New and Old Favorites by Nancy L. Eady

I have a lot of “favorite” books. My husband swears he can tell my state of mind by the books I am reading. In his opinion, if I am cuddling up with some of my “old” favorites, then I am suffering from insecurity over something. I’m not sure that is always true, but I do have many books I like to re-read. My oldest favorites, as I mentioned in a post in October 2018, are Little Women by Louisa May Alcott and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. I also love to periodically revisit Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë and To Serve Them All My Days by R. F. Delderfield.

In the mystery realm, I have mentioned before that I am a Nero Wolfe fan. The series was started by Rex Stout, then continued after a couple of decades by Robert Goldsborough. Nero Wolfe is not a cozy series, but many of my mystery favorites are. Donna Andrews’ Meg Langslow series is that rare series which have scenes that make me laugh out loud. Other favorites include the Haunting Danielle series by Bobbi Holmes, Debra Goldstein’s Sarah Blair Mystery series, Allison Brook’s Haunted Library series, Carol Perry’s Witch City series and her Haunted Haven series. A new favorite is Julie Mulhern’s Country Club Mystery series. I discovered it sometime in January after E.B. Davis mentioned it in one of her posts and have read all thirteen books twice already. In the interest of fair disclosure, Allison Brooks, who is Marilyn Levinson, Debra Goldstein and Carol Perry are my blog mates; the only reason the rest of my blog mate’s series haven’t made the list is that I just haven’t made it to their books yet. If I didn’t insist on re-reading an entire series when a new book comes out, I might squeeze some more books in, but so far, I haven’t wavered.

In the “guilty pleasures” category, another favorite is a paranormal romance series called the “Leveling Up” series by K. F. Breene, where a 40 year old divorcee discovers that she is the heir to a magical house, the acceptance of which gives her an enormous fund of magic of her own, and enormous problems that go along with it. This series also has a large streak of humor running through it.

I could keep going; I have many favorites I like to re-read. The thread that ties them all together is the element of immersion. When I read these books, I lose myself and become totally submerged in the events I am reading about. Most of the time, there are characters in the book that I would love to be friends with if they existed in real life. Sometimes, there is an element of escapism; for example, in both the Haunting Danielle and the Country Club Murder series, neither heroine worries about where next month’s rent comes from. It’s nice to be submerged in a world where the main character, at least, doesn’t have to worry about where their next paycheck or meal is coming from. And the writing in my favorites is always good writing. Don’t ask me to define what good writing is; I know it when I see it and feel it resonate within me. “Good writing” isn’t simply a matter of style, either, as vastly different styles still constitute “good writing.” My “good writing” favorites have gotten me through many of life’s toils and troubles.

“They” often say when the going gets tough, the tough get going. I think I’ll amend that to say when the going gets tough, the survivors start reading. It fits me, anyhow.

Do you have a definition of "good writing"? What are your favorite books to escape to when you need a break from regular life? 

What Do You Write? by Marilyn Levinson

There are many ways of categorizing the various forms of writing. Writing can be divided into prose and poetry; fiction and nonfiction; into genres like mystery, sci-fi, and romance; into subgenres such as mystery's cozies and thrillers.

Like almost every other Writers Who Kill blogger, I write mysteries. These days, cozy mysteries with a touch of the paranormal. I also write novels for kids, the occasional romantic suspense, and if I go back far enough—short stories.

Many of us write more than one type of fiction. Best-seller Nora Roberts, probably the best known romance writer, also writes futuristic suspense as J. D. Robb. Closer to home, this is evident among my friends and fellow mystery writers. Daryl Gerber writes cozies and novels of suspense. Kaye George and Debra Goldstein are probably as well known for their short stories as their mysteries.

I think we write in various genres because we're creative beings and find that different types of stories require different genres. Though I've included ghosts and witches in some of my books, I must admit I was surprised when I found myself writing a YA horror—The Devil's Pawn. But a long time ago I learned to allow my thoughts to play themselves out so I could decide if they'd make a good story.

Though we're all fiction writers, we also do a good deal of so-called "non-fiction" writing. Think of how much, we as writers produce in the service of promoting our books and our "brand." (I think I'm beginning to hate that word.) We write blog posts (which are often essays), articles on writing, book reviews, interviews for fellow writers, answer interview questions, write blurbs, flap copy, bios, letters to editors and letters to agents to name a few. Some, like Nancy Cohen, write books on writing and cook books. And I'm not even mentioning all of the support we give one another on Facebook, Messaging, via email and other electronic devices.

Regardless of the type or genre, we sure spend a lot of time writing!