Tag Archive for: Paula Gail Benson

American Legion Oratorical Competition

 by Paula Gail Benson

A few
years ago, a friend in the leadership of a local American Legion Post asked if
I would be a judge for its oratorical contest. I hadn’t previously heard about
this competition.

I knew
about the Boys State and Girls State programs the American Legion operated each
year, giving high school students a chance to learn about the branches of
government by becoming part of the process. In the past, these summer events
have taken place at our Statehouse where I work. I’ve found it inspiring to see
the young participants walking through the halls, making plans about proposed
legislation, and offering for mock elective positions. Hopefully, their experience
will encourage them to consider future participation in federal or state government.
Remember how President Clinton’s campaign proudly used his Boys State photo
visiting the White House and shaking President Kennedy’s hand?

Similarly,
since 1938, the American Legion’s oratorical contest has offered high school
students the opportunity to learn about the United States Constitution by
studying and preparing to speak about its provisions. Each year, the
American Legion website lists the
selected subject matters for the competition’s focus. Students must present one
timed prepared speech without help aids. In the second round, they draw a topic
from a container and make an extemporaneous talk.

By
participating in the contest and placing in local, state, regional, and
national levels, students win scholarships. The year I participated as a judge,
we had only one student. We listened to her presentations so we could offer
suggestions for improvements as she moved on to the next levels in the
competition. She was phenomenal in the information she had compiled and her
poise in delivery. I was delighted to get to know her.

Since I
served as a judge, Heidi Schrek wrote and performed in a Broadway production
called
What the Constitution Means to Me. The show was based on Heidi’s
own experiences going from one American Legion oratorical contest to another,
winning sufficient scholarships to pay her way through college. It ran both off
and on Broadway, winning the Obie award, being nominated for the Tony award,
and being a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

In the show,
Heidi channeled her teenaged-self participating in the oratorical contest. She
dynamically expressed constitutional principles by making
analogies to her own life. Midway through, she stepped away from the structure of
the contest to provide more detail about her personal and family situation, giving
additional insight into how the rights and privileges guaranteed by the
Constitution influenced the quality of her life. The show’s final portion had Heidi debate a high school student on the question: “Should the Constitution be
Abolished?” Each night, the debate was staged anew with the audience encouraged
to express its opinion (cheers or boos) about what it heard and, in the end,
vote which side won.

One of the
Broadway performances was recorded for a wider audience viewing. In addition, the
written play will be released on December 1, 2020. It’s particularly fitting
for this time of year as we consider and are thankful for our history and all
that has offers us.

In the performance, Heidi mentions the book she
used to prepare her oratorical presentations: Your Rugged Constitution
by Bruce Allyn Findlay and Esther Blair Findlay (Stanford University Press,
1952). I found a used copy of the volume and ordered it. While it does not
contain the most recent amendments, it remains a strong statement about the
“living” document that is the basis for our laws.


Luci H. Zahray, The Poison Lady

by Paula Gail Benson

On Saturday, the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime was
delighted to welcome as its guest Luci H. Zahray, well known to Malice Domestic
attendees as “the Poison Lady.” Luci, who has a Masters degree in Toxicology
from Texas A&M, first came to Malice as a fan, but when she heard writers
asking how they might dispatch victims with poisons, she offered answers and
quickly became the source to be consulted. She has some interesting tales about
traveling with her poison “toy box” through airport security.

This year, Luci has been able to spread her excellent
information through virtual meetings. During her time with Palmetto Chapter,
she focused on household toxins such as methanol, tobacco, hand sanitizer, and
anti-freeze. The amazing part of her information was how little of a substance was
needed to produce blindness, illness, or death. She calculated based on how the
substance would affect a 170 pound man and referred to the amount as LD 50
(lethal dose 50%).

Here’s
a
link
to where she visited The Stiletto Gang on September 11, 2009. Gloria Alden’s
summary
of a Malice Domestic meeting (found in Writers Who Kill) indicated that Luci’s
topic that year had been lead. For another Writers Who Kill
post,
Edith Maxwell mentions hearing Luci talk about using liquid nicotine, rosary
peas, Tylenol, and alcohol as poisons.

If you have an interest in poisons, you won’t want to miss one of Luci’s presentations.

 

Elaine Viets and the Art of the Short Story

 by Paula Gail Benson

Photo: Elaine Viets from Type M For Murder Blogger

Murder on the Beach Mystery Bookstore, located in Delray Beach, Florida, has been offering an excellent series of online Zoom workshops called the FL Authors Academy. Over the past few months, the store has featured such terrific writers and teachers as John Dufresne (storytelling), Debra H. Goldstein (conflict), Reed Farrel Coleman (character), and Charles Todd (point of view). The series is very economical and sometimes provides a copy of the author’s work.

Recently, as part of the FL Authors Academy, Elaine Viets presented a program about writing the mystery short story. Author of four series of mystery novels ranging from dark to cozy to humorous, Elaine has won the Agatha Award for her short story “The Wedding Knife,” featured in her 2018 short story collection Deal with the Devil published by Crippen & Landru.

Elaine’s presentation offered great advice for moving forward with a stalled story (think small/more than four characters may be too many) as well as advice about what editors want: (1) a fresh voice, (2) an unusual location, (3) offbeat characters, and (4) an appealing opening. She provided online references and a list of publishing venues.

In particular, I want to try one suggestion Elaine offered. She said, if you’re having trouble getting your story on paper, try telling it to someone. Stories originated as tales told around campfires. Sometimes, telling a story frees the author to locate the true focus and theme the author wants to convey.

That might work for longer stories, too.

 

Meeting Yasmin McClinton: Winner of the Eleanor Taylor Bland Award

Yasmin McClinton

by Paula Gail Benson

Each year, Sisters in Crime presents the Eleanor Taylor Bland grant to assist an emerging writer of color in that writer’s continuing journey.

Born in Boston on December 31, 1944, Eleanor Taylor Bland spent a good portion of her life in Chicago where her husband served in the military. Bland wrote a series of novels about Marti MacAlister, an African American police detective whose big city methods clash with those of her partner Polish-American Vik Jessenovik when she transfers from Chicago to a small town police force. The Wikipedia biography about Ms. Bland quotes Ms. Bland as saying that “the most significant contribution that [African American women writers] have made, collectively, to mystery fiction is the development of the extended family; the permanence of spouses and significant others, most of whom don’t die in the first three chapters; children who are complex, wanted and loved; and even pets.”

On Saturday, September 19, 2020, the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime was pleased to welcome the 2020 Eleanor Taylor Bland award winner, Yasmin McClinton, as a guest speaker and new member of the chapter. Readers and authors from England, Canada, New York, and California joined the chapter for the Zoom presentation. In particular, it was lovely to have Frankie Bailey in attendance. Frankie worked to establish the Eleanor Taylor Bland award when she served as President of Sisters in Crime.

Yasmin McClinton grew up in Virginia and began writing as an only child, whose companionship was from reading. She came to South Carolina as a military spouse. Following a divorce, she and her two daughters remained in Columbia to make a new start. She has since remarried and has two step-sons.

Throughout her life, she has continued to write. Her first novel was the story of four friends. Her second was a thriller based on background she learned from her parents who are immigrants. She said an agent asked why her thriller’s protagonist didn’t smile more, making her realize that agent was not the person to represent her. Our group agreed Lee Child probably did not field questions about Jack Reacher smiling more.

At the end of her presentation, Yasmin was asked what advice she would give to writers. She said to never give up, even if you feel as if you can’t go farther, try one more time. She said, that was where she was when she applied for the Bland award.

In the Sisters in Crime press release, Yasmin was quoted as saying, “Authors like Ms. Bland show me that women of color–writers of color–can be authors in any genre they want and really bridge gaps. I shared with my daughters that I won this award. My daughters have been through the hardest times of my life. And I wanted to show them that their overly protective, annoying mom has dreams from her childhood coming true, even today. And, she can be chosen for prestigious awards like the Sisters in Crime Eleanor Taylor Bland award. So, Girls, no giving up. Ever!”

Congratulations, Yasmin! We’re looking forward to reading your novels!   

A Writer’s Weekend

 by
Paula Gail Benson

Sometimes
you have to dedicate time to your writing craft. In pre-Covid-19 days, that was
accomplished at writers’ conferences. You spend some time listening to master
classes and panels, then you learn what’s going on in the business by talking
with fellow writers in the hall and bar.

Now
that travel and in person gatherings are extremely limited, how do you
recapture the experience and energizing effects of a writing conference?

Fortunately,
virtual meetings have become the norm. By scheduling carefully, you can
piece together the perfect writing retreat. Just be sure to build in some
breaks so that you don’t exhaust yourself.

On
August 7 through 9, I stayed at a local Airbnb (more on that in tomorrow’s
WWK ) and set up to spend a day virtually with writing buds. I started with
Murder on the Beach’s presentation of John Dufresne’s “How to Write a Story.”
For $35.00, you got the program, plus the bookstore sent you Dufresne’s
Storyville without shipping charges. I
found both to be extremely helpful and inspiring. The book is one to read brief
passages from each day to keep the encouragement going.

The following week, I attended Debra H. Goldstein’s excellent program on writing conflict. John and Debra’s events were part of what Murder on the Beach calls Florida Authors Academy Workshops. Future events are listed at this link. It’s a great and very economical series.

Next,
I attended the Triangle Chapter of SinC program to hear Lori Rader-Day talk
about “Turning an Idea into a Novel.” She spoke about her own journey in
writing
The Lucky One and shared some
of her experiences in writing her current work in progress, a mystery based on
Agatha Christie housing children refugees during World War II.

Here’s a link to Triangle Sisters Website.

At the end of the
day, I joined the business meeting of Sacramento’s Capitol Crimes Chapter of
SinC. Hearing about how that chapter is regrouping and planning for the future
gave me ideas to suggest for our local chapter. Here’s a way to access the future events planned by Capitol Crimes. It has some great upcoming speakers.

What virtual programs have you been watching during the pandemic?

Short Story Update

by Paula Gail Benson

The Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime and the Southeast Chapter of Mystery Writers of America were delighted with the response to Mystery in the Midlands. We started off with a terrific panel on short stories featuring John Floyd, Tara Laskowski, and Art Taylor. Among them, those talented writers have been nominated and are recipients of the Agatha, Anthony, Derringer, Edgar, Macavity, and Thriller for their short stories. All of them have been involved with editing anthologies and preparing collections of their own work.

Listeners had many questions for this panel and links were left in the chat line to a number of excellent sources for short story writers.

Clockwise from upper right: Dana Kaye, Moderator, John Floyd, Tara Laskowski, and Art Taylor
The Short Story Panel from Mystery in the Midlands
Photo by Kathryn Prater Bomey, shared by Tara Laskowski

 A number of folks have asked to see a replay of the session. Here’s the link where you can access the entire program from Mystery in the Midlands:

Coming up in August is another great event for short story writers. Agatha winner Gigi Pandian is presenting “The Art and History of Locked Room Mysteries,” on Saturday, August 15 from 1:00 to 3:00 PM Pacific Time for the Sacramento-based Capitol Crimes Chapter of Sisters in Crime. Here’s the link to register:
Gigi Pandian

I hope you’ll be able to access these programs and enjoy!

Mystery in the Midlands ONLINE and FREE!!!! Saturday, July 25, 2020

by Paula Gail Benson

For the last two years, the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime and the Southeast Chapter of Mystery Writers of America have sponsored a mid-summer conference for readers and writers in “famously hot” Columbia, S.C. While we had to cancel our in person gathering due to Covid 19, our third venture as an online conference, to be held on Saturday, July 25, 2020, looks to be a charm with a terrifically HOT lineup and a program offered free of charge (thanks to Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America for generous support). Anyone can attend. You don’t have to be a member of Sisters in Crime or Mystery Writers of America to join in the fun!


All you have to do is register at this link, then click through to the Crowdcast link to save your spot.


REGISTER TODAY!!!!
Here’s the link again:



Today, Monday, July 20, 2020, is the last day to register! You don’t want to miss this fabulous program hosted by Dana Kaye with books available through Jill Hendrix’s Fiction Addiction Bookstore in Greenville, S.C.


Here’s the schedule for Mystery in the Midlands, on Saturday, July 25, 2020:

10:00 am to 10:15 am EST   Welcome
Dana
Kaye (moderator), Debra Goldstein (SEMWA), and Paula Gail Benson (Palmetto
Chapter SinC)

10:30 am to 11:15 am EST   Slip into Some Shorts
Dana Kaye (moderator) – John Floyd, Tara Laskowski, and Art Taylor
11:30 am to 12:00 pm EST  Mystery Writers Are Always Hot! Keynote
Charlaine
Harris
12:15 pm to 1:00 pm EST       Spectres
Rather Than Heat Mirages
Dana
Kaye (moderator) – Alexia Gordon, Toni L.P. Kelner, and Gigi Pandian
1:15 pm to 2:00 pm EST      Pages Burning Their Way to the Screen
Dana
Kaye (moderator) – Dana Cameron, Jeffrey Deaver, and Charlaine Harris
2:15 pm to 2:30 pm EST      Everybody in the Pool!

Dana Kaye
(moderator), Debra Goldstein (SEMWA), and Paula Gail Benson (Palmetto Chapter
SinC)

Here’s some information about our fabulous authors:

Charlaine Harris is a true
daughter of the South. She was born in Mississippi and has lived in Tennessee,
South Carolina, Arkansas, and Texas. After years of dabbling with poetry,
plays, and essays, her career as a novelist began when her husband invited her
to write full time. Her first book, Sweet
and Deadly,
appeared in 1981. When Charlaine’s career as a mystery writer
began to falter, she decided to write a cross-genre book that would appeal to
fans of mystery, science fiction, romance, and suspense. She could not have
anticipated the huge surge of reader interest in the adventures of a barmaid in
Louisiana, or the fact that Alan Ball would come knocking at her door. Since
then, Charlaine’s novels have been adapted for several other television series,
with two in development now. Charlaine is a voracious reader. She has one
husband, three children, two grandchilden, and two rescue dogs. She leads a
busy life.
John M. Floyd’s short
fiction has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen
Mystery Magazine, The Strand Magazine, The Saturday Evening Post
, and many
other publications. Three of his stories have been selected for the
annual Best American Mystery Stories anthology (the 2015,
2018, and 2020 editions) and another was recently optioned for film. A former
Air Force captain and IBM systems engineer, John is also an Edgar nominee, a four-time
Derringer Award winner, a three-time Pushcart Prize nominee, a recipient of the
Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer Award for lifetime achievement, and
the author of eight books. He and his wife Carolyn live in Mississippi.
Tara Laskowski’s debut
novel, One Night Gone, won the 2019 Agatha Award for Best First
Novel and was a finalist for the Mary Higgins Clark, Anthony, Macavity, and
Lefty Awards. It was hailed by Tana French as “a subtly but relentlessly
unsettling novel.” Tara is also the author of two short story
collections, Modern Manners for Your Inner Demons and Bystanders,
which The Guardian named a best book of 2017. She has had
stories published in Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery
Queen’s
 Mystery Magazines and has won both an Agatha Award and a Thriller
Award for her short fiction. She was a longtime editor of the flash fiction
journal SmokeLong Quarterly. Tara earned a BA in English from
Susquehanna University and an MFA from George Mason University and lives in
Northern Virginia with her husband, writer Art Taylor, and their son, Dashiell.
Art Taylor is
the author of the story collection The Boy Detective & The Summer
of ’74 and Other Tales of Suspense 
and of the novel in stories On
the Road with Del & Louise, 
winner of the Agatha Award for Best
First NovelHe won the 2019 Edgar Award for Best Short Story for
“English 398: Fiction Workshop,” originally published in Ellery
Queen’s Mystery Magazine
, and he has won three additional Agatha Awards,
an Anthony Award, three Macavity Awards, and three consecutive Derringer Awards
for his short fiction. He is an associate professor of English at George Mason
University.
Virginia native, physician by training, author by passion, Alexia Gordon writes the award-winning
Gethsemane Brown Mysteries, with Book 5, Execution in E, being released March
24, 2020. She is a member of MWA, SinC, ITW, and CWoC; blogs at
Missdemeanors.com and with the Femmes Fatales
(femmesfatales.typepad.com/my_weblog/); and hosts the podcast, The Cozy Corner
with Alexia Gordon. Find her on social media (Facebook: AlexiaGordon.writer,
Twitter: @AlexiaGordon, Instagram: DrLex1995) and visit her website (
www.alexiagordon.net) to sign up for her
newsletter.
Toni L.P. Kelner/Leigh
Perry
is two authors in one. As Leigh Perry, she
writes the Family Skeleton Mysteries. The sixth, The Skeleton Stuffs a
Stocking
, was released in Fall 2019. As Toni L.P. Kelner, she wrote eight novels in the Laura Fleming
mystery series and three “Where Are They Now?” mysteries. Kelner also co-edited seven urban fantasy
anthologies with New Your Times best-seller Charlaine
Harris. Under both names she writes short fiction, including recent
publications in 
Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and a forthcoming story in Shattering Glass. Kelner has won the Agatha
Award and an RT BookClub Lifetime Achievement Award and has been nominated
multiple times for the Anthony, the Macavity, and the Derringer.
http://tonilpkelner.com/


Gigi Pandian is a USA Today bestselling and Agatha
Award-winning mystery author, breast cancer survivor, and accidental
almost-vegan. The child of anthropologists from New Mexico and the southern tip
of India, she spent her childhood traveling around the world on their research
trips, and now lives in California with her husband and a gargoyle who watches
over the garden. Gigi writes the
Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt mysteries, Accidental Alchemist mysteries, and
locked-room mystery short stories.
Dana Cameron writes
across many genres, but especially crime and speculative fiction. Her work,
inspired by her career in archaeology, has won multiple Anthony, Agatha, and
Macavity Awards, and has been nominated for the Edgar Award. Dana’s Emma
Fielding archaeology mysteries were optioned by Muse Entertainment; the third
movie, based on More Bitter Than Death,
will premier on the Hallmark Movie & Mystery Channel in January, 2019. When
she’s not traveling or visiting museums, she’s usually yelling at the TV about
historical inaccuracies.
http://www.danacameron.com/


A former journalist, folksinger and attorney, Jeffery Deaver is an international
number-one bestselling author. His novels have appeared on bestseller lists
around the world, including the New York Times, the Times
of London
, Italy’s Corriere della Sera, the Sydney
Morning Herald
 and the Los Angeles Times. His books are
sold in 150 countries and have been translated into over twenty-five languages.
He has sold 50 million books worldwide. The author of over thirty-five novels,
three collections of short stories and a nonfiction law book, and a lyricist of
a country-western album, he’s received or been shortlisted for dozens of
awards around the world. His book 
A Maiden’s Grave was
made into an HBO movie, his novel 
The Bone Collector was
a feature release from Universal Pictures, and in 2019, NBC picked up a series
called “Lincoln,” based on his books. Lifetime aired an adaptation of his 
The Devil’s Teardrop.



We hope that you’ll all join us for Mystery in the Midlands, Saturday, July 25, 2020!




 

Announcing Release of the Heartbreaks and Half-truths Anthology!

by Paula Gail Benson

I’m very proud to be among the authors whose stories are
in Heartbreaks and Half-truths, an
anthology selected (from over 100 submissions) and edited by Judy Penz Sheluk,
noted for her novels, for her anthology The
Best Laid Plans
(2019), and for recently being elected the new chair of
Crime Writers of Canada Board of Directors. Available on June 18, 2020, Heartbreaks and Half-truths features
tales from different time periods and locations, all considering how half-truths
contribute to heartbreak and often lead to other consequences.

Here’s the description of the anthology found on Amazon,
where it may be pre-ordered as Kindle or Paperback:
“Whether it’s 1950s Hollywood, a scientific experiment,
or a yard sale in suburbia, the twenty-two authors represented in this
collection of mystery and suspense interpret the overarching theme of heartbreaks and half-truths in their own inimitable style, where only one
thing is certain: Behind every broken heart lies a half-truth.
“And behind every half-truth lies a secret.”
Following are brief summaries for each story, just to
pique your interest!
KM Rockwood, “Burning Desire”– a jilted
bridegroom gets a 50th birthday party and hopes for cash gifts to
pay off his gambling debts
Peggy Rothschild, “The Devil’s Club” — a woman
being blackmailed by the man who helped her get rid of her abusive husband must
now find a way to be rid of the blackmailer
John M. Floyd, “Blackjack Road” — a man who lost
his family meets a stranger who makes him question his fate
James Blakey, “The Greatest Secret” — a PI
hired to track down a crime boss’ wife’s lover finds it difficult to reveal the lover’s
identity
Edward Lodi, “So Long” — the story, told in a
series of phone messages, reveals the relationship between a woman and a doctor
intent on making her into his greatest experiment
Kate Flora, “Afterlife” — a new widow watches
out her window as a love triangle develops between two lobstermen and a
beautiful woman
Buzz Dixon, “Tongor of the Elephants” — a “lost”
film in a movie archive reveals an actor’s death and more
J.A. Henderson, “The God Complex” — people
plugged into a quantum computer have the opportunity to relive the past, or a facsimile
of it
Christine Eskilson, “For Elizabeth” — unrequited
high school love has higher stakes when the two remain friends later in life
Robb T. White, “See You in Court” — a down on
his luck defense attorney has to prove his client’s innocence after refusing to
be involved in a deal
Rhonda Eikamp, “In the Halls of Mercy” — the
chief psychiatrist becomes another inmate in his ward of patients
Sharon Hart Addy, “Near Warrenton” — a woman
hopes for some monetary support by tracking down a former lover
Tracy Falenwolfe, “Exposure”– a former cop
turned PI is hired to find another suspect in a murder case, but he may have
some secrets closer to home
Paula Gail Benson, “Living One’s Own Truth,” — in 1931, lives change at a boys’ school due to a teacher’s daughter bred
to be a heartbreaker and secrets among the faculty
Susan Daly, “Deep Freeze in Suburbia” — a new
member of parliament has no time to enjoy her success before a secret from her
past comes to light
Chris Wheatley, “The Angel of Maastricht” — a
reporter revisits a case as the convicted murderer completes his sentence
Joseph S. Walker, “Pink Hearts Pierced by
Arrows” — after promising her mother never to let a man make a fool of her, a
woman tries to help her friend with a cheating husband
Blair Keetch, “Deadly Cargo” — a pilot
narrates his strategy for killing his wife, but reality deviates from his plans
Steve Liskow, “Ugly Fat” — two women, both
dumped by their husbands, confer over the yard sale of one ex-husband’s
personal items
Gustavo Bondoni, “Checkmate Charlie” — a
computer gaming system helps a wife to get rid of her husband
James Lincoln Warren, “The Short Answer” — two
1950s Hollywood PIs are mixed up with blackmail and murder

Judy Penz Sheluk, “Goulaigans” — a man returns an
empty canoe to the trading post owner, who stole the man’s wife

Judy Penz Sheluk

Whether you’re sheltering in place or taking a
vacation, this volume is the perfect summer reading companion. Just pick up a
copy, relax, and enjoy it with your favorite beverage!

An Interview with Jessica Riley Miller

by Paula
Gail Benson
Jessica Riley Miller with husband Chuck Miller at her first signing. (Her short story is in The Big Bad II anthology.)
Jessica and
I initially met as members of the Inkplots Writing Critique Group. I’ve always
loved Jessica’s wonderfully inventive imagination and intriguing descriptions. We’ve
gotten closer as roommates at two Bouchercons and working with others to
develop the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime, which will virtually host its
Mystery in the Midlands conference on Saturday, July 25, 2020, with Jessica’s fav Charlaine
Harris as guest of honor.
This week,
Jessica debuts her paranormal series with a novella followed by rapid release
of three novels during late summer and fall. It’s an amazing publishing
journey, but I’m not surprised. Jessica has always exhibited the drive, will
power, organizational skills, and writing craft to balance teaching, marriage,
motherhood, and authorship. I hope you’ll take the time to discover her work. I
promise you’ll be delighted!
Jessica,
thanks for joining us at The Stiletto Gang!
Tell us
about yourself and why you wanted to be an author.
Sometimes you pick your passions, and sometimes
your passions pick you. I’ve always loved stories, especially mysteries, so writing
feels kind of inevitable.
What is
your series about and who is the main character?
They are supernatural mysteries in the
tradition of Charlaine Harris’s True
Blood
series and Karen Marie Moning’s Faefever
series, with heavy doses of romance and the unexpected.

In the novella, Jade’s obsessed with reading
conspiracy theory tabloids, the more outrageous the better. To the
amusement of her friends, she finds them a comforting escape from her every day
worries. It only makes sense when she accepts an internship at the best
tabloid around, believing it will give her a carefree summer.

Unfortunately, any illusion of comfort vanishes when
Anthony, an attractive young lawyer, enlists her help. He claims the tabloid’s
keeping a dark secret that threatens his job. When Jade starts investigating,
she learns the paper isn’t an escape from the truth at all. Suddenly, her
normal life becomes eclipsed by the paranormal.

But knowing the tabloid’s secrets make her position
vulnerable, and suddenly it isn’t just Anthony’s livelihood at risk. Her life
is too.

The rest of the series picks up from her best friend
Maggie’s perspective, ten years later.
Your series
is independently published. What made you decide to take that step?
Jade’s story–to be released this week!
My answer here actually starts with a conflict,
as all good stories do:
This series is the main reason my fantastic
literary agent and I parted ways. She was interested in a different kind of
story from me, but I couldn’t let this series go.
The characters kept speaking to me, and I
needed to get the drama out of my head and onto the page. It was almost compulsive.
I have seven other manuscripts, several of which I will return to, but I had to get this series out into the
world. By choosing indie publishing, I am able to obsess over the stories I
can’t let go.
I’m also able to release them on my own schedule.
I’ve been working on them for years, mainly at 5 am, or in the car, or on
Saturday afternoons—and now, I’m ready to share them.
Plus, I’ve been able to build my own team.
That’s been an unexpected bit of awesomeness. I adore my editor. I’m fanatical
over my cover artist. They are my people, and I picked them—they do excellent, flattering
work for me and my stories, making me look much better than I could on my own.
Why are you
beginning with a novella, then rapidly releasing several novels?
I’m appealing to binge-watching culture,
really. There’s nothing I enjoy more than diving into a world that I can splash
around in, so I’m trying to give that to my readers. Come on in, stay awhile,
the water’s fine.
Plus, I want to make sure readers are getting the
experience they want. That’s why I’m releasing my novella first, for free.
Check this out, see if you like it. If you do, I’ve got all these other books
coming. If this isn’t your thing, high five and have a great day. Nothing’s
lost on either side.
What has
been your greatest challenge and greatest delight in writing and producing this
series?
My greatest challenge has been scraping out the
time I need to dream and write and work on the ever-important author platform.
I’ve got a full time job, a wonderful husband, and a darling one-year-old.
While I’m fortunate to have a full family life and a job I like, there are only
so many hours in a day, you know?
My greatest delight has been the dreaming, or
what some folks call plotting. My daydreams become reality on the page, as
characters move through mazes I’ve created, solving their mysteries and
unearthing secrets as old as the world. It’s empowering and fun. I love that
part.
What’s
next? Will this character or the world you’ve created appear in other books or
stories?
Ha! I’m laughing because there’s so much more
where this came from. So, this novella is Jade’s story. The next few books are
Maggie’s story (Jade’s best friend), and she’s got at least three books worth
of drama, y’all. One of her love interests, Adam, has a short story already
written. I’ll give that to my newsletter subscribers for free later this year.
I also have a tie-in series with the first book already written. I’m excited
about that one. It takes place on the beach in Florida and starts with a faerie
on the run. It could be looking at a 2021 release.
Thank you,
Jessica, for being with us! Best wishes on all your upcoming releases. May your
stories reach a wide audience and be thoroughly enjoyed!
Jessica with her precious daughter Marlowe, who already loves books!
Short Bio: You will often find Jessica Riley Miller
behind a stack of books. However, she won’t stay hidden for long as her voice
(ahem) carries. Jessica’s been writing stories for over a decade. In her spare
time, she works with some of the best people in the world: English teachers.
She lives in the land of South Carolina, somewhere between Westeros and 221B
Baker Street. Her husband, daughter, and tiny elfin dog provide constant
amusement and inspiration. Check out her website or sign up for her newsletter at
www.jessicarileymiller.com.

Discovering Maizie Albright Star Detective

by Paula
Gail Benson
I
met Larissa Reinhart, author of the Maizie Albright Star Detective series, a
few years ago at Murder in the Magic City, in Homewood, Alabama. She impressed
me immediately as someone with spunk, determination, and drive, very much like
her protagonist Maizie, although maybe without the mishaps.
Just
reading about Larissa’s life experiences is fascinating. She has taught high
school history in the US, taught English in Japan, studied archeology in Egypt,
and escaped a fierce monkey in Thailand. With her husband, she adopted two
daughters from China and appeared on an episode of HGTV’s House Hunters
International, profiling their quest for housing in Nagoya, Japan.
Larissa
already had a successful series about diminutive, quick sketch, portrait artist
Cherry Tucker, who keeps encountering crime in the small town of Halo, Georgia.
In addition to Maizie Albright, she’s also developed the Findlay Goodhart Crime
Capers, about an ex-con who uses her past criminal experience to help victims.
What
made me embark upon the Maizie series was a Facebook message Larissa posted
about writing the most recent book, 18
Caliber
. Maizie is a former child and teen actress who finds herself in
trouble, due to actions of companions she chose unwisely. When a judge orders
that she leave Hollywood and get work outside the film community, she returns
to her father’s home in Black Pine, Georgia, where she plans to apprentice to
the town’s private investigator and get her own PI license. Unfortunately, the
film industry, including her crafty mother manager, has already arrived in Black
Pine, which creates all kinds of turmoil for Maizie and keeps interrupting her
personal time with her mentor Wyatt Nash.
In 18 Caliber, Chinese action star Lili Liang,
who is predicted to have a bright acting future, is in Black Pine to film a
historical martial arts movie. For her preparation in writing the book, Larissa
drafted not only the summary of a very interesting imaginary action flick, but also commissioned
a poster for the film. I feel fortunate to have won a copy of the poster, which I
keep proudly in my office. Thanks, Larissa!
 

Poster for the fictional Unlucky 18 Movie

While
I called this post “Discovering Maizie,” what I like about the series is that
Maizie keeps learning about herself. Where she sees weakness, those around her,
particularly Nash and her new BFFs stylists Rhonda and Tiffany, tell her that
her actions indicate strength. Here’s a little about each book in the series:
15 Minutes — Maizie tries
to secure a PI apprenticeship and has to track down a client’s missing wife
while eluding her mother manager and ex-boyfriend/co-star’s attempts to lure
her back onto a reality show.
 
16 Millimeters — While “babysitting”
a former fellow child star now into bad behavior, Maizie searches for a missing corpse
and tracks a celebrity stalker.
A View to a Chill — Cherry Tucker
and Maizie Albright join forces to investigate mysterious activity in Halo before Christmas. Can they locate a missing granddaughter and learn what’s
happening in the house across from Cherry’s in time to celebrate a happy
holiday?
NC-17 — Following a young man who turns out to be carrying a bomb puts Nash in a coma. Maizie tries to keep his business
solvent by taking on a case with three teen entrepreneurs. They’ve made a
fortune filming their searches for Bigfoot, but now their young adult leader has
gone missing.
17.5 Cartridges in a Pear Tree — While preparing
for a New Year’s Eve celebration, Nash and Maizie take on a case with touches
of the Maltese Falcon, only this time
the prized item is a prop from one of Maizie’s cult classics.
18 Caliber — Maizie and
Nash track a missing bullet (for Maizie’s mother) and a vanished kung fu master
for actress Lili Liang.
If
you haven’t already, I hope you’ll check out Larissa’s Maizie Albright Star
Detective books. I’m looking forward to 19
!