Love and the Single Spy

 by S. Lee Manning

I fell in love with spies and spy thrillers in my teens, with television shows like Man from U.N.C.L.E., Secret Agent, and the James Bond novels. It wasn’t just the attractive men who populated the shows—although I retained a lifelong warm spot for David McCallum as Illya Kuryakin. It was the “great game” that pulled me in. I loved the whole idea of living a secret life, of having to keep hidden who you really are, and risking your life for a greater cause.

Espionage also had an appeal because as an introverted teen with a love of books, I was always listening in and watching people in restaurants, malls, parties, and at family gatherings. I was the spy, gleaning information while I stayed silent and, in my mind at least, invisible.

So, of course, when I wrote my first thriller, it was in the spy world: creating Kolya Petrov—a naturalized Russian Jewish immigrant to the United States working for American intelligence. I wanted him to be a fully realized character. I gave him a detailed backstory, in which he learned to play piano from his concert pianist mother until she died when he was nine, and where he went into an abusive boys’ home before being adopted by an American cousin. He likes to read, he plays jazz piano, and he gets annoyed by an overeager young agent.

Then I had to decide what to do about his love life.

Spies always have love lives. That is a big part of the genre. But the spies of my youth didn’t fall in love the way a character in a Jane Austin novel falls in love, a love that leads to a wedding and a happily ever after. Each book, each television episode brought a new love interest, one that ended when I closed the book or turned off the tv.

When I moved on to reading the more serious spy novels of John le Carré, characters still didn’t have happily ever afters. Love was portrayed as a weakness, especially for le Carré’s most famous spy, George Smiley, madly in love with his cheating wife Ann, a fact that is used by his counterpart in Russia to blind Smiley to the identity of a British traitor.

Spy novels also use the trope of tragic love—the love interest who dies or the love interest who leaves because she can’t take her lover’s profession.

To sum up, the average spy in literature, movies, and television has a love life that is either sad or shallow.

There are exceptions to the above generalization. Daniel Silva’s Gabriel Allon novels start out following the pattern of the tragic love story with the history of Allon’s wife who went mad after she was injured and their son killed by a car bomb explosion. But as the novels progress, Allon falls in love again and, shocker, has not just a happy marriage but children.

I decided that I didn’t want Kolya to have the James Bond kind of love life, with a new woman every book, or a George Smiley type of failed relationship, or the tragic dead lover that he would brood over for the rest of the series.

I would follow the less traditional route, close to but not identical to that of Gabriel Allon: Kolya would have a love interest who was an equal partner. Thus, Alex Feinstein, a successful attorney, entered the scene. She’s capable of holding her own in a tense situation and both willing and able to call Kolya out when he annoys her or steps over the line.

But, of course, in any spy thriller, the protagonist having someone he cares deeply about is a vulnerability. And, of course, any thriller author worth her salt is going to milk that vulnerability.

And I do. The villain in Trojan Horse, my first novel, kidnaps Alex to pressure Kolya; in my second, Nerve Attack, Kolya is led to believe that Alex would be shot if he doesn’t cooperate. In my most recent release, Imminent Risk, Kolya’s fear that Alex may have died plays a critical role.

But with a slight twist on the damsel in distress trope, Alex rescues Kolya as often as he rescues her.

The next serious question was how and whether the relationship would progress. Early in Trojan Horse, Alex and Kolya get engaged. They remain engaged through the first three books, although buying a ring and shopping for a wedding dress doesn’t happen until the third novel, Bloody Soil.

In Imminent Risk, Kolya and Alex are three weeks from exchanging vows when Alex’s childhood friend, whose baby was taken by CPS, asks for her legal help. She flies to New York, leaving Kolya to deal with the caterer and the venue—until Kolya uncovers the friend’s connection with a sovereign nation group planning terrorist attacks. Then, despite the impending wedding, Kolya is back in action.

However, for the first time, Alex begins to question whether she and Kolya should get married—for all the obvious reasons. Does his love for her, which is his greatest vulnerability, put him in greater danger? And what would she tell any children they might have about Daddy’s frequent absences?

So do they “I do” or don’t they? For the answer, you’ll have to read the book. Or you could ask AI, but AI isn’t always accurate. Anyway, reading the book is more fun.

 S. Lee Manning, the award-winning author of the Kolya Petrov series, lives in Vermont with J.B. Manning, her writer husband, and two cats, Xiao and Dmitri. Her most recent thriller, Imminent Risk, is available here. https://books2read.com/u/mZ1AoJ 

Thoughts on Moving by Nancy L. Eady

After having had the house on the market since last October, we have a contract for sale, and hopefully we will be moving in less than two weeks. Every time we move, I realize that I’ve forgotten how much I hated it the last time. I am excited about the new house and location, but I’m nervous about all the thousand and one things that have to go right for the closing on our house and the closing on our new house to happen as scheduled. Such practicalities aside, I have compiled a list of things that either prove you will be moving soon or show that you are in the process of moving.

You will be moving soon if:  

1) You changed the shelf paper in the house any time recently. (Confession time: I don’t have shelf paper in this house.) 

2) You will be moving soon if you order new checks with your address on them. (Yup, we did that last year.) 

You know you are moving if any of the following are true: 

1) You are on a first-name basis with the Home Depot greeter, or the cashier at the local U-Haul, and they keep a stack of boxes reserved especially for you.

2) Images of full trash bags (with someone else’s stuff) dance in your head.

3) You tell someone, “I don’t care what it costs; all books are coming with us!”

4) Your husband gives you an uneasy glance when you inform him that you and you alone will pack the craft room.

5) You raise the art of swearing at the tape gun that refuses to work correctly for you to new heights. (The tape guns always work well for Mark and my daughter; I end up in the middle of a wadded tangle of tape.) 

6) You are seriously considering donating everything you own to charity and moving to Key West, where you will live in a tent in ultra-minimalist style.

7) You ditch the Key West idea because two parents, one 24-year-old girl, and three dogs are too much for one tent to hold.

8) You have to navigate a labyrinth of boxes to reach either end of the house. While navigating, you discover where the book boxes are by running into them. A trip to the ER is optional.

Hopefully, the next time you hear from me, it will be from a new location. 

Have you had any adventures in moving that make for good stories? 

Rotary Cutters & Red Herrings

Talking “Murdah” at the Sewing Table

By Author Kathryn Mykel

Quilter| Quilt-Fiction Author| Quilt Pattern Designer

Writers are often asked where their story inspiration comes from. Some point to dreams or travel, while others credit long hours studying the criminal mind.

Mine tend to begin at a folding table covered in fabric scraps, with a dog asleep beside my chair while someone passes the chocolate and says, “If she goes missing, check under her stash first.”

From the other end of the table comes a warning about hiding fabric in the oven.

A moment later, someone huffs, “I’m going to murder that seam with Jack the Ripper.”

Quilters, it turns out, do talk about murder, but not in a sinister way. In a practical, problem-solving, plot-twisting kind of way (we swear!). The same quilters who debate a scant quarter-inch seam allowance and the right or wrong side of batting can, within minutes, be calmly discussing poison delivery systems, suspicious alibis, and how a 2½-inch fabric strip might make a surprisingly effective murder weapon.

To be fair, not every sewing group treats fabric like forensic evidence. Mine may simply be used to having a mystery writer in their midst. Our sewing circle can quickly become a brainstorming lab without anyone officially meaning it to. Discussing fictional “murdah” over fabric doesn’t make us morbid. I think it makes us all storytellers.

Those conversations don’t just stay at the sewing table. They follow me home and find their way into my plots, shaping the tone and stakes of the mysteries I write.

In one of my quilting cozy mystery series, starting with Sewing Suspicion, Alex, a lone amateur sleuth, finds herself drawn into a world of genuine danger. In her cozy hometown, secrets run deep and criminal networks lurk behind the scenes. The emotional stakes are high—not just for Alex, but for the found family she’s determined to protect. Alex must rely on her own instincts and resilience.

In my second series, the tone shifts entirely.

In Raining Quilts and Dogs, Elizabeth and her group of quilting friends—a nod to the classic “Scooby gang”—stumble into mysteries that are sometimes outrageous, often chaotic, and always infused with friendship. Suspicious happenings might include runaway animals, muddy paw prints at a crime scene, or community mishaps that spiral into something more complicated than anyone expected.

Some days readers want a hint of mafia intrigue, and some days they want a DB wrapped in a quilt and floated down Main Street during a flood.

Let’s think about the solo sleuth vs. a sewing circle. The psychology of investigation changes dramatically depending on whether your sleuth is alone or surrounded by friends.

A solo sleuth must internalize fear, doubt, and responsibility. Every decision feels personal. The narrative often digs deeper into motivation and consequence.

A group of sleuths, on the other hand, brings natural conflict, humor, and energy. They challenge one another’s assumptions. They divide tasks and argue over crafts, snacks, and suspects in equal measure. The mystery becomes a shared experience rather than a solitary burden.

Interestingly, this mirrors both quilting dynamics and writing habits. Some quilters sew alone, finding solace in the quiet repetition of stitching. Others rely on the interaction and encouragement that come from working alongside friends. Writers navigate those same choices between solitude and collaboration. I experience both worlds myself: quilting with friends around a sewing table and writing with them each day in a small online co-working group.

Where do your best ideas seem to find you?

Kathryn Mykel is a bestselling author of quilting-themed cozy mysteries and a professional quilt pattern designer whose work has appeared in national quilting publications. She lives in New England with her pup, Bentley.

 Find Kathryn’s work here www.authorkathrynmykel.com

 

Stephen King Wants to Talk Writing with Me

By Kait Carson

So does Janet Evanovich. So does Robert B. Parker. Who, what, Robert B. Parker? The Robert B. Parker, the one who died in 2010? How is that supposed to work? Ouija Board? Seance? Telepathy? No matter. I’m sure Hawk and Spencer will figure it out. How do I know these requests are real? Easy. Their emails specifically reference the solitary journey of writers and how happy we are to build a society of like-minded people to ease our lonely toil. I mean, who other than fellow writers would understand the pain of creation? Even better, these writers want to follow my work. Can you imagine how valuable these networks are? Stephen King is a fellow Mainer. He knows the isolation of Maine winters. Janet Evanovich lived near me in Florida. I bet that’s how she found my books. Seeking other Florida authors. Not sure about Robert B. Parker. Still, there’s that supernatural connection. Never look a gift sale in the mouth.

But Wait! It gets better. Book clubs, including Reese Witherspoon, oh sorry, Witherspoon Reese’s are vying for my attention. My books are so well-known that European book clubs are begging me to attend. I gotta tell you, I’m holding out for an invitation from the Oprah Book Club. If that happens, with all the buzz my books are generating, I’m sure she’ll fly me out in her private jet. Maybe she’ll even do my interview on her back patio, just like she did with Harry and Meghan. Oh, I can’t wait. I’m going to be famous. How can I miss? Several readers have shared that they almost got sacked because they couldn’t stop reading my books. Now, if only they’d put that in their reviews.

But Wait! It gets better. I’ve heard from Kash Patel, yes, that Kash Patel. He’s holding three million dollars for me. I’m certain it’s royalties for my book sales. Maybe I shouldn’t be sharing information about this email. The offer is so secret that Mr. Patel doesn’t want me to reply to the same old FBI email address. I guess he’s worried it could end up in spam files. Instead, he gave me a special email address. One that ends in currently.com instead of fbi.gov. See, this spy stuff gets really tricky.

But Wait! Reality check. All of these emails are spam generated by AI bots, and some are so obvious that if you scroll down, you’ll see they’re sent from Uganda, Nigeria, or Palau. Others are better at hiding their originating sources. The key takeaway is that none of them are real, but all of them can have tragic consequences.

These folks are good. The emails mention details about the books with sufficient accuracy to make an unsuspecting author believe they are from legitimate fans or book clubs. As a child raised by a strict mother in the 1950s and 1960s, I had to fight the urge to respond. As a seasoned writer who matured with the internet, I knew better than to answer. While the emails appeared benign on their face, I understood that if I scratched the surface, endless offers of can’t-miss marketing schemes would fill my mailbox. At worst, there’d be viruses to combat. Sorry, Santa Claus, this isn’t my first rodeo. But for every suspicious old bat writer like me, there’s a newbie hopeful who sees these offers as legitimate and a way to get exposure and pays the fee. It’s cruel, out of control, and without recourse.

Do I worry that some of these offers are legitimate? Sure. But that brings me to the biggest tip-off. So far, these emails have originated from Gmail accounts. Bogus, I’m sure, but it’s a huge red flag that they don't have name.com addresses. The sheer volume of requests is the second red flag. I receive ten to fifteen a day. And the third, legitimate companies have all the work they can handle. It’s unlikely they’re sending out a zillion cold-call emails.

The adage: if it seems too good to be true, it is, holds here.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I owe Mr. Patel an email.

Kait Carson writes the Hayden Kent Mysteries, set in the Fabulous Florida Keys, and is at work on a new mystery series set in her adopted state of Maine. Her short fiction has been nationally published in the True Confessions magazines and in Woman’s World. Kait’s short story, “Gutted, Filleted, and Fried”, appeared in the Silver Falchion Award nominated Guppy Anthology Hook, Line, and Sinker. Her nonfiction essay was included in the Agatha Award-winning book Writing the Cozy Mystery. She is a former President of the Guppy Chapter of Sisters in Crime, a member of Sisters in Crime, and Guppies.

Acronyms by Nancy L. Eady

In my old job, my employers dubbed me the “tech guru” from my interview forward. This undeserved reputation began at my interview in 1991 when I was the only person in the room who could explain that the three plastic computers sitting on the floor didn’t work because they were LaserJet printers. I enhanced my tech reputation over the years by deploying my secret weapon for fixing 90% of all computer glitches: unplug the computer, then plug it back in. 

It’s odd how consistently that remedy works. When I first started doing it, our “state-of-the-art” computers came with monitors as big as a small moving box, screens of about 12 inches in diameter, no color or pictures, no email, and a whopping half megabyte of RAM. My cell phone today, let alone my laptop or my desk computer, has 2000 times more RAM than those early models. Massive quantities of RAM create computers that are smarter than me. Everyday appliances, such as the television, the refrigerator and the microwave, which contain computer chips, are also smarter than me. Even so, when those devices get a bug in their computing system, at least 90% of the time restarting the computer or device straightens it out. (Unless your bug has already taken you to the blue, green, or black screen of death—a blank monitor with a single blinking cursor in the corner. If that happens, don’t bother unplugging; your electronic device needs professional help ASAP.) 

My mantle was undeserved because I don’t know enough to be a tech guru for a kindergarten, let alone a business. I’m just stubborn enough to force any vendor to explain every acronym and concept until I can explain them to someone else. This tenacity has stood me well in my new job in state government. We deal with various federal agencies regularly, and they love acronyms. Drawing on my earlier technological experience (or more precisely, the lack of it), I ask the person in the meeting or the person sending the email to explain the acronym if I can’t find the explanation on Google. 

Writing is not immune to acronyms, especially if you communicate about your writing online or by email. Common acronyms include WIP (work-in-progress), MS (manuscript), POV (point of view), and MC (main character). What writing acronyms have you come across that struck you as useful? 

The Siren Song of Research by Connie Berry

 

This meme has been all over the internet recently. 

I think someone has been spying on me.

 

I love research way too much. When I’m writing a book, I have to watch myself carefully because if left to follow my inclination, I’d waste precious time researching everything from the weather to colors popular in Edwardian England to the makeup used by women in ancient Rome. Most of it is irrelevant—a bad practice when you’re on a deadline. Research has to be strategic.

Nevertheless, the siren song of research still tempts me toward the rocks because you never know what you might find, right? Like picking through a garage sale or flea market, the prospect of finding something truly valuable keeps me scrolling. Usually, however, the fascinating tidbits I find have little or nothing to do with my book. I just love information.

Today I thought I’d share with you one of the fascinating but useless bits of research I uncovered during the writing of my first book, A Dream of Death, set on a fictional island in the Scottish Hebrides. This research may have been useful in another place and another time (another book), but it had nothing to do with my actual setting or plot. It involved Stirling Castle. 

Sometime around the year 1500, John Damien, a penniless adventurer of either Italian or French origin, arrived at Stirling Castle, claiming to be an alchemist on the verge of discovering the secret to turning base metals into gold.

Luckily for him, King James IV was keen to possess an inexhaustible source of gold to fund his frequent military campaigns. And wealth wasn't the only blessing John Damien promised. Not only would he produce the most sought-after object of the day, the Philosopher's Stone—that mythical and magical substance needed to transform lead into gold—but he also offered the king an even more precious prize because the Philosopher's Stone, when mixed with wine, was said to produce the Elixir of Life, curing all illnesses and granting the drinker eternal life and eternal youth.

Might as well go big, right?

Lured by these tantalizing possibilities, King James IV provided John Damien with a hidden laboratory in the castle and all the equipment—flasks, cauldrons, glass beakers, and ingredients—he would need to conduct his experiments.

When years passed by and no gold was produced (surprise, surprise), court gossips began to accuse Damian of fraud. Sensing that a spectacular demonstration of his powers was called for, Damien announced that although he hadn’t quite gotten the hang of the gold thing, he had discovered the secret of mechanical flight and would fly under his own power from the castle to France. On September 27, 1507, he strapped on a pair of bird-like wings and leapt off the towering ramparts of Stirling Castle. He dropped like a stone. Lucky for him, he landed (so the story goes) on a soft dung heap, breaking only a thigh bone. Damien blamed the failure on the fact that hen feathers had been mixed in with the eagle feathers he'd called for—and as we all know, hens can't fly.

Was he taken right to the dungeon? Nope. King James, a remarkably tolerant sovereign, continued to fund Damien’s research until his own death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. Hope springs eternal.

What piece of useless but fascinating research have you uncovered in the writing of a book? 

Here’s my real question: how do you discipline yourself so you don’t waste time searching for the straw that will become gold in your plot? Asking for a friend.

The Most Mysterious Bookshop in Paris by Mark Pryor: A Review by E. B. Davis

   

 

Cover blurb from Amazon:

Hugo Marston, former head of security at the U.S. embassy in Paris, has retired and is ready to realize his lifelong dream of owning a mystery and antiquarian bookshop. But when a blackmail scheme targeting a chocolatier leads to murder, Hugo is again called to investigate in the first Paris Bookshop Mystery for readers of Charles Finch, Tasha Alexander, and Lev AC Rosen.

Hugo has led an exciting life as an FBI profiler and the US embassy’s head of security, but now he’s ready to embrace a quieter existence as a bookseller in the Marais district of Paris. His former employer, however, has other plans for him. A prominent American citizen is the COO of a boutique chocolate emporium in Paris, where they’ve received a mysterious and threatening note. A blackmailer who goes by the name The Shadow wants half a million euros or else their “darkest secret will be revealed.”

Eclat de Chocolat is housed in a chateau dating back to the 1700s. The building, which served as a convent in the first half of the twentieth century, where the angelic Sister Evangeline and her order of nuns helped countless orphans during World War II, has been beautifully converted into a chocolate factory. So what dark secrets could a chocolatier be hiding? The COO has no idea.

Involving his friend, Lieutenant Camille Lerens, Hugo begins to investigate. But soon a second note appears on the premises, canceling the blackmail threat. The same day, the body of an employee is found in an old graveyard behind the chocolatier. Now Hugo and Lerens have a murder on their hands, but is it connected to the blackmail attempt? As they dig for secrets and motives, it becomes clear The Shadow’s grave work has just begun . . .

Amazon.com

 

This is the first book in the Paris Bookshop Mystery series by Mark Pryor, which will be released on March 31st. As a new reader of Mark Pryor’s, I felt the title was a bit deceptive after reading the book. The cover looks cozy enough, and it is a cozy in that there is no violence or death directly shown in the book. But the main character, Hugo Marston, is not cozy. He is retired and he does buy a bookshop in Paris, but he spends very little time there. He is not the typical shopkeeper found in most cozy mysteries. As a former FBI behavioral analyst (profiler) and then head of the American Embassy’s security, he’s too knowledgeable and hard-core to be a cozy main character. Even when the story takes place in a boutique chocolate factory, the story still isn’t cozy. The book was not what I expected. Not to say that I was disappointed, but more of that later.

 

After reading the book and researching author Mark Pryor, I found that Hugo Marston is not a new character, but a main character returning in a new mystery series. In 2012, Mark Pryor’s first book in the Hugo Marston Novel Series (comprised of nine books), The Bookseller was released. In this series, Hugo is not retired. He is the head of the American Embassy’s security and the cases he solves are directly related to his job. The last book in this series was released in 2020.

 

Six years have passed. In the current Paris Bookshop Mysteries, Hugo is older and now retired from the embassy, but due to his relationship with the Ambassador, he works on problems that cross the Ambassador’s public and private helm. Such is the case in The Most Mysterious Bookshop in Paris, in which an acquaintance of the Ambassador and English owner of a chocolate factory is being blackmailed. Most blackmail notes are pointed; the guarded secret is obvious. That isn’t the case here. The chocolate is a new and upcoming brand that has just been granted a Royal Warrant by King Charles of England. It’s an important kudos that will help launch the business. What I didn’t know is that most chocolate makers buy premade chocolate, called couverture, and use it to make or coat different filling flavors. When the English owner reveals that she buys her coverture from a German company and that might be the “secret” referred to in the blackmail note, Hugo doesn’t think that is a big enough secret to be a source of blackmail. The owner disagrees because even in present-day Paris, there is animosity dating back to WWII against Germany.

 

Hugo works with a transexual friend who is a midlevel Paris detective and a junior detective to solve the blackmail. Then, when a chocolate employee’s body is found on the factory grounds, they solve the murder case. Since Hugo doesn’t have the limitations the police have, they use his autonomy to further the case. Hugo relies on the policemen to get search warrants that he has no legal right to get. The dialogue among Hugo and the two detectives is humorous and honest. Hugo also has a journalist/sometimes girlfriend who gets information on cases, which turn into her stories. But he uses her position and case exposure to gain power with principal suspects via the pressure of the press.

 

Yes, I had no problem reading the book as a first-time reader, but I also think the author and publisher should announce the new series as a continuation of the old series at a later stage of the main character’s life. It felt a bit of a cheat when I realized that the character was already developed in nine previous titles. The author has established more than enough background/relationship details to write a strong mystery. It wasn’t what I expected, but it was a page-turner.

Finding Freedom (and Creative Fun) in Writing Short Stories by Martha Reed

I've  always loved writing and reading shorter fiction. Short stories, especially crime fiction or mystery stories seem to be like perfectly shaped and polished little pearls – inciting incident, characterizations, a splash of common humanity, dry wit or humor, and a surprising twist or two all encapsulated within 5,000 words or less. Brevity is their perfection.

I’ve long admired writers who could successfully pull it off. Writers like Charlotte Perkins Gilman with the horror classic “The Yellow Wallpaper,” or Shirley Jackson’s immortal and unforgettable “The Lottery.” These two writers have gifted readers with a short story they will remember reading for the rest of their lives.

In case you’re curious, here are the links:

“The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1952/1952-h/1952-h.htm

Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”: https://fullreads.com/literature/the-lottery/

Historically, there were three main types of short fiction: Flash Fiction (999 words or less), Short Story (1,000 to 7,499 words), and Novella or Novelette (7,500 to 19,999 words). Recently, we’ve been seeing newer subcategories: Short Shorts or Sudden Fiction (Flash Fiction more than 500 words), MicroFiction (300 to 400 words or less), Postcard Fiction (250 words or less than can fit on a blank postcard), and even Drabble (exactly 100 words not including the title.)

Short fiction is alive and well. What fun!

I’m delighted to see shorter fiction rising in popularity, but I do need to wonder: Why is this? Is it because of the increasing number of distractions available to us through our multiple screens, or our modern-day and reduced attention span? Is approximately twenty minutes of uninterrupted and focused attention the best we can hope for from our readers? Is it because we’ve come to demand instant gratification and access with the simple click of a link like those shown above before we jump to the next topic and lose interest? Did my mentioning the links above interrupt your thoughts and distract you from finishing this blog?

In any case, I’ll take it as it comes because I still love writing shorter fiction. During the long 85,000 word slog of writing a full novel, occasionally playing hooky and dipping into drafting or polishing a short story refills my creative story well and keeps me in balance. It’s like taking a break and strolling into a fun cocktail party and suddenly meeting an entirely new cast of characters with fresh insights, backstories, hidden intrigues, and sparkling conversations. It’s the very welcome pause that refreshes.

True confession: some of my unpublished short stories are decades old. I can always tell that by the address I’ve used in my contact information in the header. Sometimes that detail comes as a surprise: Really? I noodled around with this story idea sixteen years ago? But yes, what may have started out as a backstory writing exercise or an interesting new character developmental outline simply fizzled out. But being a writer, I have learned never to throw anything away. I simply drop these story fragments into an archive folder. Then, when I see an interesting or unusual call for an anthology or a writing contest, I reopen my archive and give it a stir, thinking: Anything in here that I can use? True, about half the time I do need to start completely from scratch due to the theme, topic, or eligibility requirements, but that’s all part of the creative writing life and game, and that’s okay too.

What are your thoughts on writing shorter fiction? And do you read it?

Editing Aids by Nancy L. Eady

 I have two programs I use to help me edit. For my legal writing, I like to use a program called WordRake. For my creative writing, I use ProWritingAid (just the regular version, not the AI version. AI still freaks me out.) They work differently. 

WordRake highlights words and phrases it wants me to omit or change from whatever draft I turn it loose on. It and I have a slightly antagonistic relationship, although I am always amused when the parts of my work that WordRake lights up like New York on a dark winter’s night are direct quotes from appellate cases. (Hey, we all get our kicks somewhere!) I also enjoy arguing with it about its editing selections. I don’t follow its suggestions mindlessly. 

My relationship with WordRake is similar to my mother’s first experience with a GPS. We were visiting Boston, and I rented a car with a GPS system. It was my first experience with GPS, which should give you an idea how long ago this was. My mom (who grew up in Boston) loved to ride with me and have me program the GPS. Then she would tell me the GPS was wrong and direct me to go a different way, giving the GPS a heart attack. At one point, it got so frustrated it stopped giving directions and churned through “recalculating” for about five minutes! However, I am more considerate of WordRake. Sometimes, I agree to its edits just because I don’t want to hurt its feelings by ignoring it too much.

My relationship with ProWritingAid is more of a collaboration. It is not as authoritative in its suggestions as WordRake. ProWritingAid scans a piece of writing and then assigns a score to different aspects of it, like a score for grammar, style, overused words, and sentence length. The program gives you a suggested benchmark to aim for, and while it takes you through the reasons behind the score it gave, you have the freedom to choose which areas to work on and how. 

Both programs have a place. Legal writing can be ponderous if you don’t pay careful attention to what you do, and WordRake keeps that in check. ProWritingAid follows the flow of creative writing, recognizing that each creative writer is different, yet there are pitfalls we all seek to avoid. 

Do you have an editing program you prefer to use with your writing? 

Why Writers Should Love What They Write by Annette Dashofy

One of those questions that tend to pop up during discussions with aspiring authors revolves around what genres are hot and which one they should write. 

For starters, I highly recommend against writing toward trends. It takes a while to write a book. Perhaps a year. Perhaps longer. If you read an agent’s wish list today, by the time you complete the draft, polish and revise the pages, and start to submit, a year or two (or three) could pass. By then, that same agent has been flooded by manuscripts in that trendy genre and don’t want to see another. 

A bigger reason is you might not like or understand the genre that’s trending. Example: Romantasy (romance/fantasy) has been the big seller recently. But I’ve never read it and would pull my hair out trying to write it. 

Disliking the genre or subject about which you’re writing is not good. Believe me, the reader/agent/editor will know you aren’t having fun. 

Is “having fun” important when you’re “working” on a book? Oh, heck yeah. 

Why? I’ll give you two reasons. One: unless you’re Stephen King or James Patterson, you likely aren’t going to make enough to live on. Ask a group of published authors, and most will tell you that we write because we love it. Passion is a requirement. We aren’t writing because that royalty check is paying our rent. 

And two: you need to love the story you’re writing… because you’re going to have to read it over and over and over again. 

The real world of writing doesn’t involve slapping down that first draft and sending it out into the world. After you type THE END for the first time, you need to go back and rewrite. And revise. And rewrite again. Even when the plot shines and the characters sing, you need to make multiple passes to check for overused words. Just for example. I keep a list of my favorites, which will be somewhat different than other writers’, but “just” seems to appear on everyone’s overused list. 

Next, let’s say you’re blessed to find an agent. That agent will send you edits to make your book more likely to please an editor. More rewrites, during which you will add 100 more “justs.” So, you have to go back and take them out. 

Then, your agent sells your book to a publisher. You’re assigned an editor… who edits. There will be story edits (often called developmental edits), when you’ll be asked to flesh out some threads and eliminate others. You’ll also need to make sure those changes don’t affect other aspects of the book, such as one line of dialogue 200 pages away from where you changed things. Continuity is important. 

After that’s complete, your copyeditor sends the manuscript back to you again. This time you have to add or subtract commas, make odd spellings consistent, and clarify terms the copyeditor didn’t understand. 

You think you’re now finished? Oh, no. Now, you have to proofread the entire manuscript, possibly more than once.

 Don’t think you get to skip all those revisions if you’ve chosen to indie publish. You still need an editor or two after your team of beta readers go over it. Trust me on this. If you try to bypass all those extra eyes on your work, some reader will email you and report every single typo you’ve made in the “finished” novel. 

You will ultimately read your book a minimum of seven or eight times. Minimum. 

So, you better write a story that you love, because you’re going to spend many hours reading and rereading it. 

Fellow Writers Who Kill, how many times on average do you read and revise a single manuscript? 

Readers, have you ever found more than one or two typos in a book you’re reading? (Please do not name the author if you have.) Do typos or continuity errors take you out of the story?

 

 

 

 

A Tale of Rejections and Inspiration! by Judy L. Murray

Last week while visiting my five-year-old grandson he informed me that he had to choose his favorite book and dress like one of its characters. The following morning, he boos me awake to see him in his costume. Tall bright red felt hat flopping to one side, yellow feathers encircling his neck and wrists, and black shoes. Under his arm is a bright green book with the words Green Eggs and Ham.

“Who are you?” I ask, in my best Cindy Lou Who voice.

“I’m Sam I Am!” He declares proudly.

We writers work diligently to unveil our latest creative stories and dream of influencing the world a bit with joy, hope, excitement, and wisdom brought by way of our characters. It is difficult to name an author who has all these elements in stories more than the famous American author and illustrator Theodor Geisel. Better known by his pen name, Dr. Seuss, was born March 2nd, 1904 and died in 1991.

We should all take heart with his life story. While at Dartmouth College in the early 1920’s he and a couple of friends were caught drinking during Prohibition. He was forced to resign as the illustrator for the school’s magazine. Geisel began signing his work with ‘Seuss’ to continue working under disguise.

In 1927 his first nationally published cartoon appeared in The Saturday Evening Post. He quickly moved into advertising for companies such as Standard Oil, Ford Motor Company, and NBC Radio. His illustrations used for a collection of children's books topped The New York Times non-fiction list in 1931. Encouraged, Geisel wrote and illustrated an ABC book featuring ‘very strange animals’. It failed to interest publishers.

In 1936, he wrote his first children’s book. (Photo credit: Al Ravenna, World Telegram Staff photographer) It was rejected by as many as forty-three publishers. Dejected, he was walking home to burn the manuscript when a chance encounter led to its publication. After working for the Army in World War II, Geisel returned to writing children’s books such as If I Ran the Zoo, Horton Hears a Who!, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas through Random House and William Collins, Sons.

In 1954, an illiteracy report claimed children were not learning because their books were boring. Houghton Mifflin challenged Geisel to use only 250 key words in his next book. Nine months later, Geisel completed The Cat in the Hat using 236 of the words. He specifically aimed at beginning readers. He gifted us over sixty iconic books for children, although he and his wife never had children of their own. Seven hundred million copies have been sold in over twenty languages. Dr. Seuss passed away in 1991 with dozens of awards and accolades for his contribution to improving literacy around the world. His last book before he died was Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

First-year students at Dartmouth College eat green eggs and ham for breakfast upon arrival. Perhaps I need to start eating green eggs and ham each morning.

Which Dr. Seuss books encouraged you, your children, and your grandchildren to enjoy reading? Do his forty-three rejections inspire you to keep writing?

Viewpoints by Nancy L. Eady

There is a movie called “Vantage Point” where you see the same story told repeatedly. The basic premise involves a terrorist attack in Europe at a place where the president of the United States is giving a speech. Each time the story is told, you see a little bit more of the event, or the background of the story, or events happening at the same time from different people’s perspectives. You would think seeing the same thing repeatedly gets boring, but it doesn’t. By the end of the movie, you realize that nothing you saw at the beginning of the movie was quite what it seemed, and you’ve had a lovely roller coaster thriller ride to the conclusion. 

Robert Browning did something similar in his epic narrative poem/verse book, The Ring and the Book, published in 1868-1869. The first chapter of the poem explains the source of the story. The germ of the story came from a true event – Robert Browning was in Italy and came across an old manuscript from the late 1600’s providing a transcript of the trial and appeal of a man charged with murdering his wife’s parents, a priest the man claimed was running away with his wife, and the wife as well.  The story is re-told several times. 

After the introduction, the next two chapters, the first telling of the story, are from “the first half of Rome” and the “other half of Rome.” That is, one side is what the mythical “they” are saying about the event, told in a light favorable to the husband, while the other side is what the mythical “they” are saying about the event, told in a light favorable to the wife. 

Then the story is told by a lawyer, who claims he is not partial to either side. After that, Browning turns to the trial testimony of the husband, the wife, who, even though she was mortally wounded, miraculously survived long enough to give her testimony, and the priest who was helping the wife escape. The lawyers who tried the case on opposing sides are also given the chance to tell the story as they saw it. Once they finish, the narrative turns to events after the trial and conviction of the husband. 

Because the husband was a member of a minor religious order, he appeals his conviction to the pope. The reader is made privy to the deliberations of the pope as he considers the merits of the appeal and the nature of good and evil. The penultimate chapter, and arguably the climax of the book, is the second chapter devoted to the “voice” of the husband, as he speaks in his cell the night before his execution. Then the book concludes with the narrator wrapping everything up.  (Fair warning: The Ring and the Book is not an easy read, and I can’t guarantee that every person who finishes the book will have enjoyed it.) 

As with the idea behind “Vantage Point,” the premise of The Ring and the Book fascinates me. There is a work-in-progress I have been drafting on and off for years now that follows a slightly different premise involving life choices, but I have my doubts on whether I can pull it off. Still, it’s a fun idea to play with. 

If you could tell a story about the same event from different character’s viewpoints, what story would you like to tell? 

Leading a Fiction Writing Workshop by Marilyn Levinson

Last month I gave a fiction writing workshop at my library. I called it a workshop and not a class because I don't think you can teach someone to write fiction. What you can do is help a new writer develop his or her story.

Having written novels for many years, I was well aware of the numerous lessons I wanted to impart to my students. Among them: make every dialogue and scene reveal character and advance the plot; consider your pacing; include backstory only as needed. We factor in so many different elements as we write, but I didn't want to overwhelm these new writers with rules and regulations. I felt it best to dispense any "words of wisdom" as needed.

I was pleased that everyone was eager to start a project. "How do you start?" someone asked.Ah. Excellent question. I read them the opening lines of a few novels and pointed out how each author awakens the reader's interest. How jumping right into the story is the way to go. How we authors are like puppeteers as we introduce our characters, setting, time and a bit of conflict easily and simultaneously. 

I had them read aloud excerpts of what they'd written so the others could critique them. I talked about the importance of forming a critique group and learning how to critique--determining what kept their interest; what took the reader or listener out of the story. And how critiquing others teaches us how to critique ourselves.

We spent time on each student's project. We analyzed story lines and discussed how to move ahead. I read them a heartfelt blog by a multi-published author I know who wrote about the excitement of writing those first few chapters then not being sure how to move ahead and not giving up. I talked about the importance of having writer friends with whom you can discuss your plot. How sometimes by simply asking for help, the perfect idea comes to mind.

I loved their enthusiasm and their willingness to continue writing. I didn't hesitate to repeat what I considered of vital importance: become part of a critique group; join a writing organization; engage your reader's emotions. I had hoped I'd set them off on their own, but was touched when they asked me to hold another workshop.

 

Killer Questions – Favorite Crime or Writing Reference Book(s)

Heather Weidner - Stephen King’s On Writing, Kathryn Markup’s A is for Arsenic, and Anne Wingate’s Scene of the Crime

James M. Jackson - The one I’m currently learning from. As I write this, I've just started Understanding Show, Don’t Tell by Janice Hardy.

Annette Dashofy - There are so many, but if I have to pick one, I’d say The Crime Writer’s Reference Guide by Martin Roth. If I can pick a second, it would be Donald Maass’ The Emotional Craft of Fiction.

Debra H. Goldstein – How I Write by Janet Evanovich, Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel by Hallie Ephron, and Don’t Sabotage Your Submission by Chris Roerden

Sarah Burr - I’m a fan of the Emotional Thesaurus series that helps me capture emotions using different words or phrases, rather than my characters just shrugging all the time.

Kait Carson - Well, this could get us on a lot of watch lists! 400 Things Cops Know, Police Procedure & Investigations, How Dun It.

Susan Van Kirk - On Writing (King) Bird by Bird (Lamott), Don’t Murder Your Mystery (Roerden)

K.M. Rockwood - Chicago manual of style (I know, I'm pretty boring. But I need this.)

Korina Moss - Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott and On Writing by Stephen King.

Shari Randall - Too many to list but right now, I am reading Jane Cleland’s Mastering Suspense, Structure, and Plot. Good to get back to basics.

Mary Dutta - You can’t go wrong with Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style

Grace Topping - For reference, Don't Sabotage Your Submission by Chris Roerden. Chris had thirty years of experience as an editor with major publishing companies in New York City and really knows what makes for a good submission. Reviewing Chris's book before submitting a manuscript is excellent insurance for a successful submission.

Lori Roberts Herbst - On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, by Stephen King. As a “Constant Reader,” I found King’s thoughts insightful and motivating.

Margaret S. Hamilton - Hallie Ephron, Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel

Elaine Douts - They change with the script so I can’t name any one book other than Chicago Rules!

 

How Do You Approach Multiple Writing Projects?

 by Paula Gail Benson

Lately, I’m finding myself working on several writing projects, particularly two mystery stories (one I’m sure is a novel, the other is still revealing its length). I’m happy for the opportunity, but wonder how to manage the writing effectively and to completion.

The reason I have this dilemma is that I attended the Summerville Book Festival and spent some time with author friends. (See my post yesterday at The Stiletto Gang with more information about the Book Festival.) Previously, Dorothy McFalls and I had been in a writing group together where we discussed our work in progress. She remembered a story I had been writing at the time and asked what happened to it.

I had not thought about that story for years. When I got home, I looked up my notes and was surprised to find how close it was to being completed. I began putting the pieces together.

The story is part private investigation, part monster (based on a local legend), and part science fiction. The protagonist is the daughter of an admired history professor, now a patient in a mental hospital. The protagonist is tough, plain-spoken, yet compassionate. She struggles with a strange ability to clearly see the past when in the location where it occurred.

Meanwhile, I had been noodling with titles I thought might be good for culinary mysteries. At the same time, I could not imagine bringing anything new to that subgenre. I’ve loved so many books featuring food preparers and sellers from the works of Diane Mott Davidson to those of wonderful blogging partners Debra H. Goldstein, Korina Moss, and Shari Randall. What could I offer that would be unique?

Then, as so often happens for writers, I suddenly had the idea for a scene in my head. It took place in a police detective’s office. He was questioning a young woman who wrote for a weekly newspaper. A killer had used words from the titles of the articles she wrote to determine how each victim died. The articles were about food and their titles each began with the next sequential letter of the alphabet. The young woman thought of that because she wanted to write mysteries, loved Sue Grafton, and needed the job to extend at least 26 weeks.

Was the young woman really the killer or had someone else used her work as a guide? If someone else, it had to be a person in the community or possibly a coworker of the young woman. Was it someone trying to help the young woman advance or trying to frame her?

I’ve used two notebooks to keep my work on each story separated. I’ve developed a writing routine where every day I write first on the new story, then the novel.

So far, I’ve been making progress. I feel good about what I’m achieving.

What do you do when working on multiple projects? Any advice is appreciated!

INSPIRATION IS EVERYWHERE

Inspiration is Everywhere by TG Wolff

Inspiration can come from the most unexpected places. Take, for instance, a serious training session about anti-trust law topics like bid rigging, price fixing, and insider information. Say it’s presented by a very serious lawyer who thinks he’s presenting ripped-from-the-headlines examples to keep you (meaning me) on the straight and narrow but he actually has my head nodding because … yes, I can see how that would be a motive for murder!!

I’m not usually the dullest crayon in the box, but financial tomfoolery sails far over my head. I get why someone would rig a bid, I just can’t imagine how. Well, a big thank you to the unscrupulous contractors out there. Your forays into fuzzy math and sleight-of-hand were very educational … especially when thoroughly documented in the publicly available documents of a legal trial. 

In writing Murder On Site, the first Rizk Brothers Legal Mystery, I would have worried that I was

making clues too obvious or evidence too easy to capture if not for the proof that some of these guys are really bad at keeping secrets. My very serious lawyer instructor shared screen captures of text chains used as actual evidence that sounded like my teen son texting or snapping with his friends.

Dude: You want this bid?

Other Dude: Nah. You take this one. I’ll get the next.

Dude: Works. Don’t go under 25mil. Still working on deets.

Other Dude: NP. Any thoughts on a wedding gift for Dude Tres?

Dude: IDK. I hear candlesticks make good gifts.

 (The above are not actual texts used in a case. Many liberties were taken. Thank you Bull Durham.)

Like they say, truth is stranger than fiction and I’m convinced fiction has higher standards.

The training enabled me to devise a bid rigging scenario that wasn’t exactly ripped from the headlines but certainly was inspired by them. Once I had the mystery generally figured out, I built the world around it. Leveraging experience as a consulting project engineer and manager and working for a construction company let me really get physical with the scenes. I know what the trailers look and feel like, how the barricades would be set up, how the contractor’s professional staff would be separated from the engineer’s and state’s staff. Some of the side characters may resemble my real-life co-workers but it’s only because I had their voices in my head fixing the scene and telling me how they would react. I appreciated the chatter as the physical positioning became important to who saw what and when.

The victim had to be someone who would notice if things were just a little off center – an OCD construction inspector fit the bill. The killer had to have high stakes – the self-assured man who saw his very comfortable lifestyle being threatened. Because this is a mystery, other suspects were needed. Not one to take risks alone, Inside Man pulled his co-conspirators into the murder to ensure their cooperation—and then there were three. Just like in real life, each decision snowballed into a bigger problem. Add in a lover’s fight and a hot-headed competitor and I had motive and opportunity abound.

The root of this evil was greed. It resulted in the killing (fictionally, of course) a construction inspector, the implication of an innocent man (have to have a fall guy), the destruction of a marriage, ripped a family apart, and jailed four conspirators. 

I have no knowledge if similar ripples were felt in the real cases, but there was undoubtedly fallout. News articles seldom cover the trickle-down consequences of crime. I like to think that’s the purview of us fiction writers. It is our gift and our charge to go beyond the headlines. 

All that, from a mandatory training on anti-trust laws.

My advice, no matter where you are, look around … inspiration is everywhere.

How I’m Writing Cozy Mysteries While the World Is Burning by Sarah E. Burr

(Spoiler: I’m not. Or at least, not very well.)

Lately, I’ve been staring at blinking cursors more than I’ve been writing chapters.

It feels strange, almost dissonant, to sit down and draft a scene about best friends arguing over scones or debating suspects in a charming small town when the news is filled with violence, injustice, and heartbreak. Every time I open my laptop, I’m aware of it. Violence against people is wrong. Murdering people is wrong. Genocide is wrong. Oppressing people is wrong. Lying to people is wrong. There are so many wrong things happening in the world right now.

And I write books about… fictional murder.

On the surface, it can feel trivial. Even tone-deaf. How am I supposed to tune out headlines and write about candle shops, bookstores, seaside cafés, and clever twists? How do I build light-hearted mysteries while the world feels so unbearably heavy?

The honest answer? Sometimes I can’t. Some days, the words come slowly. Some days, they don’t come at all. My mind wanders. My heart aches. I question whether what I’m doing matters.

But here’s what I keep coming back to. Cozy mysteries are not about glorifying violence. They are not about celebrating harm. They are about restoring order in a world that has been disrupted. They are about community. Friendship. Justice. Truth. They are about good people choosing to stand up, even when something terrible has happened. In a cozy mystery, murder is never “right.” It is the problem. It is the wrong that must be made right. And maybe that’s why these stories matter right now more than ever.

We live in a world where harm often feels unresolved. Where injustice stretches on. Where truth feels slippery. In a cozy mystery, justice is possible. The guilty are held accountable. The innocent are protected. The community survives. The light returns.

That isn’t escapism in the shallow sense. It’s hope. But hope can feel fragile when reality is loud.

There are moments when I wonder if writing about close friends solving mysteries in charming towns is enough. Should I be writing something darker? Something louder? Something that directly confronts the chaos?

And then I remember the emails. The messages from readers who say my books helped them through chemo. Through grief. Through caring for aging parents. Through anxiety spirals. The readers who tell me they needed a safe place to land for a few hours. Stories are not a distraction from the world. They are a way to survive it.

That doesn’t mean I ignore what’s happening. I don’t. I read. I listen. I vote. I donate. I have hard conversations. I sit with discomfort. I let myself feel anger and sadness because it’s warranted. But I also write about communities where people show up for each other. Where kindness is normal. Where truth wins. Where a group of friends refuses to let fear have the final word. Maybe writing cozy mysteries while the world is burning isn’t about pretending the fire doesn’t exist. Maybe it’s about tending small, steady flames of hope that guide readers during dark times.

I won’t pretend it’s easy. Some days, the writing feels almost impossible. I have closed documents and walked away more times than I can count. I have questioned myself more than usual. But when I do manage to write, when I find my way back into a scene where friends are gathered around a table, piecing together clues and laughing despite the danger, something shifts in me. It reminds me of what kind of world I want. A world where harm is acknowledged, not excused. Where wrongdoing is confronted, not normalized. Where communities protect their neighbors, regardless of what they believe or look like. Where the truth matters.

If that’s the world I want, then maybe writing it is not naive. Maybe it’s aspirational.

I don’t know if I have a neat conclusion here. I don’t have a productivity hack to offer. I’m not going to tell you I’ve figured out how to perfectly balance awareness and art. I haven’t. Some days I write well. Some days I don’t write at all. But I’m still here. Still trying. Still believing that light, even small light, is worth making.

If you’re struggling to create right now, too, please know you’re not alone. It’s okay if your output looks different. It’s okay if your heart needs time. It’s okay if the words come slowly.

The world may feel like it’s burning. But even in the middle of it, there is value in building places where justice is possible, kindness is powerful, and hope survives the final chapter.

And maybe, just maybe, that’s reason enough to keep writing.

A Writer’s Creativity Tags Along on Vacation

 

By Lisa Malice, Ph.D.

Vacations are for putting work aside, kicking back and relaxing, right? For writers, like me and many of you, it’s a time to flip off the switch in our brains so its creative centers can recharge, correct?

Well, no. Not by far. My recent sailing trip with Lou and another couple cruising the beautiful blue Caribbean waters and islands off the coast of Belize is a testament to how wrong it is to think that our brains can take a holiday from creative thoughts.   

Our trip started out idyllic. Lou and I flew down to Palencia, a small town on the southern coast of Belize, and met up with Stefan and Katherine, close friends with whom we sailed the Greek islands 26 years ago. Together, we spent a short two days enjoying Belizean cuisine, refreshing drinks by the pool, swimming, and kayaking, before provisioning our sailboat with local foods and beverages (rum, of course!) and boarding our boat.

Our first night in Palencia, we dined at the Muna Restaurant & Bar atop our hotel (The Ellysian). A fabulous meal, starting with conch fritters and a coconut lime mojito, followed by Seafood Sere, a delectable dish of shrimp, fish and lobster in a creamy coconut chowder.

Our first full day on the water we sailed to Hide-Away Island, one of three mangrove isles in the Pelican Cay ridge of Belize’s 190-mile coral reef system (part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef that stretches 625 miles along the central American Caribbean coast). Once we reached our destination, we opted to tie up to a mooring ball for $20 per night, rather than drop anchor. A prudent move with an overnight weather forecast calling for intermittent rain and strong gusty winds and stretching through the next evening. An anchor not properly set on the seafloor will not hold a boat’s position in such weather.

Our 42-foot catamaran was spacious, comfortable, and had every modern kitchen and bathroom convenience. The computerized helm and motorized sheets (sea jargon for “ropes”) made sailing so easy for Lou and Stefan.  Altogether, a sailboat made for taking it easy.

The warm, sunny afternoon we spent snorkeling in crystal clear water, communing with the inhabitants of a breath-taking soft coral reef, was sheer mindless fun.

Later that evening, the four of us hopped into our six-person rubber dinghy and motored over to Hide-Away Caye for a sumptuous lobster feast at the local restaurant.

Hide-Away Caye restaurant requires meal pre-order (lobster, conch, fish) with each reservation.  

Why? So, its owners can dive the local waters for your chosen entrée, of course.

Back on our boat, we battened down the hatches for the stormy night ahead of us.

We stayed put the next day. The rear deck offered a perfect protection from the wind and rain, so I parked myself there to read a friend’s ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) for his latest mystery/thriller.

Late morning, another catamaran approached the mooring ball just southeast of our position. On the bow (front) of the boat stood a man and a woman, both waving their arms erratically. It was clear they had no idea how to properly direct the captain, who was steering the boat from the bridge towards the mooring ball. As a result, the boat cut to starboard (right), causing the boat to pass the ball on its port (left) side.

By some miracle, the odd couple on the front deck managed to grab the mooring line with the long-shafted hook and tie it up to a port side cleat. To be clear, the mooring ball should be directly in front of the boat with its line (rope) connected to both of the catamaran’s hulls through other lines. No one seemed to know how to correct the situation, so they just walked away.

A few minutes later, I spotted four of our new neighbors in their rubber dinghy drifting away from their catamaran as the lone man sat at the stern (rear of the boat) furiously tried to start the motor. With each pull of the starter cord, he grew more and more frustrated, until finally, he gave up. The foursome drifted away from their two shipmates still on board the catamaran.

What a comedy of errors! Their first mistake was casting off from the sailboat before the dinghy’s outboard motor was revved and ready to go. Their second? Putting a guy in charge of the dinghy who didn’t know how to start the motor. The third and final strike was not having even one oar in the dinghy to use in an emergency. Luckily for the feckless foursome, a small fishing boat came to their rescue and towed them back to their sailboat. The hero, a local fisherman, proceeded to the bow and corrected the mooring line.

At sunset, our six neighbors piled into their small dinghy, the boat—with motor running—then cast off and steered toward Hide-Away Caye Restaurant. The rubber craft rode low in the water as it plowed through the sea—clearly overloaded. Waves crashed over the bow to the screams of the dinghy’s female passengers. Water rushed into the boat at its stern next to the boat’s heavyset skipper. Their path forward is unlit—they have failed to bring along a light to see their way in the deepening darkness. Will all six passengers make it safely to the island restaurant and back?

I woke up early greeted by a beautiful, warm sunny morning with a soft breeze. Our neighbors’ dinghy was tied up to the stern of their catamaran, suggesting they all made it back to their sailboat safely sometime during the dark night. 

That’s when two words popped into my head—What If? What if three couples took off on a sailing trip without one person who had sufficient knowledge and skills to pull off the trip safely? The cruise starts out wonderful enough until bad weather rolls in. With the anchor poorly set, an overnight storm dislodges the sailboat, setting it adrift until it slams into a reef leaving behind a huge gash in the hull. Water pours in. Five make it into the dinghy, but in the end, only one person, a woman, survives the night adrift.

The creative center of my mind kept running with ideas, visualizing a tense, suspenseful opening chapter (it opens well into the story), scenes fleshing out characters backstories and personalities, a general plot with possible twists, reversals, and moments of heightened danger. I have pages of notes that, now that I’m back home, I’m eager to incorporate into my story.

Why did my brain jump furiously into a creative frenzy, when it was supposedly on break? One reason might be my friend’s thriller primed me for seeing a dark story where I saw one and my mind ran with it.

But more likely, I think it’s the influence of a different book, Jane Cleland’s latest, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, wherein Jane discusses a variety of creativity tactics that make for original storytelling no computer could write.

My “What If” moment was one of those tactics, wherein I let my mind explore possible storylines for the initial idea I had yet to flesh out. But the big factor in unleashing my mind-wandering was the vacation itself. According to Jane, four factors led to this burst of creativity. First, I  had time on my hands and nothing pressing on my schedule to do other than have fun thinking about my blossoming tale. Second and third, being surrounded by water and nature had me feeling calm, interconnected--and  happy. Fourth, I had a fun goal in mind—fleshing out a story, its characters, dangers, plot points, its ending.

How about you? Have you ever been struck by a new story idea on vacation when you weren’t really looking for one? How did it come about?