Staying Focused in the Summertime 

Let the games begin!

What is it about summer that makes us lose our minds and abandon all sense of normalcy? Work becomes... ugh, work, and we will try to do anything in our power to avoid it. I think it goes back to when we were kids. We couldn't wait for school to end and those ten glorious weeks of fun to begin. We were free to do whatever we wanted, even if that meant nothing at all. And as we grew into adulthood, we continued to try to hold onto the innocence of a time when it was perfectly okay to just kick back and enjoy ourselves without a care in the world. Some of us take extravagant vacations while others merely steal away an extra day or two for an extended beach weekend. But all of us at some point during the summer months try to slow down, even if it's just a little bit, and enjoy some of what this time of year has to offer. 

Summer fun has officially reached the Carolinas. For me, it's going to be a fun and somewhat busy season - Going to baseball games (MLB & MiLB), watching (or at least staying up to date on) three of the four world class grand slam tennis tournaments (French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open), A trip to the beach (Charleston, SC) in late June, cooking out by the pool almost nightly, two trips up to NY (one in July for the Baseball HOF induction ceremony, the other in late August to visit family), and the grandkids (as well as friends and some of the neighbors) taking over my backyard pool all summer long. There are a multitude of reasons to help me lose focus on my writing during this time of year.

But I have a book being released in September. September 18th to be exact. So, somehow, I need to keep my writing schedule intact during all the summertime commotion buzzing around me. And just how am I going to accomplish that? Mainly I'm going to pivot. Actually, I've already started to pivot in preparation for what's to come over the next three months.

My writing schedule has been pretty consistent over the winter and spring. I am at my desk by nine in the morning, lunch at one o'clock, take care of any errands I need to run, back at the desk by three-thirty, finish up at six-thirty. That gives me seven hours of uninterrupted writing time each day. Since I'm still working a part time job a couple days a week, I adhere to this schedule four days out of seven, with Sundays off. If I'm on a roll during a writing day, I might grab an hour or two in the evening after dinner... sometimes.

With the extracurricular activities the summer brings, I have moved my writing start time to seven in the morning and then working straight through until two o'clock. Same seven hours of time each day but freeing me up earlier in the afternoons and evenings for any grandkid activities, any ballgames, or, if the mood strikes, having a cocktail or two by the pool.

During the first two weeks of July, and in August, I will pivot again to stay focused and on schedule while preparing for the aforementioned trips. 

But as they say, the best laid plans... I fully expect some bumps in the road as I travel through this summer pivoting plan. For example: our six-year-old grandson will be staying with us every other week all summer. Let me repeat that - ALL SUMMER. Ever try to concentrate on a writing project while a six-year-old tugs at your shorts wanting to play or go swimming? As a grandparent, it's hard to say no to that adorable face and those pleading eyes. So, as I pivot one way, he will have me pivoting a completely different way during the weeks he is here. All the more reason I need to stay focused on what needs to be accomplished during the weeks he's not here.

I am looking forward to these next ten weeks or so, and I will learn to live by the words, a body in motion tends to stay in motion. It's the only way I will be able to make it all work. 🌞

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As always, I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog. And of course, your thoughts and comments are always welcome. 😊

Meanwhile, you can find my books here: The Razzman Mystery Crime Files

Until next time...😎

Tougher Than the Rest 

I've invited Dave Murray, a very good friend of mine, to write a guest blog post for my blog. His is a story that I believe will inspire you. Life can be a bitch—we all know that. But life is also a gift. One that far too many of us take for granted.

Dave has written a book. It is a story about overcoming adversity. A story of how, when faced with insurmountable odds, you keep pushing forward. A story about determination and never giving up. A story about living your best life when you know the odds are not in your favor. A story about hope, strength, acceptance, and forgiveness. It is a serious story written with a good bit of humor... Because sometimes we just need a good laugh when life kicks us square in the face.

Dave was born with cystic fibrosis. A genetic disease that usually carries a death sentence at a very young age for the recipient. Dave’s journey has not always been an easy one. But I’ve never known him to be anything other than upbeat, funny, and strong. He is one of the strongest people I’ve ever known.

And this is his story: 

Joe Congel and I have been friends since (gulp) the Reagan administration. We are old. I am slightly older than Joe, and slightly younger than dirt. I remember dirt when it was new. Dirt was still clean, back then; you could eat off it. Thirty-two years ago, Joe and I collaborated on a humorous how-to-use-your-VCR book, “Housetraining Your VCR: A Help Manual For Humans,” which beat the Dummies books to market by a few months. I wrote the text and Joe drew the illustrations--eventually. Joe was a bit of a slacker back then. I used to threaten to hold his young daughter, Rita, off his second-story porch by her ankles until he finished his pictures. I think I was kidding.

My name is Dave Murray and I will be sixty-seven in July (I told you I was old), which is really old when you consider I was born with cystic fibrosis, the most common fatal genetic disease in the United States today. The current average life expectancy for CF patients is around forty years. I have been lucky; I was born with a mild case that bought me lots of time. Then, just about when I was about to run out of time, a very gracious family in the throes of immeasurable grief made an incredibly selfless decision to donate the organs of their loved one. In my case, I received a pair of life-saving new lungs that literally saved my life.

That was almost nineteen years ago. I don’t have to tell you what I’ve seen, how the world has changed, in those nineteen years; after all, you were here too. The iPhone! Streaming! Obama! Uh, not-Obama. Chat GPT!, which is writing this post you are reading puny humans bow to your technological mast.

 Maybe I’ll skip A.I for now.

I used to hear, “When are you going to write again?” (I wrote for the legendary Syracuse NY alternative newspaper, The Syracuse New Times for years, both before and after the book). I used to say I didn’t have anything I wanted to write about, and I never thought I did, until about a year ago. Last April, I started work on a novel, based on my own challenging life story, but the heart of the story is centered around the time leading up to the transplant. I cover all of the science, I hope clearly, but also the humanity of someone with end-stage lung disease. I put you there, with him.

The name of the book has changed about seventy times (By the time you read this it might be called Harry Potter and the New Lungs, for all I know) but I think I have a title I can live with. There’s a Bruce Springsteen song on his Tunnel of Love album, from about 1987, and the protagonist is talking to a girl. No, he isn’t the richest, he tells her, or the most handsome, or the smoothest talker. But, he promises, he will be there at the end, because he’s tougher than the rest.

    Tougher Than the Rest.

A lung transplant, any solid organ transplant is not for the faint of heart; it is a serious operation that offers a miraculous chance at a new life. A transplant is unnatural in a very fundamental way. The body’s immune system has evolved over millions of years to stay vigilant against any foreign invaders, and it does a spectacular job. When a surgeon sutures a foreign organ (or a pair of organs) into place, the body immediately hates it and wants it out of there.  The immune system, then, has to be tamped down, enough to prevent chronic rejection of the donated organ, but not so much that other opportunistic bacteria gain a foothold.

My body has been walking a tightrope for nineteen years. For that whole time (and for the rest of my life) I have taken and will take a daily regimen of about twenty pills and other meds. The most important of those are the powerful anti-rejection drugs, but I also take steroids, antibiotics, anti-fungals, antivirals, blood pressure medicines and insulin shots for diabetes.  I have moderate kidney disease (and am lucky it’s only moderate, frankly) and I am at increased risk of certain types of cancer.

I traded one set of problems for another--a trade I gladly made.

I am hoping that Tougher Than the Rest will appeal to everyone. In many ways, my life is not so different from yours.  I’ve loved, and lost, had good jobs, and bad. My sense of humor has kept me going when not much else did, and that is reflected here. Much of the humor is dark, as you might expect. There are wild experiences, struggles, triumphs and setbacks, bad cars and good friends, and bad luck.

But an awful lot of great luck.      

Finally, a few words about Joe Congel. Joe’s work ethic improved, a lot, when he decided he would rather write than draw. The world is better for it. He is a talented and prolific writer and has written four “Razzman Chronicles” crime mysteries, each one better than the last, and has also appeared in numerous other anthologies. He writes smart, well-plotted, engaging stories that are a delight to read. I take great pride in the fact that Joe often asks me to read his early drafts and offer my opinions. But you know all that already.

But I’m proud to call him my friend, and I thank him for providing this venue to sort-of tell my own story. If you’d like to read a serialized version of Tougher Than the Rest, I post a few pages every week on my blog, The Ego Has Landed (https://davemurraywriter.blogspot.com/).

Thanks for reading,

Dave Murray

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I encourage you to check out Dave's blog. Excerpts from his book are there, along with some other great stuff! Click here: Dave's blog

If you'd like to learn more about cystic fibrosis, click here: Learn more about CF

If you'd like to make a donation to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, click here: CFF.org

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I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog. And of course, your thoughts and comments are always welcome. 😊

Meanwhile, you can find my books here: The Razzman Mystery Crime Files

Until next time...😎

 Meet Underground Author, K. D. McNiven

I've been spending a lot of my time in Magnolia Bluff this year. Between writing a book for this wonderful series and reading the books by the other contributing authors, in a way, I feel like I've moved to the Texas Hill Country. Of course, if I lived in this quaint little town, I'd have to keep my head on a swivel just to make certain no one was trying to kill me. Murder seems to be a regular occurrence in Magnolia Bluff. 

As one of the newer members of the Underground Authors, I was pleased when I heard that K.D. McNiven had signed on to write a book for the series. For anyone not familiar with McNiven's work, she is a multi-genre author who has not one, not two, but three fabulous series under her belt, as well as two standalone novels.

I've been a fan of this author for quite some time and have enjoyed her Decker and Callie Adventure series and her Detective Brock Scanlin Files series. I have Sheba's Treasure, the first book in her Sam Carter series downloaded on my Kindle. I've also read her two standalone novels - Science Fiction/Jurassic thriller, Bone Quarry and Paranormal Adventure, India Dymond: Order of Nine and loved them both. And I know now that she's completed her 2023 Magnolia Bluff mystery, she's hard at work writing the third Brock Scanlin novel.

She has written a wonderful book for The Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles series. Who Killed Lilly Paine? is book 13 and will be released on May 20, 2023, and I can't wait to read it.

Here is the blurb from the back cover:

Deputy Detective Madeline (Maddy) Dawson returns home to take a new job with Magnolia Bluff's Sheriff's Department. But when she discovers the body of a family friend in Miller Creek, Maddy finds her life turned upside down.

While navigating a tough case offering little evidence, Maddy becomes a target.

As she and fellow detective Clay Monroe set out to investigate, she is confronted with dead ends, relationship issues, attempts on her life, and demons from her past. Can Maddy overcome the war raging inside as she desperately searches for answers in this challenging and dangerous case?

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If you've read any of McNiven's books, you already know that she is a terrific storyteller. She has shown her ability to grasp the reader's attention by writing great stories filled with action, adventure, and mystery, told through characters with depth and personalities that make you care about what happens to them. 

If you have not discovered the many worlds of K.D. McNiven yet, do yourself a favor by whetting your appetite with one of her titles below while you're waiting for the release of Who Killed Lilly Paine?

You can learn more about K.D. McNiven and her books by visiting her website here: K.D.'s Website

And you can get your own copy of one (or more) of McNiven's books by clicking here: K.D.'s Amazon Page

 

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I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog. And of course, your thoughts and comments are always welcome. 😊

Meanwhile, you can find my books here: The Razzman Mystery Crime Files

Until next time...😎

 Writing: It's a Marathon, Not a Sprint - My journey to awareness  

Back in 1995 when I first decided to write a book, I had no idea what I was getting into. I mean, I read books, so how hard could it be to write one? I soon found out exactly how hard of a project it could be. 

We had just moved from Syracuse to Charlotte. We had two small children: a two-year-old and a four-year-old, brand-new jobs, and we were all crammed into a small apartment while we hunted for a house. For some reason I thought this would also be the perfect time to start writing a novel. A monumental task since I had no idea how to do it. To make things even more ridiculous, prior to that time period, writing anything, not to mention a book, never crossed my mind. It was never a burning desire or something erupting from inside of me that had to escape onto the written page. Back then, I wanted to be a Cartoonist. My passion was securely grounded in the comic arts field. It's what I was trained to do. The only reason I did a 180-degree turn and decided to write a book was because a friend of mine wrote a humorous non-fiction book and asked me to provide some cartoon illustrations and the cover work. It drew me into a world I found fascinating, and I saw trying my hand at writing as a new challenge. I figured that if my buddy could do it and have some success, then I could too. But non-fiction for me, was out of the question. I enjoyed mysteries so that's what I would write.

Most of the cartoon art projects I worked on were geared towards advertising. I was freelancing and did work for a chain of video stores and an insurance company. I also worked on newspaper comic strip art. All of that used to come easily for me and I was able to knock out the assignments quickly. So, I had the attitude that I could also knock out the great American mystery novel pretty quickly. (I'm going to pause here to give you enough time to stop laughing at that last sentence.)

Like I mentioned, I wanted to write a mystery. I had an idea that was good... or so I thought. After what seemed like an eternity, I finally had my opening sentence. Then I changed it. Then I changed it again. If I'd had any sense, I would've stopped right there and turned the ballgame on instead. But I didn't stop. I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. That I could actually write a book. 

With my other obligations, I was never able to nail down a consistent time that worked best for writing. I found myself scribbling in little notebooks in the bathroom at my job. For a short time, I tried getting up a couple hours early in the morning to write before getting ready for work. I wrote in the evenings after everyone went to bed. It took me several months to "knock out" three and a half chapters. I wasn't even close to "knocking out" an entire a book yet. I was frustrated with my progress and the quality of the writing I was producing. My whodunnit mystery novel was turning out to be much harder to write than I ever imagined. It was also far from being a mystery. Apparently, I was writing a whydonnit and there wasn't a lot of mystery involved. I ended up shelving the whole project and settled into raising kids and making a living outside the creative field for the next twenty years.

Sometime around 2015, I pulled the manuscript off the shelf and decided to try again. 1995 was a different time so, the first thing I needed to do was figure out how I was going to get what I'd already written off the floppy disc it was on. Once I had that accomplished it was time to see if I could turn it into a book. It ended up taking me another two years, but the results of that effort became Dead is Forever, the first novel in my Tony Razzolito, PI series. I kept the original premise and turned that first book into more of a novice private investigator coming of age story. As I sit here typing this, I feel pretty darn good about my writing journey. I just released book four in the Razzman Mystery Crime Files series, staring Tony Razzolito, PI.

My biggest takeaway from this journey is that writing a book is not a hop, skip, and a jump. It is hard work that requires research and the ability to tell a good story. I have nothing but the highest respect for anyone who writes, whether for a living (part time or fulltime), or as a hobby. There is a silent bond between every writer because we are all aware of what it really takes to write and finish one book, let along more than one, for it is truly a marathon and nowhere near a sprint.

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I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog. And of course, your thoughts and comments are always welcome. 😊

Meanwhile, you can find my books here: The Razzman Mystery Crime Files

Until next time...😎

 Secondhand Bookstores

What is it about secondhand bookstores that make me so giddy? Is it the wonderful smell and look of all those books lining the shelves that hit my senses the minute I walk through the door? Could it be the discovery of books that have been enjoyed by other readers and then, instead of just collecting dust on a bookshelf in someone's garage or packed away in a box or crate to be forgotten, can now find their way into the hands of new readers looking to escape the drudgery of everyday life? Maybe it's the aisles and aisles of adventure, mystery, fantasy, self-help, biography, and history, and many other genres, that I can get lost in for an entire afternoon?

Yes! To all of the above.

A few years ago, it looked like the secondhand/used bookstore business had run its course. There were several in the greater Charlotte region that struggled and eventually closed their doors for good. And that was a shame. Three in the area were my favorites. Of the three, one is still open (so still a favorite) and the other two have been closed down for years. The one still open was forced out of the space they occupied for many years and had to scramble to regroup, finally finding a new storefront about two miles from the original location. Good that they were able to reopen, but sad that they considerably downsized during the move. The other two - one in Hickory, NC and the other in northeast Charlotte weren't so lucky. 

When I first moved to Charlotte back in 1995, the first bookstore I visited was the one in northeast Charlotte. It was a wonderful shop that was unfortunately located in a dead retail shopping plaza. I'm sure it wasn't always that way. But given the amount of traffic that traveled through that area by the time I discovered the store, it seemed like it was just a matter of time before they went the way of the other stores that once lived and thrived in that plaza. Sure enough, about six months after I'd found this wonderous shop of dreams, it was gone. The couple who had owned the store decided it was no longer worth staying open, and retired. 

The store in Hickory was located in a house on the main road that was reinvented into a marvelous bookstore that radiated warmth and comfort throughout every room. That store was a destination location for me as it was ninety minutes from my house. They had an amazing inventory, filling every room from floor to ceiling. We made the trip, usually by motorcycle, a couple of times a month and would stay all day. We'd ride up, arriving right after they opened and explore until lunchtime, grab a sandwich at a nearby diner, and then go back and lose ourselves for the rest of the afternoon, not leaving until closing time. I went into mourning when staying open was no longer a viable option for them. They were by far my favorite secondhand bookstore. Still are, and they've been closed for years. I'm tearing up just thinking about the incredible number of hours I spent digging through their vast inventory and the number of treasures I unearthed during those trips.

The bookstore that relocated and reopened has been able to stay open because they've adapted over the years, adding different events keeping them relevant in the eyes of the local author and reading communities. Book clubs and author critique groups meet there, and they have monthly author lectures and book signings, all designed to keep the public interested and coming through their doors. So far, it's seemed to work out pretty well for them.

The good news is there are still many of these awesome second hand/used bookstores out there in communities across the country. Where I live, it feels like a resurgence of sorts. Several bookstores have opened in recent years and have been building a steady business. We also have a number of independent bookstores, with Park Road Books being one of the best in the area, all offering the newest selection of fiction, non-fiction, bestsellers, and magazines. These and the secondhand/used bookstores are where I'd rather spend my money since I’m supporting locally owned businesses in the area. And that's always a win in my book.

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I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog. And of course, your thoughts and comments are always welcome. 😊

Meanwhile, you can find my books here: The Razzman Mystery Crime Files

Until next time...😎

NEW RELEASE - Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles - Book 11 - Available Now!

Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles continues to build steam! - Author Cindy Davis has just released book 11 in the crime series and it’s a wild ride!

Last year, in the book, The Great Peanut Butter Conspiracy, Davis introduced us to Bliss Jagar, a young woman who is a free-spirited drifter who finds herself in Magnolia Buff helping the ghost of a murder victim unearth his killer. It was a fun cozy full of murder, mystery, a touch of the paranormal, and a wonderful cast of characters, highlighted by everybody’s favorite fruit-eating bird, Diablo. A Toucan whose mysterious ability to communicate with Bliss can only be described as extraordinary.

In this year’s offering, When Bad Things Happen To Good Mice, Bliss is accused of killing her ex-boyfriend. The only problem is that she wasn't even in Magnolia Bluff at the time of the alleged murder. But that's not stopping the Chief of Police from arresting her for the crime anyway. He's feeling the heat to quickly have a suspect in custody and happens to  have a witness who saw her in town around the time of the murder. It's up to Bliss to somehow prove her innocence and find the actual killer. With the help of her trusted Toucan, Diablo, a few friends--new and old, and the lyrics from Tom Chapin's songs popping into her head to warn her of impending danger, Bliss pulls out all the stops to discover the real murderer while trying to keep herself out of jail.    

Here is the blurb for this entertaining romp through the Texas Hill Country:

Can lyrics from Tom Chapin’s songs help Bliss solve the murder of her ex boyfriend, found in the debris of the Celtic Faire’s opening-night bonfire?

Bliss is hauled back to Magnolia Bluff, Texas in a police car. Her boyfriend, with whom she broke up with three months ago, has been found dead in the ashes of the Annual Celtic Faire bonfire. She was miles away when he died, but a witness, someone she considered a friend, said she was in town. And no one can prove otherwise.

Chief Jager is being pressured from all sides to not only solve the murder, but also the rash of petty thefts that have hit the small town. Could they somehow be related? Bliss thinks so, but the chief can’t let go of the idea she’s the killer.

When the body is identified as one of the contestants in the competition, and not Bliss’ ex, things take on an entirely new perspective.

To purchase, click here: When Bad Things Happen to Good Mice

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The Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles is a unique multi-author crime fiction series that began in 2022. The 9 books released during the first year were so well received that the authors decided to continue the series into 2023 and beyond. 

The award-winning writers who pen the stories for this little town in the Texas Hill Country are as diverse as the books they've contributed to this superb series. But all have one thing in common. Our love for a good mystery. 

The authors responsible for last year's books turned out 9 page turning mysteries that were full of murder and mayhem. Some were cozies and some a little grittier. All taking place is the same small town, centered around some of the same people and businesses, yet all uniquely different stories.

If you missed any of the books published last year, now's a great time to catch up as we roll full steam ahead into 2023. But that doesn't mean you can't start with Cindy Davis' new and wonderful cozy mystery, When Bad Things Happen to Good Mice. Wherever you begin, just be prepared for a fun ride into a town whose population continues to shrink due to its murder rate.

Catch up on the series by clicking here: First 10 MBCC Books

Video Trailer: MBCC YouTube Video

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I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog. And of course, your thoughts and comments are always welcome. 😊

Meanwhile, you can find my books here: The Razzman Mystery Crime Files

Until next time...😎

Genre be damned... Just as long as it's a good story!

I love crime fiction. Especially if it involves a good mystery. It was the first category of novels and short stories I ever read. It goes all the way back to my childhood when I was first introduced to the Hardy Boys Mysteries. The series began way back in 1927. I discovered them in the late 60's, early 70s. Of course, they had been heavily revised by that time to remove stereotype references and to simplify the writing so it would appeal to younger readers. I loved those books.

A friend from school gave me a copy of The Melted Coins. It was the first Hardy Boys book I ever read. I was hooked. The idea that teenagers could outwit the adults when it came to solving mysteries was fascinating. From there I moved on to hardboiled mysteries with richly developed antagonists like Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, Mike Hammer, Easy Rawlins, and Spenser, just to name a few. They were smart, tough, somewhat snarky private investigators who lived by their own code of honor and always solved the crime... usually before the police were able to do so. I devoured these stories written by some of the best crime fiction mystery writers out there. I even modeled my own Tony Razzolito, PI mystery series after some of these hardboiled detectives... just a bit more contemporary for today's world.

Over the years I pretty much pigeonholed myself when it came to what I would read. If it wasn't in the crime fiction category or any of its many sub-genres, I passed it by without a second thought. And I was happy to do so as I believed that I couldn't possibly enjoy reading a book that was NOT a part of the crime fiction family. But I've changed my view on that and feel like I've been evolving over the last few years.

What changed?

A few years ago, I joined Twitter and got involved with the writing community. Since then, I've met many authors I've come to respect, and began reading their work. And something happened that I didn't expect--most of what I was reading was not crime fiction, and I was enjoying it! Many of these 

authors are writing in genres that I never gave any thought to before meeting and interacting with them on the Twitter platform. Now don't get me wrong, mysteries are still my overall favorite stories to read. But besides finding some great Indie mystery/thriller/suspense authors on Twitter, I've also crossed paths with some talented authors writing westerns, western-romance, romance, fantasy, historical, tropical-adventure, paranormal ghost stories and shapeshifters, horror, Sci-Fi, post-apocalyptic, and literary fiction. And I am so grateful to all these authors for the superb work they've produced. They have helped me broaden my horizons, not to mention, showing me through their writing how I can improve my own writing. Wonderful lessons found within the pages of their books--everything from seeing how they transition between scenes, layer the main plot with subplots, sentence structure, pacing, character development, and choosing the right voice and POV. Things we all focus on when writing regardless of genre.

Nowadays, pretty much all of the fiction books I read are written by Indie and self-published authors. And a lot of them are outside the crime fiction category. I do this to support my writing community peers. But mostly I do it because these authors are writing great stories filled with interesting characters with solid plots that keep me engaged in the book from beginning to end. It's just good storytelling, plain and simple. And what's been extremely satisfying is that the genre doesn't matter to me. Not anymore. These authors have taught me an invaluable lesson--there is more to the world of fiction than crime fiction. I just had to take my head out of the sand and look around a bit more to actually see it. 

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I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog. And of course, your thoughts and comments are always welcome. 😊

Meanwhile, you can find my books here: The Razzman Mystery Crime Files

Until next time...😎