The New Gal is Here!

She's here.  Eve Appel, my newest protagonist made her appearance on September 15 in a release from Camel Press entitled A Secondhand Murder.  Here's a bit about her:


Spunky and outspoken Eve Appel moves from Connecticut to rural Florida intent on starting a new life, free of drama, and more importantly, her soon-to-be ex-husband. The rural Florida town of Sabal Bay, situated only an hour from West Palm,  proves to be the perfect spot for her consignment store. Thanks to the recent economic downturn, Florida’s society matrons need a place to discreetly sell their stuff and pick up expensive-looking bargains. But Eve’s life, and her business with it, is turned upside down when a wealthy customer is found stabbed to death in a fitting room.
As accusations fly and business slows, Eve decides to take things into her own hands. With the help of an unlikely bunch of friends—including her estranged ex, her best friend, a handsome private eye, and a charming mafia don—she struggles to find answers and save lives. Through a maze of distorted half-truths, dramatic cover-ups, and unrequited passions, Eve learns just how far the wealthy will go to regain what they have lost.

 

 

 

If you want to learn more about her and me, I'm on tour for the months of October and November.  Below is a list of places I'll be visiting:

 

 

 

1. 10/01 ~ Review @ Hotchpotch

2. 10/02 ~ Interview & Showcase @ Lauries Thoughts and Reviews

3. 10/03 ~ Review @ Vics Media Room

4. 10/04 ~ Review, Guest Post & Giveaway @ Brooke Blogs

5. 10/07 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Wall-to-Wall books

6. 10/08 ~ Review by Carol Wong

7. 10/09 ~ Review @ Community Bookstop

8. 10/10 ~ Guest Post @ Omnimystery

9. 10/11 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Dr. Pepper Diva

10. 10/14 ~ Review, Interview & Giveaway @ Book2Buzz

11. 10/15 ~ Review @ 2 Kids and Tired Books

12. 10/16 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Beth Art From the Heart

13. 10/17 ~ Review & Giveaway @ A Novel Review

14. 10/18 ~ Review @ Kritters Ramblings

15. 10/20 ~ Guest Post @ The Pen Muse

16. 10/21 ~ Review @ Hezzi-Ds Books and Cooks

17. 10/22 ~ Showcase @ CMash Reads

18. 10/23 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Book Dilettante

19. 10/23 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Marys Cup of Tea

20. 10/25 ~ Review @ Teena in Toronto

21. 10/26 ~ Showcase @ The Stuff of Success

22. 10/27 ~ Review & Giveaway @ bless their hearts mom

23. 10/28 ~ Review @ Jersey Girl Book Reviews

24. 10/29 ~ Showcase @ SweepingMe

25. 10/30 ~ Guest Post @ Vicky at Deal Sharing Aunt

26. 11/01 ~ Review @ WV Stitcher

27. 11/06 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Buried Under Books

28. 11/07 ~ Showcase @ Rose & Beps Blog

29. 11/08 ~ Review @ Bookalicious Travel Addict

30. 11/09 ~ Review & Giveaway @ My Devotional Thoughts

31. 11/11 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Celticladys Reviews

32. 11/12 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Kaisy Daisys Corner

33. 11/13 ~ Guest Post @ Mochas, Mysteries and More

34. 11/14 ~ Review & Interview @ Thoughts in Progress

35. 11/15 ~ Review, Interview & Giveaway @ Socrates Book Reviews

36. 11/18 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Read 2 Review

37. 11/21 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Cabin Goddess

38. 11/26 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Ryder Islingtons Blog

39. 11/27 ~ Review @ THE SELF-TAUGHT COOK

40. 11/28 ~ Review & Giveaway @ A Room Without Books is Empty

41. 11/29 ~ Review & Giveaway @ Sapphyrias Book Reviews

 



buy link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_0_15?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=lesley%20a.%20diehl&sprefix=Lesley+A.+Diehl%2Caps%2C256

Keeping It Real

Today homicide/narcotics detective and author of a new mystery is my guest.  Please welcome C. L. Swinney.

 

Author C. L. Swinney

Author C. L. Swinney Is Keeping It Real:

 

I was a reader far before I became a writer.  I read quickly and often finish a book in a day or two.  My favorites are mystery, suspense, and thrillers.  But, I’ve got a bone to pick with crime scenes portrayed in many of these books today.  I see many people get poor reviews for their work because they make a crucial mistake when writing about a crime scene.

 

First, I’ll add my “expertise” in this topic.  I’m currently a homicide/ narcotics detective, been so for five years, and I’ve been in law enforcement for almost fifteen years.  I’ve investigated everything from street level drug dealers to cartel leaders.  I’ve wiretapped people’s phones and listened to things that would make your blood boil.  My point, I know what a cop, investigator, detective, fireman, coroner, evidence tech, and all other folks would or should do at a crime scene because I’ve been to hundreds of them and investigated most of them.

 

Here are my tips: 

 

A)              A clever girlfriend/reporter/significant other that happens to be dating your protagonist wouldn’t walk through a crime scene, manipulate evidence, then walk out without being handcuffed and stuffed in a patrol car.  Crime scenes are sacred grounds, you do things like this in a novel and people who know what should really happen will find it hard to believe.  This attacks your credibility.  I get fiction “isn’t real,” but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be believable.

 

B)               Every single element and angle of a crime scene is labeled, photographed, cataloged, processed, photographed again, and collected.  In major scenes, evidence technicians will do this, not a beat cop.  If you want to use the beat cop, you need to explain (or better yet, show) why s/he is doing it instead of the expert.  Readers of suspense, thriller, and mystery novels are educated and find it misleading when an author cuts out some or most of these steps.  If the evidence scene isn’t important, take it out all together.

 

C)               Within the yellow lines of a crime scene, the atmosphere is somber and the people working are focused.  Too many books have people smoking and joking next to a dead body.  A real law enforcement official wouldn’t do that.  Investigating tragedy and death is not a funny matter.  We take it very seriously and owe it to the victim to remain professional.

 

D)              When writing a crime scene, stick to common sense actions or feelings by your characters.  For instance, don’t have a hardened detective whose “seen it all” pass out or freak out when s/he sees something bizarre at a crime scene.  Most cops with any time on have “seen it all.”  Experienced cops have been through hairy situations causing them to digest bizarre, gross, heinous, whatever you want to throw at them with ease.  I don’t even blink when I see that kind of stuff.  It’s sad really, but it’s also the truth.  If you want to say your character is shocked or caught off guard, show why that is.  Detective X’s faced turned white as the coroner lifted the sheet revealing his brother.

 

 

I am a fiction writer but I spend a lot of time trying to make the overwhelming majority of what I write realistic.  I feel it adds to the story and I owe it to the reader to take pride in my craft.  So please, when you want to include a crime scene in your novels, make an effort to avoid the pitfalls I’ve listed above.  I think you will find your story will be better and people will talk about how you nailed it!

 

While on a fly fishing vacation to Andros Island in the Bahamas, narcotics detectives Dix and Peterson discover their fishing guides were killed when a sudden blast of gunfire fractured their speedboat, Gray Ghost. Local gossip has it that Gray Ghost went to the ocean floor with a hundred million dollars worth of cocaine in the hull. Dix and Peterson are drawn into helping their island friends, and chase down leads in Miami as well as the Bahamas until they identify the diabolical plot of the man known only as The Caller…and then the trouble really starts.

"When two Miami narcotic officers take a fishing trip to the Bahamas, they can't leave the drug world behind...Deftly told by the author, detective and avid fly fisher Chris Swinney, this book will hook any reader of mystery fiction." —Sunny Frazier, author of the Christy Bristol Astrology Mysteries

 

Links for book:

http://www.amazon.com/Gray-Ghost-C-L-Swinney/dp/1610091078/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376442902

 

Learn more about C. L. Swinney:

http://www.clswinney.wordpress.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author James Callan talks about Contrast in Writing

Please welcome author James Callan today. He has some advice for writers which will help your writing sing.

Author James Callan

 

 



Contrast Is What Allows Us to See

 

Frequently, we receive the advice to have things coordinated, matching. The pillows should match the bedspread.  The shirt should match the pants.  The earrings should match the necklace. The furnishing in the house should match.

 

But it is the contrast that makes the different pieces stand out.

 

I had two friends in college.  One was six feet four inches tall, the center of the basketball team.  (Yes, it was a long time ago when that was actually tall.)  His best friend was five feet six inches tall.  Mutt and Jeff, we sometimes called them. But everybody noticed them when they were walking across campus. Contrast.

 

Jewelers will show crystal clear diamonds on black velvet. Contrast.

 

A perfectly clear blue sky is pretty. Put a single, shinning white cloud in the middle. Both the cloud and the sky become more beautiful, the contrast enhancing both.  Bring in an angry, dark thunderhead and you not only have contrast and beauty, but now you have added drama to the picture.

 

Robert Parker knew the value of contrast.  He developed a macho protagonist in Spenser, a wise-cracking, ex-cop with his own code of honor.  But, there is a contrast in Spenser, as he likes to cook and has a committed relationship with Susan Silverman, a sophisticated lady and Harvard professor.  And then, to add to the contrast, Parker introduces Hawk. While Spenser speaks well, sometimes eloquently, Hawk’s speech is abrupt, street talk. Hawk has his own code, and is a gun for hire. Parker used these contrasts to propel forty Spenser novels to best-seller status.  (Ace Atkins has continued the Spenser books with two since Parker’s death. Spenser lives on.)

 

In my book on character development (Character: The Heartbeat of the Novel – Oak Tree Press 2013) I suggest that you develop a sidekick for the protagonist and that there be a distinct contrast between the two. Make the sidekick a carbon copy of the protagonist and all you’ve really done is add another pair of hands. You’ve wasted an opportunity.  Here is an opportunity to highlight features of the protagonist that you’d like to emphasize. In addition, the contrast can also add small conflicts, and we know that conflict is a core element of the novel.

 

In A Ton of Gold, I pair a street-wise high school graduate with a near-Ph.D. research computer scientist. Both are intelligent, but in contrasting ways. Crystal Moore, the protagonist, is highly educated. Brandi Brewer is street smart. Periodically, Brandi will say to Crystal, “Didn’t you learn anything as a kid?” Brandi learned a lot growing up on the street. Crystal learned a lot in classrooms. It is Crystal who learns from Brandi.

 

I highlight their differences throughout the book. This contrast helps emphasize features of the protagonist that I want to underscore without my beating the reader over the head. By juxtaposing the two, I can show features without having to tell the reader. And it is this “opposite type” character, Brandi, who helps Crystal find her way to the solution – well, at least for the subplot.

So, remember to use this important writer’s tool, contrast, to emphasize certain things, to add minor (or major) conflicts, to bring additional drama into the story, to improve your novel.

 

James R. Callan

www.jamesrcallan.com

A Ton of Gold, Oak Tree Press, 2013

Character: The Heartbeat of the Novel, Oak Tree Press, 2013

 

 

A Ton of Gold

A contemporary mystery / suspense novel

 

Can long forgotten, old folk tales affect the lives of people today? In A Ton of Gold, one certainly affected young, brilliant Crystal Moore.  Two people are killed, others threatened, a house burned and an office fire-bombed – all because of an old folk tale, greed and ignorance.  

 

On top of that, the man who nearly destroyed Crystal emotionally is coming back.  This time he can put an end to her career.  She’ll need all the help she can get from a former bull rider, her streetwise housemate and her feisty 76 year-old grandmother.

 

A Ton of Gold

By James R. Callan

From Oak Tree Press, Feb. 2013

 

On Amazon, in paperback, at:  http://amzn.to/UQrqsZ 

Or the Kindle edition at:  http://amzn.to/12PeHJb    

Or from Oak Tree Press at:  http://bit.ly/WJXcWl 

 

 

Website:          www.jamesrcallan.com

Blog site:         www.jamesrcallan.com/blog

Book website: www.atonofgold.com

 



 

Why I Became a Writer

Please welcome Kristen Elise.  She has an unusual story to tell about how she became a writer.  I'm happy she did because the outcome was a most exciting book.  Read on.

Author Kristen Elise

 

 

An Accident, a Dare, and a Massive Layoff

My “Why I Became a Writer” Story

 

Kristen Elise, Ph.D. is a drug discovery biologist and the author of The Vesuvius Isotope. She lives in San Diego, California, with her husband, stepson, and three canine children. Please visit her websites at www.kristenelisephd.com and www.murderlab.com. The Vesuvius Isotope is available in both print (www.kristenelisephd.com and www.amazon.com) and e-book formats (www.amazon.com for Kindle, www.barnesandnoble.com for Nook, www.kobo.com for Kobo reader.)

A few months ago, Lesley Diehl participated in an experiment. She and several other professional writers each wrote the same blog post: Why I Became a Writer. As I neither knew Lesley at that time nor was a professional writer, I missed the chance to join in. Today, Lesley has graciously given me a guest slot on her blog to let me catch up.

 

In short, I stumbled into writing bass-ackward. Three factors converged to spark my now full-time writing career: an accident, a dare, and a massive layoff. Three factors that turned out to be three unlikely strokes of luck.

 

My contribution to the “Why I Became a Writer” experiment begins with an experiment of an entirely different kind—the kind that takes place in a laboratory. A scientist since birth, I was working on anthrax at the time. My goal was to identify inhibitors of an anthrax protein. What I found instead was an activator—a molecule that made anthrax infection more efficient. It took very little creativity on my part to envision a scenario in which this discovery could be bad.

 

Around the same time, a friend of mine dared me to write a story. Having never previously written a story that wasn’t required by a teacher for a grade, I felt like a total imposter. But I wrote my anthrax activator story and brought it to my friend’s budding writers’ group. The group quickly went the way of the dodo, but the idea began to snowball.

 

The story grew into my first full-length manuscript, The Death Row Complex. The thing that amazed me the most during that time was how addicted to writing I would quickly become. I absolutely couldn’t put the manuscript down, and I also began looking ahead to the next one. I don’t know when it happened, but somewhere along the lines, writing became a permanent fixture in my life. But it still hadn’t occurred to me that it would ever be more than a hobby.

 

While I was still working on The Death Row Complex, the idea for my next novel struck. I was in Italy on vacation and paid a visit to the Naples Archeological Museum. The more I learned of the lost city of Herculaneum, the more the idea began to develop. I came to realize that my Death Row protagonist belonged in both novels, and that the second story needed to be released first. So I finished the first draft of Death Row and then shelved it to write the manuscript that would become The Vesuvius Isotope.

 

I finished this manuscript in December. In January, I handed it to a professional editor. And in February, the pharmaceutical company I worked for cut my entire site, laying off every one if its more than 100 employees.

 

I had just become a professional novelist.

 

Mind you, I had become a professional novelist without an actual novel to speak of, let alone a dime ever earned from said non-existent novel. But what the hell. Truth be told, the pharmaceutical industry is a great place to be laid off from, and I say that with all sincerity. The severance package I received was enough. Not “lap of luxury” enough, but enough to take a hiatus and publish my book.

 

I had no idea how long my Extended Spring Break, as I like to call it, would turn out to be. I still don’t. But even then, I knew it would be finite. So it was clear that query letters followed by months of waiting were not going to be the best path for me. I buckled down and learned how to self-publish.

 

That was the day I realized that I had just become my own marketing department. So while the editing was ongoing and my sole prop was being established, I was also turbo-charging my platform. Publishers noticed me, and I was quickly offered a couple of contracts, unsolicited. I turned them down in order to get the book out faster, knowing that my Extended Spring Break, and with it the time I had for promoting the book, would eventually come to an end.

 

And so I became a full-time novelist without a publishing contract and before ever completing a novel. Now that The Vesuvius Isotope is a reality, I am returning to Death Row. And when my severance pay runs out, if the Pulitzer Committee still hasn’t come knocking, I’ll head back into the laboratory. I can only dare hope for another inspirational accident before the next massive lay-off.

About The Vesuvius Isotope

When her Nobel laureate husband is murdered, biologist Katrina Stone can no longer ignore the secrecy that increasingly pervaded his behavior in recent weeks. Her search for answers leads to a two-thousand-year-old medical mystery and the esoteric life of one of history’s most enigmatic women. Following the trail forged by her late husband, Katrina must separate truth from legend as she chases medicine from ancient Italy and Egypt to a clandestine modern-day war. Her quest will reveal a legacy of greed and murder and resurrect an ancient plague, introducing it into the twenty-first century.

 

 

 

 



 

Summer Editing

Finally.  What I’ve been waiting for since we returned from the South—warm weather.  The rains that filled the stream out back and brought back the fears of to two years ago and the flood are simply a memory.  They may return, but for now the skies are filled with big puffy clouds that may develop into a storm later today, but I’m happy to be sitting on my back deck overlooking the creek and enjoying an occasional breeze.

 

I did the same yesterday, my computer on the table in front of me working on what I hope will be the final edit for my book A Secondhand Murder scheduled for release September 15.  The manuscript is in Adobe so you can imagine how frustrating that is, but it’s made far easier by what I see when I lift my gaze from the computer to the scene in front of me.  Yesterday the Canada geese we’d noticed in the region brought their kids down to the stream to have play time.  It looked very much like taking the gamily to the beach on the weekend.  They were joined by several crows who usually claim the beach for their own, hence our name for it, “Crow Beach”.  They didn’t seem to mind the company.  In addition to the Canadas was a white goose, bigger than all the rest.  I couldn’t see if it was an albino (I don’t even know if birds some in albino form) or simply a regular goose who had adopted the Canada family as its own.  It seemed to be well accepted as it swam among the children and adults,  Maybe it was the nanny or a baby sitter hired for the day.

 

This morning our resident woodchuck occupied our backyard at the creek’s edge bringing with her a smaller “chuck”.  We were going to trap her, but now Glenn is afraid to separate the two and is obsessing about how he can capture them together.  The young one is well able to find for itself, but Glenn doesn’t like to break up the family.  I’m sympathetic, but pointed out he can move them both to the same spot.  They’ll find one another again.  He’s putting this off.  I can’t blame him, but it’s not going to settle itself.  We already moved a chipmunk to the cemetery across the stream.  No, no.  Not dead.  We trapped the little bugger and moved him live.  The cemetery is a beautiful place for a chipper critter and would make a great home for our chucks too.  We like seeing them until they begin to eat our garden then it’s time for the moving truck.

 

Sharing Summer

 

The stream is back down from high water several weeks ago.  It flows gently toward our property, then rushes over the rocks to drop several feet and continue its flow past our house.  I can hear it babble and see the white ripples sparkle as the sunlight hits them.

It’s clear now, revealing large rocks on the bottom.  People come down to the bank on the other side of the stream to swim and wade often bringing their dogs who seem to enjoy a brief dip also.  It’s become the community pool in these hot days.   Last weekend while the water was still high and the days still cool, several adolescents came by on inner tubes enjoying the excitement of being twirled and dunked by the whirlpool at the base of the downed willow trees just in front of our yard.

 

Well, you get the idea.  It’s so tranquil here, a feast for the soul.  What’s that I hear?  The blackbirds, crows, a cardinal and two squirrels are chorusing a message for me, saying, “Get busy editing,” so I must go, but I hope you enjoyed this little reprieve from work as much as I did.  Do you take soul satisfying breaks?  What are they like?

Using Fear to Write

But first some news:  Coming soon from Camel Press, my first Eve Appel Mystery, A Secondhand Murder.  At Eve's Florida consignment shop the bargains are to die for.  This is thrift with a twist.

My Fears: Can I make them work for me as a writer?

I watched the rain continue to come down last week and watched our little trout stream turn into a raging river.  Oh no, I thought.  Not again.  Two years ago the stream spilled over its banks leaving our basement filled with three to four feet of water.  The worst part wasn’t the basement.  It was the fear the night before that the river would sweep the entire house away.

 

I’ve always had a fear of drowning.   My parents did not have the money to buy swimming lessons in the summers when all the other kids were learning to paddle their way the length of the community pool.  It was not until I was in my teens that I learned to swim, but I never passed my beginners’ test because I was too terrified to jump into the deep end of the pool, a requirement to pass.  I swam with my head out of the water, never able to put it under water and learn to hold my breath.  I still swim that way although I’m more comfortable being in the water.  I can do almost every stoke as long as I don’t have to put my face in the water.

 

I have recurring dreams about driving down a road and the road leads into a lake which I drive right into.  I usually wake up.  So no, I’m not water nymph. 

 

Seeing that water rise again this past week brought back all the terrors of the flood two years ago.  I was alone then because Glenn was on a cross country motorcycle grip promoting his book.  He’s here this year, so I felt comforted by his presence, yet still frightened by the prospect of another flood.  The last time they declared a state of emergency which means no one is to be on the road, a real catch twenty-two.  How as I to get out of the way of the waters if I couldn’t drive off?  The best I could hope for was someone pulling up to my back deck in a boat while I handed them my two cats and abandoned the house.  That’s if they found me and not the house floating down the river with me and the cats in the attic.

 

To my great relief the rain let up and the waters subsided the next morning, giving me the emotional space to think about fear and to realize that my fears have colored my writing.

 

I don’t think I have many fears, but fear of drowning in a flood found its way into several of my books as well as the feat of wild fires.  I’m big on finding natural disasters particularly terrifying for my protagonists. 

 

But there are the little other fears that are more personal.  I do use these to provide exciting moments for my sassy country gals.   I have a fear of heights that has developed over the past five years.  It is related to a medical condition, vertigo.  My protagonist in Angel Sleuth finds she can deal with being hung over a chasm and handle the challenge of getting to safety.  Good for her.  She should be better than I, don’t you think?  I hate snakes.  Now isn’t that a kick when I live in Florida where we can grow ‘em big and scary?  For some reason I’ve been reluctant to use this fear in my writing until just recently as I was working on the second book in my Eve Appel Murder Mystery series.  I don’t want to ruin it for you, but I used snakes not simply to scare, but to work for my protagonist. 

 

When I was a kid I used to be scared of vampires and werewolves.  Not now, so you won’t read about my protagonist turning into a vampire any time soon.

 

What are your fears?  Do you use them in your writing?  Do you like protagonists who share these fears and overcome them?

Finding and Hiding Dead Bodies

 

Body in Beer Cooler Truck

Body in Dumpster behind Bar

 

 

 

I like to locate my dead bodies in interesting or odd places.  I think all mystery writers do this when they can, so I was thinking as I was trying to take a nap that it might be fun to come up with a list of places where a writer might locate a body.  I’ve tried to divide my list into categories.

 

All Around the House

 

            In bathtubs, large sinks, washing machines, dryers, stoves, dishwashers.  In closets, in the old coal bin in the basement or an antique trunk in the attic.  Tucked into the eaves, bricked up behind a wall, stuffed under the couch, hidden in the dog crate, shoved behind the draperies if in a hurry (to be moved later).  Under the front or back steps, behind the stack of newspapers that were to be moved last week.  In the hamper with the dirty clothes, then moved to the clothesbasket with the freshly laundered ones.

            Tied to the chimney, for who looks up there anyway?

 

For Outdoorsy folks

 

            Floating or weighted down in a stream, lake, river, or pond.  In a gravel quarry under a pile of crushed rock, or crushed by a rock under a pile of gravel.  In the woods, buried or propped up by a tree, as if enjoying the day.  In a swamp, but before the alligators find it. In a cave covered by bat doodoo.

            In the compost pile, under the mulch pile, buried in the garden or used for a scarecrow.  Lodged behind the bushes along the fence line, jammed into the wood chuck’s hole.  Under the grill cover which is never used anyway.  Tossed into a ditch along the road with the rest of the litter or tossed in the trash can at the interstate rest area.

 

Going on a Trip

 

            In the truck of the car or in the car carrier on the top (see outdoorsy locations for final resting place).  Left behind in a motel room under the bed, in the shower or in the spa or pool.  With the carryon luggage or, if willing to pay extra, checked with the other bags.  In the airplane lavatory or train lavatory.  Or in the bus station’s bathroom to be discovered when it is cleaned next month (year).  Dumped in a foreign country without a passport.

            Discarded in any of the outdoorsy locations suggested above in any country, e.g., On Top of Old Smoky, at the Great Wall or in the Kremlin.

            Sent into outer space (unmanned probe).

 

Body found in neighbor's brewery

Body found in protag's brewery

 

 

Scary or Ghoulish Places

 

            In a funeral home in its own coffin or sharing with another.  In a graveyard, buried alone (so overdone) or sharing (as above).  In a meat packing plant, incinerator in the county landfill or simply left out with the trash on Monday morning (see All Around the House above).

At a fun house in the tunnel of love.  Riding the Ferris wheel, merry go round or tilt a whirl.

            In a trick or treat bag on Halloween (big bag!).  Dressed as a corpse being pulled around in your kid’s red wagon on Halloween.

 

 

Old MacDonald’s Farm

 

            Since I grew up on a farm, I couldn’t resist this category.

In the milk cooler, under the manure pile, in the manure spreader (see the outdoorsy category for final resting places), in the hay mow, in the tack room, in the corn crib, in the chicken coop (that’s where I used to hide my teddy bear), in any piece of farm machinery—baler, corn picker, plow, hay wagon.  Down the well or up in the windmill (again, who looks up there?), in bossy or Dobbin’s stall.  Tucked in the middle of a herd of sheep, goats cows or horses, a tricky maneuver, but I’m certain any good writer could work around this one.  Feed troughs and water troughs are big enough to accommodate several bodies in case you’ve got a serial killer on your hands.

 

 

City Places

 

            On a bus, subway or in a subway tunnel.  In the 57^th precinct coffee room.  In the fountain for a big splash.  Dressed as a mannequin in the department store window.  In a dressing room.  On the treadmill, stepper, spin bicycle or any other piece of equipment in a fitness club because everyone will just think the person is resting between reps.  In the mayor’s chair, just resting.  On the floor of the House of Representatives, again simply resting.  In Central Park, the most clichéd location.  In a ghetto, again cliched.  In a Park Avenue apartment or in their laundry chute, also clichéd.  Seated in a car in a parking garage.  Seated in a car at an expired meter.  Located in a trunk in the aforementioned locations is also cliched.  In the alleyway in a commercial dumpster along with the other bodies there the cops haven’t yet discovered.

Body at foot of stairs while protag pedals by chased by a gaggle of geese

 

 

 

It’s Your Business

 

            In any business such as in a dressing room (in my newest book due out Sept 15), behind the Slurpee machine at a convenience store, hidden with the two by fours in a Do-It-Yourself store, feet first with the cherry tree in the garden shop or side by side with yesterday’s pastries in a bake shop.

 

If I kept at this I’ll bet I could come up with more.  I’ve used some of the more absurd ones in my mysteries.  You too must have some great ones.  Share.