I'm often asked if I get writer's block and while I haven't suffered this there are days when the words flow and the inspiration seems to come from an unknown source within me, and there are also days when it's a struggle to find the right words and know how to advance the plot.  Every writer deals with this differently. Me?  Well there are three ways I tackle this, depending on my mood (and the weather): 



1. I keep writing, bashing anything out on the keyboard even though I know…

About 6 months ago I had a caller, Katherine LaHart, on my blogtalk radio show The G-ZONE call in and suggest that I do a collaboration. Personally I was floored; really, this was the last thing that I thought anybody would ask me that day. I sure didn’t wake up with that thought on my mind. Since then we, various authors and Trestle Press, have produced 22 installments of the series covering just about every genre possible except romance. Let’s face it, with names like Harry Balls, Peter…

My latest release Behind Closed Doors is now available from Barnes And Noble with a fantastc 28% introductory discount, meaning you can get the paperback edition for a…

Start with action.  I hear it every week in my writer's group.  I say it myself.  But is it right?  P.D. James is adamant that she wants her readers to know the characters before something unpleasant happens to them. That way, the impact is greater.  It's usual for her detective, Adam Dahlglissh, not to show up in the first fifty pages.  I think that breaks another writer's group rule:  Get your main character on stage right away.

Anne Perry started "Face of a Stranger", her…

Three Deadly Sins the latest edition to the Call Me Smitty series is now available on Amazon.com.  Two short stories and a novella featuring Smitty--a man of unusual talents.  A rather efficient hit man with a well defined Code of Ethics.

 …

When my readers commented about how much they enjoyed my blogs, I decided to combine the best of my nonfiction—including all the posts I wrote about my journey to become a full-time novelist—into a book. I thought my readers would like to know more about me, and authors would find the writing, editing, and promotion advice helpful and inspiring.

The title was easy. I…

In my post today at Criminal Minds -- 10 things that you might hear in the bar at Bouchercon.

http://7criminalminds.blogspot.com/

The following blog is "now appearing" at The Vincent Zandri Vox:

The way we used to buy books....

"You'll never get a major deal again!"

Sounds harsh doesn't it. Even cruel, especially when it comes from the mouth of a respected independent bookstore…

Small publishing houses work for me because I can't seem to resist the urge to put my two cents in on how the publishing house works. I'm sure Simon & Schuster or Random House could care less about what I think on the way they run things, but I've had two publishers now who value my opinions. Let me tell you, it's a heady feeling.

When my current publisher was backed up by the onslaught of query letters, I volunteered to lend a hand. Not that I know anything about…

As promised, here's the second part of my interview with Amy Drescher, private investigator.

8. How much do you utilize computers in your business?

The internet is a tool of the trade. I’m online daily to run background checks, search profiles on Facebook, access property records and on and on. A serious P.I. subscribes to at least three different proprietary databases. It’s like “one-stop shopping”—with essentially one-click, we can access comprehensive data on an…

Mass murder and serial killers just seem to go together so why not have two in the same story. In fact why not have one serial killer try to bring the other to justice?  And to top it off why not make the deal sweeter by…? Wait I can’t tell you that part; it would be a spoiler. I don’t do that, sorry. Here is the deal on this installment: Jeffrey Martin has come up with an insanely great character that is, well, insane, and to boot he is a serial killer with certain tastes. I would prefer…

I had fun with this parody. Cheers!  (  http://afwaddell-fiction.com/murder-can-be-critical.html  )

I’d heard that film critic Rex Braverman would be in the audience tonight. Well, so would I.

The movie theater was crowded and smelly just as I had predicted. There were…

As the countdown continues toward the October 1 release of Beta and the first adventure of private investigator/martial artist Mallory Petersen, I thought I’d take an opportunity to show you a small part of the world of an actual private investigator.



I met Amy Drescher at the Killer Nashville writers’ conference in 2010. She sat on a panel discussing…

This essay appears at the end of C.E.L. Welsh's latest work, Coffeyville, a Harry Houdini Novella, and discusses the author's love for the subject matter:

“The Story Behind The Story: Coffeyville, a Harry Houdini Novella

I am a retired magician. Actually, that may be stretching things on a few technicalities; yes, I have been paid to perform magic, and thus could have been considered a pro, but my skills never eclipsed the mildly talented. It has been years since I’ve handed…

In the last few days, I've had an amazing experience.  Amazing  because I discovered a natural story that no one I know of has written.

It began when I mused about what it would have been like to be an honest detective in Berlin during the Nazi era.  (The thought came from a reference to Nazi I made in a short story).  I figured it would have been difficult at best.  I started some research on-line and found it wasn't just difficult, it was a horror.  That brought the thought…

 Husband, father, vigilante... Mike Dalmas left Special Forces to become a dedicated family man, but when his daughter gets molested he had his revenge, killing the pervert who committed the crime.

Now the Bay City cops keep him out of jail if he takes care of their dirty work. The things their badge won't allow them to do but for which Dalmas has the right skill set.

In his first story to appear Mike Dalmas is blackmailed in saving a young girl from a known sex offender. The…

This week I share my
thoughts of where authors need to get reviews on my main blog, Another Writer’s
Life - http://ascamacho.blogspot.com