Write What You Know by Cathy Perkins Every author has heard that mantra at least once—and probably a lot more often. Anyone who’s taken a writing class or read a craft book has seen that adage. Whatever the answer, like all writing advice, it’s up to you to take it or leave it. I hunted […]

Vintage Sweets? by Kaye George Are you wondering how on earth I came to write a series based on that (somewhat odd) topic? It was an evolution, a rather round about one. I had my location from the start, Fredericksburg, Texas, a German tourist town in the Hill Country, full of wineries and interesting places. […]

Never Give Up, Never Surrender by Grace Topping I often hear people say they would like to write a book, or that they started a book but never finished it. It made me wonder what it was about me that enabled me to write a book that was published—and have that book nominated for a […]

Writing in First Person Through the Eyes of Finn Bartusiak by Kristine Raymond Writing in first person is an entirely different experience than writing in third; a challenge I both eagerly accepted and oftentimes questioned while writing Finn-agled. Telling a story from the point of view of one person – from beginning to end – […]

The Value of Writing a Newsletter Column by Carol Newhouse I write a column, By The Book, that appears in First Draft, a newsletter for the Guppies, an online chapter of Sisters In Crime. Its purpose is to deconstruct mysteries. I alternate writing a second column in First Draft with Nancy Eady. Agent Insight gives […]

Diving Deep into Point of View by Jackie Layton When I began to write cozy mysteries, I changed from writing in third person point of view to first person. There was a definite learning curve, and for a long time I only read books written in first person to help me get the feel for […]

When a romantic rival opens a competing restaurant in small-town Wheaton, Alabama, Sarah Blair discovers murder is the specialty of the house . . . For someone whose greatest culinary skill is ordering takeout, Sarah never expected to be co-owner of a restaurant. Even her Siamese cat, RahRah, seems to be looking at her differently. But while Sarah and her twin sister, Chef Emily, are tangled up in red tape waiting for the building inspector to get around to them, an attention-stealing new establishment—run by none other than Sarah's late ex-husband's mistress, Jane—is having its grand opening across the street. Jane's new sous chef, Riley Miller, is the talk of Wheaton with her delicious vegan specialties. When Riley is found dead outside the restaurant with Sarah's friend, Jacob, kneeling over her, the former line cook—whose infatuation with Riley was no secret—becomes the prime suspect. Now Sarah must turn up the heat on the real culprit, who has no reservations about committing cold-blooded murder . . . Includes quick and easy recipes!

Writer’s Block? – Ways to Motivate Yourself by Alexia Gordon When writing experts aren’t debating writer’s block’s existence, they’re offering sure-fired ways to beat it. I can’t guarantee a fix for writer’s block but I do have a few techniques I use to motivate myself when I feel stuck. 1. I write the same sentence […]

Happy New Year! May 2020 be a year of happiness, health and prosperity

13 Things That Drive Editors and Readers Crazy (And Not in a Good Way) by Heather Weidner Thank you so much for letting me visit the blog. I’m Heather Weidner, and I write the Delanie Fitzgerald mysteries, Secret Lives and Private Eyes, The Tulip Shirt Murders, and Glitter, Glam, and Contraband. The latest one in […]