Tag Archive for: bethany maines

Stiletto Gang Black Friday Gift Guide

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by The Stiletto Gang

Want to avoid the crowds, but still get a little shopping done?  Sit back, peruse this list of 2015 Stiletto Gang Releases, and order the gift of the written word from the comfort of your own couch.

Sparkle Abbey

Downton Tabby (The Pampered Pets Series)

Amazon 5 Star Review: How would you like to find a dead body in a swimming pool, have two friends disappear, be followed by a black SUV and have your ex try to take away your clients? That’s what Laguna Beach’s animal therapist and sometime sleuth, Caro Lamont, faces in another page turning, suspense filled, and occasional humorous adventure as she tries to find a killer, disappearances of two friends, and dealing with a scurvy ex.

Need a treat today? Of course you do! Grab some snacks, your fav drink, and settle down in a comfy place and relish this latest mystery that’s pet friendly too!

Paula Gail Benson

Let It Snow: The Best of Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, Winter 2015 Collection

Discover tales, all as different as snowflakes, in “Let it Snow: The Best of Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Winter 2015 Collection.” The multiple award winning Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC brings you stories in a range of genres selected from their bi-monthly Writers Roundtable Journal. So, while the weather outside is frightful, curl up by the fire, read, and Let It Snow.

Fish or Cut Bait: A Guppy Anthology

Fish or Cut Bait, the latest installment in the Guppy Anthology Series, presents a collection of mystery stories by rising stars of the mystery and suspense field. Tales of revenge and retribution…police detectives…cozy characters…hardboiled P.I.s…there’s something here for every fan of crime and detection!

Killer Nashville Noir: Cold Blooded

Bestselling authors Jeffery Deaver and Anne Perry join rising stars like Dana Chamblee Carpenter and Paula Gail Benson in a collection that proves Music City is a deadly place to be when your song gets called.

Marjorie Brody

Twisted, a novel of psychological suspense

Amazon or Barnes & Noble

A gang assault at a high school dance forces a young teen to confront the secret she hid from everyone, including herself.

TAA Best Young Adult Fiction Book Award, Honorable Mention, Great Midwest Book Festival, Finalist Red City Book Awards, 2015 Best Reads-Middlesex County College Library

“6 Stars Out of 5!” TWISTED, a multi-award winning psychological suspense, addresses sensitive issues in a stay-up-late, page-turning way.

“Brutally honest,” yet “tasteful,” and “hopeful.”  NYT Bestseller Sharon Sala declares TWISTED “Unforgettable.”

Anthologies, featuring Marjorie Brody

Short Story America Anthology, Vol. I, II, III, and IV

Short Stories by Texas Authors, Vol. I

Lynn Cahoon

Killer Run (A Tourist Trap Mystery)

Jill Gardner—owner of Coffee, Books, and More—has somehow been talked into sponsoring a 5k race along the beautiful California coast. The race is a fundraiser for the local preservation society—but not everyone is feeling so charitable…

The day of the race, everyone hits the ground running…until a local business owner stumbles over a very stationary body. The deceased is the vicious wife of the husband-and-wife team hired to promote the event—and the husband turns to Jill for help in clearing his name. But did he do it? Jill will have to be very careful, because this killer is ready to put her out of the running…forever!

Dressed to Kill (A Tourist Trap Mystery)

Jill Gardner—owner of Coffee, Books, and More in the tucked-away town of South Cove, California—is not particularly thrilled to be portraying a twenties flapper for the dinner theater murder mystery. Though it is for charity…

Of course everyone is expecting a “dead” body at the dress rehearsal…but this one isn’t acting! It turns out the main suspect is the late actor’s conniving girlfriend Sherry…who also happens to be the ex-wife of Jill’s main squeeze. Sherry is definitely a master manipulator…but is she a killer? Jill may discover the truth only when the curtain comes up on the final act…and by then, it may be far too late.

The Bull Riders’s Collection

Saddle up and get ready to ride with three of the sexiest cowboys in spurs. These heroes aren’t afraid of danger or a challenge, and neither are the sassy, smart women in their world. Slip on your boots and get ready to crown these men champions of the heart with The Bull Rider’s Brother, The Bull Rider’s Manager, and The Bull Rider’s Keeper

The Salem Gathering (The Council Series)

A babe in jeopardy, a coven on the loose, and only one witch hunter team can save them.
Parris McCall knows her best friend’s life in in danger, but when Parris gets orders from The Council to track down Coven X, she has no choice but to follow orders.

Ty Wallace knows there’s more to The Council’s directive than meets the eye. Can he figure out what’s not being said before he loses Parris to her distant relatives or worse, forever?

Kay Kendall

Rainy Day Women

“5 Stars! Kendall delivers a spectacular mystery. The protagonist, Austin Starr, balances being a wife, a mother and an investigator with great skill. This is definitely a coming of age story, for women and for our country. A revolution occurred during the sixties, changing the roles for women, politics and war. She shows it all.

Bethany Maines

High-Caliber Concealer (A Carrie Mae Mystery)

All Carrie Mae’s top covert agent, Nikki Lanier, wants is a quiet vacation on her grandmother’s farm. But her visit is complicated by dangerous drug smugglers, the childhood sweetheart who broke her heart, and the sudden arrival of not only her mother (who is obviously hiding something) and her teammates, but also her current boyfriend – CIA Agent Z’ev Coralles. Now Nikki must choose between doing what’s right and revealing what she really does for a living, if she wants to keep all of them alive. Nikki may be a High-Caliber Concealer, but this time it might not be enough.

An Unseen Current

When Seattle native Tish Yearly finds herself fired and evicted all in one afternoon, she knows she’s in deep water. Unemployed and desperate, the 26 year old ex-actress heads for the home of her cantankerous ex-CIA agent grandfather, Tobias Yearly, in the San Juan Islands. But soon. Tish is thrown head-long into a mystery that pits her against a handsome but straight-laced Sheriff’s Deputy, a group of eccentric and clannish local residents, and a killer who knows the island far better than she does. Now Tish must swim against the current, depending on her nearly forgotten acting skills and her grandfather’s spy craft, to con a killer and keep them alive.

Marilyn Meredith / F.M. Meredith

Not as It Seems 

Tempe and Hutch travel to Morro Bay for son Blair’s wedding, but when the maid-of-honor disappears, Tempe tries to find her. The search is complicated by ghosts and Native spirits.

Violent Departures

College student, Veronica Randall, disappears from her car in her own driveway, everyone in the Rocky Bluff P.D. is looking for her. Detective Milligan and family move into a house that may be haunted. Officer Butler is assigned to train a new hire and faces several major challenges.

Julie Mulhern

The Deep End

Swimming into the lifeless body of her husband’s mistress tends to ruin a woman’s day, but becoming a murder suspect can ruin her whole life.

It’s 1974 and Ellison Russell’s life revolves around her daughter and her art. She’s long since stopped caring about her cheating husband, Henry, and the women with whom he entertains himself. That is, until she becomes a suspect in Madeline Harper’s death. The murder forces Ellison to confront her husband’s proclivities and his crimes—kinky sex, petty cruelties and blackmail.

As the body count approaches par on the seventh hole, Ellison knows she has to catch a killer. But with an interfering mother, an adoring father, a teenage daughter, and a cadre of well-meaning friends demanding her attention, can Ellison find the killer before he finds her?

Guaranteed to Bleed

With his dying breath, Bobby Lowell begs Ellison Russell, “Tell her I love her.”

Unable to refuse, Ellison struggles to find the girl the murdered boy loved. Too bad an epically bad blind date, a vindictive graffiti artist, and multiple trips to the emergency room keep getting in the way. Worse, a killer has Ellison in his sights, her newly rebellious daughter is missing, and there’s yet another body in her hostas. Mother won’t be pleased. Now Ellison must track down not one but two runaway teenagers, keep her promise to Bobby, and elude the killer—all before her next charity gala committee meeting.

Cathy Perkins

So About the Money

CPA Holly Price juggles dodgy clients, flakey parent, ex-lovers and a murdered friend before she gets to the bottom line in this fast and fun read. ~ Patricia Smiley, bestselling author of Cool Cache

When Holly Price trips over a friend’s dead body, her life takes a nosedive into a world of intrigue and danger. With an infinitely sexy cop—Holly’s pissed-off, jilted ex-fiancé—threatening to arrest her for the murder, the intrepid accountant must protect her future, her business…and her heart…by using her investigative skills to follow the money, before the killer decides CPA stands for Certified Pain in the Ass…and the next dead body is Holly’s.

Linda Rodriguez

Every Hidden Fear 
“This suspenseful and sensitive tale of small town secrets is captivating from page one. An absolute page-turner!” – Hank Phillippi Ryan, Agatha, Anthony and Mary Higgins Clark award winning author



“Engrossing” – Library Journal



“A peaceful college town goes berserk in Rodriguez’s solid third Skeet Bannion mystery.”– Publisher’s Weekly


“Cherokee heritage and the often very painful legacy of secrets have long been hallmarks of this excellent series. … Every Hidden Fear is another very good read from an award winning author and a book well worth your time.” – Kevin’s Corner: Book Reviews and More

Holiday Strategy

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It’s that time of year again. The holidays.  Starbucks is apparently hating Jesus because
they continued their paired back design aesthetic and put out simple red
cups.  (Yes, because from hell’s heart
they stab at Christians with a red cup filled with the artfully foamed blood of
the saints – muwahhahahahah!!) Black Friday ads are starting to pop up
everywhere (stampede!!) and relatives are booking flights and scrambling to
arrange schedules so that everyone can see everyone and be annoyed by everyone
all in a very short amount of time.
As yet, I have made no moves on the great holiday game
board. I’m still trying to determine strategy. Do I try and ride the “I have a
baby” thing for another year and do practically nothing? Or do I pull out all
the stops and try to get the best gifts EVER for everyone?  Should I shoot for every holiday party I’m
invited to, or do I try and find out everyone’s dates in advance and RSVP
according to the level of food awesomeness at each?  Generally, I try and do a really fun
Christmas card, but that takes energy, forethought, and great idea for some
artwork.  Maybe I’ll just skip that one
and move straight to the Christmas letter stage where I make friends and
relatives barf with the saccharine sweetness and absolute perfection of my
life. BECAUSE YOUR ENVY FEEDS MY SOUL. That’s definitely what the holidays are
all about, right?
Below are the following factors I’m using for determining my
holiday event strategy:
1.  Pie. 
  • Is there pie?   If the
    answer is yes, move to the top of the list.
  • Is it home made?  If the answer is no, then I don’t go.

2.  Sleep.
  • Will it cause my baby to be awake far longer than a tiny
    human should be?  If the answer is yes,
    your event will not be considered. 
    Unless there is enormous amounts of pie.

3.  Husband.
  • On a scale of 1 to 10, how badly is he going to complain
    about this event?  If the answer is ballet, then he will not be attending.
  • Can I bribe him with pie?

What are your strategies for coping with the oncoming
storm?  Hunker down or go fly a
kite?  What is your favorite way to do
the holidays?
Bethany Maines is the author of the Carrie
Mae Mysteries, Tales from the City of
Destiny and An Unseen Current.
 You can also view the Carrie Mae youtube video
or catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook.

The 4 Question Interview

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Today Bethany Maines uses her blog space to interview first time novelist J.M. Phillippe about her debut novel Perfect Likeness.


Bethany Maines, a native of Tacoma WA, is the author of the Carrie Mae Mysteries, and Tales From the City of Destiny. When she’s not traveling to exotic lands, or kicking some serious butt with her fourth degree black belt in karate, she can be found chasing after her daughter, or glued to the computer working on her next novel. You can also view the Carrie Mae youtube video
or catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook.

J.M. Phillippe has lived in the deserts of California, the suburbs of Seattle, and the mad rush of New York City.  She worked as a freelance journalist before earning a masters’ in social work.  She works as a family therapist in Brooklyn, New York and spends her free-time decorating her tiny apartment to her cat Oscar Wilde’s liking, drinking cider at her favorite British-style pub, and training to be the next Karate Kid, one wax-on at a time.  You can follow her on Facebook or Twitter.

Q1: J.M. Phillippe tells us a little about your book!

A1: My book is about a woman who is not super happy with her everyday life, so she creates a fantasy version of herself and goes off on adventures in her head. But then one day, the fantasy version of herself becomes real — and begins to haunt her. I really wanted to tap into the feeling a lot of people have of not feeling like who they are and the life they live is “good enough.” What would happen if that little voice in your head stepped out of your head and started talking to you as an actual being?

Q2: As a mystery / adventure writer I was intrigued because I felt that the core of Perfect Likeness was Ally’s unraveling the mystery of what was wrong with her, but the book isn’t a traditional mystery. Have you ever written mysteries or were you inspired by mystery novels?
A2: I love mystery novels and have been reading them since I was a kid. My aunt gave me a complete set of Agatha Christie books and that’s what really started it for me. I particularly like mysteries with strong characters and dark themes, like the Dashiell Hammet books or Elmore Leonard books. But I also love a good sense of humor with my mystery like the Janet Evanovich books. I think ultimately every book has a question it poses, and tries to answer, and there is an element of mystery in more books than people realize. Even the Harry Potter series — every book has a different mystery to solve, but it’s not seen as a “mystery series.” But you also can’t beat a classic “whodunit”.

Q3: What is your number one tip for writing?
A3:The number one tip I can give other writers is to not listen to any voice in — or outside — your head telling you that you’re not good enough, or what you are writing is not good enough. Embrace the drafting process and get something completed before you judge it — and then revise, revise, revise.

Q4: What are book are you working on next?
A4: I am actually working on a sort of zombie story, which is very different than Perfect Likeness, although I’m interested in exploring many of the same themes. It’s called “Infected” and is about a woman who is attacked — and doesn’t get away. I’m really enjoying writing the action scenes.

Dear Brain…

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by Bethany Maines


Dear Brain,


While I appreciate
your many efforts and strong creative solutions, I would very much appreciate
it if you could focus on the problems at hand. Thanks so much.

Sincerely,
Self
I have a writing calendar that tells me what I’m supposed to
be working on. Outlining, editing, actually writing, it’s all scheduled out. Since
the release of High-Caliber Concealer,
third book in the Carrie Mae Mystery series is right around the corner
(November 17!), that means I should be busy working on draft one of book 4 – Glossed Cause. That also means that last
month I should have finished an outline of said fourth book. Do you know what I
have not completed? Yes, that’s right – the outline. I had completed  about 75% it and stopped because… Well, I don’t
hate it, but I don’t love it either. And then last week I realized what was
wrong with it. Not that I know how to fix it, but at least I know why I’m not
excited about it. So I’ve been twiddling my thumbs, enjoying the summer, pretending
that I have all the time in the world, and hoping that inspiration would hit.
Then, last night it did hit. I woke up with a fantastic idea.
For a different book.
I came up with a great idea for the sequel to my recent
release – An Unseen Current. I even
have a great name for it, which practically never happens. It’s really, really
exciting and not at all what I need. But if I’ve learned anything about
creativity it’s that if you fight it sometimes it stops all together. What do
you think? Should I work on this new idea for a bit and see if inspiration
strikes for Glossed Cause or should I
set the new idea aside and focus, focus, focus?

Bethany Maines is the author of the Carrie
Mae Mysteries, Tales from the City of
Destiny and An Unseen Current.
 You can also view the Carrie Mae youtube video
or catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook.

That Editing… So Hot Right Now

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by Bethany Maines

It’s that time again. The editing time.  The time when I get back all the stupidy stupidy line edits and have to go through and approve them. That’s the worst part.  I have to approve them.  OK, I don’t absolutely HAVE to, but the truth is about 8 out of every 10 line edits are the correct decision. Of the other two, one is probably a matter of preference and the other is absolutely right the way it was the first time. Why don’t you understand my genius you piddling moron who is merely paid to sift through the words and divine my sheer awesomeness?

It’s possible that the last sentence there was a bit of an overstatement.

But my secret internal Mugatu doesn’t think it was.


Mugatu, for those who haven’t watched the hilariously improbable Zoolander, is the fashion designer / evil genius, played by Will Ferrell, who is attempting kill the prime minister of Malaysia by brainwashing male model Derek Zoolander. Many writers, myself included, seem to yo-yo between the states of modesty (I write pretty well), ego (I’m a genius!!), and self-hatred (why would anyone read the crap I produce?). I picture modesty as the quiet saintly type – a Buddhist nun (who secretly knows kung fu) and self-hatred as the goggly-eyed guy from the Maltese Falcon who says the worst things in the sweetest voice.  And nowhere are those states of being more quickly cycled through than the editing rounds. Each tweak of the text from the editor is like some sort of judgement from on high that can send me off into a Mugatu-esque rage or goggly-eyed shame spiral.  It’s up the the Kung Fu nun to bring balance and harmony. Although, admittedly sometimes the nun needs a little help from a glass of wine and a jog around the block.

Bethany Maines is the author of the Carrie
Mae Mysteries, Tales from the City of
Destiny and An Unseen Current.
 You can also view the Carrie Mae youtube video
or catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook.

Mystery Novel Seeks New Home

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by Bethany Maines

As the release date for my newest mystery (An UnseenCurrent) approaches (April 28th – ahhhhhhh!!!) I find myself once
again pondering the cruel irony of nature that crafts writers to be introspective
sorts and then pits them against a task to which they are monumentally
unsuited.  That is to say: marketing. The
woman hours spent lovingly crafting characters, settings, and events leaves the
writer more than a little in love with their own book. To then have it
heartlessly thrust into the public where some reviewer will crassly thumb
through it and declare it to be passable is like being gently stabbed with
needles by someone who doesn’t really care about your problems.  We all want to be bestselling authors.  I mean, who doesn’t want to be RichardCastle? (I really am ruggedly handsome!) 
But in all honesty, I think most writers would rather have their books
treasured and loved than consumed like soda and disposed of.
I remember the first time I saw one of my aunt’s books at
Half-Price Books. My aunt, Linda Nichols, writes beautiful Christian fiction
with snappy plots and characters you want to hug. I had not yet, published any
books and I personally thought that seeing her books on the shelf of a used
bookstore was cool.  But Linda did not
think it was cool – there was wincing and the sad look of “ohh, I wish I didn’t
know that.”  Someone sold her book down
the river – the heathens, the Philistines! The bastards with not enough shelf
space!  After I had been published I
realized her pain.  How could someone not
love my book?! Why would anyone give my book away?  My books are awesome.  All right, yes, I recognize the shelf space
issue is a real thing – even libraries don’t have ALL the books.  But as each baby book flies out into the
world, forgive me if I hope that it will find at least one home where it will
be treasured.
And on that note – who wants a free digital copy of An
Unseen Current?  It’s looking for an
awesome home (and someone who will leave a review).  Leave a comment here or on Facebook to be
entered to win.  I’ll draw names on Friday morning.
AN UNSEEN CURRENT
When Seattle native Tish Yearly finds herself fired and evicted  all in one afternoon, she knows she’s in deep water. Unemployed and desperate, the 26 year old ex-actress heads for the one place she knows she’ll be welcome – the house of her cantankerous ex-CIA agent grandfather, Tobias Yearly, in the San Juan Islands. And when she discovers the strangled corpse of Tobias’s best friend, she knows she’s in over her head. Tish is thrown head-long into a mystery that pits her against a handsome but straight-laced Sheriff’s Deputy, a group of eccentric and clannish local residents, and a killer who knows the island far better than she does. Now Tish must swim against the current, depending on her nearly forgotten acting skills and her grandfather’s spy craft, to con a killer and keep them alive.
Bethany Maines is the author of the Carrie
Mae Mysteries, Tales from the City of
Destiny and the forthcoming An Unseen
Current.  You can also view the Carrie Mae youtube video
or catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook.

Genre Bending

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By Bethany Maines

I read Marjorie Brody’s post yesterday “Passion Knows NoGenre” with interest. Marjorie was discussing that she hates being tied to one
particular genre, but that the general industry wisdom is to do exactly that –
stick to one thing! I love Marjorie’s rebellious flare, but the topic also tied
into something I’ve been pondering for awhile: pen names and branding.
As a graphic designer with over a decade of industry
experience I have referred to myself periodically as a “branding expert”.
Branding is about capturing the concrete and implied qualities of a company or
person in their visual, advertising, and on-line representations. Branding
seems trivial to some, but as human beings we do it ALL the time. Only most
sociologists call it “stereotyping”. Humans seem to prefer to have a short
little label to stick on people. We don’t really like being forced to confront
the broad spectrum of human reality – it takes too long and we’ve got better
things to do with our time. What I do as a graphic designer is try to lodge the
preferred stereotype in a consumers mind before they apply their (usually not
as complementary) own.
  
Which is why I don’t usually tell my graphic design clients
that I’m a writer.  It confuses my
brand.  I can see the thought
bubble form: If she writes, then she can’t really be a graphic designer;
everyone knows you can’t have TWO talents.  Fortunately, the writer brand is equivalent with “poor” so
when I tell writer friends that I also do graphic design they just nod.  But industry wisdom has the same “does
not compute” problem with genre. 
“But she writes Mystery, she can’t also write (fill in the blank).” 
And up until now the only way to write something different was
to use a pen name. But with the online world being what it is and with lawyers being blabbermouths, keeping a pen name identity a secret is hard to do.  The other problem is that as writers
have become more and more responsible for their own publicity they realize that
it’s hard enough getting recognition for one name, let alone building buzz for
an entirely new, second name.
Which is why I find the development of the new style of pen
name so interesting.  “Wrting as”
has become the marketers new favorite phrase. Such as: Laura Spinella writing as L.J. Wilson pens Ruby
Ink! (I’m half way through my advance copy and it’s a fantastic, saucy romp of
a book – pick it up on March 31!) 
“Writing as” is now code for “I’m not writing in the same genre, so be
prepared for something different.” 
And I couldn’t be happier about it. At last writers have found a way to break out of the genre
trap! Perhaps in a few years Pen Names will be the new industry wisdom. We’ll just have to see which pen name
Marjorie chooses.  

Goldfish Brain

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by Bethany Maines

I’m monumentally bad at dates.  The Christmas after I got married my mother-in-law got a new pair of sneakers and she said, “Oh, I wish I’d had these on XX of some-month-Bethany-doesn’t remember.”  And I said, “Really? What happened on that date?” And they all stared at me because it turned out that was the day I got married.  Which may seem a bit rude to my poor husband, but in my defense I also can’t remember what year I graduated from college.  And one time I spent an entire day being really annoyed because my friends kept calling me (I was in the middle of a project) to wish me happy birthday.  Every single call was a surprise.  So, I’m not saying that I will absolutely forget that some day (14th?  15th? No, seriously, what day is it?) in February is Valentine’s Day, I’m just saying that the odds are not in my husband’s favor.  But on the other hand that means if he remembers all that lovely chocolate will be a wonderful surprise.

Unfortunately, this type of memory blockage also means that my memory for VERY IMPORTANT FACTS related to my characters is also somewhat lacking. Like last names, eye color, the details of their backstory.   Given enough time and rewrites it all gets a bit fuzzy.  Bulletproof Mascara, for instance went through 9.5 rewrites (I’m counting the typo catching pass as .5 of a rewrite).  That means that the villain Jirair Sarkassian went from being Texan to Armenian somewhere around draft 6.  And in An Unseen Current (Available everywhere April 28! Available for pre-order on kindle now!!) I dropped an entire villain between draft 1 and 2.  Which wouldn’t be much of a problem if I didn’t insist on writing sequels.  It’s a bit of an embarrassment to have to read your own book to find out what you wrote, but apparently readers insist on continuity and well, just generally making sense.  But having just read Bulletproof Mascara and Compact with the Devil (in preparation for the forthcoming High-Caliber Concealer), I can honestly recommend my books to people.  I’m very funny and my plots actually do make sense.  I give myself two thumbs up.  I probably can’t review myself on Goodreads, can I?

Bethany Maines is the
author of the Carrie Mae Mysteries, Tales from the City of Destiny and the forthcoming An Unseen Current.  You can also view the Carrie Mae youtube
video or catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook.  Learn more at www.bethanymaines.com

Hell What Now?

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by Bethany Maines

The Navy SEALs must pass through something called Hell Week
in order to become an actual SEAL. 
If they can’t take Hell Week they can always ring the bell that
signals that they are opting out and then they get coffee and donuts. 
For five and a half days the SEAL candidates are expected to operate on
four hours of sleep while being cold, wet, and presumably yelled at (since no
one seems to do anything in the military without being yelled at).  To this I say… What pansies. 
OK, the cold and wet does sound miserable.  But try operating for three months on
four hours of sleep while being constantly yelled at and then having someone
puke in your pants.  And in your
hair.  And on just about everything
else.  Then we’ll talk.  OK, OK, so you can snap a man’s neck
with your bare hands.  I can shoot
milk out my boob.  What else you
got?
All kidding aside, one of the unfortunate side effects of
becoming a mother (or probably a Navy SEAL) is that sleep is immediately
curtailed. Which makes lots of things, for instance, writing novels and running
a business, more difficult. 
Side effects of prolonged sleep deprivation include:
  • Weight Gain
  • Loss of Sex Drive
  • Impaired Alertness, Concentration, and Problem Solving
  • Depression
  • Aging Skin
  • Memory Loss
  • Greater chances of death due to accidents
  • Greater chances of other health problems

It’s not that being a mom is so difficult; it’s that being
anything else, while being a mom just increased in difficulty due to our
adorable little time sucking children and the constant sleep deprivation.  Which makes every word I type a minor
triumph. I will not be ringing the bell today. 

PS Please forgive any typos I may make.  I blame them on my daughter.
  
Bethany Maines
is the author of the Carrie Mae Mystery series and Tales
from the City of Destiny. You can also view the Carrie Mae youtube video or catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook.

How do you write a mystery?

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by Bethany Maines
As I approach the end of my third Carrie Mae Mystery
manuscript (60,000 words and climbing!), I find myself more impressed now by a
basic Nancy Drew, than I was when I was ten. 
My characters are better than when I started writing.  My plotting is infinitely stronger. My grasp
of grammar, may actually have gotten worse, but I do use less adverbs (and I
actually know what they are), but it’s this business of “mystery” that still
perplexes me.  Clues? There should be
some.  But how many? How obvious should
be?  Is that too obvious? Too subtle? How
many suspects are required? Is there a manual somewhere? I could really use a
manual.
Partially, I’ve been avoiding this trouble by not
writing standard mysteries.  I call them
women’s action adventure because I think more mysteries could use a good car
chase.  If you’ve seen Bullitt then you
know that’s a movie that is holding onto its classic status simply on the
strength of its car chase.  (It’s
certainly not the strength of the jazz flute scene.)  But in April my first regular mystery, A
Yearly Murder (working title), will be released and I find myself nervous that
all the mystery aficionados will judge me. 
What if I didn’t put in enough clues?  What if the bad guy is too obvious?  What if I didn’t kill of Reginald creatively
enough?  Serial killers and mystery
writers – the only people who worry about being judged by their dead bodies.
And I would worry about the psychological implications of that if I weren’t too
busy worrying about whether or not I got my forensic research right. 

I hope that you’ll check out A Yearly Murder in April,
and let me know if I got the clue quotient right!



Bethany Maines is the
author of the Carrie Mae Mystery series and Tales from the City of Destiny. You can also view the Carrie Mae youtube
video or catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook.