How To Write a Mystery class

Went to the first of three classes on How To Write A Mystery, led by Karen MacInerney last night at the Barnes & Noble Westlake (Austin). MacInerney is an experienced teacher. Not only is she an award nominated author, she teaches University of Texas informal classes, and she has the first in her second series coming out next year.

For the first class, she went into the basics, such as the essentials that have to be in a mystery and the best way to end chapters. She also provided time for the attendees to do a little writing. Toward the end, we all participated in a fun and informative brain-storming session on plotting a novel.

It sounds like tonight we’ll take what we learned on Wednesday and work on plotting a novel using her “book map” method.

Doesn’t matter whether you write mysteries or whether you’ve never written a mystery in your life, so far, this is a fun and interesting class. Even if you missed last night, you can still come tonight, get a handout and join in.

On My Reading Table

I seem to be on a “cozy” reading spree. For a while, I was reading action suspense. Read Lee Child’s entire list. Now, I’m trying cozies. Although not a big fan of cozies, I’m finding I like them. They’re fun. They’re fast reads. They’re entertaining. I see them as puzzles.

I read Karen MacInerney’s books then picked up Nancy Bell’s first book, Biggie and the Poisoned Politician. It’d been on my shelf for years. I even started reading it a long time ago. This time I started over from the beginning and read it through. Nancy has such a true Southern voice. Her books have quirky characters and a warm point of view character, J.R.

As soon as I have my bookshelves completed, I’m going to dig out my books from storage and find the other books by Nancy Bell and read them, as well. I discovered she has a whole new series I didn’t even know about.

In the meantime, my cousin emailed from Tennessee and told me about a new author she’d found – Ann B. Ross. I’d never heard of her Miss Julia series, but Rhonda just loves her books. So, I’ll start reading them. I’ve ordered Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind, which I believe is the first in the series.

It’s chilly here today. A perfect day to take an hour and read.

What I'm Reading

Yesterday I finished reading The Hard Way by Lee Child. I believe that’s his latest one. It’s just come out in paperback. It’s a typical Jack Reacher novel. By that I mean, it’s got action, Jack remains a loner and a fighter, and he had a woman by his side – not a damsel in distress, but a strong partner, at least for the length of the book. By “typical” I also mean “good.” Lee Child’s books, so far, are good reads. I have noticed though that the last few books haven’t been as action-filled as the earlier ones. The first couple were action from start to finish. The last couple have been action at the end, but it seems to me that the middle of the book involves a lot of searching, walking, going here and there looking for answers. Not quite the page-turners as the earlier books, at least for me, anyway. I’ll most likely keep reading the Reacher novels, though.

Now, I’ve started the first in the series by Karen MacInerney, called Murder on the Rocks. Her second in the Gray Whale Inn Mysteries is called Dead and Berried. It’s on my list of to-be-read, but I thought I’d start at the beginning of the series. I’m not far into Murder on the Rocks, but it’s a good read. I can see already why it’s been nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel. This is a cozy so it’s in sharp contrast to Lee Child’s series.

I have to admit that I probably read more “hard boiled” than cozies. When I’m on a plane, I like something that moves fast and keeps me turning pages. But I’m liking MacInerney’s book. It’s relaxing. I read it and am taken back to the bed and breakfast my husband I stayed at on an anniversary trip. This is not to say nothing happens in the book – just that you’re not so tense reading it as you are with a book filled with action and suspense. It’s a really nice change of pace.

Karen MacInerney's Book Signing

This afternoon, I drove into Austin to the Westlake Barnes & Noble to see Karen MacInerney who was signing there. As a bonus, I also got to see Jo Virgil, the CRM there. Great day when you get to talk to two friends, and have a non-fat Chai Latte, too.

I am just so excited for Karen. Her second book in her Gray Whale Inn series is out. The first in the series, Murder on the Rocks, has been nominated for an Agatha for Best First Mystery Novel. She’ll also soon have a second series in publication. She is hot!

She’s also a great promoter. B&N had set up a table with stacks of books at the front of the store, close to the entrance. From the moment she got there, people stopped at her table. I was several aisles away and I could hear her talking and laughing. She made strangers want to stop and talk. She didn’t sit behind the table, but stood to the side. If no one was at her table, she smiled and asked passer-bys if they liked to read mystery. Then she’d let them know she was a local mystery author and mention that her second book was out. If they stopped long enough, she’d tell them that she did a lot of the writing on the book right there at that store in the coffee shop.

On the rare occasion no one was at her table to talk, she took her postcards and introduced herself to people in close-by aisles.

She was approachable, friendly without being pushy, fun to talk to, and interesting.

When you have the chance, go out and observe authors at book signings. Learn from those, like Karen, who know how to do it so that they make sales and find new readers. Even if you don’t buy a book, go up and say hello and introduce yourself. Authors don’t bite. And if they don’t have a stream of people coming by, they’ll appreciate someone to talk with.

XIX Agatha Awards

The nominees for the 19th Agatha Awards have been announced. So, I’m taking this time today to say congratulations to two friends:

For Best Novel, L.C. Hayden for her book Why Casey Had to Die
For Best First Novel, Karen MacInerney for her book Murder on the Rocks

Yea for both of them.

The Agatha Awards are under the umbrella of Malice Domestic, a nonprofit which holds an annual convention to salute traditional mystery books. And what is a traditional mystery book? Malice defines it as “mysteries which contain no explicit sex or excessive gore or violence; and usually (but are not limited to) featuring an amateur detective, a confined setting, and characters who know one another.”

If that sounds like the kind of book you like to read, then check out the Malice website for a list of the authors attending the May conference.