#IWSG: Good Month

Happy Insecure Writers Support Group Day. IWSG is the brainchild of Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Thanks, Alex, for starting this group and keeping it going. 

Thanks to this month's awesome hosts:  Erika Beebe, Sandra Hoover, Susan Gourley, and Lee Lowery!

The first few months of this year were not good for me. This group and others plus friends and family helped a lot. July was a great month. A new book released, two more stories are coming along nicely, and I lost twenty pounds.

When my doctor said I'd finally hit the magic A1C number that indicated diabetes, he told me losing weight would help my chronic back pain as well as the diabetes. I joined Weight Watchers because it's helped before. I'm pleased that my weight loss is slow and steady. My plan when I see my doctor later this month is to have lost twenty-five pounds. It took me a long time to gain the weight so I know it will take a long time to shed it. The main thing is healthy eating, and I've been working on that.

In January, I started a new story--the fourth in the Alex O'Hara mystery series. I stopped to finished a different book, and now I'm sort of back to it. I say "sort of" because I'm also working on a science fiction romance, THE SPY, featuring two characters who appeared in other stories. I haven't released a sci-fi romance for two years. I need to get this one out this year. When I run into a glitch, instead of not writing at all, I shift over to Alex O'Hara #4 (I don't have a title yet). It's been a back and forth so both stories are progressing well.

The best news from July is the release of NUMBERS NEVER LIE, a romantic suspense. Then I a subsequent blog tour. Thanks so much to the many people who invited me to guest, especially people from this group. This Saturday, I'll be at Ellen Jacobsen's blog, The Cynical Sailor & His Salty Sidekick. 

NUMBERS NEVER DIE began over 15 years ago, was set aside then picked up again this winter. I am so proud of this story.

NUMBERS NEVER LIE

A Romantic Suspense

By Diane Burton

Release Date:  July 9, 2018

Length: approx. 80,000 words

Available at Amazon  http://a.co/gUmO9wZ

Free with Kindle Unlimited

Optional question: What pitfalls would you warn other writers to avoid on their publication journey?

Life is going to throw you curves. Demands from family and job will create a lot of stress. So much so that your creative muse will take a hike. You feel guilty that you can't write, or write as much as you used to. Take deep breaths and let it go. Roll with the those curves. Do what you need to do. The story will always be there--even 15 years later LOL Does it sound like I've been there? Yep, and wished I'd handled it better.

Click here to find others on the Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop. Or go to IWSG on Facebook to see who’s blogging today.

Female Detectives

Whether in film, TV, or books, female detectives have always intrigued me. I cut my teeth on Nancy Drew, graduated to V.I. Warshawski, Kinsey Malone, Miss Marple, and Eve Dallas. Each fictional detective has qualities that engage the reader and make her/him come back for more. By far my favorite is Stephanie Plum. She is inept, at times, and often falls into solving a mystery. The humor makes me keep reading the books.

Nora Charles, played in film by Myrna Loy, was savvy, witty, and oh-so-smart. Laura Holt (Stephanie Zimbalist) led Remington Steele on a merry chase, solved crimes, and let him take the credit for her work. Too bad equal opportunity hadn’t hit detective shows back in the 80s. Still, she did look great in that fedora. Maddie Hayes (Cybill Shepherd) teamed up with a young Bruce Willis on Moonlighting. Great dialogue made that show a hit. Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) gave mystery writers hope that they, too, might solve real crimes.

But what about real life? When Allan Pinkerton hired Kate Warne in 1856, she became America’s first female detective. Smart guy, that Allan Pinkerton. I have to admit when I watched “The Pinkertons” on television, I was surprised at the female investigator. To find out she was a real person makes the show that much more interesting.

When I wrote The Case of the Bygone Brother, I modeled Alex O’Hara on the conglomeration of fictional female detectives. She is klutzy (like Stephanie Plum), a wise-acre (like V.I. Warshawski), a sleuth (like Nancy Drew), add in tenacity (like Miss Marple and Jessica Fletcher). Best of all, she has a romantic interest in Nick Palzetti—like Eve Dallas’ Roarke and Laura Holt’s Remington Steele.

Alex will be up to her old tricks in The Case of the Fabulous Fiancé, which will be available in mid-October.

Who are your favorite detectives?