Choices

From time to time we talk about life getting in the way of work, and that’s what’s been going on over the past couple of weeks. I caught the “Ick,” whatever that is, but things are getting back to normal. Sorry to have deserted you.

This week I’m here to talk about choices in books. We have hardcover books in both regular typeface and in large print. The same goes for some trade paperbacks and we have regular paperbacks. Of course, we have ebooks which seem to be pretty popular right now. I wonder what will come next. And, we also have audio books, which is my subject this week.

        

 

 A Well-Kept Family Secret and Bubba’s Ghost (both Sandi Webster Mysteries) are available in audio format now, and have been for a while. Coming up? Prudy’s Back!, another Sandi Webster Mystery. By the way, the reason there’s an exclamation point in the title is to indicate that it’s not about Prudy’s backside. It’s about her return. She was a private investigator back in the forties and fifties, and she wants Sandi to help her solve the unsolved case that meant the most to her. She just can’t let go of it.

After a narrator (in this case Viv Williams) puts the book in audio format, the author must proof the product. That means listening to the narration while reading along in the book. It’s time-consuming, but kind of a treat. Prudy’s Back! was released in 2009. After its release I moved on to other projects and didn’t give it much thought. Now that I’ve proofed the story, I remember how unique and how much fun it was to write. Sometimes looking back can be a good thing.

Prudy was based on a woman I met through someone my daughter worked with back in the day. Well, she was based on her in that she was a P.I. a long time ago. Her daughter remembered her wearing a long fur coat, cowgirl boots and smoking a long, black cigarette. When I spoke to the woman she laughed because other than the boots, her daughter’s memory was quite faulty. I liked the memory and presented Prudy as the daughter remembered her mother.

However, why would someone choose an audio book when so many other formats are available? Why would someone want to listen to Prudy? Many people like to listen to a story while they’re on a road trip and they certainly don’t want a story that will put them to sleep while driving. My mother-in-law had vision problems and she loved books. Audio stories made her day. I can think of several reasons to enjoy an audio book, like if you’re working out you can listen, but those of you who enjoy them already know why they’re your choice.

My husband and I used to listen to audio books while we traveled, and I have to make a confession. When the narrator was male, and he read female dialogue, it made me snicker. It was simply difficult to take a male voice trying to sound like a female too seriously. The reverse is true for female narrators. It’s a quirk of mine, and I can’t help it. However, I thought Viv Williams did a pretty good job of it with Prudy and the other characters, including the men.

So, if you’re looking for choices, you’ve got plenty in today’s market. I still prefer a paper book, but I find myself reading more ebooks simply because of the convenience (and the cost).

Prudy’s Back! should be released over the next two weeks. I’ll let you know when it’s available.

In the meantime, I’ve been lax about promoting my books and it’s time for that to change. I just need to come up with a new and unique idea. Yeah, like that’s gonna happen. I’m not sure there are any new ideas. Oh, well… Time will tell.

Until next time, give audio books a try. They make great gifts, too. Remember my mother-in-law. She might have had vision problems, but her hearing was fine.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

Remember, People Lookin’ Half Dead – A Bogey Man Mystery is waiting for you. Think massive heat and homeless people disappearing.

Mystery Music

My heartfelt thanks to all veterans, past and present. God bless you!

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I turned on the local news on Saturday morning and heard a story that should pique the interest of most mystery writers. Imagine that.

The Delaware River runs between New Jersey and Delaware. For the last couple of weeks people have been hearing loud (lots of base) music. It starts in the early evening and ends around two or three o’clock in the morning. It’s equal opportunity music, meaning it’s rock, jazz, salsa, classical and who knows what else?

The people in both states hear it, and it sounds like it’s coming from the Delaware side of the river.

Needless to say, it’s driving people nuts and interfering with their sleep. There have been numerous complaints to the police about the noise, and yet no one has been able to determine where the music is coming from. Apparently the music suddenly stopped, but many people have said they’ve heard it occasionally over the past few months. It was only recently that it became a nightly event.

By the way, I don’t live in either state, but across the country. However, how could I, in good conscience, pass up sharing this story?

Would this inspire a mystery? Of course, it would. The story could take so many different directions.

Ghostly music trying to lead the authorities to a murder scene? Maybe someone is purposely trying to drive people nuts. It could be an elderly woman who can’t hear the music without the volume turned up. She could be a little crazy and she’s buried bodies in her basement over the years. Maybe someone is trying to make some kind of point.

If you presented the original scenario to seven hundred mystery writers, they could probably come up with at least five hundred ideas. (You have to draw the line somewhere. I figured five hundred was a good cutoff point.)

You could add something to the music. Maybe the music suddenly stops and a loud scream is heard from one side of the river to the other, and then the music starts in again, like nothing ever happened. Or a dog could howl soulfully.

Anything can inspire a good mystery, so why not music with a secret source? I kind of like the little old lady idea, although it reminds me a bit of “Arsenic and Old Lace,” which you should watch if you haven’t seen it – talk about crazy people and good laughs.

There’s always the possibility that some kids are playing a prank. What if that prank went awry?

Oh, here’s one. What if it turned out the music was coming from an old cemetery and the only music anyone heard was from a specific time period, like the 1880s or the 1920s? Since I don’t believe in ghosts, I’d have to come up with another idea for the source of the music. I know, plenty of people do believe in ghosts, so I’ll leave those story ideas to them.

If an individual decided to look for the source of the music, bear in mind that curiosity killed the cat, figuratively speaking.

I wish someone would take this news item and run with it. Create a good mystery. I’d probably read it.

Can you think of a good storyline with the music in mind?

Until next time, pay attention to any unusual stories you hear on the news. You might come up with a unique idea.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

A Well-Kept Family Secret and Bubba’s Ghost are now available in audio format. Prudy’s Back! is in the works. Just thought I’d mention it.

If you’re looking for something light, you might give One Adventure Too Many a try. These are all Sandi Webster Mysteries.

Personal Choices

I’ve read a lot of traditionally published books that I thoroughly enjoyed. I’ve also read traditionally published books that, to me, were clunkers. The same thing applies to self-published books. Some good, some clunkers.

For years, self-publishing has been given a bad rap. It’s time for that to stop. I wish I had a way to change minds, but other than talking the talk, I don’t know how to do that. So for today I’ll do a little cheerleading.

 

I will say that I know a number of authors (including me) who had traditional publishers and decided to take a different path. You can relate it to someone changing jobs because they didn’t see eye-to-eye with their boss, or maybe they simply want to be their own boss. That’s the way of life sometimes.

I’ve started doing something different. When I read the book of an author who’s new to me, I find myself checking to see if they’re self-published or traditionally published. We all have different tastes, and you might rave about a book that I don’t care for, so the writing isn’t always the issue, nor is who published the work. In the end, I have to say I’ve read some books I truly enjoyed that were written by self-published authors. There were others that were well-written, but not to my taste.

You might complain that you’ve found typos in self-published books. Fair enough, but I’ve found typos in the books of well-known authors. It happens.

There’s another issue which many people wouldn’t think of, and that’s the fact that traditionally published authors have a publisher to promote their books. Self-published authors don’t have that luxury. Many of these authors can’t afford to hire a publicist, either. Thank heaven for social media.

Word-of-mouth is an important factor. If you read a self-published book that you truly enjoyed, tell your family and friends about it. Do a review for it. And try another book by that same author.

I once submitted a book to a traditional publisher and was told that since I’d self-published when I started writing, they’d never handle my work. I was told they’d never, ever publish a book written by a self-published author. When I started writing, I knew nothing about the process and a relative told me about this “new process” called self-publishing. What a cool idea! Wrong. It seemed to be the kiss of death. Years have gone by. It’s time to step up to the plate and try some new, self-published authors. If you don’t like the book you’ve chosen, try another author. It’s simple. With ebooks being so popular, you don’t have to spend a fortune on a book, either.

By the way, the book that the snooty publisher wouldn’t look at? I ended up finding a different publisher who was happy to work with me. I did okay. When I started self-publishing, I reissued the book and did better than okay. I’ll never be rich, but that’s okay. I’m not writing for the money. I’m writing in the hope of entertaining readers. So far, so good.

Patricia Gligor, Evelyn Cullet and F.M. (Marilyn) Meredith have self-published some books, and they’re all authors whose writing I enjoy. As time goes by, I’ll add names here and there, and if you find a self-published author you enjoy, by all means, spread the word.

It’s time to enjoy good books for what they are, no matter who they’re published by. Let’s get rid of the stigma attached to self-published books.

Okay, that’s my cheerleading effort for this week.

Until next time, try something new. Read a self-published book and see what you think. If one author doesn’t float your boat, try another.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

Speaking of trying a self-published author, you might try One Adventure Too Many – A Sandi Webster Mystery. It might give you a chuckle while you try to figure out the mystery.

A Well-Kept Family Secret and Bubba's Ghost are both now available in audio format.

A Brief Moment

A brief moment can change our lives, much as a brief moment can change the lives of characters in books.

You’ve probably heard stories about someone who was caught in a traffic jam and missed a plane, only to find out later that the plane crashed. I have a friend whose mother got up during the night to get a drink of water during a heavy wind and rain storm. Her husband got up to see if she was okay. While they were in the kitchen a tree fell, crashing through the roof and landing on their bed.

True stories, and yet if you read them in a book you might think they’re not realistic. Strange things happen, and they can change our lives. You know the old saying about truth being stranger than fiction.

I remind myself of these things when I’m writing. If I want the characters’ lives to be realistic, then I need to remember that circumstances can change the outcome of a story, even if that circumstance only lasts for a brief moment.

Timing can be everything. What if Jane Doe hadn’t bent over to pick up the olive she dropped on the floor in the kitchen? The killer hiding outside her window would have fired his gun and hit her. However, since she did bend over, the bullet would have missed her and rammed harmlessly through a wall. What if Jane had been heading for the airport I mentioned above? She could have been on the plane that crashed.

I dropped my comb one morning while doing my hair and found a favorite earring I’d lost. I never would have found it if I hadn’t dropped my comb. It had landed in an odd spot. Many years ago I had an expensive piece of jewelry sitting on my dresser. It sat there for three weeks. One morning I was about to leave for work when I suddenly decided I should hide it, and I did. That day, while I was at work, someone burglarized my home, but they didn’t find that piece of jewelry. True story.

On her way to town, Minnie decided to take a new route to the store and missed a major accident. She couldn’t tell you why she changed her normal routine and route.

Yes, Virginia, coincidences do happen, probably more often than we might think. A brief moment can change the course of a person’s life, a sudden thirst during a storm might save a life, and dropping on object might lead you to find a lost treasure.

I know someone who was working on her genealogy. She came from a good, fine, upstanding family and was quite surprised to find out her ancestors were thieves and killers. Fortunately, she had a great sense of humor and found the light side to her discoveries. The fact that they were in the distant past certainly helped.

There are so many things that happen in real life that can be used in stories. It’s all a matter of deciding how to present the incident as fiction. Does life imitate fiction? Or does fiction imitate life?

Sometimes we have to tread lightly. Other times the incidents in a book should be as bold as possible. This is where common sense steps in.

How do you decide what might make a good scene or idea for a story? As a reader, do you sometimes wonder if there’s any truth in the mystery you’re reading?

A number of my books have at least a modicum of truth in them. It’s up to the reader to try to guess what’s true and what’s not.

Until next week, I hope a special brief moment or coincidence visits your life and brightens your week.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

I can’t recall if I mentioned it or not, but Bubba’s Ghost – A Sandi Webster Mystery is now available in audio format.

If you haven’t read it yet, One Adventure Too Many – A Sandi Webster Mystery was recently released.

Sandi’s mother and her aunt are ready for an adventure. Unfortunately, their idea of an adventure involved a dead body and a young woman in hiding.