So you spot a book that looks good, but you're not sure. You'd like to get someone else's opinion of the story before you invest the time reading those first 50 pages and it turns out to be a dud. Let me introduce you to the literary salon known as The Complete Review - http://www.complete-review.com/main/main.html. They offer a selectively comprehensive, objectively opinionated survey of books old and new, trying to meet all your book… Continue

Participating in the "Write NOW" program at Karibu Books in Iverson Mall was a unique experience. I was one of five authors who started out self-published. Our panel fielded questions from the audience, and we each had a chance to read from our books and speak from the podium. Audience questions were mostly about how to get published, and we tried to clue them in about the joy and pain of doing it yourself.



The authors on the panel represented quite a range of work, from a children's… Continue

A fellow author was bemoaning his sales. He had what seemed to him an important point to make, but his publisher told him it was pointless to write things that were not commercially viable. I assured him there is a place in the market for books that are not bestsellers but present an important message. In my view, the only writing that is pointless is writing done with a broken pencil.

Everybody here should want to know that the Review By Liz web site - http://reviewedbyliz.com/ - has issued a Summer Mystery Reading Challenge! Site visitors are prompted to read six mysteries by authors whose works you haven't read before between June 1st and August 31st . This website provides a place to discuss them with other mystery readers. This is a great incentive to sample the works of new authors - and a great way for those of us who aren't on… Continue

If you're interested in writing a book and/or getting published you'll want to join me Saturday afternoon at Karibu Books in Iverson Mall. I'll be part of their "Write NOW" program in their Inde Pen Series. I'll be one of five authors who originally took their dream and made it a reality by independently publishing our own books! It's a chance to ask questions, hear readings, talk to the authors and find out why and how we did it! Of course you'll be able to show your support by taking home a… Continue

My signing at the Barnes and Noble at Tysons Corner Center turned out to be even more fun than I expected. That's because the writers signing alongside me turned out to be a pair of witty and charming young ladies.



When I arrived I realized that I had met T.J. Perkins at a previous book signing event. Actually, I recognized her impressive Kim and Kelly mystery series about a pair of African American schoolgirls who solve the crimes the grownups can't handle. I believe… Continue

My daughter Lela is returning to Indiana with her newly-enlarged family this week. My son, Phillip has spent a lot of time with them while they visited and since he has been dating the same girl for four years, I asked him if he might have learned anything about the marital bliss he's been missing. He told me he did indeed learn something about the state of matrimony from observing his sister and brother-in-law, and expressed it this way. Marriage, he said, is apparently a… Continue

One of the web sites I adopted has adopted me. I think you should have the Mystery Lovers Corner - http://www.sleuthedit.com/Spotlight.html - bookmarked, and not just because I'm a spotlight author this month. Although that is a good reason.



Other good reasons include Melanie Atkins, Maureen Robb and my good friend Jeff Markowitz. The fact is that web site creator Dawn Dawdle has a razor honed sense for finding the best new mystery writers who are… Continue

Some holidays get more respect than others. Tomorrow we should not let one such overlooked day slip past. Sandwiched between Mother's Day and Memorial Day - both of which get great attention in homes and stores - lies Armed Forces Day. This year, let's remember the men and women who keep our Mothers safe, and not wait until they're in a cemetery to show some appreciation. Make some noise in their support, whether or not you think their current mission is the right… Continue

The friendly folks at Crime and Suspense Magazine have launched the “Austin Camacho Beltway Crime Writing Contest” which will run until July 7th. There are three levels of prizes, but the big winner will receive a set of all four Hannibal Jones mystery novels, signed by me.…

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This Saturday I will be signing books at what I believe to be the biggest bookstore in my area, the Barnes and Noble Booksellers in Tysons Corners. This vast, 34,000 square foot, two-level store is a literary Mecca for booklovers in Northern Virginia, and I’ll be there as part of a mystery author trio. From 1 pm to 4 pm you can meet me, along with T.K. Kenyon, the author of Rabid, which got a…

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The Fort Clifton Festival was the usual fun, and a good chance to sign a few books. Plus, it took place on an almost perfect weekend to spend outdoors. I say almost because Saturday we had to pack up a little early due to a sudden…

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I'll spend this weekend enjoying some fresh air at the Fort Clifton Festival. What started as a simple portrayal of the historic significance of the fort in the Civil War has grown to include 20 Civil War relic exhibits, reenactors, demonstrations and more than 100 arts and crafts folks selling a variety of hand made items. Children's rides and good food will be available, and this year so will my novels. If you come down to get one you could be one of the winners of their daily door prizes and… Continue

Are you all regular visitors to Mystery Net already? For more than a dozen years, Mystery Net has been the place to go for online mysteries and mystery games. Every Month the site features puzzles with names like See-n-Solve, Solve-it, Twist and Flash mysteries. Members post Get-a-Clue mini-mysteries and teasers every day.



The web site is also a resource for mystery books, TV shows and games. There's a marvelous mystery time line tracing the history of the… Continue

I certainly made a number of unexpected friends during the weekend. Despite their focus on amateur sleuths, the folks at Malice Domestic were very welcoming and gracious to this private eye writer. The overwhelming majority of attendees were women, but they didn't make me feel weird being there. Well, maybe a little at the end during a formal tea and the best hat contest.



The Agatha Awards banquet is the major draw of course, but I have to admit that I had the most fun at the start of… Continue

It's a three-day weekend for me - my first appearance at Malice Domestic. Malice has been an annual convention in the Washington, D.C. area for 19 years, saluting the traditional mystery. That means their focus is on books patterned after the works of Agatha Christie - no explicit sex or excessive gore or violence and usually featuring an amateur detective, a confined setting, and characters who know one another. Of course my detective Hannibal Jones is no amateur, but enough of my writing pals… Continue

Hey, gang, I realize I got caught up with family business - new grandson parachuted in from heaven last night - but there's book-related news to share too.…

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My youngest girl has brought her family back to Virginia for a while because she's due this week with baby #3 and wants to be with her mama when he pokes his head out into the world. Naturally, there's been much chatter about, and with, children around here. Knowing my love of the language you won't be surprised about some of the awful puns this has all dredged up, like trying to determine whether or not the Little Mermaid wears an algebra and wondering if infants enjoy… Continue