In each book, we see him gain new skills and learn to apply his native smarts, gut instincts, and basic decency to solve cases. He also faces new ethical challenges as he works against, and with, criminals and underworld chiefs to resolve issues. Each novel delves into a different aspect of Rook’s personal life: his divorce; his war injuries; his alcoholism; his determination to build a found family, and his troubled relationship with his absentee father. I intend to complete the series at seven or eight books.

What are you currently writing?

I am currently writing a standalone mystery. This features a middle-aged Black woman private eye who returns to her not-so-charming small town in central New Jersey after a catastrophic personal tragedy. Murder ensues, racism and politics intervene, corruption complicates. The working title is Domestic Disturbance.

That sounds great! What are you reading right now?

I just finished Alex Segura’s Secret Identity, and Naomi Hirahara’s Summer of the Big Bachi. Right now, I’m reading Colson Whitehead’s Harlem Shuffle. Next, I’m looking forward to reading Kellye Garrett’s Like a Sister and Snowblind by Ragnar Jonasson.

Do you have a favorite quote or life motto?

The perfect is the enemy of the good.

I also like one I learned in my early days in the newspaper business: Always be kind to your copyboy, he may be your editor one day.

Favorite writing space?

I write at one end of my crowded dining room table. It’s crammed with ring binders, pencil holders, mugs, notebooks, legal pads, sticky notes, candles, and a Benin bronze royal figure.

Favorite deadline snack?

Red grapes today, popcorn tomorrow, raisins and cheddar chunks on my best day.

What do you see when you look up from writing?

I look through the living room window to a massive oak tree sheltering our front lawn. Beyond that is a peaceful cul-de-sac.

Question of the day:

Readers and Writers, who is your favorite private eye, whether in books, TV, or film? To start things off, I enjoy Sherlock Holmes and Philip Marlowe, of course. But V.I. Warshawski and Kinsey Milhone are also favorite investigators. Remember Mannix, Richard Diamond, Harry O, Veronica Mars, Paul Drake, and Rockford on TV?

Thank you for visiting the Wickeds, Delia. And congratulations on Murder Take Two. Delia will be giving away a copy of Murder Take Two to a commenter on the blog.

About Murder Take Two:

Two bitter friends. Two hustling brothers. Two killers in love. One detective in pursuit

When cynical private eye SJ Rook is hired to guard the set of a hot new television show filming on the streets of Harlem, he expects his toughest challenge to be corralling star-struck fans. The task is simple: keep peace between fancy Hollywood invaders, loudmouth tourists, and rowdy neighborhood regulars. The sultry presence of an A-list star lights up the set and enflames Rook’s imagination.

But the detective’s brush with Hollywood glamour quickly turns dark. All week, a TV big shot bids for Rook’s attention with outlandish claims of murder threats. Rook dismisses these fears as dramatic excess spiced with Left Coast dazzle. But on the last night of filming, murder writes a grim finale to the production.

With his client dead, Rook’s pursuit of the truth begins. Hampered by remorse, he battles a secretive killer whose motives are hidden in plain sight. After a second murder, Rook’s hopes for solving the case are dashed. He must reset for take two of the investigation. But the tragic past of an alluring actress and Rook’s own unspoken desires complicate his hunt. Distracted by stardust, the detective’s struggle to sort fact from fantasy takes on deadly urgency when the killer makes Rook the last target.

About Delia C. Pitts

I’ve been enchanted with books from my earliest days; one of my first memories is of sitting on the floor in the golden motes of dust flying around the booklined porch my father used as his office. Second grade found me crafting a pastiche on the great Walter Farley novel,”The Black Stallion.” I sold that story, with original cover painting, for .02 cents at our school’s spring book fair.

My writing took a turn from animal lore when I discovered Sherlock Holmes in seventh grade. Agatha Christie, Langston Hughes, Margery Allingham, P.D.James, Walter Mosely, Ralph Ellison,so many fine practitioners of detective and other fiction influenced me over the years. Perhaps the biggest single influence, however, was my long-standing love affair with newspapers. I worked for professional papers in the rough-and-tumble news town of Chicago since my late teen years.

Pursuing a doctorate in African history and a career in the United States Foreign Service reinforced my interest in people, places, and writing. Though the settings were not quite so exotic as West Africa, my subsequent career as a university administrator took me to Texas, New Jersey, and right around the world recruiting international students and promoting study abroad programs. I jumped into the world of fiction writing through the stimulating and fun adventure of fan fiction. To date, I’ve published over sixty fan fiction stories since 2012, under the pen name Blacktop.

My wonderful husband, who’s traveled this journey with me, has been a source of insight and common sense for decades. And our twin sons –smart, sensitive, and fun –are the inspiration for everything I do. www.DeliaPitts.com

Witch Way Out Cover Reveal!

By Liz/Cate, so excited to share the latest cover in my Full Moon Mysteries!

Exciting day today – I love cover reveals! I just received this from my publisher so you all are the first eyes on this. Let me know what you think!

I LOVE it – the cats are so cute and the ax is the BEST! And very relevant, in case you were wondering.

In other news, my editor accepted the manuscript just this week, and it’s publishing in March 2023.

Let me know in the comments what you think of the cover and I’ll pick a commenter for a copy of Witch Trial!

Love Kills — Celebrating The Release of Batter Off Dead

I love it when we get to celebrate the release of a new book by one of the Wickeds. And it kills me that we don’t get to celebrate in person! (That’s me trying to work in our February Love Kills theme.) Here’s a bit about Batter Off Dead: In South Lick, Indiana, fine foods and classic cookware can be found at Robbie Jordan’s Pans ’N Pancakes. Unfortunately, her country store also seems to stock up on murder . . .
 
Robbie and her new husband Abe O’Neill are enjoying a summer evening in the park with fellow townsfolk excited for some Friday night fireworks. In attendance are senior residents from Jupiter Springs Assisted Living including Roy Bird, father to South Lick’s very own Police Lieutenant Buck Bird. Despite his blindness, Roy is a member of his group home’s knitting circle, spending quality time with some lovely ladies.
 
But when the light show ends, one of the knitters who sat with Roy is found dead, a puncture wound in her neck. The poor woman’s death echoes that of Buck’s mother and Roy’s wife—an unsolved homicide. To help find the killer, Robbie’s going to have to untangle the knotty relationships deep in the victim’s past . . .

Wickeds, what is something that you love that it kills you when you can’t do it?

Julie: Edith, huge congratulations on book #10 in the series!! Tin or aluminum are the traditional gifts, but we’ll settle for wicked cheers for now. There are so many things that I love, and it kills me a bit to not be able to do. Going to theater is one of them, though that is becoming more possible. Easily seeing friends is another. Reading is another–whether it is time, or being distracted, it kills me a bit not to be able to do it.

Jessie: Super congratulations, Edith! Not being able to go to the beach and walk along the shore is a tough one for me. I also love hosting events for friends and family and the need to hold off on that over the last months has been difficult.

Barb: Congratulations, Edith! The last two years have been a daily lesson in not being able to do what you want. My husband and I are planners and schedulers, and knowing that even if you manage to make them, all plans are tentative has been making me nuts.

Sherry: Congratulations, Edith! Not getting together with people without careful planning has been hard for me as well.

Liz: Congrats, Edith! Not being able to go to the beach does it for me too – I need my salt water fix.

Edith/Maddie: Thank you, dear friends! As it’s launch week, it kind of kills me I can’t have a big joyous in-person book launch at my local indy bookstore, mingling with wine and food afterward. I know a few stores have cautiously waded back into actual physical launch parties, but Jabberwocky Books isn’t one of them. Fingers crossed for my fall release of Murder in a Cape Cottage.

To the Bakers in My Family, plus #Giveaway

Edith/Maddie here, with a full heart on the release day for Batter Off Dead. It’s my 10th Country Store Mystery, my 27th full-length novel, and this is an all-round happy day.

I want to share with you the dedication I wrote for this book.

Cookies, cakes, pie, crisps. Breads, buns, muffins. You name it. The women who raised our mother and father, the woman who raised my sisters and me, and we three, now of nearly the oldest generation – we all have baking of all kinds in common.

So, with a book that has Batter in the title, who better to dedicate it to?

Our grandmothers were (Dot) Dorothy Henderson Maxwell and Ruth Skinner Flaherty.

Allan Senior, Ruthie, Dot, Jo, Allan Junior (Edith’s father), in 1932 – two decades before Edith was born (not sure why Aunt Jo and Daddy look so stern).Ruth Ann Skinner Flaherty, as Edith remembers her.

I remember Mama Ruth coming to visit from northern California for two or three weeks at a time. Once, when I came home from school, I was so surprised she had made cupcakes from scratch – and they were square! She said she couldn’t find the cupcake pans, so she just lined up the cupcake papers in a rectangular pan.

Mama Dot, who lived two towns away, baked cookies and her own Chex party mix. (My sisters and I can’t remember cakes or pies she made, but that’s a factor of memory. Dot was a fabulous cook.)

Our mother, Marilyn, used recipes from both these ladies for her Christmas cookies, which I still bake every year.

Marilyn Flaherty Maxwell Muller

My sisters and I grew up baking with our mom. Three kinds of pies for Thanksgiving. Cakes from mixes and from scratch. Cinnamon rolls laden with butter and brown sugar on Christmas morning. And cookies of all kinds.

David, Edith, Janet, Barbara, in about 1958

Mommy was a let-them-get-their-hands-dirty kind of mom. There was no short-order cooking in our house. We were given free range of the kitchen if we wanted to make a batch of chocolate chip cookies, pancakes for the family, or a toast and hot chocolate snack (I dipped my buttered toast in my hot chocolate). We all made our own school lunches as soon as we were tall enough to see over the kitchen counter.

My sister Barbara Bergendorf – who lives in Indiana – has contributed more than one yummy recipe to my Country Store books, including to Batter Off Dead. Janet, now a Canadian and resident of Ottawa, and I started baking whole grain bread together in college using the Tassajara Bread Book, and she still makes delicious breads and cookies.

We also have a younger brother. While David doesn’t cook a lot, he is known throughout the state of California for his chocolate chip cookies.

We nearly lost Barbie a few years ago when her heart stopped on Christmas Day, but she made a full recovery. We’re all so grateful our four-kid family remains intact.

Janet, Barbara, and me, after Barbara rather miraculously recovered from her heart stopping four years ago.The Maxwell kids at Edith’s son’s wedding in September, 2019.

A quintessential batter-based dish, pancakes are still a big item in my household. Banana-walnut pancakes were one of the first mentions in Flipped for Murder, Country Store Mystery #1. These days I mostly make flapjacks with blueberries, always with whole wheat flour, and whenever a son or two is visiting.

Thanks for helping me celebrate, dear Friends of the Wickeds. We’re having a Facebook party with nine author pals tonight from 7:20-10 EST, with prizes and chat and games. Please join us here!

And as a special prize, I’d love to send one of you the Country Store tenth-birthday jigsaw puzzle!

Design credit to the talented Jennifer McKee

I started my copy. I’ve gazed at these covers for long long, I could spot a piece from each with ease – at least at the beginning!

Thank you for loving my stories and being such supportive fans. I’ll tell you a secret – the Country Store series has been renewed through book #13! Yes, I’m as excited as you are.

Readers: Please share your favorite Country Store Mysteries book, character, or recipe. And if you haven’t yet read them yet, just say hi!

The Eleanor Taylor Bland Award is Open!

I always love to get the word out about the Sisters in Crime Eleanor Taylor Bland Crime Fiction Writers of Color Award, so today, I’ve asked Valerie Burns and Julie Hennrikus to share some information about it. Valerie is the Grants and Award Liaison for Sisters in Crime and Julie is the Executive Director.

Valerie, who is Eleanor Taylor Bland? Eleanor Taylor Bland was a Black crime fiction writer. She was born in Massachusetts in 1944 but later moved to Illinois. She is best known for creating the police detective, Marti McAlister. As a Black woman writing Bland was not only a pioneer in the field of crime fiction, but she was also a role model and a trailblazer. There weren’t a lot of stories that featured a black female police detective in her day, and sadly there still aren’t. When she died in 2010, she was one of the most prolific Black writers in the mystery genre, writing over 14 novels, several short stories, and editing an anthology. 

Julie, how did the award come about? Eleanor Taylor Bland was not only a prolific writer, as Valerie talked about. She was also an important member of the crime writing community, supporting and mentoring other writers throughout her career. In this article about the award, Sujata Massey mentions meeting Eleanor Taylor Bland at Malice Domestic: “I remember Eleanor inviting me to join a few other writers of color for lunch—basically, all five of us were the entire nonwhite camp at the conference. She thought it was so important to support each other.”

When she passed in 2010, she left a huge void in the community. Sisters in Crime decided to honor her legacy, and its many facets, but creating the Eleanor Taylor Bland Crime Fiction Writers of Color Award for emerging writers.

Valerie, who is eligible for the award? The Eleanor Taylor Bland Award is open to any emerging crime fiction writers of color. Since this award is targeted to “emerging” authors, it is limited to authors who have limited publishing experience, limited to 10 (ten) or fewer pieces of short fiction (excluding poetry), and/or up to two self or traditionally published books. There are no citizenship requirements, but submissions must be in English. 

Julie, what does the winner get? The winner gets $2000 which is intended to help them further their writing journey. They can use the award for conferences, workshops, or however they’d like. Additionally, winning an award like the Eleanor Taylor Bland award can help a writer when they query agents and editors.

Valerie, how has the award impacted the lives of the winners? Writing can be a solitary endeavor and most writers at the beginning of their careers, often receive a lot of rejections, which can be discouraging. Winning an award of this type, especially an award with a financial prize, helps build confidence and encourages writers to keep writing. Two of the previous winners, Mia P. Manansala (2018 ) and Yasmin Angoe McClinton (2020) have gone on to achieve publishing success with their debut novels.  (The complete list of past winners is here.)

Here is more about the award from the Sisters in Crime website. Click here for more details.

Requirements For ApplicationAn unpublished work of crime fiction. This may be a short story or first chapter(s) of a manuscript in-progress, 2,500 to 5,000 words.A resume or biographical statement.A cover letter that gives a sense of the applicant as an emerging writer in the genre and briefly states how the grant money would be used. No prior writing or publishing experience is required, but the applicant should include any relevant studies or experience.Submission note: as this award is intended for emerging writers, previous publishing experience is limited to 10 (ten) or fewer pieces of short fiction (excluding poetry) and/or up to 2 (two) self or traditionally published books.We accept English language submissions, with no citizenship requirements.The submissions period for 2022 is February 1 – March 31.

Bios:

V.M. (Valerie) Burns was born and raised in the Midwestern United States. She currently resides in the warmer region of the country with her two poodles, Kenzie and Chloe. Valerie is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Dog Writers of America, Crime Writers of Color, International Thriller Writers, and Sisters in Crime. Valerie is also a mentor in the Writing Popular Fiction MFA program at Seton Hill University. She is the author of the Mystery Bookshop Mystery series, Dog Club Mystery series, and the RJ Franklin Mystery series. In August 2022, her newest series, Baker Street Mysteries will be released. Readers can visit her website at vmburns.com.

Julie Hennrikus is a Wicked Author. She’s also had a career in arts administration, and is thrilled to be working with Sisters in Crime, an organization that has played an important role in her writing life. She hosts the Sisters in Crime Writers’ Podcast. Yasmin Angoe, Mia Manansala and Robert Justice are three guests who mentioned the Eleanor Taylor Bland award and what it meant to their career.

Welcome Guest Valerie Wilson Wesley

I am so happy to have Valerie with us today. And I’m delighted to find someone else who doesn’t write at the crack of dawn! Fatal Glow, her second book in the Odessa Jones mystery series releases on February 22nd!

Valerie: I’m a late writer–in more ways than one.  I envy those ambitious souls who pop up early in the day to put in a few pages before noon. I must admit, however, that I do admire it. I’ve been on more than one panel and nodded my head in agreement when someone  recommends that to new writers. I’m lying through my teeth. Early for me is early afternoon—and at my own leisurely pace.

It may have begun when I was a magazine editor and my work day didn’t start until late in the morning. We worked late at night, so we could justify it.  I was younger then, much younger. I’ve now reached the age where I need to begin my day with an  hour of stretching and gentle yoga so I can  make it down the stairs. And then there is coffee, at least two cups. And then there is the newspaper, which from my days as a journalist I feel  compelled to read in its entirety to understand, for better or worse, what’s going on in the world.

            My career as a mystery writer also began late.  When Death Comes Stealing, the first book of my nine-book series came out in 1995. I had just turned 48, more mother hen than spring chicken, the parent of two college-bound teen-aged daughters and elder mentor to all the young editors at Essence, the magazine where I worked. A Fatal Glow, is the second book of my new Odessa Jones mystery series. It’s a cozy, published nearly thirty years after When Death Comes Stealing. It is quite different from my more traditional mysteries, and I’ve really enjoyed writing it.  A Fatal Glow has allowed me to offer aspects of my life that I’ve never included  in my books, for example our family pet Junior, disguised as Juniper, and my recipe for collard green quiche! The recipe was one developed by Jonelle Nash, a friend and the food editor at Essence.  In A Glimmer of Death, my first Odessa Jones mystery, the recipe for Dessa’s Go-To-Cake was featured in the April issue of Tea Time, a delightful  magazine that features teas and desserts.  Besides the collard green quiche, my years as an editor/journalist taught me many things. I learned never to miss a deadline and how to do research, even though these days I occasionally fall into the seductive rabbit hole of researching far more than I need.  

In the end, being late to both the world of mysteries and in my writing schedule has served me well.  Age hasn’t always made me wiser but has broadened my experiences, providing me with  provocative events to draw upon when I’m desperate for a story. Being a late older writer has also given me an  appreciation for taking my own easy time—in life as well as  work.     

Readers: What are the important lessons you learned from your first  professional job?

Bio: Valerie Wilson Wesley writes mysteries, novels and children’s books. Her latest mystery is A Fatal Glow.

Welcome

A Fatal Glow

Sometimes even good luck brings bad fortune. For Odessa Jones–reluctant psychic, part-time caterer, full-time realtor–an elegant affair turned deadly threatens her reputation and life.

A Fatal Glow: An Odessa Jones Mystery

Genre Hopping — Welcome Guest Rebecca Jones!

Name (s) Rebecca K. Jones

Genre(s) LGBTQ+, thriller, crime

What drew you to the genre you write? I grew up reading mysteries and crime fiction—one of the perils of having a mystery writer as a parent.  My dad, Josh Pachter, introduced me to Golden Age writers at an early age.  From Christie, Sayers, and Marsh I graduated to Connelly, Lescroart, and other modern courtroom/police procedural writers.  Combine that with my career as a prosecutor (I spent five years handling sex crimes cases and now do complex drug trafficking and racketeering cases), and this was a natural choice.

What sets your book apart from what is out there?  Although many of the individual characteristics of my book can be found in others in the genre, my book is the only one I know of that combines all of the following factors: my days are spent doing the work that’s the subject of the book, I’m still a “young” prosecutor (I’ve only been doing this for ten years) and am writing about a young prosecutor (who has only been doing the job for seven years), and my protagonist, Mackenzie Wilson, is gay.  Additionally, although the subject matter of Steadying the Ark is dark, I’ve tried hard to infuse the book with the humor that people in the field use as a coping mechanism.  My hope is that these things will appeal to readers who may not typically be reading crime fiction.

What are you currently writing?  Mostly, my writing right now is non-fiction for my day job!  I’ve recently started doing some appellate work, and that keeps me pretty busy.  As far as fiction is concerned, I am in the editing process for a short story that I expect to appear in a forthcoming anthology of crime fiction inspired by Paul Simon songs.  I’m also, very very slowly, working on a sequel to Steadying the Ark. 

Do you write a series or standalones? Why?  I’m hopeful this will be a series!  As a reader, when I find a character with whom I identify, I always want to know more.  What’s the next adventure?  How do they cope with change?  How do they grow?  Since that’s what I want as a reader, that’s what I’m trying to provide as a writer.  The protagonist of the book has also appeared in a few short stories that are forthcoming. 

What are you reading right now?  I read a lot and I read quickly, so my answer to this changes multiple times a week.  Lately, I’ve been revisiting the Hercule Poirot and Inspector Alleyn series as audiobooks, which has been a delight.  I just finished State of Terror by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Louise Penny, which I loved.  I also just read A Line to Kill, Anthony Horowitz’ most recent, and that was great.  Outside of crime/suspense, I’ve been reading a lot of memoirs and oral histories, and am starting to dig into Fredrik Backman’s work.

What is your favorite deadline snack?  I struggle with choosing favorites of anything—I don’t want to leave out good options.  I like to alternate between Belly Flops, which are the irregular Jelly Belly jellybeans, and fresh popped popcorn. 

Do you have a favorite quote or life motto?  There are so many!  Hanging in my office is a sign with my three New Years’ resolutions, which I’ve used with great success for about ten years now:  Practice Gratitude, Have More Fun, Kick Some Ass.  That’s what inspires me to keep moving forward.

Favorite writing space?  I get distracted very easily, so I have to be very careful about where I work and/or write.  No coffee shops here!  I do my best work in my home office slash craft room using the Pomodoro method—25 minutes on, five minute breaks, longer break every two hours.

What do you see when you look up from writing?  On a good, productive day, I see my dogs.  I have a chihuahua, Dr. Watson, and something like a chihuahua, Professor Moriarty.  On an unproductive day, they’ve put themselves to bed before I finish working, and I see the framed Broadway and concert posters dotted around my house.

Readers: Have you ever used the Pomodoro method or something similar to get tasks done?

Here’s a bit about Steadying the Ark: Assistant District Attorney Mack Wilson’s days are devoted to arguing a high-profile pedophilia case in the courtroom, but her evenings are troubled by a series of crimes that hit closer to home. Her complicated relationship with ex-girlfriend Anna Lapin, the media madness that swirls around her trial, and the mounting evidence that an unknown stalker is watching her a little too closely combine to threaten the confident prosecutor’s brilliant analytical mind…and her instinct for self-preservation.

Bio: Rebecca K. Jones is a prosecutor and the author of the new book Steadying the Ark. Inspired by her career handling sex crimes cases,

Steadying the Ark follows the twists and turns of a high-profile case and the private lives of the female characters pursuing justice. A proud graduate of Choate Rosemary Hall, Middlebury College, and the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, Rebecca K. Jones now lives in Phoenix with her girlfriend and dogs. This is her first novel.