Go here for more information and to sign up and [...]]]> These five short stories are not available anywhere else: Contract for Lois, Nurse Jean, Driving the Galaxie, 9 Minutes to 1960, and Bottled Up. Subscribe to my free monthly newsletter, and you’ll receive these stories right now, plus another new short story each month.

Go here for more information and to sign up and get your five stories now.

Fancy words are fine for literary fiction. But in the mystery genre you [...]]]> Don’t Try to Impress the Reader with Fancy Words
Have you ever searched your Thesaurus for twenty minutes trying to find the perfect word? And when you found it, was it a word you’ve never used before? Throw it away.

Fancy words are fine for literary fiction. But in the mystery genre you don’t need or even want them. They’re just going to gum up the works. You’ll make the reader slow down and think about the words, and maybe even refer to a dictionary—or she might skip over words and miss what you’re trying to say. Congratulations. You’ve just killed your story.

Your prose should be transparent. The reader should not be thinking about the words at all. She should be seeing the story, living it.

Cut the Excess Words
Can you get your point across with less words? Then do it! Cut every unnecessary word. For example, the word “that” is often unneeded:

“She told him that he was not the man that she was looking for.”

Now, without the that’s: “She told him he was not the man she was looking for.”

Cut the Excess Sentences
Sometimes you can cut out an entire sentence and lose none of the meaning. Do it. An unneeded sentence just slows down your story. “But it adds to the meaning of the paragraph,” you say. Then keep it. But check it again. Does that sentence truly add something? Or have you simply fallen in love with the way it rolls off your tongue?

Similes, Metaphors, Allusions
Should you eliminate all similes, metaphors, and allusions from your mystery novel? No. They can be beautiful, powerful, and highly effective. But use them sparingly. Sometimes a face truly is poetry. Sometimes a voice is like a Nightingale’s. Sometimes an allusion is just what you need to make your point. But use these figures of speech sparingly—like salt. A sprinkle can sometimes make your prose more tasty, but pouring it on will render your story inedible.

Make Every Word Count
Do you like it when a reader skips over parts of your writing? Neither do I. But how can you train her to read every word? By letting her know from the very first paragraph that your writing contains absolutely no fat. When she realizes she can’t skip over words without missing something important, she will begin to read every one of them.

Words are the Tools
Words are the tools—they’re not the story. So use them wisely to capture your reader’s imagination, and entice her to spend time in the murder mystery world you’ve created.

1. Which character was in two Greg Tenorly books as well as in Sweet Ginger Poison? Answer: Jane Appletree (Bicycle Shop Murder, Hideaway Hospital Murders)

2. Which character was in Illusion of Luck and [...]]]> If you haven’t taken the quiz yet, go here to take it. This page has the questions AND the answers.

1. Which character was in two Greg Tenorly books as well as in Sweet Ginger Poison?
Answer: Jane Appletree (Bicycle Shop Murder, Hideaway Hospital Murders)

2. Which character was in Illusion of Luck and Naked Frame?
Answer: Rebecca Ranghorn

3. Which character went to college with Greg Tenorly?
Answer: Sandy Vockelman (Illusion of Luck)

4. Which character enjoyed reading romance novels?
Answer: Macy Golong (Hideaway Hospital Murders)

5. Which character wrote a cheerleading cheer?
Answer: Lucky Larry (Illusion of Luck)

6. Which character’s name sounds like a mathematical theorem?
Answer: Phillipa Thagery (Naked Frame)

7. Which character was poisoned and then barbequed?
Answer: Erin (Lucky Larry’s live-in girlfriend – Illusion of Luck)

8. Which character owned the popular Buttard Biscuit Restaurant?
Answer: Billy-Eye Buttard (Fly the Rain)

9. Which character was named after a car?
Answer: Edsel ‘Ed’ Torkman (Fly the Rain)

10. Which character tried to run Greg Tenorly’s car into an oncoming 18-wheeler?
Answer: John X (Bicycle Shop Murder)

11. Which character died of an allergic reaction?
Answer: Navy Newcomb (Sweet Ginger Poison)

12. Which character framed Rebecca Ranghorn?
Answer: Big Bill Smotherburn (Naked Frame)

13. Which character nearly drowned with his best friend tied to his back?
Answer: Gabby G’Blee (Naked Frame)

14. Which character nearly married a con artist?
Answer: Dr. Elmo Mobley (Hideaway Hospital Murders)

15. Which character wanted to be governor of Texas?
Answer: Buford Bellowin (Bicycle Shop Murder)

1. Which character was in two [...]]]> (This quiz was included in one of my Insider Newsletters a few months ago.) If you’ve read all my books you just might know the answers to these questions about my characters. Jot down your answers and then follow the link at the bottom for the question/answer sheet.

1. Which character was in two Greg Tenorly books as well as in Sweet Ginger Poison?

2. Which character was in Illusion of Luck and Naked Frame?

3. Which character went to college with Greg Tenorly?

4. Which character enjoyed reading romance novels?

5. Which character wrote a cheerleading cheer?

6. Which character’s name sounds like a mathematical theorem?

7. Which character was poisoned and then barbequed?

8. Which character owned the popular Buttard Biscuit Restaurant?

9. Which character was named after a car?

10. Which character tried to run Greg Tenorly’s car into an oncoming 18-wheeler?

11. Which character died of an allergic reaction?

12. Which character framed Rebecca Ranghorn?

13. Which character nearly drowned with his best friend tied to his back?

14. Which character nearly married a con artist?

15. Which character wanted to be governor of Texas?

Go to question/answer sheet

How does that sound? Your name at the top of bestseller lists. Instant name recognition. Tons of cash in the bank.

That would be cool. And few writers would turn it down. But back to reality. That’s a lot of pressure. Only one person can [...]]]> You are the greatest writer on the planet.

How does that sound? Your name at the top of bestseller lists. Instant name recognition. Tons of cash in the bank.

That would be cool. And few writers would turn it down. But back to reality. That’s a lot of pressure. Only one person can be the best. And what IS the best anyway? Who determines that?

Fifty years ago, an actor or singer who had a little talent, an interesting personality, the right timing, and some luck, just might make it big. But these days there’s American Idol, America’s Got Talent, So You Think You Can Dance, Project Runway, etc. So unless you have an amazing gift for singing, acting, modeling, whatever—you don’t stand a chance.

But wait—that’s not true. Every week I see a new actor or singer breaking out who doesn’t have near the level of talent exhibited in these reality shows. So how are they finding success? Luck? Timing? Connections?

All of those things can play a part. But I also think it has a lot to do with our uniqueness as human beings. No two of us are exactly alike. Whoever you are, you bring something special to the table. And in some small way (or big way) your uniqueness impacts the world.

As writers, we need to develop our craft, to continually be learning, improving. But it’s not about being better than other writers. It’s about being the best version of ourselves. Anything else is fake. I can’t be a better version of John Grisham (one of my faves), but I can certainly be better version of myself.

When readers go searching for a new writer, they’re looking for a another unique voice—not a pale imitation of one they already know.

So instead of trying to be the greatest writer in the world, work at being the best YOU. Develop your talent. Be the best writer you can be. And share your unique writing voice with the world.

It’s something that nobody else on the planet can do.

But it can be very discouraging if just when your book sales begin to take off, the bookseller [...]]]> There is plenty of turmoil in the publishing, distribution, and bookselling industries these days. At least we, as authors, have the one thing that none of these businesses can do without: the content that readers want.

But it can be very discouraging if just when your book sales begin to take off, the bookseller makes a software algorithm change or does a big promotion that causes your book to drop like a rock. And there’s nothing you can do about it. Right?

Actually, there is something you can do about it. You can establish your own personal connection with your readers. It’s not easy, since most of them shop on Amazon, B&N, Apple, etc., and never go to your website.

But there are so many ways to connect with readers these days: Twitter, Facebook, and many other social media, plus your blog or website. And this is great. But once you’ve made those connections, then what do you do? It’s difficult to keep up with everybody you meet online. And it’s particularly challenging to keep them interested in what you’re doing, considering it can be several months between book releases.

I recommend offering a free newsletter. That’s what I do, and it’s working very well for me. My Insider Newsletter goes out once per month, and always includes a brand new flash fiction short story.

That element is crucial: you must give them a good reason to sign up. If all you’re going to do in your newsletter is blab about yourself, nobody’s going to sign up.

Why were they attracted to you in the first place? Because they enjoy reading your fiction. So write them some more fiction, Baby. Every month.

It’s really not that hard if you go with flash fiction, since it’s only 1,000 words or less. Some of mine are a good bit longer than that, but nobody’s complaining.

“But it’s too much trouble,” you say. Or, “I don’t have the time.” Actually, once you’ve done your first edition, it’s pretty easy, and it doesn’t take long at all.

Ready to give it a try? First, you need a good mail marketing service. I use iContact (and nobody’s paying me to say it), and I’ve been very happy with it.

You just select a template, fill in your news, story, and picture(s), paste their code into your website or blog and boom! You’ve got your very own newsletter.

Now you promote it, telling your readers how wonderful it will be to get a free story from you in their Inbox each month. They fill in their email address and that’s it.

After a few months, you’ll have hundreds of subscribers, and whenever you have a new book coming out you can simply tell your fans in the newsletter. You never lose contact with them.

And imagine having thousands of subscribers. They’re fans, so when you promote that new book in the newsletter, a decent percentage of them are gonna go right out and buy that sucker. And then they’re going to love it and tell all their friends about it!

So everybody’s happy. It’s great. Try it.

P.S. You can also set things up so that new subscribers automatically get a few back issues. I give five back issues to my new subscribers on the day they sign up. And remember, each one has a short story in it that is not available anywhere else. Nice incentive, huh?

Description: Chip’s life is changed forever after an encounter with bullies in the woods on Halloween night.

Read it online (1,898 words.) Download the PDF

Get [...]]]> Here is the audio version of my humorous short story, Prince of Pumpkinshire. It’s read by me, so I hope you enjoy the Texas accent.

Description: Chip’s life is changed forever after an encounter with bullies in the woods on Halloween night.

Read it online (1,898 words.)
Download the PDF

For me, writing fiction is like being in The Matrix.

When I began learning to write fiction, I was like Neo when he first awoke—learning martial arts from the master, Morpheus. I plugged into My [...]]]> Have you seen the movie, The Matrix? If you haven’t, you won’t understand what I am about to say.

For me, writing fiction is like being in The Matrix.

When I began learning to write fiction, I was like Neo when he first awoke—learning martial arts from the master, Morpheus. I plugged into My Matrix in training mode. I got beat up pretty badly. A bloody nose didn’t stop me. I kept learning.

Then I got a little crazy, thinking I could write like the masters. I took the giant leap. And at first, I was flying high. But ultimately, like Neo, I came up short, and plummeted to the reality of my unworthiness.

But I kept working at it. I became proficient. My writing was good, but not magical. What was I missing? How were other writers doing what seemed impossible? They could control the reader—bending his mind like the young boy bent the spoon in The Matrix. At first Neo thought the boy was able to manipulate physical objects through powers of mental concentration. He asked the boy how he was doing it.

Spoon Boy: Do not try and bend the spoon; that’s impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth.

Neo: What truth?

Spoon Boy: There is no spoon.

Neo: There is no spoon?

Spoon Boy: Then you will see, it is not the spoon that bends, it is only yourself.

So, Neo began to understand the truth. There is nothing physical in The Matrix. It’s all in your mind. After that, Neo became more and more powerful—to the point that he could defeat The Agents, and even take over the body of Agent Smith and explode it.

Now, when I plug into My Matrix, I control everything. I create people (characters). I go into their minds and bodies and make them do whatever I want. I see what they see, feel what they feel.

And if I truly become The One, My Matrix will seem as real as The Real World. And once a reader plugs into My Matrix, she will not know the difference.

As a fiction writer, I can bend the reader’s mind at will—as long as I remember: THERE IS NO SPOON.

It is amazing. And [...]]]> Today I received an email from a ten year old girl named Jane Cooper. She asked me for permission to illustrate my flash fiction short story Santa Closet. Jane has a blog, The Vacation Called Life, where she writes stories and illustrates them. So I decided to check it out.

It is amazing. And wonderful. And hilarious. I laugh out loud every time I read one of her stories. They would be funny even without the illustrations, but her drawings make them twice as funny.

You may find it hard to believe you are reading the work of a ten year old, since she has a better grasp of the language than most high school graduates. But it’s true.

Check out Jane’s illustrated version of Santa Closet.

Here’s one of her illustrations:

I’m not so concerned about young children reading my books. It don’t think [...]]]>

What if novels and other fiction came with parental guidance like movies? Could the rating system of the Motion Picture Association of America be applied to books? Imagine a PG-13 mystery. Or an R-rated thriller. Seem like a silly idea?

I’m not so concerned about young children reading my books. It don’t think they would be interest in them anyway. But sometimes adults start reading a book they think has the language/sex/violence/etc. of a G or PG-rated movie, only to be offended when it turns out to be more like R-rated.

The first book of my Greg Tenorly Suspense Series, Bicycle Shop Murder, would be G-rated, I think. There is no sex, no language, and just a couple of brief bits of slightly graphic violence.

So some readers were shocked, expecting Book Two, Hideaway Hospital Murders, to be the same. It has no language, but it does have more violence, and it has several somewhat graphic sexual situations. It’s actually a romantic suspense. It would be a strong PG-13.

Book Three, Illusion of Luck, has no language, but it has some violence and some sexual situations—although much tamer than the ones in Hideaway Hospital Murders. The most alarming aspect of this book is the villain—who is the most despicable character I’ve ever created. He makes me cringe. I would give this one a PG-13, mostly because of the creepiness of the bad guy.

Book Four, Fly the Rain, (yeah, weird title) has no language, but has some fairly strong sexual situations and some violence. I would give it a PG.

The first book of my Ginger Lightley Cozy Mystery Series, Sweet Ginger Poison, is easily G-rated. I would think all cozies would be rated G.

The first book of my Rebecca Ranghorn Mystery Series, Naked Frame, would earn a PG-13, I think. There is some nudity and there are sexual references, and fairly strong language. Some people would give this one an R-rating just because they are offended by talk of nude waitresses and hookers. But of course, the only place you’re seeing the nude bodies is in your mind.

Maybe authors should stamp each of their books with a rating. If they did, perhaps they would get fewer one-star reviews from readers who were offended by an R-rated book they bought, thinking it was a G.

DESCRIPTION:Ginger and her fellow Domino Girls pool their funds to buy an old Colonial-style home on the outskirts of town and convert it into a bed and breakfast. The house [...]]]>

Ginger Dead House is the sequel to my Kindle bestselling cozy mystery, Sweet Ginger Poison. UPDATE (1-10-12): GINGER DEAD HOUSE is available now

DESCRIPTION:Ginger and her fellow Domino Girls pool their funds to buy an old Colonial-style home on the outskirts of town and convert it into a bed and breakfast. The house is rumored to be haunted—which enables them to get the place at a bargain. They name it “Ginger Bread House,” banking on Ginger’s notoriety as a famous cake baker to bring in the guests. She will provide a daily supply of her freshly-baked cakes to sweeten their stay.

But on the very first night, guests begin to see and hear strange things. Ginger manages to settle them down—until one of the guests is found dead. News quickly spreads, and gossipers rename the new bed & breakfast, “Ginger DEAD House.” Now every phone call is another cancellation.

The Domino Girls see their life savings about to go down the drain. So Ginger proposes that the four of them work together to solve the mystery of the ghosts and the murder. “Domino Sleuth Club” is born.

But their task may prove more difficult and dangerous than anyone could have imagined.

Buy the eBook

Three of my other books have also been on bestseller lists. [...]]]> My cozy mystery, Sweet Ginger Poison is on several Kindle Bestseller lists: #4 in Women Sleuths, #6 in Mystery, #28 in Suspense. The chart below is screenshot of the sales info from my Amazon Author Central account. (Click for a larger view.)

Three of my other books have also been on bestseller lists. Naked Frame is the most consistent seller of the three.

So how do I do it? Out of the 750,000 books in the Kindle store, what did I do to get my books ranked so highly? I don’t exactly know. I mean, there’s no secret, guaranteed formula.

But I can tell you the things I did for each book:

• Wrote the best book I could.
• Created an attractive cover that looks good even when it’s tiny.
• Wrote a good description, including some quotes from fans.
• Set a fair price. (I think $0.99 is a good price for the size books I write)

I also…

• Give away a lot of my writing on my website.
• Stay in touch with fans on Facebook.
• Publish a free email newsletter. Each issue contains a new flash fiction short story that’s not available anywhere else.
• Comment on author and publishing blogs when I have something to add to the conversation.
• Tweet. (I just set up a Twitter account.)

The things I can’t control, which are the magic ingredient in the recipe of bestsellerdom:

• People who post a great review.
• People who blog or tweet about your book.
• People who tell everybody they know about your book, both online and offline.

Did you notice the common factor in the list of things you can’t control? That’s right. It’s PEOPLE. It they love your book, nothing can stop it from shooting up the bestseller list. So, bottom line: do everything you can to help the book succeed. But in the end, you’d better hope readers love your book—or it’s going nowhere.

Description: The dying words of a ruthless businessman to his daughter seem to implicate her fiancé. She lies to the cops, leading them to believe his death was [...]]]> I’m very excited about the new cover for my second Rebecca Ranghorn mystery, ICY HOLLOW. Now I just have to finish writing the book.

Description: The dying words of a ruthless businessman to his daughter seem to implicate her fiancé. She lies to the cops, leading them to believe his death was accidental. Then she secretly hires a private investigator. Were her father’s words a last ditch effort to control her life? Or is her fiancé truly a murderer?

To read a short story, click on it’s cover:

Get five new short stories FREE right [...]]]> Read my short stories free online. I write stories in various genres and combinations of genres, such as suspense, crime, humor, horror, fantasy, and adventure. (I also write mystery and suspense novels.)

To read a short story, click on it’s cover:

SYNOPSIS: Chip’s life is changed forever after an encounter with bullies in the woods on Halloween night. Length: 1,898 words.

So, read it to your junior high students or send them to [...]]]>

One of my favorite short stories I’ve written is Prince of Pumkinshire. It’s a fun Halloween story for junior high kids.

SYNOPSIS: Chip’s life is changed forever after an encounter with bullies in the woods on Halloween night. Length: 1,898 words.

So, read it to your junior high students or send them to my website to read it. You can also download the PDF.

Happy Halloween! Enjoy!