Criminal Minds: Old Dog, New Tricks from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Old Dog, New Tricks from James W. Ziskin: What writing lessons did you have to keep learning over and over? Writers are often advised to kill their darlings. This is usually good adv...

Criminal Minds: Pro-mojo from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Pro-mojo from James W. Ziskin: What is the best money you ever spent on promotion and marketing? Travel for bookstore reading events? Advertising? (If so, where—in a confe...

Criminal Minds: Sow What You Reap from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Sow What You Reap from James W. Ziskin: In person conferences are great for socialization and building a community and increasing motivation. But if you're not in the position ...

Criminal Minds: A Man A Plan from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: A Man A Plan from James W. Ziskin: A new year is upon us! How do you plan for your writing calendar?   1. A bit of blatant self-promotion to follow. But never fear, it does sp...

Criminal Minds: Some Great Books I’ve Read Recently from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Some Great Books I’ve Read Recently from James W. ...: Some Great Books I’ve Read Recently Time to propose some great reads from the past year. Click on the book covers for the links. Feel free t...

Criminal Minds: Voyeurs and Exhibitionists from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Voyeurs and Exhibitionists from James W. Ziskin: Sally Rooney has refused, in interviews, to talk about her private life. Author Debbie Urbanski recently wrote a piece for Literary Hub titl...

Criminal Minds: Not Where, but How

Criminal Minds: Not Where, but How:   Terry here with our question of the week: Not “where do you get your ideas, but HOW? Do they come to you as images? Memories? Overheard co...

Criminal Minds: A Tree Falling in the Forest from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: A Tree Falling in the Forest from James W. Ziskin: Bouchercon and Killer Nashville 2024 have ended recently. Your thoughts on your conference experience. Do you get post conference blues, or ...

Criminal Minds: I’m Always Chasing Rainbows from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: I’m Always Chasing Rainbows from James W. Ziskin: Having one’s book rise above the crowded marketplace is difficult. What have you tried to get yours noticed — what has worked and what has n...

Criminal Minds: Hello! Is Anyone Out There?

Criminal Minds: Hello! Is Anyone Out There?:   Terry here, lamenting the answer to this week's question: Having one’s book rise above the crowded marketplace is difficult. What ha...

Criminal Minds: The Secret Place Where Writers Find Their Ideas from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: The Secret Place Where Writers Find Their Ideas fr...: Where do you get your ideas? No but seriously what do you use for inspiration: art, music, landscape, the news, dreams, family stories . . ....

Criminal Minds: I gotta be Me, and You gotta be You by Gabriel Valjan

Criminal Minds: I gotta be Me, and You gotta be You by Gabriel Valjan: Besides manuals, which books do you think make good masterclass material for crime writers?   When it ...

Criminal Minds: Some Really Good Books I Read in 2022 From James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Some Really Good Books I Read in 2022 From James W...: I’m not crazy about the Best Books of the Year lists. To be clear, I don’t object to the great books on those lists. They deserve accolades....

Criminal Minds: Shoutout to Debut Authors by Terry Shames

Criminal Minds: Shoutout to Debut Authors by Terry Shames:   Terry here, and here’s our subject this week: Let’s do a shout-out to the debut authors. What’s a wonderful book by a first time crime fi...

Criminal Minds: Don’t Bother Me I’m Reading from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Don’t Bother Me I’m Reading from James W. Ziskin: What are the best books you’ve read lately? What’s on the stack that you’re looking forward to? This is a great topic. It gives us all a cha...

Criminal Minds: Rage, Rage against the Dying of the Light from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Rage, Rage against the Dying of the Light from Jam...: Would you ever consider retiring from writing?  Nope . Under what circumstances? None. How does it make you feel to consider retiring? Like ...

Criminal Minds: Paint Me a Picture from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Paint Me a Picture from James W. Ziskin: A dding description to a story is an art. Too much, and readers skip over it. Too little, and the sense of place and mood aren’t adequately ...

Criminal Minds: Get Your Motor Running (with apologies to Steppenwolf) from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: Get Your Motor Running (with apologies to Steppenw...: What do you read to blow out the cobwebs and invigorate your inner writer? When I’m ready to write—really ready to dive in and write the fir...

Criminal Minds: The Case of the New Criminal Mind by Stephen Mack Jones

Criminal Minds: The Case of the New Criminal Mind by Stephen Mac...: Welcome to our newest Mind! On behalf of all nine Minds, we're extending a virtual group hug of welcome to Stephen, who joins us today, ...

Criminal Minds: Fare Thee All Well (or Bye Bye Frankie Bye Bye) by Frank Zafiro

Criminal Minds: Fare Thee All Well (or Bye Bye Frankie Bye Bye): (The One in Which Frank Zafiro Says Goodbye)   When Jim Ziskin invited me to join this blog panel in April 2019, I gotta tell you -- I was t...