Tart Words: Writers read. Readers bake. Bakers write.: Recent Episodes

View Details

Linda Hengerer talks with Raquel Reyes about writing, Caribbean cooking, and her characters.

Raquel V. Reyes is the author of Calypso, Corpses, and Cooking, the second book in the Caribbean Kitchen Mystery series and available now. Mango, Mambo, and Murder, the first book in the series featuring Cuban-American cooking show star Miriam Quiñones-Smith, has been optioned for film and is now available in paperback.

Find out more about Raquel at rvreyes.com and on social media @LatinaSleuths.

Get to know Raquel - the Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo?  Discovery Writer

2. Tea or Coffee?  Coffee

3. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails?  Cocktails

4. Snacks: Sweet or Savory?  Savory

5. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid?  Traditional

6. Strict Writing Schedule (Yes or No):  Yes

7.    Strictly Computer or Mix It Up?  Computer

8.    Daily Goal (Yes or No):  No

9.    Formal Track Progress (Yes or No):  Yes

10.  Special Writing Spot?  Desk

1. Writer’s Block?  I don't believe in it. 

2. File of Ideas (Yes or No):  No

3. Favorite Author(s)?  My Latest Read

View Details

da Hengerer talks with Christine DeSmet about her Fudge Shop Mystery Series, Belgian chocolate, writing, and creating recipes.

Christine DeSmet is the author of the Fudge Shop Mystery Series and the novella series, Mischief in Moonstone Mystery Series, both set in Wisconsin. She is a writing coach as well, and spent several years as a Distinguished Faculty Associate in writing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Continuing Studies where she created the Writers' Institute conference and the Write-by-the-Lake Writers Workshop & Retreat. Christine's shelves are now lined with the books of her adult students in her past Master Classes. Christine is also an award-winning screenwriter who has optioned material. She belongs to several professional writing groups including Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, Wisconsin Writers Association, and Writers Guild of America/East.

Find out more at ChristineDeSmet.com.

Get to know Christine - The Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo? Combo.
   I'm a writing coach, so my advice to myself and others is always to do whatever moves you for that story and those characters at that time. Often, we writers are both plotters and pantsers just to get one chapter completed. I sometimes outline scenes, and
   sometimes I just let the imagination fly to see what comes of it.

2. Tea or Coffee? Both.

3. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails? A nice oaky chardonnay.

4. Snacks: Sweet or Savory? Not a snacker much, but when I do it's usually savory, such as a great Wisconsin cheese.

5. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid? Traditionally published with all of my books, with large and small publishers.

6. Strict Writing Schedule: Yes or No - Yes.

7. Strictly Computer or Mix It Up? Computer, but make hand-written quick notes all the time when an idea strikes.

8. Daily Goal: Yes or No - Yes, when writing a big project. I usually assign myself a scene or chapter a day.

9. Formal Track Progress: Yes or No - I don't formally track progress. I don't look back when on a project. I'm always looking ahead.

10. Special Writing Spot? My office. It's where I'm serious.

11. Writer’s Block? Never had it. I have two degrees in journalism and that teaches you the secrets for meeting deadlines.

12. File of Ideas: Yes or No - Yes, many files! I love my files. I just reviewed them about two weeks ago and found gems. Now I just have to find the time to pursue these new projects.

13. Favorite Author(s)? I'm an author but also a writing coach, so my favorite author is any recent writer I worked with who finished their project in a quality way and shepherded it to publication. But when I'm reading on my own, my favorite author seems to be the last book I read, whatever that is. I read widely and enjoy all genres and age categories and love a spark of humor in whatever I'm reading.

View Details

How can television reporter Lily Atwood keep a secret private when she's in the public's eye? Find out in Her Perfect Life.

Hank Phillippi Ryan speaks from personal experience as an investigative reporter about always being on when out in public, exploring standalone books versus series books, and her pandemic-inspired platform for authors, The Back Room.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN is the USA Today bestselling author of 13 psychological thrillers, winning the genre's most prestigious awards: five Agathas, four Anthonys, and the coveted Mary Higgins Clark Award. She is also an investigative reporter for Boston's WHDH-TV, winning 37 EMMYs. Book reviewers call her “a master of suspense” and a “superb and gifted storyteller.” THE FIRST TO LIE garnered a Publishers Weekly starred review and is nominated for the Anthony Award for Best Novel and Mary Higgins Clark Award. Watch for HER PERFECT LIFE on September 14, 2021, which received starred reviews from Kirkus and Publishers Weekly, which called it "A superlative thriller."

Visit Hank at her website www.hankphillippiryan.com and at The Back Room for virtual author events.

Get to know Hank - The Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo? Pantser yearning to be Plotter.
2. Tea or Coffee? Coffee! Until 5pm. Then tea.
3. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails? Red wine.
4. Snacks: Sweet or Savory? Savory, any day. Pizza, chips, pretzels, almonds.
5. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid? Traditionally
6. Strict Writing Schedule: Yes or No: Has schedule, yes. Keeps schedule, no.
7. Strictly Computer or Mix It Up? Computer.
8. Daily Goal: Yes or No: Yes.
9. Formal Track Progress: Yes or No: Yes. On a pencil-lined legal pad.
10. Special Writing Spot? This desk. In my study. Where I used to look out at a stand of sugar maples, but now my windows are blacked out for Zoom.
11. Writer’s Block? No such thing. For me, writer's block is a fancy name for fear.
12. File of Ideas: Yes or No: Yes. However--it is empty.
13. Favorite Author(s)? Edith Wharton. Shakespeare. Hunter S. Thompson. Tom Wolfe. Contemporary authors? WAY too hard to list.

But debuts to watch? I've recently loved the first novels of Wanda Morris, Yasmin Angoe, Ashley Winstead, Vera Kurian, Amanda Jayatissa, Scott Shepherd.

View Details

How do you make a versatile filling for little rolled sandwiches, tea sandwiches, danish, or to use as a spread?

View Details

What is a set piece and where can I get one?

View Details

Linda Hengerer talks with author Barbara Barrett.

To avoid a midlife crisis, Barbara Barrett wrote fiction at night while still employed in human resources for Iowa State Government. After releasing eleven full-length romance novels and two novellas, she turned to the cozy mystery genre, having discovered it years before when pregnant with her first child. She used one of her retirement pastimes, the game of mah jongg, as her inspiration. Her next book, Courtesy Call, to be released August 31, 2021, is the ninth in the Mah Jongg Mysteries series and is available now. Barbara spends her winters in Florida and summers in her home state of Iowa.

Subscribe to her newsletter subscription at www.subscribepage.com/BBCozies or check out her website at www.barbarabarrettbooks.com to find out more about her books and upcoming releases.

Courtesy Call - available now!

Get to know Barbara - The Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo? Combo

2. Tea or Coffee? Coffee (More like Diet Coke or Water)

3. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails? Wine

4. Snacks: Sweet or Savory? Sweet

5. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid? Hybrid

6. Strict Writing Schedule: Yes or No No

7. Strictly Computer or Mix It Up? Strictly computer

8. Daily Goal: Yes or No No

9. Formal Track Progress: Yes or no No

10. Special Writing Spot? Yes

11. Writer’s Block? Not often

12. File of Ideas: Yes or No Just in my head

13. Favorite Author(s)? Lucy Lakestone, Mary Lee Ashford, Sparkle Abbey, Ellery Adams

View Details

What are the two ingredients for a tasty treat?

View Details

What do writers need to consider about Setting for their story?

View Details

What jobs has Hannah Dennison had that inspired cozy mystery series?

British-born, Hannah Dennison originally moved to Los Angeles to pursue screenwriting. She has been an obituary reporter, antique dealer, private jet flight attendant, and Hollywood story analyst. Hannah has served on numerous judging committees for Mystery Writers of America and teaches mystery writing workshops for the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program now on Zoom. After twenty-five years living on the West Coast, Hannah returned to the UK where she shares her life with two high-spirited Hungarian Vizslas.

Hannah writes the Island Sisters Mysteries (Minotaur), the Honeychurch Hall Mysteries (Constable), and the Vicky Hill Mysteries (Constable).

Visit Hannah’s website www.hannahdennison.com to find out more about Hannah’s books and where to buy them. You can also sign up for her very rare newsletter on her website’s home page.

Her latest book, Danger at the Cove: An Island Sisters Mystery (The Island Sisters Book 2) is available now and releases August 17, 2021. Listeners can buy it here for US and here for UK.

Get to know Hannah - The Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo? Combo - plot until the midpoint and then fly by my pants to the ending (which I know)

2. Tea or Coffee? Coffee - from my Keurig machine

3. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails? Pinot Noir (I'm very specific!)

4. Snacks: Sweet or Savory? I'm a chocoholic

5. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid? Traditionally published by Minotaur and Constable

6. Strict Writing Schedule: Yes or No Yes - every morning

7. Strictly Computer or Mix It Up? Computer now - my handwriting is illegible these days

8. Daily Goal: Yes or No Yes - between and 2 and 3 hours a day when not on deadline.

9. Formal Track Progress: Yes or no Yes - I keep charts!

10. Special Writing Spot? I can write anywhere - even in the departure lounge

11. Writer’s Block? No - if I am stuck it means I don't know my characters well enough

12. File of Ideas: Yes or No Yes. It's huge.

13. Favorite Author(s)? M.M. Kaye (rediscovered), Mary Stewart, Anthony Horowitz, Barbara Pym, Rhys Bowen, Kate Carlisle - I could keep going.

View Details

Sweet cherries and a cherry liqueur-infused custard make a summery dish.

View Details

What makes the eggy custard climb the sides of the baking dish? Can it be...magic?

View Details

In this episode, Linda Hengerer talks with Amy Vansant about her two upcoming releases. Find out what "Meat Bingo" is and what it has to do with Pineapple Cruise, and how Pineapple Circus came to have a circus setting.

USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Amy Vansant has written over 20 books, including the fun, thrilling Shee McQueen series, the rollicking, twisty Pineapple Port Mysteries, and the action-packed Kilty urban fantasies. Throw in a couple romances and a YA fantasy for her nieces... Amy specializes in fun, exciting reads with plenty of laughs and action -- she tried to write serious books, but they always ended up full of jokes, so she gave up.

Amy lives in Jupiter, Florida with her muse/husband and a goony Bordoodle named Archer.

Visit Amy at www.AmyVansant.com to sign up for her newsletter and find out more about her books.

If you're a reader who loves free or discounted books or an author who wants to reach avid readers, visit www.AuthorsXP.com.

Get to know Amy - The Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo?

100% Pantser. Rarely have any idea where I’m going when I start...

1. Tea or Coffee?

Coffee, but tea is a close second.

1. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails?

Yes please. Oh, you mean which do I prefer… Wine and cocktails. Not a beer fan.

1. Snacks: Sweet or Savory?

If I could eat anything any time without worrying about weight or health, I would eat donuts from dawn to dusk.

1. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid?

Indie.

1. Strict Writing Schedule: Yes or No

I try to do it every day but nothing terribly strict about it.

1. Strictly Computer or Mix It Up?

There are people who handwrite books?? I’m not even sure I remember how to use a pen.

1. Daily Goal: Yes or No

Yes and no. I try to write one chapter and edit another, but try not to make myself miserable sticking to it.

1. Formal Track Progress: Yes or no

No. The only thing formal about me was my jr. prom. I even got chickenpox for the senior one and couldn’t go.

1. Special Writing Spot?

My desk in front of a 65” television I use as my monitor so I don’t have to wear reading glasses..

1. Writer’s Block?

Occasionally get stuck on a plot point or a direction to go, but a good shower will usually shake it loose.

1. File of Ideas: Yes or No

I got an iwatch to keep notes that pop into my head because I kept forgetting them. I transcribe them to Trello and paw through them when I need an idea.

1. Favorite Author(s)?

It’s been so long since I actually had time to read I don’t even know anymore. I’ve gone through Vonnegut phases, Carl Hiaasen, Michael Chabon, Julie Smith, Laura Lippman, a lot of nonfiction -- I like to feel like I’m learning something or growing as a writer when I do get a chance to read. Though the last thing I read was “written” by the cartoon character “Archer” --- so maybe not trying to learn EVERY time...

View Details

Settle in for a good read, a hot cuppa, and these delicious Russian spice cookies!

View Details

In this episode of Tart Words, Linda Hengerer talks about Dick Francis’s book Trial Run, and how he uses setting to emphasize the story, shows how societal expectations affect actions, and how to build characters for story.

It was first published in the United States in 1978 by Berkley Books and is now available in ebook editions.

Description from Amazon:

The last place veteran horseman Randall Drew wanted to go was Moscow. But when his royal highness the prince asks a favor, one doesn’t refuse.

The Royal Family is worried about the prince’s brother-in-law, who aims to make the Olympics. Unfortunately a jealous Russian rider has sworn to kill him if he sets one hoof in Moscow. So Randall leaves his thoroughbred horses and loving girlfriend to investigate.

But what he finds is more than jealousy. It’s a terrifying track of sabotage and murder. And now that he knows, the killer is after him…

Takeaways for writers:

In Trial Run, Randall Drew has time on his hands due to a recent rule saying jockeys cannot wear glasses while racing. He is asked to go to Moscow, find the mysterious Alyosha, and find out what he has to do with a Prince’s brother-in-law. Randall uncovers a plot that will endanger many people at the upcoming Olympics.

Exercises for writers:

Secrets – Johnny Farringford tells Randall Drew an abbreviated story about his interactions with Hans Kramer. How much of a secret do you share, and how much do you hold back and reveal as the story progresses?

Societal Expectations – Randall Drew is an upper-class Brit whose family has served the monarchy over the years. How does his background contribute to his finally agreeing to go to Moscow? How can you incorporate your story’s societal expectations into your characters' actions?

Setting – How do the descriptions of England and Moscow enhance or reinforce the story? How can you describe the setting to convey the tone of the story, and how setting impacts character?

Building Characters for Story – Randall Drew wears glasses and is prohibited from racing due to a recent rule. He is in good health except for being susceptible to lung problems including asthma and bronchitis. How do each of these create problems for him as a character, and play into the story? How do you build characters whose personal flaws contribute to the story?

View Details

Join me for the first themed Tart Words podcast week. It begins Monday with an encore presentation of Emilya Naymark's episode. Wednesday's Tart Thoughts are about Trial Run, Dick Francis's novel set mainly in Moscow. End the week on Friday with a recipe for Pryaniki, Russian spice cookies, which are easy and delicious.

Emilya Naymark’s debut novel is “Hide In Place” from Crooked Lane Books. Her short stories appear in the Harper Collins anthology A Stranger Comes to Town, Secrets in the Water, After Midnight: Tales from the Graveyard Shift, River River Journal, Snowbound: Best New England Crime Stories 2017, and 1+30: THE BEST OF MYSTORY.

She has a degree in fine art, and her artworks have been published in numerous magazines and books. When not writing, Emilya works as a visual artist and reads massive quantities of psychological thrillers, suspense, and crime fiction. She lives in the New York Hudson Valley with her family.

Visit her website at EmilyaNaymark.com/Author/

Sign up for Emilya's newsletter: EmilyaNaymark.com/author/newsletter/

Facebook: facebook.com/ENaymark

Twitter: twitter.com/emilyanaymark

Get to know Emilya - The Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo? Plotter!

2. Tea or Coffee? Tea, rabidly

3. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails? Beer with an occasional Cocktail. Allergic to wine.

4. Snacks: Sweet or Savory? Sweet tooth (alas)

5. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid? Traditionally

6. Strict Writing Schedule: Yes or No Yes

7. Strictly Computer or Mix It Up? Mix it up

8. Daily Goal: Yes or No Yes

9. Formal Track Progress: Yes or no Yes, but only for first draft

10. Special Writing Spot? Nope

11. Writer’s Block? Not really.

12. File of Ideas: Yes or No No, but that’s a good idea

13. Favorite Author(s)? Neil Gaiman; Susanna Clarke; Brett Easton Ellis; Donna Tartt; Tana French; Mikhail Bulgakov; Vladimir Nabokov; J.K. Rowling

View Details

Have you seen a jar of Honey for Cheese and wondered whether it would be tasty? Wonder no more.

View Details

In this episode of Tart Words, Suzanne Fox and Linda Hengerer are discussing Mary Stewart’s book The Ivy Tree and how she uses Brat Farrar, Josephine Tey’s fictional take on a real-life situation, to guide the reader in one direction before taking them somewhere else.

It was first published in 1961 by Hodder & Stoughton and is now available in ebook editions.

Description from Amazon:

Whitescar is a beautiful old house and farm situated in Roman Wall country. It will make a rich inheritance for its heirs, but in order to secure it, they enlist the help of a young woman named Mary who bears remarkable resemblance to missing Whitescar heiress, Annabel Winslow. Their deception will spark a powder-keg of ambition, obsession and long-dead love.

The ivy had reached for the tree and only the tree's upper branches managed to thrust the young gold leaves of early summer through the strangling curtain. Eventually the ivy would kill it . . .

Mary, Queen of Plots is a blog about Mary Stewart. If you’re interested in book covers and book art, take a look at this blog post about The Ivy Tree.

Takeaways for writers:

In The Ivy Tree, missing heiress Annabel Winslow returns to her ancestral home Whitescar – or does she? Cousin Con has a plan to ensure his inheritance, and shows flashes of why Annabel might have left. The complicated family relationships are revealed as the story progresses, and misunderstandings are resolved as secrets are revealed.

Exercises for writers:

Secrets – How do you set up secrets? How do you reveal secrets? Do you plot out how secrets impact a character, or do you feel it out as you write? Not all secrets have to have life-altering consequences. In The Ivy Tree, Annabel is keeping her identity secret from both Con and Adam. Try adding a small secret into your work-in-progress: set it up and pay it off. Alternatively, write a short story and include a secret, big or small.

Family Dynamics – All families have undercurrents based on prior history. How do you incorporate that into your work-in-progress? How do you reveal the past without doing an “As you know, Sibling/Spouse/Parent/Cousin…” info dump? Show tension between family members in your work-in-progress without directly referring directly to why things are tense (they already know), but give context to the reader in some way to get the reader up to speed with the conflict. In The Ivy Tree, Julie has given Mary/Annabel information she didn’t have before. Can you do something similar by having one character share a memory that another character didn’t realize they had, and give the reader critical information for the story to make sense via that shared memory?

Familial Leverage – Con thinks he has leverage over Mary/Annabel because he can reveal she’s a fraud to Grandfather Winslow. Mary/Annabel knows the truth, but also knows how volatile Con is. How do you have characters in your work-in-progress use leverage to get what they want?

Cat and Mouse – In The Ivy Tree, Annabel knows she’s the real deal but she’s trying to keep that information from Con. For anything she does or says that he thinks she shouldn’t know, she finds a logical, recent explanation. In your work-in-progress, how do you show the subtext of a conversation between characters in conflict? Do you use physical moves to mask an inadvertent reaction? Do you keep in mind what information each character has that they don’t want to let the other character know, or know they know? Who wants to keep their secrets private, and who has the greater motivation to do so?

View Details

In this episode, Linda Hengerer talks with Neil Plakcy about writing, his many writing projects, and his writing process.

Neil S. Plakcy is the author of over fifty gay romance, gay mystery and adventure, and cozy mystery novels. His eclectic work career includes stints in shopping mall construction, web development, and computer game producing. He grew up in suburban Pennsylvania where the golden retriever mysteries are set, and spent many childhood hours in his lakeside backyard with his dog, chasing butterflies and longing to be in the planes that flew overhead.

He is a professor of English at Broward College in the Fort Lauderdale suburbs, where he lives with his husband and two rambunctious golden retrievers.

Find him online:
WEBSITE: www.mahubooks.com
BLOG: http://mahubooks.blogspot.com
AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B001JP4EL6
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/neil.plakcy
GOODREADS: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/126217.Neil_Plakcy
PINTEREST: http://pinterest.com/neilplakcy/boards/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/NeilPlakcy
BOOKBUB: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/neil-s-plakcy
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/neilplakcy/
LINKED IN: www.linkedin.com/in/neilplakcy
Amazon Author Profile: https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B001JP4EL6

Quote from E.L. Doctorow: "Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way."

Get to know Neil - The Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo? I’m a combo—I like to lay out the main points of the story and then let my imagination get me there.

2. Tea or Coffee? Raspberry mocha cappuccino from Starbucks. Though I have become my own barista during the pandemic and now I use either Raspberry Chocolate or Coconut Rum ground beans.

3. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails? Given the choice, I’ll order a Cosmopolitan, please, though at home I’m more likely to drink a fruity ale or a cider.

4. Snacks: Sweet or Savory? Sweet. Entenmann’s chocolate donuts or chocolate chip cookies.

5. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid? Hybrid, though leaning more toward indie. I still have contracts with one small publisher for a series of erotic anthologies that continue to sell well.

6. Strict Writing Schedule: Yes or No. Yes, in general. Since the pandemic, I’ve been aiming for three hours every morning, with extra bits as I can fit them in.

7. Strictly Computer or Mix It Up? Strictly computer. I can type a lot faster than I can handwrite. Though I do occasionally dictate notes into my phone if I’m driving and I get an idea.

8. Daily Goal: Yes or No. No goa

View Details

How do you make S'mores without a grill? S'mores are the iconic campfire or grilling dessert. Toasted marshmallows are sandwiched with chocolate bars between graham crackers. Does summer get any better than that?

View Details

In this episode of Tart Words, Suzanne Fox and Linda Hengerer are discussing Mary Stewart’s book Thunder on the Right and how she uses omniscient point of view, how her protagonist differs from her usual protagonist, and why we think this might have been the first book Mary Stewart wrote.

It was first published in 1957 by Hodder & Stoughton and is now available in ebook editions.

Description from Amazon:

High in the rugged Pyrenees lies the Valley of the Storms, where a tiny convent clings to the beautiful but lonely mountainside. Jenny Silver arrives seeking her missing cousin, and is devastated when she learns of Gillian's death following a terrible car accident. But Jenny's suspicions are aroused when she’s told the blue flowers ornamenting her cousin’s grave were Gillian’s favourite. Jenny knows Gillian was colour-blind - and so starts her mission to uncover what really happened to her.

The growl and roar of thunder rolled an re-echoed from the mountains and the sword of the lightning stabbed down, and stabbed again, as if searching through the depths of the cringing woods for whatever sheltered there.

Takeaways for writers:

In Thunder on the Right, Mary Stewart uses an omniscient point of view, a departure from her more common use of first-person point of view. Jenny Silver is younger than the protagonists in most of her novels, and also more sheltered. Think about how the relative age of a character skews their perspective when they’re leading the reader through a story. Written after World War II ended, think about how events, whether local or global, impact the characters and their actions.

Exercises for writers:

Point of View – In general, do you prefer reading first- or third-person point of view? Do you like an omniscient narrator? Do you have a preference when you’re writing? Write a scene from different points of view and see which you like better. Also note which way feels most natural to you and if it fits the genre you’re writing. How does using either point of view affect the reader – does first-person bring them into the story more than using third-person? How can you use either point of view to make the reader feel like they’re living the story? If you write in third-person, do you go into one character’s head or more than one? How does using more than one character’s point of view to tell the story enhance or muddle the story?

Characters – Think about your work in progress, and how the various ages of the characters play into the story. Can an older character be more naïve than a younger one? Why or why not? How do you show that?

Unusual Settings – A convent isn’t an intuitive setting for a mystery involving a missing woman. How does the convent play into the story? Are you writing a story that might benefit from an unusual setting? Whether your settings are unusual or not, how do you use Setting to enhance the story’s narrative?

Historical Time – Thunder on the Right is set shortly after the events of World War II, and the aftermath of that conflict plays into the narrative. Whether you write historical fiction or not, how do you factor in the current events of the time you’re writing about? Do you ignore them, keeping your fictional world apart from actual events?

View Details

Linda Hengerer talks with Alan Orloff, whose latest YA thriller I Play One on TV came out from Down & Out Books on July 19, 2021. Alan Orloff won an ITW Thriller Award for his novel, PRAY FOR THE INNOCENT, and he won a Derringer Award for his short story, “Dying in Dokesville.” He’s also had novels shortlisted for the Agatha Award and Shamus Award, and a story selected for THE BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES. He loves cake and arugula, but not together. Never together.

Find him at alanorloff.com.

Links for organizations and conferences mentioned in the podcast: Sisters in Crime; Mystery Writers of America; Bouchercon; SleuthFest; National Novel Writing Month (NaNo)

Get to know Alan - The Tart Words Baker's Dozen:

1. Plotter or Pantser? Combo?

I’m a plotter (plodder?). I think if I tried to pants, I’d find myself lost down a dark alley somewhere in Mexico City (or maybe Montreal) in short order. Having said that, my outlines are not very detailed, more like “Bill and Jane discuss how to bury the body over coffee.”

1. Tea or Coffee?

And speaking of coffee, no, I don’t drink it. Nor tea. In fact, and this might sound weird, I don’t drink any hot beverages.

1. Beer, Wine, or Cocktails?

And this may sound even weirder, but I don’t drink any alcoholic beverages either. I drink mostly water. Cold water.

1. Snacks: Sweet or Savory?

Sweet.

1. Indie Published, Traditionally Published, or Hybrid?

I guess I’m a hybrid. Although I’m not very good at marketing my indie-published titles.

1. Strict Writing Schedule: Yes or No

Sometimes.

1. Strictly Computer or Mix It Up?

99% computer.

1. Daily Goal: Yes or No

Yes, when I’m in writing mode, I work to a quota. And I’ve been known to get up in the middle of a sentence once I’ve reached it!

1. Formal Track Progress: Yes or no

I used to use spreadsheets, the whole nine yards. Now, I’m a little less formal.

1. Special Writing Spot?

Not really. Usually my desk, but not always.

1. Writer’s Block?

Nope. BICFOK (butt in chair, fingers on keyboard)

1. File of Ideas: Yes or No

Yes, but I rarely look at it!

1. Favorite Author(s)?

Many! Too many to name! Too careful to start naming them and leaving someone out!