When I met author Ruth Dudley Edwards at the PrimeCrime Conference in 2022 in Indianapolis, I immediately knew I wanted to interview her. What I didn't know was that she would be the featured author in September of 2023, the same month I would be traveling to the British Isles for the first time! Nor did I know that I would be in London and have the opportunity to meet her at her favorite café in Covent Garden. Wow! The universe sends gifts when one [...]
One of the responsibilities of being a writer is giving back to the community that has nurtured me. One of the best ways to do that is to champion new writers when they begin their writing careers. It is always a privilege to discover someone whose passion for a topic had compelled them to write a story that will help others. So this month, I'm so pleased to introduce readers to De'Shawna Yamini. Yamini is a lifelong resident of the Dayton, Ohio, area and a [...]
Summer is the perfect time to explore new authors and expand your reading world into genres unfamiliar to you. July's author offers a dive into the sci-fi thriller pool with The Pangaea Solution. This debut novel by one of my newest author friends, Charles Jacobs, doesn't disappoint in the action category. In his day job, Chuck works as a management consultant, specializing in quantitative analysis applied to risk and strategy, and as an aspiring writer. In his writing, he mixes a thrilling story with complex, [...]
How lucky am I to have the lovely, scintillating, and 'Best-Selling' Siera London as my June author of the month? Her LunchTime Chronicles are scrumptious enough to finish during your break and her stand-alone novels take romance to new, hot levels. I had the good fortune to work with Siera on a writing contest and was super-impressed by her willingness to mentor new writers and assist existing ones. Janet Irvin: Welcome, Siera, to my author's nook. Let's settle in and get right to the [...]
The arrival of May signals a change in the tempo of growing things. The garden beds warm, seeds germinate, the pond and prairie hum with exuberant life. A new set of goslings in the neighborhood delight with their fuzzy bodies as they follow their tribe across the lawns and into the water. While the young ones practice swimming, their parents, ever vigilant, remain on guard to protest the incursion of dogs off leash, eager to prove their hunting skills, or fend off hawks that swoop [...]
Former librarian, bookstore manager, and current adventurer, Molly MacRae writes mysteries with a softer touch...and scrumptious food descriptions, books, and quirky characters. Upon meeting this author, one is struck by her warm, inviting personality, which mirrors the characters and the situations in her novels. Except for the murders, of course! ;) But the designation of COZY reminds the reader that the books will be heavy on the puzzle and light on the gore. A peak into MacRae's background reveals that she spent twenty years in [...]
Spring cleaning...a chore or a pleasure? A time to restore or a time to clear out the old nest and weave a new one? The birds frequenting my backyard have no trouble doing the work, but we humans often need a nudge. Over the past two months, I've evaluated the incredible accumulation of 'stuff' in our drawers and closets, weighing what I have to have and what I can live without. Only makes sense to do the same with the clutter of my writing life. [...]
April showers are probably not as welcome in parts of our nation as they have been in years past, especially given the bomb cyclones experienced by California since the start of this year. As I construct our interview for this month, my local weather forecast promises two to five inches of rain. Holy sump pump! But the rain can't dampen my excitement at introducing you to this month's featured author, John Desjarlais. John comes to us as a former producer with Wisconsin Public Radio and [...]
As a member of the Central Ohio Fiction Writers, I have attended a fantastic number of presentations by published authors, but none more fun, fascinating, and full of great tips than "Fast Drafting 101" by my delightful March author Jillian David, who lives, in her own words, "near the end of the Earth with her nut of a husband and her bossy cats." A rural physician in her real-world job, award-winning author Jillian David writes quickly (thus the idea of fast-drafting!), then slowly edits [...]
I'm thrilled to welcome New York Times best-selling author and the writer inspiration for not one but two TV series C. J. BOX to my author nook. I met him at the PrimeCrime Writers Conference in Indianapolis in October of 2022 and was immediately taken by his gracious personality and his willingness to engage with the assembly of writers. Plus, I love a great western tale, and C.J. has crafted over thirty novels, which include the Joe Pickett and the Hoyt/Dewell series as well as [...]