We’re all having a fabulous time in Madison. Stories and pictures to come next week, but in the meantime, here’s the recipe we’ll be serving at our panel Sunday morning…
The Good Girls’ Bloody Mary
1 1/2 oz vodka
3 oz tomato juice
1 dash lemon juice
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 - 3 drops Tabasco® sauce
1 lime wedge
Shake all ingredients […]

As my laminated board likeness is treated to the sights and sounds of Bouchercon 2006 in Madison, I thought I would throw a little party for “the real me.”
So, here’s a list of my favorite party food and drink. If you, like me, couldn’t make Bouchercon in the flesh, feel free to partake of […]

Quick, what do the following three things have in common?
Walk Like An Egyptian, jeans with zippers at the ankle, and The Breakfast Club.
(Mentally insert Jeopardy theme song here).
Time’s up. If you said, “What are the 1980s?” Ding, ding, ding. You are correct!
That’s right, brush up on your 1980s trivia because…they’re back. […]

“What the hell do you have in there?”
[…]

Yep, nothing says glamorous sexy lady writer like tiny-flowered-print all-cotton briefs….
Why am I staring at piles of neatly folded undies and thinking of Roy Scheider? No, I don’t have a secret thing for Scheider, I’m thinking of that line in Jaws: “We’re going to need a bigger boat!”
I mean, it’s only four days, right? Four […]

First off, a brief report on the Midwest Literary Festival: It was fabulous. A good time was had by all. Photographic evidence here.
Now! Cocktail time.
Prepare youselves, oh, men of the internet. Today we have girls.
Lots of girls.
Because we’re having a debutante ball.
Aren’t you glad you’re here?
It’s hard to click on a link these days […]

I’ve been hiding out this week. It’s not that I feel left out of the preparations for Bouchercon…sigh. Not that at all. Because I’ve been making my own preparations for Bouchercon. I’ve been creating the Ultimate Two-Dimensional Woman - a cardboard cut-out of moi, complete with talking sound buttons that say…well, […]

No, I’m not posting about earthquake preparedness this week. I’m talking about Bouchercon. It’s the big one, the granddaddy of all mystery gatherings. The Capitol News reports that the convention will bring 1,200 mystery fans to Madison, Wisconsin next week. I’ve taken quite a bit of ribbing from a certain family member who can’t believe […]

Okay, so I headed to Borders Café last week to work on a proposal for my agent. I dropped my stuff down on a table (not my usual one thanks to some church book club—the nerve!) and stood in line to order.
The line was surprisingly long for being just 9:20 in the morning, so […]

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
    Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
    With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss’d cottage-trees,
    And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
Autumn is my favorite season. I love the chilly mornings and the hint […]