Jungle Red Writers

HALLIE EPHRON: Amazing women are competing in this year's Winter Olympics. But there was a time... At the first Winter Olympic Games in 1924 in Chamonix, there were 11 women out of 258 competitors. Women could only compete in figure skating until 1948 when skiing was opened up to them.

But since 1921, it's been women only competing for the title of Miss America. Though I haven't watched for years, my favorite part was always the talent contest. Yes, there were figure skaters. And some of the more memorable talents on display:

In 1959 Miss New York gave a vocal impersonation of Maurice Chevalier. Miss Connecticut gave a speech on fashion designing and tractor driving.
In 1961 Miss Idaho gave a dramatic reading of "The Yellow Wallpaper" and Miss Connecticut performed a dramatic interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount.
In 1973 Miss Florida performed a roller skate ballet to Swan Lake.
In 1987 Miss Massachusetts did a marimba interpretation of Hava Nagila.
In 2011's Miss Arkansas's performed a yodeling ventriloquism act.

Could you play the marimba? Roller skate to Swan Lake? I cannot do any of the above, and though I like to poke fun at these feats, the truth is I'd have a hard time coming up with a "talent" of my own to perform were I ever, in some alternate universe, a Miss America contestant.

I could:

Type. Very fast. Like the wind. And yodel at the same time.
Make mayonnaise. Like magic from egg yolks and oil.
Twerk ... maybe. Or else it's the Jerk. Or maybe it's the Watusi.

What hidden "talents" could you trot out to compete?

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: Oooh, I've always wanted to make homemade mayonnaise, Hallie!

I could:

Make flaky homemade piecrust. My grandmother taught me.
Puppeteer (yes, my husband taught me — and Jim Henson and Frank Oz taught him, sooo.....I am not horrible.)
Drive stick-shift in a blizzard.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: You guys are talented! Here is a non-olympic photo of me on the

mountain at Alta (a few, um, years ago), preparing to go down the opposite way from the easiest way. We do not have a photo of me, splatted, soon after. So much for my skiing career.

My skills. I could:

Sing along to Broadway show tunes, if it was more about knowing all the words, and less about being in tune. My big finish could be to do ALL the parts of the West Side Story "Tonight" quartet: --"A boy like that, he'd keel your brother....""Oh, no Anita, no... "ToNIGHT, tonight... ""We're gonna rock 'em tonight...)
I can cook something out of whatever's in the fridge
Ah, write for-the-occasion lyrics? (There seems to be a theme here.) Like: "He is the very model of a modern dad and grandpa too, He knows the finest restaurants from Panama to Katmandu..." (I did the whole thing for my Dad's birthday last year.)

Dancing, no. And just a side note--how much more dramatic can the sermon on the mount even be? And I'm not even gonna comment on the tractor/fashion thing.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: I am so glad I didn't see the yodeling ventriloquism thing. Really. NOT even going to think about looking it up on YouTube...

You want to know about my talents? I can't sing. I can't dance. I can't play an instrument--in fact, my best pal and I got laughed out of the recital at the end of the guitar lessons we took when we were twelve... I can't blow bubbles. I can't whistle. I am not good at any sport.

I can, however, make mayonnaise. (Is there a theme here, Hallie?) I can not only cook something out of most anything in the fridge, but I do a mean clean-up. I can, like our Susan, make a smashing (no pun intended) cocktail. (Somehow I don't think they'd go for the mixologist skills in the Miss American contest...)

And I can, like Hallie, type like the wind, and I can not only yodel and type (how hard can that be?) but I can type while carrying on a conversation about something completely unrelated. (This skill is honed by spouse talking to you about drains or batteries or something equally interesting while you are trying to write..)

Oh, and I'm a dandy plumber's helper.
RHYS BOWEN: Sorry, can't make mayonnaise (or I probably could, but don't)

Like Hank I can write mean parodies. For John's birthday I did "Gonna tell you a story of a man named John.." and went through his whole life.

But I'm still in stupefied shock about the danced version of the Sermon on the Mount. No, I wouldn't do that, either.

I sing quite well. I spent 10 years in ballet school but I wouldn't dance these days. I play my Celtic harp, but just for my own amusement. When I have to perform, my fingers won't work.

But I do tell good jokes. I'd do a stand up comedian act as my talent, I think.

LUCY BURDETTE: I've seen Hallie type and she is very, very fast. Have not been treated to the yodeling yet...

HALLIE: Be careful what you wish for.

LUCY: I probably could place pretty high in the wearing silly costumes that match your dog's outfit competition.

The zenith of my performance career was a lipsync act to Tammy Wynette's STAND BY YOUR MAN. When the big green felt frog came out to dance with me, we brought down the house. (Believe me, that was the high point of the relationship too.)

John says, such a shame I didn't pursue skiing. I say, but I hate the cold and am afraid of heights and plunges and generally timid so, no.

Oh and PS, I make a mean birthday cake too. Just about any flavor you want...

HALLIE:So, dear readers, what's your talent, and are you ready to go for the gold?

HALLIE EPHRON: Every day the first page I read in the newspaper (after the comics, bridge column, and my horoscope) is the opinion page. I devour editorials and opinion pieces before I read

the news.

Today we take a little detour from fiction to talk about opinion writing. Welcome Suzette Martinez Standring who is a syndicated columnist and past president of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. Her new book, The Art of Opinion Writing: Insider Secrets from Top Op-Ed Columnists, shares wisdom from fifteen established opinion writers who have won journalism’s highest awards.  

As I read Suzette's book, it brought home to me how opinion writing can be dangerous and subversive -- if you're doing it right, there will be people who disagree, sometimes vehemently. I think it takes a special kind of nerve to put yourself out there, and it's something I greatly admire.

For me, one of the main challenges is the form itself. What, 700 words? In which you are supposed to persuade the reader of your point of view without overwhelming with detail or a strident or preachy tone. 

 Suzette, please tell us what do you see as the main challenges of opinion writing?  

SUZETTE STANDRING MARTINEZ: Everyone has an opinion, and too many people equate

opinion writing with just politics, but Ellen Goodman said, “The personal is the political.”

The biggest challenge is creating a reputation for accuracy, and delivering one’s opinion through a compelling story that enlightens or entertains. Too many writers rant but offer no new information or fresh perspectives to the reader. 

 HALLIE: You interviewed some of our most talented opinion writers. Can you share some of your favorite quotes from them?

Ellen Goodman, (retired, The Washington Group), “If you write from a narrow, petty, didactic point of view, you may get a lot of attention – it’s like screaming in a public place – but you probably won’t last a long time.”

Michael R. Masterson (The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette), “Evil flourishes in direct correlation to the extent that truth is violated.”

Cal Thomas (Tribune Media Services): “When I was 20-something I thought I was ready to conquer the world, but I wasn’t. Your experiences change you and your worldview. You can’t microwave a career or a life.”

Kathleen Parker (The Washington Post): “Most people are herding creatures and they will go with what’s allowed in their particular neighborhood or peer group, seeking approval and acceptance. You have to shed yourself of those expectations and those needs. So read, think hard, and be brave. Be very brave.”

Derrick Z. Jackson (The Boston Globe), “If you are going to be successful, have the courage to let an editor speak honestly with you about your work.”

Hallie, these quotes speak to me because it is clear that integrity and a willingness to break away from the herd, as it Kathleen Parker says, is what sets a columnist up for success and career longevity.
 
HALLIE: What subjects do opinion writers cover, if not just politics?

  SUZETTE: Almost any interest a person has can be parlayed onto the op-ed page. For example, Joanna Weiss of the Boston Globe writes how politics is mirrored in pop culture. Connie Schultz won the Pulitzer Prize for writing from a working class perspective. Jeff Seglin writes an ethics column for the New York Times called, “The Right Thing.” Derrick Jackson of The Boston Globe meets readers at the intersection of sports and race. Years ago, the iconic Ellen Goodman was influenced by the feminist movement and the new grid it put over women’s lives.

HALLIE: So here's my queestion. If you could write a knockout opinion column, what topic would you like most to spout off on??  

Suzette Martinez Standring is syndicated with GateHouse Media. She is an award winning author and the host and producer of a Cable TV show, "It's All Write With Suzette." She teaches column writing workshops at universities and national conferences. Her new book is "The Art of Opinion Writing: Insider Secrets from Top Op-Ed Columnists.The book will be used in journalism courses at Johns Hopkins University, Penn State and the University of Maine. " Contact her at suzmar@comcast.net   

HALLIE EPHRON: One of the great pleasures of being a long time member of Sisters in Crime has been watching fellow writers hone their craft, put themselves out there, and then earn (!) a publishing contract.

The latest in an impressive array of New England writers to go down this path is J.A. (Julie ) Hennrikus. She also happens to be president of New England Sisters in Crime.

Julie has had a stellar career in the arts as executive director of StageSource, a service organization for Boston area theater artists and companies and she teaches arts management classes at Emerson College. Now she can add "published mystery writer" to her resume.

Because we all love to hear the gory details Julie, as a mystery writer how long have you been at it, and what was the charm?

JULIE HENNRIKUS: First of all Hallie, thank you and the Jungle Reds for inviting me today. You were the President of Sisters in Crime when I first joined. The meeting was at your house, and I was a wreck. But you were such a great host, and the members could not have been more welcoming.

Though I have been writing my entire life, I really think it was joining Sisters in Crime that turned a corner, and helped me say aloud that I wanted to be a published author.

The charm? What is the phrase, luck is preparation meets opportunity? The preparation includes two books in a drawer, the outline for another cozy series, tons of classes and workshops, some luck publishing short stories, and a willingness to write for the market.

HALLIE: Or, as somebody said, "there's nothing to writing, just sit down and open a vein." How did you find your agent?

JULIE: Well, here’s where the opportunity came in. Two years ago an agent named John Talbot contacted Sheila Connolly, who was then President of Sisters in Crime New England. He was looking for some cozy authors to work with on proposals. Rather than pick and chose a few people, Sheila sent it out to the membership.

I think he was flooded with responses—I was one of them. Several friends got book deals (including the Wicked Cozy Authors), but my initial proposal didn’t sell.

I stayed optimistic, and was enjoying my friends successes. And John and I had a nice conversation at Crime Bake in 2012, and kept in touch. So when the opportunity came up to work on this proposal, my name came up, and I jumped at the chance.

I’ve mentioned the Wicked Cozys—Barbara Ross, Sherry Harris, Edith Maxwell, Jessie Crockett, Liz Mugavero, and I started a group blog (inspired in no small part by this blog) a year ago. We are all writing cozy series, and are at different stages of writing and publication. We are also an amazing support system for each other.

As important as my agent has been to this process, these women (Barb Ross especially) have been instrumental to helping make this happen.

HALLIE: Do you remember what you were doing when you heard you had a publishing contract?

JULIE: Of course! I was at work, and it was my birthday. John called and told me that the proposal had been accepted. It took a few weeks for the contracts to go through, so only a handful of people knew right away. But it was, by far, the best birthday present ever.

HALLIE: Can you give us a teeny tiny peek at what we have to look forward to with your first book?

JULIE: I will be writing the Clock Shop Mystery Series for Berkley Prime Crime under the name Julianne Holmes. The cozy series takes place in the Berkshires. The protagonist goes back to her grandfather’s clock/watch repair shop to heal a rift, and she finds him dead. So she sets out to solve his murder.

It is a wonderful setup for a series, and I am having a great time doing research. The first book is due this fall, and will be out in 2015. Which feels far away, but I know it will be here soon.

HALLIE: Julie wears the most spectacular jackets and necklaces and scarves, the envy of any author who's had to

get dressed up for a signing. So Julie, favorite places to shop for your treasures??

JULIE: What a lovely compliment! My grandmother wore scarves all the time, as does my mother, so that is in the genes. And I work in theater, which allows me to be a little bolder in my accessories. My favorite places to shop? I love craft fairs, where you can unique pieces of jewelry. And my scarves? I’m embarrassed to say that Michaels (yes, the craft store), H&M, Target, and street vendors are a huge part of my collections. I was also lucky enough to go to Egypt

four years ago, and I got a lot of wonderful scarves there. And Nordstrom Rack is a great place to find treasures.

My best piece of advice for accessories—if you are drawn to something, and can afford it, don’t hesitate. Get it. I found a necklace a couple of years ago, and I hesitated. Happily, my mother was with me, and said that if anyone could pull it off, I could. So I bought it, and always get compliments. I’ve been known to work an entire outfit around a pair of earrings, but it is always worth it.

Imagine the fun I’ll have dressing up as Julianne Holmes to go out and sign books about clocks. The mind reels!

HALLIE: Julie, we all can't wait to read your first (published) book.

Accessories, accessories? Where do you get your favorites?

HALLIE EPHRON: Everyone knows, we writers get our ideas in the weirdest places. I got a doozy at a yard sale. Another came while I was watching my neighbor being carried out of her house by paramedics.

The challenge isn't finding the spark, but where to take it.

Story challenge! So today I'm going to share with you a story spark and ask YOU, where would you take it. Points awarded for originality, and a prize to the winner!

***

I'm driving my car on the highway when I notice a man walking in front of a car in the breakdown lane. I do a double take, because it looks as if he's walking his car. (The apparently driverless car is slowly rolling along behind him.)

That makes me laugh. I try to imagine what's going on in the apparently empty front seat of the car. Who's steering? If I stop and asked if he needs help, what would happen? What's in the trunk?

I know this is an idea for short story, but all I have is a beginning... Your challenge is to figure out what happens next.

The beginning: A woman, driving along the highway, notices a man walking just in front of his car which seemed to be rolling along behind him, driverless in the breakdown lane. She pulls over to see if he needs help.

Challenge: What happens next?

A copy of Lucy Burdette's wonderful new book, MURDER WITH GANACHE, goes to the lucky winner.

HALLIE EPHRON: One of my favorite things about Valentine's Day is that it I can cut out hearts. Like snowflakes, even for the coloring-within-the-lines-challenged, hearts are hard to screw up.

When I was little we used to make our own valentines. This involved buying doilies (do they still sell doilies?) and construction paper and glitter. Lots of glitter. And I'd make -- a mess. But oh, was it fun.

Then I went through my crocheting period. (Like Picasso's blue period?) For Valentine's day people I loved got long, narrow (never have had a great attention span) scarves with long fringes (I was good at fringes).

These days, Valentine's Day finds me in the kitchen where it doesn't matter if you can cut straight or color within the lines. What says I love you quite like duck a l'orange and pineapple upside down cake?

How have you evolved as a valentine giver?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Oh, heart-cutting. what a team--yes, I can do it to perfection. (I forgot about that on Monday, when we were listing our skills. I can also do basic origami.)

ANYWAY. I was big on Valentines Day in college, I used to make incredibly elaborate Valentines, envelopes full of HUNDREDS of tiny hearts I had cut out, with instructions to hold the envelope by one corner, and flip the contents into the air.

Very effective.

I love Jonathan but I am not big on Valentines day. Why is this? ("Each day is Valentine's"...you know the song.)

RHYS BOWEN: Valentine's day was not big in England. Maybe that was because most of us went to single sex schools.

I remember getting a valentine's card from a boyfriend and that was lovely. But as for crocheting anyone something--I don't think so. And I'm married to a hopelessly British and unromantic male. About now he'll say "Oh, I suppose you'll want a card or flowers or something."

But we also have evolved to food. A good home cooked meal--rack of lamb or lobster and champagne. This year John doesn't have to do anything, as I'm speaking at a conference in San Francisco.

(Hallie here: I hope that card doesn't offend anyone. I think it's so funny. And of course it's from ages ago...)

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Rhys, are you sure we aren't sharing a husband? Rick doesn't like being "made" as he puts it, to do anything, especially by greeting card companies. He's only ever bought me flowers under duress, so I learned years ago to buy them for myself so my feelings wouldn't be hurt.

Usually I cook a nice dinner for the two of us, but this year we celebrated an early Valentine's Day on Tuesday by going to see a movie at our favorite theater (which includes a yummy dinner, served to you in your reclining seat with your very own snuggle blanket.) Tonight I think we will do our usual Friday night date--Chinese/Thai takeout and movies at home in front of the fire.

I suppose when you think about it, that's more romantic than flowers and a card once a year...

LUCY BURDETTE:Oh my gosh, I hope you aren't sharing a husband! What a rhubarb that would be if one of you finds out...

Hallie, I'll take the pineapple upside down cake too! We never go out on VD--because it seems like the same thing they do on New Year's, raise the prices and decrease the quality.

This year we've already celebrated with food too--upstairs at Louie's Backyard, which is a lovely, but expensive restaurant that has a second floor serving tapas. You would swoon over the truffled French fries with a cheese dipping sauce! And Asian short ribs to die for...and roasted cauliflower...and lobster pot pie.

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: The only Valentine's Day card I really want is season two of Netflix's House of Cards.

The husband is teaching three weeks of puppetry masterclasses in Australia, but even if he were

around we'd keep in low-key. My view on V-Day is that it's a commercial holiday used to guilt people into buying flowers and chocolates and overpriced meals. However, I'm not completely anti-Cupid — a fun part of being a mom to a younger kid is helping make the homemade valentines and decorating heart cookies with pink and red frosting. (A few of which I will be eating during House of Cards...)

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I am the unromantic one in the family. If it were up to Ross, Valentine's would be flowers and dinner out, but my attitude tends to be "I know we love each other, why do we have to spend money (plus the extra places and florists charge for the holiday) proving it?"

I'm writing this while sitting in our mechanic's waiting room; I think I'm going to tell Ross he's getting a tie bar replacement and alignment for Valentines.Nothing says "I love you" like a well-maintained car.

In past years, I would be sitting in the kitchen helping Smithie/The Boy/Youngest with their cards for classmates. We didn't do homemade cards - I'm not that kind of mother, I'm afraid - but there were always stickers to stick or candy to tape on. I recall one year when I picked up this...cardboard contraption...that folded into a box into which you put a Hershey's kiss. Of course, it was too

complicated for the kids, and I wound up folding 40+ tiny boxes all evening. Maybe that's what killed the romance for me?

Oh, and Hallie, I think "One of my favorite things about Valentine's Day is that it I can cut out hearts," would make a GREAT opening line for a serial killer book!

HALLIE: ICK! Wouldn't it, though!?

Are you a heart cutter or a card maker... or do you say it with flowers and a nice dinner out? (Love the card on the right - perfect for mystery authors, yes? It's from NobleWorksCards.com.)

Kathy Reel! Congratulations! You are the winner of our story challenge! A copy of Lucy Burdette's MURDER WITH GANACHE will be winging its way to you just as soon as you email me at Hallie "at" HallieEphron dot com with your mailing address.

HALLIE EPHRON:Lucy Burdette and I went on tour some months back in North Carolina (yay,

mystery maven Molly Weston!) withJennifer McMahon, so we heard bits about Jennifer's new novel, The Winter People and I've been looking forward to it every since.

I fell in love with Jennifer's work when I read "Island of Lost Girls." It's about a little girl who's kidnapped from from her mother's car by a life-sized Easter bunny.

Jennifer told us the idea came to her when she was stopped at a gas station

in Vermont. A woman pulled in, left her car running, and ran into the store leaving a little girl strapped in the backseat. Jennifer's mind started to what-if terrible scenarios: what if someone came along, jumped in the car, and drove off with the girl?

What if it was stranger than that; what if it was someone in a costume: Santa, a clown, the Easter Bunny? What would she do, and who would believe her?

No one (including yours truly) does CREEPY better than Jennifer. Her new book, The Winter People, is about a town of strange disappearances, a missing sister, and an ancient diary. I asked Jennifer to tell us how she came up with its story. I was not surprised to hear that it was inspired by a child's scary fantasy.

JENNIFER MCMAHON: A few years ago, my daughter asked me to play a game -- she loved to create these tightly scripted make-believe games. She gave me the set-up: “We’re sisters. You’re nineteen. I’m seven. You wake up one morning and I’m in bed with you. I tell you our parents are missing.”

“Missing?” I said. “That’s terrible. What happened to them?”

“They were taken,” she said. “Into the woods.” She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and added, “Sometimes it just happens.”
I knew right away that it belonged in a book, and wrote it down -- "The Missing Parents Book," I called it. I didn't have a feeling for what had happened, though, who these girls were, or where their story would go. So, like with so many half-formed story ideas, I set it aside.

Then a couple of years ago, I started playing around with a story set partly in the Civil War, about a woman who becomes a spiritualist in Vermont at the turn of the century. She'd lost a child, but came to believe she could communicate with her and with others who had passed on.

One day, I was writing from the point of view of this character, Sara. And I wrote down this line: "The first time I saw a sleeper, I was nine years old."

Whoa! I thought, getting chills. What’s a sleeper?
I had to keep writing to find out. Soon I understood that I was writing about a woman who believed she could bring the dead back to life. I remembered my two sisters with the parents who were taken into the woods (“Sometimes it just happens”) and knew they belonged in there, too.

HALLIE: A sleeper? Whoa, creepy. Can you give us just a tiny hint of where you went with it from there?

JENNIFER: Well, it continues to get creepier! Sara believes she can use a ritual she learned about as a child to bring her beloved daughter back to life. Her husband Martin is baffled and horrified by his wife's apparent descent into madness.

In the present day, our two sisters, Ruthie and Fawn, are living in Sara's old farmhouse in West Hall, Vermont with their quirky and reclusive mother. They wake up one morning to discover their mother is missing, and in trying to figure out where she could have gone, they discover a published copy of Sara's diary along with some other disturbing items.

I ended up including a third storyline, about Katherine, an artist in Boston whose husband has died recently -- she learns that he visited West Hall the day he died, and is determined to find out why. Naturally, her story intersects with Ruthie's and Sara's before long.

HALLIE: Have you started your next book, and did your daughter inspire you?

JENNIFER: I just finished an early draft of my next book, actually. It takes place largely at a strange roadside motel, and is set in the 1960s, 1980s and present day.

Last summer, two of my daughter's cousins -- twin girls, one year older than Zella -- came and stayed with us for a week. The twins were fascinated by the fact that I write scary books, and the four of us had many long, animated talks about what the scariest things in the world are.

Without giving away too much, there is a certain critical and creepy aspect of this next book that was inspired by these chats.

HALLIE:Inviting our readers to share what scared you as a kid... I'm sure I'm not the only one who was afraid of clowns.

HALLIE EPHRON: 'Tis most definitely the winter of our discontent... snowstorm after snowstorm,

followed ice and more snow. Time to make an all-in-one dish that makes the house smell great and lasts for days.

To that end I offer up a chicken with rice that's a winter staple in our house.

Spanish style arroz con pollo, humble cousin to Paella, is one of those satisfying comfort dishes. Savory chicken and rice with the pop of chorizo and hot smoked paprika, this is a recipe I make by "feel" so the amounts are approximate.

Sazón Goya (seasoning packets available in most grocery stores near the bouillion cubes) gives the dish its distinctive saffron-like taste and yellowish color. The fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime are contrasting grace notes. Notice that the shrimp gets cooked, then set aside and added to the finished dish.

Cook it up and serve portions reheated in the microwave for days after. It just gets better. Best accompaniment for me is fried ripe plantains (maduros). Allow them to ripen until the skins to turn black; then peel, slice, and sautee in butter until the pieces turn bright yellow and start to brown.

Ingredients2-3 pounds of skinless boneless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat and cut into 2" pieces
Approximately 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 T smoked (hot if you like) paprika
Oil (I use olive oil)
A large onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
A large sweet red pepper, chopped
2 or so pounds of fresh tomatoes, chopped - I use skin, seeds, flesh (you can substitute a large can of

whole plum tomatoes and its liquid, but adjust the amount of stock/water later in the recipe)
1/2 pound of chorizo, sliced 1/4" thick
12 (or more!) good sized raw peeled shrimp
1 packet of Sazón Goya (con culantro & achiote)
2 cups chicken stock
1.5 to 2 cups of uncooked rice (depending on which kind of rice, whatever you'd mix with about 2.5 cups of liquid to get the rice to absorb it all)
Water if more liquid is needed to just cover the rice
1/4 c balsamic vinegar
A bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped
Lime wedges

Equipment
1 large skillet or sautee pan
1 dutch oven or large covered pot

1. Mix salt, pepper, and good paprika with a tablespoon or two of olive oil to make a paste; toss it with the chicken pieces to coat evenly; let them sit for about 15 minutes
2. Heat about 2+ T of oil in the skillet; brown chicken pieces in shifts and transfer to the larger pot
3. Add a bit more oil if needed and brown the chorizo slices in the same pan; add them to the larger pot
4. (Optional: Brown the shrimp in the same pan which should now have a brown crusty bottom (be careful to moderate the heat so the bottom of the pan doesn't burn) and cook through; set the shrimp aside in the fridge after cooking
5. Sautee onion in a bit more oil (if needed) in the same skillet, scraping up brown bits from the bottom of the pan and cook slowly until the onion is gold/transluscent,
6. Add the balsamic vinegar and loosen all the scrapings from the bottom of the pan; cook for another minute

7. Add garlic, red pepper, and tomatoes to the onion/vinegar mixture in the pan and cook down over low/medium heat for about 5 minutes
8. Add the Sazon Goya packet of seasoning to the veggies and mix
9. Dump all the veggies from the sautee pan into the larger pot (or dutch oven) on top of the chicken/chorizo
10. Spread the rice over the top of everything
11. Add chicken stock so that the rice is just covered; add water if more is needed
12. Cover the large pot and cook over low heat until the liquid is more or less absorbed but the rice is still moist... takes about 40 minutes to an hour but check earlier just in case
13. Turn heat down and tuck the shrimp into the rice and allow to warm through
14. Serve with mounds of fresh chopped cilantro and wedges of lime

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Raise your hands, how many of you have ever been interviewed? Everyone, right? Each and very single person reading this, right?

Me, too. So I thought I'd heard all the questions there could possibly be--from the "where do you get your ideas" (which as we've discussed, I actually like) to "how do you juggle your time with all you have to do" (again, a good one) to "what does your office look like" (Again, okay, interesting, and I love to hear about other people's workspace) to "what's the most dangerous thing you've ever done."

It's rare you get a completely new question. And rare to get one that just--baffles me. But the other day, Jason from the Pikes Peak Writers Conference (where I'm keynoting in a month or so) was interviewing me..and asked: which cartoon character would friends say best describes you?

So thing is, at first glance, I thought, oh, easy, it's --uh. Um. Well, wait. What cartoon character? And it not how I would describe myself, it's how I think friends would describe me.

Very, very complicated decision.

And it stopped me in my tracks. Because in order to decide, you have to figure out who you are, and how you behave, and really characterize (!) that.

Donald Duck, because I am such a bad driver? (Or was that Goofy?) Not Bugs, even though he's funny and likes carrots, not Mr. Peabody even though I sometimes wear glasses and like history and would love to time travel, not Wilma Flintsone, even though I am a good cook and have a great husband. (Besides, I don't like asymmetrical dresses.)

Who??

Finally, after WAY too much thought, I picked Roadrunner. Because he's always on the move, right? And very very persistent.

So, still curious about this, I went to Facebook (of course) to actually ASK my friends which cartoon character I reminded them of. And I was--touched and amused, frankly, and still laughing at the results.

There was a big contingent of Brenda Starr, and of Lois Lane. Makes sense, right, and I NEVER thought of them! A few said "Cathy," which I love, and Veronica from Archie, ditto, and Jane Jetson, brilliant!

There were votes for BOTH Daphne and Velma from Scooby Doo, which I embrace totally. Snoopy, someone said, because he knows things and is cool and is a writer. Thank you! And, from the "you gotta be kidding but thank you" department, Wonder Woman and Jessica Rabbit. Only a few people---all dear friends--picked who I did: Roadrunner.

And I'm still going with that, even though I love the other choices..

So shall we describe each voter? Can you select a Red and her matching cartoon character? Or--which one would you pick for yourself? (Hallie, I bet you'll choose Lucy from Peanuts.) Reds readers, who would you think best reflects YOU?

HALLIE EPHRON: Oh, Hank, you own Jessica Rabbit.

And for me, Yes, I am at least two parts Lucy. Bossy. Opinionated. Betty from the Archie Comics -- the "good girl." Definitely. But my true soul mate is Elly Patterson in Lynn Johnston's comic strip FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE. I used to read her strips and think, she's been spying on my family.

HANK: OH, Hallie, you are such a perfect Lucy.

RHYS BOWEN: At one stage I identified strongly with the mother in Family Circus when I had four small kids. Not sure if I feel more like Charlie Brown or Linus sometimes. Maybe Calvin of Calvin and Hobbes because I had imaginary friends when I was little and I'm living in my imagination when the world around me wants to be practical and serious.

HANK: Rhys, that is so dear of you. This is not how I see you at all. You're more--Schroeder, if we're sticking with Peanuts. You're talented, and love music, and you are very very diligent and devoted. But okay, if you wanna be Calvin.

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL:Daria.

(I can hear Reds asking, "Who the heck is Daria?"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daria

HANK: Oh, come on. Daria looks cool, but you might just be having a grumpy cynical day, Dear Susan.

You seem more like--Dora. Right? Or maybe a combo of both.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: This is so funny. I read the topic for today's post and immediately thought, "Roadrunner. I'm the Roadrunner." And when I read Hank's comments I cracked up. Hank, I do not see you as the Roadrunner! You are Jessica Rabbit!

And I lovedCathy so much that when I lived in the UK in the late 70s and early 80s, my mom used to clip the strip from the newspaper and send it to me. But, like you, I think my true soul mate is Elly Patterson.

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Hmmm. Sometimes I think of myself as being akin to Rick Redfern of Doonesbury - constantly bemused by his offspring and trying to find his way in the new, online-centric world of publishing. (And Hank, he's another reporter character. They seem to abound in the comic world!) However, I have had the chance to actually survey friends and family: my college roommate, her husband, her grown sons, daughter-in-law, and of course, Ross and Youngest. After a lively debate, they settled onBlossom from the Powerpuff Girls. Blossom is tough, motherly, and loves to read books (when she's not fighting villainy.) I like that a lot!

HANK: I'd love to have heard that debate, Julia! I bet it was...revealing.

LUCY BURDETTE: I admired Veronica, but rooted for Betty--that's me too, Hallie! And Lucy from Peanuts when she's in her advice-giving box. And Mr. Magooif I can't find my glasses:). Great question Hank!

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Mr. Magoo! Love. But you guys are killing me with Jessica Rabbit. "I'm not bad, I was just drawn that way?" And my chest has never looked like that. Not even close. (And I'm not, you know, sexy.) But I did look her up, and I guess she was good, and loyal, and smart, and stood by her ma--I mean rabbit. So, thank you. I'm standing by Roadrunner though.

And I must say this is pretty much the most fun blog I've ever chosen pictures for. If I had Hallie's neat program (and her skill), I would have put our heads on the characters. But you'll just have to imagine.

So, how about you all? Did we get ourselves right? And which character is YOU?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I used to love toasted sesame bagels with strawberry jam. I mean—I Loved them. I used to wake up in the early morning, and think—“is it time for my toasted sesame bagel with strawberry jam yet?” I could just taste those toasty nutty seeds, and the crunchy bread and the delicious yummy jam, and oh, it was fabulous. I had one every day for about a year.

Then suddenly, without warning! It was—impossible. Yuck. I couldn’t even think about eating one. I still can’t.

Same thing happened with baked potatoes with broccoli and sour cream. Oh, I yearned for it, couldn’t wait to get home from work to have that for that one-potato dinner...the fabulous steamy potato, all hot, and the skin crispy, the way the broccoli and the sour cream merged, and no matter what kind of a bite you got, it was the best.

Then, suddenly, yuck. AH, no, thank you.

I binged. I binged, and then somehow, like in Clockwork Orange, I could not face it again. Is there a binge thing in our brains?

Right now it’s cool and hip to “binge-watch” a TV show. We sure did it with House of Cards last season. We watched until we were bleary.

And good think there were only 13 episodes, because maybe I would have gone all sesame bagel after 14. Who knows. (We’re starting Season 2 now--and wow. But we won’t discuss it.)

Do you—binge? On anything? Did you binge yourself out of liking it? (Maybe it's more--a habit, than a binge.) (Roberta/Lucy, is this a psychological “thing”?)

HALLIE EPHRON: I'm not a binger. Though at the moment, I've watched episodes of Poirot that I missed for five nights running. Does that count? And yes, I am sick of them. It's amazing how often Agatha Christie recycled plot devices.

When it comes to food, I quickly tire of whatever I've recently eaten. And I firmly believe that at any moment, something I've always assumed was perfectly safe will be shown to cause some terrible disease. So I might eat a hot dog for lunch for a week, but then I won't touch one again for months.

HANK: Because then it's out of your system? Or what?

LUCY BURDETTE: Of course Hank there is a serious psychological disorder called Binge Eating Disorder, but that's not what you're talking about here! This is more like too much of a good thing, right?

HANK: Yeah. Exactly. I only had ONE bagel. EVERY DAY. FOR A YEAR. Sheesh. Scary. Yeah, it's more of a Habit than a binge.

LUCY: I'm like Hallie, anything I eat too much of can turn on me. Even Christmas cookies. I still have two rolls of cookie dough in the freezer and can't bring myself to bake them. Or spanakopita, which I dearly love. If I make a whole 13 by 9 inch pan of it for only John and me, it definitely becomes a slog at the end...

DEBORAH CROMBIE: I'm not a binge-er. Although I do seem to go in cycles on breakfast. For years I ate a soft-boiled egg and a slice of whole wheat toast. Mostly these days, it's granola and yogurt, but it's more time thing. I still love the soft-boiled eggs. Left-overs, now, that's a whole different thing. I can eat something twice, maybe, and after that, yuck.

HANK: Yeah, it's hard to throw away leftovers. The key is to wait til the THIRD day. Then, no problem to toss because they are surely deadly.

I always say--let's put it in the fridge now, and we'll throw it away later.

RHYS BOWEN: I've always had a small appetite. I really enjoy good food and I do like to have good cheeses after dinner every night. But in my school days I do remember having tomatoes on toast every day for a few months, having Marmite and pickle on rye crisp until I tired of it.

HANK: Rhys, only you… Marmite and pickle on rye crisp?

RHYS: In fact I think I've been the opposite of a binger all my life--I get bored easily. I like to be surprised and try new things. When I lived in a country club the other wives wanted me to play tennis with them every morning. I couldn't do that. And these days I have friends who play bridge every day. I think I like my life as a smorgasbord, sampling a little treat here, a little treat there.

HANK: So how about some food confessions from you all--do you ever get a craving something,..and then have it every day until it loses its joy?

CHANGING THE SUBJECT HERE: One thing that will never lose its luster--is a new book by wonderful favorite author...and right here in my little hot hand is JOHN LESCROART'S brand new THE KEEPER. It's an ARC, and it's a Dismas Hardy, and selfishly, I'm not giving mine up. :-) But, because John is the coolest of all guys, he sent me two! And one is for a lucky commenter.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: One of my smallest skills is--driving. I am a really bad driver. I have no depth perception, and no patience, and I'm too nice. Which means timid. My drivers ed teacher once told my mother that the only reason he'd take me on the road is that he had his own brake, it wasn't his car, and the high school had insurance. Seriously.

Oh! And my father made me buy my first car by myself. Do the deal on yourown, he said, with his one absolute warning. He said: You tell them you will not pay for Taxes and Title. Never never never.

I had no idea. I said, sure. And when the dealer tried to charge me for T and T, I refused, utterly refused, until they relented. (I was 18).

I went home all proud, and my father said-- "I never said TAXES! You HAVE to pay Taxes, honey! I said TAGS and title. TAGS!"

Sigh. What did I know. But I had my first car, a little black Chevette. Which I had mistakenly thought was navy blue, and so it goes.

Anyway--choosing a car for my characters, though. THAT I realized was important. Charlotte McNally has a buzzy sporty Jeep. That works. Jane Ryland has an Audi TT convertible--which becomes a bitterly frustrating extravagance when she gets fired.

Choosing your character's car is a big deal. It means something, telegraphs something. As the wonderful debut author David Burnsworth explains.

Sleuth-Mobiles

by David Burnsworth

While I love spending time at my desk killing people on the page, my true passion is automobiles. From the earliest time I can remember, I have always loved them. Picture books with cars or trucks automatically received more of my interest and mom most likely used that trait to get me to read more. A book I remember reading with her before bed when I was about six focused around a truck driver making deliveries.

This seems to have carried over into my writing. Selecting what my characters drive is as much a part of their personality as what they wear or how they react to situations. I had a lot of fun choosing rides for all the players in my first book, envisioning the different scenes as mini movies.

Some might call this profiling or cliché, but the vehicle choice should not be a detail that takes the reader out of the story because it doesn’t fit the character. For example, Brack Pelton, the protagonist in my first book, Southern Heat, is an Afghanistan War Veteran and ex-race car driver. His car of choice is a new Mustang GT.

He won’t willingly drive an economy car, although he ends up having to. Not that there is anything wrong with economy cars, they just don’t fit his profile. Same with putting a high-powered lawyer-type in a clapped out hooptie—it doesn’t work. Also in the book, Brack’s lawyer’s steed of choice is big, expensive, and German. Like movies, the wrong prop could really wreck a scene.

The car becomes an extension of who they are, even if it is not the focus of the story. And I’m happy to say that I picked up this trait from some of my favorite writers. James Lee Burke’s Dave Robicheaux drives a pickup with a toolbox welded in the bed. Dave’s sidekick, Clete Purcel, drives a classic Caddy convertible.

Lee Child’s Jack Reacher hitchhikes or takes the bus. Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch now drives a Mustang, but he used to drive unmarked cruisers. Clive Cussler’s Dirk Pitt has a collection of classics to choose from. (Thank you, Clive!) John Sanford’s Lucas Davenport drives a Porsche and a Lexus SUV. In his latest work, Sanford gives the antagonist several vehicles and explains the relevance behind one in particular. All these character rides, or lack-there-of, are part of a long list of elements that help define them.

When I read a story, I really enjoy when the vehicle fits the character. Even the minor ones. The importance of this depends, of course, on the genre and who the target reader is. If the writing is good, I won’t put the book down just because the car is, in my opinion, wrong for the part. Or if the cars are generic. It’s just one of those little details that helps solidify the personality and keeps me engaged. And keeping the reader engaged is what I as a writer am after.

HANK: This makes me realize--except for the Lincoln Lawyer, I'm not quite sure what any main character drives. Does Kinsey Millhone drive a VW Bug? Who else drives what? And--what was YOUR first car?

(And I am thrilled to give a copy of SOUTHERN HEAT to one lucky commenter!) (US only, please.)

***************

David Burnsworthbecame fascinated with the Deep South at a young age. After a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tennessee and fifteen years in the corporate world, he made the decision to write a novel. Southern Heat is his first mystery. Having lived in Charleston on Sullivan’s Island for five years, the setting was a foregone conclusion. He and his wife, along with their dog, call South Carolina home.

SOUTHERN HEAT
Gunshots echo down an antebellum Charleston alley. Brack Pelton, an ex-racecar driver and Afghanistan War veteran, witnesses the murder of his uncle, Reggie Sails. Darcy Wells, the pretty Palmetto Pulse reporter, investigates Reggie's murder and targets Brack.
The sole heir of his uncle's estate, Brack receives a rundown bar called the Pirate's Cove, a rotting beach house, and one hundred acres of preserved and valuable wetland along the Ashley River. A member of Charleston's wealthiest and oldest families offers Brack four million dollars for the land.
All Brack wants is his uncle's killer. From the sandy beaches of Isle of Palms, through the nineteenth-century mansions lining the historic Battery, to the marshlands surrounding the county, Southern Heat is drenched in the humidity of the lowcountry.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: You know me, right? So picturing me in Tai Chi class will not surprise you.

Teacher: Palms flat, and slowly, lift..

Hank: Am I doing it right?

Teacher: It doesn't matter. Now, when your arms are extended, keeping your elbows soft, turn your--

Hank: Yeah, but am I doing it right? Am I like, the best tai chi student you've ever had?

Teacher: There is no best, there just is. Now, Hank, turning your palms out, slowly

Hank: Isn't this exactly right? I'm doing it, right?

I will spare you any more of this, and this is um, somewhat exaggerated, but it has always been very difficult for me to simply--do anything. I have to solve the mystery, be first, be fastest (or slowest, whichever is better). It's all I can do to let my grandson win at Concentration. (I do, too, LET him win!)

So you can imagine when all my friends, and this is no exaggeration, ALL my friends, are telling me that I would be so happy doing yoga.

So far, I've said: NO GA.

The wonderful Tracy Weber may be the one who finally convinces me. Not that she would "convince." A Tracy word is--offer.

Yoga, Writing and the Power of Persevering Practice

by Tracy Weber

First, I’d like to say that I’m delighted (and a little intimidated) to be a guest today on Jungle Red. I started public speaking when I was fourteen, but sharing the stage with these talented ladies leaves me, well, tongue-tied.

Now that my first book, Murder Strikes a Pose, has been published, I can actually say it out loud: I’m a writer.

I still can’t believe it.

I never planned to write a novel; I never thought I could write a novel; honestly, I never even knew I wanted to write a novel. But as soon as I typed the first words of my manuscript, seeing my series come to fruition became my life’s dream.

Many forces propelled me to sit down and type those first few sentences, but one practice kept me going long enough to finish it.

Yoga.

But probably not the yoga you are imagining.

Most people believe that practicing yoga means bending your body into pretzel-like positions or sweating off half of your body weight in a 105-degree room. In reality, yoga is so much more. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali—the key philosophical text of yoga—teaches that yoga is the process of learning how to control your mind, so that the mind, with all of its neurotic tendencies, can’t control you. Finding that state of clarity—of yoga—involves “persevering practice.”

Persevering practice is any practice done:

§ Over a long period of time

§ Without interruption

§ With dedication and enthusiasm

§ Without attachment to results

Note that the list doesn’t include Downward Dog, even though the pose is in the tagline for my series. It doesn’t say Head Stand. It doesn’t even mention asana (yoga poses). The sutras are deliberately vague because any practice that fits the above criteria will help you focus your mind and achieve your goals.

Writing, for me, had to become a persevering practice or I would never have been published. Unless I write daily, I make no progress. On the days I lack dedication and enthusiasm, my words end up as crumpled pages at the bottom of my recycle bin. As for attachment to results, well, I have to let that go, or I’ll never stop checking my Amazon sales rankings long enough to finish this article, much less write my next book.

Will all of those hours spent typing late into the night be worth it? Yes, even if my series never sells a copy. Like any persevering practice, writing’s greatest gift has nothing to do with external results. The greatest rewards are inside of me.

Word by word, writing offers me unexpected gifts: flashes of self-understanding, moments of quiet calm, a connection to laughter and joy in this sometimes challenging life. These small gifts make all of the effort worthwhile, even if my book never encroaches on a single bestseller list. (Though I have to admit, I still hope that it does!)

My advice to all of you reading this article: find a practice that you love, be it yoga, writing, knitting, gardening, songwriting, or raising chickens. Do it daily, every day, with enthusiasm. Try not to care about the results. Your path may not lead to the destination you had in mind, but your life’s journey

will have greater meaning and peace.

What are your persevering practices? How can you practice consistently, with enthusiasm—yet without attachment? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Hank: Wonderful, huh? My persevering practice? Listmaking. Seriously. That counts. And my writing ritual. Add the word count to my chart, do the math, write it down, look at my "imagine" rock, begin.

And a copy of Murder Strikes a Pose to one lucky commenter! (US only, please.)

******************

Tracy Weber is a certified yoga teacher and the founder of Whole Life Yoga, an award-winning yoga studio in Seattle, where she currently lives with her husband, Marc, and German shepherd, Tasha. She loves sharing her passion for yoga and animals in any form possible. When she’s not writing, she spends her time teaching yoga, walking Tasha, and sipping Blackthorn cider at her favorite ale house. Murder Strikes a Pose is her debut novel. Connect with Tracy at her author page http://tracyweberauthor.com/ or on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/tracywe?fref=ts

About MURDER STRIKES A POSE

Seattle Yoga instructor Kate Davidson tries to live up to yoga's Zen-like expectations, but it's not easy while struggling to keep her small business afloat or dodging her best friend's matchmaking efforts. When George, a homeless alcoholic, and his loud, horse-sized German shepherd, Bella, start hawking newspapers outside her studio, Kate attempts to convince them to leave. Instead, the three strike up an unlikely friendship. Then Kate finds George's body. The police dismiss it as a drug-related street crime, but Kate knows he was no drug dealer. Now she must solve George's murder and find someone willing to adopt his intimidating companion before Bella is sent to the big dog park in the sky. With the murderer on her trail, Kate has to work fast or her next Corpse Pose may be for real.

Check out MURDER STRIKES A POSE, the first in the Downward Dog Yoga Mysteries. Available at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Murder-Strikes-Pose-Downward-Mystery/dp/0738739685/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385096350&sr=8-1&keywords=murder+strikes+a+pose and bookstores everywhere!

Hank Phillippi Ryan: Okay, cutting to the chase. Isn't this a great cover? It's instant suspense, and you know there's a dilemma, a major choice, a desire, and whoever it is--is trying to find an answer through magic.

I am so happy to see this! I critiqued Holly West's manuscript at CrimeBake ( I have no memory of what I said, specifically, but I know I liked it, a lot!) and now her debut MISTRESS OF FORTUNE is now out from Harlequin's Carina Press! Hurray!

She has an incredibly interesting take on a certain group of women--in fact, she wonders if they might be

The First Feminists?

by Holly West

HOLLY WEST: My debut historical mystery, Mistress of Fortune, is set in late 17^th century London and features amateur sleuth Isabel Wilde, a mistress to King Charles II who secretly makes her living as a fortuneteller.

(HANK: Ooh. See?)

In truth, she’s a more of a charlatan.

(HANK: Ooh, even better, right?)

In her world, women have few enough advantages and she’s more than willing to make the most of those that she has; namely, cleverness, beauty and good intuition.

I chose fortunetelling as her profession, not because of a personal belief that fortunetellers and the like possess a supernatural ability to predict the future or see the “other side,” but because I’m fascinated by the cultural traditions of soothsayers and healers, particularly “wise women.” During a time when medical science was in its infancy and only the rich could afford a physician, wise women were a valuable source of knowledge for the 17^thcentury housewife, especially in rural areas.

They acted as doctors, midwives, counselors, and caregivers. They were, in many ways, feminists before their time.

Though Isabel Wilde isn’t exactly a wise woman, she does recommend various healing herbs and concoctions to her customers and offers sincere, practical advice when she can.

If most women came to these professions with honest intentions, there were some whose motivations were not so pure. In my research, I came upon a French woman named Catherine Monvoisin (c. 1640-1680), nicknamed La Voisin. When her husband’s career as a jeweler went south, she turned to fortunetelling to support her family. While her paranormal abilities as a soothsayer might have been in question, her business acumen was not; she paid strict attention to her visitors’ requests and expanded her offerings to take advantage of their desires.

She sold amulets filled with such mystical items as bones of toads, the dust of human remains, teeth of moles and Spanish fly. She prescribed “magic” rituals and arranged black masses so that her customers could worship the devil. She practiced medicine and midwifery, and performed abortions. Eventually, she began peddling poison.

La Voisin’spredecessor, Guilia Tofana, had perfected the science of poison twenty years earlier. She was an Italian woman who developed an odorless, tasteless poison (likely a solution of arsenic) labeled Aqua Tofana to sell to women who wanted to murder their husbands. Perhaps her conscience was eased by the fact that her customers were mainly women ensnared in abusive marriages, but when she was finally apprehended, she confessed (under torture) to killing more than six hundred men with her poison.

Both La Voisin and Tofana were immensely popular, so much so that when the papal authority called for Tofana’s arrest, a local church granted her sanctuary. La Voisin had many members of the aristocracy among her clients and became very rich as a result of her business. In the end, however, both women were executed; Tofana was put to death in the Campo di Fiori in Rome in 1659 and La Voisin was convicted of witchcraft and burnt in public at the Place de Greve in Paris on February 22, 1680.

Wicked as they may have been, these women were savvy and made their way in a society that often treated females no better than livestock. Given the circumstances, I’m not sure this is something to be celebrated, but their stories areinteresting.

My heroine, Isabel Wilde, isn’t based on either La Voisin or Guilia Tofana, but the soothsayer who trained Isabel in the art of fortunetelling, Mary Bixby, is. But at heart, Isabel and Mary are both good people. It’s just that they understand their lot in life and can’t help pushing against their constraints. And, as crime fiction aficionados like us know, sometimes, that leads to murder.

HANK: And now you're hooked, right? And what're your thoughts on "women's intuition"?

A copy of MISTRESS OF FORTUNE to one lucky commenter! (US only, please.)

************************************

Holly West is the author of the Mistress of Fortune series (Carina Press). The first in the series, Mistress of Fortune, was published in February 2014 and the second, Mistress of Lies, will be released in Fall 2014. She’s currently writing her third book, a stand-alone crime novel set in 1948 Philadelphia. Holly lives, reads, and writes in Los Angeles with her husband, Mick, and dog, Stella.

Mistress of FortuneSynopsis:

Isabel, Lady Wilde, a mistress to King Charles II, has a secret: she makes her living disguised as Mistress Ruby, a fortune-teller who caters to London’s elite. It’s a dangerous life among the charlatans, rogues and swindlers who lurk in the city’s dark corners, but to Isabel, the risk is worth the reward.

Until magistrate Sir Edmund Godfrey seeks Mistress Ruby’s counsel and reveals his unwitting involvement in a plot to kill the king. When Isabel’s diary containing dangerous details of his confession is stolen, she knows she must find it before anyone connects her to Mistress Ruby. Especially after Sir Edmund’s corpse is discovered a few days later…

Isabel is sure that whoever stole her diary is Sir Edmund’s killer—and could be part of a conspiracy that leads all the way to the throne. But as she delves deeper into the mystery, not even the king himself may be able to save her.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Ever fallen in love with a character in a book? We all have, I bet. King Arthur always appealed to me (much more than Lancelot), and Henry V, and my affection for Morse is well-known around the Jungle Red salon. Charles (and Caroline) Todd’s Inspector Rutledge, love him, and Roderick Alleyn, and John Lescroart’s Dismas Hardy. What can I say? I do.

And I can certainly understand, as Liz Zelvin says, that Dorothy Sayers fell in love with Peter Wimsey. Who wouldn’t?

But what about our own characters’ ability to make us love them? Hmm. That’s interesting, because we created them. Didn’t we?

Long time dear friend of the Reds Elizabeth Zelvin is a psychotherapist in her other life, so I bet—she can explain it.

Falling in Love with A Secondary Character

Elizabeth Zelvin

It's widely understood that writers sometimes fall in love with their own characters. In the mystery genre, most famously, Dorothy L. Sayers is said to have fallen in love with Lord Peter Wimsey as he developed from a Bertie Wooster-like silly ass about town in the early books into a brilliant, perceptive, superbly competent, and highly attractive man--what today we might call a feminist's kind of man. I don't know if Harriet Vane would have called herself a feminist, but in my late 20th to 21st century eyes, she's one of us.

Being a feminist, I'm mildly embarrassed by the fact that I have now written two series with male protagonists: the Bruce Kohler mysteries and the Diego Mendoza and Admiral Columbus series, including the Agatha-nominated "The Green Cross" and my new novel, Voyage of Strangers.

When somebody asks a group of authors, "Who writes about a strong female character?" I instinctively raise my hand. Oops. The truth is, having been writing my whole life before getting my first novel published at age 64, I felt I was entitled to leapfrog over the young novelist's autobiographical opus and write about someone quite different from myself: in this case, recovering alcoholic Bruce Kohler, a New Yorker with a smart mouth and an ill-concealed heart of gold ("ham on wry," as he says himself).

Diego, the young marrano sailor with Columbus who made his first appearance in "The Green Cross" and tells the story of Columbus's second voyage in Voyage of Strangers, is one of those characters who appear unexpectedly out of the unconscious or the ether or wherever the Muse hangs out, demanding that their voice be heard. The author is just the channel. I've always felt as if Diego is not only real, but had been waiting for five hundred years for me to tell his story. Voyage of Strangersis about what really happened when Columbus discovered America, told from the outsider perspective of a secret Jew at the moment when the Jews were driven out of Spain on pain of torture and death at the hands of the Inquisition.

Those who have read my mysteries know that I do have a significant woman character: Barbara, a world-class codependent who only wants to help and is addicted to minding everybody's business, especially Bruce's and her boyfriend Jimmy's (Bruce's best friend), whether the business at hand is sobriety or murder. I'm very fond of Barbara, but I can't say I'm in love with her. It would be too much like looking in the funhouse mirror. Barbara isn't me, but we have much in common, including being nice Jewish girls from Queens who never expected to know as much as we do about alcoholism. Unlike me, Barbara has no boundaries and no brakes. It's what makes her such fun to write. Readers have told me she is a strong female character. Some think she's "a hoot." And at least one person asked me if I'd ever felt (as she evidently did) as if I wanted to slap Barbara. I don't mind. If Barbara's that real to readers, I'm happy.

There were no women on the voyage of discovery in 1492, so of course there were no women in "The Green Cross," which took place on the Santa Maria. Nor did I develop any female characters in "Navidad," the second story in the series. (Both stories first appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine.) But I couldn't write a novel without women. Diego's sister Rachel was simmering in my head for more than a year before I set a word of Voyage of Strangers on virtual paper. And I'm in love with Rachel.

As it happens, the Jews were expelled from Spain on the same day Columbus and his three ships set sail into the unknown. So how come Rachel was still in Spain when Columbus and his men returned in triumph early in 1493? The Mendoza family had lived in Seville, where the Inquisition had been cheerfully burning Jews (and especially converso backsliders, whom they called heretics and swine--marranos) for years. Rachel, the youngest daughter, had been sent away to a convent school in Barcelona, where there was no tribunal and a genuine conversoaunt with influence, for safety. But the aunt is being courted by a rather nasty supporter of the Inquisition, and Diego quickly realizes he has to get her out of Spain as soon as possible.

When we first meet Rachel, she's putting on a friend's brother's clothes, preparatory to sneaking out of the convent and into the court of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, who will be greeting Columbus and his followers and getting their first look at the treasures and curiosities he's brought back, including gold, near-naked Taino captives, and some colorful but ill-behaved parrots. She's thinking, How hard can it be to be a boy?

I certainly didn't plan it, but Rachel is a darling. She's irrepressible, curious, impulsive, brave, and funny, and everyone who meets her loves her. Diego is determined to send her to Italy, where their parents and sisters have gone, before he embarks on the second expedition to Hispaniola. Rachel is equally determined to go with him, even when Admiral Columbus himself says no. (Of course she spoke up and asked him almost as soon as she met him. That's Rachel.)

Whether she's getting the mayor's wife in a Spanish village to roast a kid (ie a baby goat) for their dinner on the road, concocting a plan to help a Moorish slave escape from slavery, outclimbing the ship's boys in the rigging of the Mariagalante on the Ocean Sea, or playing batey, pounding yuca, or making poisoned arrowheads with her Taino friends, Rachel has a gift for friendship and for adapting to any surroundings. Her favorite words to her brother are, "Diego, you worry too much."

It took a long time to get Voyage of Strangerspublished once I'd written it. But one of the reasons I persisted was that I wanted so much to introduce Rachel to all of you. I think you'll love her too.

HANK: Liz! The research! How did you get involved in this story?

And Reds, what character have you fallen in love with?

******************************

Elizabeth Zelvin is a New York psychotherapist and author of the Bruce Kohler mystery series as well as the Diego Mendoza and Admiral Columbus series. Her new novel, Voyage of Strangers, is available for Kindle and Kindle app at

http://tinyurl.com/voyage-strangers. Three of Liz's stories have been nominated for the Agatha Award and one for the Derringer Award for Best Short Story. Her author website is at http://elizabethzelvin.com.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Gigi Pandian is having a good month. Putting it mildly. Sometimes wonderful things happen to wonderful people and this is one of those times.

In the recent weeks, here's Gigi's life:

An Agatha nomination for her locked-room mystery short story "The Hindi Houdini"

Her combined book sales pushed her into Amazon's Top 100 Most Popular Authors ("briefly", she insists on saying)

The first book in the series stayed #1 for days on the Amazon Kindle Cozy and Women Sleuth categories, top 10 Mystery/Thriller/Suspense Kindle Books, and top 10 overall NOOK book sales.

AND she got a Library Journal review: "Pandian’s second series entry sets a playful tone yet provides enough twists to keep mystery buffs engaged, too. The author streamlines an intricate plot....[and] brings a dynamic freshness to her cozy."– Library Journal

AND her first book, ARTIFACT, hit the USA today Bestseller list!

AND--Her newest book, PIRATE VISHNU was published from Henery. All in all, very very nice. And--she cooks! As you will read.

Adventures in India and Indian Cooking

with Gigi Pandian

Gigi is currently celebrating the release of a new novel –and also news that her locked-room mystery short story “The Hindi Houdini” has been nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Short Story!

“Forget about Indiana Jones. Jaya Jones is swinging into action, using both her mind and wits to solve a mystery… Readers will be ensnared by this entertaining tale.”—RT Book Reviews

My new novel, PIRATE VISHNU, came out earlier this month, and I’ve been having a blast talking about India, where part of the book takes place. To shake things up here on Jungle Red today, I thought I’d share a story about India AND one of my favorite Indian food recipes – one that’s both delicious and easy.

I was born and raised in California, but my dad is from India, so I’ve had the opportunity to travel there several times. India can be an overwhelming country – it’s massively crowded, oppressively hot, and the foods are oh-so-spicy – but once you scratch the surface, it opens up its charms. The more times I visit, the more I want to return.

On my last visit in 2010, I was in the midst of drafting the second novel in my mystery series. As a follow-up to a treasure hunt that took Jaya Jones to the Highlands of Scotland, I was setting the new book in both San Francisco and the southern tip of India. (Yes, I picked a series premise well! A treasure hunt mystery series means I have no choice but to travel to fascinating places!)

I thought I had my twisty puzzle plot all figured out – until we arrived in India got on the open road along the south-western coast of the country.

Yes, that’s an elephant sharing the road with an autorickshaw (three-wheeled taxi), cars, motorcycles, and bikes!

Covering hundreds of miles on Indian roads to visit family from Trivandrum up to Bangalore, I knew that the experience would make its way into the book – although I didn’t yet realize how instrumental it would be to the plot. The colorful hand-painted trucks, the scents unleashed by the monsoon rains, and the confounding roads lacking street signs stirred up my imagination. When we were studying a map on the way to Kochi, the juxtaposition between the picture on the map and the reality we were experiencing hit me like a bolt of lightning. That moment gave me a plot twist that became central to the story.

Here’s the scoop about PIRATE VISHNU (the second book in the Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Series, following ARTIFACT):

A century-old treasure map of San Francisco’s Barbary Coast.

Sacred riches from India.

Two murders, one hundred years apart.

And a love triangle…

Historian Jaya Jones has her work cut out for her.

1906. Shortly before the Great San Francisco Earthquake, Pirate Vishnu strikes the San Francisco Bay. An ancestor of Jaya’s who came to the U.S. from India draws a treasure map…

PRESENT DAY. Over a century later, the cryptic treasure map remains undeciphered. From San Francisco to the southern tip of India, Jaya pieces together her ancestor’s secrets, maneuvers a complicated love life she didn’t count on, and puts herself in the path of a killer to restore a revered treasure.

More at: http://gigipandian.com/pirate-vishnu/

And now, here’s one of my favorite Indian recipes.It’s a variation on a classic dish – my spin on the dish was a happy accident I discovered when cooking one day while I was busy. I let the onions cook longer than I’d meant to, and they caramelized. Instead of ditching the onions, I went ahead with the recipe – and it turned out even more delicious than the original!

CARAMELIZED ONION DAHL

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup yellow split peas (or Indian yellow lentils, called toor dalh)

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp sea salt

½ tsp ground black pepper

¼ tsp cayenne pepper (or more to taste)

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

DIRECTIONS

Rinse the yellow split peas, then cook them with 2 cups of water, turmeric, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 45 minutes. Warm the olive oil in a skillet on medium heat and add the sliced onion and cumin seeds. Cook the onion slowly for the duration of the time the lentils are cooking. This will caramelize the onion, bringing out its natural sugars. Stir the onion mixture into the cooked lentils.

Thanks for having me on Jungle Reds today! Do you have a favorite dish that was inspired by a trip you’ve taken?

Connect with Gigi on her website http://gigipandian.com/ , Twitter https://twitter.com/GigiPandian, and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/GigiPandian.

RHYS BOWEN: We all have some remnant of the past that we can't live without, even though we know that better, easier things have been invented. My husband John insists on making loose tea in a teapot and grinding his coffee from beans every day. For me it's notebooks. I have a Dayrunner from 1988 that I still treasure. Although I don't use it daily now, I still check addresses in it, keep a list of all my flights and every New Year's eve I write down what I have achieved and what I plan to achieve in the next year.

And I always carry a little notebook around with me, even though I have Sticky Notes on my laptop, Evernote on everything, Notes for my iPHone and Dragon dictation for sudden thoughts. So why can't I trust the electronic media with my brilliant ideas? Especially for thoughts on the books I'm working on. It must have something to do with knowing a large meteor strike won't destroy my words forever. Or is it that I enjoy seeing them on the page? When I actually put them down they become real, no longer in my imagination, but out there, for anyone to read. And I can underline the words that seem important, doodle flowers while I think, draw lines to show connections in the plot.

I also write TO DO lists on the back of envelopes at dentist's offices and while John drives. I have to know what's ahead for the day and the week and whether I can handle it without becoming a basket case. I keep all the little notebooks, even when they are full and flicking back through them is like opening a treasure trove: the first lines of Her Royal Spyness being played with. Thoughts on a new book that might take place on Ellis Island, or a lost child, or notes on Paris art world. My whole career evolving in a stack of pretty note books. Yes, they are always pretty. I must have attractive books to put my thoughts into.

So how about you, Reds. Electronic notes or pen and paper doodles? And anything else you can't live without?

HALLIE EPHRON: Like you, Rhys, I'm addicted to paper. And I love the feel of using a pencil that's just been sharpened.

I've used the same day planner for more than ten years and I don't plan to give it up. Every year I invest ten bucks in a new calendar insert and I'm good to go. I keep the little booklet with my tax records, and when my computer dies I don't lose it all. We also still print photographs and put them in albums, in spite of having tons of them online.

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I keep a yearly pocket-sized calendar despite the fact that I use Google calendar to coordinate my life (I love being able to confirm an event on email and then dump all the info right into my calendar.) I like the permanence of the paper copy - the Cloud may drift away, the Polar Vortex may freeze all electricity and keep my computer from working, but I have those little leather or cloth bound books lined up in the parlour bookcase, and they're not going anywhere.
I also do all the work on a book that's not actually writing in composition notebooks, one per novel. Ideas about themes, character sketches, plot trees, chapter outlines; it all has to be pen or pencil on paper. I experience a different quality of thinking when I'm physically marking something down. It's not just the ability to scribble out and make circles and arrows and boxes (which I do.) I tried one of those programs that lets you fool around with symbols and even add pictures and link to other things. I couldn't use it. For me, keyboard + screen = composing. Pencil + paper = proposing.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Yup, day planner on paper, a slim little book, exactly the same one every year. I love it, an dI can see the whole week, and the flow of the time. Yes, I have it all on my Outlook, too, but I still like it on paper.

Book notes? Here's a photo of a page in my "formal" book notebook--and a scrawled flurry of ideas on a random piece of note paper. I have notes everyone, like Lucy, on envelopes, little bits of paper, everywhere! Interestingly--often I never look at them again. But writing them out makes my brain work.

LUCY BURDETTE: No paper dayplanner for me. I've moved on to the computer calendar that syncs with my iphone. But I haven't mastered electronic notes. I tear into quarters pieces of computer paper that I would otherwise recycle, and those are for my notes. At night while I'm reading often I think of ideas or scraps of dialogue and jot them on these paper.

SUSAN ELIA MCNEAL:

A lot of what I do these days is on a computer. The hubby and I sync our e-calenders, which has actually been pretty useful as we each have a lot of travel and things going on.

When I'm roaming a city, doing research, I like the notebook application on my phone — it even has virtual yellow lined paper! Then you can just email it to yourself... No need to retype. (Have any of you found that the more you type, the worse your handwriting gets? I actually HAD to switch over to notes on the phone because I can't read my own handwriting...)

However, for plots, character sketches, and outlines, it's pencil on a yellow legal pad for me. It just feels right.... A cup of coffee is good, too....

__._,_.___

DEBORAH CROMBIE: I put everything in my Google calendar, which coordinates with my phone (most of the time) and sync's with Rick's calendar. It's incredibly useful, but--I still hang onto paper. I buy a new Quo Vadis diary every year. I can see a week at a glance, put down to-do notes, and day's writing goals. I don't quite trust the Cloud--I know people who have lost years' worth of Outlook calendars... and I think, as Julia commented about writing, that our brains just process written material differently. I keep two spiral notebooks. One is my everyday record of things; phone calls, to-do lists, travel confirmations, instructions from the vet... You name it, it goes in that notebook, with a date. When I've filled a notebook, I used a label maker to put the beginning and end dates of the notebook on the front cover, then I stick it on the shelf on the Chinese secretary in my office. It's a messy record, but I can go back years and see what happened when. I keep another notebook for those writing notes, one for each book. Plot ideas, character sketches, bits of scenes and dialogue. Often I'll write the beginning of the next day's scene in the notebook before I go to sleep. Somehow paper is liberating. Interesting.
PS: Rhys, you know I'm with John on the tea:-)

RHYS: I have to confess that I do love good loose tea. I just don't enjoy cleaning the tealeaves from the teapot. Although now we have an infuser built it. Brilliant. But aren't we a bunch of dinosaurs, clinging to our paper notes? I think we're all afraid a meteor strike will rob the world of our prose and ideas!
So how about you? Who has gone completely electronic and who still clings to paper like most of us Reds?

RHYS BOWEN: A couple of years ago I wrote a blog about life lessons I may never learn. One of the first lessons on the list was never to try out a new hairdresser just before I'm about to go on a book tour.
So guess what I did today? I went to a new salon. One that came with good reviews and used organic products. And I knew I was in trouble when my stylist asked how much I wanted taken off. Then she snipped maybe an eighth of an inch and asked if it all right so far. Then another eighth, very tentatively. Since I didn't trust her skill to take off more I left it at that. So my bangs are still in my eyes. My hair is still straggly at the back of my neck and too long to style properly.
So what do I do? Find another salon before I go on tour next week? Or...another of the life lessons from my list.. snip at my bangs myself?

Here is my list. How many are you guilty of?

Ten Life Lessons I have yet to Learn (and may never do so)

I can’t trim my bangs as well as my hairdresser. I should especially never try this on the night before I leave for a convention.
On a similar theme: I should never try out a new hairdresser on the day before a book tour or photo shoot.
Shoes from catalogs never fit me. And there is a second part to this: items in a catalog never look as good in real life. This may be because they are modeled by 18 year old size 00s and pinned for the pix..
A review is just one person’s opinion. I keep telling myself this but the least little snipe sends me into deep depression.
If I take only one white shirt on a trip, there will always be turbulence on the flight and I'll get coffee spatters on it.
I should never try out a new recipe on the night I have guests I want to impress.
I should not buy something just because it’s a bargain. My closet is full of such items, not ever loved and hardly ever worn.
Worrying gets you nowhere. I am a champion worrier.
I have no control over the success of a book after it leaves my hands. I can work myself into exhaustion setting up events, touring, making postcards, doing radio interviews and in the end it all comes down to the publisher, timing and luck.
I can’t please all of the people all of the time. There is never going to be one book that is equally loved by the whole population. So some readers will always complain when there is a touch of romance in my books and others will complain that there is not enough romance in my books. I should therefore only write to please myself.
Okay, so I can’t count either. But if there’s only one life lesson I should have learned is that life is short and wonderful, there’s no going back, we’re only celebrating this day once, so make the most of it.

Who would like to share life lessons that they have never learned but would like to?

So how about you?. Are there any life lessons you’ve finally learned the hard way, or are you like me—destined to make the same mistakes over and over.

RHYS BOWEN:Today we Jungle Red Writers are dancing up and down and waving flags and tooting horns because the trade paperback of Deborah’s SOUND OF BROKEN GLASS is released to an eagerly waiting world.

I was hooked on Debs’s books long before I met her. I loved the sense of place and the real, complex characters who people her books. So I thought I’d interview her today on Jungle Red.

Okay, let’s get started—Debs, your stories all have such a strong sense of place. How do you work? Do you have a story idea and then decide where to set it, or do you discover a place and then think of a story to set there?

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Rhys, no two books have ever been the same. In some books the setting has come first and I’ve come up with a story to fit. But THE SOUND OF BROKEN GLASS was just the opposite. I had had a story in mind for a couple of books but I didn’t know where it should be set.

A friend, who was living in Crystal Palace at the time, kept telling me I should set a book there. When I went for a visit, I knew instantly that it was the perfect place for this particular story.

RHYS: Crystal Palace figured in my childhood. I used to skate at Streatham ice rink and drove past Crystal Palace on the way there. I heard my grandmother’s tales of the crystal palace that burned down and was always sorry I couldn’t see it. So what drew you to set a book here?

DEBS: Crystal Palace is such a unique part of London. It is the highest point between London and the south coast, so the views to the north of London and the Thames are spectacular. It’s geographically unique not only because of the elevation, but because it straddles the boundaries of five London boroughs, Bromley, Croydon, Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham.

Then there is the history of the palace itself. The original Crystal Palace was built in Hyde Park in 1851 for the Great Exhibition. Afterwards, the entire structure was dismantled and rebuilt at the top of Sydenham Hill. But the new version was even bigger and more spectacular—it was one of the wonders of the Victorian world, compared to the mythical palace of Kubla Khan.

The palace was still a tourist attraction when it burned to the ground in one terrible night in 1936. The grounds then becameCrystal Palace Park.

The destruction of this fabulous creation was something that resonated with me throughout the novel. But there was one more element, and that is the isolation of the Crystal Palace Triangle (the main roads form a triangle at the top of the hill.) The two railway stations are both down steep sides of the hill, and if there is snow and ice, the area can become completely cut off. I knew there was a way an ice storm would fit into the story!

RHYS: I love the way that minor characters from past books suddenly get a starring role. When you created Andy did you plan to have him feature in a story?

DEBS: Andy Monahan first appears two books previously as a minor character, a talented rock guitarist in his late twenties, disenchanted with his band and his life. He was created as a witness who could tell Duncan and his partner Doug something about a murder victim.

But the instant he walked onto the page and I started writing from his viewpoint, I knew he had a story to tell. When I visited Crystal Palace, I knew that was where Andy had grown up, and that what had happened to him there when he was thirteen would drive the front part of the story.

RHYS: In this story Gemma is the active detective, Duncan is home baby-sitting. Tell us about this decision for a role reversal.

DEBS: In the previous book, NO MARK UPON HER, Gemma is home on family leave, caring for the couple’s foster daughter, Charlotte. I thought turn about was fair play!

Gemma has a new job in THE SOUND OF BROKEN GLASS, working on a murder team in South London (Brixton) with her colleague Melody Talbot. I wanted her investigation of the murder in Crystal Palace to have center stage, but there are things going on the background with Duncan that made his being away from work an important part of the plot. And it was an interesting way to explore his character.

RHYS: I love the title(especially as broken glass only makes a sound when you walk over it). How did you come up with it.

DEBS:There is an old rock song called I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass—a nice touch, since much of the book has to do with rock music.

But the real metaphor for me was the destruction of the Crystal Palace and how that reverberated down through the years, paralleling the destruction of Andy’s friendship with his neighbor Nadine in the book and the consequences of their shattered relationship. That’s why the glass is already broken, but you can still hear the echoes. Made sense to me, anyway!

RHYS: And we’re all eagerly awaiting the new Duncan and Gemma book in September. Can you give us a little glimpse into what’s coming?

DEBS: It’s called TO DWELL IN DARKNESS, and we find out what happens to Duncan after the end of BROKEN GLASS.Gemma’s colleague Melody Talbot witnesses a young man burn to death in St. Pancras International Railway Station when Andy is giving a concert there. When it becomes Duncan’s investigation, Melody is a valuable witness. In Brixton, Gemma is working on a difficult case of her own.

I don’t think I can say more than that without getting in trouble for spoilers!

PS: The author photo included was taken by my friend Steve Ullathorne in Antenna Studios in Crystal Palace. Antenna Studios was the model for the fictional recording studio in the book. Lots of well-know recording artists have worked there, including Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine. Great atmosphere!

I’m also including a photo of the historic Crystal Palace, which gives some idea of the its scale and grandeur.

RHYS: So if you missed The Sound of Broken Glass in harcover last year run, not walk, to your nearest bookstore. You are in for a treat!

RHYS BOWEN: Like my Jungle Red sisters I moved away from home to go to college and never really went back. All the time I was growing up I had a fascination with Australia. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that one of my best friends at school had recently moved from Australia and seemed very exotic to me. Also my uncle Uncle lived there and he would send me a book every Christmas called "Wonderful Australia in Pictures" or a similar title. I'd pour over the color photographs of sunkissed beaches, red rocks, strange animals and dream of going there someday. After college I was working with the BBC in London and I got a chance to meet the head of Australian Broadcasting. I told him of my interest in Australia and he offered me a job, So I packed up and headed halfway across the world to Sydney.
I was entranced by the clear bright light, the strange birds and animals, the blue water of the harbor. It was truly like living in a Disney movie. Also the people were friendly and didn't take life to seriously. How can you not love a country where every business closes to watch the running of the Melbourne Cup horse race?

But I never had a chance to settle in properly because I met a man. An Englishman working for Qantas. And I married him, dear reader. But he was on his way to California, so I found myself living in San Francisco instead. I've not regretted coming to the States, but each time I've returned to Australia (to visit my parents who moved there, and later my brother who still lives there) I've wondered whether my destiny was supposed to be there and I blew it.

I started writing this theme because I'm fascinated that there are some places in this world where we feel instantly as if we belong. I've never had much affinity for London. I lived there. I know my way around very well, but it doesn't call to me with a siren song.

But Paris--that's another matter. The moment I arrive in Paris I feel as if I should never leave again. I could sit for hours at a sidewalk cafe, soaking up the atmosphere. Or stroll along the Seine, browsing at the bouquinistes stalls. Or the Impressionists at the Musee d"Orsay. I feel alive every minute I'm there. I could easily live in one of those top floor apartments with the balcony. Paris is much in my thoughts recently because I set my upcoming Molly Murphy book, CITY OF DARKNESS AND LIGHT, there and had a great excuse to wander all over the city, finding the perfect places for my plot to play out.

So what makes some places feel like home to us while we are untouched by others. Did I live in Paris in a previous life? And what drew me to Australia? Do you think there is really a "right' place for us to live, a destiny, if you will?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: When I was a--oh, I don't know, teenager, in Indianapolis,in the 1960's I always wanted to live in Boston. ALWAYS. I'd never been there, and I'm not even sure where this idea came from. When I moved to Washington DC in the early 70's I adored it. Atlanta for five years--fine, gorgeous. Then at one point, I got job offers in Dallas, San Francisco, Washington DC and Boston. I visited all four places--and whoa. I'd been right since 1963. I enjoy Boston every day.

But when I go to Paris? Yes, indeed. I could live there in a heartbeart.

HALLIE EPHRON: I grew up in southern California, Beverly Hills to be precise, and I confess whenever I go back there I feel old, fat, ad poor. Spent my college years and after in New York City. And yes, I feel completely at home when I'm there. I wouldn't want to live there, but I do so love to visit. Boston still feels like a place I'm visiting.

RHYS: This is funny, Hallie, because I still feel that I'm visiting in San Francisco or in Arizona. It's like a permanent vacation in the latter and the nagging worry about when do we go home?

LUCY BURDETTE: I would take a couple of months in Paris, New York, or Rome--anytime! I've lived a fair number of places--Michigan, New Jersey, Connecticut, Tennessee, Florida--and managed to feel like all of them were home eventually. But I have what my husband calls a deep "taproot." Meaning it's not that easy to transplant me. In a new place, I wilt for a while, feeling listless and down. Just like a plant. (Confession: I spent 5 months in France during my junior year and I did not take advantage of the possibilities...)

I had this conversation with a sister-in-law recently and mentioned how I get homesick when I travel very long. "Homesick for what?" she asked. "I don't get that at all."

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Rhys, I feel about London the way you feel about Paris. Instantly at home, instantly "right." I've never had an explanation. Past lives is as good as any. Paris would be my next choice. I can see myself living there. And an odd third choice, considering the first two--I love LA. I don't know why. I know it's smoggy and the traffic is terrible and it's dreadfully expensive, but my heart just lifts every time I go there. Weird.

So why have I never left Texas permanently? I love Lucy's husband's description of a "tap root." I think Texas is my tap root. Even in London, I start to miss Texas if I am away too long.

RHYS: Past lives or just our personalities? Do you have a place you feel drawn to or destined to live? How important is a sense of place to you? Obviously very important to us, as you see from our writing.

RHYS BOWEN: Every March I look forward to sharing a pub date and subsequent tour with my friend Cara Black. I’m sure most of you know that Cara writes the Aimée Leduc series set in 1990s Paris. Wonderful, atmospheric books each one taking us to a different arrondissement of the city.

So hi, Cara. I’m dying to know what the new book is called.

CARA BLACK : It’s called Murder in Pigalle and comes out March 4 - same day as yours, Rhys. Set in that that naughty neighborhood of the Moulin Rouge at the base of Montmartre.

RHYs: That’s amazing because this time my Molly Murphy book is also not only set in Paris but is centered just off Place Pigalle. And I swear we didn’t talk to each other about it before we wrote! So what drew you to set your book there--yes I know you’re working your way around all the arrondissements, but why Pigalle

CARA: I have an old friend who has an apartment in the neighborhood. She raised her family there and I love to visit her. It’s an area full of history—Degas lived there. Chopin. George Sand. And it’s like two different places—by day families picnic in the park and at night the less salubrious folk come out. It’s also the theater district with thirteen live theaters still going strong and lots of theater folk living nearby.

So we have the mixture of the wholesome and the not so wholesome.

RHYS: This is so fascinating for me because I also chose the area just off Pigalle because my story has to do with the art world of 1905 Paris. Do you know that there was a market for artist’s models every Monday morning in Place Pigalle? Degas also has a cameo role in my books, as do Picasso, Gertrude Stein and many others. I have several scenes that take place at the Café des Novelles Athenes…

CARA: Which I also mention, in fact I have a murder there! I’m fascinated that it’s an area of lovely old mansions with inner courtyards. In fact it was really countrified until not too long ago.

RHYS: You’re right. A lot of my book takes place on Montmartre and In 1905 it was rural—little wooden shacks among vegetable gardens with goats grazing. Most of those artists garrets had no heat or light (remember La Boheme?) That’s why the cafes were so popular. One could sit all day in the warmth and chat for the price of a cup of coffee.

So Cara, you’ve said why you chose to set the story there, but what about the actual story? I know each of your books seems to have a fabulous real-life story trigger. Does this one?

CARA: It was based on a real case. I had lunch with a friend who is a retired homicide inspector and was told about a case that happened in 1998—exactly the time I am writing about. The police were searching for a serial rapist who targeted young girls on their way home from school. The police couldn’t catch him. Parents formed vigilante groups and beat up the wrong guy. In Paris, as you know, each quartier is like a village and these attacks shocked everyone. Finally he was caught and seemed really normal and unassuming. He was sentenced and killed in prison.

So in my story Aimee is pregnant but asked to find a missing girl so it hits close to home. This is a book about mothers, parenting, about trying to separate personal life from a job and the toll it takes.

RHYS: Aimee pregnant? That is such a game-changer for her. I’m dying to see how she handles it. And I love the way you always bring in real events. I try and do the same. It makes the stories matter more, somehow. In my book part of the story involves the Dreyfus affair and how it divided Paris.

CARA: The big real event that comes into my story is the soccer World Cup, held in Paris in 1998. World cup fever is sweeping the city, with crowds and rioting fans, making it a time of heightened danger.

RHYS: This all sounds terrific, Cara. I’m dying to get my hands on a copy. When we go on tour together you can drive and I’ll read! And for those of you who are interested, both Cara and I have our tour schedules up on our websites. We’ll be doing events in the Bay Area and in Southern California together at the end of March. Come and say hello and hear about Paris, then and now. Thanks for stopping by, Cara. See you soon.

Cara's website is www.carablack.com and mine is www.rhysbowen.com

How much does a cover matter to you?

I'm thinking about this because I have anew Molly Murphy book coming out next Tuesday and I had to request some cover changes. The first cover had Molly wearing a cloche hat and a low slung belt, looking very Twenties instead of 1905. When I brought this to my editor's attention the artist said that he had a picture of that very hat in Paris 1905. So they were always ahead of the times in Paris, but it still looked 1920.

So the hat was changed, the belt was removed and Rhys was a happy camper. But it reminded me how important it is that the cover gets the flavor, the time, and the type of book just right. The reader is seriously miffed if the cover promises one type of book and she gets another. This happened to me once, many years ago when I wrote historical romances. At least I didn't think the first one as a historical romance. I thought it was a historical novel (with a touch of romance). But it came out with a cover with the blouse hanging off one shoulder, red hair cascading down her back and Fabio standing behind her. Doomed. No man would ever read it and the women readers would be disappointed because the romance wasn't the driving story.

I've just spoken at the San Francisco Writer's conference and Mark Coker of Smashwords spoke on the importance of cover when selling an e-book. The words have to be big enough to read in thumbnail. You can't make it too light or it blends into the white page and it has to shout out what kind of book it is. Not easy for something that appears about an inch big on Amazon.

But his rules are true for all of us. Name and title big enough to read across the room, appealing colors and must shout out what kind of book it is.

I ran a poll recently on my Facebook page (www.facebook.com/rhysbowenauthor) about the importance of cover and quite a few people said "That's how I found your books." Almost everyone agreed that the cover first drew them, then they read the blurb on the back and maybe the first page or so. I think Hank's The Other Woman illustrates just perfectly all the points made above: great design. Says exactly what kind of book it is. Words big enough to read.

While Lucy's promises the kind of cozy fun we're going to get.

My Constable Evans books had covers much cozier than the books. Every one had some kind of farm animal on it and I once announced that I had won the Old Macdonald award. Everyone clapped until I said "for the most farm animals on covers." But I think in my case the cover put off some serious mystery readers.

And now the trend for big names is to have just name and title huge on cover and not much else. Look at Deb's upcoming book

Or Louise Penny's.

So what do you like? Do you want a picture on the cover, showing you what sort of book it is? Does the cover draw you to buy a book? Have you ever been misled by a cover and disappointed that the book did not live up to the image?

Going for the gold . . . tiara

Opinion writing: It's not about spouting off

Cozy writer, breaking and entering: Welcome "Julianne Holmes"

Sharpen your penclls: Man walks his car . . .

What says I LOVE YOU in your house?

Winter People: Jennifer McMahon, inspired by what scares kids

Hallie's chicken and rice with shrimp and chorizo...

Let's get--Animated!

Food Confessions

Baby You Can Drive My Car

YOGA? Or NOGA?

The First Feminists? Or--maybe not...

Who Do You Love?

Good News...and a visit to India!

Can't Live Without My.....

Life Lessons I may never learn.

Debs on the Sound of Broken Glass.

I Left My Heart in...

So what makes some places feel like home to us while we are untouched by others. Did I live in Paris in a previous life? And what drew me to Australia? Do you think there is really a "right' place for us to live, a destiny, if you will?

Paris Then and Now--a date with Cara Black

Cover Story