Characters and Shoes for the AGATHAS!

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by Paula Gail Benson

It’s that time of year! Next weekend, the Agatha awards will be presented at Malice Domestic in Bethesda, Maryland. To celebrate, we asked the Agatha-nominated authors in the categories of Best Contemporary Novel, Best Debut Novel, and Best Short Story to tell us:

IF YOUR PROTAGONIST(S) COULD ATTEND THE AGATHA BANQUET, WHAT SHOES WOULD SHE/HE WEAR AND WHY?

Here are their answers:

BEST CONTEMPORARY NOVEL NOMINEES

Connie Berry

CONNIE BERRY: Kate rarely dresses up. She prefers jeans and boots—a wise move in the wet English weather.  But when she does dress up, she always wears her 3” black sling-back heels. I haven’t checked her closet, but I wouldn’t be surprised to learn they are the only high heels she owns. She’s never mentioned any others. Besides, they’re perfect for her coloring. As a “winter,” Kate tends to wear jewel colors, especially red (it’s her husband, Tom’s, favorite color on her) along with black and white. To a recent dinner party at Finchley Hall, Kate wore a pearl-white satin skirt with a fitted black jacket—and her black sling-backs. Oddly enough, it’s just what I might wear myself. ‘ )

ELLEN BYRON: LOL! I love this question! Dee Stern would wear a really interesting pair of shoes or ankle booties that she either bought at a huge discount. She would have ignored the fact they were slightly tight when she bought them, figuring it wouldn’t be problem because she wouldn’t be on her feet that long. She would learn at the banquet cocktail hour that she was wrong. Limping by the time she reached her table for dinner, she’d kick off the shoes – and discover at the end of the evening she can barely squeeze her feet back into them. She eventually doesand staggers off to the bar in extreme discomfort. Or… what happened to me at a banquet happens to her. I bought this gorgeous gold sandals at a thrift store. They began to fall apart as the banquet went on, and by the end of it, they were in pieces. I wound up scurrying up to my room barefoot to retrieve my only other shoes, a pair of sneakers that did NOT go with my elegant dress at all!

Ann Cleves

ANN CLEEVES: Vera is very much more about comfort than style, but she would appreciate the honor of being invited to a prestigious banquet, so would make a bit of effort about her dress.  I think she’d definitely be in flats, but they might be shiny patent leather.  Or she would go for sandals of some description.

KORINA MOSS: Funny you should ask this question, because at last year’s Agatha’s when I was nominated for Case of the Bleus, I wore the shoes my cheesemonger protagonist Willa would wear—Keds. They are her shoes of choice, even when she wears a dress. In honor of her, I wore a long, flowy blue and white dress with light blue Keds. I felt I could get away with it because it’s what my protagonist would wear. I was so comfortable that I’ll be continuing the tradition at this year’s Agatha Awards banquet.

GIGI PANDIAN: Tempest Raj used to perform on stage as an illusionist known as The Tempest, so she’s used to dressing up in elaborate costumes. But now that she works for the family business, Secret Staircase Construction, where she gets to create architectural illusions like sliding bookcases and hidden libraries, she’s most at home in a T-shirt, jeans, and her ruby red sneakers. The new outfit is so much more comfortable! So for the Agatha Awards, I expect that Tempest would wear a long and elegant little black dress—but if she lifted the hem you’d catch a glimpse of her bright red sneakers.

Ellen Byron

BIOS:

CONNIE BERRY, self-confessed history nerd and unashamed Anglophile, is the author of the USA Today best-selling Kate Hamilton Mysteries, set in the UK and featuring an American antiques dealer with a gift for solving crimes. Like her protagonist, Connie was raised by antiques dealers who instilled in her a passion for history, fine art, and travel. Currently president of the Guppies, Connie lives in Ohio and northern Wisconsin with her husband and adorable Shih Tzu, Emmie. Her latest novel, A Grave Deception, is coming in Fall 2025. You can sign up for her very entertaining monthly newsletter at www.connieberry.com.

ELLEN BYRON is a USA Today bestselling author. Her Cajun Country Mysteries have won multiple Agatha and Lefty awards. The first book in her new Vintage Cookbook Mysteries, was nominated for Agatha and Anthony awards, and won the Lefty for Best Humorous Mystery. She writes the Catering Hall Mystery series (under the name Maria DiRico) and the Golden Motel Mysteries. She is an award-winning playwright and non-award-winning TV writer of comedies like WINGS, JUST SHOOT ME, and FAIRLY ODD PARENTS. Her website is Cozy Mysteries | Ellen Byron | Author.

ANN CLEEVES is an award-winning author, best known for Vera, Shetland, and Matthew Venn. All three have been turned into successful television series. Her nominated novel, The Dark Wives, was adapted as the very last Vera drama. The Killing Stones, which takes her character Jimmy Perez from Shetland to Orkney, will be published at the end of September by Minotaur. Her website is Ann Cleeves.

Korina Moss

KORINA MOSS is the author of the Cheese Shop Mystery series set in the Sonoma Valley, which includes multiple Agatha Award nominated books for Best Contemporary Novel and the winner of the Agatha Award for Best First Novel, Cheddar Off Dead. Listed as one of USA Today’s “Best Cozy Mystery Series,” her books have also been featured in PARADE Magazine, Woman’s World, and Writer’s Digest. Korina is also a freelance developmental editor specializing in cozy and traditional mysteries. To learn more or subscribe to her free monthly #teamcheese newsletter, visit her website korinamossauthor.com.

GIGI PANDIAN is a USA Today bestselling and award-winning mystery author, breast cancer survivor, and locked-room mystery enthusiast. She writes the Secret Staircase mysteries (locked-room mysteries called “wildly entertaining” by the New York Times), the Accidental Alchemist mysteries (humorous mysteries with a touch of magic), and the Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt mysteries (lighthearted adventures steeped in history). She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and a gargoyle who watches over the backyard garden. For bookish fun, along with a free mini cookbook and free story, sign up for her email newsletter at gigipandian.com.

Gigi Pandian

BEST DEBUT NOVEL NOMINEES

Jenny Adams

JENNY ADAMS: Edie, one of the protagonists from A Deadly Endeavor, is a 22-year-old socialite in 1921. She’s a big fan of fashion (particularly of hats!) and she’d be thrilled to attend the Agathas! She’d wear something sparkly, beaded, and a little daring. As befitting the year, her dress would have sheer straps with a loose bodice, a swagged skirt, and a waist belted in a big bow at the back. Edie tends towards the dramatic–she’d probably choose a bright red, or a brilliant orange, with pumps to match. And since it’s an evening event, she’d choose a coordinating turban, secured over her wavy bob with a jeweled pin. She’d wear jewelry, too, of course; perhaps a diamond necklace and earrings.

Gilbert’s outfit is simpler: just like their speakeasy date in the book, he’d insisted on wearing his suit. Edie would try to cajole him into buying a tuxedo, but he’d refuse (they’re too expensive, and he’d have no other reason to wear it).

ELIZABETH CROWENS: Babs Norman, the protagonist of Hounds of the Hollywood Baskervilles, would wear a similar pair of shoes to what I’m going to wear at the Agatha Banquet, except that hers would’ve been actual vintage, and mine are vintage repro. Babs was a sensible gal and didn’t walk too well in high heels. Besides, how is a lady private eye going to run after or run away from a bad guy in heels? That only happens in the movies. Instead, she would’ve worn a black patent leather casual-to-dressy shoe with a two-inch wedge heel, circa 1940, of course, with a sling back closure and a slight peekaboo open toe. Fine for most of the year except during winter, and it would be something comfortable where she could be on her feet all day. Pssst, I bought these at Re-Mix on Beverly Boulevard in West Hollywood, and they are fantastic.

Elizabeth Crowens

Last year, I was on a panel at Malice Domestic called Clothes Make the Murder. We all dressed in vintage, and I helped provide hats for some of the other panelists. This year, for the Agatha Banquet, I also plan on dressing in vintage, similar to what my protagonist would’ve worn.

ELLE JAUFFRET: She would wear black Christian Louboutin stilettos because they are the most lethal-looking shoes she owns: elegant, sharp (the heel could be used as a knife—a reference to murder weapons in mystery novels), and the shiny red sole is reminiscent of blood. Plus, the brand is French, which matches her foreign accent syndrome.

JENNIFER K. MORITA: Maya’s best friend, Lani, would make her wear a pair of ridiculously expensive, impossibly high, “statement” stilettos, like Stuart Weitzman’s pearl-encrusted Bliss pointed toe pump, or the Moda slingback in champagne satin by Bruno Magli — borrowed of course because what writer can afford $800 shoes. But Maya would sneak a pair of “slippahs” in her purse for comfort.

K.T. NGUYEN: The protagonist of You Know What You Did, first-generation Vietnamese American artist Anh Le “Annie” Shaw would wear paint splattered designer combat boots paired with a fancy dress to the Agatha banquet. Eclectic and stylish!

K.T. Nguyen

K.T. Nguyen

BIOS:

JENNY ADAMS has always had an overactive imagination. She turned her love of books and stories into a career as a librarian and Agatha Award-nominated novelist. She holds degrees in Medieval Studies and Library Science from The Ohio State University and Drexel University. She has studied fiction at Johns Hopkins University and is an alumna of Blue Stoop’s 2019 YA Novel Intensive and the 2021 Tin House YA Workshop, and was a 2021 PitchWars Mentor. Jenny currently lives in Alexandria, Virginia with family, though her heart is always in the City of Brotherly Love. Her website is Jenny Adams – historical mystery author.

ELIZABETH CROWENS has worn many hats in the entertainment industry, contributed stories to Black Belt, Black Gate, Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazines, Hell’s Heart, and the Bram Stoker-nominated A New York State of Fright, and has a popular Caption Contest on Facebook. Awards include: MWA-NY Chapter Leo B. Burstein Scholarship, NYFA grant, Eric Hoffer Award, Glimmer Train Honorable Mention, a Killer Nashville Claymore finalist, two Grand prize, and six First prize Chanticleer Awards. Crowens writes multi-genre alternate history/time travel and historical Hollywood mystery in Hounds of the Hollywood Baskervilles, nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel (mystery), and Bye Bye Blackbird, its sequel. Her website is www.elizabethcrowens.com

Elle Jauffret

ELLE JAUFFRET is a French-born American writer, former criminal attorney with the California Attorney General’s Office, US military spouse, Claymore Award finalist, and Agatha Award nominee. New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry described her debut novel, Threads of Deception, as “a powerful, complex, and compelling mystery,” and USA Today bestselling author Hank Phillippi Ryan called it “a smart and fresh new voice.” Elle is an active member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and International Thriller Writers. She lives in Southern California with her family, along the coast of San Diego County, which serves as the backdrop for her Suddenly French Mystery series. You can find her at https://ellejauffret.com or on social media @ellejauffret.

Former newspaper reporter JENNIFER K. MORITA believes a good story is like good mochi – slightly sweet with a nice chew. Her debut mystery, Ghosts of Waikīkī, won the 2025 Left Coast Crime Lefty Award for Best Debut Mystery and has been nominated for the Agatha Award for Best First Novel. It’s about an out-of-work journalist who reluctantly becomes the ghost writer for a controversial developer. When she stumbles into murder – and her ex – she discovers coming home to paradise can be murder. Jennifer is a writer for University Communications at Sacramento State. She lives in Sacramento with her husband and two teenage daughters. When she isn’t plotting murder mysteries or pushing Girl Scout cookies, she enjoys reading, experimenting with recipes, Zumba, and Hot Hula. You can reach Jennifer at www.jenniferkmorita.com

Jennifer K. Morita

 

K.T. NGUYEN is a former Glamour magazine editor. Her debut psychological thriller YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID has been nominated for Lefty and Agatha Awards. The Seattle Times called the novel “a swirly, tangled hair-raiser…as sinister as it is emotional.” It was selected as a People Magazine Best Book of April 2024 and named a Best Mystery and Thriller Book of 2024 by Elle, Parade, and Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine. K.T. enjoys practicing Krav Maga, rooting for the Mets, and playing with her rescue terrier Alice. A graduate of Brown University, she lives just outside Washington, D.C. with her family. Her website is K.T. Nguyen Suspense Thriller Books.

BEST SHORT STORY NOMINEES

BARB GOFFMAN: Ethan, the jelly-obsessed main character of “A Matter of Trust,” would wear the most comfortable shoes he has that go with the suit he would pull out of his closet, all the while wishing he could wear jeans and sneakers.

Hazel, the amateur sleuth from “The Postman Always Flirts Twice,” would wear a strappy open-toed shoe with a modest heel—the strappy shoe because that was in fashion in the spring of 1995, and the modest heel because she wants to enjoy the evening (being able to easily walk around listening to others’ conversations—should the need arise), and not deal with aching feet.

Barb Goffman

KERRY HAMMOND: Unassuming black leather shoes, she would want to blend in and not attract attention.

GABRIEL VALJAN: My protagonist is a member of law enforcement in rural Depression-era Tennessee. If he attended the Agatha banquet off-duty, he’d wear polished, well-maintained black leather oxfords or derbies to match his three-piece suit or dinner jacket. His shoes would be well-worn but cared for—remember, during the Depression, most folks didn’t have closets full of options.

If he were on-duty, the answer is a little trickier because uniforms for law enforcement were not standardized. Many sheriffs wore suits or slacks with a badge and carried their gun on a belt. As for shoes, I’m thinking something sturdy and durable for dusty roads, walking patrols, so sturdy black or brown leather boots with hobnail soles or leather soles with rubber heels.

KRISTOPHER ZGORSKI: The May/December relationship at the core of “Reynisfjara” means we would need two tickets to the Agatha Award banquet.

Bertram Bannister may or may not show up in a tuxedo, always one to prioritize appearance and perception. But he may not want to call too much attention to his attendance, so perhaps just a nice suit and tie to blend in. Either way, he’s likely to be sporting Brando Semi-Brogue Oxfords by Paul Evans. Luxury Italian footwear he picked up during his many travel escapades. Dress to impress is a motto this college professor takes to heart.

Kristopher Zgorski

Meanwhile, his new boyfriend—Ernst Ziegler (no relation to the famous actor)—will most likely wear the same black & white checkerboard Vans he pulls out of his messy closet every morning. Working on a student budget, new footwear was hardly a priority, but maybe that will change soon. Stranger things have happened. Whoever it was who said opposites attract might have been on to something, judging by these two.

BIOS:

BARB GOFFMAN is the 2024 recipient of the Golden Derringer Award for lifetime achievement, given by the Short Mystery Fiction Society. She has won the Agatha Award three times, the Macavity twice, and the Anthony and the EQMM Readers Award once each. She’s been a finalist for major crime-writing honors forty-six times, including twenty Agatha nominations (a Malice Domestic record). Her stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Weekly, Black Cat Mystery Magazine, and many anthologies. She works as a freelance editor, often focusing on cozy and traditional mysteries. www.barbgoffman.com

Kerry Hammond

KERRY HAMMOND is a fully recovered attorney living in Denver, Colorado. Several of her short stories have been published in mystery anthologies and her latest, “Sins of the Father,” was nominated for an Agatha Award. One of her stories was featured in The Mysterious Bookshop Presents the Best Mystery Stories of 2023. She also enjoys creating downloadable Murder Mystery party games for BlameTheButler.com. Home | Kerry Hammond

GABRIEL VALJAN is the author of The Company Files, and the Shane Cleary Mysteries with Level Best Books. Gabriel has been listed for the Fish Prize, shortlisted for the Bridport Prize, and received an Honorable Mention for the Nero Wolfe Black Orchid Novella Contest. He has been nominated for the Agatha, Anthony, Derringer, Shamus, and Silver Falchion Awards. He received the 2021 Macavity Award for Best Short Story and the 2024 Shamus Award for Best Paperback PI Novel. Gabriel is a member of the Historical Novel Society, ITW, MWA, and Sisters in Crime. He lives in Boston and answers to tuxedo cat named Munchkin. Home – Gabriel Valjan

Gabriel Valjan

KRISTOPHER ZGORSKI is the founder and sole reviewer at the crime fiction book blog, BOLO Books. In 2018, he was awarded the MWA Raven Award for his work on the blog. Appearing in 2023, Kristopher’s first published short story—“Ticket to Ride”—(a collaborative work with follow blogger Dru Ann Love) won the Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity Awards. His second short story—“Reynisfjara”—is currently nominated in the Agatha Award Best Short Story category and his latest story—“Losing My Mind”—appears in Every Day a Little Death: Crime Fiction Inspired by the songs of Stephen Sondheim. BOLO BOOKS | Be On the Look Out for These Books

donalee Moulton

Polishing prose so it sparkles

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We’ve been talking about the editing process. We started at 30,000 feet looking at the big picture. Now we’re on terra firma.

In my book The Thong Principle: Saying What You Mean and Meaning What You Say, I discuss the various types of editing – and why they are all essential. For many of us, editing is synonymous with copyediting.

Copyediting is like minor surgery. The impact can be significant, but structural changes and in-depth revisions are not necessary (or have already been done).  This type of editing, the most common for most of what we write, involves editing a document for style, flow, and clarity. It also requires ensuring a consistent tone and pacing. Publishers often call it line editing.

Editors Canada offers the following overview for stylistic editing, or line editing. For many writers, this is what they’re doing when they are copyediting. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what we call it as long as we do it.

Stylistic Editing

Editing to clarify meaning, ensure coherence and flow, and refine the language.

It includes:

– eliminating jargon, clichés, and euphemisms
– establishing or maintaining the language level appropriate for the intended audience, medium, and purpose
– adjusting the length and structure of sentences and paragraphs
– establishing or maintaining tone, mood, style, and authorial voice or level of formality

What’s A Copyeditor To Do

Here are six areas of focus to help ensure your writing resonates with your audience and achieves your purpose.  When you look closely at these elements, you sharpen the writing and the plot. Readers are more likely to be carried along by your words. There will be no head scratching and no rereading to make the meaning is clear.

Check for:

1. CLARITY
Look to see if you are using:
– Long sentences that could confuse readers
– Big words readers could stumble over
– Uncommon words that will furrow their brows
– A tone that distracts or conflicts with the content

Bottom line: Make sure the meaning of what you write can’t be misinterpreted.

2. TRANSITIONS
– Between sentences
– Between paragraphs
– Movement in time, place, subject

Transitions aren’t usually complex. They flow naturally moving readers through prose with short, everyday words like “however,” “so,” and “then.”

3. CONCRETENESS
– Facts and figures
– Specific language
– Action verbs
– Active voice

Readers want us to paint a picture for them – one they can see and one they can believe in.

4. REPETITIVENESS
– Are specific ideas repeated unnecessarily?
– Are words used more than once in sentences? In paragraphs?

Tip: Avoid summarizing. Readers don’t require it, and it slows them down.

5. COMPLETENESS
– Are the 5Ws and how answered?
– Are there any unanswered questions when there shouldn’t be?

Have you emphasized the most important question: Why?

6. FLOW
– Does the content make sense
– Do the words move smoothly

Find out for yourself.  Read your writing out loud.

Would love to hear about your editing challenges — and successes.

Book Launch Celebrities by Saralyn Richard

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When a new book is released, celebration ensues. Not just for the author, whose joy in sharing the new product with the world is undoubtedly immense. Other stakeholders can participate in the launch activities and have fun in the process.

Who are the other stakeholders? The obvious ones are the editors, cover artists, formatters, publishers, publicists, bloggers, journalists, booksellers, and promoters. Each of these people and entities has had a hand in the book’s quality and its entrance into the world. If the book does well, they can pat themselves on the back and feel great about having supported the success.

Equally important, if not more so, are the author’s readers, followers, subscribers, critiquers, and reviewers. A book is the product of the communication cycle. Feedback from this group drives the choices the author makes, both creatively and commercially, so these stakeholders can take ownership of the new release.

People or businesses mentioned in the dedication, story, or acknowledgements are also significant celebrities in the book’s milieu. And the list goes on.

These people are on my mind and in my heart right now, as Mrs. Oliver’s Twist: A Quinn McFarland Mystery hits the bookshelves. While I am the author, I don’t consider the book to be mine alone. Anyone who falls into the categories of stakeholders mentioned above is invited to the parties, both literal and figurative.

There will be four big launch events for Mrs. Oliver’s Twist—and we’ll be celebrating every person who attends. If you’re in the area, please come! If not, please subscribe to my monthly newsletter, so we can celebrate you remotely. Subscribe at https://saralynrichard.com and if you’d like an autographed book, check out the bookstore page there.

Here are the launch events:

 

If you come to the launch events, you’ll be a guest of honor. You can expect photographs, autographs, door prizes, favors, and fun. If you subscribe to the newsletter, you’ll be in line for news, special offers, surveys, and other opportunities to participate in the future. Either way, welcome to the party. I’m so glad you’re here!

Clicking Our Heels – How Do You Feel About A1?

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Clicking Our Heels – How Do You Feel About A1?Clicking Our Heels Featured Image

A1 is here, but what do our blog members think about it?

Bethany Maines – I’m a graphic designer in my day job and AI has been steadily creeping into the field for decades. So it doesn’t strike me as particularly evil or out of the blue. Yes, it’s taken a significant leap forward recently, but it still isn’t really “intelligence.” For writing it’s a decent aggregator tool and it can help streamline blurbs or condense text, but it doesn’t think.

Judy Penz Sheluk – I believe using AI as a writing tool is a slippery slope we, as authors collectively, will come to regret. As for characters, I prefer mine to be human and flawed, with occasional flashes of brilliance (or at least good problem-solving abilities).

Paula G. Benson – I loved Donna Andrew’s Turing Hopper mysteries. I think a sentient intelligence would be a great character. Not sure about using AI as a writing tool. I need more information.

Lois Winston – Most of my books are based upon actual events or crimes, mostly current but sometimes cold cases that I’ve read about or seen on the news. AI played a part in the plot of Sorry, Knot Sorry, the thirteen book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series. However, I’m opposed to any form of AI that jeopardizes the livelihood of authors and artists.

T.K. Thorne – I have tried it, and it can help give me an idea I hadn’t considered, but it is definitely not there yet with a story! I think it will naturally become more of a character as we call upon it. By the way, science fiction writers have long used AI as solid characters (good and bad). They have outpaced reality by a long shot, although sometimes it feels like reality is racing to catch up.

Saralyn Richard – I’m skittish about non-human writing of any kind. I don’t even like auto correct, because it messes up my intended language. I’m concerned about the way humanity, civility, and compassion are disappearing from the modern world, and I don’t think AI has the capacity to bring them back.

Donnell Ann Bell – I suppose we use AI if we use Google, Edge or any of the platforms when doing research. However, those platforms often are not the most trustworthy of sources when it comes to the mystery genre. Too many variables, e.g. location, era and more. In the U.S. alone laws are different between state and federal. So, if I’m unsure of something, I go to a human expert. Oftentimes more than one.

Anita Carter – At this point, I haven’t used AI in a story and don’t have plans to.

Barb Eikmeier – I’m ambivalent about AI as a writing tool although I’m finding myself liking the AI summary of comments on Facebook posts. It helps me decide to read or scroll past.

Mary Lee Ashford – I think we’re still learning about the pros and cons of AI. Though it’s been around a while, recent advances have made its use more user-friendly and brought it into the spotlight. And I think we’re just scratching the surface on this very powerful programming. As a writing tool, I’m not finding it that useful (yet) except in terms of marketing materials. As a character in a book? Hmmm. That makes me think of HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey, who certainly is a memorable character and essential to the story. There is maybe some potential there.

Gay Yellen – It’s everywhere in our lives, whether we like it or not, and sometimes it’s useful. But, beginning with the uber-annoying Spellcheck, I am not a fan of using it to aid in the creative process.

Donalee Moulton – AI is new enough that it would make an intriguing character. It is also new enough that I am leery about relying on it too much as a writing tool until I learn more. I don’t want to become over reliant.

Debra H. Goldstein – It’s coming. I just hope it doesn’t overtake us to the point that a Star Trek episode showed, where only the machines operate, and they don’t have the human memory of how things went together. Also hate seeing it put people out of jobs – already film editors and others are seeing their careers being phased out.

Sisterhood of the Traveling Book featured image

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Book

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Saralyn Richard writes award-winning mysteries that pull back the curtain on settings like elite country manor houses and disadvantaged urban high schools. Her works include the Detective Parrott mystery series, Bad Blood Sisters, Mrs. Oliver’s Twist, A Murder of Principal, and Naughty Nana, a children’s book. An active member of International Thriller Writers and Mystery Writers of America, Saralyn teaches creative writing and literature. Her favorite thing about being an author is interacting with readers like you.

This Sisterhood of the Traveling Book post celebrates MRS. OLIVER’S TWIST, which was just released yesterday.

 

And I’m smiling, because the word, “Sisterhood,” fits on multiple levels. First, The Stiletto Gang is a true sisterhood of mystery authors, who support and encourage each other. Our writing journeys may be very different, but our dreams and goals are very similar. It’s a joy to share my experience with the other Stiletto Gang sisters.

Also, the Quinn McFarland mystery series is all about sisters. The first book, BAD BLOOD SISTERS, featured Quinn and her former BFF, Ana, with whom she shared the blood sister ritual years ago.

Quinn is back in MRS. OLIVER’S TWIST with her former high school English teacher, whose sister plays a big role in the story.

Here’s a short blurb about MRS. OLIVER’S TWIST: Quinn’s on the verge of living her best life when she’s asked to identify the body of her beloved former teacher. When she sees the deceased’s wrist, she enters the vortex of a murder that could derail her plans, her marriage, and her family. For more information, visit https://saralynrichard.com.

 

 

donalee Moulton

The 30,000-foot view of writing

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We’ve been talking about editing, an essential element in the writing process that writers relish. 

When you’re creating characters, polishing plot, and tossing red herrings around to mystify readers, it can be easy to lose sight of the book as a whole, to remember what happened in chapter four when you’re on chapter fourteen.

Writers also get close to their work, sometimes too close. We spend time, often at 4 a.m., thinking about the novel, the action, the actors, the unfolding of the story. It’s hard to see the whole when you’re immersed in the parts.

That’s where editing comes in. But we’ve been talking about editing as if it’s one thing. It isn’t. There are several kinds of editing, and they take place at different points in the writing process.

Substantive Editing

This is where the high-level work begins, the 30,000-foot view before we delve into the weeds. It involves rethinking and rewriting. This may mean rewriting whole paragraphs or the entire document. It may involve restructuring or reorganizing parts of the text. It may include identifying where new information is required or existing information should be deleted.

Editors Canada has this to say about substantive editing, which is also called structural or developmental editing.

Structural editing
Assessing and shaping draft material to improve its organization and content. Changes may be suggested to or drafted for the writer. Structural editing may include:

  • revising, reordering, cutting, or expanding material

  • writing original material

  • determining whether permissions are necessary for third-party material

  • recasting material that would be better presented in another form, or revising material for a different medium (such as revising print copy for web copy)

  • clarifying plot, characterization, or thematic elements

Substantive editing is major surgery. It is about ensuring the medical team is ready to operate. Blood work has been analyzed, the plan for the procedure reviewed, the instruments lined up neatly, everything and everyone sterilized. The goal: to ensure a successful outcome.

That’s what writers want for their readers. Substantive editing helps them do that. Editors Canada notes that this type of editing supports writers as they define their goals, identify their readers, and shape the manuscript in the best possible way. It enables writers to clarify the argument, fix the pacing, suggest improvements, and draw missing pieces from the author.

It makes the view from 30,000 feet truly spectacular.

Learn More

You can learn more about this in donalee’s book The Thong Principle: Saying What You Mean and Meaning What You Say.

Photo of Mary Lee Ashford and Anita Carter

Spring Into Meeting Readers

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by Sparkle Abbey

spring flowers with blue sky in background

As we dig out from winter here in the Midwest, our thoughts turn to spring. And for us spring brings not only spring flowers and much nicer weather (we hope) but also great opportunities to get out to book events.

It kicks off the season for mystery conferences, such as Left Coast Crime, Malice Domestic, Sleuthfest, and more. And starts out the year’s book festivals like, DSM Book Festival, Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival, Tucson Festival of Books, the LA Times Festival of  Books. As well as many wonderful smaller festivals and events around the country as well as other parts of the world. And those are just the spring get-togethers!

There are so many wonderful book events with chances for us. as authors. to connect with each other. And to meet in person the most important book people. The people who keep us in the business of telling stories – readers.

Sadly, we can’t attend them all and so we have to choose. A choice that can be so difficult. Each one has its own flavor and unique opportunities to connect. Sometimes scheduling makes the decision for us. Other times deadlines or book release dates may be a factor. And at times, the location may impact which ones we can attend.

As we line up our 2025 spring events as well as plan out the rest of 2025, we’d love to hear from you. How do you choose which in-person book events to attend? And what things factor into those decisions?

Photo of Mary Lee Ashford and Anita CarterPlease let us know your thoughts. And, of course, we look forward to seeing you at some of the book events this year!

Sparkle Abbey is actually two people, Mary Lee Ashford and Anita Carter, who write the national best-selling Pampered Pets cozy mystery series. They are friends as well as neighbors so they often get together and plot ways to commit murder. (But don’t tell the other neighbors.)

They love to hear from readers and can be found on Facebook and Pinterest, their favorite social media sites. Also, if you want to make sure you get updates, sign up for their newsletter via the SparkleAbbey.com website

 

Clicking Our Heels – Our Personal Favorites – Police, Investigators, or Researchers

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Clicking Our Heels Featured ImageClicking Our Heels – Our Personal Favorites – Police,  Investigator, or Researchers

Crime fiction writers often depend upon others to make sure our stories are accurate. Today, we talk about police, investigators, or researchers we have encountered who are our favorites – whether real or fictional.

Barbara J. Eikmeier – A conversation with a forensic anthropologist. She knows a lot about markers in bones!

Mary Lee Ashford (1/2 Sparkle Abbey) – The investigator/researcher that I find fascinating is the forensic anthropologist who uses their scientific knowledge to reveal the human side of a victim. It’s fascinating to me that the sum of hard data about a victim can be translated to a more complete picture. And how that can result in perhaps identifying the person.

Judy Penz Sheluk – I love Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch, but I grew up reading Ed McBain’s 87th Precinct series. In my opinion, he set the gold standard.

Gay Yellen – Hmm… Sara Paretsky’s V.I. Warshawski comes to mind, because she was an early kickass female private investigator that caught on with a legion of fans.

Donalee Moulton – Right now, and in keeping with the times, it would be AI and how AI can be used to provide information about a crime scene. I understand this is the tip of a very big iceberg.

Paula G. Benson – An assistant coroner came to speak to our local SinC chapter. While giving his talk, He received a call about a human skeleton that had been located and needed to be identified. He showed us the photos he was receiving by text and allowed us to determine gender and other factors with him.

Bethany Maines – I don’t write a lot of procedurals, but I’m fascinated by genealogy and I love Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates Jr. I’d love to work a genealogist crime solver into one of my stories.

Debra H. Goldstein – Because I am a Perry Mason fan, it would be Paul Drake.

Donnell Ann Bell – Oh, gosh what a tough question. Steven Kerry Brown, John J. Robinson, Steve Pease, writing as Michael Chandos, Wally Lind, Wesley Harris, Lee Lofland, Kathy Bennett, Robin, Burcell, Brooke Terpening, Katherine Ramsland, Dr. Fred Collins, Chris Herndon, Pete Klismet …I could go on and on…

Saralyn Richard – I write police procedurals, and my investigator is Detective Oliver Parrott. After four novels in the series, Parrott continues to fascinate me. When I first met him, he reminded me of Connolly’s Harry Bosch and Patterson’s Alex Cross. I named him Parrott as a nod to Christie’s Hercule Poirot.

T.K. Thorne – D.P.Lyle is a cardiologist who writes forensic books (as well as his own fiction) to guide writers. He is full of the most interesting information!

Lois Winston – I belong to CrimeSceneWriter. There are experts in every field who answer authors’ questions whether medical, forensic, legal, or technical. I’ve learned quite a bit from these experts, and they’ve kept me from making huge mistakes in my books. It would be impossible to pick just one of them because they’re all such fabulous sources.

Anita Clark (1/2 of Sparkle Abbey) – Well, about 20 years ago we moved into our new house and found a pipe bomb in our backyard. After the bomb squad detonated it, I chatted up the sergeant and invited him to speak at my local writing group. He was a great resource for years until he moved on.

 

 

 

Author Lois Winston on Cozy Mystery Books vs. the Mind-boggling World of Minecraft

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By Lois Winston

Image by InoxyBuild from Pixabay

There was a time when I enjoyed fantasy, science fiction, and even some horror. The summer before ninth grade, I discovered The Lord of the Rings trilogy and read all three books within a few weeks. The books of Ira Levin, Arthur C. Clarke, and Tom Tryon filled my spare time throughout high school and into college, in-between assigned literary works like Moby Dick and The Bell Jar.

I also like to think that I have a decent knowledge of current events and trends, although I have no interest in following most of those trends. I can still kill it on Jeopardy most nights, though I’ll admit, the answers aren’t coming at the same rapid speed they once did. The brain is a muscle, and with the inevitability of growing old, all muscles, no matter how much you exercise them, start slowing down with age.

But then there’s Minecraft. My eight and ten-year-old grandsons are obsessed with it. They play it as much as they’re allowed, and when they’ve used up their screen time for the day, they either read Minecraft books or talk about Minecraft incessantly.

And I just don’t get it. Not their obsession. I get obsessions. I had plenty of my own throughout childhood and even into adulthood. My obsessions haven’t ceased. I recently became obsessed with West Wing, a show I had never watched back in the day, but I spent hours binge-watching the entire seven seasons in the autumn and early winter of 2024.

What I don’t get is Minecraft. I’ve tried. I’ve watched my grandsons play and listened to their explanation of the rules. I’ve read aloud chapters in their Minecraft books. But try as I might, I can’t wrap my brain around what strikes me as very random and odd rules concerning assorted worlds, cauldrons, emeralds, ores, ender dragons, wizards, witches, elder guardians, blocky animals, trees that don’t look like trees, and mining fatigue. And those are just a few of the oddities. It’s enough to make my head spin. It really bothers me that I seem completely incapable, even after hours of tutelage, of grasping the most rudimentary aspects of Minecraft. 😵‍💫

Perhaps Minecraft makes perfect sense to the pre-pubescent brain because they’re more open to wonderous possibilities. After all, they still believe in Santa Claus. It’s probably best that I stick to my own imaginary world of the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries. The murder and mayhem I throw at my reluctant amateur sleuth in my cozy mystery books makes far more sense to me than the pixelated world of Minecraft ever will.

What about you? Is there something about modern culture or trends that leaves you stymied and scratching your head? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free download of any of the currently available Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery audiobooks.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling author Lois Winston began her award-winning writing career with Talk Gertie to Me, a humorous fish-out-of-water novel about a small-town girl going off to the big city and the mother determined to bring her home to marry the boy next door. That was followed by the romantic suspense Love, Lies and a Double Shot of Deception.

Then Lois’s writing segued unexpectedly into the world of humorous amateur sleuth mysteries, thanks to a conversation her agent had with an editor looking for craft-themed mysteries. In her day job, Lois was an award-winning craft and needlework designer, and although she’d never written a mystery—or had even thought about writing a mystery—her agent decided she was the perfect person to pen a series for this editor.

Thus, was born the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, which Kirkus Reviews dubbed “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” The series now includes fourteen novels and three novellas. Lois also writes the Empty Nest Mysteries and has written several standalone mystery novellas. Other publishing credits include romance, chick lit, and romantic suspense novels, a series of romance short stories, a children’s chapter book, and a nonfiction book on writing, inspired by her twelve years working as an associate at a literary agency. Her latest release is Seams Like the Perfect Crime, the fourteenth Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery.

Learn more about Lois and her books at www.loiswinston.com where you can find links for her other social media sites and sign up for her newsletter to receive a free download of an Anastasia Pollack Mini-Mystery.

donalee Moulton

Editing Essentials: Revising, Reworking, Revitalizing

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Great writers don’t need an editor. They demand one. What first-rate writers understand is that another pair of eyes or a fresh pair of eyes are essential to successful communication. This second looks brings a new perspective, the distance that only time (even a little time) can offer, and renewed energy to improve content.

Let’s try this exercise. You’ll need a piece of paper, 8.5” x 11” if possible.

1. Transform that flat piece of paper into the world’s most wonderful flying machine. The goal is to fly as far as possible.

2. Take a few minutes to play with different designs, then stand up and launch your creation. How far did it go?

3.  Now let’s rethink, or edit, the exercise. What did your flying machine look like? Something similar to a paper airplane?

4.  Now let’s review the instructions, the language. Nowhere did it say to build a paper airplane. It said a flying machine. The goal was distance.

What would be an easier way to build a flying machine? What would get us great distance? Crumpling the paper into a ball would.

That’s what editing does. As we write, whether for a reader or a listener, we dive in. Ideas flow. We create content. We think about our audience. We identify important points to make. We’re in the midst of our content, our characters, and our creativity.

When we edit, we take a step back. We come up for air. We have a different perspective – and a draft on which to overlay a fresh set of eyes. Even short pieces of writing should be edited. We need to think before we walk away. We need to give ourselves time to review and revise. To take one last read through (or think through). You’ll be surprised at what you missed or decide to revise.

Editing is essential to clear, concise, compelling writing. But editing isn’t just one thing. Just as pizza isn’t just one thing. There is deep dish pizza with red carnival spinach. Thin crust pepperoni and Bloomsdale spinach. New York-style pizza with Tyee spinach. Notice though that although the type of pizza is different there are common elements.

That’s also true when it comes to editing. There are three broad types: substantive editing, stylistic editing, and copyediting.

I thought we could spend a little time exploring these different types of editing in future blogs. Until then, I’d love to hear from you about your editing process, what drives you nuts, what makes your heart soar sing.

Learn More.

You can learn more about this in donalee’s book The Thong Principle: Saying What You Mean and Meaning What You Say.

 

About donalee

donalee is a professional writer from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her byline has appeared in over 100 publications across North America. Her most recent book Conflagration!  won the 2024 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Historical Mystery Suspense. Her other books include a murder mystery based in Nova Scotia and a non-fiction book about effective communications, and she has more coming out this year. She is a longtime educator and currently offers a variety of editorial services and workshops to help authors hone their writing and get it published. 

You can catch up with her on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.