Tag Archive for: Lois Winston

Killing It at Killer Nashville

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At the Killer Nashville book signing

By Lois Winston

Most writers are introverts. We spend much of our days alone with only our laptops or computers (or paper and pen for those who are still old-school) and rarely step foot into the real world. We’d rather spend our time in the world of our imagination with the characters we’ve created. However, every now and then, we venture out onto Earth One and mingle with actual humans.

One of the best places to do this is at a writers’ conference. Hanging with our peeps is our happy place in the real world because they’re the only people who truly “get” us. Because they’re just like us. Writers’ conferences are a chance to spend time with others of our special community. We renew friendships, make new friends, network, learn from some, and teach others. Conferences also occasionally give us a pat on the back, validating that this odd life we’ve chosen, with all its solitary hours of clicking away at the keyboard, is worthwhile.

Such was the case this past weekend when I attended Killer Nashville. Once upon a time, I attended three or four writers’ conferences a year. Then, life changed. I made the decision to “go indie” and no longer had a publisher willing to pick up some or all the expense of attending conferences. Between the conference fee, airfare, hotel, and meals, conferences are not cheap. I cut back drastically, only attending local conferences.

And then Covid hit.

As some of you know, in the middle of the pandemic, my husband and I made the difficult decision to pack up and move to Tennessee to be closer to family. Within days of settling into our new home in July of 2021, I discovered that after a two-year hiatus, the annual Killer Nashville writing conference was about to take place less than two miles from where I now live. Serendipity!

With few exceptions, most writers are introverts. Hence, those writer caves. But I missed my writing peeps in New Jersey. Killer Nashville gave me a chance to connect face-to-face with many other writers I only knew from online writing communities. I also made some new friends and have continued to do so each year I’ve attended since 2021.

The 2024 Killer Nashville conference was this past weekend, and it was a blast, even for this confirmed introvert. On Friday, I was on a panel discussing Writing Compelling Synopsis, Back Cover Copy, and Design. Saturday, I was on two panels, One Trait at a Time: How to Build a Character and Not Just One Book: Writing a Series. I was also one of ten authors who allowed attendees to pick our brains for four minutes each during Speed Date your Way to Author Marketing Success. On Sunday, I was on the Creating an Irresistible Hook for Your Book panel and the Writing Strong Protagonists panel.

Vertically challenged Lois and Gay during an after-dinner stop for ice cream

And then there was Saturday night. Author Gay Yellen and I, along with our husbands, went out to dinner, something we’d also done last year. Upon returning to the hotel, our husbands headed for the bar while Gay and I ducked into the awards ceremony. Not ten seconds later, Clay Stafford, MC for the evening and Killer Nashville head honcho, announced the winner of the 2024 Silver Falchion Award for Best Comedy. Much to my surprise, he called my name!

I never expected to win. With few exceptions, throughout my writing career, I’ve always been the bridesmaid, rarely the bride. I hadn’t prepared any remarks because the one time I had attended the ceremony back in 2021, no one made any remarks. Winners were handed their awards, shook Clay’s hand, and a photographer snapped a picture. Maybe it was because we were all still coming out of Covid.

This time, I was expected to say something. My mind still reeling over actually winning, I stepped up to the mic and thanked whoever it was who’d determined that A Crafty Collage of Crime, the twelfth book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series, deserved the award this year. As I walked away, I heard Clay tell the audience that I was a woman of few words and there were probably plenty of people who wished that he was! (a person of few words, that is, not a woman!)

With my Best Comedy medal the next morning

Well, at least I didn’t bore anyone in the audience by droning on and on by thanking everyone, going all the way back to my kindergarten teacher!

Writers, what’s your favorite aspect of conferences? Readers, have you ever attended a readers’ convention or other book event? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free audiobook of any one of the first ten Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website where can also sign up for her newsletter and find links to her other social media: www.loiswinston.com

With a Little Help from my Friends

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artwork from Pixabay and Depositphotos

By Lois Winston

As authors, we spend much of our days in our writer caves. Sometimes, we rarely leave the house for days as we peck away at the keyboard, increasing our word count. Living life in a vacuum is hard, though. Sometimes we need to bounce ideas off someone, and let’s face it, kids and spouses are rarely helpful when it comes to figuring out the perfect murder or choosing whodunit from several possibly suspects. That’s why critique partners, as well as writing communities, are so important. Often, they’re the only people who truly “get” us.

My latest book, Sorry, Knot Sorry, the thirteenth in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, released earlier this month. In-between a month-long virtual book tour, I’ve been mulling over possible plots for the next book in the series.

I’ve always had a weird fascination with unusual personalities and often put them in my books. Anastasia’s communist mother-in-law is a perfect example. She’s based on my own communist mother-in-law, minus the French bulldog.

Years ago, we had some very strange neighbors living across the street from us. They’ve been parked in a recess of my brain for two-and-a-half decades, waiting to spring forth as characters in a book. I wondered, though, were they too over-the-top?

I decided this was a question, not for my critique partner nor my fellow writers. I needed to hear from my readers. So, in my May newsletter, I introduced them to the couple I had dubbed The Stoop Sitters. After relating the story, I asked if they thought The Stoop Sitters should become characters in my next book.

Everyone who responded loved the idea. I don’t know yet who these characters will be, but based on the overwhelmingly favorable responses I received, they will show up in some way in the next book.

I had already set up the possibility of The Stoop Sitters back in A Stitch to Die For, the fifth book in the series. Circumstances which occurred in that book resulted in the house across the street from Anastasia being torn down and replaced with a McMansion. Since Anastasia has yet to meet her new neighbors, they could be The Stoop Sitters.

Have I piqued your curiosity? Are you dying to know more about The Stoop Sitters?

When my husband and I purchased a home in an upscale New Jersey suburb, the house across the street stood out for all the wrong reasons. It was a dilapidated mess in need of major repairs. We suspected the resident or residents were elderly with a limited income. Much to our surprise, we discovered the owners were a couple in their late thirties or early forties. They had two school-aged kids.

The parents didn’t seem to have jobs. They’d camp out on the top step of their small concrete landing for hours at a time, either together or individually. Just sitting and smoking and often drinking beer, but never conversing with each other. Often the husband would remove his shirt and lie back on the landing, his massive stomach pointing heavenward. He’d remain that way for hours, apparently napping.

When Mr. Stoop Sitter wasn’t sprawled bare-chested on the landing, he’d spend hours mowing his lawn, an extremely small barren patch of packed dirt and weeds. For hours, he’d walk behind his mower, trimming the nonexistent grass, until the mower ran out of gas. The next day, after refilling the mower, the scene would repeat. It continued each day throughout the year, except during rain and snowstorms.

I need to stop here to mention that I’m not a voyeur. My home office was situated at the front of the house with my desk positioned under the front window. It was impossible not to notice The Stoop Sitters.

One day, my concentration was broken by a cat fight between two women. I glanced up from my computer screen to find Mrs. Stoop Sitter standing on the sidewalk, accusing another woman of trying to steal her husband. The scene was right out of Real Housewives of New Jersey, minus the camera crew. Eventually, Mrs. Stoop Sitter hurled one last warning, stormed up the steps, and entered her house, slamming the door behind her. The other woman turned and walked down the street. I never saw her again.

Now, Mr. Stoop Sitter was no one’s idea of a catch, but the scene I’d witnessed proved otherwise. Obviously, there’s someone for everyone. At least in Mrs. Stoop Sitter’s mind.

Eventually, the Stoop Sitters sold their house to a developer who tore it down and built a McMansion. There’s a story to be told about the people who moved into the McMansion, but I’ll save that for another time.

So what do you think? If my readers can suspend their disbelief enough to accept a communist mother-in-law and a Shakespeare-quoting parrot (not to mention a reluctant amateur sleuth who stumbles across more dead bodies than the average big city homicide cop in an entire career,) will they buy into the Stoop Sitters?

Would you? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free audiobook download of any of the currently available Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website where can also sign up for her newsletter and find links to her other social media: www.loiswinston.com

The Times They Are a’Changing

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By Lois Winston

I don’t like change. I much prefer the security and comfort of habit. I’m not the kind of person who climbs a mountain just because it’s there. I need a reason to step out of my comfort zone, lace up my hiking boots, and ascend into the unknown. When I’m confronted with the need to change, I first spend time soul-searching and deliberating.

Unfortunately, the publishing industry has been fraught with change for quite some time now. Gone are the days when an author had a home for life, and the people she worked with at the publishing house became like a second family to her. These days there’s a lot of divorce going on in publishing. More and more authors are being dropped because their sales aren’t strong enough. Or authors decide for various reasons that they need to leave their publishers. Both situations are very scary for the author. No matter which party institutes the divorce proceedings, fear of the unknown can overwhelm an author.

Twelve years ago, I realized I needed to institute a change in my life. I didn’t want to, but after several long months of soul-searching, I knew it was time to climb the mountain. I laced up those hiking boots and walked away from two new publishing contracts—one for additional books in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series and one for a new series, the Empty Nest Mysteries.

Was I terrified? You bet! Being published by a traditional publishing house is the Holy Grail to all aspiring authors. Or it used to be. Times have changed. Self-publishing, now often referred to as indie publishing, no longer has the stigma it once did because authors are in control, not questionable vanity presses.

Rather than sign with one of the small publishers interested in continuing my series, I went indie. I continued writing the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, adding a series of three connected mini-mysteries. I also published the Empty Nest Mysteries and several standalone mystery novellas. I reissued my backlist and published some unsold romances and romantic suspense novels.

Would I regret my decision? After all, not only had I given up the “legitimacy” of traditional publishing, but I’d also given up some decent advance money. There were nights I tossed and turned, wondering if I’d made the biggest mistake of my life by going indie, especially when I didn’t see the huge numbers of sales that other indie authors claimed to have.

Was it because I didn’t write super-sexy books with shirtless studs? Or was there some other reason? My traditionally published books had received stellar reviews, including starred reviews from Publishers Weeklyand Booklist for my mystery series. I’d also won quite a few awards for my fiction. Why weren’t my indie books selling better?

One mantra I kept repeating was something I’d heard from other authors: It’s not a sprint; it’s a marathon. It was hard to convince myself since I seemed to be limping along, not sprinting. But eventually I saw that they were right. It took some time, but since publishing my first indie book, I’ve seen steady growth in sales. Can I support myself on what I’m making? Heck, no! But then again, I couldn’t support myself on what I made from traditional publishing.

However, as time has passed, I’ve become more comfortable with my decision. There’s much to be said about having total control over your writing career. What I’ve also discovered is that readers don’t really care who publishes you. Authors might constantly ask other authors, “Who’s your publisher?” but readers are only interested in good books. They don’t know PRH from Level Best. Mention “the Big Five,” and they’ll most likely think you’re talking about a college basketball conference.

Meanwhile, Sorry, Knot Sorry, the thirteenth book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series, is currently on preorder and releases June 4th. For those of you familiar with Anastasia, I hope you enjoy her latest adventure. For those of you who haven’t gotten to know her yet, I hope you will.

Sorry, Knot Sorry

An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery, Book 13

Magazine crafts editor Anastasia Pollack may finally be able to pay off the remaining debt she found herself saddled with when her duplicitous first husband dropped dead in a Las Vegas casino. But as Anastasia has discovered, nothing in her life is ever straightforward. Strings are always attached. Thanks to the success of an unauthorized true crime podcast, a television production company wants to option her life—warts and all—as a reluctant amateur sleuth.

Is such exposure worth a clean financial slate? Anastasia isn’t sure, but at the same time, rumors are flying about layoffs at the office. Whether she wants national exposure or not, Anastasia may be forced to sign on the dotted line to keep from standing in the unemployment line. But the dead bodies keep coming, and they’re not in the script.

Craft tips included.

Buy Links (preorder now. Available June 4th)

Amazon

Kobo

Nook

Apple Books

Paperback and Hardcover editions available after June 4th.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website where can also sign up for her newsletter and find links to her other social media: www.loiswinston.com

Taste in Reading is like Cherry Garcia vs. Peanut Butter Swirl

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images from Pixabay

I’ve been thinking quite a bit lately about how subjective taste is. What makes one person love something that another person has a hard time swallowing, let alone enjoying? The other night my husband and I sat down to watch a movie. After fifteen minutes he left the room to watch a hockey game on another television. I continued to watch the movie. It wasn’t the best movie I’d ever seen, but it wasn’t the worst, either. I found the character studies fascinating, even if the plot left a bit to be desired. And I enjoyed the movie enough to want to sit through it until the end to see how the conflicts were resolved.

Sometimes that happens to me with a book. I’ll continue reading one I don’t particularly love because I either a) find enough enjoyable about it that I want to finish it, b) am hoping it gets better, or c) am hoping that even though I figured out whodunit by chapter three, the author will prove me wrong and give me a totally different ending I didn’t see coming (and man, when that happens, I love it!)

But there are other times when I pick up a book and toss it aside after a chapter or two. Often, it’s a book that has gotten rave reviews. Sometimes it’s even a book by an author I’ve read and enjoyed previously. When this happens, one of two reactions occur. I either a) wonder if there’s something wrong with me that I don’t get what everyone else sees in the book, or b) scratch my head, wondering why everyone else can’t see the flaws in plot and character that jump off the page at me.

Then there are times where I fall in love with a book and recommend it to friends, only to have them question my taste. Or worse yet, my sanity.

For many people Peanut Butter Swirl is the perfect ice cream flavor. For me, anything with peanut butter  sets off my gag reflexes. I’m more a Cherry Garcia kind of girl. Taste. It’s one of the unsolved mysteries of the universe.

Why do you suppose that is? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free audiobook download of one of the first nine books in the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website www.loiswinston.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter and follow her on various social media sites.

Lucky Number Thirteen?

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photo from Pixabay

By Lois Winston

Triskaidekaphobia is defined as the fear or avoidance of the number thirteen. There are some people so paranoid about the number that they won’t live on the thirteenth floor of a building. Many hotels completely skip the thirteenth floor, going from the twelfth to the fourteenth because people will often refuse to stay in a room on the thirteenth floor.

I was born on the thirteenth. Maybe that’s why I’m not a superstitious person. I’d hate to go through life thinking my entire existence has been cursed ever since I couldn’t hold out another twenty minutes before making my way down the birth canal.

Truthfully, I’ve never given much thought to the so-called unlucky number. I also don’t avoid black cats, knock on wood, or toss spilled salt over my shoulder. However, I’ve been thinking a good deal about whether I should worry because my upcoming new release is the thirteenth book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series. Sorry, Knot Sorry is currently on preorder and will release June 4th. Suddenly, I’m keeping my fingers crossed (LOL!) that none of my readers suffer from Triskaidekaphobia.

The origin of the unlucky thirteen is often traced to both Christianity and Norse mythology. At the Last Supper on Good Friday, Judas Iscariot, the apostle who betrayed Jesus, was the thirteenth guest to arrive. Likewise, the god Loki was the thirteenth guest at the feast of Valhalla. After arriving, he tricked another guest into killing the god Baldur.

However, in some cultures, the number thirteen is considered lucky. Prior to World War I, thirteen was considered a lucky number in France. The numeral was a good luck symbol often found on postcards and charms. Thirteen is also considered lucky in Italy where it’s thought to bring prosperity and good fortune, especially when it comes to gambling. The same is true in Spain. In Egypt, it’s associated with prosperity and blessings.

Although many countries have a negative reaction to the number thirteen, quite a few have mixed feelings about it, and many simply view the number as ordinary and free of any superstition.

What about you? Are you superstitious? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free audiobook download of any one of the first nine Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries.

 

Sorry, Knot Sorry (preorder now, on sale 6/4)

An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery, Book 13

Magazine crafts editor Anastasia Pollack may finally be able to pay off the remaining debt she found herself saddled with when her duplicitous first husband dropped dead in a Las Vegas casino. But as Anastasia has discovered, nothing in her life is ever straightforward. Strings are attached. Thanks to the success of an unauthorized true crime podcast, a television production company wants to option her life—warts and all—as a reluctant amateur sleuth.

Is such exposure worth a clean financial slate? Anastasia isn’t sure, but at the same time, rumors are flying about layoffs at the office. Whether she wants national exposure or not, Anastasia may be forced to sign on the dotted line to keep from standing in the unemployment line. But the dead bodies keep coming, and they’re not in the script.

Craft tips included.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website www.loiswinston.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter and follow her on various social media sites.

In Praise of Critique Partners

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The other day, I had reached a point in my current manuscript, the 13th book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series, that had me stymied. I was more than two-thirds toward writing “The End.” I knew that I was at the point where I needed to return to one of the red herring threads that I’d left dangling in a much earlier chapter. I also knew what I wanted to have happen and to whom it should happen, but I found I was trying to shove the proverbial square peg into the round hole. No matter what I tried, the scene just wasn’t working.

I pondered the situation for two full days and two sleepless nights of tossing and turning. The solution refused to come to me. I finally texted my critique partner: You have time to brainstorm?

A few minutes later, we were on the phone. I told her my idea, which she thought was fantastic, and the problem I was having executing that idea. She began to offer some suggestions.

That’s what a great critique partner will do. Her suggestions stimulated my brain cells, and we began to bounce ideas back and forth.

“What about….?”

“Yes, but then….”

“Well, what if…?”

“Okay, I can work with that, but then….”

“Hmm…I see where you’re going. So….”

“Hadn’t thought of that. Maybe….”

The conversation went back and forth for about twenty minutes. My brain filled with possibilities, and eventually, the perfect solution began to take shape.

That’s the wonderful thing about a great critique partner. Instead of telling you how she’d fix the problem, she looks at the problem through your eyes and coaxes you into seeing the situation from a different perspective. She doesn’t force her writing style on you but forces you to look outside the box and embrace other possibilities.

In the end, because of that brainstorming session, I stopped trying to shove that square peg into the round hole. Instead, with her help, I discovered the perfect square hole for my peg.

I owe you one, Donnell!

If you’re a reader, do you enjoy learning behind-the-scenes insights about the authors you read? If you’re a writer, do you have a critique partner or group you rely on for honest critiques of your work? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free audiobook download of A Sew Deadly Cruise, the ninth book in the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website www.loiswinston.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter and follow her on various social media sites.

Fearless Creating: AKA Develop a Stubborn Streak

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By Donnell Ann Bell

It never fails. I can be talking to friend Lois Winston via phone, topics ranging from world events to some mundane ailment we’re experiencing. Then always. . . always before we hang up, the next 15 minutes segue into critique partner Lois Winston.  This is the point in which we discuss writing and what we’ve learned or experienced over twenty-plus years.

Let’s face it, publishing has exploded since the early 2000s from the statement that e-publishing isn’t a legitimate form of publishing to printing and mailing off our synopses and manuscripts, then waiting and waiting and hoping for “The Call.”

In this morning’s phone conversation, Lois and I discussed my hack (more on that in upcoming posts – the saga is interesting and educational, I promise you) and why Lois, a traditionally published author turned indy author and marketing guru will likely never be on social media or hire a personal assistant.  As I listened to her very valid points not to enter this realm, I thought why should she? She does everything from writing, to hiring a narrator for her audio books, to designing and selling Anastasia Pollack merchandise herself! The woman is a machine!

Today’s phone call had us laughing, and somehow morphed into the importance of trusting our instincts. These instincts often lay dormant in the beginning of our careers because we haven’t yet learned or challenged the craft of writing. Further, so many experts (and many who think they are) stand ready to expound on how they do it.

One of the things I believe in is Fearless Creating. Am I suggesting never to take advice? Absolutely not. But what’s the point of writing if we don’t stay true to our vision, enjoy the process while we’re creating, and see what our imaginations and brains can come up with first?

I’ve witnessed authors taking a fine piece of writing, albeit a draft, in which the whole room applauded. An agent in the room requested a full. Later, when I saw  the piece again, I hardly recognized it.  Why did you change it, I asked. Oh, X had a problem with this. Y said it was too long, too short, the characters flat. Z suggested I write it this way.

This way is another person’s vision that usurps the creator. Doubt has a terrible way of worming into an author’s psyche from the moment we open a blank page. Further, there are so many outside forces these days willing to help us with our writing.

Author Sylvia Rochester

I had a dear friend who painted as well as wrote books.  Author and Artist Sylvia Rochester, who passed in 2022, had a wonderful saying. It’s one I think about when I’m writing, tweak my work, screw it up, and can’t get it back again. “The First Stroke is the Freshest.”

If you think you have something brilliant but can make it better, I suggest keeping a draft file. That way you can compare the two later. How often do you write something in the evening, think this is garbage and delete it? Putting the text in a draft file, come morning, you may see things differently.  I know I have. 

I call myself an experienced writer who still has much to learn. I enjoy critiquing with Lois and often do beta reads for other writers. Rarely do I suggest an author change an entire plot, or worse, try to “rewrite” it for them. It’s their story, their voice. I believe there should be a Hippocratic oath for Authors – Help but “Do no Harm.”

When I read, I focus on pacing, goal, motivation, and conflict. Do I like the author’s voice, and can I relate to the characters? I believe in critique partners and the oh-so-valuable-editor. Through it all, though, I’m grateful my muse is a formidable force. I’m also blessed with a stubborn streak.

What about you? Agree/disagree?

About the Author:  Donnell Ann Bell writes both romantic suspense and multi-jurisdictional task force plots, keeping close tabs on her theme SUSPENSE TOO CLOSE TO HOME. Her single-title romantic suspense novels, The Past Came Hunting, Deadly Recall, Betrayed, and Buried Agendas, have all been Amazon e-book best sellers.

Traditionally published with Belle Books/Bell Bridge Books, Black Pearl, a Cold Case Suspense was her first mainstream suspense and book one of a series, and a Colorado Book Award finalist. Her second book in the series, Until Dead, A Cold Case Suspense, released in May of 2022 was voted best thriller in 2023 at the Imaginarium Celebration Conference in Louisville, Kentucky.  Follow her on social media, sign up for her newsletter or follow her blog at https://www.donnellannbell.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Whack-a-Mole Method of Writing

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By Lois Winston

Every author has her own process. What works for one of us doesn’t work for all of us. Some authors are diehard plotters who create extensive outlines before ever committing that first sentence to paper (or in most cases, to keyboard.) Some are known as “pantsers,” authors who write by the seat of their pants, having no more than a vague idea before they place butt in chair and begin pounding out the words.

Some authors set a deadline for each day, whether it’s the amount of time they’ll spend writing or the number of words they’ll write each day. I’ve read about some bestselling, household names who often stop mid-sentence when they reach their day’s word count, or the timer goes off. Other authors will keep writing each day until either their fingers cramp up, their eyes start watering, or their family demands dinner. Often all three.

I’m none of the above. I’m a hybrid—half “pantser” and half whack-a-mole writer. I write in fits and starts. I suppose you could call it the bipolar method of writing. I’m not bipolar, but my writing method certainly is.

The “pantser” part of me comes up with a vague idea for a story. I’ll jot a few sentences or maybe a paragraph or two, which often becomes the basis for back cover copy. But then I give my muse free rein. And that’s where the whack-a-mole writing comes in. Sometimes my muse is extremely cooperative, and my fingers fly across the keyboard for days and days. My word count grows at a frenetic pace. Then, for no apparent reason, the muse deserts me, and I reach a part in the story where I can’t figure out what comes next.

I wrack my brain. I lie awake at night, brainstorming with myself. One night becomes two, then three, then a week. I’m exhausted from lack of sleep, which only makes the situation worse. I spend hours at a time staring at a blinking cursor, waiting for my brain to send a signal to my fingers. I wait and wait and wait.

I check in with my critique partner who offers various suggestions, some with possibilities but none that feel exactly right. I go back and read what I’ve previously written, hoping inspiration will strike, but all I do is wind up tweaking here and there, choosing a more descriptive word, rearranging the sentences in a paragraph. Wasting time.

And then suddenly, my muse returns with a fully formed idea for what happens next. Once again, my fingers fly across the keyboard, my word count soaring.

Until the next time when the pattern repeats itself. Wack-a-mole writing. Love it or hate it, it’s my process, and I’m stuck with it.

~*~

USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website www.loiswinston.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter and follow her on various social media sites.

Ridding the World of Word Clutter, One Description at a Time

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By Lois Winston

I’ve recently had several requests from authors and publishers to write blurbs for soon-to-be-published books. In addition, I’m currently judging a writing contest for recently published novels. Although all mysteries, these books run the gamut of various sub-genres within mystery, everything from cozies to suspense. Disturbingly, I’m seeing one issue that crops up in many of them: over-writing.

Many years ago, the agent who owned the agency that represented me gave me the best writing advise I’ve ever received. He said that every scene and all dialog in a book must do one of two things—either advance the plot or tell the reader something she needs to know about the POV character AT THAT MOMENT. If the scene or dialog does neither, it’s filler and doesn’t belong in your book.

Filler usually manifests in dialog as chit-chat. In narrative, the culprit is often description. Excessive description is the downfall of many of the books I’m reading. Description done well enhances a story. It gives the reader a deeper understanding of the character and the world she inhabits. However, when not done well, description pulls the reader from the story and drags down pacing. No one wants to read a mystery, suspense, or thriller with pacing that induces sleep, but that’s what I’m finding in too many of these books.

Some authors are of the misguided notion that they need to describe all characters from head to toe every time they appear in a scene. They also believe they need to describe every aspect of the setting, from the color of the curtains on the windows to the knickknacks on the shelves. A well-written book only describes that which is pertinent to the character and the scene.

Adjusting your thinking to view filler as word clutter, enables you to adopt a Marie Kondo attitude toward your writing. Doing so will not only aid your pacing but will allow the words that remain to have greater impact.

Here’s an example I’ve used when giving writing workshops. The following is a paragraph describing a fictitious character:

Joe wore a threadbare navy blue and forest green plaid flannel shirt. Two of the buttons were missing, and one was hanging from a loose thread. His legs were encased in bleach-stained black jeans, torn in some places, patched in others. I glanced down at his feet. The cuffs of his jeans were frayed, and his big toe peeked out from a hole in the top of his scuffed and dirt-caked tan work boots. A ratty, stained camouflage ball cap sat sideways on a head.

And this is a one-sentence description of that character that says the same thing in only five words:

Joe wore Salvation Army rejects.

There is no reason to use eighty-two words to describe something that can be described in five—not to mention, described better. Unless there is something about Joe’s clothing that will have an impact on the plot or one of the other characters, the reader doesn’t need to be pulled from the story by having to focus on such minute details. Less is more.

Do you have a pet peeve about books you’ve been reading lately? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free audiobook of Handmade Ho-Ho Homicide, the eighth book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries.

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USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website www.loiswinston.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter and follow her on various social media sites.

RIP, Mac

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By Lois Winston

Sometimes, there are no warning signs, no odd symptoms that crop up which would make us suspect something is not quite right. Such was not the case with Mac. Nothing made me question his health, nothing that would lead me to seek out the services of an expert. One moment, he was fine; the next he wasn’t. Worse yet, he failed to respond to all my efforts to make him well.

This all happened three weeks ago. Mac and I had been in a deeply committed relationship for ten years. I wasn’t ready to let him go. So I picked up the phone and scheduled an appointment for a full diagnostic workup. Surely, whatever the problem, something would make him better.

After arriving, I was asked about his prior symptoms. When I said he’d had none, the diagnostician showed surprise. She rattled off a series of the usual suspects, to which I answered in the negative for each one. She shook her head in disbelief. I suspect she thought I was too ignorant to recognize obvious signs of impending illness. I ignored her condescension. I needed her expertise to heal Mac.

When I asked what she thought might be the problem, she offered possible afflictions, some with remedies but others that were fatal. I crossed my fingers as she spent the next hour and a half performing a litany of tests to determine why Mac had suddenly become comatose.

The test results confirmed my worst fears. Mac had suffered a catastrophic failure. Both his hard drive and battery were dead.

I think the ratio of computer years to human years must be greater than that of dog years to human years. However, even if it’s the same, that would have made Mac seventy years old. Ancient as far as my millennial diagnostician was concerned, but I’m at the stage of my life where I no longer consider seventy old. Still, I suppose ten years is considered ancient for a computer, even one as stalwart as Mac had been.

Mac had served me well. During our time together, we’d written nine novels, five novellas, several short stories, one nonfiction book, and countless blog posts. We’d edited two multi-author promotional charity cookbooks and two multi-author box sets.

However, it was time to lay Mac to rest, sending him off to the big Apple in the sky. RIP, Mac. But really, after all we’ve been through together, he couldn’t have died a day earlier before the weekend state sales tax holiday ended?

Scrapbook of Murder, the sixth book in my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series, is now available as an audiobook. Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free download.

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USA Today and Amazon bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry. Learn more about Lois and her books at her website www.loiswinston.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter and follow her on various social media sites.