A Shift in Book Signing Methods

By Chester Campbell

I've done hundreds of bookstore signings all around the country since my first Greg McKenzie mystery came out in 2002. I've attended dozens of mystery conferences and conventions where I sat at a table hoping someone would come along with a book to sign, but I don't recall a store event when I didn't sell a book. There have been some where the number was terribly few, but many others have produced a decent amount of sales.

I've noticed a change in the climate over the past couple of years. Fewer bookstore patrons seem interested in trying a new author they're unfamiliar with. And working closely with my current small press publisher, I've learned more about the industry's problems. Like when a store orders twenty copies and the author sells only ten, returns decimate the profits.

As a result, I have just about stopped my bookstore signings. I can make more money and avoid the returns problem by concentrating on festivals and fairs and similar events. So far this year I have done a library author day, the Southern Kentucky BookFest, Franklin (TN) Main Street Festival, and Cool Springs (Mall) Festival of Art, Music and Books. Upcoming are the RC Cola & Moon Pie Festival, Horse Cave (KY) Bookfest, Gallatin (TN) Main Street Festival, and Kentucky Book Fair.

I'll add others as the opportunities arise. I find people at events like these more willing to try new authors, and happily I've had an increasing number of readers stop by to add more of my books to their collections. Although the book fairs usually will order your books for the event, I volunteer to bring my own, thus avoiding the problem of returns.

Since I've made all of my books available as ebooks, I'm selling a lot more online than on paper. And though I price my books low, with Amazon and Smashwords' royalty rates, I still come out okay. I suppose this is part of the changing paradigm of the book business. I do a lot less traveling and spend less on book promotion.

I remember back in my early days I kept hearing that you should break even on your fourth book. Now that I have eight out, I can assure you it ain't necessarily so.

Visit me at Mystery Mania

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What Scares You?

With the exception of anything political, are there certain things that really give you the willies?

Spiders and lizards and snakes are some folks bug-a-boos. When you live in an old house in the country like ours, you get used to dispatching spiders, grabbing a lizard and shooing it outside, and staying out of a snake's way. (I call my husband to take care of those.) We also have scorpions that trespass inside. I even had one in bed with me once--I don't like them, but they don't scare me.

I don't like heights. I don't mind flying, but it makes me uncomfortable to even see kids standing at the edge of a cliff. (The Grand Canyon made me a nervous wreck.) Driving on a winding mountain road with a drop off is horrifying to me. I no longer do the driving on such roads and as a passenger I stare away from the drop off.

Some people are afraid of the dark. Doesn't bother me at all. In fact I sleep better if it's really dark.

I don't like the L.A. freeways and some of the drivers are downright scary they way they drive in and out, barely missing the cars they pass.

Escalators are one of my bugaboos. Oh, I get on the, but I have to hang on to both sides. In airports I always look for the elevator as I can't manage my luggage and an escalator. Back when I was a kid, and escalators weren't nearly as safe as they are now, someone got caught in an escalator and was pretty mangled before it was turned off. I've even had nightmares about escalators.

Are you afraid of ghosts? Not me, I love to visit haunted places. Never have actually seen a ghost, though I've felt what might've been their presence. All of our grandkids insist our house is haunted. Doors to open and shut when no one is around, My philosophy is despite movies to the contrary, a ghost can't hurt you.
I've included ghosts in many of my Deputy Tempe Crabtree series.

What about being home alone? There have been times in earlier years when we've had someone try to get in the house when I was alone with kids. I was brave in those days and grabbed a baseball bat and ran after the person, swinging the bad and hollering. I'm home alone off and on here, but I can't imagine anyone wanting to come down here with evil on the mind. If someone did, I suspect I'd manage to deal with it.

So what are your fears? What scares you the most?

Marilyn

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SUMMER IS FOR RERUNS AND REWRITING

by Earl Staggs 

It’s that time of the year.  The few shows I enjoy on TV are shut down for the season and I have no interest in those that are not.  I’m not interested in vampires and werewolves, and I don’t like sitcoms in which stupidity and gross behavior are supposed to be funny.  

My wife and I enjoy talent shows, but American Idol and Dancing With the Stars are finished for the year.  We’re not interested in any of their clones.  America’s Got Talent doesn’t interest us. They seem to show more bizarre idiots than actual talented performers.  So You Think You Can Dance was fun the first couple of years, but we’ve seen enough hip hopping, head-spinning, street kids to last us for a while. 

So that leaves checking out reruns in hopes of catching episodes we missed of NCIS, Criminal Minds, In Plain Sight, or other crime shows we like.  We also like true crime shows and will look for new ones on Dateline and 48 Hours.  There are several other true crime series, and we’ll check them all. 

All in all, however, I’ll devote more time to writing and rewriting.  That’s a good thing and I should be doing more of that, even when my favorite shows are back in season.   

Discipline, Earl, discipline.  Definitely a good thing if I want to get more writing done. 

I’m going to work on that. 

Meanwhile, I still like to kick back for the last hour or two of each day and stretched out on the sofa watching TV is a great way to do that.  My mind is too fuzzy that late in the day for good reading.

Any suggestions for something worth watching during these hiatus days will be greatly appreciated.

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A Sisters Mystery Writing Team

by Jean Henry Mead

Sisters Loretta Jackson and Vickie Britton collaborate on two mystery series featuring Wyoming Sheriff Jeff McQuede and archaeologist Ardin Cole. They've co-authored forty-two books, over a hundred short stories and articles, and have traveled to Russia, China, Scotland and other countries for research.

 When did the two of you decide to collaborate? 

We first joined forces to write a mystery-romance entitled, Path of the Jaguar. Although we had always critiqued each other’s work, we had written solo for a number of years. Then, while on vacation in the Yucatan, we were struck by the same idea for a story and were interested in using this exotic place as a setting. Although we were accustomed to editing each other's work, writing a book together was an entirely new concept. However, we were pleased with the results, and we’ve been collaborating ever since.

Does one of you begin the book and then pass it on to the other? And what happens when you disagree on the plot?

Basically, one of us rough-drafts a section of the book, generally a chapter, and the other edits. This method allows each to have input into every chapter and gives our writing unity. Luckily, our writing goals and styles are very similar.

We don’t often run into big disagreements because we use a detailed plot outline and discuss the characters in depth, Of course, sometimes the book takes an unexpected turn, and when that happens, we talk and compromise. We have often been asked, “Do you have to sacrifice creativity to write with another person?” The answer for us is a definite no. Working together increases the flow of ideas. We learn from one another and have as a result expanded our interests. The merging of our individual creativity produces a novel neither one of us would have created alone, yet one that is uniquely our own.

Tell us about Sheriff Jeff McQuede.

In our first full-length McQuede novel, Murder in Black and White, Wyoming sheriff Jeff McQuede becomes suspicious when a robber breaks into the Coal County Museum and steals only one item—a black and white class photograph. Under the name Jerome Slade the photographer had printed two ominous words: Never Graduated. Then, when a body is unearthed beneath the newly-demolished school, McQuede realizes Slade had not left Black Mountain the night of the spring dance. He uncovers hidden rivalries between Slade and his classmates. When he discovers that Heather Kenwell and the woman of his dreams, Loris Conner, were rivals for Slade’s affection, McQuede fears finding out the truth. Theft, blackmail, and another brutal killing lead to photographs taken by Black Mountain’s eccentric photographer, Bruce Fenton. While others see an innocent collection, McQuede sees murder in black and white.

Why did you decide to place the series in Wyoming?

We share a love for the Old West. Loretta taught English and Creative Writing on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Vickie lived in Laramie, Wyoming, for fifteen years, where she took courses on forensics and history at the university. We were fascinated by the heroes, the outlaws, and the legends of the area. This resulted in the completion of our three-book Luck of the Draw western series: The Devil’s Game, The Fifth Ace, and The Wild Card, published by Avalon Books, and Robert Hale’s Stone of Vengeance, which concerns the legend of Tom Horn.

Jeff McQuede, a rugged, but appealing, contemporary sheriff grew out of this body of work—westerns with their strong elements of mystery. Sheriff McQuede first appeared in a collection of short stories, A Deal on a Handshake, released from Whiskey Creek Press in Casper. He is the star of the High Country Mystery series purchased by Avalon. The first three novels are Murder in Black and White, Whispers of the Stones, and Stealer of Horses.

How did your Ardis Cole mystery series originate?

Ardis Cole is our first series character, an archaeologist who travels to exotic places around the world. In the course of investigating an old mystery, a new crime develops. To make our settings authentic, we traveled to Russia, China, Scotland, and other locations. The first book, The Curse of Senmut, is set in Egypt. Books in Motion published the eight books as an original audio series. They will all soon be offered in hardback and paperback from Rowe Publishing. 

Our interest in archaeology inspired us to begin another series for Solstice Press, the Arla Vaughn: Pre-Columbian Treasure Series. The first two books in the series are The Mayan Mask of Death and The Lost City of the Condor.

What are the best and worst aspects of writing?

The most important advantage to the creative life is the continuing possibility for growth. In his old age right before his death, Michelangelo stated that he wished he could begin his work at the point that he was ending it. A writer always has plans and goals and that makes his or her life happy and meaningful.

With so much to learn, the worst part of writing is the long apprenticeship. In addition, the same people who write could make more money in some other field, for, although good at times, the pay for most part is never steady or dependable. Writers must be concerned with other compensation—they provide instruction and entertainment for others.

Who most influenced your own writing?

While we often enjoy reading the same author and types of books, our influences were very different. Loretta reads Erle Stanley Gardner and many Western authors such as Louis L’Amour. She loves the vivid, terse style of John Steinbeck and Ernest Hemingway. On the other hand, Vickie grew up loving gothics, which were very popular at the time, so writers such as Phyllis Whitney and Virginia Coffman were a big influence. She is also intrigued by Somerset Maugham and Ruth Rendell, whose works contain such excellent characterization. Authors shared in common include Aaron Elkins, Margaret Coel, and Tony Hillerman.

Advice to fledgling collaborators?

When writing a book together, it is most important that both writers have the same vision of the finished novel. Even then, they must make compromises. Many partnerships fail because one writer stubbornly clings to a chapter or idea that doesn’t fit with what the other author is writing or which doesn’t quite fit into the book as a whole. You must build on the other writer’s work and not go off in a different direction or destroy or “unwrite” what the other has accomplished. Fortunately we share similar backgrounds and experiences, which make co-authoring much easier.

We have just completed a guideline for creative writers entitled, Fiction: From Writing to Publication, one we hope will be of use to others in the exciting journey of creating a novel.

 When did the two of you decide to collaborate? 

We first joined forces to write a mystery-romance entitled, Path of the Jaguar. Although we had always critiqued each other’s work, we had written solo for a number of years. Then, while on vacation in the Yucatan, we were struck by the same idea for a story and were interested in using this exotic place as a setting. Although we were accustomed to editing each other's work, writing a book together was an entirely new concept. However, we were pleased with the results, and we’ve been collaborating ever since.

Does one of you begin the book and then pass it on to the other? And what happens when you disagree on the plot?

Basically, one of us rough-drafts a section of the book, generally a chapter, and the other edits. This method allows each to have input into every chapter and gives our writing unity. Luckily, our writing goals and styles are very similar.

We don’t often run into big disagreements because we use a detailed plot outline and discuss the characters in depth, Of course, sometimes the book takes an unexpected turn, and when that happens, we talk and compromise. We have often been asked, “Do you have to sacrifice creativity to write with another person?” The answer for us is a definite no. Working together increases the flow of ideas. We learn from one another and have as a result expanded our interests. The merging of our individual creativity produces a novel neither one of us would have created alone, yet one that is uniquely our own.

Why did you decide to place the series in Wyoming?

We share a love for the Old West. Loretta taught English and Creative Writing on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Vickie lived in Laramie, Wyoming, for fifteen years, where she took courses on forensics and history at the university. We were fascinated by the heroes, the outlaws, and the legends of the area. This resulted in the completion of our three-book Luck of the Draw western series: The Devil’s Game, The Fifth Ace, and The Wild Card, published by Avalon Books, and Robert Hale’s Stone of Vengeance, which concerns the legend of Tom Horn.

Jeff McQuede, a rugged, but appealing, contemporary sheriff grew out of this body of work—westerns with their strong elements of mystery. Sheriff McQuede first appeared in a collection of short stories, A Deal on a Handshake, released from Whiskey Creek Press in Casper. He is the star of the High Country Mystery series purchased by Avalon. The first three novels are Murder in Black and White, Whispers of the Stones, and Stealer of Horses.

How did your Ardis Cole mystery series originate?

Ardis Cole is our first series character, an archaeologist who travels to exotic places around the world. In the course of investigating an old mystery, a new crime develops. To make our settings authentic, we traveled to Russia, China, Scotland, and other locations. The first book, The Curse of Senmut, is set in Egypt. Books in Motion published the eight books as an original audio series. They will all soon be offered in hardback and paperback from Rowe Publishing.

Our interest in archaeology inspired us to begin another series for Solstice Press, the Arla Vaughn: Pre-Columbian Treasure Series. The first two books in the series are The Mayan Mask of Death and The Lost City of the Condor.

What are the best and worst aspects of writing?

The most important advantage to the creative life is the continuing possibility for growth. In his old age right before his death, Michelangelo stated that he wished he could begin his work at the point that he was ending it. A writer always has plans and goals and that makes his or her life happy and meaningful.

With so much to learn, the worst part of writing is the long apprenticeship. In addition, the same people who write could make more money in some other field, for, although good at times, the pay for most part is never steady or dependable. Writers must be concerned with other compensation—they provide instruction and entertainment for others.

Who most influenced your own writing?

While we often enjoy reading the same author and types of books, our influences were very different. Loretta reads Erle Stanley Gardner and many Western authors such as Louis L’Amour. She loves the vivid, terse style of John Steinbeck and Ernest Hemingway. On the other hand, Vickie grew up loving gothics, which were very popular at the time, so writers such as Phyllis Whitney and Virginia Coffman were a big influence. She is also intrigued by Somerset Maugham and Ruth Rendell, whose works contain such excellent characterization. Authors shared in common include Aaron Elkins, Margaret Coel, and Tony Hillerman.

Advice to fledgling collaborators?

When writing a book together, it is most important that both writers have the same vision of the finished novel. Even then, they must make compromises. Many partnerships fail because one writer stubbornly clings to a chapter or idea that doesn’t fit with what the other author is writing or which doesn’t quite fit into the book as a whole. You must build on the other writer’s work and not go off in a different direction or destroy or “unwrite” what the other has accomplished. Fortunately we share similar backgrounds and experiences, which make co-authoring much easier.

We have just completed a guideline for creative writers entitled, Fiction: From Writing to Publication, one we hope will be of use to others in the exciting journey of creating a novel.

Vickie and Loretta are featured in the recent release, The Mystery Writers.

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So Much for Schedules and What's Coming Next

The first and third Tuesday of the month are my days to post--but I didn't get around to doing mine last Tuesday so I'm making up for it now.

I didn't really forget, I just got swept out to sea. Not really, of course, but I've felt that way.

My computer didn't crash, but would have soon. My Word and email just weren't acting right. After 3 days with techs in India and one from Microsoft (also in India) the conslusion was that my Windows were corrupted. This meant everything was wiped out and new Windows installed. All my files were gone. Fortunately, I have Mozy which is an offsite back-up program and I was able to get all my files back and into the right places. (Though writing it sounds like it was all easy, I can tell you that I spent 3 days of anxiety, stress, screaming--yes--and crying.)

Of couse my to-do list grew and grew while all this was going on. I've managed to whittle it down a bit, but of course new chores keep jumping on the list.

I do have some news though. My publisher is going to republish two of the earlier books in the Rocky Bluff P.D. series, Fringe Benefits and Smell of Death.

This series has gone through a transition through the past years. The earlier books are much darker than the latest four.

Fringe Benefits is about a very bad cop. Some of the characters in later books are in this one, plus some who've disappeared over the years--and I don't think I said where they went.

Smell of Death is about a missing child and the beginnng of the romance between Officer Stacey Wilbur and Detective Doug Milligan.

For now though, if you haven't dipped into any of the Rocky Bluff P.D. crime novels you might want to read the latest, No Bells. None of the books in this series have to bead in order--each one is complete in itself. Though there's a murder in No Bells, this book definitely has its lighter moments.

It's available as a trade paperback from Amazon and Barnes and Nobel, and for an autographed copy you can order from my website http://fictionforyou.com/ and it's also availabe for Kindle and the Nook. Remember I wrote it as F.M. Meredith.

Hopefully things will settle down a bit, and I'll try to post on the correct day next month.

Marilyn

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Please Welcome The Mystery Author Duo, Evelyn David

Today, I'm happy to host the fab writing duo known everywhere as Evelyn David. Let's see what they have to say about humor in mysteries.

Don't Take the Fun Out of It!
by Evelyn David


It's no surprise that Mark Twain had something to say about the need for humor in life. Actually he had many things to say, but one that stuck out is: “Humor is mankind's greatest blessing.” But we were unprepared that even Mahatma Ghandi understood that the need to laugh is essential for survival. According to Ghandi: “If I had no sense of humor, I would long ago have committed suicide.”

Humor is part of each of our books. It's not that we're trying to be stand-up comedians. As writers, we tend to be solitary types, holed up in our attic garrets churning out breathless prose, or as we prefer to think of it, murder and mayhem. But writing is inherently full of rejection and disappointment. If you can't laugh about it, at least most of the time, you need to find another profession. Or to take it a step further, as Ghandi reminds us, if we don't laugh, the alternative may well be much more dire.

Sometimes the humor in our books is essentially slapstick. Take Brianna Sullivan, the psychic who finds herself unexpectedly landing in Lottawatah, Oklahoma. The name of the town is enough to induce a chuckle. She lives in a motor home named Matilda, with hair that, according to her, often resembles a Chia pet. The reader has learned, from that brief description, a lot about Brianna Sullivan – and undoubtedly also about Evelyn David. Sure we like the droll humor of Noel Coward, but we're also perfectly happy to induce a belly laugh ala The Three Stooges.

In the most recent Brianna mystery, GOOD GRIEF IN LOTTAWATAH, our sleuth has taken a job at the local funeral parlor. (Here's a sample.)

Doc was in his office tying fishing lures. I hesitated at the doorway, but he waved me in.

"How's the dead body business treating you?"

I guess you've got to have a slightly morbid sense of humor to last long in this field.

I sat down across from him and twirled one of the intricate lures between my fingers. "Between the relatives of the deceased acting like the living dead, and way too many spirits flitting around with endless orders and questions, for a dead zone, there hasn't been much peace."

Doc laughed. "I guess you're literally getting them coming and going. I knew you'd be an asset in this business. Work hard and you could own the place when I decide to retire."

Two days on the job and Doc had big plans for my future. "Kill me now."

In our newest mystery, ZONED FOR MURDER, the story is a little darker, the issues a little deeper. Maggie Brooks is a Newsweek reporter with two kids, a dead husband, and a mortgage to pay. Landing a job with a local paper, she's bored to tears covering bake sales and Little League games. She faces a lot of competition when she tries to get back into the shrinking newspaper business. But when a developer tries to build an outlet mall in a neighboring town, what starts out as potentially a great clip for her resume, suddenly turns dangerous and ugly. Someone will do anything to block the mall's construction. Dirty money, nasty politics, and shady land deals abound as Maggie pursues the scoop that might jumpstart her career. When murder is added to the mix, she realizes that meeting her deadline might be the last thing she ever does.

The book opens with Maggie struggling to cut up an old rug for bulk pickup by the sanitation department. It's a chore Pete, her late husband, would have normally done. She suddenly realizes that all that help people offer the bereaved is limited:

Sure, everybody wants to help when it comes to baking cookies, but where the Hell is everyone when I've got to cut up this damn rug?

"Well, let the games begin," I muttered. But my steely resolve faded over 45-minutes in the broiling sun, as first one blade and then another broke as I sawed my way through the rug.

"Shit, Pete, where the hell are you? You're never around when I need you." I laughed.

"Uh-oh, moving from the "let's get on with life" stage of grieving back to the "anger" stage. Been there, done that."

At last the rug was cut up in the required four-foot lengths, tied with string. I was dripping with sweat, my hair was frizzy and damp, but poor widow Brooks was triumphant.


It's that ability to laugh at the absurdities of life and even call herself "Poor Widow Brooks" that we think makes the character more human and makes the reader more easily relate to her. As Victor Borge once noted, "Laughter is the closest distance between two people."

We're not suggesting that life is one big giggle fest. Sure we all have our tough days (months, years?), but humor makes the tough times easier to bear, and the good times more fun. So here's what we promise. In all our books, you'll find killer stories, red herrings galore, mysteries to challenge you…and yes, a healthy dose of laughter. As the immortal Woody Allen said, "I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose."

Enjoy!

About Evelyn David 


The author of Murder Off the Books, Murder Takes the Cake, Riley Come Home, Moonlighting at the Mall, Zoned for Murder and The Brianna Sullivan Mysteries e-book series, Evelyn David is the pseudonym for Marian Edelman Borden and Rhonda Dossett.

Marian lives in New York and is the author of eleven nonfiction books on a wide variety of topics ranging from veterans benefits to playgroups for toddlers! For more information on these books, please visit her web site at http://www.marianedelmanborden.com/

Rhonda lives in Muskogee, Oklahoma, is the director of the coal program for the state, and in her spare time enjoys imagining and writing funny, scary mysteries. Marian and Rhonda write their mystery series via the internet. While many fans who attend mystery conventions have now chatted with both halves of Evelyn David, Marian and Rhonda have yet to meet in person.

Please check out Evelyn's website at http://www.evelyndavid.com/ and their blog – The Stiletto Gang - http://www.thestilettogang.blogspot.com/  for information about Evelyn David's appearance schedule and writing projects.
----------------
Amazon Buy Links:
Zoned for Murder - http://tinyurl.com/ZonedK

First Book in the Brianna Sullivan Mysteries series
I Try Not to Drive Past Cemeteries - http://tinyurl.com/psychicBS1



First Book in the Sullivan Investigation Mystery series
Murder Off the Books - http://tinyurl.com/motb3




Please leave a comment to welcome our Fab Duo here today.

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Home Defense, Part 3 -- The Pistol

by Ben Small

Let's get some facts straight about pistols, if you're considering one for home defense.

First, let's talk about accuracy. Face it, pistols aren't accurate much beyond seven yards. And even then, unless you've practiced often and are familiar with your gun, you're likely to tug on the trigger and flinch. If you're right-handed, a tug and flinch trigger-pull will send your bullet to the left of your target. You'll probably miss what you're shooting at all together. So where did your bullet go?

In just about every cop television show or movie, somebody's pulling a trigger. Most people think cops are good shots. Bhwhahaha! Not. In fact, most cops are lousy shots, and they shoot more often than you do. In 2008, the Rand Corporation conducted a study of New York City cop shootings, review processes and training. In doing so, they looked at, among other things, NYC cop shootings from 1998-2006, both where nobody was shooting back and where there was a gunfight. Rand Corporation NYC Cop Shooting Report On page 42 of that report they state that the average gunfight involved 11.1 shots fired, and a hit-rate of 18%. At distances of seven yards or less, the hit rate leaped to a whopping 37%.

Wow! Guess if you hear gunfire you'd be smart to duck.

Barrel length influences accuracy, as do the type of sights used and trigger pull. Of course, if it's dark and you can't see your pistol's sights -- night sights only help in low-light situations, and they glow less bright over time -- barrel length and sights won't help your aim much. And most home invasions occur at night. So you may not know where your barrel is pointing.

Snub nose revolvers, like the one pictured above, are notorious for inaccuracy, even during daylight hours. The reason: a short sight line along the barrel. The same goes for so-called pocket pistols, like the Baby Glock, the Model 26, pictured below.

NYC cops are issued Glocks with a longer barrel length, usually the Model 22, pictured below. Note the longer barrel length.

But NYC cops have an excuse for their lousy shooting. Actually, a few excuses. The standard Glock leaves the factory with a trigger pull weight between five and five and a half pounds. But this trigger pull weight is adjusted to twelve pounds before their pistols are issued. The purpose of the increase is to reduce the number of unintended discharges. But the increased trigger weight means more tugging to fire; hence, less accuracy. 

Another excuse relates to the gun-unfriendly laws of New York. There aren't many ranges, so cops don't get to practice much. Yet, most of you won't practice much either, and at least cops have their accuracy checked once in a while; they must qualify periodically. 

Sure, you can adjust your trigger weight to lighten the pull. But then if you ever have to actually shoot someone, the prosecutor and your victim's civil lawyer will both accuse you of being "trigger happy" because you installed a "hair-trigger." So, if you are going to use a pistol for home defense, your best bet is to leave trigger weight as it came from the manufacturer. Adjust trigger weight only on guns to be fired exclusively at the range.

So, do you opt for a still longer barrel, like on the Glock 34 and 17L, both shown below?

Glock 34

Glock 17L

You betcha! These are Glock's 9mm competition pistols, designed to be their most accurate. Besides, this is a home defense gun you're selecting; you're not going to carry it. And don't you want accuracy in home defense? If not, you may be shooting bystanders, your dog, or depending upon bullet and caliber chosen, your neighbor. But note: Glock barrels are treated with a formulation that can be scraped off by cleaning with a brass brush. So if you go Glock, only clean your gun with nylon brushes. And also note: Don't shoot soft lead bullets from a Glock. Glock barrels don't have the standard land and groove pattern of other pistols, and lead will clog them, resulting in less accuracy. I wonder how many NYC cops are aware of these two Glock peculiarities? So, if you're going to shoot lead bullets from a Glock, make sure your bullets are at least semi-jacketed (where the lead is covered at least partially by a copper jacket).

And since we're talking about accuracy, let's consider the choice between revolvers and semi-auto pistols. Revolvers are considered by many -- not by all gun experts -- to be slightly more accurate than semi-autos. The reason is the barrel is directly in line with the cylinder. In a semi-auto, the pistol is fed by a magazine below the chamber, and a spring in the magazine pushes the bullet up and along a ramp into the chamber. More functions to perform in which the bullet may be slightly mis-aligned. But I don't put much stock into this explanation, because most modern semi-autos have tight chambers. Rather, I think the real reason for a revolver preference among some is either reliability or just personal preference. Yes, semi-autos can jam, and a revolver will always go bang if there's a bullet in the cylinder aligned with the barrel. But revolvers can fail, too. Damage the extractor rod on the muzzle end of the cylinder or the crane, a small sprocket on the butt end of the cylinder, and see if a revolver shoots. How do you damage the crane? Try flipping the cylinder back like you see in the movies. Trust me: I did this on my grandfather's Smith & Wesson, and it cost me a bundle to fix. While a semi-auto may jam, it's easily cleared. Break the crane on your revolver, and you're done.

It's claimed a revolver requires less maintenance than a semi-auto, because there are fewer parts. But Glocks are famous for being abused, and they seem always to go bang. I've seen videos and television shows where Glocks were rusted up, tossed into sand, thrown into lakes and run over by trucks, and the pistols still chamber and fire.

Plus, semi-autos have more capacity than revolvers. Again, notice the statistic above of shots fired in a gun fight. A revolver holds five-to-seven shots, depending upon model, and reloading takes a while even with a stripper clip. A semi-auto mag holds more rounds, up to thirty-three with some Glocks.

Bottom line: Choose whatever suits you.

But grip and stance will affect your accuracy, too. The pistol that fits a spouse may not fit you. A bad grip will result in bad trigger pull. Your shots will go awry. With a semi-auto, you want to grip the pistol with two hands, with your support hand in front of your shooting hand. With a revolver, that grip will burn your hand, because hot gases will shoot out of the cylinder. With a revolver, your support hand should be underneath your firing hand.

Stance: Most range shooters and cops are taught to use either an Isosceles or a Weaver stance, sometimes, a slight modification to one of them. Both are pictured below.

Isosceles Stance

Weaver Stance

The problem is, in a real life situation like a home invasion at night, you may have to do the best you can.  There's another stance approaching more a real life scenario. Point stance. Align your finger with your eye and pull a fake trigger. One handed. That's a stance you may want to practice. Close up, it will work. Some pistols are claimed to "point" better than others. Sig Sauers for instance. You may find you shoot Sigs better in this stance than Glocks, for instance.

Notice also that in both the Isosceles and Weaver stances, you're offering a better target, full on so to speak, to the bad guy. He may be shooting back. More reasons to go to the range: Practice various stances. You may need one some time.

Caliber

During the first Obama-scare, .380s were hard to find. Seemed everybody wanted one. And if you could find one, you couldn't find ammo for it. Now, you may notice gun stores are full of them, but few people are buying them. Personally, I think .380s are mostly useless; they're back up to a back up at best. A .380 bullet may not even penetrate a heavy leather jacket. Okay, the bad guy may die of blood loss eventually, but he'll have more than enough time to kill you. 

I don't think any caliber less than a .38 Special is adequate for home defense or self-protection, unless as a back-up. The cardinal rule of a gun fight is to have a gun, yes. But in self-protection, you want more gun. But beware: Shoot a magnum round indoors in a closed room and you'll never hear again. Magnums are cannons that should only be fired outside and while wearing hearing protection. You may be deaf for an hour shooting a 9mm, a .40 S&W or even a .45 acp, but it'll likely be temporary. Shoot a magnum, and it's permanent. That's why I do not recommend a .357 magnum or a .44 magnum for home protection. If you have one, like this gorgeous Python below, use .38 Special rounds (or for the .44 magnum, the .44 Special). The rounds will work in these guns.

Be concerned about over-penetration and under-penetration. With the former, your bullets go through bad guys and people and walls behind them; with the latter, your bullets don't penetrate skin. Use hollow-point bullets, or jacketed hollow point rounds, so your bullets fragment and don't go through as many walls. Fully jacketed rounds will over-penetrate, go through your target and anybody or anything behind them, perhaps deflecting into unknown and unpredictable directions. Fully jacketed rounds are considered target or range rounds. Don't use them in your home defense gun, except at the range. 

But a non-jacketed hollow point fired out of a short barreled pistol, may clog with heavy cloth such as a winter jacket and not pass through to the bad guy's organs. The Shooting Sports and Ammunition Institute (SAAMI) has standardized bullet specifications. Manufacturers make ammo to these specs, and they also make ammo that exceeds SAAMI specs. Most manufacturers make Home Defense loads that tend to be jacketed hollow point +P rated, meaning these rounds exceed SAAMI specs by one level. +P+ rounds are scarier still, and using +P+ rounds on guns not rated for them may blow up your gun. Most pistol manufacturers state in their small print that using +P+ rounds will void their warranty. And if you use +P+ rounds on a bad guy, or if you roll you own so to speak, expect both a prosecutor and a civil lawyer to claim you were eager to kill...and overkill. 

And be aware of a peculiarity. In tests against ballistic jello formulated to match characteristics similar to the human body, a 9mm full jacketed bullet exceeded a .45 acp bullet in penetration. Again, think about where your bullet will go.

ballistic gel comparison

Man-stopping rounds are the .357 Magnum, the .40 S&W, the .45acp and larger. The 9mm, not so much. Those who like the 9mm argue capacity (number of rounds available), cheaper practice rounds and less recoil, important for follow-up shots and the flinch factor. Those who don't like 9mm rounds argue that the bad guy may not go down. They use the famous April 11, 1986 FBI disaster, when the 9mm toting Feebs were out gunned by bad guys, an instance that led to the development of the 10mm round and its offspring the .40 S&W cartridge (when the 10mm proved to be too powerful), as proof. And they've got a point. But the 9mm cartridge has a strong following, and I'm one of them. But for home defense, I use a .40 S&W; it's got a little more man-stopping oomph.

What Gun to Buy?

My first response is a shotgun, but we're talking pistols here. Damn! Somebody keep me on target.

The pistols I've referred to here mostly are Glocks. And there are some reasons for that. They work, for one, no matter what you do or don't do to them. Second, they're cheap. If you ever have to use your gun, you'll never see it again, at least not in any shape you'd want it. Cops don't treat evidence guns well. Neither do plaintiff's attorneys. Plus, Glocks come in any caliber or size you'd want. Yes, they're ugly as hell, but they work, they're cheap and a Glock is a Glock: they're damn near indestructible.

Sig Sauer P220

For feel, I love a Sig Sauer. They seem to fit a hand like a glove. And they point well. But unless you buy a plastic one -- models I happen to love -- they'll cost you about double the price of a Glock. If you want a German engineering masterpiece, albeit at a hefty price, buy a Heckler & Koch. Smith & Wesson makes numerous models, too, both in revolver and semi-auto flavors. And Springfield has a new XDm line, which is receiving rave reviews. They too offer different calibers and sizes. And, of course, the old timer, the 1911, which usually comes in either 9mm or .45 acp.

1911 by Nighthawk Custom

I choose a Glock 35, their competition model in .40 S&W, and I have mine fitted with night sights. (I also have a shotgun.)

But what you should do is choose your own pistol. Go to a gun range that offers rentals and try several. Get one that fits you and that you shoot well. And get it at least in .38 Special. Then buy some Home Defense jacketed hollow point bullets. But above all, practice, practice, practice. It's not just fun to shoot; it's an investment in your family's future.

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Habits

The thing about habits is many times they're so ingrained, it's almost impossible to change them. Not everyone wants to expend a conscious effort to break them.

If you're like me and many others, you follow similar patterns or habits each day. I usually get up, eat, walk the dog, and do other chores and activities within the same framework of time. I don't even change my menu much.

My living room drapes, kitchen curtains, and shades are always closed. My neighbor, who leaves hers open night and day, happened to mention that one of the other neighbors told her he knew when she went to bed each night. That made her nervous, since the one who mentioned it was a bit strange to begin with. Fortunately, he moved out of the neighborhood before any harm came to her.

In mysteries, we can use habits to our advantage. First, we can drop hints about certain habits the victims have, whether it be leaving for work or returning home around the same time, leaving the doors to the house unlocked, or leaving a car's motor running to warm it up, uncollected mail, or something as simple as always going shopping at a certain store at a certain time, and other tipoffs. Then we have the bad guy notice the habits and take advantage of them.

The bad guys also have habits, often called modus operandi. Those habits, which they sometimes do on purpose, but not always, can trip them up when they least expect it.



On Kindle: http://amzn.com/B002PDOPPG
In Print:  http://amzn.com/0981991602

 In my romantic suspense, Killer Career, the heroine came from an impoverished family. To compensate, she became a lawyer, and fell into the habit of amassing money instead of following her dreams. When she tried to break the mold and begin a writing career instead, countless obstacles stood in her path, including not only the potential loss of a good friend, but also physical danger.


Can you give an example of how habit plays a part in a book, either yours or someone else's?

Excerpts & Buy Links to all of Morgan Mandel's books:
http://morgansbooklinks.blogspot.com/

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A Review from Pat Browning

Meet the mystery writers -- who they are, what, why and how they write. Jean Henry Mead edited this worthy collection from interviews and essays she published on one of her blogs. Entertaining and instructional, the collection is available as a trade paperback and the e-book version is on sale this week for $2.99 on Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble .

On the list are working journalists such as Vincent Zandri whose experience includes bribing his way out of West Africa. A prolific author, in the spring of 2011 he sold more than 100,000 Kindle E-book editions of his noir novels. He does a lot of work for Russia Today TV and is a part-time rock drummer for the punk band Blisterz. He advises beginning authors not to get married: "For the first ten years of your working life, the writing will be both spouse and mistress."

Ohio journalist/author Craig McDonald's ROGUE MALES was nominated for a 2010 Macavity Award and his newest novel, PRINT THE LEGEND, asks: Was Hemingway murdered? He picks Hemingway as the 20th century's most important author: "He liberated the language and reinvigorated the American novel."

Then there's broadcast journalist Hank Phillippi Ryan, who has won 27 Emmys and 12 Edward R. Murrow Awards. Her current Charlotte Mcnally series features a broadcast journalist, and her new series launches this fall with THE OTHER WOMAN, featuring a Boston reporter tracking an ex-governor's secret mistress. Small wonder that this fearless journalist/author keeps a Zen saying on her bulletin board: "Leap and the net will appear."

Bruce DeSilva is a retired journalist whose first book ROGUE ISLAND made PW's list as one of the 10 best debut novels of 2010. His advice: "Read books the way boys of my generation tinkered with cars, taking them apart and putting them back together again to see how they worked."

J. Michael Orenduff's background as an educator includes a stint as president of New Mexico State University in the 1990s. In his popular POT THIEF series, the protagonist is part-thief and part-social critic, who finds popular culture unfathomable.THE POT THIEF WHO STUDIED EINSTEIN won the 2011 Lefty Award.

Timothy Hallinan, who has three series going - the Poke Rafferty series, the Junior Bender e-book originals and the Simeon Grist reprints - calls this a golden age for mysteries and thrillers. "... And in one of the most remarkable shifts in modern marketing history, women became the driving force in mystery writing ... The e-book has broken New York's stranglehold on what we read -- and what we can write, too."

Randy Rawls, a retired career Army officer and ghostwriter, is the author of the Ace Edwards series and currently working on new series with a Florida-based PI named Beth Bowman. He says: "I believe that one of the successes of writing is knowing when you've bombed. I've bombed on several efforts. They rest on my hard drive, waiting to be saved. Maybe someday I'll get back to them. There are few bad stories, just bad writing."

Another author who retired to write crime fiction is Leighton Gage. He wrapped up a stellar international career in advertising before settling in Brazil and publishing his first book at age 65. Gage comes from a line of Yankee sea captains, which might explain his wanderlust and curiosity about the world.

Of his popular series about Mario Silva of the Brazilian Federal Police, he says that after learning most mystery fans are women, he toned down graphic violence and added an element of romance. "As to why I write, remember what Samuel Johnson said? `Anyone who writes for anything except money is a fool.' Yeah, that's what I thought, too. I wish it were true. But with the pittances we writers earn, I gotta admit, I do it for glory."

Equally frank is Shane Gericke (pronounced YER-key), who gave up a 25-year editorial job at the Chicago Sun Times to write fiction. His advice: Get the writing habit by writing something every day, even if it's a blog or a letter to your mother. "Commercial fiction is, at base, factory work, as you're putting out product for people to buy, and your production line needs to run smoothly. If you love to write, that shouldn't be a problem. If you don't love to write, find another business." Gericke's latest thriller TORN APART was a national finalist for Thriller Award for Best Paperback Novel of 2010 and named a Best Book of 2010 by Suspense Magazine.

Alafair Burke grew up with a father who was writing and a mother who was a librarian. "We were a family that not only told stories, but thought it was perfectly natural to write them down. My mother would take me to the library every Saturday for a new stack of books. The rhythms of storytelling and character creation become ingrained when you read all the time."

A former prosecutor in Portland, Oregon, Burke teaches criminal law and procedure at Hofstra Law School in New York, and writes two crime series -- the Samantha Kincaid series about a Portland Deputy D.A., and the Ellie Hatcher mysteries about a NYPD Detective. In LONG GONE, Burke's first stand-alone thriller, an art gallery manager finds her boss dead and the gallery stripped bare.

Ever the pro and perfectionist, Burke writes that after she finished her eighth book, she "... paused a moment to celebrate having a beginning, middle, and an end. Then I opened a new, blank document on my computer and I started again from the beginning. Yep, I rewrote my book."

THE MYSTERY WRITERS is chock full of good advice and interesting personal tidbits. In all, there are 60 mystery writers within 12 categories.
The categories and authors are:
SUSPENSE: James Scott Bell, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Joan Hall Hovey, Ellis Viler, Cheryl Kaye Tardif.
CRIME NOVELS: Lawrence Block, J.A. Jance, Bruce DeSilva, Diana Fanning, Craig McDonald, Geraldine Evans.
POLICE PROCEDURALS: Leighton Gage, Alafair Burke, Martin Edwards, Pat Brown, Marilyn Meredith, Bob Sanchez, Maryann Miller.
THRILLERS: Robert Liparulo, Vicki Hinze, Shane Gericke, Timothy Hallinan, Lise Glendon.
PRIVATE EYES: Sue Grafton, Randy Rawls, Mark Troy.
NOIR: Vincent Zandri, Roger Smith.
TRADITIONAL MYSTERIES: Sandra Parshall, Gerrie Ferris Finger, Madeline (M.M.) Gornell, Earl Staggs, Holli Castillo, Alan Orloff.
HISTORICAL MYSTERIES: Julie Garwood, Ann Parker, Nancy Means Wright.
CONTEMPORARY WESTERN MYSTERIES: Vickie Britton and Loretta Jackson, Curt Wendleboe.
HUMOROUS MYSTERIES: Lois Winston, J. Michael Orenduff, Rebecca (R.P.) Dalke, Marja McGraw, Susan Santangelo, Ann Charles, W.S. Gager,Chris Redding.
COZIES: Elizabeth Spann Craig, Anne K. Albert, Ron Benrey, Maggie Bishop.
AMATEUR SLEUTHS: John M. Daniel, Margaret Koch, Jacqueline King, Lou Allin, Karen E. Olson, Pat Browning, Leslie Diehl, Sunny Frazier, Jinx Schwartz.

The Kindle and Nook editions are available through Saturday for only $2.99 (a savings of $3)

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Now That I Have Your Attention...

We all know we need to start our stories with a hook, something that’ll draw the reader in right away and keep him or her riveted to the page. There are some great ones out there, and I’d love you to tell me your favorite opening lines in the Comments section.

A recent intriguing opening line I read is from an novel by E.F. Watkins entitled One Blood. Does this make you wonder at all: Without meaning to, Camilla Torres had picked a good place to die.

What’s the best way – open with dialogue? That can be an attention grabber for sure, depending on how provocative or intriguing those words are! Open with a fast-moving action scene? It definitely gets your readers’ adrenaline pumping. Open with a description that pulls your reader into the atmosphere of the story? That can be very effective.

But the reader feels let down if a great hook degenerates into a mediocre narrative. Therefore, it’s our job as authors to keep that energy of a great first line moving. You must engage your reader and don’t let that oomph stop. Keep the reader’s interest piqued and the story and characters moving forward at a consistent clip. Of course, there have to be moments where everyone catches his or her breath, but the reader is counting on you to deliver from that great opening line…right through to the final syllable.

So, tell me in the Comments section – what is your favorite opening -- and closing -- line, too?

Libby McKinmer
Romance with an edge
www.libbymckinmer.com
libby@libbymckinmer.com
Also on Twitter, GoodReads & Facebook

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Home Defense, Part 2 -- The Shotgun

by Ben Small

Assuming you've decided a home defense gun makes sense, what gun should you choose?

I don't think anyone argues with the notion that the best home defense weapon is a shotgun, but that begs the question. What type of shotgun, what size shell, what size ammo?

Shotgun gauges vary inversely to number progression. So the larger the gauge number, the smaller the bore. Doc Holliday carried a 10 gauge at the OK Corral, a cannon rarely seen today. For a guy as skinny as the sickly Doc, his shoulder must have been numb for days. A 12 gauge has a smaller bore diameter than a 10 gauge, and 16, 20, 28 and the .410 gauges have respective still smaller bores. The most popular shotgun gauge today remains the 12, however, anything larger than a .410 will provide ample home defense protection. While the Taurus Judge has made the .410 shell -- a round once believed to be mostly obsolete -- popular,  the .410 is generally not recommended for home defense. It's just not accurate beyond ten feet.

Choose your shotgun gauge by considering your size and age, not to mention level of comfort. The older you are, the less tolerant your shoulder will be. Any gauge other than a .410 is adequate for home defense. And choose the size of shells you're going to use bearing in mind the same considerations. Many shotguns these days will accommodate three different size shells, usually 2 1/2", 3" and 3 1/2". The latter two are often called "Magnum" and "Super Magnum" respectively. Trust me: You don't need a large shell to be effective for home defense. Stick with the smallest shell available for your shotgun's chamber.

Shotguns vary by type of feed, too. Some are single shot, some double barrel, some over-under, some semi-automatic, and my all time favorite, the pump. I highly recommend a pump shotgun for home defense. I don't think anyone doesn't understand what's behind that ominous click-clack. Pump that hummer, and you may not have to shoot.

Shotguns come in pistol-grips too, but I don't recommend one unless your name is Arnold and you were once governor of California. Anyone with osteo or rheumatoid arthritis certainly doesn't want to shoot one. I cringe even at the thought of it, but then again, such guns are usually pump actions, so the click-clack may make firing unnecessary. I've got one --  no, Ben's not a pseudonym and I've never run for office -- but I've never fired it. One ugly-scary looking beast. 

Ouch! Doesn't that look painful? Grip it tight or recoil may be a bop on the bean.

But let's assume you've determined your gauge and type of shotgun. What size ammo to use?

A slug is essentially just what you imagine: One big plug of steel or lead, usually fifty caliber. That's a lot of whammy, and will be the most painful to shoot at whatever gauge you've chosen. While slugs are good for deer or elk hunting, I don't recommend them for home defense. Besides, the only thing you're likely to hit may be your neighbor two houses over.

Before choosing your size of ammo, you need to understand why a shotgun is the best weapon for home defense: You don't need good aim. Flinch away. Because shotgun barrels -- except the Taurus Judge-style pistol -- aren't rifled, the pellets inside won't spin. So instead of a true and accurate spiral, like from a rifle or pistol barrel, the lead or steel pellets inside the shell spread. The spread will pattern outward. You can adjust the pattern spread by insertion of a muzzle-choke to squeeze your lead or steel shot any way you want, horizontal, vertical or any combination in between; but you don't need a choke. Expect about a two foot diameter spread twenty feet away without one.

Shot shells vary by size and number of BBs inside, again inversely to number progression. In other words, the larger shot shell number, the smaller the BBs and the more in number. See the following size scale:

The low number shot shells (OOO, OO, O, 1-4) are usually called "buckshot" or "buck". Consider that these are essentially 9mm bullets, which will penetrate bad guys, your walls and maybe your neighbor's, too. Again, while such rounds are good for killing deer or humans, I don't usually recommend them for home defense, unless loaded as a last resort after having already fired rounds of bird shot (shot shells 7-9). Some might disagree about using bird shot for home defense, but if the click-clack doesn't scare an intruder away, a body penetrated with up to seventy or more BBs from bird shot surely will. And close up, bird shot will devastate. Even with the Castle Doctrine -- now being considered in Florida in connection with the Trayvon Martin shooting -- your goal should be protection, not intent to kill. So for my home defense, I load my shotgun with bird shot first, buckshot last. Six rounds of escalating fire power.

The only downside to choosing a shotgun for home defense -- other than the owie-factor, of course -- is where will you keep it? Do you have children, for instance? Do you need to keep your shells separate from the gun? Do you have a safe to accommodate it? Can you access your gun and ammo, load and rack your slide in time?

I do not recommend flashlights attached to shotguns because the bad guy will see you first and your ambient night vision will be ruined. But others may disagree, and it's so tacti-cool to have one.

Click-clack, I'll be back. In Home Defense, Part 3, I'll discuss home defense pistol options.

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Best Supporting Character Interview

You usually hear the best supporting character term in relation to movie actors, but in this case it involves a novel character. This woman plays the major role outside the protagonist in Beware the Jabberwock, a Post Cold War thriller available in the Kindle Store. Her name is Lorelei Quinn. Let's get to the interview.

MMM: Welcome to our blog, Miss Quinn.

LQ: My pleasure.

MMM: I understand you're in the travel business. Tell us a little about your background.

LQ: My dad worked in various embassy assignments, so I grew up well-traveled. I loved writing, though, and when it came time for college, I studied journalism at the University of Wisconsin. After graduation, I got a job a job as a reporter for the English language Herald Tribune in Paris.

MMM: That must have been a real plum.

LQ: I'll admit I got some help from an old friend of my dad's.

MMM: I hear by the grapevine that you made a little detour to Camp Peary in northern Virginia before journeying to Paris.

LQ: Somebody has been talking too much. But I've made no big secret that I once worked for the CIA. It's actually how I got into the travel business. I left the newspaper to work as a travel agent, taking tours around Europe, both East and West. It provided a handy cover for operating behind the Iron Curtain.

MMM: You followed in the footsteps of your father, Cameron Quinn, didn't you?

LQ: Dad began his clandestine career with General William Donovan in the OSS during World War II.

MMM: Doesn't your Clipper Cruise and Travel have a relationship with the CIA?

LQ: If I denied it, you would probably say I'm lying.

MMM: But you deny it?

LQ: Yes.

WWW: Your main office in Rosslyn has some beautiful paintings of old clipper ships. What's the significance?

LQ: I have loved sailing for years. I go out frequently with some friends.

WWW: I understand you were involved in a pretty scary sailing expedition related to Operation Jabberwock.

LQ: Somebody's been talking too much. But it's true. We were caught in a bad storm at night south of the Florida Gulf coast.

WWW: Didn't  you have some other pretty frightening experiences during that time?

LQ: I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to comment any further about that operation. Your readers will just have to refer to the Jabberwock report.

WWW: Thank you, Miss Quinn. Good luck with your future ventures. If you'd like to find out more about the exciting adventures of Lori Quinn and her friend, Burke Hill, you can access the "report" at this link.

Chester Campbell 

Visit me at Mystery Mania

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