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Does a book’s first sentence grab you?
Conventional wisdom says that the first line in a novel should grab you by the lapels and drag you into the story. Charles Dickens did a pretty good job. For lots of examples of good beginnings and...
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Two freebies today in Nostalgia City
This week’s installment features two giveaways—of sorts. First, I’m giving away a signed copy of Death in Nostalgia City. All you have to do is register on Goodreads.com. Here’s a link to the contest:...
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Mystery convention speaker
I will be one of many mystery writers speaking at Bouchercon 2014 in Long Beach, California. The conference is named after long-time newspaper book reviewer and co-founder of the Mystery Writers of...
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Your vote: what are the best noir films?
Anyone who thinks of Fred MacMurray mainly as the jovial father on the 1960s TV series My Three Sons or the screwball title character in The Absent Minded Professor film, doesn’t know the real Fred...
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Mystery notes
Join a discussion; read about Route 66 and novel settings The Big Thrill, the online publication of the International Thriller Writers is hosting an open discussion: “Are men’s mystery/suspense novel...
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My love affair with Fat Ass Sammy Grick
by Patricia Stoltey, mystery writer and guest columnist Thanks so much for letting me visit your website, Mark. You’ve given me a chance to tell your readers about a bittersweet experience I had while...
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So what kind of mystery is it?
That’s a good question and one I hear frequently when I tell people I’ve published a mystery novel. Mysteries come in so many varieties that telling someone you wrote a mystery is only slightly more...
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Award-winning 1930s private eye is ready for anything
Picture a PI’s office in the late 1930s. It’s a third-floor walk-up. There’s a bottle in the gumshoe’s bottom drawer and a .38 just out of sight. If you’re picturing a Sam Spade type character behind...
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Why writers do what they do
And why did I write Death in Nostalgia City? I have heard several writers of books say they write to entertain themselves first. It makes sense. Why would you spend months—years—of your life writing...
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Noir didn’t end with Spade and Marlowe
In this guest post, mystery author Jack DeWitt examines the basis of noir films, comparing them to dark movies of other periods. DeWitt’s diverse writing background includes a study of hot rodding,...
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Help! How can I get this thing started?
Where, or, more accurately, how do you start a mystery novel? Certainly not with the familiar dark and stormy night, the now-cliched beginning penned 185 years ago by British novelist Edward...
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Questions will haunt you until the last page
Tahoe Ghost Boat Todd Borg 384 Pages Thriller Press $14.97 trade paper / $3.99 Kindle Owen McKenna has been in tight situations before but this might top them all. McKenna gets a frantic cellphone call...
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Glass Key: A lesser known Hammett Classic
The Glass Key Dashiell Hammett Vintage 214 pages $9.99 Kindle, $11.38 trade paper Tall, lean Ned Beaumont smokes green-dappled cigars. He’s a gambler and sometimes deep thinker. Absently, he strokes...
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Mystery flash fiction
Who says my crime stories are cynical? Here’s today’s 100-word story. Live Police Car Chase “Station to Skycam One. You there, Jerry?” “Roger that, Pam.” “Where are you? You’re supposed to be over...
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Best-seller list announcement
Death in Nostalgia City has made the best-seller list. Okay, not The New York Times list or USAToday or the San Francisco Chronicle. It’s on the Mendocino coast’s Independent Coast Observer’s best...
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Two new detectives uncover murderous plots
The Red Queen’s Run – A Red Solaris Mystery Bourne Morris Henery Press 280 pages $28.79 hardcover $14.26 trade paper $2.99 Kindle Focused on Murder – A Spirit Lake Mystery Linda Townsdin CreateSpace...
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Is it easy for a man to become a woman, on paper?
By S.B. Redstone Editor’s note: How difficult is it for male mystery authors to create believable female characters? It is easier for women to create compelling male characters? Examining those...
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Writer’s block doesn’t exist
Cat got your tongue? Or your fingers? Suffering a serious case of writer’s block? Impossible. Writer’s block’s doesn’t exist. You may think you’re blocked, but can you write a grocery list, an email to...
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Book award for Death in Nostalgia City
“Death in Nostalgia City” just received an honorable mention award from the San Francisco Book Festival. The awards banquet will be May 23 at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel. Filed under: New mystery book
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Curing writer’s block forever
There is no such thing as writer’s block. If you believe that, as I do, you’ll never be at a loss for words. A positive mental attitude can do more for your writing than half a lifetime of writing...
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