I'm home after a fairytale-worthy four days at Malice Domestic in Bethesda, Maryland. No, I did not win the Agatha, but I've truly embraced my eight nominations for the honor they are. And speaking of honors, I absolutely LOVED being the Guest of Honor this year. I will treasure these memories for the rest of my life. The adventure began on Thursday, road tripping with my longtime pal Martha Reed.  There was momentary panic when I posted that picture on Social Media. "Where's Liz???" Dru Ann Love demanded. Liz moved a while back, and for this trip, since Martha is now closer to me and was also Malice-bound, I chose to ride with her. But Liz and I still roomed together. No, the Dynamic Mystery Duo has not broken up. Malice placed me in a lovely suite with a great view.  Thursday evening, I joined the board and the other honorees for a meet-and-greet, but didn't get any photos.  Friday was a busy day, although it didn't begin until later in the day with my A...

How do cats know when their humans are planning to leave them and go on a trip?  Three years ago, on the Sunday (yes, a weekend) prior to Malice Domestic, my beloved fur baby Kensi Kitty had some sort of episode. She gakked and immediately collapsed. I thought it was a stroke and rushed her to the emergency vet clinic. I thought I was going to have to cancel my trip to Bethesda, regardless of the fact that I was nominated for an Agatha. Turned out to be good news (???) and bad news. The good news was that she'd fainted because of a vagal incident caused by throwing up. Not life-threatening, I was assured.  The bad news was that they discovered, during her exam, that she had mild hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy.  In hindsight, this was good news, too, because we caught it. She's been on lisinopril ever since and has been doing well. It does mean I have to stuff a tiny pill down her throat twice a day, but she's remarkably cooperative. For me. When I go on the road,...

I can't believe how fast time is flying. Malice Domestic is little more than two weeks away! How did that happen? I've been so excited for well over a year about being Guest of Honor, and now it's just around the corner!  Yesterday, the cover of the Malice Anthology: Murder Most Senior was revealed, and I adore it.  I'll be taking part in the anthology signing on Friday night, 9:30 p.m. For the rest of my schedule, you can check my Events page on my website.  I confess, I feel like Cinderella in the days before the ball. Just a hard-working writer, plugging along and suddenly having the spotlight cast on me! I have my dress for the banquet. I've been picking up pieces to add to my wardrobe. I have an appointment to get my hair touched up before we leave. What I need to get serious about is putting those new outfits together and beginning to pack. I usually throw everything together the day before I leave, but perhaps not this year.  I have great intentions of post...