Heather Weidner's Blog, page 71
November 19, 2020
#ThisorThatThursday Interview with Valerie J. Brooks
I’d like to welcome author, Valerie J. Brooks, to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday.
A few of your favorite things: my Paris pen; my crystal-encrusted moon necklace, à la Stevie Nicks; my library
Things you need to throw out: recently, I redid my writing studio and threw out binders of papers that no longer seemed useful now that we have the internet; plus I took everything out of the room and only put those things back that I really wanted, much easier than trying to pick it off, one at a time.
Things you need for your writing sessions: my Bose earphones while listening to Creative Mind System’s “Vision” and “Inspiration” by Dr. Jeffrey Thompson
Things that hamper your writing: getting started
Things you love about writing: it’s a combination of the immersive, like reading a great book, and the analytical; writing psychological femmes-noir thrillers is like solving a puzzle
Things you hate about writing: getting started
Hardest thing about being a writer:
When I was a visual artist, people saw my work in its different stages and said things like “I could never do that!” Now you can even post your paintings on the web. Writing a novel is different. It takes a long time to finish a novel, and it’s difficult to get out to your audience. Plus, some people think anyone can be a writer just because everyone can put words to pages.
Easiest thing about being a writer: LOL; Ok, seriously? Probably having your own hours.
Favorite music or song: Stevie Nicks’ “Edge of Seventeen”
Music that drives you crazy: klezmer
Favorite beverage: kombucha
Something that gives you a sour face: lima beans
Favorite smell: amber
Something that makes you hold your nose: heavy chemical perfumes
Something you’re really good at: theorizing, according to my husband
Something you’re really bad at: trying not to fix everything
Something you wish you could do: sing professionally
Something you wish you’d never learned to do: I’m happy about everything I’ve learned, even if I’m not good at it, because it always has a benefit, especially for a writer
Something you like to do: travel more, but that’s not an option right now
Something you wish you’d never done: given my dad fits when I was a teen
The last thing you ordered online: purple fairy lights for my studio
The last thing you regret buying: a “Smart Reusable Notebook”; it sounded great, but it had that horrible plastic smell that makes me sick
Things you’d walk a mile for: People; I’d walk a mile or more for my family.
Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: things don’t bother me, but self absorbed, aggressive people with no empathy do
Things you always put in your books: themes of justice and fairness; dogs; and three-dimensional characters
Things you never put in your books: gore for gore’s sake; sex can’t be gratuitous, must always develop character.
Things to say to an author: “Really? How cool. Tell me what that’s like?”
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: “I have this great idea that I think you should use for a novel.” So many people ask right away, “Oh, have you published?” Not a good start.
Favorite places you’ve been: Paris
Places you never want to go to again: none
Favorite books (or genre): I’m an eclectic reader, but at the moment, I’m reading anything noir as that’s what I write.
Books you wouldn’t buy: cookbooks
People you’d like to invite to dinner (living): Stevie Nicks, Richard Branson, Michelle Obama, Helen Mirren, Laura Lippman.
People you’d cancel dinner on: Trump and his minions
Favorite things to do: writing and gathering with my family
Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: dusting
Things that make you happy: dancing and being with my family
Things that drive you crazy: not being able to be with my family because of Covid
Best thing you’ve ever done: had a family
Biggest mistake: I don’t think of mistakes as bad. If you didn’t make mistakes, you’d never learn.
Most daring thing you’ve ever done: be a professional writer.
Something you chickened out from doing: rappelling into caves with the family; I hate that type of physical “adventure”
The funniest thing to happen to you: too many to mention!
The most embarrassing thing to happen to you: too many to mention!
The coolest person you’ve ever met: my bestie, Jan Eliot, who is one of the world’s best and one of a few female syndicated cartoonists with her strip “Stone Soup”; sadly she’s retired and we all miss her daily strip.
The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video: Robert Kennedy; he looked small, irritable, and was unfriendly, nothing like Jack
The nicest thing a reader said to you: I had a stranger call me from Maine to say how much one of my stories affected her and how much it helped her to read the story; it was in the anthology France, a Love Story, and was about what I learned about my father the first time I went to ParisThe craziest thing a reader said to you: at a wedding, I was approached (almost accosted) by someone who was a tipsy and wouldn’t let me up until he told me the story he was going to “give” me to write.
About Valerie
Award-winning author Valerie J. Brooks is a lifelong writer and reader, enjoying everything from Daphne du Maurier to the latest Scandinavian crime writers. Her English war bride mum and artistic army officer dad raised her and two siblings in ultra conservative New Hampshire during the 1950-60s. Growing up in puritanical New England, she was drawn to the gothic, to secrets, mystery, and the dark side of human nature. As her mum once said, “You’re a good girl who wants to be bad.” Now she has the perfect conduit for her “bad girl” side—writing noir.
Her college studies of film noir led her to write noir. She combines her interests in politics, culture, travel, psychology and women’s issues while writing strong, gutsy women who make mistakes and have lots of baggage. As the saying goes, and Brooks expanded upon, “Well-behaved women seldom make history—or good novels.”
She received an Elizabeth George Foundation grant and the Monticello Award for Fiction. For four years, she served as fiction editor at Northwest Review, was a member of the Oregon Writers Colony board of directors, and co-founded the Willamette Writers Speakers Series.
She writes psychological femmes-noir thrillers. The first in a trilogy Revenge in 3 Parts was a finalist for the Nancy Pearl Book Award and a winner in the International Reader’s Favorites Awards in the thriller category. Her second novel in the trilogy Tainted Times 2 has just been released.
If she were hypnotized and regressed, she said she probably would have been a psychiatrist or a witch.
Book Links:
Amazon:
Nook
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/revenge-in-3-parts-valerie-j-brooks/1129217190?ean=9781732373211
Kobo
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/revenge-in-3-parts
iBook
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/revenge-in-3-parts/id1420858674?ls=1&mt=11
Bookshop.org
https://bookshop.org/shop/valerie_j_brooks
Amazon
Nook
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tainted-times-2-valerie-j-brooks/1137513394?ean=9781732373228
Kobo
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/tainted-times-2-1
Bookshop.org
https://bookshop.org/shop/valerie_j_brooks
iBook
https://books.apple.com/us/book/tainted-times-2/id1528910926?mt=11&app=itunes
Let’s Be Social:
Website
http://www.valeriejbrooks.com/
https://www.facebook.com/NoirTravelStories
https://www.instagram.com/valinparis/
https://www.pinterest.com/valinparis/
https://twitter.com/ValinParis
November 13, 2020
Book Marketing Ideas in the Middle of a Pandemic
The pandemic turned book marketing and events upside down. Thankfully, a lot of conferences and workshops have moved to virtual formats. Authors, book sellers, and event planners have had to muster their creativity and find new or other ways to do things.
Here are some ideas to add to your toolbox.
Blog Tours (Paid and Free) - Look for blog tour services that will help you set up interviews, reviews, and guest posts.
Facebook/Twitter Parties - Look for companies that provide hosted social media parties (usually for a fee). They organize the event on an event page or a site where an author can “take over” for the event. You can also create your own party. It’s a good idea to have some writer friends join you and to do a variety of give aways. Make sure you review the social media platform’s terms and conditions. They do change from time to time.
Make a list of all your author/book friends who have blogs. Ask for an interview or guest blog spot to promote your new book. I offer interview spots for authors on my blog. You can send me a message on the “Contact” page if you’re interested.
Talk to your indie bookstore owners. Many are doing free and ticketed virtual events.
Reach out to your librarians. Many are doing virtual programs, and you can pitch a panel or workshop that you can lead.
Look for book clubs who host in-person or virtual speakers. Ask friends and watch Facebook groups. There are lots of book clubs that have moved to the virtual space.
There are also services out there that help authors expand BookBub, email lists, and other social media followings.
If you’re going to use a service, read the fine print, and ask other author friends about their experiences. Make sure the service caters to your genre and type of book.
What else would you add to my list?
November 12, 2020
#ThisorThatThursday Interview with Sandra Marshall
I’d like to welcome author, Sandra Marshall, to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!
A few of your favorite things:
My camera. My fleece blankey.
Things you need to throw out:
Fabric I bought but never made into anything. And now it’s out of style.
Things you need for your writing sessions:
A mechanical pencil, Roget’s International Thesaurus, a yellow tablet, and an idea.
Things that hamper your writing:
Someone trying to talk to me while I’m working.
Hardest thing about being a writer:
Writing the bridges between the well-visualized scenes without being boring. That’s when you really have to fall back on craft.
Easiest thing about being a writer:
When the movie starts rolling in my head, the characters start talking to each other, and I just take dictation.
Things you never want to run out of:
Good coffee, lead for my mechanical pencil, books to read.
Things you wish you’d never bought:
Clothes that didn’t quite fit, but would as soon as I lost a couple pounds. Sure.
Favorite smell:
Rain falling on the desert.
Something that makes you hold your nose:
Gardenia blossoms. Too sweet and cloying. Makes me queasy.
Something you’re really good at:
Research
Something you’re really bad at:
Swimming
Something you wish you could do:
Play a musical instrument.
Something you wish you’d never learned to do:
Play internet mahjongg. Had to go cold turkey on that one.
The last thing you ordered online:
Books, books, nematode spore to kill blackflies, books.
The last thing you regret buying:
A jar of purple glop meant to enhance curly hair.
Things to say to an author:
“I loved your book, especially the part where…” Then you know they actually read it.
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book:
“How’s your next book coming?”
Favorite books (or genre):
Histories, biographies, literate mysteries.
Books you wouldn’t buy:
The Art of the Deal
Best thing you’ve ever done:
Marrying my husband.
Biggest mistake:
What were their names again?
Most daring thing you’ve ever done:
Gave up a steady job to go back to school—three times.
Something you chickened out from doing:
Accepting an invitation to go skydiving.
The nicest thing a reader said to you:
I just finished your book. I don’t know what I’m going to do now.
About Sandra
Sandra Marshall was raised in Texas. She holds degrees in anthropology and public history and had an extended career as an archaeologist and architectural historian, primarily in the American Southwest. Now a writer and photographer, she has settled in southern New Mexico with her husband, historian George Matthews, and tabby cat Fog. Recipient of the 2018 William F. Deeck-Malice Domestic Grant, she is a proud member of Sisters in Crime, Guppy and Croak and Dagger Chapters, and of Women Writing the West.
Let’s Be Social
November 11, 2020
#WriterWednesday Interview with Judy Penz Sheluk
I’m so excited to welcome my friend and author, Judy Penz Sheluk, to the blog for #WriterWednesday!
Favorite thing to do when you have free time: Read.
The thing you’ll always move to the bottom of your to do list: Clean the house.
Things you need when you’re in your writing cave: Talk radio or silence.
Things that distract you from writing: Music.
Favorite snacks: Cherry or grape tomatoes.
Things that make you want to gag: Olives.
Something you wanted to be when you were a kid: Become an author.
Something you do/did that you never dreamed you’d do: Run a marathon.
Last best thing you ate: Double cheese and mushroom pizza slice.
Last thing you regret eating: Chicken salad sandwich loaded with garlic (who puts garlic in a chicken salad sandwich?)
Things to say to an author: I love your books. They make me feel as if I’m there.
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: How much do you make?
People you’d like to invite to dinner (living): Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul)
People you’d cancel dinner on: Most politicians.
Favorite things to do: Golf, walk my dog, read.
Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Go to a surprise birthday party for me.
The nicest thing a reader said to you: I love your books.
The craziest thing a reader said to you: At a book launch at Chapters Bookstore, while pointing to a photo of a Mandarin Chinese to English Dictionary: “Where find?”
Where There’s A Will: A Glass Dolphin Mystery #3: Emily Garland is getting married and looking for the perfect forever home. When the old, and some say haunted, Hadley house comes up for sale, she’s convinced it’s “the one.” The house is also perfect for reality TV star Miles Pemberton and his new series, House Haunters. Emily will fight for her dream home, but Pemberton’s pockets are deeper than Emily’s, and he’ll stretch the rules to get what he wants.
While Pemberton racks up enemies all around Lount’s Landing, Arabella Carpenter, Emily’s partner at the Glass Dolphin antiques shop, has been hired to appraise the contents of the estate, along with her ex-husband, Levon. Could the feuding beneficiaries decide there’s a conflict of interest? Could Pemberton?
Things get even more complicated when Arabella and Levon discover another will hidden inside the house, and with it, a decades-old secret. Can the property stay on the market? And if so, who will make the winning offer: Emily or Miles Pemberton?
Book Link: Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08KFLQ6KH
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/where-theres-a-will-judy-penz-sheluk/1137780682?ean=2940162992455
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/where-there-s-a-will-87
Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/where-theres-a-will/id1533844283?ls=1
About Judy:
A former journalist and magazine editor, Judy Penz Sheluk is the author of two mystery series: the Glass Dolphin Mysteries and the Marketville Mysteries. Her short crime fiction appears in several collections, including The Best Laid Plans and Heartbreaks & Half-truths, which she also edited.
Judy is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she serves as Chair on the Board of Directors. She splits her time between Alliston and Goulais River, Ontario, with her husband, Mike, and their Golden Retriever, Gibbs.
Let’s Be Social:
Website/Blog: http://www.judypenzsheluk.com
Facebook: https://business.facebook.com/JudyPenzSheluk/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/wwwjudypenzshelukcom
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JudyPenzSheluk
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.ca/judypenzsheluk/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/judypenzsheluk/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/judy-penz-sheluk
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Judy-Penz-Sheluk/e/B00O74NX04
November 9, 2020
Location! Location! Location! Setting is Key
Setting is key to your story or novel. In some cases, it can even be a character in its own right.
I write where I know. I’ve lived in Virginia all my life, and I love sharing the food, culture, history, beauty, mountains, and beaches with my readers. I use many places, street names, cities, and businesses in my stories. However, if it’s the site of a crime or murder, then I make up the place name.
Google Maps (Street View or Satellite View) helps me find neighborhoods and street names. In my Delanie Fitzgerald novels, she is a private investigator who does a lot of stake outs. I look on the online maps to find her places to park to watch suspects. The online maps help me get an idea of what the area looks like. I look for houses and other buildings. Many of the street views have photos on the site of the neighborhood.
In my short stories in the Virginia is for Mysteries and Deadly Southern Charm anthologies, I use historic areas or landmarks as settings (e.g. Mill Mountain Star in Roanoke, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, Shockoe Bottom, and the Church Hill Train Cave-in). I love using these interesting sites as a backdrop to my mysteries. In my novels, my PI visits a lot of places in Central Virginia. At the end of each book, there’s a list of the sites to let readers know which places are real.
My new cozy series, the Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, is set in a made up town, Fern Valley, located near Charlottesville, Virginia in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.
I also keep an idea file when I hear about neat events or places. I jot them down for future stories.
Locations and details about them are important to your story. You need to get the culture, customs, and typography of the region right. I actually do a lot of research on setting and locales. People like to escape with books, and they love to find out about new places.
November 6, 2020
Writing for You - Journaling
I started a diary in the third grade. Someone gave me a denim-covered one with a lock and a key. This was an amazing gift that fed my love for writing. And I made sure to lock it each time I wrote down my innermost secrets.
I’ve kept journals, notes, and scrapbooks through the years. I even started two journals for my nieces when they were born. But I stopped journaling when I started writing novels. Life gets too busy sometimes, and things that were important get ignored or pushed to the side.
Through the years, I’ve received some beautiful journals as gifts. After the Pandemic started, I pulled one out and started recording thoughts about the virus, the shut down, and all the craziness. It helped. I also did a lot of my ranting, so it was cathartic. I hope in the future that it will help me remember what we were all going through during this historic moment in time and how I felt about it.
Then I realized there were good things going on, even in our darkest moments. Mr. Rogers always said to look for the helpers in any tragic or scary situation. And he was right. I saw so many examples of heroes and people helping others. So, I started a “Sudden Glory” journal. I use this to record positive, upbeat stories and examples of kindness. This has definitely helped me realize that there is goodness in the world no matter what is going on. It has also helped me with my outlook during the quarantine and stay-at-home orders. I felt so bad for the Class of 2020, everyone affected by the closings, and everyone who had their life upended. Everyone’s anxious, worried, scared… My journaling has helped me think about what’s going on and how I’ve reacted to it.
Journaling or keeping a diary is a wonderful way for you to write for you, and I think it will be a treasure later when you look back on what you recorded, doodled, drew, or shared.
Who else journals?
November 2, 2020
Your Bucket List
Recently, I heard Kenyon Salo, the James Bond of Motivation Speakers. He’s a story teller, motivator, member of the Denver Broncos Thunderstorm Skydive Team, master trainer, adventurer, and photographer. His high energy and enthusiasm were contagious.
Here are some key points that made me think. He talked to us about our bucket list (you know, the things you want to do before you die). The focus of his talk was to “Say, yes, and worry about the how later.” We limit ourselves by coming up with excuses. Dreams lead to goals which lead to a plan which lead to action.
Create Experiences - Go and do the things you dream of.
Share More Stories - Share your experiences with others.
Live a More Fulfilled Life - Help others.
“Some day” is not a day of the week. This resonated with me. Things always seem to end up on my “some day” list.
He also reminded us to accept offers of help. We can’t do it alone. And helping others leads to a more fulfilled life.
Let’s solve this!
I did love his excitement, and my goal is for the rest of 2020 and 2021 to make some of my bucket list items happen.
What about you? What’s on your bucket list?
October 31, 2020
How Long Does it Take to Finish Your First Draft?
My first mystery novel took about five years to go from first draft to publication. As a new writer, I wrote when I could (or felt like it) and revised and revised and revised for years. I would overhaul major sections after early readers provided feedback. I would put it down for weeks and months and then go at it again.
I try to write every day, but it’s not always possible. Life gets in the way sometimes.
What works for me is to write and edit when I can, and I don’t beat myself up when I skip days or don’t write as much as I planned. Here are some things I’ve learned over the years (through trial and error).
When I don’t write regularly, it takes me longer to remember where I left off and get back in the groove. I am more productive if I can write a little each day.
Just write your first draft. Don’t spend hours proofing, revising, and editing. Finish it, and then you can focus on the polishing. I spent years on that first manuscript.
I would often handwrite a lot of my chapters in the early days. I save time now by composing/writing at my computer. This cuts down on typing time later.
You may have to make a tough decision with a manuscript. If you’ve worked and worked on it, and it’s not going anywhere, you may need to assess whether it’s worth pursuing or whether you should pause it. I have two manuscripts in a desk drawer that will probably never see the light of day.
I track my word count on my writing days, so I have a visual of my progress. (I use a lowtech Post-It on my desk with the date and total.)
Know your word count guidelines for your genre. There’s less revising if you’re close to your range at the end of your first draft. It’s hard to add 35K words when you think you’re done.
When I’m writing and I find something that I need to research, I highlight it and make a comment in the document. I keep writing, and I come back and insert what I find later. I was spending too much time on the internet looking for things (and getting distracted with funny dog videos).
I don’t do a full blown outline, but I do create a chapter summary. I highlight parts with mystery, romance, and humor in different colors, so I can see if there is too much or not enough of something. This provides a roadmap for me and helps as I transition from chapter to chapter.
For my series, I keep a spreadsheet with a column for each book. All the major and minor characters are listed with their key details. I also have a chart for place names and locations. I want to be consistent throughout the series. This is an easy reference when I forget a character’s eye color or other details.
Find the process that work best for you. If something’s not working, try something new.
Best wishes with your manuscript. (I’m almost done with the fourth Delanie Fitzgerald book. I have about 15K more words to go.) Happy Writing!
October 29, 2020
#ThisorThatThursday Interview with the Mutt Mysteries Authors
I’d like to welcome my pals, Jayne Ormerod, Maria Hudgins, and Teresa Inge to the blog today for a fall edition of #ThisorThatThursday. We’re the Mutt Mysteries authors.
A few of your favorite fall traditions
Heather: Apple-picking, Visiting the pumpkin path; Halloween
Jayne: Carving Pumpkins using templates from Pumpkin Masters. I have displayed some really tricked-out jack-o-lanterns!
Teresa: Finding the perfect pumpkins and fall decorations to decorate my front porch and house, and making homemade Chili. I make the best Chili with Texas Pete!
Something fall-related that you’ll never do again:
Heather: I hate to rake leaves. I avoid it (and pulling weeds) at all costs
Jayne: Jump in a pile of leaves (raked leaves included dog droppings. Yes, it is as disgusting as it sounds!
Maria: Have a Halloween party and serve Fish House Punch in a Tub.
Teresa: Place a bale of hay on my front porch. The wind blows the hay everywhere and it's messy when transporting in my car. I found hay in my car for months afterward.
Favorite fall treat:
Heather: Chocolate Halloween candy; caramel apples
Jayne: Dip (pumpkin, cream cheese, sugar and spices) with crisp fall apples or ginger snaps as dippers. Now that I think about it, that is tied with pumpkin seeds, baked in olive oil and garlic salt! Yum!
Teresa: Pull-apart Cinnamon Roll Brioche. Warm and yummy!
A fall treat that makes you gag:
Heather: Biting into Halloween candy and finding that it has coconut in it
Jayne: Oyster stuffing. Yech.
Maria: Anything pumpkin flavored or scented (other than pumpkins or pumpkin pie)
Teresa: Not sure if this qualifies but anything that has chocolate and peanut together, especially in cake I cannot stand. But I love Reese's cups. Go figure.
Favorite fall beverage:
Heather: Apple cider
Jayne: Wine. (Actually, that is my favorite year-round beverage.)
Teresa: Hot Chocolate! I made it homemade and my family loves it.
A drink that gives you a sour face:
Heather: Diet soft drinks
Jayne: Beer. (I'm not much of one for Oktoberfest!)
Maria: Lemonade
Teresa: I'm not sure but anything sour I don't like!
Favorite place to visit in the fall:
Heather: Apple-picking in Charlottesville, Virginia
Jayne: Anyplace where the leaves are changing. New England put on some pretty good shows, but the mountains of Virginia can be breathtaking as well. Nature has the best crayons, doesn't she?
Teresa: Haunted House and Pumpkin Patch at Greenbrier Farms! Scary and beautiful at the same time.
The worst place to spend the holidays:
Heather: Stuck in an airport
Jayne: In the hospital. Especially now during the COVID restrictions.
Maria: In a dorm room, typing an overdue paper.
Teresa: Not sure, but I love to be home during the holidays to enjoy the fall, Thanksgiving and Christmas with my family. I have traditional holidays and start cooking two days prior since I make everything homemade.
Funniest autumn story:
Heather: My Grandmother was notorious for telling ghost stories late at night when my sister and I would spend the night. Her rooms had a lot of large dark wooden furniture and antiques that cast freaky shadows.
One evening as she was telling one of these tales, my sister and I looked up at the open window, and there were two sets of yellow eyes staring back at us. For several minutes, my sister and I were convinced that demons or zombies were lying in wait. When all of the screaming died down, we discovered that it was the neighbor’s cats sitting on the window ledge peeping in.
Jayne: On a glorious October morning, I sent my dad out to walk the dogs while I took care of the toddler. Husband not in picture (deployed to some remote location known only to those with top-secret clearance.) Dad was not quite "elderly" but no longer at his most agile. I saddled up the dogs and sent them on their way for a walk under the canopy of colorful autumn colors. Only they didn't come home. Like for over an hour on what was supposed to be a ten-minute trip around the block. Did I worry? Heck, yeah. After over an hour, the dogs found their way home, dragging (literally...he was on his belly) my dad behind them! No lasting injuries, except to my stomach...from laughing so hard. The look on his face...surprised...perplexed...humiliated...was priceless! He laughed, too!
Teresa: Not sure if this is funny, but each year my granddaughter and I go to the pumpkin patch to pick our pumpkins together. It's always fun and silly in finding the best pumpkins.
Something embarrassing that happened during autumn:
Heather: This shows my age. When I was fifteen, the Tylenol scare happened, and it all but put an end to trick-or-treating that year. My friends and I decided not to waste good candy that people had already bought, so we dressed up and went out. We raked in the candy that year. It probably wasn’t the best decision in light of the product tampering.
Jayne: Navy Birthday Ball (Oct 13) Husband-to-be in full dress whites. Me in a beautiful light blue gown with the back of my dress tucked in my underwear! Finally, someone on the dance floor pulled me aside and told me. Mortifying doesn't begin to describe it. But he did marry me anyway!
Teresa: When I first started making homemade cranberry sauce it was hard to get just the right balance to make the relish un-soured. No one at the table ate it the first year I made it.
Let’s Be Social:
Mutt Mysteries
Website/Blog: http://muttmysteries.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MuttMysteries
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MuttMysteries1
Teresa Inge grew up reading Nancy Drew mysteries. Today, she doesn’t carry a rod like her idol, but she hotrods. Love of reading mysteries and writing professional articles led to writing short fiction and novellas. She is president of Sisters in Crime Mystery by the Sea Chapter and author of short mysteries in Virginia is for Mysteries, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Coastal Crimes: Mysteries by the Sea, and Murder by the Glass.
Website: www.TeresaInge.com
Website and Blog: http://www.teresainge.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/@teresainge7
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teresa.h.inge
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/teresa.h.inge/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/teresainge
Amazon Authors: https://www.amazon.com/Teresa-Inge/e/B06XGZ7RTG
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/teresainge7/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/teresa-inge-cap-07687820/
BookBub: https://www.blurb.com/user/teresainge?profile_preview=true
AllAuthor: https://allauthor.com/author/teresaingeauthor/
Jayne Ormerod grew up in a small Ohio town then went on to a small-town Ohio college. Upon earning her degree in accountancy, she became a CIA (that’s not a sexy spy thing, but a Certified Internal Auditor.) She married a naval officer and off they sailed to see the world. After nineteen moves, they, along with their two rescue dogs Tiller and Scout, have settled into a cozy cottage by the sea. Jayne’s publishing credits include two novels, five novellas, and eight short mysteries. A complete list can be found on her website. Website: www.JayneOrmerod.com
Maria Hudgins is a mystery writer and a former high school science teacher. She is the author of the Dotsy Lamb Travel Mysteries, the Lacy Glass Archaeology Mysteries and several published short stories. Her favorite things are traveling, reading, dogs, and cats. She lives in Hampton, Virginia with her cat, Lulu.
Website: www.mariahudgins.com
Heather Weidner writes the Delanie Fitzgerald mystery series set in Virginia (Secret Lives and Private Eyes, The Tulip Shirt Murders, and Glitter, Glam, and Contraband), and her Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries launch October 2021.Her short stories appear in the Virginia is for Mysteries series, 50 Shades of Cabernet, and Deadly Southern Charm. Her novellas appear in The Mutt Mysteries series.
Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a pair of Jack Russell terriers.
Through the years, she has been a cop’s kid, technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager.
Website and Blog: http://www.heatherweidner.com
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About the Mutt Mysteries:
Old dogs and new tricks abound in To Fetch a Villain, the third installment in the Mutt Mysteries series. This collection of four novellas illustrates why dogs are our best friends and the perfect companions for digging up clues, solving crimes, and bringing villains to justice. Let sleeping dogs lie? Not when the MUTTS are on the case!
RUFF DAY by Jayne Ormerod
Store owner Darby Moore suffers through a “ruff” day when a dead body is discovered in her custom dog house. With her best friend topping the suspect’s list, Darby knows the police are barking up the wrong tree. It’s up to Darby’s Great Dane Mr. Belvedere to channel his inner Scooby-Doo and save the day.
AT YOUR SERVICE by Maria Hudgins
Mystery writer Jessica Chastain is deaf and relies on her service dog Trey who acts as Jessica’s ears. Kim, a Bichon like Trey, is the latest addition to their family. But life is not a walk in the park when someone threatens all they hold dear. Together they take on an unethical breeder and dog-napper, whose bite is worse than his bark.
A SHOT IN THE BARK by Teresa Inge
Dog-loving Catt Ramsey hires an ex-con as her handyman to help with her dog-walking business at the same time a crime wave hits the neighborhood. But it’s Catt who is accused of murder. She enlists the help of family, friends, and her dogs Cagney and Lacey to prove man’s best friend can be crime’s worst enemy.
STRUT YOUR MUTT by Heather Weidner
Sassy PI Delanie Fitzgerald attends the Strut Your Mutt festival, where her business partner’s English bulldog is a finalist in a pampered doggie pageant. The dog’s new-found fame leads to a client with a missing poodle. Delanie and her team put paws to the pavement, sniff out clues, and show the villain that when you lie with the dogs, you wake up with fleas.
October 23, 2020
Mutt Mysteries' Playlist
In honor of today’s cover reveal for the latest Mutt Mystery, TO FETCH A VILLAIN, I’ve put together a playlist for the series. Our newest collection goes on sale on November 3.
Here’s a list of dog-themed songs in no particular order.
How Much is That Doggie in the Window
