Writing 
For thoughts on writing and the creative process.
When the Rains Came…
Yet again, I’m skipping ahead to introduce the prologue to my planned seventh novel, When the Rains Came… Unusual, at least for me, in that it’s the first book or story to be told in first person, something I’m not a huge fan of. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy reading books with first person narration. It’s… Read More ›
Writing Challenge 3
It’s the first of the month, and that means it’s time for a new writing challenge. Were you inspired by last month’s wine bottle? What did you write? Leave a comment if you wish. Such an inanimate object might seem more suitable to a still life painting, but writing is like capturing such images, still life or… Read More ›
First Post…Elsewhere
I first attempted blogging in 2009 at Crimespace. I’d discovered this social network “ning” site as a place for readers and writers of crime fiction and thought it a perfect place to have a presence. So I joined in February and posted the following on 23 February 2009: It’s Oscar night! I have to wonder…. Read More ›
Hillary Waugh’s Guide
Take a guided tour of the mystery genre with this writing reference book, Hillary Waugh’s Guide to Mysteries & Mystery Writing. Published in 1991, not long after I began writing mysteries, this was—and still is—a book I read for inspiration and ideas. The book is essentially a two-in-one guide. The first part focuses on “The History… Read More ›
Writing Challenge 2
Did this door knocker inspire you to write? It looks like something out of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, but believe it or not, this photo was taken in Aix-en-Provence, on a rainy day, in November. This image inspired a short little scene with a more fantasy oriented flavor while paying homage to thoughts of… Read More ›
A Year of Reading
52 weeks, 52 books. No writer can live in a vacuum. The things we see, hear, smell, taste, touch … all these experiences add to who we are and what we might create. Watching a movie, reading a book … they can inspire our own writing, and we can learn from them. Each year I try… Read More ›
A Year of Writing
1000 words a day. It seems simple enough. Write a minimun of a 1000 words each day. Say you type 30 words per minute. In one hour, you could type 1800 words. That means the average writer could easily achieve over 1000 words each day in just one hour. But what should one write about? Writing, of course, isn’t… Read More ›
Character vs. Plot II
I’m outnumbered! The Poisoned Martini‘s first poll asked the question: which do you prefer…character-driven or plot-driven mysteries? The results were 70% vs. 30%. Yours truly prefers puzzle plots to solve in mysteries, but the majority of respondents want character-driven stories. I previously discussed this topic here. A quick recap: my experience has been that recent mysteries—while… Read More ›
National Novel Writing Month
Did you finish writing a novel this month? November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). From November 1 until 11:59:59 on November 30, all budding writers are encouraged to tackle writing a novel (50,000 words minimum or approximately 175 pages). With a mere 30 days, the idea is to write, write, write. No worries about… Read More ›
A Mystery Theme
What a blast from the past! My favorite time of the year is Autumn. I think of it as a time of reflection on things past. Memories stir, and Nostalgia takes hold. During this season of changing leaves, it seems like I’m often reminded of experiences I’ve had. In searching for a change of desktop theme, I stumbled across… Read More ›
The Poisoned Martini 