April 2008 Blog Posts (187)

Next book cover

A reader sent me this cover from a website he found--I didn't even know the publisher had finalised it. Yes, you may well ask as he did, where's the ship? Go ask St Martin's art department. They did at least ask me what sort of dog Nana is and made her a small multicoloured mongrel as I described. Black Ship will be out in September. The story is concerned with the effects of American Prohibition in England, when Daisy's next-door neighbours get… Continue

Added by Carola Dunn on April 13, 2008 at 10:18am — No Comments

Southern Mysteries with a Side of GRIT newsletter

Latest news from the newsletter-

The latest installment in the monthly newsletter, SOUTHERN MYSTERIES WITH A SIDE OF GRIT, is now available! I appreciate all my new members who have signed up to receive this fun and informative e-news mail. If you haven't joined yet, you can do so by going to my website, mkimsmith.com and signing up.

This month is filled with articles on writing. You don't want to miss one issue! If you have any ideas, or want to submit content to Southern… Continue

Added by Kim Smith on April 13, 2008 at 8:17am — No Comments

Declan Hughes on New Mystery Reader

New Mystery Reader (http://www.newmysteryreader.com) has just posted an interview with Irish Crime Fiction writer Declan Hughes, who has written three books in his Ed Loy series. Yours truly does what he can with the questions; Mr. Hughes’s replies are insightful and entertaining. Well worth checking out.

Added by Dana King on April 12, 2008 at 2:30pm — No Comments

My Kind of Town

I lived over three years in the Chicago area—Woodridge, actually—and have tried, with diminishing efficiency, to get back as often as possible. It’s been four years since my last trip, and the time has not been kind to my image of the city.

I write a lot of crime fiction set in Chicago, which is the perfect place for crime fiction. The problem is, once you do much research in Chicago’s criminal history, and its ostensibly straight history, one conclusion cannot be avoided: there’s no… Continue

Added by Dana King on April 12, 2008 at 2:28pm — No Comments

Sex and the Single Octopus at Killer Hobbies blog - Contest

I'm running a contest over at the Killer Hobbies blog about IFNWKS (Interesting Facts Not Worth Knowing), on Friday's post, "Sex and the Single Octopus." See post for details at:
http://killerhobbies.blogspot.com/2008/04/sex-and-single-octopus.html

Added by Kathryn Lilley on April 12, 2008 at 1:43pm — No Comments

My New Addiction

I'm an addict. I admit it. Before the entire world, I admit it. I mean, it's sort of ironic, you know? I managed to live for years without being struck by anything so incredibly and stubbornly incurable, but then I took a fall ... and when I did, I fell hard.

To what am I addicted? 3D graphics.

It started innocuously enough. I decided to do my own book cover. Now, this can be a dangerous decision, but I really wanted to do it. I can say I even felt compelled to do it. And… Continue

Added by Persia Walker on April 12, 2008 at 1:30pm — No Comments

My first short story

I wrote my first short story yesterday. It was an interesting exercise and I think it turned out quite well.

Constructive comments will be welcomed

I don't seem to be able do anything about the formatting below - if you want to see it properly fomatted please got to my website

http://www.iangosling.com/short_story_the_taxman.htm

THE TAXMAN

A short story by

IAN GOSLING

In his boots, the taxman towers a good… Continue

Added by Ian Gosling on April 12, 2008 at 11:30am — 1 Comment

More Mas in Japan or Where's My Spam?

Just picked up the latest Mas Arai mystery published in Japanese from Kinokuniya Bookstore in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo. This is the cover for SNAKESKIN SHAMISEN, which won an Edgar in the category of best paperback original last year. Naysayers say awards don't mean much, but it was entirely because of the Edgar that I finally got deals in Japan and South Korea. So Mas thanks you, Mr.… Continue

Added by Naomi Hirahara on April 12, 2008 at 9:37am — 2 Comments

Back to the Grind

Well, that’s enough of that. I’m officially done with traveling for the next few months. Time to pull up the drawbridge and chain myself to the desk. Jetsetting around like a rockstar is all well and good, but it’s meaningless if I don’t do the other, more important part of my job. I’m going to go write a book now.

Added by Christa Faust on April 12, 2008 at 4:21am — No Comments

A Great New Review!

I just found out about a new review of Glitter of Diamonds on The Suspense Zone. I love the last paragraph, because it sums up what my goal in writing the Manziuk and Ryan books is - to mimic, in a good way, and in today's world, the style of my favorite author, Georgette Heyer.

"Glitter of Diamonds, second in the Manziuk and Ryan mystery series by award-winning Canadian journalist, author and speaker, N. J. Lindquist, continues with a finely drawn police procedural… Continue

Added by N. J. Lindquist on April 11, 2008 at 11:15pm — 3 Comments

Meet Me in DC Tomorrow!

Tomorrow I have the rare privilege of addressing the Washington DC branch of the National League of American Pen Women . The League members are women who have demonstrated creative talents in art, letters, and music composition. There are Pen Women branches throughout the U.S., in addition to state associations of affiliated branches in some places.

We'll meet at 1 pm in the historic Pen Arts… Continue

Added by Austin S. Camacho on April 11, 2008 at 10:02pm — No Comments

Identity Reft

Believe it or not, there are two Peggy J. Herrings who are writers of romance. I knew this when I started looking for a publisher because the other woman's name showed up on Internet searches. (Actually there's a third Peggy Herring who's a college professor/science writer.) I chose to write under Peg Herring, having always been called Peg anyway, and figured that would differentiate us.

Wrong. My publisher got an email from the Library of Congress when they applied for an ISBN#,… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on April 11, 2008 at 9:46pm — 2 Comments

Yet Another Great Customer Review - A Study in Red

I was delighted to find yet another fantastic review of A Study in Red on the Amazon UK site this morning. I'm just so pleased that everyone who's reading it seems to be enjoying my humble offering. Here's the new one.

Brian

www.freewebs.com/brianlp

Five Stars: A Thrilling Study in Red!!, 11 April 2008

By Mr. Michael Covell "Mike Covell" (Hull) - See all my reviews

I was lucky enough to win this excellent book, otherwise I would have bought it… Continue

Added by Brian L Porter on April 11, 2008 at 7:30pm — No Comments

Principals of Torture

In my April 4th blog entitled War Crimes, I wrote about a recently declassified White House memo, which argued that the Geneva Accords didn’t apply to the President’s actions in wartime. The memo attempted to give the President and other senior White House officials cover for acts of torture they authorized in direct violation of international and constitutional laws.

Yesterday, ABC News reported that President Bush’s most senior advisers met in dozens of top-secret talks and… Continue

Added by Christopher Valen on April 11, 2008 at 1:17pm — No Comments

Latest Review - A Study in Red

This is the latest customer review of 'A Study in Red' posted on the Amazon.co.uk site. I'll forgive this reader spelling my name wrong at the end as his enjoyment of the book is self-evident in his words.

Regards

Brian

Five Stars: A BLOODY good read, 7 April 2008

By Michael C. Walker "Jfripper" (OZ) - See all my reviews

The book I should have, could have, would have, but did not, write.

But I did read it. And what a read!!

This is the… Continue

Added by Brian L Porter on April 11, 2008 at 8:28am — No Comments

amphibimania!

Another cool frog story! You know I love my frogs and toads!

So, if this dude (Barbourula kalimantanensis) had a fight with the giant toad (Beelzebufo), who would win? What if the fight was… Continue

Added by Clea Simon on April 11, 2008 at 2:58am — No Comments

notes and notes and notes

How do you write?

I don't outline, really, but I do have a synopsis (partly because my editor demands one) and I usually start a book with a broad overview of how the story will go in my head. Despite these, I usually just sort of write, letting my characters sort things out between themselves, the plot resolution just a goal on the horizon, all subject to change. I do all of this on the computer. I type faster than I write and I love the clarity of type. I can read what I've typed… Continue

Added by Clea Simon on April 11, 2008 at 2:57am — No Comments

Genre vs. Lit - everybody's talking about it

Recently on the Elmore Leonard discussion forum, someone posted this about the novel, Pagan Babies:

"I was a bit uncomfortable at the use of a horrific, real-life tragedy within a crime novel."

Of course, almost every crime novel is inspired by some real-life tragedy. In this case it's the scale of the thing.

Pagan Babies opens five years after the Rwandan genocide with a description of forty-seven bodies, "... turned to leather and stains," in a… Continue

Added by John McFetridge on April 11, 2008 at 12:43am — No Comments

Working The Graveyard Shift With Author/Police Dispatcher Tracy Seybold

Want to know what it’s really like to work the graveyard shift in a busy police department? Well, you can find out today because romance author/police dispatcher Tracy Seybold is telling all on The Graveyard Shift.

The Graveyard Shift, a guide to all things cops and robbers
- a blog for writers
http://www.leelofland.com/wordpress

Added by Lee Lofland on April 10, 2008 at 11:36pm — No Comments

Current readings

After having finished editing my porn book and writing another one (both, sadly (?), non-fiction), I've been reading Bill Granger's Schism from 1981. It's one of his Devereaux spy novels. I'm not big on spy novels, but I find myself liking this very much. It's about a Vatican spy that worked as a missionary in Vietnam and Laos in the fifties, disappeared and gets back around 1980. CIA, Vatican and other people are of course interested in him and Devereaux is hired to find out what the man… Continue

Added by Juri Nummelin on April 10, 2008 at 11:00pm — 6 Comments