A Writer's Passing

Long time followers of this blog may remember me mentioning that I attended a writing workshop led by mystery author, Blaize Clement. A group of us met regularly around her dining room table, nibbling almonds and drinking green tea and we exchanged words, books, ideas, opinions and laughs...and the occasional cookie or two.

I am so sorry to say that our workshops will be no more. Our fearless leader has passed away after a battle with cancer. If you'd like to learn more about Blaize, her life and her books, here's a nice article that appeared in our local paper.

Speaking of learning, I don't have enough space here to list all the things I learned from her and from the others in the group. About writing, yes, but also about living a full and fulfilling life. One of the things that Blaize had said (and that I hope I never forget) was that so many people want to be normal, but normal means average. Who wants to be average?

Not me. Not anymore.

"Promptly" Play With Your Words

I attend a writing workshop led by mystery author Blaize Clement where we do five minute timed writings based on a random word prompt.  The results are rough and raw but there's usually potential somewhere in the messy pile of words - the birth of a new character, an intriguing idea for a story, a dashing bit of description.  So, in the spirit of pulling a bit more of myself out of my shell, here's something (unedited - gasp!) I wrote the other day...

The prompt:  "a lie"

The results:  "It was a lie like so many others she'd told.  It slid off her tongue like the words were sweet and she was offering them up like candy.  Problem was, I had had enough of her candy, enough of her lies.  I would take the truth, drink it straight up, no matter how bitter and sour it was.  I told her this and she smiled and spilled forth more fibs and prevarications.  I stared at her, let them bounce off me and back at her.  They stuck to her and she floundered as she tried to pick the globs and blobs off of her but they were growing and spreading and soon she was drowning in her lies.  She was being eaten from the outside in by her own words."

This is typed straight from my notebook, where my handwriting runs amok, so I can't be sure that "drowning" isn't really "draining" (or "swimming" for that matter.)  It's rough-and-tumble writing, and I love the freedom of it.  I feel like a little girl playing in a mud puddle without wearing my raincoat and boots.

Go on, give a try.  Go play with your words...

Motivational Monday!

For this week's motivating mojo, I present a giveaway, a question for all the book lovers out there, and some laughs:

Mystery author Blaize Clement is giving away her signature catnip bookmarks to everyone who pre-orders her newest book, Cat Sitter Among the Pigeons.  All the information can be found here.

I don't know many people who can write a post called "Make it Work:  Tim Gunn as First Reader."  But Gay Degani did just that.  Not only did I laugh, but I learned something.  (Of course, if Tim Gunn stopped by my desk, he would probably run away screaming at the grungy t-shirt and baggy shorts I usually wear.  I'd have to dress up.  Maybe a less grungy t-shirt?  Or nice pajamas?) 

I cracked myself up over at Arlene's Warped Wednesday post this week.  Not only was the photo a riot, but I thought my caption was pretty good (in an oh-that's-so-bad-it's-actually-kind-of-good way.)

And literary agent Nathan Bransford asks, "Which Writer Would You Most Like to Meet?"  You can choose one living and one dead.  I would choose Betty Smith and J.K. Rowling.  (I've already met Stephen King but I acted like such a geek...oh, let's be real.  I'd act like a big geek no matter how many times I met him.)

Happy Monday!  Hope it's a great week of reading and writing!

Blaize of Glory

Each year, the Mystery Writers of America presents the Edgar Allen Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, nonfiction and TV. It's a big deal and huge honor.

Now, if someone had told me I would one day be a fan, friend and devoted writing workshop attendee of an Edgar Award nominated author, I would've laughed. But, as of the other day, it's all true!

This year, Blaize Clement, author of the The Dixie Hemingway Mystery Series from St. Martin's Press, has been nominated for The Simon & Schuster - Mary Higgins Clark Award for the novel Cat Sitter on a Hot Tin Roof (now in paperback.)

The series is set on beautiful Siesta Key, Florida where pet sitter, Dixie Hemingway, often gets tangled up in the complicated plights of pet owners and their neighbors. The stories are told with a light and feisty touch but the cast of characters, who possess both secrets and senses of humor, make these novels more than just a walk on the beach.

Although each novel can stand alone, I recommend starting with the first one - Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter. You can read an excerpt from the newest one - Raining Cat Sitters and Dogs - on Blaize's site.

I can't wait until our next workshop meeting when I'll get my autographed copy...