Murder Weekend

Way (way way way) back when I first entertained the thought of a writing career, I knew I never wanted to stop learning new ways to approach story, character, pacing, theme, etc.. I made a deal with myself that I would always strive to improve my writing.

This weekend, I and my friends, Diana Pharaoh Francis and Liz Hartley attended the Wordcrafters Mechanics of Murder conference to bone up on information that will help us create even more convincing murders, crime scenes, and villains.

The speakers: forensic psychologist and author Katherine Ramsland, forensic MD and author D.P. Lyle, retired head of Violent Crimes Unit Eugene Oregon Kathy Flynn, and Crime Lab CSI Eugene Oregon Rhiannon Daniel were fantastic. I’m glad I brought my wee little laptop to take notes because there was a lot to learn! Parts of the conference were certainly not for the squeamish. One subject we covered in some length was serial killers and homicide scenes (with photos!) But all of it was fascinating and informative.

I came away from the conference much richer for having gone. If you are in the area and get a chance to attend a Wordcrafters conference I recommend you do! If you get a chance to hear Katherine Ramsland, D.P. Lyle, Kathy Flynn or Rhiannon Daniel speak, I can guarantee you will walk away with plenty of new ideas for your writer’s toolbox.

As sometimes happens, a random comment during one of the presentations sparked a new character idea. Within moments, that character started to flesh out and grow. Now all I have to do is figure out which book this person belongs to. 🙂 When I do…oh, it’s gonna be fun!

QUICK BOOK UPDATE:

GODS AND ENDS, book #3 Ordinary Magic is out now and got a wonderful 4.5 star Top Pick review from RT Book Review.

ROCK CANDY, an Ordinary Story with a Halloween theme is written and is going through copy edits and revision. It will be out early October.

PAPER STARS, an Ordinary Story with a Christmas theme is written, copy edited, and ready to be proofed. It will be out late November.

SCISSOR KISSES, an Ordinary Story with a Valentine Day theme is in the planning stages. It will be out mid-January.