Category: Contributor Article

Writing Crazy without Going Crazy by K. Brooks

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Let’s start with a truth that rules many an author’s writing: villains make the world go around.

Protagonists without antagonists are vanilla sundaes without toppings; they’re there, they’re okay. They’re good for a quiet night alone on the couch. But in the end, you’ll feel mildly disappointed that there wasn’t something more exciting filling your bowl. Without “the bad guy” gracing your pages, how does the story grow?

It doesn’t.

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My Mystery Addiction Started with Nancy Drew by Heather Weidner

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My Mystery Addiction Started with Nancy Drew

I have loved mysteries since Scooby Doo and Nancy Drew. Saturday morning cartoons in the United States in the 1970s were full of mysteries and sleuths. I adored Scooby Doo, Hong Kong Phooey, Speed Buggy, the Funky Phantom, and Josie and the Pussycats. And as a kid with a newly minted library card, I quickly learned that there were lots of books full of mysteries, crimes, and capers.  

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The Value of a Cliffhanger by R.M. Gauthier

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Writing Mysteries intrigued me because I love a good cliff-hanger. There I’ve said it, so shoot me, as for anyone who says they don’t like them or don’t do them they’re not being completely honest.

There is mystery and cliffhangers in almost everything people write, if there wasn’t then your story won’t be worth reading. Whether you think so or not, everyone’s writing has cliff-hangers. Continue reading “The Value of a Cliffhanger by R.M. Gauthier” →

Why the beep do people like Horror? By a Horror Writer

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What is something you hate? What is something you love?The thing about opinions is that somebody always disagrees with you. There is somebody that loves what you hate and hates what you love.

What does this have to do with the Horror genre? You might have guessed by now. If you hate it, there’s somebody that likes it. If you like it, there’s somebody that absolutely despises it.

So, now that we’ve got that off the table, let’s talk about why some people actually like Horror. There are many misconceptions about the genre, and I’ll do my best to dispel those.
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I’m Going to Post it For the World to See* by Margot Kinberg

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I’m Going to Post it For the World to See*

Subtitle: Reading and Writing in the Age of Social Media 

 

One of the most important changes we’ve seen in the last ten years has been the advent of social media. It’s had a profound impact on the way we communicate. If you keep in touch with friends on Facebook, or catch up on news and sports stories through Twitter, or check out someone’s Goodreads reviews, you know what I mean.

It’s no secret that social media has transformed the way people buy, sell, review, and share crime fiction books. For readers, social media has made it possible to learn about books from all over the world in ways that would’ve been impossible just a few years ago. Choosing what to read isn’t just a matter of going to the local bookshop anymore, and being limited to that store’s selection. Now, readers can choose what they want from among many thousands of different places.  

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Inside the Writers Mind with Adam Rabinowitz

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I can’t speak for other authors – I write because I love to write, but that doesn’t mean that people will want to read what I’ve written. So that leaves an interesting puzzle on the table. Write because I love to write, but create a story people want to read.

 

I started my career as an author writing action stories because, as a kid, I loved The Bourne Identity. In fact I loved it so much I read it all through high school. I mean it – I started in grade 8, and I finished it in grade 12. Needless to say, reading wasn’t my favorite hobby and I didn’t read very fast either.  But once I read the book (finally, after 5 years), I knew I wanted to be an author and write my own stories.

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Guest Post: Writing the Impossible by Jaden Terrell

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Readers often ask me, “What’s it like to write a book?”

Amazing, I say. Rewarding. Intoxicating. Frustrating.

Impossible.

Last night, a friend who had just finished her first book said, “Thank goodness the next one will be easier because now I know what I’m doing.” Continue reading “Guest Post: Writing the Impossible by Jaden Terrell” →

Creating a Fictional Town by Judy Penz Sheluk

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When I started writing Skeletons in the Attic, I wanted to create a fictional town that readers could believe in. I also wanted my protagonist, Calamity (Callie) Barnstable, to be a fish out of water. I decided to make Callie a single woman born and raised in the city—Toronto, Canada, in her case—who’s forced to move to the town of Marketville.

Here’s a recap of the basic premise:

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INDIE VS. TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING: BATTLE LINES DRAWN? by Steven Perkins

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Embers of a long smoldering fire have recently been stoked. The winds of a publishing war are stirring, and opening salvo’s have been unleashed! Have battle lines been drawn between independent and traditional publishers? Is so, who in the end shall emerge the ultimate victor? Time, as they say, will only tell. Truly, the world of the printed word in this 21st century has entered an interesting, if not historic, and truly exciting era.

At least for some, that is.

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Meet ‘Big Mo’ Dolan by Nick Rippington

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INTERVIEW WITH MAURICE ‘BIG MO’ DOLAN:

PROTAGONIST OF NICK RIPPINGTON’S NEW NOVEL – WORKING TITLE: HEADERS

 

Hi. I’m Paul Melluish, crime writer with London’s Evening Guardian. Currently I’m putting a book together about the most dangerous criminals of the 70s and 80s and was granted exclusive access to Maurice ‘Big Mo’ Dolan, renowned sub-Post Office robber currently incarcerated in London’s Belmarsh Prison. Here is the transcript of our conversation…

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