Spring in the Air?

by Catherine Dilts

Here in Colorado Springs, we’re having a false spring. The temperatures are setting records. However, it’s all a lie.

Any day now, we’ll get that crushing drop in temperature, preferably combined with precipitation. Snow, please. But we’ll take whatever we can get, as long as it's wet.

Peonies and tulips think it's spring

When the weather is bonkers, the trees and bushes leaf out prematurely. Then the inevitable cold returns, causing branches to snap under the weight of ice and snow. Oh no! My peonies and tulips are emerging! Go back, before it’s too late!

The unusual weather is making writing difficult. Typically this time of year, I can accomplish impressive writing sprints because I’m still in hibernation mode, hunkered down in my writing cave. This season, I’m struggling to stay focused on my computer screen.

I do write year-round. It shouldn’t be impossible for me to be creative just because the sun is shining and the birds are singing. I do my best work sitting on the deck in the morning as the sun rises, surrounded by flowers.

It’s not the same when the trees are leafless and the flower pots bare. And a bit too chilly to sit outside in early morning temperatures of high thirties to mid-forties. Spring is the time for hummingbird feeders, but I can’t put mine out until the middle of April.

There are plenty of writing projects to keep me busy. Re-reading a Rose Creek novel final draft before submitting to critique group. Providing feedback to a friend planning to pitch to an agent. Hammering away on the outline for a new trilogy. Drafting the next Ninja-Grandparent mystery.

I have to focus my energy. I’m finally getting my books placed in stores. (Basecamp Books & Adventure, and a new "maker" shop Hidden Gems.) That will be wasted effort if I don’t continue to write books.

Hidden Gems 5020 N. Nevada Ave. Suite 120, Colorado Springs, CO 80918

I’m sharing my experience traveling with our two new family members, an English Springer Spaniel and a feisty tuxedo kitten. That’s writing, but not fiction. (See my Substack for Traveling With Pets.)

I’m reducing my gardening plans due to those new additions. But I still hope to fill my grow boxes with flowers, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and basil. I started seeds yesterday. Gardening, even a limited deck “farm,” keeps my mind busy with green dreams.

Bird Watching

Okay, so I’m not sitting idle. Listing my have-to-dos and am-doings has helped. Thanks for letting me vent. Life has been busier with a few extra challenges in the form of our puppy and kitten. They’re both napping right now.

Perfect. Peace and quiet. Time for a writing sprint.

Scams, Scams, and More Scams

 by Thomas Kies

I recently received these unsolicited emails. 

Hello Thomas,

I’m reaching out on behalf of The Great Books Society of Denver, a lively community of 680 readers who meet monthly in Englewood, Colorado.

Your work, Random Road, came up in one of our recent discussions, and in true book-lover fashion, we thought: why not go straight to the source? The gritty realism, layered mystery, and complex humanity in your novel resonated deeply with our members. We would love to feature your book as our monthly pick, giving it exposure to an engaged, thoughtful audience who are genuinely excited to read and discuss new works.

Featuring your book with us provides direct engagement with a dedicated community of readers who love to discuss and recommend books, increased visibility among literary enthusiasts who value discovery and thoughtful conversation, and the opportunity for your work to become a memorable part of a month-long reading experience.

If this sounds like your cup of tea (or glass of wine, we don’t judge), please let us know, and we’ll share the next steps to make it happen.

Warm regards,

Organizer | The Great Books Society of Denver

So many compliments. By the way, in a follow-up email, they listed a tiered list of prices for their services. This wouldn’t be a scam, would it?

Hello Thomas Kies

Your book Darkness Lane was recently highlighted by one of our club members. Would you let us know if it’s available for our 7 Day Read Along and upcoming Club Literary Prize?

Organizer, Vienna English Club

Author scams are rampant.  It was a topic of multiple discussions in San Francisco a few weeks ago while I was there attending Left Coast Crime. 

Dan Berry recently wrote a column for the New York Times Book Review talking about scams.  He said that one scammer had reached out to him claiming to be Margeret Atwood (full disclosure, I got one of those too).  Berry contacted Atwood’s agent who wrote back saying, “Oh, this is so terrible and mean. Preying upon people’s hunger for success and/or their hope to improve their writing.”

What are some of the most common author scams these days?

• Fake Literary Agents/Publishers: Scammers pose as legit agents, offering publishing contracts in exchange for upfront "reading" or "editing" fees. 

• Marketing and PR Scams: Companies promise Hollywood film adaptations, Netflix pitching, or massive marketing campaigns, often targeting indie authors. 

• Vanity Presses: These houses demand high fees to publish, promising success but providing little to no real editing or distribution. 

• Paid Review Scams: Offers to purchase "guaranteed" reviews on sites like Amazon or Goodreads, according to The Darling Axe.

• Impersonation Scams: Scammers use AI and LinkedIn/social media to impersonate well-known publishing professionals, often using using well-known, bestselling authors. 

• Award/Contest Scams: Fraudulent literary awards that charge hefty entry fees

Why are these SOBs targeting writers?  Dan Berry summed it up by saying, “…the victim’s vulnerability. A lonely heart yearns for love and companionship: an author yearns for sales and validation. 

Yes, I know this is the second time I’ve published a blog about scams.  I apologize.  It’s just that I know there are people being cheated and it really cheeses me off.   www.thomaskiesauthor.com 

Investing in a Writer Mentorship Program

"Janice is Skeptical" by Shelley Burbank

Hi Type Ms. Shelley Burbank here. 

Following is a segment from my recent PINK DANDELIONS newsletter.

I may be delusional, but I’ve just done something so out of character, I can only think it’s either gonna be the smartest thing I ever did for myself or the stupidest. After forty years of autodidactic literary study, I signed up for a one-on-one writing mentorship program that will eat up the last bit of writing money I’ve earned and hoarded over the years, using it all in one last big spend.

I feel like I’m blowing on dice at the craps table at Ceasar’s Palace and hoping for sixes. Hey, it can happen.

What do I want to get out of this experience? Well, for one, I’m finally going to get some honest, professional feedback from a developmental editor trained in a system I find extremely cool and satisfyingly complex. I’m HOPING this feedback enables me to crank my writing up to the “next level.”

My goal is to write books that are so emotionally compelling and beautifully-written that readers stay up all night finishing them, can’t wait for the next one to come out, and tell all their friends about them. I want to write stories that delight a small but mighty group of dedicated and intelligent and thoughtful readers. And I want a publishing contract with an imprint big enough to pay me a decent advance and/or with a marketing budget that helps grow this readership further than I’ve been able to do for myself.

This mentorship should help me get there, if getting there is possible for me.

****

When is much, too much? 

The previous segment is only a small bit of a much longer (maybe too long) newsletter. Something about only sending one per month spurs me into cramming everything into one long email. This is something I am of two minds about. 

Is it more value for the subscriber? Or is it overkill?

In my newsletter, I've also started posting scenes and vignettes of a "piece" I'm calling The Peony Hotel. These follow the adventures of a literary novelist at mid-life, recently divorced, who runs away from Maine to Guam for a fresh start. She's taken a job ghost-writing a series of YA historical books for a famous gospel superstar, and her three children back home in the USA think she's lost her mind. 

This is the most fun way for me to share my experiences here in Guam which, after a year, I finally feel I know just enough to have some perspective on the place. Plus, it's a mid-life crisis/coming-of-second-age story. 

These may or may not end up as scenes in a novel one day. Who knows. 

If you are interested in reading more about my mentorship program, the Peony Hotel, and other writing-related and creativity-related content, please check out the PINK DANDELIONS newsletter on Substack. 

Cheers!

Shelley

Prepping For Malice

 by Sybil Johnson

I’ll be attending Malice Domestic once again this year. For those who don’t know, it’s a mystery convention celebrating traditional and cozy mysteries. This is my 10th or 11th one or something like that. I’ve lost track over the years.

Malice is my favorite mystery convention. I look forward to it every year, even though it means a plane ride across the country and a 3 hour time difference. An added bonus is I get to visit the pandas at the National Zoo.

I’m particularly excited for this year since I know both the Guest of Honor, Annette Dashofy, and the Toastmaster, Ellen Byron. They’re both great writers and people.

I’ve been lucky to be on a panel every year I’ve attended as a published author. This time around I’m moderating a panel, MUSEUM MACGUFFINS: Art & Artifacts in Mysteries. On the panel are Lynda Allen, D.R. Ransdell, Lane Stone and Jeff Tanner. The topic is an interesting one. Should be quite fun.

I feel the role of the moderator is to keep the conversation flowing, ask interesting questions, and make sure everyone gets in on the conversation. In order to do this, I need to know about each panelist so I’m checking out their websites and reading at least one of their books. After all that, I should be able to come up with interesting stuff to talk about.

I had better get back to it.

For the full Malice schedule: https://www.malicedomestic.net/ Clicking on 2026 Schedule will bring up a pdf of the current schedule.

How Far Should We Go?

 By Charlotte Hinger

I hate hate hate writing a novel synopsis. Curiously, I love writing query letters and judging by the reception I get, I'm good at this.  

A novel synopsis is a totally different process. Mine sound dull and stilted. Like what you would write to a college professor or your grandmother. No phazazz. 

A couple of days ago, I finished a synopsis of a historical novel for my agent. It was mediocre at best. My judgement, not hers. 

Then inspired I turned to ChatGPT. I asked my new BFF if it could create a synopsis. "You bet," it replied eagerly. I uploaded my book--all 115,000 words. It created a wonderful sparkling synopis in seconds. 

WOW!

Then I ran my mystery through this process with the same instruction: Create a one page synopsis. Again, a terrific result. 

I would never write a book with ChatGPT. In fact, I'm so frustrated with Microsoft's CoPilot attempting to interfere when I write that I'm ready to tear my hair out. And yet, and yet--I find myself paying attention when it insists a comma is needed here or there. On the other hand, it doesn't understand the impact of incomplete sentences. Or phrases, or a whole bunch of other things involved in creative writing. 

Thinking back, I've resisted adopting any new development regarding writing. I didn't want to give up my bouncey Royal portable typewriter that was a gift from my parents. When I switched to computers, I clung to my Apple 2e. Then I went through PCs at a record pace. These choices involved equipment, AI is in a different realm.

 I've discoveredd I'm very superstitious. Those synopses!! It was just too easy. I'm a Kansan, after all. Our state motto is Ad Astra Per Aspera. To the Stars Through Difficulties. If it isn't hard, it doesn't count. 

I wonder if I asked how my novel could be improved, what would ChatGPT say. Do I dare ask? Would I throw a hissy fit if I didn't like its suggestions and turn to Anthrotopic's Claude instead? 

For that matter, I've questioned the HUGE number of five star reviews some authors have on Amazon. Are they for real? If I asked ChatGPT to post a thousand fawning reviews on Amazon, would it do it? 

Does "it" resent not having a real name? Should I ask?

Calling Dr. Freud - or - Novel Writing for Fun and Psychoanalysis

Over the course of my novel-writing career, it has occurred to me to wonder about the psychology of those of us who create whole worlds on paper and populate them with characters who do exactly what we want them to do. Are we indulging in self-psychoanalysis without being totally aware of it? I’ve often said that what readers say to me about my books tells me more about them than it does about the books. So I’d better admit that what I write says a lot about what’s going on in this unfathomable (to me) l brain of mine. 

Things change in the course of a life, and what did the trick for you when you were younger may not fill the bill after a while, and time may come for a change. The one constant in my life has been the love of storytelling. I started writing short stories when I was very small. The first story I remember writing was about a girl who turned into a cat. It had pictures and everything. I was an English major  in college, and have always been a prolific reader, but I always felt I had to be practical and concentrate on having a successful career, be self-sufficient, make a living.  I surely did not want to end up like my mother, who drove herself crazy trying to be the epitome of a perfect 1950s wife and mother. So for the bulk of my life, my fiction writing was just for me.  I have a trunk full of short stories dating from the early 1960s, but  before I wrote my first mystery novel, all my published works consisted of professional articles, including a book on U.S. Government tax publications. I’m sure you remember. It was riveting.

I was always fairly successful at my various career endeavors, but I found none of them particularly fulfilling. It took me half a century to realize that maybe I really didn’t want to be a captain of industry or a leader of men. So the day came when I asked myself, Donis, what has always given you joy in your life?  And I had to admit that I’ve always been happiest when I was telling a story.

So I took a leap. I sold my business and went home to write. And interestingly, the book I decided to put my heart into was entirely different than anything I had ever written before. All the books and stories I had written before had to do with cool people, usually unmarried, childless professionals, often scientists, always intellectuals, mostly messed up and angst ridden.

But this time I wrote a historical mystery series set in rural Oklahoma at the turn of the 20th century, featuring a farm wife with a very large family: Alafair Tucker, who couldn’t care less about cool. How I conjured up this character I do not know, for she could not be less like me.  And yet she obviously is me to some extent, since she lives in my head.    

Am I wish-fulfilling? I don’t have the slightest desire to romanticize her lifestyle. It was tough.  Alafair lives the life I never did, or never could. I couldn’t abide it.  However, it seems I imbue her with all the virtues and strengths I do not have.  She knows what she knows and takes action.  Then once she has, she doesn’t second-guess herself.  I agonize over every decision and sometimes take no action at all.  She’s kind and tolerant of human weakness.  She takes care of everyone.  She’s patient with the follies of others.  Me: not so much. She’s a moderately well-adjusted mother of children, who doesn’t worry about her own shortcomings nor her place in the world, instead of what I am, which we won’t go into.

I never set out to deliver a message or make a statement when I write.  I just want to tell a ripping yarn. However, every time I finish an Alafair Tucker novel I do find myself wondering what Dr. Freud would say about the story.  Alafair is always much more successful at confronting her fears than I am. And she is never afraid to fail. She sticks herself out there. 

For the first time in my fiction writing career, I created a character who isn’t hip or svelte or rich or independent or even particularly young. Or male. She goes against all conventional wisdom. Yet I had immediate success with Alafair’s first novel, The Old Buzzard Had it Coming.  Why it couldn’t have happened when I was young and thin and beautiful I don’t know, but we come to our authentic place in our own time, I guess.

Maybe I want to spend time with Alafair because she reminds me of some of the women in my past whom I loved, but didn’t fully appreciate. She is funny, reflective, wise to ways of the world and the ways of kids, and a bit sad because of the losses in her life, like my own mother was.  She’s the center of her family, loving and giving to a fault, adored by her children, and a legendary cook, like my late mother-in-law.  With the best of motives, she’s all up in your business and can drive you crazy, too, like a relative of mine who shall remain nameless, lest she recognize herself (though she won’t. They never do.)

I may have created Alafair out of pieces of women I love, but she’s much more than the sum of her parts.  The great British mystery novelist Graham Greene said, “The moment comes when a character says or does something that you hadn't thought of.  At that moment, he’s alive and you leave it to him.”  I first put Alafair on the page, but then she stood up and walked away, and now I just follow where she leads. And what that tells me about myself I do not know.

Calling in the experts

 I have been really struggling with my current WIP, Sins of the Father, the thirteenth Inspector Green novel. The word count suggests I am three-quarters of the way through, which means I should have at least a vague idea how I'm going to "land this sucker". The last quarter of a book is all about catching all the balls I have tossed up in the air, pulling them together into a satisfying, dramatic climax, and tying together the loose ends. The central question of the story must be answered as well as most of the subordinate questions. I don't mind some ambiguity that leaves a few puzzle pieces unplaced, but it's a fine line between that and leaving readers dangling and frustrated.

But meanwhile, Sins of the Father is still out in the weeds, looking for direction. As I wrestled with the question "What next?", I realized that part of my problem is not knowing what my characters, especially my police characters, would be doing in the real world. I try to write reasonably realistic stories which means trying to follow proper police investigative procedures and avoiding having the cops make outlandish or frankly illegal moves. But in this book, I have embroiled them in a plot that involves them in situations outside their normal investigative protocols. I know a reasonable amount about police protocol, but in this story, I have ventured far beyond my comfort zone. I have rogue cops, secrets, cover-ups, and inter-jurisdictional complications with other police forces. It's the nature of the story I have developed, but I still want to preserve some appearance of realism. I don't want readers with some knowledge of normal procedure and acceptable conduct to throw the book at the wall in exasperation. Would such and such an action be grounds for dismissal? How much can an officer get away with? Would police forces keep secrets from each other without consequences? And so on.

I don't have answers to these questions as I plough ahead with the story, but I have a solution. Once I have finished the first draft the best I can, with fingers crossed it's not too outlandish, I hope to send the manuscript to a couple of retired police friends for their input. Both of them love mysteries and hopefully will be able to offer suggestions if I have bent credibility too far. It is fiction, after all, and some suspension of disbelief is acceptable in the interests of a good story. Sometimes it's a matter of setting up the motivations properly. Instead of thinking "Oh, he would never do that!", I can reframe the issue as "under what conditions might he do that."

I still don't know what should come next, but I have some idea of where I want to end up. I just have to figure out how to get there, and leave the realism aside for the time being. Trusting the cops will set me straight.

Traveling With Pets

by Catherine Dilts

Why do I always imagine I can write while on vacation? This trip had an added challenge. My husband and I have never traveled with pets.

We began on February 28 in Colorado. The plan was fairly loose, with the only reservations being for a Grand Canyon campground on March 2^nd. Maybe we’d find places to camp along the way. Maybe not. But we were driving a new-to-us RV. Any place you can pull over and fit becomes an impromptu campground.

Planning a winter camping trip, we figured we might not face the intense crowds of summer travel in national parks.

Traveling with a forty-pound, seven-month-old English Springer Spaniel and a two-month-old Humane Society rescue kitten had its moments. A car-sick puppy, a kitty so tiny I was afraid he might get stepped on.

Most of my fiction includes cats, dogs, and horses. I’ve felt slightly hypocritical extolling the virtues of animal companions in my stories, while not having a pet in over fifteen years. I did manage to do a little writing on this trip, but not on any of my fiction projects. Instead, I kept a journal and began a series of articles for my SubStack account.

I have noticed that my posts that include a photo of an animal get more views and reactions than anything else I throw on social media. Starting this Sunday, March 15, I’ll release one article a day for over a week at https://substack.com/@catherinedilts. These have nothing to do with my fiction work. They’re all about my experience of travel with pets.

Is it a waste of time to write and post articles that won’t promote my fiction? Or will this create that human connection that’s supposed to make people care about reading our books and stories?

I’m kind of past caring whether my social media presence sells books or not. If this venture isn’t about pure self-expression and having some fun, then I don’t really want to engage any longer.

Writing about the stresses and joys of traveling with pets has definitely been fun. The work of writing can roll along without me for a few more days.

And roll along it does, with Grandpa’s New Year’s Relocation available now at Basecamp Books and Adventure, and in the usual places online. Grandma’s Valentine Abduction released on the first day of my vacation. 

Vision Board Before Writing

"Masquerade" by Shelley Burbank

Hi Everyone. Shelley Burbank here. 

March has begun, and I'm wallowing and wading in my next Olivia Lively mystery. The first book was set in spring. The second in summer. The last one will be winter. 

This third mystery will be an autumn tale. 

Now, I love Maine in the fall, but it's a little difficult to feel that mood when living on a tropical island in Micronesia. I needed something to evoke woodsmoke rising from chimneys, pumkins decorating front porches, dusk falling quickly, the crunch of leaves beneath L.L. Bean boots, and all things Halloween. The answer? A "mood board" created on the front cover of the notebook I'm using to draft scenes, create character sketches, take notes on thematic elements needed for the plot, and synopses of chapters. 

This particular book will find my main character, Liv, in her darkest place. Her character arc (why do I always want to write "arch?" A plot is a structure of sorts, a bridge, taking my heroine from "here" to "there," but it's symbolic not literal, like an archway. Of course, in literary terms, there is also ARC--Advanced Reader Copy) over the course of my planned four-book series makes the third installment the logical place for the Dark Moment. And autumn has all those dark, witchy, Halloween vibes, too. It fits.

Anyway, I love making collages. I make them for my personal journal covers, and this particular piece was a fun way to spend a morning/afternoon. I let my verbal brain take a break while I played with mood and vibe and color and voila! The result is how I want readers to feel when they read the book: a little edgy, a little creepy, but also the cozy "pumpkin spiciness" of Gilmore Girls. And Guam. 

The idea for a certain plot/theme popped into my head while I was listening to a podcast episode about a goddess cult back in ancient Sumeria. That's actually all I'll say. I've typed more and deleted because I want no spoilers. Guam becomes a destination as Liv investigates the crime in Book 3, but whether or not it's a red herring I'll have to leave unanswered here. I'm not even TOTALLY sure myself what will happen here, but I'm pretty excited to share some of my current home with my readers.

And readers might not have to wait for the book to learn more about Guam because an idea for a short story (please, please, dear Muse, let it remain a short story) in the Olivia Lively world, but this time featuring her ASSISTANT/APPRENTICE, Marion! Yes, Marion is getting her own short story. I'm grateful to my Muse for gifting me with that brilliant idea. I already had the title from a t-shirt I found at a local tourist spot. 

I'm going to attempt to make a piece of art based on the photo I took, and I'm hoping maybe it will be good enough for an illustration for the short story if I use it as a lead magnet for building my email list. (Of course current subscribers will also have access to it, and I might also load it up to KDP for a .99 purchase for people who don't want to give me their email address.) 

The other option would be to submit it to a mystery magazine. 

Which do you think would be more likely to attract new readers? A. Free short story in exchange for email sign up or B. publication in a mystery magazine

Let me know what you think because I really can't decide. Sometimes people sign up for freebies, then unsubscribe after they get the freebie. I'm hoping to find readers who actually enjoy my stories and want to read more of them. Which is the better option? Help! 

Do YOU use vision boards for your life/work/writing? I'd love to hear more about that, too. Drop a comment! 

 

Viva Las Vegas

 by Sybil Johnson

I spent last week in Las Vegas, one of my favorite places to vacation. I’m not a partier, I just find it endlessly fascinating. Things are constantly changing on the Strip. Casinos come and go. Restaurants come and go. Shows come and go. The only thing guaranteed is that you’re going to walk and walk and walk. 

Sunset over the Strip. The Excalibur casino to the left, part of the New York New York casino on the right

It was nice to get away for a while. We went to several shows: Cirque de Soleil’s Ka, David Copperfield and a showing of the Wizard of Oz at the Sphere. The Sphere is, well, a huge sphere just off the strip near the Venetian. They have concerts there and show The Wizard of Oz. It’s an immersive experience. They cut out about 15 minutes from the original movie. It’s also processed so it seems 3-D and has occasional 4-D effects. Quite fun.

As I said, casinos come and go. The Mirage casino no longer exists. The new Hard Rock casino is being built in its place. Here’s the beginnings of a giant guitar.

 

The Flamingo is still around. They have a very cool bird sanctuary on the grounds which includes, yep you guessed it, flamingos.

 

We also went to the Arté museum, which is an immersive art experience. Well worth the visit.

Here in Southern California, we have driverless taxis called Waymos. They are modified cars. In Vegas, they have Zoox, which are vehicles that are made specifically to be robotaxis. There is no space for a driver, just space for passengers. Right now, they are in a test phase, giving free rides to limited places on the Strip. As soon as they get the go-ahead, they will start charging for the rides and, I would guess, go more places. You can read more about Zoox here.

All in all, it was a good trip. Now, back to work.

It Won't Work

 by Charlotte Hinger

Once in while someone comes to me (usually after a signing) saying they have the most wonderful story. They know I will just love it. They have a proposal for me. Because they are lots smarter then me. I will be oh so grateful. They will give me their idea. (For free, yet.) Then I can write the story and we will split the money.

At that point I usually have a brainstorm. Why don't I give them an idea and they can do the work and we'll split the money.

Even if the idea is terrific, to write a book requires an emotional connection. Your idea will rarely stir another writer to actually sit down and produce some work. There are obvious contradictions to this, of course. Some work very effectively as collaborative writers. And one of the greatest husband and wife teams I know are Michael and Kathy Gear. But that is an entirely different process.

A book is a difficult undertaking under the best of circumstances. It requires a tremendous investment of time and energy. The idea you have will be best written by you, because of the fire in your heart. The most common reason people don't proceed is they don't think they can. "I'm not a writer," they protest. "Really. I wouldn't know where to start."

Do you think we Type M'ers know where to start, just because we are published authors? Actually, no. You would think, after all these years. . . but no! I have always believed that there are wonderful writers out there who will never experience the joy of seeing their work published because they could not stand to bat their way through the fog. Because when writing doesn't come easily, they think they have no "natural" talent.

There have been several posts about ideas on Type M over the years. I've never understood where ideas come from. I'm the happiest when I've made some progress on a book and instead of being bombarded by ideas for books, stories, sewing projects, computer workarounds, because my mind switches to plot problems and stays there. Plotting might be hard, but it's more comfortable than the pre-book restlessness.

One of my best short stories developed when someone asked me what I was getting my granddaughter for Christmas. I said "that depends on what the other grandmother is buying." Loved the phrase"the other grandmother." No, "the other mother" would be even better. I liked the way it rolled off my tongue. Such an unlikely source for a workable idea. The story morphed into "Any Old Mother," and was selected for the MWA anthology, Blood on Their Hands.

I'm working a new Lottie Albright mystery. Off and on it's set in one of the seven natural wonders of Kansas: The Salt Mines. It's an amazing place. Soon I'll write more about this. 

In the meantime, write a book using your great idea. I promise your inner owl will fly to your aid.

DOING TAXES

 Michael Chandos

February is always ruined by doing taxes. 

We keep records of business expenses, taxes paid for major purchases, donations,etc. We appear to be semi-organized. Every piece of paper involving money, business, or Government goes into a box for February sifting. We print out credit card history, checking and savings. We highlight questions, billings that don't have enough information (credit card companies think a 12 digit number tells you everything you need to know, but make no mention of the reason for the charge, who charged, or a hint about why), and problems.  We noticed a few apparent double payments.

Taxes for people in creative activities are out of the system. Tax structures are made for hourly or monthly earners, ie real, normal jobs. If I spend 40 hours on a short story and send it to an editor for possible publishing, actual payment may be next year, not this year when I spent the time, bought postage, did market research.  Expenses last year, income this year, even 2 to 5 years later. The IRS wants expenses to link to income.  Creative taxes?  Don't get too creative, lots of guidance exists, but be careful what you believe.  If you are really busy selling, maybe you hire an accountant that specializes in writing clients. Tax law changes all the time, too, even into late December.

I want to be a writer, not a tax accountant.

I think we successfully collect 98% of the information needed for comprehensive personal and business returns. The last 2% can make a difference. We don't claim floor space in the house, tough to justify these days. Searching for missing data eats up most of February.

The "Last 2%" is critical in writing, too. I volunteer as a judge every year for various mystery writing groups. The Private Eye Writers of America, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Mystery Writers of America are just three of dozens. The winners are always "complete". These authors worked hard to include the Last 2%, and it shows. Story actions are justified, consequences matter, no blind alleys trap the mind of the reader, consistent characters. Authors satisfied with 98%, or even 90% or less, are quickly identified. 100% stories rise to the top.

The last 2% will take much more thought and time than the previous 98%. I think that's true of any creative activity from sculpting to poetry.  

Learn to Take Nothing for Granted

 2026 makes the 20th anniversary of my career as a professional writer. In those two decades, one can get jaded about plans foiled, marketing campaigns that sputtered out, expectations dimmed. I mean, my original goal was to become so outrageously wealthy in this writing game that I could hire Stephen King to clean my house. I even published an essay about it. Those riches never came to pass. But I have learned to count my blessings and embrace my successes however humble they may be to others. 

Last Saturday I was a panelist at In Conversation With Lisa Gardner, #1 New York Times Best-selling author. I'd been invited by Sean Eads, a librarian (and author) with the JeffCo Public Library, which hosted the event in the Teel Sanctuary at the Mile Hi Church in Lakewood, CO. For the panel, I was one of six local authors, four were well-established writers: Jon Bassoff, Kristin Koval, Mark Stevens, and Cynthia Swanson, and the fifth, the emcee Carter Wilson, himself highly acclaimed in the thriller genre.

When sitting behind the panel table and looking onto the audience, I made it a point to thank those who had taken time from their Saturday afternoon to attend and thank those from the library and the church staff responsible for the marketing and logistics that made the event possible. In the course of an hour presentation, we couldn't speak in depth about writing and publishing, but Carter Wilson is a skilled moderator and did a great job asking questions that ranged beyond the usual topics. Afterwards, Carter interviewed Lisa and the zoom audience who had tuned-in numbered over 500!

Being a panel of local authors, over the years I've met them all before except for Kristin Koval, and so it was a pleasure getting acquainted with another writer. It was also a pleasure to meet the headliner, Lisa Gardner, who was eminently gracious and sociable. 

Group selfie from the Green Room. From left, back row: Mark Steven, Sean Eads, me, Carter Wilson, Jon Bassoff. Front row: Kristin Koval, Cynthia Swanson, Lisa Gardner.

As we writers toil for years in solitude, it's encouraging to get out in public and have people show up to give us a listen. I count that as a success.

 

Pure Colorado – As a Fictional Setting?

By Catherine Dilts

When creating a setting for a work of fiction, some authors invent their world from scratch. Others place their characters in recognizable cities, down to the street names and businesses. Much depends on the genre.

Thrillers and spy novels demand worlds ripped from the news headlines. Cozy mystery authors typically develop their own small town or neighborhood settings. They might be based on a real place, but everything about the location is fictionalized.

Most of my fiction falls in the cozy category, set in a Colorado you won’t find on a map. The Rose Creek Mystery series is set in Oklahoma, a state I lived in for nearly a decade, but the town is pure invention. Some of my short stories are deliberately vague about their locations.

In a new series, The Ninja Grandparent Placement Mysteries, my co-author/daughter and I are going the realistic route. The story premise is ridiculous, so maybe we needed to be grounded in reality in one aspect of the novels. How realistic? We use Colorado Springs as the setting.

The main location for much of the action is the former UnionPrinter’s Home. We reimagined the renovations that are actually taking place, turning it into an idyllic senior retirement home with an atrium connecting it to a gym. But the elegant red sandstone and white limestone exterior remains the same.

Which brings me to a recent visit to the iconic Denver Restaurant Casa Bonita. For those of you unfamiliar with Casa Bonita, it is not merely a restaurant. It is an event. An adventure. The pink building is a Colorado landmark.

Generations of Colorado residents were heart-sick when the world-famous restaurant declared bankruptcy and closed in 2021, a victim of the pandemic. It’s a part of our heritage. Like the mountains to the west, it seemed to occupy a permanent place in the landscape.

No ordinary restaurateur or entrepreneur could afford to purchase the building and restore it to its former glory. Who could possibly come to the rescue? This had to be a labor of love.

Casa Bonita was featured in a 2003 episode of the animated TV show South Park. When they learned the landmark was going away, Colorado natives and South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker began the effort to purchase the restaurant in the fall of 2021.

Casa Bonita reopened in June of 2023. My family went this month to celebrate a granddaughter’s birthday. All of us had been to the restaurant years ago. We were eager to see the changes.

It looked almost exactly the same! This is a good thing. We were going for nostalgia. It would have been tragic if the South Park boys had remodeled the interior into something unfamiliar. And the exterior is the same pink, with the fountain and the bell tower on top.

One important thing changed: the food was vastly improved. The previous menu was infamous.  As my son-in-law noted, it didn’t matter what you ordered; your plate would be drowned in orange nacho cheese sauce. But you didn’t go there for the food. This time, we were seated and given menus! Our table had lighting that allowed you to see what you were eating. Always a good sign.

One other thing changed. Matt and Trey are determined to pay Casa Bonita employees a living wage. So the price was a bit daunting. But this isn’t a restaurant you pop in on for a quick lunch. It’s a special-event sort of experience. Cliff divers, puppet shows, a live mariachi band, Black Bart’s cave, and more. All those folks have to be paid!

Whether a writer uses actual locations, or invents a world from scratch, may depend on the genre. Will Casa Bonita find its way into my fiction writing? My co-author and daughter Merida Bass agrees, the Casa Bonita experience deserves to be included in a future Ninja Grandparent Placement Mysteries novel. One of our lonely grandparents in need of a family could make the hour drive and wind up at the famous Denver restaurant!

​
Grandpa’s New Year’s Relocation is available now at Basecamp Books and Adventure, and in the usual places online. Grandma’s Valentine Abduction is coming February 28th! Available for pre-order now.