Tag Archive for: B.K. Stevens

In Memory of Bonnie (B.K.) Stevens

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In Memory of Bonnie (B.K. ) Stevens by
Debra H. Goldstein

In the
movie, It’s a Wonderful Life, there
is a line “No man is a failure who has friends.” The outpouring of testamentary
comments on list servs, Facebook, and exchanged through private e-mails as
people learned of the sudden death of Bonnie
(B.K.) Stevens demonstrates what a success she was.

Her
success was based on talent as a writer, but more importantly the ability to be
a mensch as a person. Whether through a congratulatory note, post, or other
gesture, Bonnie let people know she cared about them. In a date of social
media, she took the time to use those devices to connect with a human touch.

Bonnie
and I became list serv acquaintances in 2014, but our true friendship began in
January 2015 when, while reading back issues of Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine,
I came across her short story, Thea’s
First Husband. I didn’t know it had been nominated for Macavity and Agatha
awards, only that it moved me in a way few stories, other than Shirley
Jackson’s The Lottery, had. As a
bottom of the heap short story writer, I recognized I was reading how a master
interweaves plot, dialogue, and setting to escalate tension and intrigue a
reader. I wrote Bonnie a fan e-mail telling her this and asking if she ever
taught classes. I told her I had had some success with having stories and two
novels accepted, but hadn’t had the guts to try for AHMM or EQMM, but reading
her story moved me and I hoped there was a way I could learn from her.

Her
reply was, as I came to learn, classic Bonnie. Humble and a lesson in itself:

Hi, Debra–

Thank you so much for your kind words about “Thea.” My goodness! That
didn’t just make my day–it made my week, possibly my whole month.

No, I don’t teach any online classes. I’m a retired English professor  (at
least a temporarily retired

one–who knows what the future holds?), but even
when I was teaching, I usually taught composition and literature; I taught
creative writing only a few times, and I’m not sure I was very good at it. I
don’t know of any classes to recommend, but I can tell you that my favorite
books on writing fiction are Stephen King’s On Writing (especially the
second half of the book) and Francine Prose’s Reading Like a
Writer. I also like Renni Browne and Dave King’s Self-Editing
for Fiction Writers–I don’t agree with everything the authors say, but it’s a
thought-provoking book. Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat focuses on
screenplay writing, but I find the advice on story structure helpful
(especially Chapter 4). And if you’d be interested in some old-fashioned advice
that still seems sound to me, you might look at Anthony Trollope’s An
Autobiography, especially chapters 12–14 (though there’s good advice
scattered in many other chapters,too).

I hope that’s helpful. Again, thank you for what you said about
“Thea.” I’m going to treasure those words!

Regards,
 Bonnie

We exchanged further e-mails and posts of mutual
encouragement and congrats in the next few months and agreed to meet in person
in Raleigh at Bouchercon. We met, embraced, talked and began a tradition with
Paula Benson and Art Taylor of sharing a meal.

In the months that followed I read more of her stories, as
well as her adult and YA novels: Interpretation
of Murder and Fighting Chance.
We talked a lot about Fighting Chance,
which I five starred and she wrote a blog about on my personal blog, “It’s Not Always a Mystery.” The book
also was nominated for an Agatha and other awards.

We agreed to have dinner at Malice, but she couldn’t join
Paula, Art and me after she fell and was injured just before the conference. We
toasted her in abstentia, but made up for it with a delicious group dinner at
Bouchercon New Orleans and drinks at Malice 2017.  Because she couldn’t do a private dinner at
Malice 2017 (I sat at her table during the banquet where her novella, The Last Blue Glass, was honored as an
Agatha nominee), we made definite plans for dinner in October at Bouchercon
2017. Malice, in Bethesda, was only drinks because she used her dinners, other
than the banquet, to visit with her daughters Sarah and Rachel.

That brings me to the true passion in her life. Family.
Bonnie was like a school girl in her love and adoration for her husband,
Dennis. Seeing them together at conferences or in pictures she posted on
Facebook from their wedding, there was no difference in the looks of devotion
and joy they shared. Her talk of her two daughters, Sarah and Rachel, and of
Sarah’s children’s accomplishments combined praise, love, and pride. This year,
we compared nachas (happiness) of having our first grandchildren’s bar/bat
mitzvahs and kidded we should introduce her unmarried Jewish daughter to my
single Jewish son.

There won’t be any more dinners or talk of introducing our
children, but what I will remember is a package I received a week after Malice
2017. It contained a note and five copies of the May/June 2017 issue of Alfred
Hitchcock Mystery Magazine that Bonnie and Dennis collected from their
registration bags and the giveaway room. The note told me she knew I would want
extra copies of the issue that had my name on the cover and my first AHMM
story, The Night They Burned Ms. Dixie’s
Place in it and that she thought it was an award winning story. Who knows
if it will be nominated for anything at the next events at which it is
eligible, but it won the biggest award in my book – Bonnie’s approval.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
A few other excellent tributes to Bonnie can be found at:
Remembering B.K. Stevens – Art Taylor – Sleuthsayers  http://www.sleuthsayers.org/2017/08/remembering-bk-stevens.html

B.K. “Bonnie” Stevens: True Friend and Good Writer – Paula Benson – The Stiletto Gang https://www.thestilettogang.com/2017/08/bk-bonnie-stevens-true-friend-and-good.html

B.K. “Bonnie” Stevens, True Friend and Good Writer

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My first panel at Malice with Sally Goldenbaum, Liz Stauffer, Bonnie, me, and Wendy Tyson

by Paula Gail Benson


“It
is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer.”
― E.B. White,
Charlotte’s Web
When
we learned last week about B.K. “Bonnie” Stevens passing, Shari Randall
(writer, librarian, blogging partner, and friend) reminded me of E.B. White’s
novel and his description of the barn spider Charlotte who, by weaving
carefully chosen words into her web, saved Wilbur the pig’s life.
Bonnie
embodied the phrase, “true friend and good writer.” Her life was a testament
to the importance of constantly reaching out to others, eagerly opening your
mind to learn, and joyously communicating.
Like
Charlotte, Bonnie spoke truthfully, honestly, and with respect for the
complexities of the world. She also understood the power and wonder of
individuals sharing their lives with each other.
Chronologically,
I did not know Bonnie for a long period of time, but our connection and friendship
is enduring. I know that her inspiration, advice, and encouragement are part of
my life forever.
Maybe
one thing that drew us together, besides my great admiration for her prose, was
our backgrounds in and appreciation of education. Bonnie spent a good portion
of her life as an instructor and I came from a family of teachers. From that environment,
you realize how delightful discovering new facts and information can be.
As
I read Bonnie’s longer biography on her website, I realized that her philosophy
of remaining open to whatever life brought her continued to enrich her own experience.
Through her fiction and nonfiction, she passed that joy along to her readers.
While
reading Bonnie’s stories or being able to discuss writing with her were
incredible treats, experiencing her generosity of spirit was truly humbling. I
once got up the nerve to ask if she would read one of my stories and give me
feedback. She did so promptly with excellent suggestions, but also asked what
others had told me about the story. All perspectives of the writing process
were fascinating to her. Later, she asked me to read and react to a play she
had written. I hesitated, wondering if my comments possibly could be of any
help to her. After all, she had won an award for this play. She assured me that
she wanted to hear from me because I wrote plays and directed them for a drama
ministry, and my view, as someone who had staged a play, would give her
valuable insight.
One
of the kindest and most incredible gifts that Bonnie and her husband Dennis
gave me was a phenomenal birthday celebration during Bouchercon in New Orleans.
In advance, Bonnie sent me a list of possible venues, each sounding more
wonderful than the last, and asked me to pick the location. She gathered good
friends Art Taylor, Debra Goldstein, and Riley Miller to join us. By the end of
the blissful evening, we had a table full of desserts (including the most
delicious jalapeno lime cheesecake as well as an Almond Joy chocolate cake) and
the great satisfaction of an unforgettable time spent in lovely conversation. [Please
look for Art Taylor’s “Remembering Bonnie Stevens” message and other tributes by fellow bloggers on SleuthSayers.org
and Debra Goldstein’s “In Memory of Bonnie (B.K.) Stevens” to be posted on
Friday, August 25, 2017, here on The Stiletto Gang.]
Bonnie
gave selflessly to so many. Just recently, I saw Kaye George’s remembrance of
meeting Bonnie when she came to Kaye’s book signing at Malice Domestic. Kaye
asked, “Are you the B.K.
Stevens?” Bonnie said she was and asked Kaye, then President of the Guppies,
the online chapter for Sisters in Crime, how she could join. From the time she
became a member, Bonnie was constantly sending out words of welcome and
congratulations.
When
she began her blog “The First Two Pages,” Bonnie set out to highlight other
writers’ work by allowing them to analyze the beginning of a short story or
novel. Her initial post came from Kaye George and the latest messages are from
the contributors to Kaye’s anthology to celebrate the solar eclipse, Day of the Dark (Wildside Press), some
of whom are making their debut publication.
As
I prepare to post these words on Monday, August 21, 2017, the day our country
experiences the eclipse from coast to coast, I’m reminded of a special theatre tradition
to recognize the passing of well known members of the Broadway community — the simultaneous
dimming of all the marquee lights for one minute at the 8:00 pm curtain hour.
When the lights come back up, the shows go on.

While I experience
this solar eclipse, I’ll remember Bonnie, my true friend and good writer, and
think about all that she has done for the many lives she has touched. Thank you
Dennis and daughters Sarah and Rachel for sharing her with us.

My New Orleans Bouchercon Birthday

Celebrating the Short Story: the 2016 Agatha Short Story Nominees

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by Paula Gail Benson

Malice Domestic has become a wonderful homecoming for me each
year. Held in late April or early May near Washington, D.C. (for the last
several years in Bethesda, Maryland), it celebrates the best in the “traditional
mystery,” written in the style of Agatha Christie, where the emphasis is on
resolving the puzzle of the crime rather than delving into the more gruesome
aspects of the deed.

Excellence is recognized at Malice Domestic by the annual Agatha
Awards, given to living authors for works published during the previous
calendar year. Short stories are included in the nominated categories and this
year’s group of nominees features a group of outstanding writers. Not only are
the authors well-respected and prolific, but also the publications demonstrate
how short fiction is experiencing a new golden age for mystery readers’
enjoyment.

Following are the nominees and links where you may read the
short stories:

Best Short Story:
“Double Jinx: A Bellissimo Casino Crime Caper Short
Story” by Gretchen Archer (Henery Press)
“The Best-Laid Plans” by Barb Goffman
in Malice Domestic 11: Murder Most Conventional (Wildside Press)
“The Mayor and the Midwife” by
Edith Maxwell in Blood on the Bayou: Bouchercon Anthology 2016 (Down & Out
Books)
“The Last Blue Glass” by
B.K. Stevens in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine
“Parallel Play” by Art Taylor in
Chesapeake Crimes: Storm Warning (Wildside Press)

Gretchen Archer, who writes the Davis Way Crime Caper series for Henery Press,
uses the setting for her novels, the Bellissimo Resort and Casino in
Biloxi, Mississippi, for her short story about a holiday host investigating the
death of a slot machine tournament player. Henery Press issued the story in
electronic format on Amazon. Gretchen is a Tennessee housewife, who lives on
Lookout Mountain with her husband, son, and a Yorkie named Bently. Her first
Davis Way Crime Caper, Double Whammy, was a finalist
for the Daphne du Maurier Award and appeared on the USA TODAY Bestsellers List.

Barb
Goffman has won the Agatha, Macavity, and Silver Falchion awards for her
mystery short stories. She received the Silver
Falchion was for her collection, Don’t Get Mad, Get Even. She also has
been nominated for the Anthony and Derringer. Her nominated story was
published in  Malice Domestic 11: Murder Most
Conventional. It’s a great joy to see Malice Domestic resume its
practice of issuing short story anthologies, particularly this volume that
concentrates on mysteries at conventions. Barb’s story reveals how the best
laid plans of two honored guests at Malice Domestic can take a bad turn for the
worse.

Edith Maxwell, an Agatha nominated and Amazon bestselling author,
writes two series under her own name (the Quaker Midwife and Local Foods
Mysteries), two under the name Maddie Day, and previously wrote the Lauren
Rousseau mysteries as Tace Baker. Her nominated short story appeared in the
Bouchercon anthology, Blood on the Bayou:
Bouchercon Anthology 2016 edited by Greg Herren (Down
& Out Books), and featured her Quaker midwife protagonist, who must solve
the mystery of a death in a New Orleans’ family that has come to Amesbury in
1888.

B.K.
Stevens has published over fifty short stories, most appearing in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine and eleven of which have been collected in Her Infinite
Variety: Tales of Women and Crime, published by Wildside Press. In
addition, she has written a novel featuring a deaf interpreter, Interpretation
of Murder (Black Opal Books), and a young adult martial arts mystery, Fighting
Chance (Poisoned Pen Press). She has won a Derringer and has been nominated
for Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity awards. Her nominated story, published in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, was
described by editor Linda Landrigan as: “A young wife finds her life’s
disappointments measured in broken glass.”

Art Taylor, associate professor of English at George Mason
University and frequent contributor to the Washington Post, the Washington
Independent Review of Books, and Mystery Scene Magazine, won the
Agatha Award for Best First Novel for On the Road with Del & Louise: A
Novel in Stories. For his short stories, he has won two Agatha Awards, two
Anthony Awards (one for his own short fiction and the other for editing Murder Under the Oaks: Bouchercon Anthology 2015),
a Macavity Award, and three consecutive Derringer Awards. His nominated story,
about a parent’s efforts to protect her child, was published in Chesapeake
Crimes: Storm Warning.

If
you haven’t already discovered these extraordinary authors, I hope you’ll take
this opportunity to read their nominated work. And, if you already love their
writing, as I do, enjoy these wonderful nominated selections!

Summertime and the reading is . . . WONDERFUL!

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by Paula Gail Benson

A significant part
of my vacations as I grew up was participating in the library summer reading
program. Now, that I work for a state legislature with a session ending in
early June, the summer months still mean a time of less activity so I can catch
up on all those lovely books on my TBR pile. If you’re looking for some
terrific summer reads, here are my recommendations, in two categories. First,
short story collections, which are great travel companions, and, second, academic
mysteries, in case you crave a vicarious trip back to school.
SHORT STORY COLLECTIONS:
K.
B. Inglee’s The Case Book of Emily
Lawrence (Wildside Books 2016)
K.B.
writes historical mysteries and learns about the time periods in her stories by being a
reenactor and living interpreter. Her Case
Book features intrepid Emily Lothrop Lawrence, whose professor father
characterized as “intelligent” while calling her older sisters “beautiful” and “talented.”
Emily, with her husband Charles, operate a Pinkerton style detective agency in
post-Civil War Washington, DC. Reading about their investigations and
techniques is both a journey back in time and an appreciation for how
technology has influenced detection.
B.K.
Stevens’ Her Infinite Variety (Wildside
Books 2016).
 
B.K.’s
(or Bonnie’s) stories have frequently found a home in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. In this fascinating volume,
they’ve been collected, so you can enjoy four that feature her series
detectives, Iphigenia Wodehouse and Leah Abrams, and seven of her “stand-alones,”
including one of my favorites “Thea’s First Husband.” For excellent writing, intriguing
situations, and clever deductions, this collection is a true reader’s delight.
Art
Taylor’s On the Road with Del and Louise:
a Novel in Stories (Henery Press 2015).
Winner
of two Agatha Awards, the Anthony Award, the Macavity Award, and three
consecutive Derringer Awards for his short fiction, Art uses a series of
stories to tell the adventures of two intricate and compelling characters.
Louise, a Southern girl working in a New Mexico 7-Eleven, is held up by the
ski-masked Del, a frugal man seeking enough to meet his “academic” expenses,
and gives him her telephone number because she thinks he has nice eyes. She
finds it exciting when he calls, then sets out with him on what becomes a cross
country journey with stops at such diverse locations as Southern California,
Napa Valley, Las Vegas, North Dakota, and Louise’s North Carolina hometown. At
first, I wasn’t sure I could like either of these complex characters, but after
following them through traditional crime stories and hilarious capers, I had to
wait as long as I could to finish the last installment so I didn’t have to say
goodbye. Winner of the Agatha Award for
Best First Novel and finalist for the Anthony Award for Best First Novel, this
novel in stories is an engaging read.
ACADEMIC MYSTERIES:
Cynthia
Kuhn’s The Semester of Our Discontent
(Henery Press 2016).

The first book in a new series,
Cynthia’s novel features English professor Lila Maclean, who in her first year
at a prestigious university finds herself as involved in solving murders as
she is in steering clear of academic intrigue. Unfortunately, she keeps turning up on the
scene where her colleagues are being murdered. When her cousin becomes the
chief suspect, Lila has to find a way to clear her name. A fast-paced whodunit
with lots of quirky, yet familiar characters from higher education, which
received the William F. Deeck-Malice Domestic Grant.

Lori
Rader-Day’s The Black Hour (Seventh
Street Books 2014).
Lori’s
suspenseful novel alternates between two narrators: (1) sociology professor
Amelia Emmet, who is returning to the campus where a student with whom she had
no apparent connection shot her, then killed himself, and (2) Amelia’s new
graduate assistant, Nathaniel Barber, who came to the college not just to earn
a degree, but to study her attack. As they each investigate separately, then in
tandem, the reader is plunged through every emotion watching the fascinating plot
unfold. Winner of the Anthony Award, Lovey
Award, and Silver Falchion for Best First Novel, this is truly superb reading!
I
want to assure you that you can’t go wrong with any of these books. So stay out
of the pool, pour yourself a tall glass of lemonade, and settle down for some
fabulous summer reading!

The Year of the Short Story

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by Paula Gail Benson

From right, Art Taylor, Debra Goldstein, Cathy Pickens and husband Bob, and me.

Like
Debra Goldstein, I’m a writing conference junkie. I completely understand the
attraction that compels so many sci fi and graphic novel enthusiasts to flock
to cons. First, you’re surrounded by people who have as great a love of the
subject as you do, and second, you draw inspiration from proximity to the
practitioners.

I’ll
never forget my first visit to Malice Domestic about fifteen years ago. Everything about it seemed to
spell impossible expectation. The time of year. The distance to travel. Getting
leave from work. Arranging for my mother to travel with me. Yet, Mary Higgins
Clark would be there, and I was obsessed with her books. When I imagined my
future, it was writing novels like Mary Higgins Clark’s.

Somehow,
all the pieces came together. Impossibility became reality. I went. Standing in
line to get my picture with Mary Higgins Clark, I met Dana Cameron, who has
become a wonderful, supportive friend. The photo with Mary Higgins Clark and
her daughter Carol Higgins Clark has become a talisman for me, a symbol of what
I can achieve. When one of my relatives asked who those people were (not
recognizing me), I convinced myself I looked enough like an author to be
mistaken for one. I’ve continued that happy delusion ever since.

I
dub this year’s Malice “a celebration of the short story.” Malice revived its
tradition of publishing anthologies with Malice Domestic’s Murder Most
Conventional, with twenty two original stories and one reprint all set at
conventions. (Another anthology is planned for next year featuring historicals.)
While I missed lunch with the Guppies, I had a wonderful time with Debra Goldstein, Barb
Goffman, and others. Barb won her first Agatha this year for “A Year Without
Santa Claus,” her first publication in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.
At
the SinC Breakfast, the announcement of a new initiative, “We Love Short
Stories,” organized by Debra Goldstein, was met with applause and great expectations.
I thoroughly enjoyed being on a short story panel with James Lincoln Warren (a first class moderator who brought his panelists California wine), Teresa Inge, K.B. Inglee, and Jayne Ormerod. We missed being with Eleanor Cawood Jones, a contributor to the new Malice anthology, who had became ill. During our discussion time, we explored the diverse themes, characters, and settings for mystery short stories. Jim kindly read selections from each panelist’s stories to the audience.  
At the banquet, so many attending had backgrounds as both short story writers and novelists. Terrie Farley Moran, who won an Agatha for best first novel last year, was nominated in the short story category this year. B.K. Stevens, who broke her arm and sadly could not be there, had a table full of supporters, cheering her nominations for short story and young adult novel. (Notice in the photo below that B.K.’s daughter Rachel and publisher Carla Coupe are holding up Her Infinite Variety, a new collection of B.K.’s short stories.) I had the pleasure of celebrating with Art Taylor when his novel in short stories, On the Road with Del and Louise, received the teapot as best first novel.
Hurray for another wonderful Malice and double hurray for the recognition of the importance of the mystery short story. It’s going to be a wonderful year for reading! 

Meet the Authors of the 2015 Agatha Best Short Story Nominees!

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Each year at Malice Domestic,
writing excellence is recognized by the Agatha awards. This year’s nominees for
Best Short Story are:
“A Joy Forever” (PDF)
by B.K. Stevens (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, March 2015)
“Suffer the
Poor” (PDF) by Harriette Sackler, History & Mystery, Oh My (Mystery
& Horror, LLC)
“A Killing at the
Beausoleil” (PDF) by Terrie Farley Moran (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine,
Nov. 2015)
“A Questionable Death” (PDF) by Edith Maxwell, History
& Mystery, Oh My (Mystery & Horror, LLC)
“A Year Without Santa
Claus?” (PDF) by Barb Goffman (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine,
Jan./Feb. 2015)



Please enjoy the opportunity to read
these stories, if you haven’t already. We are so fortunate to have with us
today B.K. Stevens, Harriette Sackler, Terrie Farley Moran, Edith Maxwell,
and Barb Goffman.
All are not only fabulous writers, but also delightful people. Thanks, Bonnie,
Harriette, Terrie, Edith, and Barb for stopping by to share your work and
thoughts with us!—Paula Gail Benson
What are your writing habits?
B.K. Stevens
B.K. STEVENS:         Usually,
I spend a lot of time planning, especially if I’m working on a whodunit and
have to make sure all the evidence will come together. I may or may not make some
sort of outline, but I almost always take a lot of notes on the
computer—exploring various plot possibilities, planning clues, writing profiles
of characters and describing their backstories, and so on. Usually, my notes
are much longer than the final story; for the last story I submitted to Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine,
they’re over three times as long. I like to have a clear idea of where I’m
headed before I begin to write, even though I usually end up making lots of
changes during drafting and revising. I draft fairly quickly and try (often not
successfully) to resist the temptation to revise while I’m drafting. Once the
first draft is done, I put it aside for at least a week and then spend a long
time revising and editing. For me, revising always involves a lot of cutting—my
first drafts are always much too long. I try to have at least two projects in
progress at all times. That way, if I get stuck on one, I can put it aside for
a while and focus on the other.
HARRIETTE SACKLER:      Since
I’m involved in many different projects, I write when I can. Once I have a
kernel of a story idea in my mind, I put it down on paper. I do seem
to accomplish more when I’m under deadline. I’m a great procrastinator.
Terrie Farley Moran
TERRIE FARLEY MORAN: I write
seven days a week. I get up every morning leave the house and do some kind of
exercise (walking, visit the gym, water aerobics or bike ride) then I come home
and sit at the keyboard. I write until I break to eat lunch and watch a few
minutes of news. Then I go back to the keyboard until about six o’clock when I go
out for a walk or a bike ride. If I am falling behind on a deadline I write
after dinner until bedtime. Under the heading “writing” I include all writing
related chores: editing, research, website, blog posts, etc. And, of course, I
still try to have an actual life!
EDITH MAXWELL:  I am a full-time
fiction writer now and I treat it like a job. I’m always up by six AM and am
working by seven. Whether I’m working on the first draft of a book, a short
story, or revision, I do my creative work before noon. Then I head out for my
brisk long walk—often plotting the next day’s
scene as I go – and reserve the afternoon for admin jobs like writing blog
posts, arranging author events, and other items of author business. So far it’s
working—I have three multi-book contracts, so
I have to write three books a year, plus one or more short stories.
Barb Goffman
BARB
GOFFMAN:    When I come up with a story
idea—be it organically, or more often, in response to a story call—and don’t
have the time to write the story immediately (that’s ninety-nine percent of the
time), I’ll write some notes about the idea: the beginning, the end, maybe a
bit of dialogue or the voice I hear in my head. Then those notes will sit,
sometimes for a long time, until I find the time to write that story. I prefer
to write in large chunks rather than a few minutes a day, so I can go a long
time between writing stretches when my day job keeps me busy.
Once I
start writing, I’ll write a few paragraphs, then read them out loud, revising
them before I go forward. Any time I take a break or get stuck, I’ll re-read
the last few paragraphs out loud, trying to get a feel for what comes next
(and, of course, revising as I go). While I’m writing a story, I may also sleep
on it, take a short drive, or a hot shower, trying to think on it—consider if I
have plot holes, how I could spice up the dialogue, create a plot twist, and
more. Once I finish, I try to let the finished story sit for a few days (or
longer if I have the time) before I read it again and try to spot and fix any
problems. And then I send the story out to a trusted friend or two for feedback
before I revise once more and then send the story out for submission. (Though I
must admit I’m often so eager to see what my friends think that I may send a
story to them before I’ve cleaned it up perfectly. Letting the story sit for a
few days is hard, even though I know that’s the best way to proceed. I keep
trying to reign myself in. It’s a work in progress.)
How long does it take to plan and complete
a short story?
B.K.
STEVENS:         Generally, it takes a
long, long time. Once in a while, I’ll get an idea, do only a little planning,
and sit down and write the story straight through. That doesn’t happen often,
though—maybe four or five times in the last thirty years, usually for flash
fiction stories, and even then I’ll spend days cutting and revising. Most of
the time, depending on the length and complexity of the story, the whole
process takes several weeks or several months. (But remember, I work on more
than one project at a time.) If I’m not satisfied with a story, I may put it
aside for months or even years until I think of a way to fix it. Right now,
I’ve got a half-written story that’s been sitting in a folder for at least
three years, waiting until I come up with a better murder method.
Harriette Sackler
HARRIETTE
SACKLER:      I’m not one to churn out
stories in a short time. It takes me a while from conception to finished story.
But that feels fine to me.
TERRIE FARLEY
MORAN: I am a very slow writer and writing
is a very contrarian occupation. If I think a story is going to take a long
time to write, it usually gets itself down on paper without a problem. If I
expect the story to be a quick slam dunk, it generally turns out to be
torturous to write. Basically when I see a call for submissions that interests
me, or when I get an idea for a potential story, I tend to think about it for a
good long while. Once I think of a direction the story could take, I begin to
research anything that could possibly relate. I do far more research than
necessary because…I love research. Then I think some more. While all this
thinking and research is going on I am generally working on another project or
two. Eventually I write the story. I don’t outline, I just plunge into it. Of
course if there is a deadline that sets the time frame.
Edith Maxwell
EDITH
MAXWELL:  That really varies. Once the
story emerges in my head, sometimes I can talk it through on my hour walk (see
previous question, and yes, I’m the crazy author lady who talks out loud to
herself on the rail trail). Then I take a day or two to write the first draft.
But the finishing, editing down, and making sure it works can take a lot
longer. And with historical stories set in a real location, there’s always more
research to be done, too.
BARB
GOFFMAN:    It varies. If I get a detailed
idea, I might finish the first draft in a few days. (That’s how I prefer to
proceed. I like to know the beginning, a few high points, and the end before I
start writing. It makes the process easier.) But sometimes I’ll hear a voice in
my head—a story’s beginning—and I’ll start writing. I might write a couple of
paragraphs or a page or two, and then I’ll get stuck, really stuck, because I
have no plot to go with the voice. Those stories can become big problems
because I’ve found my writing flows best when I come up with conflict first and
let character react to it, and the plot unfolds from there. When characters
show up first without the conflict—those are my problem children.
That’s
what happened with my nominated story “A Year Without Santa Claus?” I saw a
call for whodunit stories set in New Jersey. I woke up soon thereafter with the
main character’s voice in my head. I wrote the first page, and that was all I
wrote on that story—for years. Whodunits are hard to write (at least for me). I
needed a mystery and suspects and all that good stuff. I needed a plot in which
my character could solve the crime when the police couldn’t. And I had none of
that. Perhaps three years later, one morning out
of the blue, I had an idea in the shower—a plot that worked. I hurried to my
computer (thank goodness I had the time to write that day and week) and banged
out a solid draft within a few days. So sometimes it takes a few days to come
up with an idea and write a story. Sometimes the planning can take a few years
and then the writing a few days. It’s nice when it all comes together fast.
What shoes would you, your protagonist, or another character from
your story wear to the Agathas banquet?
B.K. STEVENS:         I’ll wear boring,
sensible shoes, because I always wear boring, sensible shoes. Gwen seems like
the type to wear boring, sensible shoes, too. Considering the way the story
ends, though, this time she might just wear stilettos.
HARRIETTE SACKLER:      I’m at the age when comfort is my most
important priority. Gone are the days of high heels and pointed toes.
I’ll be at the banquet in a pair of
strappy and low-heeled shoes.
TERRIE FARLEY MORAN: I intend to wear this pair of MUNRO AMERICAN bright
red shoes. I think Sassy and Bridgy would wear similar bright red shoes but with
fewer straps and a higher heel.
EDITH MAXWELL:  I’m SO not a shoe person. And my Quaker
midwife Rose Carroll from “A Questionable Death” would wear something very
modest, as well. But her unconventional friend and co-conspirator, postmistress
Bertie Winslow? She loves fancy hats and colorful clothes. She’ll wear these
satin embroidered evening slippers to the banquet.
BARB GOFFMAN:    Kyle Coyote, my main character’s security chief, would wear
rocket skates from the Acme Company because when something goes wrong, he needs
to reach his destination fast. Plus, he loves Acme’s innovative products (how
many companies are selling rideable rockets?), despite his boss’s concerns
about defects.
I’ll be wearing open-heeled black
shoes with a tiny heel because I believe in comfort.

Summer Reading – Part II

/in /by

Summer Reading – Part II by Debra H. Goldstein

For ten days, I forgot about being a writer.  Instead, other than reading Murder on Wheels with an eye towards reviewing it, I let my mind forget about the tools of the trade and I read for pleasure.

Biographies, cozies, thrillers, literary fiction – all were fair game.  My goal was pure enjoyment or as I like to refer to it:  FUN.

I’ve discovered that in my quest to write decent short stories and novels (or at least publishable ones), I sometimes replace my love of words with mechanical technicalities.  When I’m writing, the same critical eye comes into my reading habits.  I pick apart the language of other authors.  I look to see how they use dialogue, plot, setting, word choice, and grammar instead of simply relaxing into the story.  If two linked ideas couldn’t realistically connect in real life, I’m disturbed.  If a character’s name isn’t remembered correctly or a hole exists in the plot, the book is a disaster for me.

When I stop writing and become a reader again, I regain my ability to enjoy well-written and not so well-written books.  I chuckle, I laugh, I cry, and I am fulfilled by the different worlds I visit.  Best of all, I remember why I want to write – to help provide even a smidgen of these feelings to others.
So, what did I read on my break that refreshed me and gave me the drive to write again:

I’ve Got You Under My Skin – Mary Higgins Clark
Destroyer Angel – Nevada Barr
night, night, sleep tight – Hallie Ephron
Truth Be Told – Hank Phillippi Ryan
Interpretation of Murder – B.K. Stevens
The Kept – James Scott
The Inverted Forest – John Dalton
A Fine Romance – Candice Bergen

Have you read anything you’ve liked lately?  I’m making a list for my next ten day break.