No, I have not fallen off the face of the earth. Nor have I been sucked into the vortex of post-conference brain overload, although that one is closer to the truth. The cold, hard fact is I have no good excuse for not posting here about the conference sooner, other than I've been busy doing things like following up with some of the contacts I made, processing and mailing photos to people who requested them, and...well...SLEEPING. I don't think I've ever been as exhausted in my entire life as I was after this year's conference. I guess I'm too darned old for late night slumber parties followed by early morning wake-up calls. At this rate, I might be caught up by November. Anyhow... My traveling and rooming partner for this trip was the brilliant and brilliantly funny Deborah Riley-Magnus . We arrived in Lancaster last Wednesday evening and promptly collapsed in our business suite, which was simply a mirror image of the one I stayed in two years ago. ...

The clock is ticking. I'm leaving for the Pennwriters Conference Wednesday afternoon. That leaves me just under 48 hours to get everything done that needs to be done. My workshop notes and handouts are printed and paper-clipped and stashed in my computer bag. Most of my clothes are packed...except for the items that might wrinkle. I have my copies of Fish Tales boxed and ready to go (the bookseller couldn't get them, so it's BYOB...Bring Your Own Books). One important item that remains on my to-do list is "purchase wine." I'm in charge of picking up the wine for the speakers' goody bags, plus I've offered to donate a bottle of my favorite chocolate wine for one of the auction baskets. PLUS I expect a few friends to stop by my hotel room at some point for a wine and chocolate party, so I need a bottle of two for that. This very important task (VIT) was on today's to-do list. I drove to the liquor store only to discover it's close...

Since I attended my first Pennwriters Conference in 2004, I've participated in just about every way possible. I've chaired committees. I've served as unofficial first lieutenant to the coordinator. I've BEEN the coordinator. I've been "Conference Yoda" to a couple coordinators. There is, however, one thing I've never done at a Pennwriters Conference: taught a workshop. Until now. And in my usual jump-head-first-into-the-deep-end style, I'm not simply teaching a one-hour workshop. I'm teaching a four-hour pre-conference seminar workshop. My initial fear was that no one would sign up to hear me talk. Heck, I'm not sure I would sign up to hear me talk. But they have. I'm amazed. And honored. I've been working on this thing for months. The flop sweat panic has passed. I'm ready. I think. I hope. Of course, there's room for more. I like to think it's a pretty good workshop: Crime Fiction ...

I'm guest blogging today at The Blotter, my friend and fellow Working Stiffs Joyce Tremel's blog. It's Writer Wednesday and I'm talking a bit about what I've been up to lately. And I've included a snippet from Horse of a Different Killer for your enjoyment... I hope!

For the past 17 years, the world of mystery lovers, writers, and readers has gathered on a spring Monday in Oakmont , PA , for the Festival of Mystery. Last night, it happened again. But this year's festival also signaled the end of an era...and the beginning of what we all hope will be a new and glorious one. Mary Alice Gorman and Richard Goldman have owned MysteryLovers Bookshop since 1990 and have turned it into a rarity in independent book stores...a successful, thriving, profitable business. I fell in love with the shop the very first time I set foot in it and found myself surrounded by all those mystery titles! My goal in life is to get a novel published simply so I can sign their bathroom wall, although space in there has become increasing tight. They've started on the ceiling, now. However, that era is about to come to an end. Mary Alice and Richard have sold the bookshop to Laurie Miller Stephens, who was also in attendance at this year's Festival. The f...

After a long winter (okay, this year, it was more like a long NON-winter), spring is upon us and so is party and event season. It started yesterday with Lisa Scottoline's annual visit to Pittsburgh . This year, she was here to promote her latest "emotional thriller" Come Home . I've long sung Lisa's praises. Back when I was first starting my search for an agent, she was generous enough to insist I send my manuscript to HER agent. I did. He rejected it. But I will love her forever for being so supportive. She also agreed to be the keynote speaker for me at the Pennwriters Conference that I coordinated in 2009. Let's face it, I adore anyone who makes me look good. And that keynote speech still ranks as the best one we've ever had (in my opinion anyway). Yesterday's visit to Pittsburgh ...Oakmont actually...was bittersweet. Lisa's mom is in the hospital forcing her to cancel her book tour, with the exception of this stop. And the main reaso...

Some Higher Power seems to think I'm a good kitty mom because He keeps sending me cats with health problems. I've dealt with thyroid issues, kidney failure, blindness, deafness, and cancer in my cats over the years. After my sweet Sammie lost her battle to squamous cell carcinoma, I thought my next rescue kitty, Skye, would be low maintenance with her measly allergies. That fantasy lasted all of a week when my vet diagnosed her with Bartonella. You might have heard of it called Cat Scratch Fever. There's a lot of conflicting information out there about the illness. Basically, it's spread by fleas. Skye had been infested with them when she was dumped at the shelter. In her case, the infection manifests itself in severely inflamed gums. But after a couple of rounds of azithromycin, Skye's oral problems were under control. That lasted for about five years. Now, it's back. I did three rounds of the antibiotic this time with only temporary results. Last...

I have a rule about no cleaning the first two trips to our camp in the spring. The place definitely needs it, but I’ve learned to ignore the mess. For one thing, April in Pennsylvania is generally muddy. That old adage about April showers wasn’t created for nothing. For another, there are always unexpected repairs to be made after the place has sat empty for six months. This year, the mud isn’t so much an issue. It’s been a weird winter and spring. It’s also been dry. However, the “unexpected” repairs part of the equation has more than made up for it. The campgrounds don’t “officially” open until next week, so we weren’t sure what we’d find. Our first happy discovery was the water had already been turned on. My first less-than-happy discovery was that the Internet had not. No big deal. It’s amazing how much work I get done when I’m not online. Yes, I should know this by now. But when I’m offline for days on end, the emails tend to pile up in my inbox and take half a ...

Last September, “they” (I don’t know who “they” are…someone hired by the current owner) started tearing down my grandfather’s house. I blogged about it at the time , expecting that the house would be gone by winter. Wrong. They made it this far and quit. As if being neglected for all those years wasn’t insult enough, they ripped off half her roof and left her wide open, naked to the elements. I prefer to remember the house I spent much of my youth in like this. And I have a nice collection of even older pictures of the house in its heyday.  The picture below is my mom and my great grandma feeding the chickens out back. And a shot of the inside. That's my older brother by the tree. The house will definitely live on for me. I’ve used it as the home for two of my protagonists. If I keep writing about it, I’ll never completely lose it. But in reality, the demolition crew has returned. They removed a big chunk of the house this weekend. Now it looks ...

I'm feeling more "at home" with the new computer. There's even cat hair accumulating on the keyboard. But not everything is completely comfortable yet. I'd complained earlier about Tweetdeck. It seems the app was bought out by Twitter who promptly removed nearly all the features I loved about it. I still have the old version on my laptop, so any tweeting you see from me will have been sent from there. I'm having other software pains. My old 2001 version of Microsoft Picture It Publishing, which I'd saved from my very first computer (Windows ME edition AKA Bluescreen Hell), is no longer compatible. This does not make me happy. I used that old program a LOT. Made all my address and return address labels on it. Made business cards and brochures on it. Made greeting cards on it. Now I have to find something compatible. Suggestions anyone??? The other program I lost in the move was QuickStory , which is no longer manufactured. Yeah, it looks like you ...

At the end of this month, Working Stiffs is closing its doors after six years. All of us are having an emotional time saying goodbye. Today it's my turn. But that's not the only place you can find me blogging today. I'm also Becky Levine's guest , and I'm sharing my thoughts about critique groups.

Last week I told you about my computer refusing to start. At that point I was still waiting to hear from my cousin.  It’s a wonderful thing, having a computer doctor in the family. Unfortunately, Sean had only minimal success resuscitating my ancient machine, and then only after restoring it to its original state. Which means we wiped seven year’s worth of files off the thing. Don’t panic. We saved everything onto a flash drive first. Sean said I might still be able to use the computer. The dying hard drive MIGHT last another year. Or it might crash later this week. Plus I’d have to reload any files and programs I wanted to use onto it. Well, hell, if I’m going to reload files and programs, I’m gonna do it on a new machine. Sentimentality be damned. The new computer arrived yesterday. It’s shiny and black. Okay, so was the old one. THIS one works. That makes it beautiful in my eyes. This is actually my fifth new computer (third desktop, plus two laptops ov...

I get entirely too attached to the mythological concept of “normal.” I’ve even blogged about finding a “new normal” when life situations change. I must stop this quest. I swear the universe rises to the occasion every time to squash my efforts. Hubby started yet another new job last week. The good news is he actually LIKES this one. I’m ecstatic. He’s happy. Life is good. Except that I’m eagerly anticipating settling into a routine. And it hasn’t happened. For the last two weeks, I’ve been kitty sitting for my nephew and niece while they’re on vacation. I love those cats like they were my own. But it takes a chunk out of my day to drive out there, feed, water, clean litter boxes, and—this time—give meds. Plus a little play-with-the-kitten time. My duties were supposed to end on Sunday when the family returned home. I was looking forward to life getting back to normal . Unfortunately, their flight was cancelled and they can’t get another one until tomorrow. Kitty duty cont...

I'm at Working Stiffs today with a post about a kitty crime. Actually, it's about my recent adventures in pet sitting, but I had my crime fiction writer hat on at the time.

I'm over at Working Stiffs today and we're playing the If Money Were No Object game.

To continue with the theme of spring fever from my last post… We decided to drive to Confluence on Saturday to “check the camp.” Now, this would be a logical and necessary chore if we’d had the kind of snow we had two years ago when THIS is what “checking the camp” meant. But this year has been mild. Snow fall has been minimal. Let’s face it. We needed a day away. The camper was fine. All bundled up in its tarp, just the way we left it in October. So the rest of the day was spent looking at the water. Hubby bemoaned the fact that he’d left his fly pole at home. He would’ve loved to be right out there with these guys. Never mind that he was bundled up against the wind as it was. Standing in icy water? Nah. From Confluence, we headed downriver to Ohiopyle. I love photographing the falls and the rapids. Only two more months until camping season!