I'm thrilled to announce that I've joined a team of great friends who also happen to be amazingly talented authors and formed a new authors' blog called MURDER BY 4. Of course, we've included a link to Crimespace as a great place for authors to vitits!

You'll find us here: www.murderby4.blogspot.com

Today was our first day and it's been great. We have several guest…

Hey everyone - stop by <a href="http://elysabethsstories.blogspot.com">my blog</a> today and leave a comment for Lea and be entered in the drawing for an ebook copy of "Rock of Realm", a YA fantasy novel that is being republished in print this year. See you in the postings - E…

It's not an original idea, but it's topical. I'll blog for the next few weeks on a tour I'm making to promote my book, attempting to present an honest view of an author's life on the road.

Today is packing day, and what a challenge! I'm heading from Michigan to Florida, so I need clothes for warm weather and everything in between. I'm signing at a Renaissance Festival so I need trappings for a booth: sign, decorations, prizes, etc. I'm doing several talks, so I need audience handouts,…

I set up this Crimespace page last year, and then got busy with all the new books and other projects at L&L Dreamspell - now I'm back to give everyone an update!

We've published a lot of new books - a lot of them mystery novels (all the L&L Dreamspell books are available on Amazon, B&N, and other web stores, and can be ordered through brick and mortar bookstores.) Two new books are anthologies of short stories, also in the mystery genre. "Dead and Breakfast" by the Final…

I just finished reading "The Judas Pair," the very first Lovejoy novel by Jonathan Gash. This is great stuff. I'd read one of the series years ago and liked it, but a friend just loaned me the whole series, so I'm reading them from the start. This first book is a bit rough, not as smooth and pleasing as they are later in the series, but its got a good sense of humor and it's also instructive about the antiques industry and the scams that go on. It should not have taken me so long to get back…

After a lot of thinking over the last few months, I’ve decided to end my column about short stories in Mystery Scene. I’ve been writing it for a long time, and reckon I am probably running out of opinions - so I wanted to leave before my inevitable repetitions and ramblings became too irksome for readers.

I hope MS will continue regular coverage of short stories; thanks to all the writers and publishers who have entertained me during my long stint on “Short and Sweet.”

There was a time in my life when doubt reigned supreme, but that was before I met you.

There were those years, lost now in the haze of memory, when facing the new day was almost too much, when work was a necessary distraction from the darkness of rest, when even those most important of ties were tainted with an edge of sorrow. Back then, even my beloved pastime, writing, was not sufficient to dull the ache of too many broken promises.

But that, my dear, was before your love…

I'm floating on air--this is a terrific review. I have permission from the reviewer to post where I please.

"Full of suspense, realistic, and sprinkled with a light touch of romance, Smell of Death by F.M. Meredith is a sure hit for crime fiction fans.



The latest in Meredith's Rocky Bluff P.D. series, finds Officer Stacey Wilbur called to the home of Darlene Brantley. Upon entering the home, Wilbur finds Brantley dead, and in a strange twist of events,…

I've been AWOL from Crimespace for some time now, but Liz Zelvin's message lured me back. I'm delighted to see her book Death Will Get You Sober has finally been published by St. Martin's. I met her several years ago at a Sisters in Crime conference in New York City, and I've tracked her progress in seeking publication since then. She's a therapist and her book deals with alcohol addiction. I recall her online postings about responses from agents and publishers who said no one would…

Happy Valentine's Day! Well, it's Feb. 14, 2008 and I just got the POD proof of my book!

The song going through my head is "Paperback Writer"...

O.K. so it's my first book. But you all remember that experience, holding a book in your hands for the first time with your name on it. So cool!

On to promotion. Let the games begin!

Last night was my book launch party. It's a very small town in a low-income area, but I counted on having at least twenty there, friends who would support my publishing efforts and hand over a check even though they seldom buy hardcover books and probably not romances. I'd presold books as Christmas gifts and figured that most of those who wanted one had gone that route, so my sales would be low.

We ran out of books. Twice! The ones I brought sold, then my husband brought in another…