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My, That's a Bold Choice! (Why I'll Be Attending Malice)

Tomorrow I’m going to Malice Domestic, the annual gathering for those of us who love the traditional mystery. Although it’s billed as a fan conference, Malice is more of a yearly party where readers, writers, and lovers of traditional mysteries renew their relationships. This year Malice will be particularly spectacular because it’s like a special gathering of the Femmes Fatales! Elaine Viets will be honored as Guest of Honor, Marcia Talley will be our Toastmaster, and our own Charlaine Harris will be recognized for her Lifetime Achievement. (Although I’m not too keen on that title because it sounds like she’ll be honored and immediately kick the bucket. Charlaine, do NOT take this title literally, okay?)

At my first Malice—which I attended even before I had a contract--I heard an interview with Charlaine. She was witty, charming, and funny. Most importantly, she did not talk too much about her book, but I couldn’t wait to buy a copy because I liked her so much. That was a huge lesson. Since then, I’ve been to many author events where the writer bores the audience to tears with a recitation that goes like this: “So my story’s about this person who does this, and then this happens, and then that happens, but first she does this, and oh, I forgot to tell you about…” Somewhere along the line, the faces in the audience glaze over, like freezer burn on a pound of hamburger.

At my next Malice, I learned the importance of being enthusiastic. My first book – Paper, Scissors, Death – had just been published. I sat on a panel with other first time authors. The moderator asked, “How did it feel when you sold your book?” One woman said (in a totally deadpan voice), “Uh, well, I’d forgotten all about it. See, I just put it in the mail and didn’t think about it anymore. So, it kinda came as a surprise.”

Whoa, Nellie! And boy, didn’t we all want to run out and buy a copy?

Not.

I skipped a few Malice conferences in between. The trip from Florida seemed like such a hassle, and I always have tons of stuff I need to do. But last year, a reader sent me an email. “I missed you at Malice. Aren’t you writing anymore?” Yet another lesson learned. If you’re going to be part of an industry, you better show up where people expect to see you.

So yeah, tomorrow I’ll attend with Malice Aforethought, an Afterthought, and a Happy Thought. Tomorrow I’ll party with my fellow Femmes, and I’ll beam with gratitude for the many lessons they’ve taught me. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but Malice suits me just fine.

 

PS I read this to my friend, Linda Gordon Hengerer, and I asked, “Does this sound too fan-girlie about Charlaine?” and she said, “Is there such a thing as too fan-girlie about Charlaine.” Nope. I guess not.

Meet the Femmes!

By Elaine Viets

The Femmes are on the move. We'll be at conferences New York, Washington, DC, New Orleans, and Colorado. Our novels have been praised in the New York Times, and appearing on TV. We're on panels and up for awards. Here's an update.

Miranda (James) Dean: The eighth Cat in the Stacks mystery, Twelve Angry Librarians, debuted on February 21st. Marilyn Stasio reviewed it favorably in her March Crime Fiction column for the New York Times Book Review.

The seventh Cat in the Stacks mystery, No Cats Allowed, recently spent four weeks on the in-store bestseller list at Barnes & Noble.

The fourth Southern Ladies mystery, Fixing to Die, will be out on October 3rd.

Miranda will be attending Storycon 2017 in New Orleans in September.

Laura DiSilverio: Laura's latest novel, Close Call, was named one of the top five mysteries of 2016 by Library Journal.

Fans can next see Laura at the following conferences where she will be on faculty:

April 28-30 – Pikes Peak Writers Conference, Colorado Springs Marriott, Colorado Springs, Colorado https://www.pikespeakwriters.com/ppwc/

July 22 – Steamboat Springs Writers Conference, Old Train Depot, Steamboat Springs, Colorado

August 18-20 – Writer's Digest Conference, August18-20, Hilton New York Midtown, New York, New York http://www.writersdigestconference.com/index.php

You'll find more Femmes this weekend at Malice Domestic 29, April 28-30

Charlaine Harris will be receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award at Malice Domestic, and she’s greatly honored by this recognition. On July 24, NBC will air the pilot of "Midnight, Texas," based on her books. She’s also working on a new series for Simon and Schuster.

Friday, 4/28

12:00 – 12:50 – You’ve Got Fan Mail panel with Elaine Viets, Marcia Talley, Martin Edwards, moderated by Verena Rose.

9:15 – 10:00 – "Murder Most Historical" signing.

Saturday, 4/29

11:00 – Chopped, the humor panel with Margaret Maron, Parnell Hall, Joan Hess, Vicky Bijur and Kate Stine. Moderated by Dorothy Cannell.

1:00 p.m. Margaret Maron interviews Charlaine on the "Interview of the Lifetime."

Sunday, 4/30

11:00 a.m. Book signing

Catriona McPherson is dashing down from New York, post-Edgars, to arrive in time for Malice.

Friday, 4/28

Simply the Best: The Agatha best contemporary nominee panel at 1pm Friday, with Ellen Byron, Barbara Ross and our very own Hank. Shawn Reilly Simmons - talk about a safe pair of hands - is moderating.

Then a quick Starbucks-run, fresh lipstick and another panel

Making History: the Agatha best historical nominee panel, 3pm Friday, with D.E. Ireland (Meg Mims and Sharon Pisacreta), Edith Maxwell and Victoria Thompson. Harriette Sackler - more safe hands! is moderating.

Catriona will be at the Opening Ceremonies at 5.30 p.m. Friday, with our very own Marcia presiding as toastmaster.

There's a signing for the new anthology Murder Most Historical at 9 p. m. Catriona has a story – "A Butler is Born" – in it, and I can honestly say writing about the early life of Dandy Gilver's snooty butler is some of the best fun I've ever had.

Saturday 4/29

Catriona's main signing is 11:00 a.m.

7:00- 10:00 p.m. "Finally, I'm hosting a table at the Agatha dinner on Saturday night. How does one eat peppered sirloin with all fingers crossed?" Good luck on your nominations, Catriona. (Yes, there are two!)

Sunday, 4/30

On Sunday morning, you'll find Catriona "in the long queue at the UPS pop-up, mailing all the books I'm not even pretending I won't buy! Hope to see lots of you there."

Hank Phillippi Ryan will be training in to Malice at the crack of dawn Friday, April 28 after attending the Edgar banquet in New York the night before, where her Say No More is a Mary Higgins Clark Award nominee. (She'll also be presenting the Edgar for Best Juvenile mystery to...shhhh.)

Friday, April 28

Since Say No More is also an Agatha Nominee for Best Contemporary Novel (hurray!) Hank will be participating in the Simply the Best panel Friday afternoon at 1:00 p.m.

Friday evening Hank is an auctioneer for the Malice Domestic charity auction, from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m., so get out your wallets.

Saturday, April 29

Saturday evening is the Agatha banquet from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. Hank will be wearing a new skirt and crossed fingers.

Joanna Campbell Slan is repackaging all her novels and short stories in the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series, plus editing the next mystery anthology, Happy Homicides 5: The Purr-fect Crime. She'll be attending Malice, too.

Sunday, April 30, from 10-10:50 a.m. Joanna moderates "Entrepreneurial Sleuths." Panelists will be Sheila Connolly, Leslie Karst, Camille Minichino, Lea Wait and Angela M. Sanders a.k.a. Clover Tate.

11 a.m. Book signing. Femme Charlaine Harris will also sign at that time.

Marcia Talley: Malice Domestic is a regular Convocation of Femmes this year. Marcia Talley is the Toastmaster, honoring Elaine Viets as guest of honor and Charlaine Harris for Lifetime Achievement.

Here's where you can meet Marcia at Malice Domestic:

Friday, 4/28

12:00 – 12:50 – You’ve Got Fan Mail panel with Elaine Viets, Charlaine Harris, Martin Edwards, moderated by Verena Rose.

5:00 – 5:45 – Opening Ceremonies

9:15 – 10:00 – Murder Most Historical signing

Saturday, 4/29

11:00 – Book signing

7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. – Agatha Awards banquet

Sunday, 4/30

12:30 – 1:20 – A Toast to Marcia Talley, interviewed by friend, colleague and fellow Cleveland native, Dan Stashower

1:30 – 2:30 – Closing Agatha Tea

Elaine Viets is honored to be the Malice Guest of Honor, and thrilled to be interviewed by Ann Cleeves, an author she admires personally and professionally, at Malice. Here's Elaine's schedule:

Friday, 4/28

12:00 – 12:50 – You’ve Got Fan Mail panel with Marcia Talley, Charlaine Harris, Martin Edwards, moderated by Verena Rose.

5:00 – 5:45 – Opening Ceremonies

7:30 to 9:00 – Elaine is one of the auctioneers for the Malice Domestic charity auction. It benefits KEEN – please be generous.

9:15 – 10:00 – "Murder Most Historical" signing. My short story is called "The Seven."

Saturday, 4/29

11:00 – Book signing

4:00– 4:50 p.m. "It's an Honor: Guest of Honor interview by Ann Cleeves

7 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. – Agatha Awards banquet. I promise to keep my remarks short!

Sunday, 4/30

1:30 – 2:30 – Closing Agatha Tea, then home, where I turn into a pumpkin.

 

 

Donna Andrews will also be dashing down from New York--where, in her role as the Executive Vice President of Mystery Writers of America she will be helping host the Edgar Awards banquet to attend Malice.  Her Malice schedule:

Friday

5:00 – 5:45 – Opening Ceremonies

Saturday

10:00 - 10:50 Just Die Laughing: Humor in Mysteries

11:00 – Book signing

7 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. – Agatha Awards banquet.

Sunday

 1:30 – 2:30 – Closing Agatha Tea

And after the tea, she'll head home to start making plans for the August 1 release of Gone Gull - to be followed October 24 by How the Finch Stole Christmas!

 

    

Book Festivals and Duels

This past weekend I attended the Alabama Book Festival in the state capitol, Montgomery. Carolyn Haines and I did a panel together on cozy mysteries, moderated by our friend Tammy Lynn. This was only the second state book festival that I've attended. The first one was the Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville, Tennessee. That was back in 2000, the fall after my first novel was published. I did a panel on cozy mysteries at the festival too, and I remember that the late, great Anne George was there as well. Also on hand were luminaries like Lee Smith (whom I met briefly), Margaret Maron, and Sharyn McCrumb, along with my good friend Julie Wray Herman (whose first novel was also out then).

These state and regional book festivals are wonderful celebrations of the written word, and I was lucky to be invited to participate in these two. At the panel this past weekend, Carolyn and I answered questions from Tammy and from the audience. Though Carolyn and I both write what are usually termed "cozy" mysteries, our styles are naturally quite different. Carolyn's books have a darker edge, with a strong vein of humor running through them. Mine are on the lighter side, also with humor (at least, I think there's humor in them, although some might not agree). Carolyn and I have done a number of events together, and I never fail to have fun. Carolyn is always an entertaining raconteur, and I could listen to her stories for hours. Her life has been far more eventful than mine, but when we're together, my life becomes eventful as well.

This panel was no exception. It ended in a duel. How often has that happened with panels you've attended? Water pistols at five paces -- except that I cheated and turned on the second pace. Yes, I know, dastardly of me, but I never can resist a twist, can you? And I knew Carolyn wasn't expecting it. We both got soaked, as did our seconds, Tammy Lynn (my second) and Hope Harrington Oakes (Carolyn's second).

This was all done in fun, and Carolyn and I were probably laughing the hardest. The audience who adjourned from the building to the alley outside with us seemed to get a kick out of it, too. Mysteriously, most of them seemed to have already been aware that a duel was in the offing.

Carolyn and I are both native Southerners -- native Mississippians, actually -- and what is more Southern than an old-fashioned duel? Alas, I have no photos of this memorable occasion... but there are probably some out there on social media!

Moral of this story -- if you have a chance to attend a book festival, do so. You never know what talking about books can lead to!

The 2017 Mary Higgins Clark Nominees!

Catriona writes: I’ve never been upgraded on a flight and found myself sitting between Keanu Reeves and Noam Chomsky. (You can tell I’ve never been upgraded because I think aeroplane seats come in sets of three.)

But for the last couple of months, I’ve found myself in some pretty distinguished company, on the Mary Higgins Clark Award shortlist, with Dianne Dixon, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Wendy Corsi Staub and Charles Todd. And today – to celebrate Edgar week – they’re all over here at Femmes Fatales for a chinwag.

[outside atmos: porch swing creaks, ice clinks in lemonade glasses.]

Catriona: What I love about Mary Higgins Clark's books is that you could read one stripped of its jacket with her name blacked out and you'd still know it was her. (Note: I’d put jam behind the knees of anyone who did that to a book.)

Charles and Caroline: Mary Higgins Clark is a master of surprise. You finish a chapter knowing exactly where the story will go next. But it doesn’t! The plot is turned on its head, and you find yourself completely taken in by the turn of events. This is her trademark, and we’d recognize it anywhere.

Catriona: Right? And I was wondering: what is it about your books that makes them *your* books? Did you work it out for yourself or did feedback from fans reveal it?

Hank: What I thought was going to happen was that people would say (and forgive me, but this is just us) : Oh I love how your weave together the points of view--it's so suspenseful that we know more than the characters do. And your plots are so clever and satisfying. That's what I thought people would say. But IRL, what they say is: We love Jane! We love Jane! When will there be more Jane and Jake investigations? (So funny that though their relationship does not take up much room on the page, that's another thing people are very devoted to.) But if it is true that characters create the plot, it's funny to think that even though I thought I was a plot person, my books come out character books. I will have to mull that over.

Wendy: “How far would you go to protect someone or something you love?” That’s the underlying theme in all my domestic psychological suspense novels. They’re about ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, going about their mundane daily business when danger threatens a safe haven—a bucolic town, a dream house, a tranquil getaway, a perfect marriage. I write in present tense and include little graphic violence, language, and sex. I always use multiple, multi-generational viewpoints, including the villain’s, and lots of twists and blindsides. My goal is to mask the villain behind a familiar face. There’s nothing more satisfying than a longtime reader who says, “I never saw that ending coming!”

Dianne: At a recent book signing, a mother/daughter duo told me what I hear from a lot of readers: “Your stories always start with something totally weird…(PAUSE)” That pause used to terrify me. I’d wait, stomach clenched, braced for some soul-bruising follow-up like: “…and that’s why I’d rather read a snowblower manual than one of your books.” Now, I’ve learned to expect the comments about the touch of “weird” in my novels, and I’ve learned to love the pause that follows—because, almost always, what comes after the pause is: “…and I that’s why I like reading your books.”

Catriona: And when you say weird, Dianne . . .

Dianne: It’s things like my first book beginning with a young man returning to his hometown and finding his own gravestone. The stone says he died at the age of three. Weird. How did that thing get into the cemetery? Who put it there, and why?

And my third book is about a crime victim, moving into a house she didn’t live in when the crime occurred, and then discovering her attacker’s clothes neatly packed in a little brown suitcase hidden in the attic of her brand new home.

(Maybe in the interest of full disclosure I should start explaining to readers that the weirdness in my books is one hundred percent locally sourced, small batch literary craziness. I was born with it.)

Catriona: For me, I think it’s a combination of a cast of characters that band together as the book progresses – producing what my agent calls the Dinnerladies moments, after the ensemble sitcom of that name – and a combination of darkish events and humour. I’d love to think it’s amazing twists and drop-your-scone denouements, but the characters and the laugh/shudder combos are what people talk about at signings.

Charles and Caroline: Earlier on, we’d written a stand-alone, THE MURDER STONE, about a woman suddenly thrust into dealing with her family’s affairs, when her cousins were killed in the trenches of France. This was fairly common during the Great War, when so many men didn’t come home. It made us wonder how we could capture the way women’s roles changed and how these new roles changed women. Before we knew it, Bess Crawford stepped out of the shadows of the past and onto the page.

And the more we’ve worked with her, the more we’ve seen in her and in her time. THE SHATTERED TREE is a particularly good example of how history and mystery work hand in hand, a perilous time that brings out the best—and the worst—in people.

Catriona: I’m glad I asked! That’s quite a range of answers. So here’s another question I’ve been dying to put to you: What other writers, besides Her Maryness of Higgins and Clark, could you identify like a sommelier at a blind tasting?

Dianne: Hand me a coverless Harlan Coben novel and I could identify it immediately. There’s a writing style that’s tough and full of humor. An intelligent male protagonist who’s a world-class wise-ass yet capable of loving a woman with all his heart and soul. There’s a cast of funny (sometimes outrageous) supporting characters, a nod to New Jersey roots, and a solid, well-structured mystery. Like fine wine, Harlan Coben’s books are absolutely delicious!

Charles and Caroline: The same is true of Tony Hillerman, Hemingway, and Poe in different ways. Hillerman’s spare prose, Hemingway’s clipped dialog, and Poe’s lyric voice.

Catriona: Hemingway, absolutely! I always think it should be easy to imitate him or even parody him, but it’s not. And that goes for P.G. Wodehouse too. He’s so mannered and so instantly recognisable, and yet attempts to write in his style don’t often go well. I’d put down a good wedge of my own money on being able to spot Stephen King and Joyce Carol Oates too, by anything from the way they put those big, generous, confiding sentences together to the way some characters get their come-uppances in each novel, and some characters manage to slink away.

Hank: When I want to be inspired, I pick up a Sue Grafton book, any one of them. And let myself be mesmerized by her seamless merging of character and story. She manages to reveal emotion and philosophy, somehow, as the plot builds. We all know Kinsey, how amazing is that? Quite a tour de force. I also recognize the Todd's writing, certainly. And yours, Catriona. (Awww – CMcP) And thinking about this more now--what a good question, I can recognize more than I ever thought of. Lee Child, and Janet Evanovich, and John Lescroart. So revealing! I'm writing a new book now, (this just in), a standalone. And I showed it to an early reader and said --this does not sound like Jake and Jane, remember. And she read it, and said no, it's not Jake and Jane. But it still sounds like you. That's good, right?

Catriona: So, we all love the tug of the familiar? Wait, no!

Wendy: Okay, I’m a wino, I’ll admit it. In this crowd, if I didn’t, I’m sure one of my Bouchercon Bar Buddies would call me out on a lie. But I’m lousy at blind tastings in libation and literature. I have eclectic taste, and I love surprises—take me someplace I wouldn’t expect to go, and I’ll follow you forever. Take me someplace twice, via the same route, and I’m probably going to lose interest. My favorite thing about the writers I love to read—even those with continuing series characters--is that they’re keeping things fresh.

Catriona: Vive la difference! It’s been wonderful to hang out with you all today, revelling in books and calling it work. Good luck, everyone, and see you in New York.

Hank: How about you, readers of Femmes Fatales? What writers can you ID instantly? And do you admire that about them?

 

The Simon & Schuster Mary Higgins Clark award will be announced at the Edgars Banquet on Thursday 27 April. Find out more about this years' finalists at:

www.diannedixon.com

www.catrionamcpherson.com

www.hankphillippiryan.com

www.wendycorsistaub.com

www.charlestodd.com

Flamingo Road

by Sasscer Hill, guest blogger at the Femmes Fatales.

Okay, so I’m thrilled to have FLAMINGO ROAD coming out on April 18, especially as it’s my first novel with a “Big Five” New York publisher. But the thing about being a writer is you always have to think ahead, look to the future, and sometimes . . . worry.

I love my new series about Fia McKee, an agent for the Thoroughbred Racing Protective Bureau. When I finish with the second in this series, I can hardly wait to race into the third, but hold that horse. There is no St. Martins contract for a third, the publisher owns "Fia,” and my agent can’t sell something we don’t own.

Yet St. Martins is wonderful. I enjoy a terrific lunch in New York with my editor, publicist, and marketing gal, and I love all the people I’m working with. The art department puts a fabulous cover on FLAMINGO ROAD, and Kirkus gives the book a stellar review.

Then Publishers Weekly drops a tepid review and fear creeps in. What if the novel doesn’t sell? But I can’t wallow in that swamp, so with a mental whiplash, I write and self-publish a new Nikki Latrelle novella, and make some cash. Still worried, I start a just-in-case novel about an American Irish Traveler in South Carolina.

We have a lot of Travelers down here and they are a fascinating culture of flamboyant scam artists. They're an extremely insular society whose children rarely stay in school past the eighth grade. Many youngsters are bound by signed marriage contracts, and some girls marry as early as eleven. Since the nation’s largest group of Travelers lives in Murphy Village, about 40 minutes from my home in Aiken, I drive to their compound and take a look around. Large McMansions being built with money from their cash-only endeavors of driveway paving, tree trimming, house painting and other odd jobs.

The Traveler men drive out of state, and are famous for charging a lower price for your driveway because they “happen” to have a load of tar from another job. They lay down a new driveway, take your money and are gone. Since the only paper ID you saw was false, along with fake MVA tags, good luck getting a refund when your substandard driveway crumbles and cracks a month later. What a fabulous background these people will make for a murder mystery!         

So I begin, and while plugging away on this novel, I realize again that a writer’s life is an amazing journey. I believe most of us write because it is something we love to do. It’s an incredible way to earn an income, except it’s scary as heck. Will the novel sell to a publisher? If it does, will the general population read the book? Will the comments from trade reviewers like Publisher’s Weekly and Library Journal be favorable enough to spur the library market? It’s truly a wait and see game—wild as a roller coaster ride, as unpredictable as the stock market.

Just when uncertainty drains my forward momentum, a letter arrives from a reader telling me my book helped them get through a rough patch in their life. Wow, that’s exactly what Robert Parker and Dick Francis did for me. This letter is a terrific shot in the arm, so I bet on myself, climb back into that roller coaster car, and pray for a soft landing.

Learn more about Sasscer and her books at SasscerHill.com.

SASSCER HILL was an amateur steeplechase jockey, as well as a horse owner who bred, raised, and rode race horses for thirty years in Maryland. Her first published novel, Full Mortality, was nominated for both the Agatha and Macavity Best First Mystery Awards. Born in Washington, D.C., Hill earned a BA in English Literature from Franklin and Marshall College. She now lives with her husband, dog, and cat, in Aiken, SC., where she still enjoys horseback riding.

All Over the Map

by Laura DiSilverio

This weekend, I had the pleasure of doing an event at the Park Hill Library in Denver with the fabulous Chris Goff. We were interviewing each other, and she asked me a question that made me stop and think.

"You have written four cozy mystery series, a humorous PI series, three standalone suspense novels, a young adult dystopian trilogy, and you're working on a women's fiction book. Why don't you stick with what you're good at? Why keep trying new genres?"

I stumbled my way through an impromptu answer, but since then I've been thinking about it. Do I have ADD? Am I simply contrary? Am I easily bored? Do I need new challenges? Maybe a little of all of those (mostly the last two). But truthfully, I am overflowing with ideas, stories, and thoughts I want to share, and some of those ideas come across more effectively in one genre than another.

The standalone suspense novels came about because I had "darker" issues and characters I wanted to explore that wouldn't work as well in the cozy format. Also, I was interested in trying multiple third person narrators and seeing how that would affect plotting and novel construction. (You might have to be a writer to see why that would appeal.)

 

The YA trilogy happened because of my daughters' prompting and because I wanted to try my hand at world-building. I found it wonderfully freeing to invent a plausible world with its own values and technology and even vocabulary. With those books, I also took on the challenge of writing from a sixteen year old's point of view and using present tense.

 

The women's fic that I'm working on now is called The Empty Nesters Club. My youngest goes off to college this August (joining her sister at the University of Alabama--Roll, Tide!) and I will be--sob!--an empty nester. This one is very much written from the heart and doesn't have a single dead body. I was intimidated by that at first--What would I do to liven things up in the middle if I couldn't kill someone off?--but I actually had too many events and conflicts to include in the book, and I had to pick and choose.

 

What other genres might I try in the future? Well, the next book I plan to work on has historical elements, which is new to me. It takes place in the 1970s and the present. I'm enjoying the research for that one. I can see writing a caper novel one day, or perhaps sci-fi. The genres I can promise you I will never write are erotica and horror.

What about you? Do you mix it up in your work life, if possible? Do you read multiple genres, or are you faithful to crime fiction? Let me know in the comments!

SO LONG, FAREWELL . . . .

I was a founding Femme, too many years ago to remember. I have seen members of our blogging group come and go, and I’ve loved all of them. Some of them quit writing, some of them pursued other interests, and Elizabeth Daniels Squire passed on to another realm, where I’m sure she’s still giving out book marks.

They were and are intelligent, entertaining, women (et un homme) with interesting things to say, both in print and in person. We have had a great time figuring out what we wanted to tell our reading public, and we have had a great time in various hotel bars and coffee shops, and of course in many emails.

Series have been born and died, careers have waxed and waned, nominations have been made, awards have been won (and lost), and our families have grown and diminished in all the years we’ve been together.

I like to think if anyone had their fantasy lunch bunch and it was the Femmes, that someone would feel they’d been extra smart inviting us.

It’s with great sadness that I say goodbye to this wonderful group, and to you all who read our blogs. I am at that stage in life when I must simplify, and this is one of the beloved things I am giving up.

Please support the remaining Femmes et un Homme, both by buying their books and reading their thoughts, because I will certainly be in both categories.

Thanks so much.

Charlaine Harris

How I Wound Up Onstage Playing Air Guitar

By Elaine Viets

It's difficult to explain how I wound up onstage playing air guitar with an international touring show in South Florida. (That's me with the blue guitar, behind the singer in yellow.)

It's also difficult to explain the show. ARTrageous calls itself "an interactive art and music experience. Paint jumps to life with amazing speed unveiling larger than life art in just moments. Experience music, dancing and images from Sinatra to Lennon."

Here's a photo of ARTrageous. Better yet, here's a video. https://youtu.be/lvN7ITjW6Qk

The high-powered troupe danced, sang, and painted during the fast-paced show, and the audience became part of it. We sang. We danced on bubble wrap (oooh, the popping pleasure). We played volleyball with beach balls.

Somehow, I wound up on stage with other audience members, and we were all playing air guitar. Okay, not the classic air guitar. This was an inflatable guitar, which makes it truly an air guitar.

Don't ask me to name the song – I just remember having a heck of a good time and smashing my guitar on the speakers. When the music ended, most of the air guitarists were ushered off stage. I'd had my moment in the sun and joined them.

But no – I was asked to be part of the air guitar back up band, and I played until the end of the show.

I'm not ready yet for the Annual Air Guitar World Championship Contest in Oulu, Finland. I know I need to improve my "technical merit," and "mimesmanship" — those are real criteria, by the way. But I agree with the air guitar creed: "Wars will end and all the bad things will go away if everyone just played air guitar."

There's a video of my air guitar performance, but that's not going to be posted – not if I keep making regular monthly payments.

****************************************************************************

Win SHOP TILL YOU DROP, my first Dead-End Job mystery. Click Contests at www.elaineviets.com

The Power of Story: A Visit with Carolyn Haines

Carolyn Haines is no stranger to Femmes readers. The USA Today-bestselling author has shared her insights on writing with us before. This week she is launching a new (well, not completely new) venture in her publishing career. For a number of years, she wrote a series of romantic mysteries with a feline hero, Fear Familiar. These books were published under the Caroline Burnes byline. Recently Carolyn decided to bring Familiar back by republishing a few of his adventures and making them available again. In addition Carolyn, along with some writer friends of hers, are going to be chronicling the adventures of Trouble, Familiar's son -- who manages to get into mysteries just like his father.

Carolyn, besides being a critically acclaimed, prolific writer, has also been a teacher of writing. She has always stressed the importance of "story" in writing, and I couldn't agree more. But here's what Carolyn herself has to say on the subject.

THE POWER OF STORY

            I believe that stories have the power to change the heart -- and the reality -- of a reader. It’s a staggering possibility, isn’t it? That someone skilled at storytelling could sway the heart and mind of another person. It’s a skill that politicians envy and writers hone. All great teachers and leaders use stories to motivate their audiences. Preachers too. We all know the power of a great orator, but at the root of great oratory and communication skills there is always story. A string of facts never has the power of one great anecdote or story that exemplifies those facts. Humans respond to story.

            As writers and readers, I think we have to give this idea a lot of thought. Because what we write can impact people for good or for bad. And we also have to think about an audience’s willingness to be swayed in one direction or another.

            I think back to the first story that marked me greatly. BAMBI. I was seriously upset by this story of a fawn whose mother is shot by hunters. To this day I have no use for hunting of any kind. I have no comprehension of hunting for sport or pleasure. Did BAMBI turn me into an anti-hunter, or was I affected so deeply by the story (as a three-year-old) because I already understood, deep down, that hunting—to me—is morally reprehensible?

            OLD YELLER, THE YEARLING, CALL OF THE WILD—these were all books that marked me with a deeper consciousness of the intelligence of animals and the bond of responsibility between humans and animals. These stories broke my heart, but they also engaged an animal activism in me that continues to be a huge part of my life.

BLACK BEAUTY, KING OF THE WIND, NATIONAL VELVET, are responsible for the person I am today.

            I can think of a number of other hallmark books that changed my view of life. Leon Uris’s TRINITY brought home the struggles in Ireland in a visceral way. And the movie RYAN’S DAUGHTER also had a huge impact on me on that same subject. David Lean’s cinematography was incredible.

            Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse books made me see vampires in the light of the racial discrimination that has infected our society. In Sookie’s world, vampires suffer the same prejudice that blacks and others have often faced.

In fact, most of my major beliefs have been shaped and bolstered by fiction. Not facts, but fiction. Because fiction allows me to feel so that the facts become personal experience.

I can know all the facts about something, but it isn’t until I understand it emotionally that it becomes woven into the fabric of who I am.

            I read GONE WITH THE WIND, the epic historical novel, when I was in high school. I fell in love with the story on the first page. At that time, it had never really occurred to me that a person (Scarlett) could spend her life loving the wrong man—and bring such misery to everyone around her because she failed to understand who she truly was.         

It’s a theme that comes back to me again and again. Know what you want. Know what you need. Know who you are. While many view Scarlett as a fascinating character set in a sweeping novel, my relationship with her is much deeper. I learned a great deal from her. I was able to take her experiences and mistakes and look at my life through them.

            All of this goes back to the stories we tell ourselves. My younger brother and I shared the same experience, but we both have different stories about what occurred and how it applies to our individual lives. Reality through the filter of emotion and the need to believe certain things is a fascinating subject. Law enforcement officials and prosecutors will tell you, if they are being honest, that an eye witness to an event is not always a reliable source. People sometimes see what they want to see or expect to see.

The remarkable thing about a book is that thousands of people can share the same experience, shaped by the author’s skillful hand. When an author is able to connect a story so powerfully that it changes a person’s world view—just one single person--that is an extraordinary power.

The pen is mightier than the sword, if the pen is wielded by a skillful hand and someone with something important to say.

Have you been affected by a book (or movie)? Have you read or experienced a situation through a story that has profoundly impacted you? Let me know the books that changed your world view. I think this power is always worth discussing and celebrating.

 

It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that . . . swag

Catriona writes: I go to a pub quiz once a month on a Monday night. There are three real prizes - money-off vouchers for the pub we’re sitting in – and the fourth-place prize is swag donated by the contestants. In a town where John Lescroart, Eileen Rendahl, Andy Jones (poet) and I all live, write and do the pub quiz, the swag often includes books. But it’s the other stuff that’s the joy. Bill Clinton and family paper dressing-dolls, mindful cat colouring books, inflatable Einsteins . . . truly the non-book swag has nothing you need, but almost everything else.

So, as a connoisseur of pub-quiz swag, I’m delighted to have Cynthia Kuhn, author of the brilliant Lila Maclean college mysteries, here today to talk about the pressing question of author swag . . . and yes, readers, writers really do agonise over this.

Welcome, Cynthia!

A trip through the swag room of any mystery conference is Freebie Heaven. Many authors have come up with adorable and functional items to give away, like recipe cards or measuring cups for culinary cozies, seed packets and sunblock for gardening-related mysteries, and so on. I very much admire their creativity and ability to imagine thematically connected swag.

For The Semester of Our Discontent, I happily gave away bookmarks and pens. But when The Art of Vanishing launched, I vowed to come up with a new idea—something in the school arena since I write academic mysteries.

During my brainstorming session, I decided to make a list of authentic swag possibilities, items I’d actually encountered in or around a classroom. By the end, it looked like this:

1. Chalkboard/whiteboard covered in writing and no eraser in sight
2. Fresh wad of gum scraped from sole of shoe, stepped on in hallway
3. Indecipherable, abandoned lecture notes
4. Guilt-inducing stack of papers that must be carried around everywhere until graded
5. Random assortment of broken chalk nubs and nonfunctional dry erase pens
6. Coupon forgiving one late submission, already expired
7. Clump of paperclips unintentionally discarded from essays during grading frenzy
8. Projector that renders all letters into unreadable fuzzy blobs
9. Tiny stapler that only works properly on three or fewer sheets of paper
10. Book bag filled with incomplete homework assignments.

All of the above were promptly rejected, you’ll be glad to know. So what is on the new and improved list? Bookmarks and pens.

To help me when it comes round – as it will soon enough – to book three: What are some of your favorite swag items you’ve received?

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Cynthia Kuhn writes the Lila Maclean Academic Mystery series, which includes The Semester of Our Discontent and The Art of Vanishing. She teaches in Denver and serves as president of Sisters in Crime-Colorado.

For more information, please visit cynthiakuhn.net.