Marilyn's Musings

To let you know how exciting things are in the part of California where I live, the Jackass Mail Run made the front page of the local newspaper--complete with photographs. The photo was of the posse that rode into town, guns a blazing, before the mail wagon's arrival. It they'd taken the photo just a bit lower, my booth would have been there, complete with my books and right in front of the dentist's office. Not only that, an article about the Mail Run was on the second page of the Fresno Bee--with another photo. Oh, yes, there's plenty of bad stuff that goes on, but it's refreshing to read about something so family oriented instead of robberies and murders. Well--mostly family oriented. We did have a group of dance hall "girls" strutting around town (middle-aged girls), and some belly dancers who performed in front of the pizza palace. Actually, the whole event is pretty mild compared to the "old days." Twenty plus years ago when we first moved ...

This has been one of those weeks where I spent most of my time doing work that I no longer enjoy. For 20 years I've been the training chairperson for an association for providers of care to the developmentally disabled. I've arranged the classes, found the teachers, taken care of logistics, bought the supplies, done all the paperwork, and taught many of the classes myself. I'm tired. It's time for me to spend more time on my writing and the promotion of my books and having some fun with my family. I gave my resignation, but will finish out this year. So I look forward to the fun things. On Saturday I'll have a booth at the Jackass Mail Run in Springville. This is an annual event, kicking off Rodeo week. Between 50 and 100 horses and riders will escort the mail wagon from Porterville to Springville, where bandits will try to rob the mail and gunfire will break out. It's fun and noisy. Hopefully I'll sell some books and have the opportunity to visit with folks...

The Rape of Innocence , by Lacresha Hayes, is the testimony of a child growing up mostly without her mother and going through incest, rape and molestation. It's a story of a child who grew up too fast, enduring the worst of hardships. She details the struggles of growing up without God and then being disillusioned in the churches by hypocrisy. This book chronicles the life of a child who became a woman of God, business owner, author, and wife to a pastor. What should have been impossible, God made possible! This book is for every woman who knows what pain feels like. This book is for every Christian who has been hurt or disappointed in the ministry. Come share the tears and the joys of triumphant victory. The Rape of Innocence: Taking Captivity Captive by Lacresha Hayes ISBN: 978-0-9798154-0-9 Retail price: $19.95 Blurb: A renowned minister and business owner deals with issues of rape, molestation, disillusionment, domestic violence, and abandonment, showing that even the worst sit...

The Fresno Newcomer's Book Club ordered a book for each of its members with an invitation for me to come to the meeting where they would discuss the book. The book in question was my latest Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery, Judgment Fire . The meeting was held in a beautiful home in a newer section of Fresno. The women, for the most part, weren't quite as old as I am, but came close. Several told me they loved the book. They had plenty of questions about the book and about me. I visited with them for nearly two hours and enjoyed every minute of it. Though I have another Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery about half done, right now I've been busy on a ghost writing project. Though I can't tell you much about it, what I can say is that the book is something I've never attempted before and has required quite a bit of research. I've ghost written other projects, a couple of autobiographys and a fantasy. What's interesting about ghost writing is it belongs to the person ...

Thursday night I gave a talk at the Kings County Library in Hanford. But let me begin with what happened the day before. I received a call from the librarian telling me that a TV station would like to interview me. I was to go to Fresno (an hour and 45 minute drive from where I live) to the TV station and be there by 6 a.m. It would be locked so I was to knock on the side door. The interview would be 6 minutes long. Did I go? No. If I'd gotten up in time to do that--around 3 a.m., by the time the library talk rolled around I'd have been incoherent. Sometimes I'm smart enough to realize my limitations, and this was one of those times. My daughter-in-law agreed to go with me and drive (I hate driving after dark in places I'm not familiar with). We used the Magellan to tell us where the library was, it did--one of the world's modern miracles--then we found a restaurant to eat dinner before my gig. It was a lovely Italian restaurant--but the prices were a bit high so we...

Probably by now you've guessed I belong to a lot of writers groups. Three chapters of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, Epic, Public Safety Writers Association...and I also belong to Writers of Kern which is part of California Writers Club. I was fortunate to be one of the guest speakers at their conference this last Saturday. Hubby and I got up at 5 a.m. so we could leave by 6:30 to arrive at the starting time of 8 a.m. This was a small group with lots of familiar faces. The first speaker was Mike Russo of Russo's Books in Bakersfield. He described the dismal state of the book business. The next to speak was a poet who talked about creating poetry. My turn came and my topic was "Plot or Character, which is most important in Mystery?" Of course they are both important. I had a great time telling them why I thought each one was important. Last to speak was Steve Mettee, the publisher of Quill Driver Books. We've shared program time more than once. After...

Patricia Guthrie, In the Arms of The Enemy , Interview: Tell me something about yourself. Where are you from? What do you do besides write? I'm grew up in the town of Lynbrook on Long Island in New York. We moved out to Smithtown when I was in high school. I spent my college years in New York City and now I live in the south suburbs of Chicago. What do you do besides write? I spend much of my time promoting my book, going to book signings, setting up book signings and networking. I was a music teacher in the Chicago Public School System. Now I'm retired with three collies who keep me busy and a horse who puts me on guilt trips when I can't go out to the barn where he's stabled. I've been dedicated to showing my dogs in obedience, have been an obedience instructor and have done therapy work with schizophrenic patients. I've shown and trained horses to a limited extent. Now, my writing career takes up so much of my time. When I have the time, I love to read. . Yea...