THE CORPSE AND THE GEEZER BRIGADE is Finished!

by Jackie King

Book One

Writing a book is an onerous undertaking. I’m astonished that a cowardly woman such as myself, would even attempt such a thing. But the compulsion to express oneself on paper is a sort of madness—an urge that can’t be ignored comfortably. Ordinary chores such as dusting or tidying up your sock drawer, can be postponed until infinity. Or as my mother might have said, until the cows come home. And since I have no cows, there will be no interruption of that sort.

Book Two

An unfinished book, even one that yet has one word typed on a blank computer page, refuses to be ignored. This primal urge, for some of us, is like a mother hearing her child fussing in his crib, regardless of how high you turn up the radio, Mom will still hear her baby. And likewise, a writer must come back to finish that story.

At my age I often think, this book may be my last. Followed by, “Please God, let me stay healthy enough to finish this one.” And last week, when I sent the edited galley proofs to the publisher, I sighed a momentary breath of relief.

THE CORPSE AND THE GEEZER BRIGADE is now his problem. He will have to find the right cover (and please God, don’t let him suffer from color blindness), and get the thing ready to download and ready for the printers. (Book three--Cover as yet unavailable.)

Now I can take a deep breath and relax for a while.

Wrong!

Another story began crying out from its crib. This is an old one resurrected from years earlier, but now I know how to fix it. And that’s what I’m doing. I’m not sure yet what title to use; I have three in mind:

THE EDGE OF NOWHERE

GOOSE OVER MY GRAVE

NIGHTWIND (The Original Working Title)

So far I have one serious vote for The Edge of Nowhere. We’ll see. If you have a preference, let me know.

 

The view just outside of Tumbleweed, OK--An imaginary town in the OK Panhandle

The story is set in a small, fictitious town in the Oklahoma Panhandle named, Tumbleweed. Many of the inhabitants descended from pioneers who settled the land and built fortunes when there was nothing in sight but sagebrush, prairie grass and hardship.

In my novel this question arises: Will a later generation be strong enough to withstand a new kind of evil?

Suddenly it’s my job to spin that tale. The story is in my heart—strong as the wind that constantly whips across the plains. Now I must get busy.

Malice Domestic--A Bucket-List Item--May1-3, 2015 Bethesda, MD

I’m leaving for Malice Domestic on April 30, and I’m so excited. For years I’ve wanted to attend this wonderful event, and now I shall, God willing and the creek don’t rise. (Okie speak)

I will soon be on my way, via Southwest Airlines, with Judy Rosser, BFF and my remarkable beta reader, riding shotgun. Judy is a reader, and this convention is for READERS! They call themselves fans, I call them fabulous. 

L-R Carolyn Hart, Jackie King, Judy Rosser
Bouchercon 2013

Sharing our room at the Hyatt Regency in Bethesda, MD will be LuLu Harrington, author of MURDER, MAYHEM AND BLISS.

I’m thrilled out of my gourd to be on the panel titled YOU COULD JUST DIE LAUGHING: HUMOR IN MYSTERIES. I have read each of the books by my co-panelists and they ROCK! Here is the list:

Kathryn Leigh Scott, Moderator—JINXED  (I especially recommend for film fans.)

Cindy Brown—MACDEATH  (If you love the theater, you’ll love this mystery!)

Shelley Costa—BASIL INSTINCT  (A riotously funny Italian family A dynamite mystery, plus Choo Choo Bacigalupo's recipe for Gorgonzola and Spiced Walnuts in Port Wine Syrup.)

Tim Hall—DEAD STOCK  (If you love vintage clothing, this is your cup of tea.)

Jackie King—THE INCONVENIENT CORPSE  (No resources, no job skills and a stranger’s body in Grace’s bed. A B&B mystery.)

Nancy G. West—FIT TO BE DEAD  (If you’ve ever struggled with your weight, imagine it with a dead body thrown in. Fun mystery set in a gym.)

Here is how the official website for Malice Domestic phrases their Con:

“Established in 1989, Malice Domestic® is an annual "fun fan" convention in metropolitan Washington, D.C., saluting the traditional mystery—books best typified by the works of Agatha Christie.
The genre is loosely defined as mysteries which contain no explicit sex or excessive gore or violence.”

I invite anyone who is fortunate enough to come to this note worthy happening, to attend our panel. Be sure and speak to me afterwards, we will all be signing. I’d so love to meet you!

We will each have books to sell and I’ll have free bookmarks for my Grace Cassidy series.

1st Grace Cassidy Mystery

Cheers,

Jackie

A Weird Kind of Storyboarding

by Jackie King

The amount of time it took me to write my second Grace Cassidy mystery, THE CORPSE WHO WALKED IN THE DOOR, was downright embarrassing. To avoid this with my third in the series, I researched storyboarding and plotting. Then I told anyone who would listen that I would block out each and every scene before I typed one word in my third Grace Cassidy mystery.

Well, I lied!

Sorry about that.

My intentions, as always, were pristine. (And, yes. I do know the name of the road that’s lined with good intentions. My mother explained all of that to me when I was 13.)

But in my own defense, is it my fault that the headlights of my brain only show me a tiny stretch of the road ahead? (You can blame God, if you like, since he created me. But first you should know that He and I have already agreed that He’s always going to be right, no matter how good of an argument I manage to offer.)

I began my storyboard for my 3^rd Grace Cassidy mystery in good faith. I bought a bulletin board at Walmart for ten bucks, came home with my purchase and marked it into four sections with masking tape. Feeling very self-righteous and completely sure of my success in this project, I started making plot points on index cards, as I’d always done.

This grew old in a hurry. My fingers started to cramp. (I'm an old girl, after all.) Then it occurred to me that I could type much faster than I could write in longhand. So I finished my notes on Word. Then I changed the margins so I could cut each note into an index-card size. These I pinned to the board.

The first section was filled, when suddenly the characters sprang to life and started talking inside my head. The problem was, they said what they wanted to say, not what I had planned. And since I’m sort of a wishy-washy person, I didn’t argue with them, but just followed blindly. (For some weird reason there seems to be a sort of magic connection between my fingers and the story. I’d be a real bust at dictating).

I’m still convinced that storyboarding is the right way to go and might save me a year of rewrites. Therefore my storyboard for my 3rd Grace Cassidy mystery is still in progress. However, my method evolved. (Some writers work with files and some work with piles. I’m a pile person.) I now pin the plot progress on my board as I go. I’m a gal who must write as she goes. I start with a premise, knowing only who has murder in their hearts, and why and who they're ticked off with. The rest I learn as I write.

2nd Grace Cassidy Mystery

1st Grace Cassidy Mystery

I wish I could be a strict plotter, but it seems I can't. I have to write "by the seat of my pants."

Oh well, it worked for the pilots in the 1920's maybe it will work for me too.

THE CORPSE WHO WALKED IN THE DOOR

Exciting news! My publisher has verified that my new Grace Cassidy mystery THE CORPSE WHO WALKED IN THE DOOR, will be ready to purchase online by May 30. The trade-paperback will be available later in June.

 

On Sale May 30, 2014

This book, second in the series, moves a bit slower than the first, but the stakes are higher. Grace fears her son Brand is getting too involved with the ditzy housemaid, Sandy Walker, and she’s not ready to be a grandma.

Our heroine longs for a quiet, orderly life. She yearns for time to become acquainted with the woman she really is, not the cardboard caricature of her former self. No wonder she bored her husband Charlie. She always did everything he expected.

But that was all in the past. Now she’s surprising and delighting herself with this new persona. Being a woman is a lot more interesting than being a perfect-lady. But life interferes with her plans.

The boss-from-hell, Wilbur Wimberly’s identical twin, thought to be long dead, shows up at the family reunion. Her son is accused of attempted murder, and later of rape. Her cat Trouble finds a dead body in the bathroom of her room. And ex-husband Charlie wants to come back.

All of this and Police Sergeant Sam Harper, who wants to move their friendship to a relationship.

Once again, Grace has her hand’s full.