Catchy Titles

A little self-promotion: Having a Great Crime – Wish You Were Here, A Sandi Webster Mystery, is available in ebook format, and should be available in paperback today or tomorrow.

1936 – In the small farming community of Battle Ground, Washington, a scream is heard and actress Bonnie Singleton is found dead. With no evidence or suspects, the crime goes down in history as an unsolved murder. The only one who knows the truth is Bonnie Singleton, and her voice has been silenced.

That is, until many years later when Sandi Webster-Goldberg and her husband, Pete, go on a belated honeymoon to a new Bed and Breakfast in the small community.

Plenty of surprises await the couple when the proprietor of the B&B asks for their help. She doesn’t want her business to be known as the local haunted house.

Have Sandi and Pete ever been able to turn down a challenge? The request to find the truth has been made and once again they’re reluctantly on a cold case.

I thought that was a catchy title, but then I have to think that.

Sue Grafton has done the Alphabet series and Janet Evanovich has done the Numbered series. Mary Higgins Clark has done some with song titles. And, like mine, there are some that are sort of a play on words. There are titles of series where all of them have something to do with food, and many of Elizabeth Peters titles have to do with archaeology. So far, J. Michael Orenduff’s titles have to do with a pot thief. Interesting. Carolyn J. Rose’s titles in her series have “substitute” in the titles. Her character is a substitute teacher, so it makes perfect sense.

I have to admit that I’ve picked up many books based on the title. Any mystery that has “chocolate” in the title will get my attention.

I’ve never been able to come up with a hook like that. Maybe someday I’ll think of just the right hook. My husband came up with the title, Old Murders Never Die, which I thought was great and apropos to the story. He also came up with How Now Purple Cow. If I saw that title on someone else’s book, I’d have to wonder what a purple cow might have to do with a mystery. I might walk away shaking my head, but then again, I might pick it up and read the description on the back. Who knows? Sometimes I think it depends on our mood at the time.

Sometimes a title will take hold and it won’t let go. I’ve been known to buy a book, and then months or a few years later buy the same book again, not remembering that I’ve already read it. It was the title, grabbing me again. Another issue is when I find a great title, but when I read the book I find that the title has absolutely nothing to do with the story. In a way, it reminds me of false advertising. Oh, well, that’s my problem. However, if you think about it, a title is a form of advertising. Huh. I’ve never thought about that before.

There have been times when I came up with a title before a story. I know other authors who’ve done the same thing. Having a Great Crime – Wish You Were Here was one of those times. I have a card file where I keep notes about stories and titles. This title was something I jotted down a few years ago. The time finally seemed right to use it.

What are some of your favorite titles and what was it that caught your eye? The word “secret” always catches my eye and, like I said, “chocolate” grabs me.

Until next time, read some good books, no matter what the title is. Just enjoy reading. Let a book take you away from day to day life.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

Don’t forget that Choosing One Moment – A Time Travel Mystery is also a new addition to the McGraw books. Have I been blatant enough yet?

Pea Brain Moments

I’ve been writing blogs since 2010, and figured that one day I’d run out of topics to talk about. I’ve come close a number of times. Suddenly something will creep into my little pea brain and I’m on the case again.

I apologize for missing the past few weeks, but life has been busier than I expected. I’ve mentioned that my house was for sale. It sold. My daughter has been looking for a house in Washington state, where I’m moving, and she found just the right house – within ten days of mine selling! The past few weeks have involved reviewing paperwork, packing, signing paperwork, packing, finagling finances, packing, sorting things into “toss” and “keep” piles, packing – you name it.

Hmm. I wonder what any of this could have to do with writing fiction. Ah, I’ve got it. Use real life experience to write fiction.

Let’s say your character is trying to solve a murder, catch a thief, find a missing person, or any number of issues. Here’s the rub. Your character has put his or her house up for sale. Just as things heat up in an investigation, a buyer makes an offer on the house. The buyer wants all of the character’s attention, understandably, and they want concessions or changes if they’re to buy the house. (Thankfully, this doesn’t describe my buyers. They’re kind-hearted and love the house.)

What’s a character to do? Drop the case being worked on to take care of the buyers? Tell the buyers to get lost? Juggle the case and the sale of the house? Each individual author would have to figure it out to their satisfaction and run with it.

Let’s go a step farther. The character is sorting and packing, and he or she runs into a mystery in the house. Do they sell the house and forget the mystery? Can the mystery be solved before the buyers take over the house? If it’s not solved, would the mystery have a direct effect on the buyer? All good questions, and like a good mystery, they have to be answered and a solution has to take place.

What about the house your character is buying? As he or she moves in, they might find something the previous owner missed. Another mystery blooms.

 

My dogs, Sugar and Murphy, understand that something big is going on. They can’t figure out what it is, but they’re so spun out that they don’t know if they’re coming or going. I have a feeling that moving day is going to be one long remembered. Pets can add an unusual element to a mystery and make things even more hectic than they already are.

Interestingly, I’ve given myself a few ideas just by writing this post. I’ll have to take notes and think about a new story idea.

I’ve had to set my current Work in Progress aside, but I hope to complete it after I get moved and settled in. However, the book after that is beginning to take shape. It just might… No, I’ll surprise readers. If it all works out, it will be a bit of a surprise.

I haven’t written anything since May, but I have a feeling that’s about to change. Someone commented that this particular post sounds a bit disjointed, but so is my life at the moment. Oh well…

Until next time, think of something goofy that’s taken place in your life, just for laughs. I think that’s what I’ll do. I could use a good laugh. How about you? Now back to the packing boxes.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website (which is in dire need of updating)

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

Ain’t life grand? You betcha! It’s all about perspective.

From One Extreme to the Other

I live in the Arizona desert and I’ve seen the temperatures get as high as 128 degrees. We don’t have much rain, although sometimes during the monsoon season we get more than you can imagine. Friday night there was a huge storm with high winds, thunder and lightning. The cleanup took a couple of days, with a smaller storm hitting in the afternoon and causing more cleanup duties.

My house is for sale and I’ll be moving to Washington state where it rains – a lot. I have no idea what to expect, but I’m looking forward to the move.

Don’t get me wrong; I love Arizona, but a new chapter has started in my life and I need some changes.

You may be wondering why I’m talking about weather and moving, when I write a mystery blog. How often, in mysteries, is there a chase scene? Or a scenario where someone is conducting a surveillance? How about trying to sneak around a location?

In a chase scene, you can’t just say, “He ran after the bad guy.” No, you’ve got to include what your character has to endure and face. Needless to say, this is a foot chase. Think about it. What if the chase needs to take place during an extreme hot spell? When you walk outside and the temperature is 128 degrees, it feels like you just opened an oven door and stood in front of it, hoping it would cool off. The ground is so hot you can feel it, or almost feel it, through your shoes. You might start to sweat profusely, or you don’t sweat at all until you walk back inside, and then you can’t cool off.  The sweat is running into your eyes and down your back and chest.

Now a monsoon storm moves in. You’re not only already worn out from the heat, but high winds and thunder inhibit your efforts to catch the murderer, thief, or what have you.

What about the surveillance scenario? You might sit in a car and watch someone, but chances are if you’re there for any length of time you can’t keep the engine running so you can use the air conditioning. Cars become very hot, very fast. I’ve climbed into a hot car during the summer in the desert and found I couldn’t sit on the hot seat. I couldn’t hold onto the hot steering wheel. (You learn to park facing away from the sun or you put a sun screen in your car window.)

A foot chase in the heat and during a storm? Either the good guy or the bad guy, or both, may drop from heat stroke, if they’re not struck by lightning.

At the other end of the spectrum, imagine trying to sneak around with pouring rain slowing you down. Imagine mud sloshing into your shoes, and imagine your clothing becoming soaking wet. Of course, the heat can cause the same clothing problem. Ahem. Let’s move on. Now our characters are wet and cold. The good guy sees the bad guy exit a building and the chase is on. You can add slipping to the list of problems.

Of course, if the villain slips and falls, you might be able to add a little humor to this scene. Well, even if it’s the protagonist, you can add humor and let the bad guy get away, to be sought on another day.

You climb into your car to chase the suspect. I wonder if your wet or damp hands might slip off the steering wheel. The sole of your shoe might slip off the brake pedal. Hmmm. That could aid the bad guy in getting away once again.

When you’re creating a scene that includes weather issues, you can go in any direction and you can make the effort more interesting with just a bit of description. The elements can add something scary to the scene, or it can add humor. Frustration is always a possibility, too. I’ve only touched on heat and rain. There’s always snow to make things more interesting. High winds can cause all kinds of issues.

When writing a mystery, the author needs to picture himself or herself in just such a circumstance. Imagine every possibility, or remember your own reaction to unmerciful weather. Did your power go out during extreme heat or cold?

Make it real, and the reader will feel like they’re right there with your characters.

How do you think you’d react to the stifling heat I’ve mentioned, or any other major weather?

Until next time, stay cool and stay dry. Enjoy your summer and create some great memories. And wish me luck on selling the house.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

If you like the idea of finding a ghost town before anyone else has seen it, give Old Murders Never Die - A Sandi Webster Mystery a try. You’re sure to find a mystery in an old ghost town.