January 12

Health update, and some thoughts about David Bowie

Welcome to 2015

Happy Birthday! Oh wait…that’s not you…that’s me. Today is my birthday. I make a point of telling as many people as possible every year because I’m still smarting from all those “Christmas and birthday” presents I got as a...

December 31

I haven’t written for a while, and here’s why

Letter to My Tribe

Way back at the beginning of the year a mystery novel by a certain Literary Fiction Author was published, and said author proceeded to make a number of derogatory comments about crime fiction and those who read it. I had the opportunity to respond in an editorial in...

On Books and Knickers

Many Americans are out among the zombie hordes of shoppers today, and as we become consumed by what to get for whom, I’m sure some—if not all—of you are going to be giving people books. My confession: I’ve always found it difficult to gift books. Reading is a...

Bloody Murder at Bouchercon

My trip to Bouchercon was shorter than I had planned because of a death in the family, but despite missing the first couple of days, it included more than a few memorable moments. I’m going to limit myself here to talking about just two favorites. On Saturday morning,...

November 2

In the interests of not burying the lede: I had a test!

The Vices of Bouchercon

As we gear up for Bouchercon in a couple of weeks, I’ve read a bunch of great “advice” posts. Alex Segura’s guide for cons at Do Some Damage is terrific. Kristopher at BOLO Books has a series of Countdown to Bouchercon posts that is invaluable. The Bouchercon 2014...