tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-302109432024-03-19T02:00:33.036-04:00Type M for MurderFrankie Bailey, John Corrigan, Barbara Fradkin, Donis Casey, Charlotte Hinger, Mario Acevedo, Sybil Johnson, Thomas Kies, and Johnny D. Boggs — always ready to Type M for MURDER.
<i>“One of 100 Best Creative Writing Blogs.”</i> — Colleges Online. “Typing” since 2006!Barbara Fradkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06992196707567972990noreply@blogger.comBlogger2301125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-2595578838731083682024-03-19T02:00:00.006-04:002024-03-19T02:00:00.157-04:00Proofreading!By Charlotte HingerI've received the pages for Mary's Place, my historical novel that will be published by the University of Nebraska Place this July. The next step is for me to scrutinize all the copy to make sure there are no typos and other errors. I would have liked a larger type size, but I'm keeping my mouth shut. Fonts affect the number of pages and add to the expense of a book. The Charlotte Hingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03044024871533181178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-30625998601024654902024-03-13T00:00:00.026-04:002024-03-13T00:00:00.282-04:00Drumroll...In my last blog post, I said I was waiting for the final decision from the publisher on the title for my upcoming Inspector Green novel. It's rare that I don't know exactly the right title for a book by the time I finish it. The perfect title is like the cherry on the top of the sundae, the finishing touch that creates a bit of mystery, captures the essence of the story, and pulls it all togetherBarbara Fradkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06992196707567972990noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-43128832147097766632024-03-07T01:00:00.001-05:002024-03-07T01:00:00.136-05:00Let Us Talk About Dreams I (Donis) would like to talk about dreams today, Dear Reader.A while back I was getting ready to conduct a journaling and memoir workshop. I pulled out some of my own old journals and went through them in hopes of finding a couple of creative examples of entries I could share with the class. Here is what I discovered: It’s horrifying to go back in time and see what was on my mind Donis Caseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15207228706777377242noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-50273303217854898172024-03-06T00:00:00.040-05:002024-03-06T00:00:00.134-05:00Working Environments by Sybil JohnsonI’ve been hearing a lot lately about how companies are having a hard time getting workers to go back to the office post-pandemic. People seem to have settled in working from home and be reluctant to commute. I suspect some of that reluctance comes from the environment they would be returning to.
I think there’s a lot of value in being in an office environment. It’s easier toSybil Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931984219413146614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-38252966114346053452024-03-04T00:30:00.007-05:002024-03-04T00:30:00.130-05:00Looking at Things in New WaysBy Thomas Kies
On Valentine’s Day, my first cataract surgery took
place. Romantic, huh?
It was my left eye and before the surgery, it had
gotten so that I could barely see out of it.
My vision faded so slowly, so subtly, that I didn’t notice it until it
got really bad.
Once that surgery took place, one eye was still
nearsighted, as it had been since I was five years old, andThomas Kieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02958985290683779166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-21519418303470724762024-02-28T00:00:00.001-05:002024-02-28T00:00:00.148-05:00Hurry up and wait I had intended this post to be the revelation of my new book title, the twelfth Inspector Green mystery, featuring the disgruntled, exiled Green toiling away in the "Siberia" of police assignments and even contemplated retirement. Like THE DEVIL TO PAY, the previous book, it also features his daughter Hannah, now a young patrol officer, and her boyfriend Josh, a newly minted homicide Barbara Fradkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06992196707567972990noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-73605826456060785512024-02-27T02:00:00.011-05:002024-02-27T09:46:04.198-05:00Keeping Track By Charlotte HingerBoy, do I ever wish I had started keeping track of everything connected with writing from the beginning. Some years back when I needed to assemble a Curriculum Vitae (CV) for a writing class I would be teaching. It was the pits to put together. A CV is more detailed than a resume. A CV should contain everything: publications, awards received, talks and presentations,Charlotte Hingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03044024871533181178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-48848100151533027602024-02-24T01:43:00.008-05:002024-02-24T09:00:14.229-05:00Back in the Learner's SeatI've been at this writing game for awhile. My debut novel was published in 2006. Since then I've had several more novels and numerous short stories come out, plus I've done time as a creative writing instructor. However, after the pandemic, I felt unplugged from the writing community and to boost my connections, I recently attended Superstars 2024, about which I wrote some in last month's post. Mario Acevedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02269656174447760157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-16360534249082531422024-02-22T01:00:00.001-05:002024-02-22T01:00:00.150-05:00Tempus Fugit Time passes so quickly that it alarms me sometimes. How did I get anything done at all in my real life when I worked for other people? The truth is that I didn't, or at least I was only able to do whatever was absolutely necessary to live.Now my work is writing, and work at it I do, and yet it still feels to me that I'm always short of time. Days bleed into one another, and weeks, and Donis Caseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15207228706777377242noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-12304741441697997732024-02-21T00:00:00.076-05:002024-02-21T00:00:00.149-05:00Becoming A Hybrid Author, Part II by Sybil Johnson
Today I’m continuing my thoughts on becoming a hybrid author and what I learned along the way. If you didn’t see Part I, you can find it here. Sorry this post is so long. I tried to break it up into topics so it’s easier to read. I’m not fond of long blog posts myself. Get font licenses where needed.
I admit I didn’t think too much about needing Sybil Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931984219413146614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-8135590840879310702024-02-13T13:33:00.000-05:002024-02-13T13:33:40.036-05:00We Won by Charlotte HingerMy heart is still in Kansas even though my body is in Colorado. I watched the extremely satisfying Super Bowl game with my daughter, Michele, and son-in-law, Harry Crockett. A visitor to their home once asked if the large photo in the background was that of my late husband (Michele's father). I said "no, it's the Crockett's patron saint--Hank Williams."It was fun to Charlotte Hingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03044024871533181178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-72113646618631914682024-02-08T01:00:00.001-05:002024-02-08T01:00:00.139-05:00Bad Reviews Donis here, Dear Readers. Today I'm posting a "Tip of The Week" from wildly prolific writer and my friend, Dan Baldwin, Dan is the author of westerns, mysteries, thrillers, short story collections and books on the paranormal. He is the winner of numerous local, regional, and national awards for writing and directing film and video projects, and if anybody knows what he's talking about,Donis Caseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15207228706777377242noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-13830830052071542072024-02-07T00:00:00.042-05:002024-02-07T00:00:00.141-05:00Becoming A Hybrid Author, Part I by Sybil Johnson
The first five books in my Aurora Anderson series are traditionally published by a small press. When they decided not to publish the sixth one, I could have tried to get another publisher to take it on, but I figured that would be hard since the original publisher still had the rights to the first five. So I decided to publish Brush Up On Murder myself. Here are some thingsSybil Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931984219413146614noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-70031572286040191522024-02-06T02:00:00.011-05:002024-02-06T02:00:00.134-05:00I Need A Hit Man By Charlotte Hinger
No, I'm not plotting mayhem during this election cycle. Not yet, at least.I need a hit man in my new mystery. It can't be someone too good at the job. The person should be a little dumb. More than a little. Can't be too bright or he won't take the job to begin with. Eureka! I discovered a terrific book, The Perfect Kill, written by a retired CIACharlotte Hingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03044024871533181178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-15518082541760854522024-02-05T00:30:00.012-05:002024-02-05T12:55:12.581-05:00Really? JAWS is fifty years old? By Thomas KiesFifty years…that sounds like a long time ago, and I guess it was. But sometimes it doesn’t seem like it. I read in the Washington Post that it was fifty years ago that Patty Hearst was kidnapped. For those of you who don’t recall, Patricia Hearst was the heir of the Hearst fortune, scheduled to be married, when she was targeted and kidnapped by a rag tag, Thomas Kieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02958985290683779166noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-63666728126397315672024-01-31T10:18:00.003-05:002024-01-31T10:18:22.119-05:00American and British shows Barbara here, slightly late for my Wednesday morning post. Today I am simply copying a recent post I saw on Facebook, which addresses an issue that my friends, family, and I have been mulling over for several years. I'm copying it not because I am lazy, but because Michael Douglas articulates the issue more clearly (and provocatively) in his comments than I could. His conclusions are Barbara Fradkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06992196707567972990noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-82904994201770183252024-01-27T02:19:00.000-05:002024-01-27T02:19:10.182-05:00Superstars 2024My big 2024 New Year's resolution was to network more with like-minded writers. To follow up on that commitment I enrolled in Superstars Writing Seminars 2024, a writing symposium hosted by Kevin J Anderson and his wife, Rebecca Moesta. The faculty includes names with extensive pedigrees in the science fiction and fantasy genres to include Jim Butcher, Gail Carriger, Kevin Ikenberry, and Charles Mario Acevedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02269656174447760157noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-89211173413383525072024-01-25T01:00:00.001-05:002024-01-25T01:00:00.134-05:00Running Over the Goat Is it my turn again? Time certainly flies, especially when you have a jillion things on your mind and you barely know what day it is. I live in fear that some day I'm going to turn up at some bookstore to speak when I should be at the library giving a workshop. I often have dreams that I suddenly realize I'm supposed to be at some event in Texas, or Colorado, or I forgot that I'm supposed Donis Caseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15207228706777377242noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-87359707612076121152024-01-24T00:00:00.032-05:002024-01-24T00:00:00.128-05:00Do Cozies Take Murder Seriously? by Sybil JohnsonAt a holiday party last month, someone said they didn’t read cozies because they don’t take murder seriously. I wholeheartedly disagree. They do take death and murder seriously. There might be some humor in there, but it generally doesn’t revolve around the body, but the situations the sleuth(s) find themselves in during the investigation.
Here’s the definition of a cozy, Sybil Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931984219413146614noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-8392453517601416442024-01-23T22:35:00.000-05:002024-01-23T22:35:21.453-05:00My Favorite Present by Charlotte HingerMy favorite Christmas present this year was not one I received, it was one I gave to my granddaughter, Audrey Crockett. My photo of this project (taken in haste) didn't reproduce very well on this blog. It's a collage of seven generations of women beginning with Marie Stephanova Pishney. (bottom right)Next is my own grandmother, Lottie Caroline Pishney Smerchek, then my Charlotte Hingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03044024871533181178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-30443627753399559712024-01-22T00:30:00.017-05:002024-01-22T00:30:00.130-05:00Read Your Work Out Loud By Thomas KiesI was recently one of the judges in a short story contest called “Winter Hauntings”. The winners were celebrated at a ticketed event with music and wine. They were also treated to hearing professional actors read their stories aloud to the audience. One of them told me, “That was an adrenaline rush!”I get it. We’re in rehearsals for a Thomas Kieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02958985290683779166noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-34858991283535601062024-01-17T00:00:00.001-05:002024-01-17T00:00:00.129-05:00More on ducks and finding the path Donis's post on rewriting struck a chord with me. The first draft is always a challenge. Fashioning a story out of nothingness is like standing at the edge of an unknown wilderness, full of towering trees, desolate desert, and swamp in the dead of night, with only a vague idea drawing me forward. I grope my way through the darkness with little more than a flashlight illuminating the Barbara Fradkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06992196707567972990noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-35514659070951486612024-01-11T01:00:00.001-05:002024-01-11T01:00:00.134-05:00Putting All My Ducks in a Row Donis here. I’ve already reached a point in the first draft of my new manuscript where I have begun to rewrite. After I finish first draft, my beginnings never do match the end, for somewhere in the middle of the writing, I change my mind about this character, or this action, or this story line. Generally I don’t waste time by going back to the beginning and fixing it to fit my new vision. Donis Caseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15207228706777377242noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-66696297440842158752024-01-10T00:00:00.065-05:002024-01-10T00:00:00.154-05:00My Year in Books 2023 by Sybil Johnson
It’s time for my annual reading wrap-up. January to December, just to make it clear. One reason I say that is because I put together a list of my 3 favorite reads for Shepherd.com. Their year, however, went from end of September 2022 through end of October 2023. Those books were:Sherlock Holmes and the Rune Stone Mystery by Larry Millett Charlie Thorne and the Lost Sybil Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931984219413146614noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30210943.post-13745469793957374602024-01-09T02:00:00.013-05:002024-01-09T02:00:00.189-05:00About ChatGPT by Charlotte HingerI spoke with a lady Sunday who knows a lot about ChatGPT. I'm fascinated with this new technology and have used it for composition twice and for a query once. She advised against using it to write anything because Google and other search engines have already become adept at spotting material that has been generated by AI and will downgrade the blog with its wily Charlotte Hingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03044024871533181178noreply@blogger.com1