Nancy J. Cohen's Blog: Nancy's Notes from Florida, page 129

BRITTANY MURPHY

As a mystery writer, I'm often asked where I get my ideas. Well, here's one for you: how about the local newspaper? Consider this story: Celebrity actress found dead at home; no signs of foul play; pneumonia following flu-like symptoms suspected as cause of death. Within months, husband dies from possible heart attack. Strange coincidence or not?

My mystery mind goes into high gear. If I were writing this story, how would it play out? Naturally, the celebrity (and it doesn't have to be a...

REFERENCE BOOKS

Who said books were outdated? A home library can be a boon for writers even with the advantages of the Internet. For example, I needed to know the difference between a Chinese junk and a sampan for my current WIP. My characters have to go from an island off the coast of Japan all the way to Taiwan. They hire a boat from a small fishing village. Which type of vessel would be appropriate? Here's what I found.                                              

First I looked online at Wikipedia on...

MONDAYS

This is one of those days when I'm getting nothing done. Well, that's not totally true. I made critique group corrections on my WIP very early in the morning and tweaked the chapter I'm working on. Then I decided I needed to beef up my computer security. Whatever I did knocked my laptop offline. Now I can't access the Internet on it at all. I tried all the tricks that have worked before and nada. I'd been thinking I need my computer guy to clean things up, so I put in a call for him. Help! I ...

PLOTTING CONUNDRUM

My hero is locked in a dungeon behind a heavy wood door with a rusty lock and a cross bar on the other side. Food is delivered through a hinged door in the bottom. His prison mate is a dwarf who has the ability to turn inanimate objects into gold. How do they get out? The dwarf has hidden a chisel, and the hero still has his electronic gizmo. If he breaks the lock with the chisel, there's still the wood bar to lift on the other side.

Options:

Hero uses his gizmo to levitate the bar.

A secret...

CANCELLATIONS

When an author stops writing a popular series, readers get disappointed. Some may even get angry at the writer for discontinuing stories they love. Most often, this is not the author's choice. Usually the axe comes from the publishing house, and like a TV series, there isn't enough warning to offer a satisfying conclusion. The series might be cut off mid-stream, so to speak. A writer's only recourse then is to write short stories to keep her characters alive, to shop around for a new...

THE OTHER ORLANDO

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ORLANDO: BEYOND THE THEME PARKS

We could spend a weekend every month in Orlando and not just for the theme parks. There's a lot to do in this vibrant and growing Central Florida city. Next time you visit, leave time to explore beyond the usual tourist sites.

Re the Theme Parks:  If you think of Walt Disney World as just the Magic Kingdom, think again. There's Hollywood Studios with its behind-the-scenes glimpse into movie making and its own version of A...

STORY MAGIC

I've written on this topic before, but it continues to astound me. Facing the blank white page again this morning, I wondered how I'd ever fill my page quota. My characters had just been captured by the bad guys. They'd been isolated from each other, and I had no idea how they would escape. But when I started writing and entered the Zone, as we writers call it, the story just took over. I went into a trance-like state, where I'm not aware of my surroundings. I visualize the story and the...

NEW AGE RESEARCH

Today's age of global communications allows for more ease of research than in the past. I'm writing a scene that takes place in an Asian fortress. Through a search on the Internet, I found the perfect model for my citadel. I moved it to a Pacific island where my characters have crash landed their airplane. They plan to scout the premises but are captured by the bad guys.

The soldiers march Paz and Jen to the fortress, which I've renamed Shirajo Manor. But now what? Thanks to images on the...

CROSSING THE FINISH LINE

A new writer has in mind one goal: getting published. Often they don't think beyond that goal post. But once they get The Call, everything changes. I think it's Fear of Success that keeps some folks from submitting because they don't want to face what comes next. They will have to get a publicity photo, reserve a domain name, set up a website and blog. They'll want to think about joining social networks and decide what to do to launch their debut book.

As a newly published author, you'll also ...

M.E. Kemp on Salem Witch Trials

M. E. Kemp, author of DEATH OF A BAWDY BELLE and DEATH OF A DANCING MASTER, was born in Salem in 1636 — whoops, that's when the first family baby was born.  Her roots do go back to the first settlement of Oxford, MA in   1713, the town where her family still lives.  Kemp grew up in Oxford with a strong sense of local history, so when it came time to begin writing her first novel  — after a career in journalism — she returned to her early interest and set her first mystery in Boston with two n...