Serendipity, Sisters in Crime, and Robert Dugoni, Oh My!

by Paula Gail Benson

Serendipity has been defined as a happy accident, a course of action that leads to unexpected benefits. According to Wikipedia, the word serendipity was initially used by author Horace Walpole, who, in a 1754 letter written to a friend, described a Persian fairy tale called “The Three Princes of Serendip” where the characters were always encountering things they were not seeking.

Generally, as mystery writers, we’re cautioned about not giving characters their answers too easily and making them face conflict or adversity before reaching resolutions. However, most of us remember in the course of our individual writer’s journey being the beneficiary of good fortune through serendipity.

Two instances where I’ve experienced an unexpected writing benefit were in becoming a member of Sisters in Crime (SinC) and meeting New York Times bestselling and Edgar nominated author Robert Dugoni. How those two separate fortunate incidents came together is the story of this message.    

In my post yesterday on The Stiletto Gang, I described how current national Sisters in Crime President Diane Vallere’s association with Sisters in Crime had influenced and advanced her writing career. Similarly, I credit joining that organization with giving me the information and boost I needed to start submitting my short stories to publishers and to become involved in the mystery blogging community.

Cathy Pickens, author of the Avery Andrews mysteries and former President of Sisters in Crime (thus properly recognized as “Goddess”), encouraged me to become a member. Due to her influence, I joined not only Sisters in Crime, but several of its chapters, including the Guppy Chapter, where I now serve on the Steering Committee and one of my stories appeared in the third Guppy anthology, Fish or Cut Bait.

Meanwhile, after we met at the South Carolina Book Festival, Robert Dugoni invited me to collaborate with him on a short story that was published in Killer Nashville Noir: Cold Blooded.

So, when I learned that Robert was headed to Beaufort, S.C., as part of a book tour, and that his trip coincided with the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime’s celebration of SinC’s 30^th anniversary, I asked if he could make a stop in Columbia. As serendipity would have it, Robert was able to attend the Palmetto Chapter meeting, where he was made an honorary member. In addition, he was interviewed by his good friend Cathy Pickens and told the group how it felt to receive the Edgar nomination for his novel The Seventh Canon.

Of course, there was cake and Cathy Pickens had the honor of making the first “stab” into it, as is benefiting a celebration of mystery authors.

The serendipity continued the following day when Robert accompanied me to a church service and met a fan of his Tracy Crosswhite series. She was thrilled to receive an autographed copy of the latest novel, The Trapped Girl.

So, while I’ll be careful of allowing my characters to experience too much serendipity, I’ll keep enjoying all that I encounter in life.

Has serendipity ever taken you down a happy pathway?