The Puerto Vallarta Writers Conference

Brrrr! Lately in Breckenridge, the outside thermometer has dipped below zero. Add a blustery wind, and the wind chill is freeze-your-nose-off cold. So I'm staying inside and dreaming of my upcoming trip to sunny Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to speak at the Puerto Vallarta Writers Conference. And I'm staying on for a few days after the conference to hit the beach.

 The Puerto Vallarta Writers Conference will take place from Friday, February 21st to Sunday, Frebruary 24th at the local library, Biblioteca Los Mangos (see photo below). Thriller author David Lyons is the keynote speaker, and presenters other than myself include author James Callan, editor Tierra Mar, publisher Billie Johnson, true crime author Corey Mitchell, true crime author Suzy Spencer, mystery author Jinx Schwartz, and literary agent Suzie Townsend.

If you register for the conference by the end of January, it only costs $125 to attend! What a bargain for a weekend of writing seminars! And, you can charge as a business expense a trip to the sand and sun and a lovely tourist mecca chock full of tasty restaurants, art galleries, night clubs, outdoor activities--everything and anything you could look for in a winter vacation! I hope to see some of my blog readers at this conference. If you plan to come, please let me know in a comment here.

An Interview with an Independent Bookstore Owner

Today I am blogging on Inkspot, the blog for Midnight Ink authors, about an interview I did with one of my favorite independent bookstore owners, Natalie Johnson of Black Cat Books. Do YOU have a favorite independent bookstore near you that you frequent? Please go to Inkspot and tell us in a comment about the store and the owner!

Left Coast Crime

Left Coast Crime is a mystery conference that is help annually in the spring in some location in Western North America. It is sponsored by fans and is held for fans, so they can meet and mingle with each other and the mystery authors they love reading. Past conferences have been held in California, Texas, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Washington, Hawaii, Oregon, and Alaska. This year's conference, Left Coast Crime 2013, is being held in Colorado Springs, Colorado during March 21-24.

I have registered to attend LCC 2013 and hope to be on a panel of outdoor-oriented mystery authors. I'm also looking forward to reconnecting with fellow mystery author friends and mystery reader friends. I hope some of my blog readers will be able to attend, so I can hang out with you! Behind the scenes, I'm working with Sisters in Crime to sponsor a cocktail reception and man an information table and with the Rocky Mountain Chapter of Mystery Writers of America to sponsor a reception. I'll also be putting together gift baskets/bags for the key presenters.

One aspect of the conference is to vote on and present awards in various categories of mystery fiction. This year's awards include:

THE LEFTY — Best humorous mystery novel

THE BRUCE ALEXANDER MEMORIAL HISTORICAL MYSTERY — Best historical mystery novel covering events before 1960

THE ROCKY — Best mystery novel set in the Left Coast Crime Geographical Region (Mountain Time Zone and all time zones westward to Hawaii)

THE WATSON — Mystery novel with the best sidekick

Wicked Eddies, the second book in my RM OutdoorAdventures mystery series, is eligible for THE ROCKY. In the book, whitewater river ranger Mandy Tanner discovers a murdered fly fisherman along the banks of the Arkansas River near Salida, Colorado. I hope those of you who are registered to attend the conference and have a nomination form will consider listing Wicked Eddies as one of your nominees for THE ROCKY.

I'd love to hear from those of you who are attending, so I can be sure to look for you at the conference!

Today's Mystery Author Guest: Lois Winston

As promised yesterday, fellow mystery author Lois Winston is visiting my blog today. To read her bio and see her photo, please page down to yesterday's post. The photo above is the cover for Lois's January 8th release, Revenge of the Crafty Corpse, the third book in her Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series.

In the book, Anastasia Pollack’s dead louse of a spouse has left her with more bills than you can shake a crochet hook at, and teaching craft classes at her mother-in-law’s assisted living center seems like a harmless way to supplement her meager income. But when Lyndella Wegner—a 98-year-old know-it-all with a penchant for ruffles and lace—is murdered, Anastasia’s cantankerous mother-in-law becomes the prime suspect.

Sounds like a great read to me! Below is Lois's guest article. Please leave a comment for her, and if you have a question for her, ask it! 

The Character Readers Love To Hate 

The idea for my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries came about from a combination of events. My husband had recently lost his job, and although he’s nothing like Anastasia’s husband (thank goodness!), it sent me into a tailspin of worry regarding money. I was also dealing with massive mother-in-law problems at the time. On top of that, when I first started contemplating the series, The Sopranos was still airing on HBO. I’m a Jersey girl. How could I not set a mystery in my home state and involve the Mafia in some way? All of these elements came together to form the basis for Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, the first book in the series.

The premise for the series is that when Anastasia’s gambling-addicted husband permanently cashes in his chips in Las Vegas, her life craps out. She’s left with two teenage sons, a mountain of debt, and a loan shark demanding fifty thousand dollars. Over the course of the series, Anastasia looks for ways to whittle down the massive debt she’s inherited, a task made more difficult by her spend-thrift mother, a self-proclaimed descendant of Russian royalty, and her curmudgeon mother-in-law, a card-carrying communist, both of whom live with her.

And did I mention the dead bodies? It’s not like Anastasia works in law enforcement. However, ever since her husband’s death, she keeps stumbling across murder victims, hardly something a craft editor expects.

I’ve always been drawn to quirky characters. They make me laugh. It’s the reason I write humorous amateur sleuth mysteries. I think we need more laughter in the world. I get enough of the grim and gritty from my daily newspaper and the evening news.

I don't often base my characters on people I know, but when I do, I usually take traits from various people, exaggerate them, and blend them together to create a unique character. Let’s face it, most people aren’t as quirky in real life as they are on the printed page.

The exception to this is Lucille, Anastasia’s mother-in-law. With a few minor differences, Lucille’s personality (along with her communist leanings) mirrors that of my now deceased mother-in-law. Lucille is the character readers love to hate. Some readers want me to kill her off; others love her, probably because they see some of their own mothers-in-law in her. I chalk this up to misery loving company.

There are now three books plus a short story in the series. Yesterday was the official release date of Revenge of the Crafty Corpse. In this book, Anastasia is moonlighting on weekends at the rehab center where Lucille is recovering from surgery. But when Lucille’s 98-year-old roommate turns up dead, Lucille becomes the prime suspect in her murder. Upon discovering that the roommate’s scandalous craft projects—along with her scandalous behavior—made her plenty of enemies, Anastasia sets out to find the real killer before her mother-in-law winds up behind bars.

Now I know, given readers’ feelings toward Lucille over the way she treats Anastasia, many will wonder why Anastasia would bother. After all, she could be rid of Lucille permanently. But no matter how huge a pain in the derriere Lucille is, Anastasia can’t sit by and let her go to prison for a crime she knows Lucille didn’t commit. Besides, if she did, I’d hardly have a plot, would I?

Thanks, Lois! Now, readers, do you have a favorite mystery character that you love to hate? If so, tell us about it. Also, for those who have read Lois's books, what's YOUR opinion of Lucille?

Tomorrow's Guest: Lois Winston

Tomorrow, fellow mystery author Lois Winston will be a guest on my blog. An award-winning author, Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries series featuring magazine crafts editor and reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack. Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, the first book in the series, received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Kirkus Reviews dubbed it, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” Other books in the series includes Death By Killer Mop Doll, Crewel Intentions, and the recently released Revenge of the Crafty Corpse.

Lois is also published in women’s fiction, romance, romantic suspense, and non-fiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. In addition, she’s an award-winning crafts and needlework designer and an agent with the Ashley Grayson Literary Agency. She’s also the author of Top Ten Reasons Your Novel is Rejected. Visit Lois at her website, visit her as Emma Carlyle at Emma's website, and visit Anastasia at the Killer Crafts and Crafty Killers character blog.

In her guest post tomorrow, Lois discusses "The Character Readers Love To Hate," and I'm sure you'll be intrigued by what she has to say. Then, feel free to ask her some questions or respond to the article in the comments.

Today's Mystery Author Guest: Liz Lipperman

As promised yesterday, fellow mystery author Liz Lipperman is visiting my blog today. To read her bio and see her photo, please page down to yesterday's post. Also, Liz is running a contest for a free autographed copy of Murder for the Halibut and will choose the winner from among those who leave a comment!

The photo above is the cover for Liz's January 1st release, Murder for the Halibut, the third book in her Clueless Cook mystery series. In the book, a sports writing job would have been the perfect catch for Jordan McAllister, but in Ranchero, Texas, all she could reel in was the food column. Though she may not know her way around a kitchen, she has no trouble finding herself in a kettle of fish.

Tempted by the offer of a free Caribbean cruise, Jordan accepts a spot as a judge in a week-long big-time cooking competition aboard the Carnation Queen. She just better hope no one finds out that her famous palate is far from refined. But there are bigger fish to fry when arrogant chef Stefano Mancini falls face first into his signature halibut dish during the first event. While evidence suggests that the handsome Italian chef’s death was an accident, Jordan thinks otherwise. But she’ll have to keep her wits about her—and the sea sickness pills handy—if she’s going to solve this one.

Sounds like a fun mystery to me! Below are Liz's answers to my interview questions. Please leave a comment for her, and if you have a question of your own for her, ask it!

1. Who or what inspired you to start writing and when did you start?

First of all, thanks, Beth, for having me on your blog today. Now to the questions. I always knew things came out better when I wrote them. I even used to write letters to my high school sweetheart (now hubby) when we’d fight. My career choice was nursing, however, and it wasn’t until I decided to go back to get a Professional Arts degree and took Creative Writing as an elective that I began to think seriously about writing. On the final exam my instructor wrote, “You ought to think about a career in fiction writing.” That did it for me.

2. What tools and process do you use to “get to know” your characters before and while you’re writing the books?

I start with names and usually spend a whole day researching for the perfect ones. I love to pick ones that have cool nicknames. Then I write detailed character profiles on every character in the story, and I go from there. Sometimes, I even decide which actress/actor will play them in the movie version!!

3. How do you construct your plots? Do you outline or do you write “by the seat of your pants”?

I am a card-carrying plotter. To those who don’t write, this means I have to have it all mapped out before I even write a word as supposed to some of my pantser friends who just sit down at the computer and write. I start with a catchy title and then do profiles on all my characters as well as plot points for the entire book before I ever write one word.

4. In the age-old question of character versus plot, which one do you think is most important in a murder mystery and which one do you emphasize in your writing? Why?

We all know that mysteries involve action and plot. However, I don’t write police procedurals where the action has to be so detail-oriented. Plus, I thought I was a romance writer for a lot of years and learned how to write great characters (at least I hope I did!) So, to answer your question—mysteries that have both are what I write and love to read. I call them Romantic Mysteries, and I love it when a reader tells me she loves my characters. It just truly makes my day.

5. What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced as a writer and what inspires you and keeps you motivated?

As I mentioned, for a lot of years I chased the romance genre with a stack of rejections to prove it. The very first book I ever wrote was about a nurse who was kidnapped and smuggled into Colombia where she eventually takes up arms with her captors to fight off the Cali Cartel. Can you see why it was rejected by the romance editors?? When I finally found an agent who said she loved the story, I was elated. Of course, she couldn’t sell it, either. It wasn’t until that agent left the agency and I was passed down to my present agent (whom I absolutely adore) that I discovered I was a mystery writer. After reading the story, she looked me in the eye and said, “You know you’re not a romance writer, right?” You could have knocked me over with the proverbial feather. That’s when I penned my first mystery (a romantic suspense now available on Amazon.) And BTW, that first story about Colombia will go up as a romantic suspense in March.

6. What is a typical workday for you and how many hours a day (or week) do you devote to writing? 

I am retired from my day job, so I have no reason not to write every day. However, I find every excuse in the world not to. When I’m on deadline, I have absolutely no dust bunnies anywhere!! I have to be in the mood and sometimes, it just isn’t happening. Plus, I edit everything a million times before I send each chapter to my critique partner. Consequently, I am a pathetically slow writer, but the good news is that when I write “The End,” there are usually very few edits. To answer this question, when I am on deadline, I try to write 25 pages a week. I usually don’t and end up in panic mode before the deadline. I call myself a crisis junkie and like to think I do my best work then.

7. What advice do you have to offer to an aspiring author?

You are only NOT a writer when you quit doing it. No matter how many roadblocks you’re running into, keep at it. When I finally sold to Berkley, I signed a three book deal on a proposal. That meant I had three NEW books to write with four already completed ones on my desk. Those are the ones selling now!!

8. Now here’s a zinger. Tell us something about yourself that you have not revealed in another interview yet. Something as simple as your favorite TV show or food will do.
 
My mother had four boys and then said she prayed too hard for a girl and got five in a row. I am next to the baby and my younger sister and I have always been close both in age and size. My older brothers always sent similar Christmas presents to us, and being the devil that I was, I used to unwrap them and choose the one I wanted before wrapping them both up again. My children pay for the sins of their mother since I only put numbers on all the presents to this day because I was so naughty. One year I lost my cheat sheet. That was a fiasco!

9. What are you working on now and what are your future writing plans?

I am now writing the second book in my A Dead Sister Talking series for Midnight Ink. This one will release next year. Currently, I am getting my first Romantic Mystery, Mortal Deception, written as Lizbeth Lipperman, ready to come out in print. This month, Murder for the Halibut, the third cozy in the Clueless Cook series from Berkley came out, and as I mentioned, in March the Colombia story, Shattered Dreams, will release. Then in May, Heard It Through the Grapevine, the first of the series from Midnight Ink debuts, and in October, my fourth cozy titled Chicken Caccia-Killer releases. Sheesh! I’m tired already.

10. Is there anything else you would like to tell my blog readers?

Readers can go to my website and read excerpts from all my books as well as to connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. There’s also a link to email me, and I would encourage people to do that. I love talking about my books.

And I have a question for you readers. What do you like best—the character driven books or the ones with a lot of action? One lucky commenter will received an autographed copy of Murder for the Halibut.

Thanks, Liz! Now, who has a comment or question for her? Good luck in the contest!

Tomorrow's Guest: Liz Lipperman

Tomorrow, fellow mystery author Liz Lipperman will be a guest on my blog. Also, Liz will run a contest for a free autographed copy of Murder for the Halibut, choosing the winner from among those who leave a comment!

Liz also writes for Midnight Ink, my publisher, but she's visiting tomorrow to talk about her recent book release from Berkeley Prime Crime. Liz Lipperman started writing many years ago, even before she retired from the medical field. Wasting many years thinking she was a romance writer but always having to deal with the pesky villains who kept popping up in all her stories, she finally gave up and decided since she read mysteries and obviously wrote them, why fight it? She now calls what she writes Romantic Mystery since there is always a hunky hero and a lot of flirting.

In October of 2011, the first book of her Clueless Cook cozy mystery series, Liver Let Die, debuted from Berkley Prime Crime. Since then she has published two more. The latest, Murder for the Halibut, releases today. The first book of her new series from Midnight Ink will debut in May. She writes her cozies under her real name and her mainstream mysteries as Lizbeth Lipperman so that her cozy readers will know the books written under this name are not G rated. Liz lives north of Dallas with her high school sweetheart hubby. When she’s not writing, she spends her time doting on her four wonderful grandchildren. She loves hearing from readers.

In her guest post tomorrow, Liz answers my interview questions, and I'm sure you'll be intrigued by what she has to say. Then, feel free to ask her some questions of your own in the comments.