Event: Writers' Guild Of Texas Monthly Meeting---Wednesday, January 23, 2013

MEETING DAY CHANGE:  Because the Richardson Library is closed on WGT’s regular meeting day, the January meeting will be held on next Wednesday.

 

 

WRITERS' GUILD OF TEXAS MONTHLY MEETING

 

WEDNESDAY, 23 January 2013

7-8:30 p.m.

Topic: So You’ve Written Your Pitch. Now What Can You Do With It?

Speaker: Carol Woods

 

Richardson Public Library

900 Civic Center Dr.

Richardson TX 75080

Basement Room

 

Bring your pitch and some paper. We’ll work through how these few sentences serve as the basis for the first paragraphs of your query letter and synopsis, and provide the outline for your back-of-the-book blurb.

 

Carol Woods is an award-winning writer, a conference speaker, a free-lance editor, and founding member of the Lesser North Texas Writers, a critique group that has met continuously since 1987. She has edited approximately 60 published books and spoken at conferences in Texas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Woods judged manuscripts for conferences in Texas and Oklahoma; for three years, she judged mainstream books for the Writer’s Digest Magazine’s International Self-Publishing Book Awards.

 

She spent seven years as acquisitions editor for a small press, produced newsletters for local and international markets, holds a BA in American Studies from UTDallas, reads both good and bad books, and contends that her editing philosophy is: Don’t bore the reader or me!

 

 

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The Writers' Guild of Texas WGT Critique Sessions: Third Wednesday of each month.

Registration: 6:30-6:45 p.m.

Reading/critiquing: 6:30-8:45 p.m.

 

Basement room of Richardson Public Library, 900 Civic Center Dr., Richardson TX 75080.

  

16 Jan.: Coordinator Liz Klein leads these sessions. Participants present their original work and receive feedback.

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For more information about The Writers’ Guild of Texas, contact Membership Coordinator John Vance at john.vance1@gmail.com or WGT Critique Group Coordinator Liz Klein at wgtcritiquegroup@gmail.com.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Annual 2013 WGT dues of $25.00 may be paid at meetings, or by mail to Writers' Guild of Texas, 6009 W. Parker Road, Suite 149-175, Plano TX 75093.

 

All WGT events located at the Richardson Public Library are free and open to the public.

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Monday, 18 February 2013: David Haynes. The NEW Landscape for Publishing and Marketing Your Work. Monday, 18 March 2013: Sally Felt. Effective Blurb Copy. Monday, 15 April 2013: Wendi Pierce. The Anatomy of a Writer's Blog. Saturday, 20 April 2013: Workshop. Jaye Wells. TBA. Monday, 20 May 2013: Kim Jackson. The Gumption of Assumption: Dissolving the Barriers between Writers and Audiences. Monday, 17 June 2013: WGT Read-In. Monday, 15 July 2013: TBA. Monday, 19 August 2013: TBA. Monday, 16 September 2013: TBA. Monday, 21 October 2013: TBA. Saturday, 2 November 2013: Workshop. Rachel Simeone. TBA. Monday, 18 November 2013: TBA. Monday, 16 December 2013: WGT Holiday Meeting.

 

All Writers' Guild of Texas events held at the Richardson Public Library are free and open to the public.

 

For more information about The Writers’ Guild of Texas, contact Membership Coordinator John Vance at john.vance1@gmail.com or WGT Critique Group Coordinator Liz Klein at wgtcritiquegroup@gmail.com.

 

Writers' Events Calendar (contact carol.woods@verizon.net to have your conferences, meetings, or other writing-related event listed here—no individual book signings, please):

2-4 May 2013: Oklahoma Federation of Writers, Incorporated (OWFI). Agents, workshops, banquets, 29 unpublished manuscripts awards, 4 published books awards, crème de la crème award. Cash prizes. Submission opens 1 December 2012; rules for submission must be followed exactly.  Keynote speaker: Patrick Rothfuss. Embassy Suites Norman, 2501 Conference Drive, Norman OK 73069. http://www.owfi.org/

 

4-5 May 2013: DFWWW conference. Super Early Bird registration is open at the amazing rate of $225. Hurst Conference Center. 1601 Campus Drive, Hurst TX 76054. http://dfwwritersconference.org/

 

First Saturday each month (except January): Dallas MWASW (Mystery Writers of America, Southwest). Texas Land & Cattle, 812 South Central Expressway, Richardson, TX 75080, from 9:30-11:30 a.m. $5.00 door fee, cash only. All who attend are invited to remain for lunch. Contact info: LaRee Bryant, LBryant316@aol.com. Permission to forward.

The Dallas Area Writers Group (DAWG) put together a summer reading list—including a reading list for writers. Check it out! The more readers in the world—the more opportunities for writers! www.alanelliott.com

Second Saturday each month: North Texas Speculative Fiction Workshop. Meets every 2nd Saturday at the Hurst Barnes & Noble Bookstore, 6pm.http://www.ntsfw.com

Frisco Writers Meet-Up Groups: Day group meets every 3rd Thursday and night group every 2nd Tuesday. See website for more details. http://www.meetup.com/writers-749/

Visit http://www.writersleague.org/programs/classes.html for up-to-date information on Writer's League of Texas workshops held in Austin TX.

Visit http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/ for guidelines to participate in the annual Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest.

 

The Writers' Guild of Texas is a nonprofit professional organization whose primary purpose is to provide a forum for information, support, and sharing among writers; to help members improve and market their writing skills; and to promote the interests of writers and the writing community.

 

If you don't wish to receive these announcements, please let me know.

 

Permission to forward this email is not only granted, but encouraged. Let's get the word out to as many in the writing community as possible.

 

Carol Woods, Communications

Writers' Guild of Texas

carol.woods@verizon.net

Interesting Reading Elsewhere--The Clockwork Pen

I saw this come through the other day and meant to mention it sooner. Joseph Giddings' blog is always interesting. The piece titled Submissions Grinder is about a free alternative to Duotrope and is very well worth your time. You can read it here.


Kevin

Interesting Reading Elsewhere--Earl's Blog

Another update on Earl's plans regarding Justified Action  and a few other things at his blog.

Reading

For me, it truly is a silly question.........

Interesting Reading Elsewhere---Simon Sez: Shelf Life: Enough Already (Guest Post)

As a reader, writer, and a guy with real issues to deal with, I am very fedup with the childish behavior of some writers. Apparently, I am not alone in my annoyance....

Simon Sez: Shelf Life: Enough Already (Guest Post): I don't always do guest posts, but I wanted to share a very nicely written on the topic of bickering between traditionally and self publis...

Review: "Eat More of What You Love: Over 200 Brand- New Recipes Low in Sugar, Fat, and Calories" by Marlene Koch

Most cookbooks don’t offer nutritional information or suggestions on how to cut calories, fats, salt, etc., from the recipes. The books normally don’t have suggestions on how to make healthy versions of the dishes in the book. Eat More of What You Love: Over 200 Brand- New Recipes Low in Sugar, Fat, and Calories by Marlene Koch is not one of those kinds of cookbooks. This is a cookbook designed for those of us who do need to watch what we eat.

The first thirty pages are all background information on the book and health. Calories, fats, carbs, sugar, etc. are explained in easy to understand language and how they were dealt with in this book. So too are topics such as meal planning vice “The Plate Method” or “Meal Planning with Calories,” counting carbs, food exchanges, and the role of various ingredients in the  dishes.  With the basic background information out of the way it is on to the recipes.

Starting on page 32 with “Super Sippers, Smoothies, and Shakes” drinks of all types are covered.  “Cherry Lemonade Freeze” (pages 36-37) and a “Frosty Caramel Frappe” (page 43) that is built along the lines of the more famous one at McDonalds are just two of the fourteen drinks listed here. Each recipe has a small intro, a list of ingredients and instructions, and complete detailed information for each a serving of the item. When appropriate there is also nutritional information on the original version at the fast food place or restaurant further highlighting the huge difference between the cookbook version and the original. Pictures are also present for many items throughout the book.

If breads are your thing you will find them starting on page 52 in “Fresh Baked Breads, Muffins, and Coffee Cakes.”  There are twelve recipes in this section including ones for “Triple Lemon Blueberry Muffins” (page 55), “Cream Cheese Filled Pumpkin Muffins” (pages 56-57) and “Chocolate Chip Quick Cake” (page 70) among others. On her Bran-ana Nut Mini-Loaves recipe (page 63) the author points out that while her recipe has 120 calories per serving; the same thing at Starbucks is 180 calories per serving among other issues with sugar and carbs.

“Breakfast and Brunch” come next with sixteen more recipes. From “Grab ‘n Go Oat Bars” (page 73) to the “Denver-Style Egg White Melt” (page 77) to something for brunch such as “Chile Relleno Casserole” (page 83) among others there is something here to make the morning better. Those who low Quiche should check out one of the author’s most requested recipes “Quick N’ Easy Quiche” on pages 84-85.

That is followed by “Appetizers and Small Bites” starting on page 93. This is when you go for “Creamy Fruit Dip” (page 96), “James’ Pepperoni Pizza Puffs” (page 105), “Awesome Nacho Quesadilla” (page 109) and “Cheesy Chili Nachos” (pages 112-113) among others. One of the neat things in this book is the fact the sodium counts are tracked and compared in these dishes.  Something virtually important to folks like me who really have to watch their salt intake as it has huge consequences with high blood pressure.

Soups and Sandwiches comes next with “Super Soups and Sensational Sandwiches” starting on page 114. Seven soup recipes and one for chili lead off the section before it goes into the eleven sandwiches of various types such as “Western Chicken Bacon Cheese Sandwiches” on pages 134-135. A nice inclusion in this chapter is a chart featuring various processed tomato based products and their salt content per serving size. Also mentioned here is the tip that eating more potassium by way of potatoes, bananas, spinach, etc. will mitigate some of the sodium intake.

Salads in the form of sides and as an entrée are the focus of “Best Dressed Salads” starting on page 143. “Good Ol’ Iceberg with Classic French Dressing” (page 145) leads off the section before moving on to others such as “Lime-Cottage Cheese Jell-O Salad” (page 149), “Creamy Ranch Slaw” (page 152), “Quick ‘n Healthy Taco Salad” (page 164) and others. I hoped to see a Blue Cheese dressing version as that happens to be my favorite, but, no such luck. 

Slow cookers seem to be popular again as there are now a number of brand new recipe books on the market. They get a chapter here featuring thirteen recipes in “Slow Cookers Favorites.” Starting on page 166 and besides featuring more chili recipes there are ones for “Barbecue Pulled Pork” (pages 170-171) and “Fast Fix Ratatouille” (page 182) among others. Also included in this section are tips on how to get the most out of your slow cooker.

“Pastas, Pizzas, and More” comes next with an extension variety as well as tips on cheese. Whether you want “Cajun Jambalaya Pasta” (page 190) or “Quick-Fix Turkey Chili Mac Skillet” (page 197) or “Pizza Pasta Pie” (pages 204-205) variety is present in this chapter is well as throughout the book. Also present in this chapter is a recipe for “Homemade Pizza Dough” (page 206) and tips on how to create better tasting pizzas. Something that remains an issue here as the boys seriously question my pizza making abilities.

“Sides That Make The Meal” comes next starting on page 210 with nineteen recipes. This is where you go for “Sautéed Cabbage, Onions, and Apples” (page 220), “Fiesta Lime Rice” (pages 228-229), and “Everyday Garlic Roast” (page 235) among others. Yes, for you cornbread lovers there is “Cheesy Skillet Cornbread” on page 234 and it works for muffin cups too. Also tips on how good potatoes are for you and other good information are here.

If you are looking to do something different with chicken you have fourteen choices in “Fast and Fit Chicken Dishes.” Starting on page 238 with “Good ‘n Easy Garlic Chicken” (page 238) you could follow up on another night with “Chicken Chicken Fried Steak with Cream Gravy” (pages 240-242) or “Super Simple Chicken Pizzaiolo” (page 250) among others.

The chicken ones are followed by the sixteen recipes of “Lean Beef, Pork, and Fish” section that starts on page 258. “East Meets West Salisbury Steak” (page 261), “15-minute Maple Glazed Pork Chops” (page 268) and “Shrimp Scampi” (page 273) among others are here. Of interest is the text and chart on page 259 detailing the calories, fat, cholesterol, etc., of various three ounce beef servings.

Desert is important and comes next in “Pies, Puddings, and Specialty Desserts.” Twelve recipes are here including “5-Ingredient Dark Chocolate Soufflés” (pages 298-299) and “Fresh Peach and Blueberry Cobbler” (pages 296). Of course, desert is not limited to pies and puddings.

If cookies and cakes are your thing you have twelve choices in “Homestyle Cookies and Cakes.” After extolling the wonders of chocolate on page 302 it is on to “Snickerdoodle Softies” (page 303), “Raspberry Oat Bars” (pages 306-307) and “Unbelievable Chocolate Cake” (page 317) among others.

Cupcakes get their own special section with the appropriate title “Cupcakes, Cupcakes, Cupcakes!” Perennial favorites of many, “Red Velvet Cupcakes” (pages 320-321) lead off this twelve recipe section that also includes recipes for frostings and one glaze.

A four page menu guide for various situations, an acknowledgement page, and an eleven page index bring the book to a close.

Written by a dietitian, Eat More of What You Love: Over 200 Brand- New Recipes Low in Sugar, Fat, and Calories is a cookbook designed to deliver taste and satisfying cravings. The recipes as well as the photography work by Philadelphia based Steve Legato creates a unique cookbook that is beautiful and practical. Featuring over 200 recipes and plenty of variety this is a cookbook designed to make eating fun and satisfying and healthy too.

Eat More of Way You Love: Over 200 Brand- New Recipes Low in Sugar, Fat, and Calories

Marlene Koch

http://www.marlenekoch.com

Photographs by Steve Legato

Running Press Book Publishers

http://www.runningpresscooks.com

2012

ISBN# 978-0-7624-4589-9

Hardback (also available as e-book)

352 Pages

$27.00

Material supplied by the good folks of the Plano, Texas Public Library System.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2013

Interesting Reading Elsewhere---Southern Scotch: The Game Begins: I retire, for now, from reviewing

This is a definite issue and one that should concern all of us who review and write. Not just because reviewing does take up valuable writing time, but for the fact that by reviewing we open up ourselves to retaliation. The blog below is short, but the message is very important.


Southern Scotch: The Game Begins: I retire, for now, from reviewing: No choice involved here, I do have to stop while I can still look back on my reviews with both pride and pleasure. All were written from the...

Poll Closes Within Hours

Please consider voting for Barry, Patrick, Me and the others involved here in this year's PREDITORS AND EDITORS POLL at http://critters.org/predpoll/reviewsite.shtml

Thank you.

Kevin

Barry's Fiction

The new Kings River Life is up and Barry is back with another story.  This one is called “Jewel of Denial” at  http://kingsriverlife.com/01/12/jewel-of-denial-a-mystery-short-story/

He also still has other stories of his for sale at  http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005GXMF86 and http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/cassidy20.

Definitely worth checking out.

Kevin

Sandi Update

The only good thing about all this the last few weeks is that all the forced bed rest and huge amounts of anti inflammatory drugs they gave Sandi in the hospital each stay seems to have fixed her feet. At least for now she can walk without the big black boot or the smaller air cast deal. Now that her feet no longer hurt, she can walk normally, and her feet have been only slightly swollen on occasion. So, hopefully, that is over.

We know nothing about when the next surgical attempt to get to the thing on her heart will be. No one has called yet from the surgeon's office, but we are not terribly surprised by that. We already knew he thought the coming week was booked up so it would most likely be the following week. If we don't hear anything by early next week, we will call and see what is happening.

Sandi has ask me to again thank everyone for their support as she goes through this cancer fight again. It means a lot to her as well as the rest of us to know we are in the thoughts and prayers of so many. We truly do appreciate it and are very grateful.


Kevin

FFB Review: "THE GIRL WITH THE LONG GREEN HEART" by Lawrence Block--- Reviewed by Barry Ergang

Friday means Friday's Forgotten Books. Barry Ergang is back with the review below to close out the year. For the complete list of books, authors, and reviewers, please surf over to Patti Abbott's excellent blog..........

THE GIRL WITH THE LONG GREEN HEART (1965) by Lawrence Block

Reviewed by Barry Ergang

Having spent seven years in San Quentin after a con game went bad, and determined to walk a straight-and-narrow path to avoid a return to prison, John Hayden now lives a deliberately spartan life in a small, cheap room and works as the assistant manager at a bowling alley in Boulder, Colorado, earning eighty-five dollars a week. He's taking a correspondence course in hotel management, hoping one day to buy a roadhouse outside the city that has rooms upstairs and cabins out back. "The current owner doesn't know what to do with the place," he tells Doug Rance. "He's a lush and he just knows how to sell drinks and how to build himself a case of cirrhosis. With the right kind of operation the place would be a gold mine."

Rance, nine years younger than Hayden's forty-two, is someone Hayden met years earlier but never worked with, and who has come looking for him, hoping to persuade him to go back on the grift. Rance was recently in Las Vegas where he met a woman named Evelyn Stone, the titular character. She complained to him about her boss, a man named Wallace J. Gunderman, the intended target of Rance's depredations—the "mooch," as marks are referred to in this novel—whom for personal reasons she'd love to see get taken for a great deal of money. Gunderman made his money buying and selling land, and had already once been the victim of a con game involving property in Canada. Rance wants to work yet another Canadian land grift on Gunderman, and thinks Hayden would be the ideal partner. Evelyn Stone would also get a cut for her role in the game.

As much as he fears the prospect of going back to prison should something go wrong, Hayden realizes that his portion of the money they stand to take Gunderman for would enable him to fulfill his roadhouse dream almost immediately instead of requiring him to work for chump change and save perhaps twenty-five hundred dollars annually for the next nine or ten years while living a desolate excuse for a life. And so he declares himself in, and he and Rance go to elaborate lengths to stage the operation and psych out the mooch. Gunderman is neither stupid nor a fool; he needs to be carefully suckered into buying what Hayden and Rance pretend to sell. They execute their scheme thoroughly and meticulously, taking into account every contingency. They have everything covered, right? Nothing could possibly go wrong, could it?

If I told you, you'd want to kill me for spoiling the fun and excitement. As it is, I've given you the barest outline of the novel's beginning without revealing necessary and intriguing details, minutiae, and subsequent plot developments.

Narrated in the first person by John Hayden, in an unadorned, often staccato prose style, The Girl with the Long Green Heart is one of Lawrence Block's earliest efforts. It amply demonstrates the storytelling skill, sense of character and pace, that would ultimately win him the Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Award, and many other literary honors. As has usually been my experience with a Block novel, this one was very hard to put down, and is highly recommended to fans of criminous fiction.     

Barry Ergang ©2013

Barry’s books for sale from his personal collection are at http://www.barryergangbooksforsale.yolasite.com/.

You can find his fiction at  http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005GXMF86 and http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/cassidy20.

Interesting Reading Elsewhere--- Not The Baseball Pitcher

If you are not already reading Randy Johnson's blog--you should be. Tonight, among other things, he has an entry for Friday's Forgotten Books. This week he is doing JUDAS GUN by Gordon D. Shirreffs.  A western that apparently has also been made into a movie. Love westerns so now I have yet more to try and hunt down at the library.

Check the blog out. Lost of good stuff there and well worth your time.

Back Home

Back home from the cardiac surgeon and the news is as good as possible.

Sandi is healing up from the previous deal fairly well. They did a chest x-ray and that was okay. Both the surgical sites are still draining as they very slowly close. There were no stitches to remove as we had both understood when she was in the hospital. She still has a tremendous amount of pain in her right side and across the right side of her chest. In theory, this should slowly get better over time as the nerves in her ribcage that were compressed gradually heal up.

Instead of the nightmare scenario of cracking the ribs, stopping the heart deal, the doc is going to try to come from just underneath the breastbone and going vertically to get beneath her heart. Basically at the top of the stomach where the diaphragm and all meet and then slightly over to the right will be his entry point. Another one will be along her collar bone in the center of his chest. He plans to come from both angle to get to the thing. How much he removes will depend on what the situation is when he finally gets to it. He may try and take the whole thing or he might just take enough for pathology and not disturb it further.

He won't know how that will go until he gets to it. He also discussed his plans for putting the port back into her chest. This port thing, which she hates and causes here a lot of pain, hooks directly into the main artery in the heart. It is necessary so the chemo and other drugs can go straight to the heart and then be circulated through the body.

If things work on right, later today we should get called about scheduling this attempt. Most likely it will not be next week, but instead, sometime the following week. In the meantime she is to get well and get over the cold she still has somewhat, avoid the flu, and monitor her blood sugar so they have some idea what it is doing pre-surgery.

They also just got back the pathology on the stuff he pulled out before Christmas and all that came back clean. That means that if this thing is cancer--as all still believes it to be--it is most likely localized and not spreading rampant like her two previous forms of Non-Hodgkin's lyphomas were this time last year. That means chemo and radiation have a better chance of taking it out again.

So, now we wait for the phone calls......

Doctor Day

Later this morning Sandi sees her cardiac surgeon. This is a followup visit to  assess how she healed up from everything last month and to take out the stitches she still has in her chest and elsewhere. Based on a call last night just after five, they also want to do a chest x-ray this morning. We don't know what is up with that.

Hopefully, he will also have a better idea how to try again to get to the thing on her heart for the pathology sample. Obviously, doing the whole cracking the chest and stopping the heart deal is not the way anyone really wants to have to go to get the pathology sample. Our hope is that maybe they can come in from her left side through the ribs--instead of the right that they tried before---and get to it.

I am not quite as sick as I was so I am going with her. I am still on antibiotics so I should not be contagbious to others. If she was going for something routine, I wouldn't. But, with this being what it is, I really have to be there. For a lot of reasons, I hope everything is on time today.

Another thing much harder with a cane..

though I did always find it very relaxing.

Interesting Reading Elsewhere---Earl Staggs

Make sure you surf over to Earl's blog today at http://earlwstaggs.wordpress.com/2013/01/09/the-end-is-near/ and read about his next book Justified Action. It features a new character, Tall Chambers, and the hunt for terrorists home and abroad. That hunt and how it changes Tall is a main theme of the book along with romance, loss, and lots of other good stuff. Earl explains how the book came about as well as explaining the background of the character and the book.

I had the privilege of reading this in our critique group as Earl worked on it. It is a good one.


Kevin

Still Sick

as is everyone in the place to varying levels. I might be a little better, but the antibiotic is doing a real number on my gastrointestinal tract. Don't worry, I will spare you the disgusting details.

In other disgusting news, we heard from the food stamp people in writing today and they ARE NOT fixing their errors. So, for now, we are not going to get any help at all from the great state of Texas. We suffer for their errors every single time.

So, we now have to reapply again and wait probably another month for them to process the new application and interview us again.


Kevin

Skywarn Classes

From the posting today on Facebook.....
 
Today's Skywarn class will be held at the Falls County Courthouse in the city of Marlin in Falls County. These classes are free and open to the public. The class will educate about severe weather and storms and give you information on how you can send your severe or hazardous weather report to the NWS Office in Fort Worth. Get the full schedule from the link near the top of our home page. www.srh.noaa.gov/fwd

Review: "The Last Horseman: A Sandy Banks Novel" by Frank Zafiro

The project was simple and yet complex at the same time. Those involved would right the failures of the justices system. Those criminals, often released on technicalities, whose actions were so egregious that they should have been permanently removed from the planet by the system, would be removed by the group known as The Four Horsemen. These ex-police offices would do what the court system had failed to do---dispense justice.

Over time the project has become unstable and is collapsing due to a variety of factors. Now, Sandy Banks is The Last Horseman and he too has finally had enough. He will finish the assignment that he just received and then he is out.

At least that is his plan. Others have a different agenda for Sandy Banks. While they might like to arrest him they would be okay with killing him in the process as then he couldn’t talk about what he knows. 

Nobody and nothing is what it seems in this complex mystery thriller from talented author Frank Zafiro known for his River City Crime Novel series that began with Under A Raging Moon the moral implications of police work have been a hallmark of his books. Written by a police officer familiar firsthand with the toll that police work takes, there is realism always present in Mr. Zafiro's books that one does not get from many such novels. That realism along with a heavy duty dose of the always present moral consequences for actions on the job and off is combined here where a former cop is questioning more and more his role in trying to right the wrongs of a failed court system. A system that too many times seems stacked against the good guys.

That moral quandary--upholding the law and yet executing bad guys in the name of justice-- is at the heart of this novel. A novel that contains numerous twists and turns as no one is telling the truth about themselves or others for most of the book. The result is a complex mystery full of nuance and meaning and yet another good book from talented author Frank Zafiro.

The Last Horseman: A Sandy Banks Novel

Frank Zafiro

http://www.frankzafiro.com

CreateSpace

January 2011

ISBN# 978-1456516260

Paperback (also available as an e-book)

268 Pages

$12.99

Material was supplied by the author a very long time ago in exchange for my objective review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2013

Warning Labels

I am reminded today that people should come with warning labels. Lawnmowers, toys, and nearly every other thing out there comes with some sort of warning label/ disclaimer. People should too. That way, before you even talked to him or her in any way, shape, or form, you would know upfront exactly what you were dealing with at all times.

This is mine and you have now been warned....again....

Interesting Reading Elsehwere--- Ellis Vidler's Unpredictable Muse: It's FIRST FRIDAY! James. Lavene. Seewald.

 Nice to see this appear again. Pretty cool idea that results in three very different takes.

Ellis Vidler's Unpredictable Muse: It's FIRST FRIDAY! James. Lavene. Seewald.: Three talented authors give their take on same photograph in 150 words. It's always interesting, the different ideas and voices that ...

My Book-- Mind Slices: A Collection of New and Previously Published Stories

Mind Slices: A Collection of New and Previously Published Stories-- These sixteen scans and dissections of the author's brain reveal that he's afflicted with Genre Versatility, the work displaying his aptitude for fantasy, science fiction, mystery, suspense, and mainstream fiction, with some stories blending genres. The diagnosis?  Your reading enjoyment. 

The book opens with the first two stories that were published in the late 90s before moving forward into more recently published and new works. Included in the book is “Burning Questions”  which was a honorable mention winner in  “Mysterical-E’s “Skeletons in the Closet” contest in the fall of 2007 as well as several pieces that were published at the mystery e-zine “Mouth Full Of Bullets.”  Edited and formatted by author and friend Barry Ergang, MIND SLICES contains 16 stories in a variety of genres.

The book is available at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009OIV346 

At Smashwords http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/243655

Barnes and Noble’s NOOK  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mind-slices-kevin-tipple/1113576100?ean=2940044983076

The reviews so far have been positive both at the sale sites above and elsewhere such as:

Randy Johnson who offered his thoughts on the book at:  http://randall120.wordpress.com/   

Two time Derringer Award winner Earl Staggs shared his thoughts at:  http://murderousmusings.blogspot.com/2012/12/mind-slices_14.html?showComment=1357271573783

Glenn Walker opinioned on his blog http://monsura.blogspot.com/2012/11/mind-slices-by-kevin-r-tipple.html

The book remains only 99 cents to make it as affordable as possible for readers.

Hope you will consider buying a copy.

Kevin

Always Interesting Reading Elsewhere----CrimeFictionWriter: 2012 in review

 If you write short stories and are not reading Michael Bracken's blog you should be. One of the most prolific writers across numerous genres, he always shares the details and statistics. Case in point is his latest post....

CrimeFictionWriter: 2012 in review: 61 acceptances (vs. 73 in 2011) 25 rejections (vs. 28 in 2011) 64 short stories published* (vs. 82 in 2011), 0 articles/essays published (...

Sandi Update

Yesterday was Sandi's appointment with her cancer doctor. I was way too sick to go so she had to go by herself. The news was what we had expected at this point.

Basically, the cancer doctor is in a holding pattern until they get a pathology sample from the thing on her heart. He can't do anything until he knows exactly what he is dealing with. So, in addition to putting her out the next three months on unpaid leave so that she can focus on this, he sent her back to the cardiac surgeon.

Sandi is already scheduled to meet with the cardiac surgeon who did the first procedure the Thursday before Christmas on a followup to what he did. We had been told Sandi had dissolving stitches in her side and chest. According to the office staff, she does not and he will remove them Thursday morning. Whether that will relieve any of the pain she has in her chest and side we don't know.

At this point, we also don't know how he will want to try to get to the thing on her heart. Before Christmas he indicated that the only way would be to put her on the heart/lung bypass machine, stop her heart, and go to work in a very long multi hour procedure. Hopefully, after everything else they put her through after he left for his scheduled vacation, he will have another way of getting what is needed for the sample.

Hopefully she also won't come down with what I have. Everyone around here is now sniffling and coughing so it would seem I have made everyone else sick as well as myself.


Kevin

FFB Review: "Death of Jezebel" by Christianna Brand---Reviewed by Patrick Ohl

Please welcome back Patrick Ohl for this installment of Friday's Forgotten Books......

One of the most criminally forgotten mystery writers ever is Christianna Brand. Brand was a supreme talent, who perfectly fused complex puzzle-oriented mystery with strong characterization. With her novels, it isn’t simply about this evening’s eccentric detective, rolling the dice to figure out the murderer, or anything of the sort. Brand could create likeable, believable characters the reader comes to know closely, feeling sympathy for both the innocent and the guilty, and as a result, her books often have depressing endings.

Take Death of Jezebel, for instance, one of Brand’s most highly-praised works (and also a very hard one to find!). The story opens in 1940 as a nice young man named Johnny Wise discovers his girlfriend Perpetua Kirk with another man, Earl Anderson—this is cruelly unveiled to him by a rather sadistic woman, Isabel Drew. Stricken with grief, Johnny commits suicide.

The story then skips forward seven years: in 1947, Isabel is still as nasty as ever, Earl Anderson is an out-of-work ageing actor, and Perpetua Kirk has never quite been the same— her spirit died on the same night as Johnny, but her body lives on… The three players involved in Johnny’s tragedy are soon thrust into a new drama, as each get threatening notes, warning them that they will die. And the killer makes good on his (or her) promise, striking under seemingly impossible circumstances at a pageant, as Isabel (often referred to simply as Jezebel) is strangled on top of a tower in full view of thousands of witnesses and thrown down to the stage below. Thus begins a complex mystery and drama…

Brand brings together two detectives to unravel this case. The first is Inspector Charlesworth, who starred in Brand’s first novel, Death in High Heels, and apparently one more. I have yet to read either. The second is her more regular detective, Inspector Cockrill, who is the main detective in this book. Together they investigate the crime, coming up with a few theories to explain the impossibility, and it seems like each time they’ve got a plausible explanation, Brand purposely blows it sky-high.

This is what makes Brand one of the best writers all-time, in my view: the excellent way she fused a complex plot with excellent characterization, which proves that yes, it is possible for these two to co-exist. (I admit, however, that my last outing with Brand was a rather off-putting disappointment: Suddenly at His Residence began as a delightful parody of conventional mysteries, with a murder victim ready to alter his will at the drop of a hat. Unfortunately, it suddenly lost its touch when the murder actually occurred… But this is a review of Death of Jezebel.)

Brand is at the top of her form here. She doesn’t  linger in character angst, but she puts you through the individual struggles of her characters quite effectively nonetheless. She has a very clever impossible situation and she offers a few false solutions. The story is laced with a sense of humour which pops up from time to time—this is a dark work, after all, but that doesn’t entirely banish humour from the proceedings. Overall, the book is wonderful—at the very least, it is just as good as, if not better than, Green for Danger, another of her masterpieces.

However, Death of Jezebel has one very distinct advantage over Green for Danger, and that is the character of Inspector Cockrill (“Cockie”). He becomes his own character in this novel, while he was a relatively nondescript character in the past. Here he is shown as a man who, in the eyes of the youth-obsessed world, is far too old to be hanging around anymore, but he’s still got some fight left in him, and by gum, he isn’t going to give up. You get to share not only the suspects’ emotions, but you’re shown Cockie’s insecurities as well, and overall, this invests your attention in the book even more.

What more can I say? Brand does everything right and really outperforms herself. This is a wonderful book, certainly a candidate as one of the all-time mystery classics. I was lucky enough to find it on Interlibrary Loan, but when I get the chance, I will track down a copy and buy Death of Jezebel, which will then be guaranteed a permanent spot on my shelf. It is worth every penny spent on the effort.

Patrick Ohl ©2013

At 19 years of age, Patrick Ohl has already read the complete works of Agatha Christie and has almost done the same with John Dickson Carr. His taste in mysteries is very comprehensive, including the intellectual challenges of John Rhode, the psychological suspense of Margaret Millar, and the violent world of master thief Parker. He currently plans to write his autobiography, tentatively entitled I can’t stand postmodernism, and to sell millions of copies worldwide, gain international fame and influence, and use this to get some attention for criminally neglected authors such as this one. His reviews can be found on his blog, At the Scene of the Crime.

Karl as 007

Saw this on Facebook tonight where Karl has been playing again putting his picture into various deals such as an astronaut on the moon, driving a sports car, etc. Most are way out there and very fake as his image does not really fit into place over the original. But, this one almost works. Also very disturbing.....

Another WTF--Wednesday Twisted Funny

I'm still sick, but, this made me laugh.....

 

WTF-- Wednesday Twisted Funny

At least I think it is funny......

Plan for 2013

and it does not get any more complicated than this.....

2013

Happy New Year everyone. I hope it is great for you and yours.