Fake Eyelashes

 By Barbara J. Eikmeier

Not long ago while watching the news my husband said, “That lady must have something in her eye, look how she’s blinking.”

I watched for a few seconds, noticing her beautiful eye makeup and said, “Nah, she’s doing that because she’s wearing fake eyelashes.”

I recognized the rapid blinking from my own eyelash experience.  It was while recording an instructional quilting series in Golden, CO. The on-site stylist asked, “How do you want your makeup? Natural?”

It was a quilting program. The camera was going to be on my hands more than my face, but I was sitting on a tall black director chair with movie star lighting framing the mirror. The stylist’s big box of foundation, eye shadow and lipstick overflowed onto the counter. I wanted it all. 

The stylist told me her normal job – pre-Covid, was doing hair and makeup for the Denver news station. I sat up straighter. I was in the hands of a pro. As she talked, I saw her pull out a tray of eyelashes. Surprised I asked, “You’re giving me fake eyelashes?” She smiled and said “Of course I am – just like the ladies on the news!”

She glued them in place. My eyes watered. I blinked. And blinked. I couldn’t stop. She moved on to my hair but I saw her watching my tears. Now my nose was running. I sniffled. She handed me a tissue and said, “Blot, don’t wipe.”  She promised me I’d be used to them before filming started. 

 

By the time she spritzed me with 12-hour hair spray my eyes had stopped watering. I went into the studio. The young sound tech hooked me up to a wireless mic. He said, “Say something.” I said, “How do you like my eyelashes?” I wanted him to say I looked like a star. Instead, he hesitated then said, “They probably feel like a bigger deal to you then they look to me, but they’re nice.”

I turned to Camera A. The camera man, wearing a headset, had heard the exchange. He grinned and said, “He’s right, but you look good.” I looked at Camera B. A different camera man gave me a thumbs up. I shrugged and said, “Okay then, let’s quilt” and I started to forget about my fake eyelashes. 

I wore fake eyelashes every day that week. I loved them but by evening my eyelids were drooping from the weight. I reluctantly peeled them off. They looked like spider legs in my hand. My eyes watered. I blinked. I went to bed. The next day I woke to find my eyelids crusted together, as if I’d been weeping while I slept.

As I watched the woman on the screen I thought about my protagonist. Would she like fake eyelashes?  I could write about her eyes watering, her nose dripping, and show her blotting, not wiping, her cheeks flushed with the embarrassment of having someone watch her blink back tears.  In my head I heard her say: “Be realistic! I live on a farm in Kansas!”  So no, she isn’t getting fake eyelashes but using my real life experience I think I can show some pretty convincing tears!

Barbara J. Eikmeier is a quilter, writer, student of quilt history, and lover of small-town America. Raised on a dairy farm in California, she enjoys placing her characters in rural communities.
 

Gay Yellen: Back to the Big Easy

 

I am writing this from my hotel room in New Orleans, under the spell of memories from the past. In this city, where I spent three of my four college years, my visit has filled me with nostalgia and a sudden sharp awareness of unintended consequences.

Barely a month into my freshman year, I happened to notice a call for auditions for The Fantasticks, a musical I adored, on an obscure bulletin board. Luckily, there was still time for me to try out, so I screwed my courage to the sticking place, took my shot, and got the part. And from that moment, my future was sealed. I changed my major from English to Theater and never looked back.

I'm here today to attend the wedding of a child of a college friend, the one who had played my father in The Fantasticks those many years ago. As my friend prepares to hand over his son's welfare to the lovely bride, I hark back to that play, in which the fathers of two young lovers fret over their children's future.

After the marriage ceremony, in a toast to the bride and groom, my friend spoke about how unintended consequences had brought the young couple and all of us together for the joyous occasion. In essence, he said that, if he and I had never met, and if I had not subsequently married a man who, at his own alma mater, had wholeheartedly supported the campus club where the young couple met, their knowing one another—and thus their wedding—might never have happened.

Later, when my goosebumps subsided, as we gaily marched down the street behind the happy couple in a jazz band "second line," I harked back even further, to the what if's of the past. How do any of us end up to be the people we are, circumscribed by the mates and friends and places that define our lives? And who would we have become if the path had shifted even slightly?

As my mind slides from the sublime celebration that took place only hours ago to my everyday task at hand—finishing the third book in the Samantha Newman Mystery Series—I'm still feeling the impact of my friend's comment about unintended consequences. As an author, I face fateful choices every day for my main character. Will she? Won't she? Should she? Would she? It's a constant inner dialogue as I decide Samantha's future.

And yet, in real life, do we ever give those unintended consequences a second thought?

Gay Yellen writes the award-winning

Samantha Newman Mysteries including

The Body Business,

The Body Next Door

(available on Amazon)

Coming in 2022,

The Body in the News! 

The Best Room in the House

Good Monday morning. I slept like the proverbial rock last night. Perhaps it’s because I spent the last month in flux—a weeklong trip to Colorado, followed by page proofs due in a week, out-of-town company, followed by loading my car with water bottles and pre-packaged snacks for my anticipated trip to Left Coast Crime in Albuquerque. 

Since 2020, like so many of my author colleagues, I haven’t attended an in-person conference. But on this one, I signed up because I could drive from my home base in Las Cruces to the Duke City. I already knew my schedule at LCC would be hectic. In addition to Mystery Writers of America, I belong to three Sisters in Crime chapters, Sisters in Crime Colorado, Guppies, and Croak & Dagger, the New Mexico chapter, based in Albuquerque.

Left Coast Crime is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, which depends on a massive number of volunteers to bring together writers, readers, librarians, reviewers, and others. https://leftcoastcrime.org/2022/  Croak & Dagger, as the Albuquerque host, was called on to supply the heavy lifting of volunteers. I believe Molly Moeglein, Ann D. Zeigler, Johanna Egert, Joan Golden, Margaret Tessler, Donna Thomas, Janet Gregor, Don Allen, Anne Hillerman, Merit Clark, Linda Triegel, Bailey Herrington, and throw myself into the mix were among the many local volunteer contributors. 

To top this off, when others dropped by the Hospitality Room and saw how swamped we were, my friends Leslie Budewitz and Barbara Nickless got to work helping filling out forms and donations!

Naturally, other writing chapters, including Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime sponsored events. Members affiliated with these organizations were incredibly helpful in registration, author/reader tables, speed dating, room and panel moderators, as well as the conference organizers Stan and Lucinda Surber who appear tireless in running this conference year after year. As I was tasked with Hospitality and the Silent Auction, I didn’t get to attend many panels. This was disappointing, however, volunteer for Hospitality and the Silent Auction, people come to you.

I met so many I wouldn’t have ordinarily met by being a mere author attendee. What’s more, I got 15K steps in on Thursday, 12K on Friday, 10K on Saturday, and 5K on Sunday (four-hour trip home—give me a break!) Was it all work and no fun? Hardly. I had the best roommate ever. Author Barbara Nickless and I kept each other in stitches saying, “We’ll go to sleep right after we talk about this.” Merit Clark, who I shared an author table and panel with, was a tremendous friend, volunteer, and champion during the event. I also got to meet The Stiletto Gang members Dru Ann Love and T.K. Thorne!

Merit Clark was on the ball finding the restaurants we’d escape to after a long day. Fell in love with The Artichoke Café and Season 52 (picture of a group of us here—Alistair “Jerry” Kimble, Matt Goldman, Barbara Nickless, Merit Clark, Shannon Baker, Mark Stevens, and myself). Special thanks to Matt Goldman for driving my car back to the hotel after dinner (no, wasn't inebriated – I think he could just sense I was exhausted and nervous about night driving in a strange city.)

 

I also was on a panel called Graphic but Not Gratuitous, Getting Police Procedure Right,  [pictured here hidden behind her microphone, M.M. Chouinard], Shannon Baker, Donnell Ann Bell, Merit Clark, and James L. E’Toile.

When authors took the stage on Saturday evening, I’d already met many of them. I didn’t get to meet the fabulous Kellye Garrett, but after hearing her speak, and after more than $1,000 was raised that night by attendees who wanted their name in her next book, I understand the definition of “fan.” Catriona McPherson is hysterically funny and gracious, and one of the most moving, inspirational speeches I’ve ever heard (period) was given by Wanda M. Morris, the winner of the Lefty Best Mystery novel. Following are the Lefty award recipients. https://leftcoastcrime.org/2022/Awards.html

 I do not have the exact amount of money that was raised by the auction and silent auction, (Kudos to Ellen Byron/Maria DiRico for being an outstanding author/auctioneer) and Ann D. Zeigler’s Great Little Library Adventure, but I’m estimating $5,000 +/-, benefitting New Mexico’s libraries (currently state funded) are the beneficiaries of these proceeds.

 After dropping off the delightful T.K. Thorne at the airport, I headed home to Las Cruces to celebrate what I’d missed by attending, namely my husband’s birthday and our 39th wedding anniversary. I paused in listening to Robert Crais's Taken, to return a phone call to my friend Mike Befeler who ordinarily heads up the New Authors' Breakfast and who couldn't attend the conference due to knee surgery. Such a win/win ride home!

Still on the heels of Left Coast Crime, the fascinating and talented Pamela Beason will be my houseguest as she passes through on her touring adventures – all because we reconnected at Left Coast Crime!

On a final note, I left that event tired but inspired, and I know I barely skimmed the surface. Overall, though, I remain convinced I had the best room/seat in the house.

 About:  Donnell Ann Bell is an award-winning author, including finalist in the 2020 Colorado Book Award, and the 2021 New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards for her first straight suspense Black Pearl, a Cold Case Suspense. Until Dead, a Cold Case Suspense, will be released May 31, 2022, and is available for preorder. She is currently working on Book Three and the start of another series. You can learn more about her other books or find her on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, or BookBub. Sign up for her newsletter at https//www.donnellannbell.com

 

Come Read-A-Long with Me

Come Read-A-Long with Me by Debra H. Goldstein

I’m excited! Five Belles Too Many, which will be released on June 28, 2022. In anticipation, I’m throwing a multi-month celebration virtual Read-A-Long to give readers an opportunity to discuss each of the books in the Sarah Blair series and to ask this author anything you ever wanted to know.

 

In March, we discussed One Taste Too Many. The session was a huge success. Not everyone who was on the Zoom call had read the book, but it didn’t matter. We talked about concepts, themes, and why I did certain things without giving away any of the plot spoilers.

 

The next Read-A-Long, on April 19, features the second book in the series, Two Bites Too Many. Subsequent months will cover the next books until we pop the cork and celebrate the birth of Five Belles Too Many in July 2022. To join in the fun email me at DHG@DebraHGoldstein.com to get the study guide and the zoom link. Put on your calendar:

 

When: April 19 – Two Bites Too Many

May 17 – Three Treats Too Many

June 21 – Four Cuts Too Many

July 19 – Five Belles Too Many

Time: 7 PM CST/ 8 PM EST (and you can figure out the rest)      

 

The remainder of the series, Three Treats Too Many, Four Cuts Too Many, and of course, Five Belles Too Many, will be our topics for the May, June, and July sessions. The goal is to have fun and gain a better understanding of these books culminating in the month when Five Belles is published.

I mentioned above that I am celebrating the journey of the Sarah Blair series, and I am. I have had a blast writing Sarah, the woman who is more afraid of the kitchen than murder, but more importantly, it has been a joy getting to know you, the readers.

 

Want to catch up on Sarah Blair so you’re ready for the big finish in July? You can pre-order Five Belles. start at the beginning of the series (Amazon has the e-version of One Taste Too Many on sale for $1.99) or come in any week you want as the books, while a series, each standalone. Sarah, RahRah, and Fluffy hope to see you on April 19^th to talk about Two Bites Too Many!

Clicking Our Heels - Fill in the Blank

Clicking Our Heels – Fill in the Blank

People often think authors only spend their lives writing or reading (and to some extent that is true), so we decided to see what else the members of the Stiletto Gang do.  Hence,

 

IF I’M NOT WRITING OR READING, I’M __________________________________.

 

Lois Winston: If we weren’t in the midst of a pandemic, you’d find me at a Broadway show or play. Now? I’m binge-watching various TV shows while on my treadmill.

 

Debra H. Goldstein: Playing grandma, socializing with friends, or giving my husband a hard time.

 

Robin Hillyer-Miles: Watching a British mystery with my husband.

 

Saralyn Richard: Walking my sheepdog.

 

Dru Ann Love: Creating a quilt.

 

Kathryn Lane: Cooking. My husband is my sous chef and we enjoy slipping into the evening hours with a delicious soup, followed by a main course, and dessert – all organic!

 

Debra Sennefelder: Baking.

 

T.K. Thorne: Riding a horse in the woods or thinking about it!

 

Anita Carter: Working on my new business. I started a Virtual Assistant Service last year and I’ve been pretty focused on growing cliental.

 

Linda Rodriguez: Spinning or knitting or weaving or teaching or editing.

 

Shari Randall: By the beach, dancing, or haunting book stores and antique shops.

 

Mary Lee Ashford: Asleep. LOL. Seriously, I probably am. I have no hobbies. Not one. I love to read and if there’s any spare time in the day, I grab a book. That said, my greatest loves in my life are my grandchildren and so given the choice I’d be doing something with the grands. And if we’re reading ... even better!

 

Bethany Maines: Sadly, it’s usually working. As a mom and co-owner of a graphic design firm, I have a lot of balls in the air. The stereotype of a writer leisurely staring off into space is definitely not true over at my house.

 

Gay Yellen: Eating. The main character in my mystery series doesn’t cook, but she’s an accomplished eater. She’s living out my fantasy of eating delicious food and never gaining weight.

 

Lynn McPherson: Out for a walk or watching a movie.

 

Donnell Bell:  Cleaning or walking. Sometimes I read and walk 😊.

 

Barbara J. Eikmeier: Quilting is my favorite hobby but it’s also my day job so it comes with its own set of deadlines. I love flower gardening, bird watching, and sailing with my husband on Perry Lake, KS in our vintage sailboard.

 

Lynn C. Willis: Plotting the next adventure with the grandkids or in the woods with my dog, Finn.

Close-up on Gay Yellen

By Kathryn Lane

Texas author Gay Yellen came to writing with an extraordinary background. She began working life as a stage and TV actor, then moved behind the camera at The American Film Institute (AFI) as Assistant to the Director of Production. She moved on to become a magazine editor and national journalism award winner. As contributing book editor for Five Minutes to Midnight (Delacorte), an international thriller, she was convinced writing was in her blood. Her award-winning Samantha Newman Series of romantic mystery novels includes The Body Business and The Body Next Door. Book 3 in the series arrives this summer.   

1.   KL: Early in your career, Gay, you traded your Screen Actors Guild membership in Hollywood to work on the other side of the camera at The American Film Institute (AFI). Part of the AFI mission is to ‘celebrate excellence in the art form’. Your simple yet elegant book cover designs reflect the beauty of simplicity you must have learned at AFI. Is this assumption correct?

GY: I’m glad you like the covers, Kathryn! As Assistant to the Director of Production at AFI, I was involved in almost every facet of filmmaking, from casting to location scouting, to procuring costumes and props from the major studios, acquiring locations for the shoot, organizing transportation to the set, arranging catering services, scheduling, and post-production services, too. That said, it was my magazine career that taught me the importance of a cover. As a managing editor, one of my most critical responsibilities was to oversee the cover design, which can make or break the success of newsstand sales. The same could be said of a book cover, too.

2.   KL: Did AFI influence you as a writer? One of their stated values is ‘A Belief in the Power of Storytelling to Change the World’.

GY: Such a good question, Kathryn! While story can be important in filmmaking, it was my theater background that helped me understand what a good story is made of. Plot structure is important, and character motivation is paramount. As an actor, I learned that our everyday human struggles are universal. Reading stories with characters who are both very different and very much like us can put us in touch with that universality and make us more empathetic. I suppose in that way, storytelling in any form does have the power to change the world.   

3.   KL: In the Samantha Newman Series, set in Houston and the Texas Hill Country, you cleverly use a few Spanish phrases. What prompted you to do this?

GY: Wow, I didn’t realize I had any Spanish words in my books! I may have used a Spanish word or two because in Texas, where I live, people of Spanish heritage are a large segment of the population, and their diverse cultures are integral to the fabric of life here. A Texan saying adios instead of goodbye can be quite natural, even for an English speaker like me.

 4.   KL: In The Body Next Door, the widow of a murdered neighbor is hiding in Samantha’s apartment. I love that plot, but I’d also like to see Sam and Carter stay together. Any chance of that in book three?

GY: I love this question, because it speaks to one of my favorite things about being an author. When Samantha and Carter meet in The Body Business, I wasn’t planning to write a series, and thus, had no plan for their future. While the publisher wanted me to extend that book into a series, it was my readers’ interest and enthusiasm that encouraged me to continue their relationship. Carter is a man of mystery in more ways than one, so he is definitely in Book 3. And Samantha is as headstrong as ever.

5.   KL: You’re launching your third Samantha Newman novel this summer. Can you give us a preview?

GY: As readers may remember, Samantha has trouble staying employed, due to circumstances beyond her control.  As Book 3 opens, she’s starting a new career at a local TV station. But things are not going well with the man who is supposed to be teaching her the ins and outs of investigative journalism. And because Sam’s life never runs in a straight line, complications ensue, with humor and suspense in equal measure. Here are the working titles: The Body in the News, The News Body, The Body Reports, The Body Breaks the News… I’m still taking suggestions, so to anyone who offers a better one, a free copy of the book is yours if I use it.

6.     KL: Besides an historical novel you’ve done research for, have you thought of doing a memoir of your days as an actress? Or autofiction based on your Hollywood experiences?

GY: Actually, the first novel I ever attempted to write was on that subject. Two chapters in, it felt like I was telling the same tired Hollywood show biz tale that had been told too many times already. While I did reach the upper membership echelon in the Screen Actors Guild before I quit, the high points were outstripped by too many frustrating disappointments. However, a few memories have become hilarious in retrospect. Perhaps one will inspire a short story someday.

Thanks, Gay, for sharing your fascinating life with us! I can't wait to read Samantha #3!

***

Places to find Gay Yellen and her Samantha Newman Series:

WEBSITE: https://gayyellen.com/

 AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08Q8P1RNP?binding=kindle_edition&ref=dbs_dp_rwt_sb_pc_tukn

BOOKBUB: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/gay-yellen

Killer Workshop Features Short Story Authors and Dream Editing Giveaway

by Paula Gail Benson

If you’re looking for an online conference featuring talented and experienced short story authors (not to mention the opportunity to sign up for a dream editing giveaway), check out the Killer Workshop Virtual Event, taking place on Saturday, May 14, 2022, and jointly sponsored by the Palmetto Chapter and Capitol Crimes Chapter of Sisters in Crime.

The participants include:

E.A. Aymar

E.A. Aymar writes fast-paced thrillers as well as a monthly column, “Decisions and Revisions,” that appears in the Washington Independent Review of Books. He also runs the Noir at the Bar series for Washington, D.C., and has featured many short story writers in its virtual format.

Carla Damron

Carla Damron, author of The Stone Necklace, winner of the 2017 Women’s Fiction Writers Association’s Star Award, and the Caleb Knowles mystery series, also is an accomplished short story writer, whose work has appeared in Fall Lines, Offbeat Literary Magazine, Jasper, In Posse Literary Review, Six Minute Magazine, Melusine, and Jenny Magazine.

 

Debra H. Goldstein

Debra H. Goldstein’s short stories, which have been named Agatha, Anthony, and Derringer finalists, have appeared in numerous periodicals and anthologies including Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Mystery Magazine, Mystery Weekly, Malice Domestic Murder Most Edible, Masthead, and Jukes & Tonks. 

The Keynote Speaker, New York Times #1 internationally bestselling author of 23 thrillers, including the ORPHAN X series, is Gregg Hurwitz. His short stories are in the following anthologies: First Thrills, Hint Fiction, Uncage Me, Meeting Across the River, Thriller: Stories to Keep You Up All Night, and Show Business is Murder.

Roger Johns

Roger John’s short fiction has been published by Saturday Evening Post, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Mystery Weekly Magazine, Dark City Crime & Mystery Magazine, Yellow Mama, and Viral Literature: Alone Together in Georgia.

 

Terrie Farley Moran

Terrie Farley Moran’s short mystery fiction has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, and various anthologies. She has been short-listed twice for the annual Best American Mystery Stories. And her story, “A Killing at the Beausoleil” was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Short Story.

Charles Todd

In addition to over thirty titles including two stand-alone novels, Charles Todd has published an anthology of short stories and over twenty short stories appearing in mystery magazines’ and anthologies worldwide.

To register for the virtual Killer Workshop, the early bird rate is $25. After March 31, the virtual event rate is $35. (NOTE: the virtual event is available for viewing until July 31, 2022.)

Here’s a link to register: https://capitolcrimes.wildapricot.org/Workshop

By checking out the information about the Killer Workshop, you can sign up for a dream editing giveaway at: https://capitolcrimes.wildapricot.org/Dream-Editing-Giveaway (If you register for the workshop, you are automatically entered in the giveaway!)

The editors contributing their services for the giveaways are Terri Bischoff and Barb Goffman.

Terri Bischoff

Terri Bischoff is the current Senior Editor for Crooked Lane Books. Terri’s previous experience includes 10 years spent as acquiring editor at Midnight Ink, publishing 36-40 books a year during her time there.

 

Barb Goffman

Barb Goffman is a short story author and a freelance crime-fiction editor. She’s won the Agatha Award twice and has also taken home the Macavity, Silver Falchion, and 2020 Readers Award given by Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine. She’s been a finalist for major crime-writing awards thirty-five times for her stories, including sixteen Agatha Award nominations (a category record), and multiple nominations for the Anthony, Macavity, and Derringer awards.