An Interview With Marilyn Levinson/Allison Brook

by Grace Topping

Marilyn Levinson, who also writes under the name of Allison Brook, is a wonderful example of someone who found a second career as a writer. After retiring from teaching, Marilyn began writing and has been very successful at it. The latest book in her Haunted Library Mystery series, Booked on Murder, will soon be released. It follows on the heels of numerous books Marilyn has written for adults and children. Marilyn joins me today to discuss her long writing career.

Booked on Murder

Librarian Carrie Singleton must catch a killer before she can say, I do, in the 8th delightful installment in Agatha Award-nominee Allison Brook’s Haunted Library Mystery series.

Carrie Singleton is ready to kiss the single life goodbye. Her wedding to Dylan Avery is just a few weeks away, and a happy ending is about to be hers. But when a body is found on the lawn of their wedding venue, happily-ever-after is looking deadlier than ever.

The victim turns out to be Billy Carpenter, a young man recently released from prison after serving time for a bank robbery. The stolen money he’d buried is gone and Carrie and the police suspect Billy’s two alleged co-conspirators, his friends Luke Rizzo and Tino Valdez. But then Luke is murdered and Tino is nowhere to be found.

With no leads and only a week to go before her big day, Carrie is on the hunt for clues. She hopes to wrap up this investigation with a neat bow before she and Dylan tie the knot. Carrie has something old, something new, and something borrowed ready for her walk down the aisle. Now she needs to find the killer without becoming the 'something blue.'

 

 

Welcome, Marilyn/Allison.

 

Booked on Murder (written as Allison Brook) is the eighth and final book in your Haunted Library Mystery series. What made you decide to conclude Carrie Singleton’s story?

With book number eight completed, Carrie's story arc is complete. In Death Overdue, we meet Carrie, a rootless young woman with no close friends, about to leave town. By the end of Booked on Murder, Carrie is a grounded, newly-married woman, with a career and many friendships, who contributes to her community. If I were to continue the series it would turn into something a la Mr. and Mrs. North because in the last few books Dylan is involved in Carrie's adventures and investigations.

 

 

One of the biggest challenges a mystery author faces is justifying why the main character gets involved in a murder investigation. With only weeks before her wedding, why does Carrie Singleton try to solve the murder of a recently released bank robber?

 

It was difficult for them not to get involved since Carrie and Dylan discover the body on Victor Zalinka's lawn, where they are to be married in a few weeks.

 

 

Over the eight books in your Haunted Library Mystery series, Carrie has changed dramatically. What do you think accounted for that the most?

 

The way things go, Carrie is given many opportunities to grow in her personal life, her career, and solving mysteries. Each time she rises to meet the challenge. She also is smart enough to appreciate the relationships offered to her—from Angela Vecchio, who quickly becomes her best friend; from Evelyn, who offers her help in solving crimes as well as personal advice, and by nurturing her relationship with Dylan, even when she has doubts that leading a so-called normal life is possible for her. Carrie also took pains to improve her relationship with each of her parents and to accept their limitations.

 

 

Your short story, Stabbed in the Heart, was recently published in the anthology First Comes Love, Then Comes Murder. Do you write short stories often?

 

These days I'm so busy writing novels, I don't have time to write short stories. I was delighted when Teresa Inge asked me to write a story for this anthology. Which, by the way, I am reading and enjoying. I hope to write more short stories in the future.

 

 

Some of your earlier books, including your Golden Age of Mystery Book Club Series, are being republished. How did that come about?

 

I think this is an example of how writing and publishing books and being a part of the writing community will lead to more of your books being published. A few years ago, when I'd mentioned to our dearly beloved and departed agent, Dawn Dowdle, that I was looking for someone to help me with my website, she told me to contact her friend and client, Kelly Moran. As Kelly redid my website, she got to see the books I'd written and the reviews they had received. When Kelly announced she and a few others were starting Rowan Prose Publishing at the start of 2024, I asked if she would look at the first novel I'd ever written. She said she would, and since she knew I was taking back a slew of books from a publisher that was in the process of changing hands, she asked to republish those as well. This year, Murder a la Christieand Murder the Tey Way have been republished with RPP. Next year, four more of my books will be. 

 

 

This has been a busy year for you with the release of Booked on Murder, the republishing of some of your earlier mysteries and your novels for kids, and a short story publication, among other things. How do you juggle all of your writing activities?

 

With great difficulty, since I'm a bit older now and can work just so many hours a day. This is the first time I have two deadlines in one year--the first book in my new Dickens Island series and the third Rufus book. Writing guest blogs and interviews; sharing news about great reviews and sales; writing my monthly newsletter all take a good deal of my time. 

 

 

Along with the republishing of your novels for kids, And Don’t Bring Jeremy and Getting Back to Normal, I understand you are also going to write three new books for kids. What inspired you to return to writing novels for kids?

 

I envisioned writing two more books after Rufus and Magic Run Amok. Dawn got me a contract for four books, and I had no trouble coming up with an idea for the fourth in the series.

 

 You’ve said that your high school English teacher discouraged your writing. You sure proved her wrong. What would you say to someone who wants to write but has been discouraged by others?

 

(It was a him, and I found out later that other students thought the world of him.) If you have the desire—no, the need—to write, then you will write. That desire has to be strong enough to overcome other people's doubts. Sometimes the urge to write will come years later. The desire and determination will decide whether or not a person becomes a writer.

 

 

Looking back on your writing career, what was the most important or pivotal thing that motivated you to write?

 

I suppose it was the desire to tell a story. Many stories, as it turned out. Now, of course, writing is part of my life. I can't point to one event or insight that started me off on a writing career, though when I was in elementary school, I wanted to be a writer or a ballet dancer. You know which one won out.

 

 

What do you find the most challenging to write—mysteries, romantic suspense, short stories, or novels for kids?

 

I find them all equally challenging. When I'm in the middle of a project, I see myself in the scene I'm writing about. That said, the storylines of my mysteries and suspense novels are more complicated. Still, one can only be in the minute and write line by line.

 

 

I’ve heard you may have a new mystery series in the works. Can you tell us about it? What author name do you intend to use?

 

Once again, I am Allison Brook. I love my new Dickens Island series. You won't find Dickens Island on any map because it's my creation. I set it down in the middle of the Long Island Sound, between Long Island and Connecticut. My sleuth, Delia Dickens, has returned to the island and is living in an old Victorian house with her 15-year-old son Connor. There's a murder, of course, Delia's bickering aunt and uncle, a hidden room, a ghost, and a bearded collie. Lots of fun! I'm two-thirds through writing the first book, Death on Dickens Island.

 

 

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

 

I never run out of ideas for plots or how to resolve a difficult writing situation. Possible ideas will present themselves as I write. If they don't, I can ask for help from my small group of writers. We're there to help and support one another. I suppose that's two things: 1) My brain has been trained to provide solutions and 2) it's good to be in a group of writers who offer ideas and suggestions to one another. Sometimes the simple act of writing out a problem in an email will prod my own mind to come up with the perfect answer.

 

 

Thank you, Marilyn/Allison

 

 

You can learn more about Marilyn Levinson/Allison Brook and links to her books at https://www.marilynlevinson.com

 

 

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

 

 

An Interview with Marilyn Levinson by E. B. Davis

 

“’Be careful. Don’t be too trusting of anyone.

Especially of anyone you think you know well.”’

Marilyn Levinson, Come Home To Death, Page 95

 

Erica Parker has barely been a bride nine months when two thugs show up at her apartment while her husband is away on one of his infamous business trips, claiming he owes their boss a large gambling debt. Frightened for her life, and without any other options, she heads for her childhood Long Island home she escaped three years ago. And swore never to return.

The aunts who raised her are as interfering and controlling as ever, but soon as the family attorney advances the rest of her trust from her parents’ life insurance, she can return to normalcy. Except he refuses, instead spouting nonsense about how, if she waits, she will soon inherit millions. On her twenty-fifth birthday.

Problem is, someone doesn’t want her to live that long.

Her aunts are harboring secrets, people are turning up dead, her husband is nowhere to be found, and someone’s trying to kill her. It appears you can go home again, but sometimes, you shouldn’t.

Amazon.com

 

Come Home To Death, by Marilyn Levinson, is a suspenseful mystery. You know the what and the why, but you don’t know the who—so you know it’s coming—but for main character Erica Parker it could be anyone in her life. Talk about be kind to your enemies because your friends could be a bunch of lousy….

 

For parents, this is a cautionary tale of why sheltering your children too much is a bad thing. Kids have to walk on the wild side in their teen years to shave off naivete. Poor Erica is a total innocent. Cocooned and henpecked by well-meaning aunts who raise her after her parents are killed in a plane crash, Erica runs to the opposite end of the state after college to escape the cage she’s lived in.

 

She a very lucky young woman, but her parents’ trust fund becomes a target on her back.

 

Please welcome WWK’s Marilyn Levinson.                              E. B. Davis

Your setting for this story is where you live—on Long Island. Did you grow up there? Is there a particular place on the island that you based Manordale on?

 

My family moved to Long Island when I was fourteen and a half. Except for the four years I attended Syracuse University and nine years after that, I've always lived on Long Island. I didn't base Manordale on any particular town, though I set it on the south shore of Long Island rather than the north shore where I've lived.

 

Erica seems to have good instincts, and yet she doesn’t always make the right decisions. Why

the conflict?

 

Growing up, Erica had to put up with her aunts always telling her what to do, and so she didn't develop life skills as she should have. When she moved to upstate New York, she was completely on her own. Some of her decisions, like her choice of job, turned out well. Others, like marrying Terry after knowing him a short time, proved to be rash.

Before two goons show up looking for her husband, does Erica have any suspicions about her husband, Terry?

 

She does wonder about his frequent trips, but since he offers a reasonable explanation for them, she doesn't press for more information. Deep down, she'd rather not learn anything unpleasant.

 

Is Erica caught up in a self-perpetuating cycle? She’s so needy and naive, predators are attracted to her. But then again, older, overprotective women are also attracted, like they know she needs protection. Erica wants neither response.

 

I think we all give off vibes that enable other people to sense things about us, things we have no idea we're revealing.

 

When Erica arrives back in Manordale, her aunts treat her like she’s still a kid. How does Erica combat their behavior?

 

For one thing, she announces that she's married. This sets off a new wave of questions, questions that she doesn't want to answer. Erica has to remind herself that she is no longer a child. She is only staying in the house where she grew up until she gets enough money to pay off Terry's gambling debt.

 

Erica finds out that on her twenty-fifth birthday, just a week away, she will become very wealthy. But when she asks to borrow twenty thousand dollars to cover her Terry’s, her husband, gambling debts, Sherman Hartley, attorney and in charge of her trust fund, blocks her. What reason does he give her for denying her request?

 

Sherman is a stickler for the rules, and tells her she simply can't have any part of her inheritance until she turns twenty five in a few weeks.

 

I was surprised and dismayed when Erica told Terry about the fortune she is about to inherit. Why would she do that?

 

Why wouldn't she? Erica loves and trusts Terry. She considers everything she owns is to be shared with her husband.

 

Her best friend, Jason Hartley, the attorney’s son, is somewhat of an odd ball geek. Unfortunately, he’s big, but not athletic. He’s smart, but not ambitious or as talented as he wants to be. How did they relate as children?

 

They grew up knowing each other because their parents were good friends. They grew even closer after Erica's parents were killed in a plane crash, and Jason's mother died from an illness.

 

Erica seems to dominate the relationship with Jason. She’s able to stand up to him. Why can she do this with him but not with others?

 

Erica is stronger and more resilient that Jason, who was close to his mother and never got along with his father. She is used to his moods and having to bolster him up. It's a close relationship she never had with anyone else.

 

After Terry’s funeral, Doug Remsen contacts Erica. He had claimed to be Terry’s friend. Why does she believe him and contact him?

 

Erica is drawn to Doug's calm and kind demeanor. She's happy to know someone who was a friend of Terry's.

 

I thought distance made the heart fonder—and yet—it isn’t until after Terry’s funeral that Erica realizes her idyllic marriage wasn’t and their marriage would have ultimately failed. Why then?

 

Erica has had many rude shocks regarding Terry, shocks she is forced to examine. Not only is he a gambler, he left school at sixteen and though he never was caught, he committed crimes in order to survive. He lied about his background, which is so different from her own. Erica realizes she fell for a handsome enigmatic stranger who wanted to marry her.

 

Even after Doug confesses to looking after investments for mob boss Mr. B, Erica still wants to see Doug? She knows it’s stupid.

 

She does because she feels he is the only person who understands what she's going through. He's the only person she can trust. And it means a lot to her that Terry trusted Doug too.

 

Of all the people Erica can’t trust, I thought Aunt Constance was better. But even she mixes sedatives into Erica’s drinks. Why does she do that?

 

Aunt Constance loves Erica and truly wishes the best for her. She gives her sedatives because she thinks that Erica's senses need to be dulled after losing Terry.

 

Erica learns she isn’t the only woman in the family to suffer bad judgment when it comes to men. Why isn’t Aunt Betty (her mom’s sister) a good role model?

 

Aunt Betty is in love with a married man.

 

Is Come Home To Death a standalone novel or will you make this the first book of a series?

 

It is a standalone.

 

What We're Reading Now? Beach Reads! By WWK Writers

The Hollywood Spy by Susan Elia MacNeal

Review by Margaret S. Hamilton

Susan MacNeal sends her intrepid series heroine, MI-Five agent Maggie Hope, on a personal mission to Los Angeles in 1943. Maggie is British, raised in the United States, and a newcomer to Hollywood. In addition to solving the murder of a young woman, Maggie comes up against the Zoot Suit Riots, Nazi supporters, and the Ku Klux Klan. MacNeal’s solid research is evident in her portrayal of Maggie’s visits to Los Angeles landmarks, including a Hollywood studio. Many famous personalities have walk-on roles in the book, including Linus Pauling, who teaches in the Chemistry Department at Caltech, and George Balanchine, who choreographs a ballet for a movie. An enjoyable read!

 

Seams Like Murder by Dorothy Howell

Review by E. B. Davis

Seams Like Murder is the first book in the Sewing Studio mystery series. It will be released next month. I had no expectations of the book, but the writing was good and the main character was interesting. Abby Chandler visits her aunt Sarah in small town Hideaway Grove because she hasn’t much to go back to in L.A. After a fight with her boss, being put on leave, and finding out her roommate took the cash without paying the landlord, Abby needs peace. Of course, that’s the last thing she gets when a woman is hit and killed by a driver who doesn’t stop in the alley behind her aunt’s shop—Sarah’s Sweets. 

Murder? No one wants to think so, but although Abby didn’t see the accident, she did hear it—and she thinks it’s murder. She gets pulled into volunteering for the town’s Harvest Festival, which gives Abby the opportunity to sleuth. A deputy sheriff provides the point—counterpoint and a bit of romance. A fun read for the beach!

 

Under a Veiled Moon by Karen Odden

Review by Susan Van Kirk

Under a Veiled Moon is the continuation of a series starring Michael Corravan, Irish Scotland Yard inspector. It will launch on October 11 from Crooked Lane Books. With many parallels to the present day, Karen thoughtfully plots the continuing story of Michael Corravan, whose early history includes his adoption by the Doyle family in White Chapel.

Corravan is placed in the middle of a terrible dilemma when a tragedy based on London's history challenges his Irish roots. He finds himself in the middle of prejudice against the Irish, and the government and media's push to blame the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) for the tragedy. The Princess Alice, a pleasure boat that sailed the Thames River each day, is hit by the Bywell Castle, an iron-hulled collier, resulting in the deaths of 130 out of 600 people. Odden does a masterful job of describing the chaos and attempts to save or recover those passengers.

Who is responsible? The media, as well as the Home Office, wants to blame this on the IRB, a group that could be connected to a recent train bombing. Irish Home Rule is on the table in negotiations at the time, and this could be yet another attempt to push Parliament toward letting Ireland go.

Karen Odden skillfully weaves history, mystery, Victorian society, and politics to create an intriguing story that has connections to the world we inhabit today. I had to read every last word and reluctantly close the book. Loved this story.

 

Out of the Picture by Margaret Welch (aka WWK’s own Molly MacRae)

Review by Grace Topping

 

In the first book of her Museum of Mysteries series, Margaret/Molly writes about Scarlett McCormick, the head curator of a museum of art and archaeology in coastal California. Her description of the museum and its staff makes me wish the museum was an actual place so I could visit it. Margaret/Molly takes something as simple as Scarlett having an idea for an art exhibit and finding a recent photograph of a supposed dead local artist and weaves them into an intriguing mystery. Although the death in this book takes place well in the past, Margaret/Molly infused the story with plenty of suspense and a surprise ending.

 

 I See You by Clare Mackintosh                                                                                                    

Review by Marilyn Levinson

 

Zoe Walker takes the London tube to and from work. She is disturbed to discover a photo of herself in the personal ads. She wonders if this has any connection to the attack on a young woman whose photo appeared earlier than hers. Who is taking photos of women and why? As Zoe and the female detective on the case start to get closer to the mastermind behind this nefarious group, Zoe begins to suspect many of the males in her life, including her significant other who has kept a large secret from her. Gripping to the end, there's even an additional surprise that's sure to satisfy readers of suspense.

 

 

An Interview With Marilyn Levinson/Allison Brook

by Grace Topping

 

One of the pleasures of being a member of the mystery writing community is attending writers’ conferences and spending time with the friends you make there. Over the years, I’ve had the good fortune to meet up regularly with Marilyn Levinson, writing also as Allison Brook, at conferences like Sleuthfest and Malice Domestic. Marilyn is also a regular contributor to Writers Who Kill. It was a delight to read the latest book in her Haunted Library series, Death on the Shelf,and to learn more about her and her series.

 

Death on the Shelf

Clover Ridge librarian Carrie Singleton is thrilled to attend her best friend Angela's wedding, but Angela's family can be a bit...much. Angela’s wealthy cousin Donna hosts an extravagant bridal shower at her resplendent home, but the celebrations turn to gossip as the guests notice Donna's surgeon husband, Aiden, spending a bit too much time with Donna’s cousin Roxy. At the wedding reception, the sweet occasion turns darkly bitter when Aiden topples into the chocolate fountain - dead. 

The suspect list is as long as the guest list, and as difficult to sort out as the seating chart. A few of the top contenders on Carrie’s suspect list are the flirtatious Roxy, emotionally unstable since her recent divorce; Angela's grouchy brother, who feels Aiden betrayed him; and Roxy's scorned ex-husband. Even Donna may have had reason to want her husband dead. And Aiden's gossipy office manager has plenty to say about them all. 

Then another member of Angela's family is murdered, making Carrie more determined than ever to find the killer. Can library ghost Evelyn and library cat Smoky Joe help Carrie solve the murders before she becomes the next of Angela’s wedding guests to head to the grave?

 

 

Welcome, Marilyn.

 

Since you first introduced Carrie Singleton in your Haunted Library series with her purple hair and goth appearance, she has evolved considerably. What accounted for this?

 

When Carrie came to stay with her great-aunt and uncle in Clover Ridge, she was unhappy and lacking a sense of belonging anywhere. Her goth appearance reflected her lack of purpose. As soon as she is offered the position of head of programs and events at the Clover Ridge Library, she settles into her job and proves to be a hard worker and a responsible citizen. 

 

Evelyn, the library ghost, provides Carrie with information about people in the community, but she is unable to identify villains or directly help Carrie solve a crime. With Evelyn being in the great beyond, why can’t she do more?

 

Evelyn holds back information when it reflects badly on her two nieces and nephew. She has no more knowledge regarding a murderer's identity than Carrie does. However, Evelyn is in her mid-sixties and occasionally offers thirty-year-old Carrie advice about life in general.

 

Death on the Shelf features a bridal shower, a wedding, and a murder at the wedding. People love weddings. Did you have to walk a fine line with having the crime happen at the wedding and with who died?

 

I felt a bit bad about having a wedding guest die during Angela and Steve's wedding. But the murder takes place near the end of the reception and is comical in a noirish way. Of course the murder brings a good deal of anguish to Angela and her family because the victim is a relative and the murderer might also be a relative.

 

Having a cat at the library seems to be popular with most of the library patrons and with readers. Have you known of a library cat? Are you a cat owner?

 

Alas, my Sammy died a year and a half ago. I love cats and thought that Smoky Joe, being the sociable feline that he is, would make a wonderful library cat. In Read and Gone he even helps solve a mystery.

 

In each of your books, we have followed Carrie’s relationship with her parents. In Death on the Shelf, Carrie has developed a closer relationship with her father. What accounted for that? Do you think Carry will ever be able to fully bridge her relationship with her mother?

 

Carrie always adored her father, but being a thief, Jim Singleton spent a good deal of Carrie's childhood away from the family. He makes a startling reentry into her life in Read and Gone, the second book in the series. At first Carrie is very wary of rekindling their relationship for fear of getting hurt again. But Jim is determined to atone for his past behavior. He gives up his life of crime, and he works at establishing a solid relationship with Carrie. Ironically, Jim gets a job at   the investigative agency of which Carrie's fiancé is part-owner. 

 

Carrie's mother Linda is another story. She's self-centered, rather pretentious, and not very maternal. In Checked Out For Murder, Linda and her husband Tom come to Clover Ridge because Tom is in a movie being filmed there. Carrie ends up having her mother as a house guest for a short time. While the two women don't suddenly become bosom buddies, Carrie realizes that her mother does love her. She begins to accept that Linda will never be the warm, selfless mother she wishes she were. 

 

With five books in this series, how are you able to keep the series fresh?

 

While the series continues the ever-evolving development of Carrie and her relationships with friends, colleagues and relatives, I consider each book a new adventure that deals with a different theme, a new set of problems, and a murder or two. And of course each book introduces new characters. I've been told by many readers that each book stands on its own. Someone could enjoy reading Death on the Shelf, for example, without having read the previous four books.

 

I really enjoyed your Twin Lakes and Golden Age of Mystery Book Club mystery series. Do you ever see yourself adding to those series? Any thought about a possible new series?

 

I would love to continue my Twin Lakes and Golden Age of Mystery Book Club series, but I can only write one book at a time, and right now I'm focusing on the Haunted Library series.  I do have an idea for another series, and I would like to try my hand at writing mystery short stories.

 

With your experience writing for children and your expertise in Spanish, have you ever considered writing children’s books in Spanish?

 

Not really.

 

What is the one thing that has contributed the most to your career as a writer?

 

Perseverance. I kept on writing despite receiving rejections. Becoming a marketable writer is a process that comes from years of writing.

 

What has been the best thing for you about being a writer?

 

I love communicating with readers via Facebook and other social media. Knowing that readers are enjoying my books and are eager to read more of them inspires me to write.

 

What’s next for Carrie and Dylan?

 

I'm about to start writing book number seven. Carrie and Dylan are engaged and looking forward to their future together. Dylan travels to the Chicago area to retrieve a painting he has inherited, which turns out to be more problematic than he expects with murder and art fraud on the horizon. 

 

Thank you, Marilyn.

Buy link: https://bit.ly/36OkDrG

website: http://www.marilynlevinson.com

 

Some Thoughts for the New Year by Marilyn Levinson

Happy 2022, Everyone! I'm not one for making New Year's resolutions. It's not that I consider my lifestyle to be perfect but I eat properly, exercise regularly, and get my manuscripts to my editor on time. I could resolve to write first thing every morning before checking my email and Facebook sites instead of getting in a few hours before dinner, but my pattern is set and it works well enough. I stay in touch with friends and family. I get enough sleep and I keep up with doctors' appointments and necessary shots. What I needed, I soon realized, was to simplify my life—cut down on activities and delete what wasn't working in my life.

With that in mind, I withdrew my membership from a group of mystery writers I'd joined at its inception a few years ago. I liked the idea of being part of a group whose purpose was to support one another and promote each others' books in various ways. I grew to like the members very much but after a while began to wonder if the group was working for me. Very few members were writing cozies like me and most were indie-published, which I'm not. I had certain obligations to the group, which I fulfilled, but rarely volunteered to fill positions, which made me feel bad for not giving it my all. And I wasn't giving it my all, I realized, because I wasn't fully invested in the group's activities. And so I left.

I'm at an age where I have to choose my activities because whatever I do takes a bit more time and a bit more effort. I soon realized that I was putting pressure on myself in ways that had nothing to do with other people. Oddly enough, this had to do with my evening, which is my so-called "free time" because I don't do any work related to writing. But being goal-oriented I feel obliged to remain busy. Accomplish. Some of the activities that have to be done and accomplished involve going through two newspapers online, working a crossword puzzle, watching a few streaming shows, then read or listen to a book—and do some knitting if my hands don't hurt. Needless to say, these "accomplishments" keep me occupied till after midnight. Of course I enjoy doing them, but why the pressure? Why the urgency to see all, read all, do all? Who cares how many of the series, movies and books my friends recommend I get to enjoy as well? The point is, I have to learn not to care.

It's time I learned to relax. Not feel obliged to load up my schedule so that every minute is spent in a worthwhile endeavor. I'm well past the age of retirement and entitled to simply sit and daydream occasionally without mentally working on my plot. I need time and space to just . . . be.

Desk Set: Where Writers Who Kill Work

by Shari Randall

The other day I stumbled upon a photo essay of the desks of famous writers. Since I'm hopelessly distractible, I searched through them for hints for putting together a workspace that would boost my focus and productivity. What did I learn? That authors' desks are as individual as their owners -- and that Ray Bradbury must have had the most incredible ability to focus (just Google his desk).

I became curious about my writer pals' desks, so I asked the Writers Who Kill to share photos of their workspaces. We all have our own style that works for us, honed by years of trial and error and the limits of our real estate.

Korina Moss and I have opted for a comfortable, overstuffed, armchair/laptop combination:

While Jen Chow has opted for the classic dining room table as desk:

Some new studies have shown a correlation between cluttered desks and genius. Grace Topping and Susan Van Kirk are proof. 

If we had a prize for most adorable screensaver, Marilyn Levinson would win:

Want elegance? check out Margaret Hamilton's space:

As the blog's talented organizer, it's appropriate that E. B. Davis' workspace looks like a command center:

James M. Jackson and Tammy Euliano have found a room with a view to be helpful in the creative process:

Kait Carson adds a cat to her view:

Nancy Eady ups the comfort factor with a cozy throw, pillow, and canine companion:

Alas, Rosalie Spielman, who will be joining us in the new year, didn't clear her photo with her feline overlord.

Writers, share a photo of your desk in the comments. What do you think makes a good workspace? 

Shari Randall is the author of the Agatha Award winning Lobster Shack Mystery series and the new Ice Cream Shop Mystery series (written as Meri Allen). Her latest book is The Rocky Road to Ruin.