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Showing posts from July, 2015

Why Men As Well As Women Are Taking The Wooded Path by Nancy LiPetri

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While you’ll find The Wooded Path listed under the genres “women’s fiction” and “romance” (in addition to contemporary fiction and mystery), it is receiving some surprising reviews from male readers. Case in point: “… Once I picked up it was hard to put down. I don't usually read fiction but my wife recommended it to me and after the first few pages I was hooked. Mysterious, sensuous, well written. Waiting for the next book. ” I also had a local reader tell me he was impressed with my obvious research about the lake. He found the accurate facts to enhance the mystery in the story. And another said he found it fun, if not a bit frightening, to discover what his wife might be thinking about sex and marriage.  As the writer, I am absolutely thrilled when any reader picks up on the underlying messages I enjoyed weaving into the story of a disappearance in a tight-knit Carolina community. My fascination with psychology and the power of the subconscious lead my charac

Are you a Plotter or Pantser?

It was interesting to find out some of the people at the PSWA conference had not idea what being a pantser meant. In case you don't know, it comes from the phrase, flying by the seat of your pants. In other words, writing without having an outline of your plot already figured out. The panelists who discussed the subject were: Thonie Hevron, Eileen Magill, Mike Brandt, Joe addiego, Janet Greger, and Barbara Hodges. Some plotted, some were pantsers, and a couple were a combination of both. They felt the pantsers might have to do more rewriting. One panelist didn't like not knowing what to write. Another felt that the author should have the arc of the story pretty much in mind. Which is easier? Mixed feelings. And one reported tha outlines are not perfect and will probably have to be changed as the writing moved along. What about you? If you're a writer, do you plan ahead, making an outline to follow as you write? Or do you just start wit

My Upcoming Events

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California Writers Club, Saturday, August 15th, 10 a.m. Clarion Hotel, 3540 Rosedale Hiway, Bakersfield, CA Topic: Creating and Sustaining a Mystery Series Central Coast Book Fest,  Saturday, September 19, 10-4, Seacrest Hotel, San Luis Obispo, CA. I'll have a lot of my books for sale. Stop by and say "hi". Great Valley Book Fest, Saturday, October 10, 10-4, Promendade Shops at Orchard Valley (near the Bass Pro Shop), Manteca CA. Holiday Boutique, Friday and Saturday, November 6 and 7. 10 am. to 5. Porterville Art Gallery, Main St., Porterville CA. Let me know if you need a speaker for an event or your organization. You can contact me at mmeredith@ocsnet.net Marilyn

PSWA Attendees

Because I don't want to violate anyone's privacy, I'm not going to name names, only tell where their expertise is to give you an idea of what kind of information was shared.  A retired USAF Colonel and Special Agent for the OSI--which is the Air Force version of NCIS A retired Air Force officer who specialized in criminal investigations and counterintelligence. A TPSA Commander in Boston Retired police officers from:  New York City Chicago (2) LAPD New Mexico  Sacramento  Reno Canada Deputy Chief from Irvine CA Vice Detective from Washington DC Detroit Northern California World Airport Police, Los Angeles Suffolk County PD on Long Island Pleasant Hill P.D. CA Ontario CA PD Three retired FBI agents Insurance Investigator Former Assistant Attorney General Fireman Former helicopter pilot.  A paramedic and training officer for the federal disaters Medical Assistant Team in Calfornia. A mountain clim

Public Safety Writers Association Conference

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The meeting room at the Orleans. We had about 50 in attendance. It was a great conference and so glad to see so many returnees and a bunch of new folks. This photo was of the panel on promotion. I think we could have gone on another 45 minutes in order to cover everything. I gave a presentation on some of the mistakes I've made over the years. Mike Black kindly made the power point for me, and Tim Dees helped me through the process. Here we are at one of our wonderful lunches. Great food and a good time to do some visiting. At our table from this vantage point were two retired police officers, a doctor who wrote a book about the abuse of prescription drugs, and a psychologist who works with police officers who have PTSD. And this is what I did early every a.m. Michael Black did a wonderful job with the program this year. I've been to many, many writing conferences, and this is my very favorite. I'll have more pics later on, plus so

The Hook

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Christopher Allan Poe and Bonnie Hearn Hill At a recent San Joaquin Sisters in Crime meeting, Christopher Allan Poe and Bonnie Hearn Hill gave a wonderful presentation on Hooks. Some of the tips they came up with were things I hadn't even thought of as hooks, for instance: The first two hooks are the title and the book cover. Next comes the first line. Start the reader off with a question that pulls them into the story. I still think my best first line came from Murder in the Worst Degree: Except for the dead body washed up on the sand, conditions were perfect for surfing. Next come the first couple of paragraphs. Again, asking questions the reader wants to keep reading to find the answers. Right away, will the reader know the time frame. Voice of the protagonist. Writer's style sensed right away. First chapter must hook the reader into continuing on. The popularity of genres seem to cycle. Bridging Conflict means taking

What I've Been Up to by Marilyn Meredith

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Many of you know what I've been doing because you are my friend on Facebook, but here's a quick rundown. Because my latest Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery, Not as It Seems,  is now with the publisher, I've been busy gearing up the promotion for it. As most authors know, planning for the promotion of any book should happen as soon as possible. Because I really like doing blog tours, I'm finding hosts for one now. I'm also looking for a place, or I should say places, for a book launch. I'd like to have one locally and another over on the coast, Morro Bay area, where this book is set.  I'm not sure if I'll have a character naming contest or not this time. It is always popular, but haven't decided. And always, while I'm working on promotion for one book, I'm writing another--a Rocky Bluff P.D. mystery and it's moving along nicely. As far as family, we've had several birthdays and a big celebration for middle daughter who h

Why Did She Skip Woodstock? by Kay Kendall

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Why Did She Skip Woodstock? By Kay Kendall Historical mysteries provide a way for readers to refresh their knowledge of a time period, or learn about it in the first place. The 1960s gave rise to issues that are still relevant today, and in my Austin Starr mystery series I try not only to entertain but also to give gentle history lessons. Rainy Day Women, new this month, takes place the second week of August in 1969. If you were a young adult or older back then, you are sure to remember some of the week’s highlights. Headlines all across the continent shrieked about the sensational murders in Los Angeles of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and four of her friends, although Charles Manson and his gang had yet to be fingered. Apollo 12 astronauts Armstrong, Aldrin, and Collins were back on Earth and cleared by NASA to rejoin their families. Lovers of rock music throughout the northeastern states were looking forward to a big outdoor concert scheduled for the coming weekend—po