My Favorite Mysteries of the Year

Since this is the time of year for following traditions, and since it is a tradition among CWC members--and the extended Pirate community--to poach ideas follow wonderful examples, I am listing my favorite mysteries of the year.

Deb already said a lot of what I would have said about Hurricane Punch, so I'll leave that one off my list.


Homicide in Hard Cover by Kate Carlisle

This first in her Bibliophile mystery series was published in 2009. After reading it, I bought the second in the series, If Books Could Kill, and then the third one, The Lies That Bind, when it came out in November. All three books could make the list, but I'll just use the first one as an example.

Brooklyn Wainwright is a rare book expert, and is sought after for her ability to restore antique books. She is also the child of a couple of hippies who followed the Grateful Dead for years, naming each of their passel of children after the town they were conceived in. Then they moved the family to a commune in Sonoma. Now the commune members are all very well off due to the amazing wine they make and the quaint tourist town they run.

Brooklyn is smart, funny and competent in her work. She has well-rounded, interesting friends. She's not so smart about the fellas, but we've all been there.

The biggest compliment I can give the author is that I was still guessing at who the murderer was right up until the end. One thing I can't say about the third book in the series. That one I realized quite early on who done it. But I think that's a hazard with series. It seems that figuring out who the author has picked for the villain, and often the victim, becomes easier over the course of the series.


A Clue for the Puzzle Lady by Parnell Hall

I had seen various Puzzle Lady books at the book store, but didn't find the first in the series until recently. I'd also seen a YouTube video by Hall about the joys of a book signing tour, so I knew he had a sense of humor.

The Puzzle Lady is ostensibly Cora Felton, a sweet-looking little old lady ala Miss Marple. But Cora's a front for her neice, Sherry, who actually creates the crossword puzzles that are syndicated nationwide. Sherry has a nasty ex-husband she's hiding from so her picture can't be next to the puzzles. Plus Cora has more of the look.

When the murder is discovered, Chief Harper is in over his head, not so much because he's stupid, but because he is beset by the mayor and the local newspaper. A pet peeve of mine is when the cops are made out be stupid.

I have to say that I knew immediately who did it, but it was fun watching the red herrings pile up as Cora, Sherry, Chief Harper and Aaron Grant--the local reporter who may just have a thing for Sherry--run around trying to figure it out.


The Scent of Rain and Lightening by Nancy Pickard

When Jody Linder was three, her father was murdered and her mother disappeared. She was raised by her grandparents, the richest ranchers in their small Kansas town, and her three doting uncles. Then 23 years later the man who was convicted of her father's death--on circumstantial evidence--is released from prison for a new trial. This sets in motion a series of events that finally leads Jody and her family to the truth of what happened the night her father was killed.

While Jody is not a professional investigator, this is as far from a cozy as one can get. It's gritty. But a thoroughly enjoyable read.


The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde

While the previous book is in no way a cozy even though the person who solve the mystery is not a professional, this one feels very cozy-like with a police inspector as the investigator. Maybe that's because it's set in an England where the fairy tales are true and Humpty Dumpty is the victim.

I've seen reviews that said this was a tedious, pun-riddled read. Well, I happen to love puns and send-ups of fairy tales. Fforde also skewers the conventions of murder mysteries along the way. And I thought put-upon Jack Spratt of the Nursery Crime Division, who is also the Jack of Giant Killer fame, was an endearing protagonist.


So, who's next to succumb to the "Best of 2010" bug?

December Goals

Deb just reminded me that I haven't updated my goals for December. Deb can be a real pain sometimes.

I've realized that I need to do some more research for HM. In particular, I need to know more about the history of mining in Colorado. But it's a made up town, you say? Well, yes, but I still want it to fit in with the real world. At least as much as I can.

Goals:

--Finish CWC critiques (1/1)
--Research CO mining history
--Play some more with story

What have you planned for December?

Writing For The Customer?

Deb's been talking on her blog lately about not underestimating the intelligence of your reader. I think it sounds like good advice.

Unfortunately, advertising agencies don't seem to think too highly of people viewing the ads they create. For years there have been the ads that seem to say, "Our customers are stupid." The best example is the Snuggie. The commercial shows people unable to deal with a blanket while sitting in a chair. They aren't even bright enough to put on a sweatshirt or button up a sweater. No, they must have a blanket with sleeves.

Target, however, has stepped it up a notch this holiday season with the new, "Our customers are psycho" advertising campaign. A woman in a red sweatsuit is training for the big Black Friday sales. Her eyes bug out as she lifts weights. She reads the sales notice like a bedtime story to inanimate Christmas decorations. At least she's smart enough not to need a Snuggie. Not smart enough, however, to take off the heels as she runs down the aisles.

My question is "Do these ads work?" I didn't buy a Snuggie, or do I plan to go anywhere near a store on Friday. How about you? Do you think they're funny? Annoying?

I'm going to go see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 tonight with Deb. While I'm not quite as wild about Harry as Deb and Jenny, I like the books and enjoy the movies.

Yesterday, I started looking up reviews. One, from Entertainment Weekly, gave the movie an A-. The rest were so-so at best. I found several more good reviews this morning. What didn't the not-so-great reviews have in common? They all complained that you'd have to be knowledgeable in the Potter-verse to understand what was going on.

Why, in the name of all that's magical, would anyone walk into the 7th movie in a series and expect to know what's going on? We're not talking Jackass XXXIV and a Half here. These movies, like the books, have been building throughout the series. Harry, Ron and Hermoine have grown up, and the problems they're dealing with have grown as well. Of course you need to be familiar with the earlier works in order to "get" this one.

I'm working on the first books in what I hope will be two series. Cozy mysteries tend, as a rule, to have very shallow character arcs for the protagonist. The prevailing wisdom is that if a reader likes the protagonist in the first book, don't shake things up too much or you'll risk losing that reader. There could be a bigger change between book one and book twenty, but it has to be gradual.

What do you think about that? Should a series keep the main character basically the same throughout? How much change is enough? Too much? And should the reader be able to start anywhere in a series and still "get it?"

September Goals

Monday night was my first official CWC meeting. Fun. And intimidating. I knew these people didn't hold back when critiquing. Seeing it firsthand was amazing.

I did end up with more than 4 pages to submit. 30 to be exact. Not quite what I'd wanted, but I think the logjam finally broke. A four-day weekend should help get the word count up. I'd really love to have the whole thing done before I get feedback. It should be very doable (as Deb says).

My goals for this month are simple: 1) critique Jenny's submission and 2) finish the revision of HM.

That will set me up to work on D&D through the end of the year. I'm looking forward to writing something new again.

Big Gunns

First: Congratulations to John for winning the 2-month writing contest and to all of the contestants. Great job, gang.

Deb always says, "Listen to your Tim Gunns." Meaning, when you ask for advice from experts, pay attention to it.

Over a year ago, I asked my local experts--the Pirates--to read HM and give feedback. Which they graciously did. I listened to the feedback, read the notes and thanked them.

A few months ago, Deb offered to let me take her spot in CWC while she concentrated on revising her book, MMG. She didn't have anything ready for submission and didn't want to stop revisions in order to write something new. So I agreed. I had 60 days to get at least 50 pages of HM revised. No problem, less than a page a day.

I jumped in and wrote index cards for each scene, with all the changes I wanted to make based on the critiques I'd received. Then I sat down at the computer with the original prinout and the cards. And I sat there. And sat there. Staring at everything, waiting for my fingers to start typing. But I wasn't feeling it. Not that I didn't feel like writing--I did. Not that I felt like being somewhere else doing something else--I didn't. But the words weren't coming.

Finally, I figured out why. I wasn't changing enough. Over time I slowly let go of almost all of the suggestions. And, I realized in the last week, the ones I chose to ignore were the ones that would involve the biggest changes. I had to age Shannon from 12 to 14. Two years doesn't sound like a lot, but it's huge with preteens/teens. I had to change some of Sloan's background and some of his personality. Big huge changes.

So now I have nothing to submit to the group this month. Last week was nuts at work, and I was helping out some friends in the evenings. This weekend was already booked solid. I feel horrible not making my first deadline with CWC. They've been very gracious to allow me to sit in for the next few months. And I've let them down.
Moreover, I've let myself down.

In my case I listened to my Tim Gunn's, but then I discounted what they had to say. At my own peril. My next opportunity to submit will be August 30. I WILL have my 50 pages plus. Because now I know where I'm going with the book.

And from now on I'll not only listen to my Tim Gunns, I'll make sure that if I choose to ignore some of their advice, it will be for very good reasons.

Reading One's Own Work

It was an interesting exercise going back and reading HM after so long. There was a lot of it I'd forgotten. I think the pleasant surprises outweighed the cringes. In both cases I felt that moment of "Did I write that?" It is a strange experience.

I tried to read it without marking it, but could not help myself. I did keep the comments to a minimum. "More here" seemed to be the most used. I also made note where I wanted to move things or add things.

Deb uses index cards to write scenes on. Then she can easily move them around. I may try that. It seems less daunting then trying to keep track in the document itself.

I'm excited about HM again. I find myself thinking of things to add or how to fix a scene that isn't working.

It's a good feeling.

March Already

February seemed to fly by, even for a short month. I did manage to accomplish my two writing goals. Neither of which involved actual writing.

This month I plan to go through a "clean" copy of HM, adding in all the comments others have made. Then I'll start the rewrite process.

I know this is going to be a long process. Deb seems to be flying through her revisions. She pointed out to me this morning that "It's not my first rodeo." She has been tweaking MMG for a few years now. I don't know if that makes me feel better or not.

In any case, working on the book again feels good.

I'll take that.