Killer Questions - Favorite Places to Visit

Killer Questions - Favorite Places to Visit 

With summer being here, people often begin to think of vacations. The Writers Who Kill differ on are our favorite places to visit. Are any of these a favorite for you?

Annette Dashofy - Durango, Colorado, or Presque Isle State Park in Erie, PA, if I don’t have the time or money to travel.

Heather Weidner - Any beach, Hawaii, bookstores and libraries.

James M. Jackson - I love being in new places, learning about the fauna, flora, and geology, and taking pictures to capture my impressions. But my favorite place to visit is my home in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Martha Reed - Italy, hands down. But I’m keeping other options open.

Sarah E. Burr - London is my absolute favorite city, so much so that I’d love to live there one day.

Kait Carson – Saba

Debra H. Goldstein – For relaxation, any place where I can look at water. For a fast paced trip, a long weekend seeing Broadway shows in New York City.

Susan Van Kirk – Boston

Elaine Douts - My sister’s house because I usually don’t have to cook and clean there.

Margaret Hamilton - Cape Cod beaches and London.

K.M. Rockwood - Mackinac Island.

Korina Moss - That’s a difficult one, since there are many favorites. If I had to pick, I’d say London. You never run out of things to do or see, the architecture is stunning, the history is palpable, and the museums and art galleries are fantastic (and most are free). There are beautiful parks, markets, rivers, and squares. There’s a great variety of ethnic food, although I also love the pubs. 

Grace Topping - It's not a place that I will probably get to more than once, but Petra in Jordan has to be at the top of my list. I wish I could go often.

Shari Randall - Some place new!

Mary Dutta - New York City (with London a close second). It’s all about the theater.

 

The Joys of ShortCon

Michael Bracken

by Paula Gail Benson

I imagine readers are going to see a lot of posts about ShortCon, the program organized by Michael Bracken and Stacy Woodson that has taken place for the last three years at Elaine’s Restaurant in Alexandria, Virginia. This was my first time attending, but many participants had been to all three.

Why would you want to go and keep returning?

1. Writing is done in isolation. When you find your tribe gathering, you want to be part of the event, to make connections, catch up with friends, and hear the news. This is difficult for short story writers, particularly those in the mystery field. Most larger conferences focus on novels and have only a few panels on short stories. Also, I don’t think readers of short stories are usually drawn to conferences, unless they read mysteries generally. ShortCon provides the concentration and more intimate setting where people can easily talk.

For instance, I belong to the Short Mystery Fiction Society (SMFS), a group that welcomes members at no cost and annually recognizes excellence in flash, short stories, longer short stories, and novelettes with the Derringer awards (usually presented at Bouchercon). Joseph S. Walker is the President of the SMFS. I’m always reading his messages, but it was a real pleasure to have dinner with him and hear about his short story collection, Crime Scenes, that has recently been published.

Stacy Woodson

A Noir at the Bar event took place at Elaine’s the night before ShortCon. Some excellent writers read their own short stories. The atmosphere was relaxed, allowing participants to get to know each other better before the full day program began.

2. ShortCon operates on a very economical basis. There is a registration fee, but it covers the breakfast and lunch for the day of the program. Also, there are raffles and giveaways throughout the meeting. I asked Michael if any books would be available for sale and he replied that people paid enough to attend, the organizers wanted to give back. They did, in information and in extras.

3. Craft and market information are important. ShortCon recognizes and supplies both. Among this year’s craft presenters were Gary Phillips (who took the group through an exercise in creating a villain) and Art Taylor (who spoke about how to structure a novel in short stories). Art invited Ashley-Ruth Bernier to talk to the group about her recently released The Bush Tea Murder, a novel told in short stories. Art’s own On the Road with Del & Louise, A Novel in Stories, has just been reissued. Michele Slung explained the reading process for selecting stories to be included in Otto Penzler’s The Best Mystery Stories of the Year, and Jackie Sherbow, editor of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, spoke about transitions taking place at that publication.

4. Elaine’s has become well known not only for its superb Mediterranean cuisine but also as a haven for literary events. The Westin Alexandria Old Town (a fifteen-minute drive to Reagan National airport) had excellent rooms, an attentive staff, and a comfortable bar for discussions. Alexandria was a very walkable and Uber friendly city.

Are you a short story writer? Have you considered becoming one? You might want to check out ShortCon. It's a great learning and networking experience.

 

Good Distractions Make for Excellent Vibrations by Debra H. Goldstein

Sometimes, when good things are happening, it seems like life gets in the way of doing everything one wants to do – especially writing. But, that’s okay. 

You may ask how it can be okay? You’ve always heard a writer is supposed to write. A writer is supposed to be glued to the chair, fingers on the keyboard, for certain lengths of time or until a given number of words are created. There’s a lot of truth to those ideas. 

There also is truth to be found in a writer’s negative feelings of being overwhelmed, out of ideas, completely frustrated, or having trouble balancing or even finding freak out moment time (see my Hamster Wheel blog https://writerswhokill.blogspot.com/2026/04/running-aimlessly-on-hamsters-wheel.html ). Those are the lousy depressing times when one wonders if words will ever flow again. The times that hopefully will pass but seem like they won’t.

They aren’t what I’m talking about. I’m addressing not writing because of exhilarating and wonderful distractions. Reading the different posts on Facebook, Instagram, or blogs posted or written by Writers Who Kill authors, I see this past month included graduations, military commissions, Daisy to Brownie bridging, weddings, births, new homes, visiting guests, remodeling that finally finished, book launches, award ceremonies, attending conferences, traveling for fun, and planting for the new season. If you ask me, all of these were good reasons not to write. 

The funny thing is that while words may not have gotten down on paper, I find that during these happy times, words keep percolating in my brain. Story ideas that have been tangled become clearer. It is the calm before the storm of words flow. Maybe it has something to do with the release of brain chemicals associated with happiness or simply relaxing, but I know that when the time presents itself to write again, I will. It’s truly okay. I can feel the good vibrations.

What about you? Do you ever find yourself so detoured by happy occasions and acts that you can’t squeeze in other things? When you can, do things work out? 

HOW TO INSPIRE READER LOYALTY

by Korina Moss

A photo posted by Dana, a loyal reader of mine 

Reader loyalty. Every author hopes for it. Cozy mystery authors count on it for their careers. One way to foster loyal readership is through marketing, but that’s putting the cart before the horse. First, you must write a series that inspires reader loyalty. 

Cozy mysteries are intended to be a standalone series. Writing a standalone means you have to focus on writing the best self-contained story you can. But writing standalones within a series means you also have to consider the books you'll be writing next. Ultimately, you want a connection among your books and a progression of your characters. These two things will help to elevate your series and inspire reader loyalty. How to do this? Here are 5 things to keep in mind that may help:

1. Give your protagonist a character arc throughout the series. 

Cozy mysteries are comfort reads, so although we want to write a three-dimensional protagonist (which likely means she’ll have some flaws and challenges), you need to put a light touch on them. Your protagonist must be likable from the beginning, and therefore, her issues can’t be so heavy or need such redemption that the reader isn’t riding with her from the start. With this in mind, you can introduce an arc that gets resolved in book one and then a bigger arc that runs throughout the series, or you can introduce an arc and show your protagonist’s growth incrementally throughout each book. Either way, don’t hit the reader over the head with lessons learned. Character arcs should also apply to your core series characters (those who help your protagonist sleuth and show up in every book). Think about what changes they might go through within each book. What small differences will readers be able to see in your core characters between book 1 and your later books? 

2. Keep in mind the time between when the books take place. 

Does your first book take place in the spring and the second book take place the following fall? Then you need to keep in mind when you write that second book that 6 months have passed for your characters. If your protagonist has just moved into her new apartment in book 1, she’s not going to be unpacking boxes at the start of book 2 if it takes place 6 months later. (Unless she’s like me, lol.) If two characters start dating in book 1, then you have to consider that they’ve now spent six months dating at the start of book 2. If your sleuth and the detective have been awkwardly flirting in book 1, and in book 2, you have them acting exactly the same, you need to mention why their status has remained the same. Have they avoided each other since the last murder investigation? Only seen each other in passing? Are both horribly shy? There should be a reason why their relationship is in the same place. Things will have happened in those months between books that readers didn’t get to see. Make sure each book simply acknowledges that. 

3. Make some community characters recurring.

If you introduce characters who play an important role in your book and they’re part of the community, readers are going to want to see them again and know what they're up to now. It’s a great way to make the town feel alive and slowly grow it. However, not every character can be in every book. They still have to serve a purpose to the mystery. You don’t want too many names and characters for your readers to have to remember. But using these recurring secondary and tertiary characters not only adds color, they help to make your characters feel like they actually live off the page. 

4. Keep the relationships between characters growing and changing.

In real life, romantic relationships and friendships change and grow. Especially if your protagonist starts out in a new town (like Willa does in my Cheese Shop series), you’ll want to show the progression of her friendships and the romantic relationships from book to book. This will have to be done a bit more slowly than in real life, but there are always ways to show growth and for relationships to get tripped up. I age my characters, but not every series does. I understand why and it may not be important to readers to see them age. However, I think if my characters are going to grow and their lives are going to change, and I'm writing different seasons and holidays and shop anniversaries, then my characters should also get older. 

5. Ground your setting.

You want your reader to have a good image in their head of your setting. One way to do this is to have a strong handle yourself on what your town looks like, what’s there, and where the places are located. It will keep you from making mistakes and also allow you to paint a better picture of your setting for the reader. Make note of the shops or locations that play a role in your books. You’ll want to show many of them again in future books, even if it’s just a mention of walking past them. If your protagonist has 3 places she always goes to—for example, her home, the local café, and the shop she runs—you want to describe not only these three places, but where they exist within the town. It will give your reader some idea of the size of the town, if it’s walkable, if your protagonist lives in a rural location, etc. Your setting is like those recurring characters I mentioned earlier—your readers want to be reminded that those places still exist even if they don’t play a role in that particular book. 

Readers become loyal to a series when they love the characters, the town, and the cozy feel. They like to feel like they’re returning to “old friends” in a place they’d love to live (minus those pesky murders). You want to make these things as real as possible for them. A progressing arc of your protagonist and core characters and their relationships not only makes them more realistic, it also gives your readers something to be invested in and look forward to. Connecting the books with many of the same community characters and town businesses leads to a comforting familiarity for your readers. I hope these five tips will help your series become one readers will want to revisit again and again. 

Readers: What makes you return to a series and become a loyal reader? 

KORINA MOSS is the author of the Cheese Shop Mystery series, which includes the winner of the Agatha Award for Best First Novel, as well as two novels short-listed for Best Contemporary Novel. Listed as one of USA Today’s “Best Cozy Mystery Series,” her books have also been featured in PARADE Magazine, Woman’s World, and Writer’s Digest. Korina is also a freelance developmental editor specializing in cozy mysteries. To learn more or subscribe to her free seasonal newsletter, visit her website korinamossauthor.com.

EXERCISE YOUR IMAGINATION: Keep It Fit and Flexible for When That Creative Spark Ignites Your Mind

 By Lisa Malice, Ph.D.

A Writer’s Creativity Tags Along on Vacation. That was the title of my March 14 blog post for Writers Who Kill. It recounted how wrong I was thinking my brain could take a holiday from crafting characters, settings, and plots when those storytelling elements found their way into my vacation.

This weekend, it happened again, though not on vacation, but during an event I never would have imagined could spur a creative thought—a welcome-to-your-new-home party for my 97-year-old gym buddy, Bert, after he moved to an assisted living facility.

Hanging out with Bert, a man with nearly a century of life experience to share, is always a history lesson, but as I talked with some of his new neighbors, I discovered many with interesting lives to share, too. I met psychologists, teachers, preachers, engineers, even hourly power company workers who shared fascinating life tidbits.

But one resident really sparked my thriller writer’s imagination—Charlie, an 86-year-old gentleman who spent his life in the water as a professional diver. He started out in the late 1950’s as spearfisherman, keeping local restaurants stocked with grouper, snapper, sea trout, and other sea delicacies from the Gulf. In the 1960’s, Charlie opened his own dive shop, complete with a 40-foot pool for training and certifying recreational and professional scuba divers, and boats for shuttling divers to coral reefs, shipwrecks, and other dive sites.

If that wasn’t enough, Charlie was a commercial pilot, taking to the air in his private plane to ferry fishermen, hunters, and divers across the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico (as it was named back then) to the dirt airstrips dotting the backwater islands.

Sounds like a real character? You bet! Strong in mind and body with an adventurous spirit that lets nothing get past him. You know what that means? He often finds himself in tough situations, up against the roughest of characters, some who will put him and others in harm’s way. A whole host of problems he encounters in his life and work can serve as a setting for mystery, thrills, and suspense (e.g., hurricanes, mechanical problems, missing people or boats) and dark characters and their nefarious dealings (e.g., organized crime, Soviet spies, smugglers, treasure hunters).

My mind is having fun imaging all that could go wrong and how fictionalized Charlie gets out of it alive. Will I set out to write Charlie into a series? No. This is not the genre I read, nor write. But what What I’ve discovered from this experience is that such exercises of imagination are good for my writer’s mind. Pumping creativity instead of weights, running with a story idea rather than with a treadmill, keeps my mind healthy, ready to flex its cognitive muscles when faced with the spark for my next great tale.

How about you? Please share a situation that unexpectedly sparked an idea for a new character, a new plot, maybe even a series? If you are not a writer, please share how a spark of imagination helped you solve a difficult problem.

Why Authors Need Public Speaking Skills

By Heather Weidner

If you read studies about universal human fears, public speaking is always at the top of the list. In high school and college, I was terrified of any speaking engagement, and it took years for me to overcome it.

My company sponsored a Toastmasters group when I was a technical writer, and I swallowed the panic and signed up. The good thing was that the group was new, and everyone was a novice. We bonded over a “we’re in this together” vibe, and it was the best training that I’ve ever invested time in.

As a writer, you are often asked to do panels, teach workshops, do readings, and speak to groups. The more you practice, the better you get. But many people miss opportunities to meet readers and talk about their books because it is such a debilitating fear. I stuck with my Toastmasters journey, and after several certifications and what felt like hundreds of speeches, I finally was comfortable standing in front of a group.

 Here are some things I learned that have helped me along the way.

•  Don’t have anything in your hands or put your hands in your pockets. People tend to jiggle their keys or change and play with pens or things in their hands. Don’t clutch the microphone, lectern, or table. It makes you look like you’re hanging on for dear life. (I shredded a tissue once, and another time, I broke a ball point pen.)
• Practice what you’re going to say in front of a mirror or record it, so you can see if you’re making faces or tripping over certain words. But don’t write out your presentation verbatim. Put bullet points in your notes. You want to look natural and sound authentic.
• Make sure you’re looking at the audience. If it terrifies you, look at the top of their heads. They think you’re looking at them, and you’re not staring them in the eyes.
• Don’t read your PowerPoint slides verbatim to the audience. Talk about key points and provide examples. And don’t turn your back on the audience to read your slides.
• Watch the “errrrs” and “ummms.” A lot of times, you use them or crutch words (like “you know,” “you see,” or lots of “ands”) for fillers. People start paying attention if there are too many, and they listen for them and ignore your message.
• Know your material. It’s okay to have index cards or a few notes (like bulleted items), but don’t take a copy of what you’re going to say verbatim. You will go to where you are most comfortable, and you’ll end up reading your text, and that is the fastest way to put people to sleep.
• If you lose your thought, take a breath or a pause and then continue. Pauses always feel a lot longer for the speaker than they do to the audience.
• If you’re on a panel, be a good citizen. Don’t hog the time or the microphone. If you agree with what someone else said, give them a shout out. Be attentive and listen to your fellow panelists’ answers.
• And don’t forget to speak into the microphone. You want to make sure everyone can hear you.

Feeling comfortable as a speaker opens up all kinds of opportunities (many of them are paid) for writers. And it’s nice to be invited to be a presenter or a guest speaker. 

Through the years, Heather Weidner has been a cop’s kid, technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager. She writes the Pearly Girls Mysteries, the Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries, The Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, and The Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries. 

Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a crazy Mini Aussie Shepherd.

MOMENTS OF INSPIRATION and JOY in FRANCE and ITALY

                                        A newly-restored Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris, May

                                                                By Margaret S. Hamilton

Our recent trip started in Paris and ended in Florence. We visited art museums, churches, and gardens, and enjoyed memorable meals. The photos reflect moments of joy we found on our travels.

From Matisse's Jazz collection of cut paper collages. We saw the Matisse 1941-1954 exhibit at the Grand Palais in Paris.

Renoir, Dance at Bougival, on display in Paris at the Renoir in Love exhibit at the Musee d'Orsay, Paris

Saint-Chapelle, the gothic "jewel box of Europe" was built in 1248 in Paris.

                                            The Conciergerie Clock, the oldest in Paris, 1370.

La Maison de Verlaine restaurant on the Left Bank, where Verlaine lived and in 1922-23, Hemingway and his young family.

Lunch in the Jardin de Luxembourg on May Day, a national holiday. Everything was closed, so visitors and residents alike took advantage of a glorious early summer day.

                                                            A dog bar in Aix-en-Provence.

                                    The rose garden at the Pavillon de Vendome, Aix-en-Provence

A painting of Chagall's Paris Opera Garnier frescoes at the Chagall Museum in Nice. The frescoes pay homage to fourteen major composers.

                         Renoir's studio in his country home in Carnes-sur-Mer, near Nice.

                            The Chapel du Rosaire de Vence, designed by Matisse in 1951.

                                                A market town near Grasse, southern France.

                            Gardens at Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, France

A statue of Boccherini in his hometown of Lucca, Italy, home of a music conservatory.

Our hotel room in the Oltrarno district of Florence overlooking a private garden. Instead of traffic noise, we woke to birdsong every morning.

The trap door to Michelangelo's hiden room in the Medici Chapels in Florence. In 1530, Michelangelo was wanted by the Medici Pope Clement VII. He spent two months in hiding, leaving charcoal sketches of future works on the walls of his hidey-hole.  Reservations for the actual room are restricted.

An actor declaiming Dante's Inferno in the medieval town of San Gimignano, Italy.

The Basilica of St Mary of the Angels is built around the Porziuncola, the 9th century little church where St Francis renounced the world and founded the Franciscan order.

Fra'Angelico, Annunciation fresco, in the Convent of San Marco, Florence, 1443.

The Giardino Delle Rose is a public rose garden high on a hill overlooking Florence. Instead of a steady stream of tourists, vistors strolled the many levels on the garden and ate picnic lunches on the grass. A welcome refuge in a city filled with tourists.

Readers and writers, have you discovered inspiration and joy in your travels?

St Paul de Vence, France

Margaret S. Hamilton has published forty short stories and has two novels on submission.

Home - The Official Website of Margaret S. Hamilton

                                                         

An Interview With M. A. Monnin

by Grace Topping

 

For mystery readers who may be armchair travelers, finding a mystery series set in places they may never visit is a real joy. One of those is M. A. (Mary) Monnin’s Intrepid Traveler Mystery series, with books set in Greece, Italy, Bermuda, and soon, Egypt. If you have visited some of those places, reading the vivid descriptions in Mary's 's books will make you feel as though you are there again. The most recent book in the series, Death in St. George, takes readers to Bermuda. Death in Luxor (Egypt) comes out in August. 

 

Death in St. George

When Stefanie and Thomas meet in Bermuda for time alone away from the demands of the Artifact Retrieval Team that Thomas heads, their romantic rendezvous is waylaid by an archaeologist who requests their help to recover an emerald bracelet that’s been stolen from his site. Thomas is reluctant, but Stefanie can’t resist the lure of Spanish gold. Then one of the archaeologists is murdered, and they find themselves on the suspect list. Spanish gold isn’t the only thing uncovered. Secrets can be deadly, and Stefanie and Thomas must find the killer before it’s too late.

 

 

Welcome to Writers Who Kill, Mary.

 

With your interest in travel, it’s no surprise that you would write about interesting places. But what inspired you to incorporate antiquities retrieval and suspense?

 

I didn’t set out to have artifacts be at the center of the series. When I visited Santorini, I was fascinated by its history as the inspiration for Plato’s Atlantis, and we visited the archaeological site of Akrotiri, the very modern city (for its time) that was buried under 40 feet of ash when the volcano erupted back in the Bronze Age. Then we went on to Crete. The museum had clay snake goddess statues from Crete, and a small gold ibex, which was the only gold item found thus far in Akrotiri—other than a few tiny gold beads. My mind went to ‘what if.’ What if a gold snake goddess was found in Akrotiri? What kind of people would go see it? Who would go to any length—even murder—to own a piece of Atlantis?

 

I went home and wrote Death in the Aegean. After it was finished, I realized it had series potential, and the biggest draw for me, and, I hoped for readers, would be interesting artifacts and antiques from different cultures.

As for suspense, I’ve always loved mysteries. As a teen, I loved the gothic romances of Victoria Holt, Barbara Michaels and Phyllis A. Whitney. They were mysteries at heart, and I’m sure that’s where I get my need to include romance and suspense.     

 

How do you pick the places you feature—places you’ve been or places you want to visit?

 

Places I’ve been. When I’m considering a location for a book, first I look at places I’ve been to, and then I look at what kind of special items from that country’s past would be attractive enough to steal, either by thieves or by a collector who coveted the item. That research has been a lot of fun. I got to dig into Renaissance pendants for Italy, New World jewels transported by the Spanish Treasure Fleet for Bermuda, and in my upcoming book, the gold of the pharaohs.

 

Do you visit the places where you set your stories?

 

Every country, but not every location within the country. That’s where research is invaluable.

 

You’ve set your books in Greece, Italy, Bermuda, and soon to come, Egypt. Is there a place you yearn to visit or write about?

 

Right now, Malta is calling to me. So is Gibraltar.

 

Do you have a favorite among the places you’ve set your books?

 

Greece. I’d live there on one of the islands if I could. I’m not picky. I’d take Crete, Santorini, or Rhodes. I’ve been twice, and would love to go back.

 

You spent years living in Germany. Was this your first foray into foreign travel? Please tell us about it.

 

I’m an Army brat, and spent nine years of my childhood living on US Army posts in Germany. That had a huge influence on me. In addition to loving to travel, I think of myself as a child of the Cold War. When my father retired, I missed the travel, so I joined the Air Force and was stationed at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. I got out at that time, but my husband was Air Force, and after Germany, we moved to The Netherlands, Spain, and England. After my husband retired from the Air Force, we continued to travel, visiting countries that we hadn’t lived in.

 

When did you develop your interest in archaeology?

I want to say the seed was planted when my father brought home Greek vases from his military exercises on Crete, but also, I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t interested in old buildings and artifacts. Growing up surrounded by medieval churches and walled towns made an interest in archaeology second nature. And I can’t leave out the movies—I’m a huge movie fan, and Raiders of the Lost Ark probably sparked my interest in archaeology as a hobby.

 

You’ve written several short stories, published in well-regarded publications. Which came first, the short stories or the novels?

            

The short stories came as I was waiting for “the call.” I believed in my first book, but it took a long time to get a contract, so, since I was a fan of short crime fiction, I thought I’d try my hand at it. Besides reading lots of Ellery Queen and Alfred Hitchcock magazines, I’d listened to probably hundreds of hours of the old half-hour radio programs like Suspense and Johnny Dollar, so the short format was easy to move to.

 

Please tell us about your journey to publication. Was it a long one?

 

Very. It took me several years to get a contract for Aegean, my first book. And of course, I had a few manuscripts in boxes that weren’t good enough to pitch. All the rejections were hard to take, but I’m very thankful that I stuck with it. There is nothing more rewarding than hearing that a reader really enjoyed my book. Except for them saying they didn’t guess whodunnit!

 

With writing being such an isolating activity, how do you connect with other writers and the mystery-writing community?

 

That is so important. First, I have my local group of romance writers. I meet with them monthly. Then, there is the wider mystery/crime fiction community. I’m the current president of the Guppy Chapter of Sisters in Crime. We have over 950 members, and we connect online in an io Group. It is wonderful—no matter what writing-related topic you have a question or comment about, someone will chime in with advice, experience, and commiseration. And everyone can contribute when it’s convenient to them. I’m also a member of Mystery Writers of America and International Thriller Writers. Each organization gives back and connects in different ways. I’m also a member of Curators of Crime with authors Connie Berry, Lane Stone and Nina Wachsman. We present programs that connect our books with real life art/artifact/antiquities crimes.

 

What’s next for Stefanie and Thomas?

Egypt! Their fourth adventure, Death in Luxor, will be out August 11^th. After that, I’m not sure. They have a couple options they can pursue. 

 

What is the most valuable thing you’ve learned since you started writing?

 

For every piece of advice an industry expert gives you about writing, there is another expert who swears by the exact opposite. So it’s important to learn the craft, and go with what feels right for your book.

 

Thank you for letting me spend time with you today.

 

Thank you, Mary.  I look forward to Stefanie and Thomas’s adventures in Luxor. A place I’ve always wanted to visit. 

 

Be on the lookout for Death in Luxor, coming in August.

 

 

Death in Luxor

 

Undercover artifact theft investigator Stefanie Adams and her Artifact Retrieval Team (ART) lead and partner, Thomas Burkhardt must head off trouble before it starts at the opening ceremonies of Egypt’s Grand Egyptian Museum. Anonymous notes have threatened the Gold of the Pharaohs, a special exhibit featuring glittering gold pectorals, collars, bracelets and rings that once belonged to Egypt’s powerful pharaohs. Stefanie is thrilled at the opportunity to fulfill her dream of visiting Egypt and the fabulous tomb of Queen Nefertari, She For Whom The Sun Shines. But trouble comes from an unexpected quarter, and this thief doesn’t stop at murder to possess a golden relic of ancient Egyptian royalty. She and Thomas suspect members of the Kemet Forever Society, wealthy A-listers who all admit to an obsession with ancient Egypt, and aren’t above using their influence for special perks. Trailing the suspects up the Nile, through temples and tombs, Stefanie and Thomas race against time to recover the stolen gold before it is secreted out of Egypt and another victim falls in the thief’s deadly game.

 

 

BIO

M. A. Monnin is the author of the Intrepid Traveler Mystery series, including Agatha Best First Novel finalist Death in the Agean. The fourth in the series, Death in Luxor, releases in Aug 2026.She also writes the St. Killian, PI and the Hawk Hathaway, Time Traveling Troubleshooter short stories. Mary’s short stories have appeared in Black Cat Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Weekly, and numerous anthologies. A member of ITW, MWA, SinC, and SMFS, an avocational archaeologist and USAF veteran, Mary is President of the Guppy Chapter of Sisters in Crime, a trustee of the Kansas City Archaeological Society and treasurer of Mid-America Romance Authors. She lives in Kansas City, MO. Find her on FB and IG, and at www.mamonnin.com and www.CuratorsofCrime.com .

Grace Topping is the author of the Laura Bishop Mystery Series.

 

 

Why Don’t More of Us Use Illustrations? by KM Rockwood

I’ve been working on gathering some of my Christmas stories into a collection. I have come to the conclusion that the project cries out for illustrations. (Too bad I can’t competently draw stick figures. If I proceed with the project, I will have to find an illustrator who is willing to work with me.)

That got me wondering. Why are so few of our contemporary crime/mystery books illustrated?

It’s not like there’s no tradition of illustrated works. The original Sherlock Holmes was heavily illustrated by Sidney Paget. He created more than 300 images, from full-page pictures to detailed spot illustrations.

Agatha Christie’s first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, had several maps and illustrations in its first appearances, but her later ones did not. Early Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books had limited illustrations.

A few more recent works with illustrations come to mind. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon is illustrated. Several popular books, like The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall and The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, are available in illustrated versions in addition to the original, image-free editions.

Illustrations are more common in some other types of genre fiction. Speculative fiction, both sci-fi and fantasy, often use images to augment the text. So does horror. Romance and historical fiction often include pictures.

What do illustrations do?

They serve as a kind of “shorthand” to convey information and atmosphere without the author resorting to elaborate descriptions or “info dumps.”

They enhance character-building, adding additional physical descriptive elements. They can show subtle expressions and body language. Personality traits can be effectively reinforced.

They drop the reader immediately into the setting, whether it’s a familiar small town, a bustling city, or something more exotic.

They can present maps, diagrams, or relationship trees that clarify complex narratives.

>They have an emotional and cognitive impact on the readers, strengthening memory retentions and sparking imagination.

Novels rely on the written narrative to tell the story. A novel with illustrations is not a graphic novel or comic book, which rely on sequential art panels to move the story forward.

Can illustrations provide too much superficial information too easily, thus discouraging the reader from becoming emotionally involved in the story? Possibly. I suspect it would be different for different readers. And different authors. Reader involvement is important. Most of the early Harlequin romances were careful to severely limit even written descriptions of the heroine so that each reader could more easily place herself in that role.

I feel that my Christmas short stories need illustrations, so I am exploring my options. I don’t feel nearly as strongly about my crime/mystery tales.

Are you familiar with crime/mystery works that use illustrations? Do you think illustrations would appeal to today’s readers?