Tag Archive for: cozy mysteries

Decluttering – The Time Has Come

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by Sparke Abbey


This past year we’ve learned a thing or two about decluttering and downsizing. In this era of minimalism, we don’t need as much “stuff” as we might have once believed. And just as we didn’t want to inherit a menagerie of ceramic owls or metal butterflies from our mothers, our children weren’t interested in our amazing book collections, stylish size-seven shoes, or cabbage soup tureen. 



Three garage sales, and more trips than you can count on one hand to local donation centers, we not only decluttered our own homes, we downsized Abbey’s parents’. The process took time, was hard work, yet highly rewarding. And in a crazy way, reminded us of editing or “decluttering” our stories.



Like the rest of America, you’ve certainly heard about Marie Kondo’s “Tidying Up method.” 

  1. Commit yourself to tidying up.
  2. Imagine your ideal lifestyle.
  3. Finish discarding first. Before getting rid of items, sincerely thank each item for serving its purpose.
  4. Tidy by category, not location.
  5. Follow the right order.
  6. Ask yourself if it sparks joy.

Six easy steps, right? Heck, the first two don’t even require physical action. But here’s the reality—the process is never that simple. While the KonMari lifestyle doesn’t “spark joy” for everyone, there are some principals that can be applied to storytelling. So we thought we’d put our spin on Marie’s six steps and create the Sparkle Abbey writing decluttering method.


  1. Commit yourself to unclutter your story. You have to be ruthless. Don’t be afraid to put your writing under a microscope and edit. 
  2. Keep in mind the story you wanted to tell. This will serve as your compass as you unclutter your story. Everything must enhance the story or bring it “joy.” If not, it has to go.
  3. Declutter by category.
    1. Plot – Does your story structure make sense? Are there plot holes? Do your scenes unfold in a way that escalates conflict? Are all the plotlines resolved at the end of the story? 
    2. Subplots – Do your subplots enhance the plot and relate to the overall story goal? Are there too many subplots?
    3. Characters  – Do your characters serve a purpose? Do they have goals, motivation? Do they bring conflict? Are there too many characters? Are the characters unique?
    4. Clarity and Concise – How’s the pacing? Are you showing or telling the story? Is there too much or too little description? Is there too much or too little dialogue? 
  4.  Does your story spark joy? – You’ve carefully decluttered your masterpiece. Does it still bring you joy? It should. Remember step number two. Be careful that you don’t edit the life out of your story.

This isn’t a comprehensive list, but it’s a good start to tidy up your story. Whether you’re tidying up your home or your writing, the process requires you to make a judgment on what is important and what’s just “stuff” taking up space.


Have you jumped on the “tidying up” wagon? We’d love to hear any tips you have for organizing your home or your story! 

Sparkle Abbey is actually two people, Mary Lee Woods aka 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 neighbors.) 

They love to hear from readers and can be found on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, their favorite social media sites.Their most recent book is The Dogfather, the tenth book in the Pampered Pets series.
Also, if you want to make sure you get updates, sign up for their newsletter via the SparkleAbbey.com website.

#WalkAroundThingsDay

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by Sparkle Abbey

We’ve survived the second most brutal Iowa winter in history. We’ve also sprung our clocks forward, managed to escape April Fool’s Day unscathed (we wish we would have thought to keep all of our Amazon boxes for an April Fool’s prank!), and are ready to celebrate National Walk Around Day. Never heard of it? That’s okay, we hadn’t either. Living in Iowa, we’re used to walking around snow piles, icy parking lots, and Grand Canyon-sized potholes so it seemed like an excellent National Day to talk about.

We conducted a little research about Walk Around Things Day. . . .and by “a little,” we mean there wasn’t much information to find. We did learn the day can be celebrated literally and figuratively.

In the literal sense, one can take advantage of the day to benefit your health. Up your activity by walking your dog around the block or walking around the office building. Make sure you complete a full circle otherwise you haven’t actually “walked around” anything.

As for figuratively, if you’re looking for a reason to procrastinate on dealing with a work situation or an uncomfortable conversation, today is a valid excuse to put it off for another twenty-four hours. Living in the Midwest-nice culture, it’s not uncommon for people to “walk around” difficult conversations. You wouldn’t want to hurt your co-worker or neighbor’s feelings, would you? Which is probably why, as writers, we love to explore characters who tackle their problems head-on, who are unafraid to express their opinion, and speak before thinking.

We plan to celebrate the day both figuratively and literally. What about you?

Oh, one last thing. In our research, we discovered Sunday is National No Housework Day. Shouldn’t National Walk Around Things Day come after No Housework Day? Just a thought.

Sparkle Abbey is actually two people, Mary Lee Woods aka 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 neighbors.) They love to hear from readers and can be found on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, their favorite social media sites. 

Their most recent book is The Dogfather, the tenth book in the Pampered Pets series.

Also, if you want to make sure you get updates, sign up for their newsletter via the SparkleAbbey.com website.

Crimes of Passion

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by Sparkle Abbey


We have a confession. February, the month of love, bring us thoughts of hearts, flowers, and. . . murder.

Over the past few years, with the growing popularity of true crime podcasts, American’s are gobbling up true crime stories like discounted Valentine’s Day chocolates at Walgreens. Who’s not listening to the wildly popular podcast My Favorite Murder? There’s even a Netflix show called, Murderous Affairs — “True crime stories of lovers and spouses driven to kill.”

Obviously, love and murder go well together. Why? Maybe because both involve passion, an emotion so strong it can push someone over the edge. Thriller writer, John Lescroart

once said there are 14 motives for murder, but he summarized them as love, lust, lucre, and loathing.

As a motive for a crime of passion, love and murder are clearly a great match. However, in addition, love also often becomes a part of the storyline for the characters solving the mystery. It’s no accident that popular crime shows often feature a love interest. Love is a common human experience. Almost everyone can relate to it. Love motivates our decision making. In fiction those decisions are mostly bad, which only amp up the tension, keeping us on the edge of our seats.

A lingering glance over a dead body, repressed romantic feelings during a serial killer investigation, a confession of love when two people are convinced they are about to die, only to be denied when both people survive—reasons that keep us watching our favorite shows, episode after episode.

So what do you think? Do you like a serving of love with your mystery? Or would you rather keep the hearts and flowers far away from your crime fiction?


Sparkle Abbey is actually two people, Mary Lee Woods and Anita Carter, who write the national best-selling Pampered Pets cozy mystery series set in Laguna Beach. Their series features former Texas beauty queen cousins, Caro, a pet therapist and, Melinda, a pet boutique owner. The most recent installments (book nine) BARKING WITH THE STARS and  (book ten) THE DOGFATHER continue Caro and Mel’s murder-solving adventures.

The Next Big Thing

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by Sparkle Abbey


Everyone has dreams and aspirations. We certainly have big dreams! But why do some people achieve their dreams and others struggle? We believe it comes down to one word—action. We strongly believe setting goals, creating a plan, and working hard creates success. You’ve probably read a blog or two by us about goal setting. We love goals! They give us a clear picture of what we want and help us map out how to get there.


All of our writer friends know that as 2018 comes to a close, we will kick off 2019 with new goals and an action plan to turn those new Sparkle Abbey dreams into reality. It never takes long for someone to ask us, “What are you working on now?” We love that question for a number of reasons—to test new titles, to talk about the newest Sparkle Abbey project, and to talk about our individual projects.


Game of Scone CoverAh, yes. . . . Individual projects. Maybe you’ve heard that Sparkle, aka Mary Lee, has been diligently working on her own cozy mystery series under the name of Mary Lee Ashford. We are thrilled to announce that book one, Game of Scones, debuted this week!



It’s the first in a new series called the Sugar & Spice mysteries and we think you’ll see some similarities to our Pampered Pets books  – cozy, twisty, and with a dollop of humor. 


The publisher, Kensington Books/Lyrical Press describes it like this: 

As co-owner of Sugar and Spice Cookbooks, Sugar Calloway has seen simple confections bring friends together and spark fiery feuds. Except this time, the recipe truly is to die for . . . 


We hope you’ll check out Game of Scones and celebrate with us the realization of another dream. And as 2018 comes to a close, we wish you much success as you work toward your own goals in 2019. 

Special Pricing!


Also one last piece of fun news: Raiders of the Lost Bark, book eight in our Pampered Pets series is on sale for 99¢ in all eBook formats. 


Amazon Barnes & Noble Kobo iTunes




Sparkle Abbey is the pseudonym of two mystery authors (Mary Lee Woods and Anita Carter). They are friends and neighbors as well as co-writers of the Pampered Pets Mystery Series. The pen name was created by combining the names of their rescue pets–Sparkle (Mary Lee’s cat) and Abbey (Anita’s dog). If you want to make sure you’re up on all the Sparkle Abbey news, stop by their website and sign up for updates at sparkleabbey.com.

Friends and Sidekicks

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by Sparkle Abbey

In life and in fiction, sidekicks and friends are important.

In fiction, authors use sidekicks and friends to give insight about the main character. That insight helps us, as readers, understand more about who that characters is and what makes them tick. While you can know quite a lot about a character through their actions, it’s the friend or sidekick who sometimes provides perspective and/or relief, but always adds dimension to the protagonist.

Whether it’s Watson to Holmes or Jeeves to Bertie Wooster or, if you’re a Hallmark Mysteries fan, Dani to Jennifer (Garage Sale Mysteries), we develop our view of the main character through the eyes of these sidekicks and friends.

In our books, we’ve had some fun with unusual sidekicks. Our readers love Diana Knight, the former star of the silver-screen turned avid pet advocate, who is Caro Lamont, our pet therapist’s, best friend. And we constantly hear from readers of the series who can’t get enough of Betty Foxx, our pet boutique owner, Melinda Langston’s feisty senior sidekick. Betty always adds her own view of things to the story!

Both play some role in solving the mysteries in our books, but they also provide insight into the two cousins’ thinking and their motivations. Something that would be much harder without them, and much less fun. At times they also, much like real-life friends, provide support or keep the cousins accountable.

How about you? Do you have any favorite fictional sidekicks or friends, either books or movies? And, if so, we’d love to hear what you especially like about them.

Sparkle Abbey is the pseudonym of mystery authors Mary Lee Woods and Anita Carter. They’ve chosen to use Sparkle Abbey as their pen name on this series because they liked the idea of combining the names of their two rescue pets – Sparkle (ML’s cat) and Abbey (Anita’s dog).

The Dogfather, book #10 in the series, is just out. Here’s a little bit more about the book:

Who knew the world of designer purses could be such a dog-eat-dog business?


When a local, designer handbags store owner is found dead, the police first believe it’s an unfortunate accident. But the evidence doesn’t lie. Before you can say “wiseguy,” Bow Wow Boutique owner, Melinda Langston’s, former fiancé and undercover FBI agent, Grey Donovan, is the prime suspect.


Now the two are working side-by-side to prove Grey’s innocence— nothing personal, just business. Or is it? Suspects are piling up, family secrets are exposed, and no one is who they appear to be, including Mel’s newest employee. Time’s running out. Mel better sniff out the killer before she and Grey end up sleeping with the fishes.

Also, if you’d like to keep up-to-date on Sparkle Abbey news, stop by the website and sign up for their newsletter.

Highway to Friendship

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By Sparkle Abbey
We love to travel. Whether it’s just the two of us, with our critique group, or with our husbands, we love the adventure that lies ahead.  We’ve traveled together by plane and car. We’ve been to Illinois, New York, California, Washington DC, Michigan (on accident), Missouri, Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Colorado, Florida, and Texas to name just a few states. We’ve hopped in the car for book signings, writing conferences, for personal vacations, and even a couple spur-of-the-moment road trips to work out plot problems.
Not only does our traveling together strengthen our relationship, it strengthens our writing. We’ve explored cozy small towns and bustling metropolitan areas, soaking in the cultures, smells, sounds, and rhythm of the people to color our stories with relatable details and memorable characters inspired by real life.
We’ve brainstormed our best titles on an airplane—Fifty Shades of Greyhound and The Girl with the Dachshund Tattoo. We’ve stuffed 300 individual dog treats into tiny cellophane bags for conference giveaways, created detailed marketing plans, all while jotting down notes on the conversations we’ve “accidentally” overheard during a lunch stop at the Cracker Barrel, (they have the best restrooms). For us, travel inspires creativity and helps us focus. We especially love it when we have those famous “ah-ha moments.”

When traveling with someone for twenty years (yes, that means we started traveling together since we were twelve), you not only can you finish each other’s sentences, but you can communicate an entire conversation with a single look. You know each other’s entire routine before bed, how they like their coffee in the morning, and when they’re ready for morning conversation—no real talking before the first cup of coffee. You each know when the other needs their downtime or just a trip to Starbucks.
Traveling with a best friend, you know you’ll find adventure. Swimming at midnight. Dinner with an Elvis impersonator. A Rod Stewart sighting. Nonstop talking to the point you’ve lost your voices. And best of all, permission to act silly. Never judgment, just someone you trust to join in on the fun!
Now we’re planning to take a cruise together with our husbands. Who knows what mischief we’ll cook up on a ship?  We can’t wait to find out!

What about you? Do you have someone you enjoy traveling with? What do you like about traveling together?

We also have some exciting news to share! Book 10, The Dogfather, will make its debut September 21st!

It’s available now for presale. 
About The Dogfather –
Who knew the world of designer purses could be such a dog-eat-dog business?

When a local, designer handbags store owner is found dead, the police first believe it’s an unfortunate accident. But the evidence doesn’t lie. Before you can say “wiseguy,” Bow Wow Boutique owner, Melinda Langston’s, former fiancé and undercover FBI agent, Grey Donovan, is the prime suspect.

Now the two are working side-by-side to prove Grey’s innocence— nothing personal, just business. Or is it? Suspects are piling up, family secrets are exposed, and no one is who they appear to be, including Mel’s newest employee. Time’s running out. Mel better sniff out the killer before she and Grey end up sleeping with the fishes.

Against the Undertow

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by Bethany Maines

It’s release day for Against the Undertow! I’m so excited to bring this book out into the world. The San Juan Island Murder Mystery Series is a little like Matlock went to the beach. It features a cantankerous ex-CIA agent, Tobias Yearly, and his granddaughter, Tish, as they solve mysteries from their home on Orcas Island in Washington State. It’s funny, it’s romantic and it’s full of twists and turns. This semi-cozy series has been a joy to research (mmm… food research) and write (I <3 my characters) and I hope that all of you enjoy it as much as I have.

You never know what will drag you down.
Former actress Tish Yearly is determined to turn an old Orcas Island homestead into the premier wedding venue in the San Juans Islands of Washington, but money, skill and her grandfather, Tobias Yearly, are all standing in her way. Tobias, the septuagenarian ex-CIA agent, wants them to become private investigators. Tish might be able to ignore her grandfather’s whims, except that her one time love interest and current friend, handsome Sheriff’s Deputy Emmett Nash, was just accused of murdering his ex-wife’s boyfriend. Now Tish and Tobias are on the case, and it should be easy—after all, who could really think Nash was a killer?—but the further they investigate, the more people seem to be threatening her life: the police detective on the case, Nash’s angry ex-wife, his psychotic ex-girlfriend, and a strangely venomous group of hippies. Almost everyone on the island seems determined to stop her. Tish is swimming against the undertow, but it might not be enough to save either Nash or herself.


And this month you can also pick book 1 – An Unseen Current – for ¢.99.

You never know what’s beneath the surface.
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 Mystery Series, Tales From the City of Destiny, San Juan Islands Mysteries, Shark Santoyo Crime Series, and numerous
short stories. 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 her daughter or glued to the computer working on her next novel. You
can also catch up with her on YouTube,
Twitter and Facebook.

Pacing A Page Turner

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by Sparkle Abbey

Over the years, one of the questions we get asked frequently is how to do we keep our pacing so tight? We jokingly like to reply, “We leave out the boring stuff.”

Some people think pace just happens organically. Honestly, we work pretty darn hard on

pacing. For us, pacing is a combination of structure, word choice, tension, action and reaction, cliffhangers, and knowing when to “show” versus “tell.” We work on pace at the very beginning. Although at times, to find the right pace for a scene or chapter, it takes rewriting many times to get it right. We thought we’d share a few techniques we use to control pacing.

STRUCTURE
When we refer to structure, we’re talking about chapters, scenes and sentence length.

Shorter chapters and scenes are quickly read and make the reader feel that the story is moving along quickly. Fragmented sentences, punchy verbs, and snappy dialogue also speed up the pace. But if you have a story of only 800-word scenes, it’s not going to have the urgency you’ve intended, just a story with short chapters. Knowing when to move between longer scenes, where the story builds with important details and descriptions creating the anticipation of what’s going to happen next, allows for the shorter scenes to stand out and move the story along.

WORD CHOICE
Active verbs create action and suspense while painting a clearer picture in the reader’s mind. Harsh consonant sounds such as “crash” or “kill” create more urgency than “bump” or “murder.” By selecting the right words not only will the pace change, but it’s a subtle way for mystery writers misdirect the reader by planting clues toward a suspect.

CLIFFHANGERS
We love cliffhangers! When the end of a scene or chapter is left unresolved or with a greater

disaster than when the scene began, the pace automatically picks up, and the reader has to turn the page to find out what happens next. Just remember, don’t leave your reader hanging for too long!

SHOWING VS. TELLING
Writers hear it all the time, “show don’t tell.” Most of the time it’s true, but there are times when it’s better to tell than to show. “Showing” is a play-by-play, making your readers connect with characters and to become invested in their story. There are some instances where it’s better to condense the details to move the story along.

Each scene requires a different pace. Some need to be quick and urgent while others need to slowly build and give readers a chance to catch their breath. As writers, we strive to write a story with those types of peaks and valleys, and when we do that our readers tell us the book was a page-turner. 


One of the best compliments a writer can receive.




If you’re looking for a summer read, Downton Tabby is only $1.99 on all eBook formats.

Sparkle Abbey is the pseudonym of mystery authors Mary Lee Woods and Anita Carter. They’ve chosen to use Sparkle Abbey as their pen name on this series because they liked the idea of combining the names of their two rescue pets – Sparkle (ML’s cat) and Abbey (Anita’s dog).

They’re Back!

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by Bethany Maines

In 2015 when I wrote An Unseen Current, I had no intention of writing a sequel.  It was a quirky, semi-cozy mystery with a heroine based on an ex-coworker of mine. My friend Jennifer, became Tish Yearly, an ex-actress who returned from the wilds Hollywood and channeled her creative energies into… Marketing? My friend (who I did ask before borrowing her life story) moved on to the next adventure—working at a winery.  (Which, no matter which way you slice it, is WAY better than working for an architecture firm.)  And in my book, Tish gets fired from the architecture firm and is forced to move in with her ex-CIA agent grandfather on Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington State. And of course, murders, mysteries and the zaniness of island life ensues.

I also wrote the book in part as a catharsis for having been let go during the great economic downturn and while I left room for sequels I didn’t think that I would emotionally feel the need.  And then… I had a dream.  I have author friends who have routinely based their works on dreams.  Not me.  I am generally wide awake and noodling about what would happen if I took two weird ideas and mashed them violently together in a fictional soup of deliciousness.  However, in this instance I had a very brief dream about riding a ferry and when I woke up the opening scene of Against the Undertow hit me like a brain wave.  And not just the scene, it arrived with the title!  Or at least the Undertow portion of the title.  I’ve never had an idea arrive quite that way before, but I wish it would happen more often.  I felt like a genius.  Of course, it took me most of a year to figure out the rest of the plot and write the dang thing and that does take the feeling of geniosity down a notch, but still… welcome to the world little sequel.

Against the Undertow is now available for digital pre-order.  Print and digital will be available June 12.  >>PRE-ORDER NOW!<<

Bethany Maines is the author of the Carrie Mae Mystery Series, Tales
From the City of Destiny, San Juan
Islands Mysteries, Shark Santoyo
Crime Series, and numerous short stories. 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 her daughter or glued to the computer working
on her next novel. You can also catch up with her on YouTube,
Twitter and Facebook.

Travel Plans aka Adventures

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by Sparkle Abbey

What’s that saying about the best laid plans? Oh, right…the full quote is “The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” From the Scottish poet, Robert Burns.

It seems that particular quote is often true for us. And especially when it involves travel plans. Or as we like to call them travel adventures.

More times than we can count we’ve had flight delays, road construction delays and bad weather (ice, snow, thunderstorm) delays. Heck, we’ve even had a tumbleweed delay on a flight into Denver. Now, there have been a few times when the travel plans gone awry, were out own fault. We may or may not have missed a turn and ended up in Michigan. Twice.

Has anything like that ever happened to you?

We have, more than once, completely missed mystery conferences or apperances because our rebooking couldn’t get us on-site in time. Not good. So you can understand our trepidation as we booked our flight for the Malice Domestic conference at the end of this month. We love attending Malice Domestic. We love meeting readers, reconnecting with friends and fellow authors, and hanging out with book people. So, we’re thinking positive travel thoughts and hoping for smooth sailing…er…flying.

If you’re planning to be at Malice we look forward to seeing you there. In fact, if you see us at Malice we’re happy to share a cocktail or a coffee and hear some of your travel adventures. Or perhaps you’d like to share here?

Sparkle Abbey is the pseudonym of mystery authors Mary Lee Woods and Anita Carter. They’ve chosen to use Sparkle Abbey as their pen name on this series because they liked the idea of combining the names of their two rescue pets – Sparkle (ML’s cat) and Abbey (Anita’s dog).

The authors co-write the best-selling Pampered Pets Mystery Series which focuses on the wacky world of precious pedigrees, pampered pooches, and secrets in posh Laguna Beach, California. The main characters and amateur sleuths are Texas cousins, Caro Lamont, a pet therapist, and Melinda Langston, a pet boutique owner. The two would join forces and work together if they were speaking, but they’re not.  Midwest Book Review calls the series “A sassy and fun mystery!”

At Malice Domestic this year Sparkle Abbey (aka Anita and Mary Lee) will be on the Murderous Wit panel at 3:00 PM on Saturday along with Paula Gail Benson, Ginger Bolton and Lida Sideris.