WRITING WITHOUT A NET

Read more about the books mentioned in this post here Writing The Saga of the Hunter trilogy was an adventure unlike any I’ve experienced before as an author. Not only was it my first time crafting a story arc that spanned three full-length novels, but I also decided to bring together characters from three of my previous mystery series: DEAD MAN'S TRAIL(The Raine Stockton Dog Mystery Series), UNDEFEATABLE (The Blood River Series), and A FLASH OF SHADOW (The Dogleg Island Mystery Series). This creative challenge pushed me as a writer and taught me invaluable lessons about character development, plot weaving, and the power of a connected universe. Each of my mystery series features protagonists with distinct backgrounds, motives, and emotional journeys. Readers often ask me: "Will Cisco and Flash ever meet?"  or "Do you think Ryan Grady and Buck Lawson could work a case together?” My initial thought has always been, “That would just be weird.”   But along came Patrick...

  Flash and Cisco, the little rascals When I started the Raine Stockton Dog Mystery Series an embarrassing number of years ago, it was because I loved dog mysteries, but no one was writing about actual  dogs.  In keeping with the standards of the cozy mystery genre (and, of course, if a book features a woman and a dog it  must  be a cozy, right?) they weren't writing about actual people either, but that's another story.  I wanted to write-- and read-- books about the relationship between real dogs and real people; thus Raine and Cisco were born.  I had no idea what I was getting into.   I am jealous of writers who  only  write mysteries. As Ginger Rogers famously said to Fred Astaire (or not), "Oh, yeah?  Try doing that backwards and in heels!".  I want to say to writers of mysteries everywhere, "Oh, yeah?  Try writing that with a dog!"    Writing mysteries is hard.  Writing dog mysteries, if you do...

  According to Amazon, I read a record number of books this past winter and spring, although how I managed that I can't imagine! Here are a few that kept me turning pages: The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny One of my favorite authors returns with an intense look at how vulnerable we are to defeat from within, and how easily the line between right and wrong can blur --a theme I've explored more than once in  my own work. The premise is based on the Indian legend in which the grandfather tells his grandson the story of the two wolves, one dark and one white, that are constantly fighting for control inside every man.  "Which one will win?" asks the boy.  The grandfather replies, "The one you feed."  The fact that Penny's next book is called The Black Wolf  causes me some concern about the characters' choices. H ome Before Dark by Riley Sagar I don't like scary books. The book features the story behind a fictional bestseller described as "...

  One of the most commonly asked questions of writers is "What is your process?" I'm never quite sure what is meant by this, and I've given all kinds of answers.  But after a lot of deliberation, I think it means: Tell me how you write a novel in 1000 words or less.  So, okay.  Here it is: Ready, Set, Go I don't work from an outline, but I never start a book without knowing four things: 1)The title. To me, the title represents the message, or theme, I'm writing about. A Flash of Shadow was delayed several weeks because, even though I knew the story, I did not know the title.  Once it finally came to me, everything else fell into place.  By contrast, Undefeatable   was actually set in the previous book, Dead Man's Trail , when Raine Stockton said, "They are smarter than us, more determined than us, and they have nothing to lose. They are virtually undefeatable."  Who could resist that segue into a sequel? 2)The opening scene. Sometimes I actuall...

PRE-ORDER UNDEFEATABLE: A BUCK LAWSON MYSTERY HERE  I love it when characters take on a life of their own, making their own decisions, creating their own dialogue, and surprising me by taking my carefully planned and plotted storyline in an entirely new direction.  I also hate it.  Sometimes trying to keep up with independent-minded characters is like herding cats (or puppies, as the case may be!)-- not as much fun as it sounds. This was certainly the case with Patrick Henry Jessup, who first appeared in the Raine Stockton Mystery Dead Man's Trail . That book, I'll admit, was floundering dangerously toward the precipice of predictability when I realized it desperately needed another point of view character. Jessup was  supposed to appear sporadically throughout the book, stalk and murder a few non-essential personnel, get caught and never be heard from again. But Jessup was no ordinary serial killer.  He was an ethical hunter, a survivalist and caretaker of the ...

  In my opinion, no writer writes well without reading obsessively. Even though I confess I feel guilty if I ever sit down in the middle of the day to read a book ( Why aren't you writing? my conscience screams at me) reading is, in fact, a part of my job. It only follows that this time of year, when publishers release their fall lists, is my favorite.  Here are some of the upcoming releases I am most looking forward to: ALL THEY NEED TO KNOW by Eileen Goudge  September 24 I had the very great privilege of reading the draft of this novel and loved it!  The rich cast of  female characters and the devoted friendship they develop are the stuff of great women's fiction.  Not to mention there's a dog to die for!  Coming September 24, but available for preorder at an amazing price right now. HERE ONE MOMENT  by Liane Moriarty  September 10 Liane Moriarty, like Jodie Picoult, is one of those authors who likes to ask existential questions and then ...

  Pre-order for Kindle  here   Available in paperback and hardcover May 30 Audio coming in July  Despite the fact that I write about an adventurous search and rescue team, one of the things Raine Stockton and I do  not  have in common is an enthusiasm for wilderness camping.  Regular camping, yes.  Glamping, even more.  But as I have famously said, if I ever find myself alone in the middle of the woods the only thing I'll be searching for is the nearest Holiday Inn.   After reading  Dead Man's Trail , you may feel the same. Like most writers, I know a little bit about almost everything, but wilderness survival is not my forte.  (If you need to know how to house train a puppy, though, I'm your girl!) For the rich wilderness background against which  Dead Man's Trail  is set, I had to do a little research.  Some of the things I discovered were just common sense, some I already knew simply from growing up in th...

 Now available from Amazon here Available for Nook here Audio coming soon!    With today’s launch of UNSTOPPABLE: A BUCK LAWSON MYSTERY   (Book #2), I have just published my 22 nd mystery.   For those who are counting (and I’m not; I had to look it up) this is my 115 th   (or possibly 120 th ; sources vary) published novel. To coin a phrase: Boy, am I tired. I am now actively writing three mystery series: The Raine Stockton Dog Mystery Series, The Dogleg Island Mystery Series, and the Blood River Mystery Series.   I also have two women’s fiction series still in print and actively attracting readers: The Ladybug Farm series, and The Hummingbird House Series.   Whenever I announce the publication of a novel from one of the series, I get a slew of e-mails asking when the next book in another series is coming out. When’s the next Flash book?   Will there be any more Ladybug Farm books?   What happened to The Hummingbird House? Do...

 Can AI write a better novel than a human?  There's only one way to find out: ask it!  So I did, and this is what my Chat GTP app replied: In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has made tremendous strides in the fields of robotics, healthcare, finance, and more. But could AI ever outdo humans when it comes to creative endeavors like writing a novel? It’s a question that has been debated for years, and one that has no clear answer. On the one hand, AI algorithms can be incredibly powerful and efficient when it comes to processing data and creating models. AI can easily crunch through large amounts of data to recognize patterns, generate predictions, and make decisions. This means that AI could potentially be used to generate stories, characters, and plotlines that are more complex and interesting than those created by humans. On the other hand, AI still lacks the creative spark that humans possess. AI algorithms can generate stories and dialogue, but they canno...

This post is part of a series on AI vs. Human content.  Can you tell which parts were written by me, and which were written by Chat CPT, an artificial intelligence writing app?  Let me know your thoughts in the comments.  Little known fact: SMOKY MOUNTAIN TRACKS , Book #1 of the Raine Stockton Dog Mystery Series, was originally titled THE JUDGE'S DAUGHTER. This was back in the days when publishers believed having a unique title was far more important than having a relevant one, and authors (at least at my level) had little or no sway over what the marketing department decided their books should be called. "Smoky Mountain Tracks" was the least onerous of all the titles they came up with (one of which was--I kid you not-- COLD NOSE, WARM HEART.)  I  have been waiting 15 books to use the title, "The Judge's Daughter."    If you’re a writer, you know how important it is to choose the right title for your novel. A good title can make all the difference in w...

By now you've probably heard about Chat GPT, the artificial intelligence app that is so smart it passed the entrance exam to at least one elite university and is being banned by schools because it makes cheating almost impossible to detect. It can write essays, news articles, commercials, speeches, advertising copy and, as it turns out, novels!  Or at least the synopsis for one.  I asked, Genie, a Chat GPT app, to brainstorm an idea for a mystery novel titled "Flash of Fire" which is set in Dogleg Island, Florida and features police chief Aggie Malone, her husband Ryan Grady, and their border collie Flash.  In about three seconds, the app created this:  The residents of Dog Leg Island, Florida live in a state of unease. For years, the island has been plagued by a series of unsolved murders, and the local law enforcement has been unable to find the culprit. Chief of Police Aggie Malone and her husband Deputy Sheriff Grady have been tasked with solving the mysterious m...

  In THE JUDGE'S DAUGHTER , Book # 15 of the Raine Stockton Dog Mystery series, Raine is pressured into finally make some wedding plans. She randomly decides on an "orange spice cake with walnut filling and lemon icing" which she claims she saw on the internet.  I'll bet she got it from my friend Eileen Goudge's website !   Here's the recipe for the cake that inspired Raine's choice, generously provided by Eileen. The recipe calls for a 7-minute caramel frosting, and it's delicious, but if you try a lemon buttercream (as in Raine's version) let me know how it turns out.   SPICE CAKE WITH DATE-NUT FILLING AND CARAMEL FROSTING This recipe was handed down to me by my mom. Its fragrance derives from its aromatic blend of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and cardamom. Light in texture, rich in taste, it’s the perfect cake for any occasion. For teatime or Sunday brunch, you can serve it unfrosted, dusted with confectioner’s sugar. For a fancier dessert, make ...

  In case you missed it, here is a holiday greeting from Raine Stockton and Cisco:😊 Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Dog Daze Boarding and Training!   Thanks to everyone who made this year such an enormous success here at Dog Daze.  In particular, I’d like to thank my fiancé, Miles Young,  and my adorable stepdaughter-to-be, Melanie, both of whom helped me put together the graphics for this newsletter.    She can punch me later for calling her adorable. What a year, right? Dog Daze graduated 187 puppies  from our Puppy Kindergarten, 63 from our Canine Good Citizen course, and 13 newly-certified Therapy Dogs.  52 dogs went on to join one of our agility or competitive obedience courses, and 32 rotated through Tricks and Treats.  We have the best-trained dogs in Western North Carolina, right here in Hanover County!   Cisco (pictured here —isn’t he gorgeous??) and I were called in for several m...