tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58825249438376007012024-02-13T00:29:25.846-08:00Delta Mystery Writer Joan KlenglerWelcome. If you're here, you've come to the right place to communicate with me about my books or horses or anything else you'd like to discuss.delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.comBlogger139125truetag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-74445746934665994372017-09-20T13:59:00.002-07:002017-09-20T13:59:59.318-07:00I know I promised to update monthly but....If I have any followers left out there after my protracted absence, I apologize sincerely. It has been a very rough few months. On Memorial Day weekend, I began to have dizzy spells. They continued for months. Spent a lot of time with a wonderful ENT - ultimately it was decided that they may have been caused by a sinus infection complicated by allergies - After a balloon rhinoplasty which was about as unpleasant as it sounds, no better. Then Dr injected cortisone into both sides of my face just in front of the ears - To quote Seinfeld - Me - Will this hurt? Dr. - Yes, very much. But within a week the dizzy spells were gone and have stayed gone. Fingers crossed.<br />
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Then I developed a number of ulcers, one of which was a bleeder. Underwent an endoscopy with cauterization of the bleeder and have made a full recovery, thank goodness. Dr says in no uncertain terms it was caused by years of use of Ibuprofen, so be warned, please. The worst part of that was no alcohol for 5 weeks. Back to drinking hooray. Had no appetite and a frightening amount of weight loss but the good news is I am packing on the pounds again although my husband says enough already. He prefers the new skinnier me.<br />
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I think that is all the bad health news.<br />
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I have been laboring over a new book called A Labyrinth of Lies which features new characters and will definitely be a stand alone book - no sequels. But I was so focused on my health issues that I have not written in several months.<br />
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Rather, I have discovered the Harry Hole mystery series written by the Norwegian author Jo Nesbo. Highly recommend them. They completely distracted me from all of my problems but be warned, they are not for the faint of heart. They have, however, given me a complex - I now find my books slow and overwritten. Oh, well, hope I get my inspiration back soon.<br />
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The other total distraction has to be the plethora of outstanding shows on Netflix and premium cable - On Netflix - check out The Fall with Gillian Anderson, Paranoia, Marcella and The Crown. Oh, and River with Stellan Skarsgaard - simply great story telling with an unusual twist.<br />
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On Showtime - Ray Donovan is back, stronger and better than ever but completely heartbreaking.<br />
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On HBO - the new series from the creators of The Wire - The Deuce - starring one of my all time favorites James Franco and Maggie Gyllenhaal - strong stuff - about the prostitution and porn industry in the Times Square District of NY in 1971 before it became a cleaned up tourist mecca.<br />
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On USA - Jessica Biehl hit a home run with an 8 part limited series called The Sinner.<br />
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Then of course, there was season two of Animal Kingdom - with the incredible Ellen Barkin and a cast of the hottest guys anywhere.<br />
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At the movie theaters - only one real standout for us all summer and that is Wind River. <br />
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Re concerts - saw UB40 in June - still amazing - Rat in Mi Kitchen - are you feeling Irae?<br />
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In July - Bryan Ferry at the Hollywood Bowl with the L A Philharmonic - okay, I'm in love. Best concert ever.<br />
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Tomorrow night, back to the Hollywood Bowl for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers once again. Always the greatest.<br />
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And in October - Depeche Mode at the Santa Barbara Bowl.<br />
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It's been an awesome summer for music here.<br />
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Then there is our wonderful family of furry critters - we are down to 3 horses, 3 cats, 2 dogs and 2 bunnies - still a handful. And by the way, bunnies are the best little furries in the world. I do most of my writing with them next to me-. The are endlessly lovable.<br />
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So you can see, with all of these distractions, it has been impossible trying to write.<br />
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In closing, rediscovered a wonderful old song from my youth - check out He's So Fine by the Chiffons. Can't stop singing.<br />
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Including a potential cover for the new book since I needed a photo of some sort. The photo is of L.A.'s iconic Watts Towers - you have to see then in person to understand their power and beauty. And the story behind them is amazing.<br />
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Hugs to anyone still out there. I'm here.<br />
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delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-60080611156763907702017-04-19T15:04:00.002-07:002017-04-19T15:07:23.906-07:00The Road to HellIf the old saying "The road to hell is paved with good intentions" is true then I am surely headed there<br />
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It is always my intention to post if not weekly, then certainly monthly and yet I see that a significant time has elapsed with nothing new from me.<br />
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If you are still checking my blog, my most sincere thanks for your patience and persistence. <br />
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And now - my latest rant on the topic of television. <br />
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This post was inspired by the finale of 24 Legacy. Let me begin by saying that we were fans of the original 24 - it was amazingly prescient - although it premiered shortly after 9-11 - it had been developed and written before that date.<br />
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The subject was terrorism long before the glut of terrorist plotted shows that followed.<br />
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The show aired for 10 seasons and although as the years went by, we said "okay enough - we'll just watch the first couple of episodes" but once we did we were off and running by Jack Bauer's side right up to the bitter, and I do mean, bitter end - which saw Jack captured and taken away to Russia to an unknown fate.<br />
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We skipped the first season of 24 Legacy. I just couldn't imagine 24 without Kiefer Sutherland. But based on good advance blurbs, we decided to watch season 2. As usual, the plot dealt with Arab terrorists and a lot of it seemed recycled. Oh, there were some tense moments and we made it through all 12 episodes - I guess the show should have been called 12 Legacy but I am grateful it did not drag out beyond 12 hours.<br />
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I have nothing against Corey Hawkins as Eric Carter - he handles his role well. It is not his fault that he is written in such a one dimensional fashion - pure stalwart hero - lacking in complexity - almost a cardboard cutout. Unfortunately he failed to hold our interest which brings me to a point which has probably been covered by numerous writers/reviewers.<br />
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Never has it been so apparent that a show is built solely around one character, in this case Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer - multi-faceted, morally compromised, a character with more layers than Connie Corleone's wedding cake.<br />
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Without him, there is no 24.<br />
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Now if they want to guarantee that we will watch another season, send Chloe and Tony to Russia to rescue Jack Bauer. I'm in.<br />
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***<br />
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Certainly the hottest new show in years has to be This Is Us. It hooked us from the start. I believe I cried at some point during every episode. It is well written, the characters are well developed and acted and it deals with every single issue in the world - race, obesity, the death of dreams and actual death, adoption and the reappearance of a birth parent, family crises - this list could hit a couple of pages but you get the idea.<br />
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It is a welcome change from serial killers, hospital dramas and spinoffs of CSI.<br />
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The only small criticism I have is that I am beginning to feel just a teeny bit manipulated. The writers and developers layer things on a bit thick at times. We will wait and see if they run out of new ideas in the next season. It has already been renewed for at least two more seasons.<br />
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***<br />
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Black Sails ended a three season run on Starz this year. I cried. When I first heard about this show, I said "Seriously, Pirates?" But I decided to give it a try. I think the last time I got so emotionally wrapped up in a show might have been Sons of Anarchy (And more about that later).<br />
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I waited for my weekly fix. I hummed along with the opening sea chanty. I was on the edge of my chair through most episodes waiting to see if my favorite characters would survive. I was online researching real life pirates versus fictional ones.<br />
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I recommended it to everyone.<br />
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It could have gone on another season but Starz is notorious about not keeping a series alive much beyond two seasons. And then, of course, there are the shows that start strong and do go on tooooo long so better to end it on a high note. I would probably be more upset had they not SPOILER ALERT hung Charles Vane (Zach McGowan) at the end of Season two. Where are you, beautiful? When will we see you again?<br />
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***<br />
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Homeland hit it out of the ballpark this season. Just when you think maybe it's time for a series finale, someone throws a curve that really works. I am not going to discuss any plot points in case someone out there has not seen it - just let me say, it might have been the best season since the first and I cannot wait for next season to begin. Oh, there was just one thing wrong with the season finale although it was not unexpected. If you watched you can probably guess.<br />
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***<br />
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Shows we gave up on -<br />
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Well, there was Masters of Sex. It never really grabbed us. I think we kept watching because my husband was smitten with Lizzy Caplan. Unfortunately Michael Sheen does nothing for me so I lost interest sooner than he did.<br />
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It had a certain smutty quality and believe me I am no prude which you know if you read my books.<br />
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I found it contrived and a little research showed that it strayed so far from the truth of Masters and Johnson that I wondered how they got away with making so much shit up.<br />
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Next came Billions - We made it through Season One but by the beginning of Season Two, I wondered why we were wasting our life on such dislikable characters. Paul Giamatti's repulsive Chuck Rhodes was so - well - repulsive that I felt I had to root for Damian Lewis' Bobby Axelrod. Unfortunately I didn't like him either. It wasn't that he was one of the Wall Street bad guys. Goodness knows, I've loved every bad guy in every series from the entire cast of The Shield, the entire cast of Sons of Anarchy to Walter White in Breaking Bad (well, at least until he killed Mike and stole the baby). Then there was Maggie Siff who I loved from Sons. But how could I like her character? She's married to Chuck Rhodes and worked for Bobby. I could forgive her working for Bobby but the creepy dominatrix theme with her husband was icky.<br />
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***<br />
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It's probably a relief to know that I'm running out of time for today so have to give a big round of applause to one of the best and most undeservedly underrated shows on TV - The Americans. If you've watched it, you know. If you haven't, catch up anyway you can.<br />
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I saved the best for last. Animal Kingdom starring Ellen Barkin and a cast of the hottest men in the world as the mom/grandmom head of a crime family and her sons and grandson. Talk about rooting for the bad guys. My daughter and I have watched it twice just for the eye candy. Season two coming up so if you haven't seen it, get caught up in time so you're ready.delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-51300197747995204472017-02-03T10:38:00.002-08:002017-02-03T10:38:47.155-08:00I Am So BadIt took me so long to write - rewrite - edit - and rewrite some more the latest book Mandolin Wind that I just realized my last post to my Blog was in August at the time of my trip to Wisconsin and Upper Michigan.<br />
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The highlight of the trip was my Class Reunion which provided an opportunity to visit with some very dear friends.<br />
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Then, of course, there was my near purchase of property in Upper Michigan. Gasp - you say - what were you thinking? You - who freeze when the temperature in L.A. drops below 65 degrees.<br />
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Well, the property was really a dream come true (except for those winters) - 9 acres just across M35 from the bay - with an unobstructed view of the water since across the road was just a narrow strip of sandy beach on which no one could ever build. A darling little house with a fenced yard for the dogs, a deck and patio with bay views, a fabulous large barn and lots of room for horse pasture.<br />
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I had my checkbook out until my husband asked me where the riding trails were. The answer - about 9 miles away in Cedar River. That meant a trailering the horses every time we wanted to ride. I almost convinced myself I could live with that but then thoughts of long cold winters started to creep in and I had to let my dream die.<br />
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I still think about that place and how wonderful it would be to live there - in the summer. <br />
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Our southern California winter has been long, cold and rainy and I am longing for summer.<br />
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Re the book - Mandolin Wind was a departure from my usual writing style and genre and I am sorry to say that I am no Nicholas Sparks. Hereafter I will leave the romance writing to the master.<br />
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I am happy to say that I am back at work on a new Nick and Jessie Delta Mystery titled The Midnight Special. The photo you see here is the cover - thanks to my dear friend Lori Lopes. The story involves the search for the truth behind the brutal murder of a young woman which occurred years earlier - a crime for which her husband was convicted and sent to Death Row. But was his conviction a crime itself? Is he truly innocent? And if so, who killed the self proclaimed Wild Child Carmen?<br />
Jessie and Bodie interrupt their vacations to search for answers.<br />
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delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-2251539778497138322016-08-21T08:54:00.001-07:002016-08-21T08:54:18.549-07:00My Cross Country TripI had good intentions. I planned to write daily posts with pics detailing my trip from Union Station L.A. to Union Station Chicago and then up to Marinette/Menominee.<br />
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As you can see, I did not get around to it.<br />
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I take really bad pictures so had none to share from the train trip itself. I can report however that I really enjoyed the train as always. Watching the vast arid expanse of the west give way to the lush greenery of the midwest from my cozy roomette and enjoying visiting with other travelers over meals in the dining car.<br />
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Chicago was amazing - a city full of energy and excitement. Enjoyed amazing Chicago style deep dish pizza and Elliot Ness Lager at Exchequer Pub on Wabash.<br />
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Drove up to Menominee and arrived mid afternoon at AmericInn on the bay and settled into a beautiful room with balcony right on the shore. Immediately turned off AC and opened the door and window to let in the bay breeze. It stayed open for the duration right through a couple of rain storms.<br />
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Found something completely unexpected - a good little authentic Mexican restaurant with Margaritas as good as Viva's, enjoyed my favorite Jozwiak's pizza, had a truly splendid fine dining experience at Berg's Landing on the bay, and partied with friends multiple times. <br />
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My friend Marilou and I drove up to see my friends Mary and Russ Kralovetz at their Waubee Lake Lodge. Check out the pictures and if you're ever in the area, it's the place to stay. Actually, it's a reason to come here.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ9-k5oaXdCC_LuL8p8VNPzNSrzRdrvHQEyKp1rJdTQtBEQ9x-Pd9CpMD3je2Lyw3uc_x_fbtIpcx_q-GzVDx9uMmaRmy5lM6-QaPdFyPBkalx2ue2CNJjfEjBPfvcnDtugRwgqglk8qI/s1600/Georgie+%2526+Joe%2527s+Beach+House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ9-k5oaXdCC_LuL8p8VNPzNSrzRdrvHQEyKp1rJdTQtBEQ9x-Pd9CpMD3je2Lyw3uc_x_fbtIpcx_q-GzVDx9uMmaRmy5lM6-QaPdFyPBkalx2ue2CNJjfEjBPfvcnDtugRwgqglk8qI/s320/Georgie+%2526+Joe%2527s+Beach+House.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Georgie & Joe's Beach House</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from my room</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Menominee Yacht Harbor</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Menominee Waterfront</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsf9T9AndENNSlevxzSk76dPxNjSrGHKhpLdcuj5I6DkSXnSSBt0Jh1ewDTzGPhXg_fCB0D2hySh1rlq2OuJumgjtx9mT9_q9Jbc-eYQWv0x4cMw781C84Az-JKSDgHBlM5aNpTolfQ4/s1600/Menominee+Waterfront+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsf9T9AndENNSlevxzSk76dPxNjSrGHKhpLdcuj5I6DkSXnSSBt0Jh1ewDTzGPhXg_fCB0D2hySh1rlq2OuJumgjtx9mT9_q9Jbc-eYQWv0x4cMw781C84Az-JKSDgHBlM5aNpTolfQ4/s320/Menominee+Waterfront+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Menominee Waterfront</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waubee Lake Lodge</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs31TPmv1FRB7RTGo2ngilo_MKafI3YLstv9qVvAmell-w_uejqz0EvU-JdK2NDYZB41sY2O_gbCoiLLhY5mCGFbspAInOeT2pXarZnHBgS-HEM-8kqbdDyt4bSnfAk3FBBQaVXCb8v7M/s1600/Waubee+lake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs31TPmv1FRB7RTGo2ngilo_MKafI3YLstv9qVvAmell-w_uejqz0EvU-JdK2NDYZB41sY2O_gbCoiLLhY5mCGFbspAInOeT2pXarZnHBgS-HEM-8kqbdDyt4bSnfAk3FBBQaVXCb8v7M/s320/Waubee+lake.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waubee Lake</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfAhDcd2sbaaDpozvdFK2C55uUucypb9VyhtJ_Mk2IdmJe3lOZYoNcp3SeFhbqYCA-P9HeLj2FAgRpqbyEsyWebZvnRlx9biAMQE8tpC2yV742cDvWB0Ov5_1QRpbMqwQ2IODe6ABfGzY/s1600/Lodge+Bar.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfAhDcd2sbaaDpozvdFK2C55uUucypb9VyhtJ_Mk2IdmJe3lOZYoNcp3SeFhbqYCA-P9HeLj2FAgRpqbyEsyWebZvnRlx9biAMQE8tpC2yV742cDvWB0Ov5_1QRpbMqwQ2IODe6ABfGzY/s320/Lodge+Bar.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waubee Lake Lodge Bar</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVQOsb02-8-ABzpbk3P83C6aLgNKrzp97rdBqS_i_CS2swgxkbmaTaRuEU_Krs4KJ9twoq7kgjK8tWLzG-aVGOHq0FLJj31ACb7kJmvSRGX3qffMEvSPjQE0uPEki9TdPuOdX6JjFV-_8/s1600/Lodge+facing+Lake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVQOsb02-8-ABzpbk3P83C6aLgNKrzp97rdBqS_i_CS2swgxkbmaTaRuEU_Krs4KJ9twoq7kgjK8tWLzG-aVGOHq0FLJj31ACb7kJmvSRGX3qffMEvSPjQE0uPEki9TdPuOdX6JjFV-_8/s320/Lodge+facing+Lake.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lodge Suites Facing Lake</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2CDtmZ0HbbCr03W2ZfVb0dcWxNJO56cniMKwF_X9mxeysiz1bBQ5ADNblald8_TTcaY6_ab1cLMIaHuErcQT065vkOhM3CdfHMpsODUOUEqZgC4W-19AKV0L7PvPdlWj2Y-_71ITJ3hM/s1600/Outdoor+dining.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2CDtmZ0HbbCr03W2ZfVb0dcWxNJO56cniMKwF_X9mxeysiz1bBQ5ADNblald8_TTcaY6_ab1cLMIaHuErcQT065vkOhM3CdfHMpsODUOUEqZgC4W-19AKV0L7PvPdlWj2Y-_71ITJ3hM/s320/Outdoor+dining.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outdoor dining on the deck</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPS_fZs9OmNhfoSzQqzWjj7yNBss35tzfqZD7BS1MGgxdw29lfU_UqWSA8Sl-nqBI4TNh5e5p0TfV805xqLTEQAGmSCJq5v65F9G6PUi99vDqatsXMVhzAkli88jTvKJxmwxANVoLjWzY/s1600/Fireplace+on+deck.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPS_fZs9OmNhfoSzQqzWjj7yNBss35tzfqZD7BS1MGgxdw29lfU_UqWSA8Sl-nqBI4TNh5e5p0TfV805xqLTEQAGmSCJq5v65F9G6PUi99vDqatsXMVhzAkli88jTvKJxmwxANVoLjWzY/s320/Fireplace+on+deck.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fireplace on Lodge Deck</td></tr>
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Georgie and Joe hosted the most fun get together. Drank lots of good beer and watched the waves roll onto the beach at numerous locations.<br />
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Also came very close to talking Ingolf into buying 9 acres of land on the bay with darling little house and great big pole barn for the horses. I was all set to move here for good until I discovered there were no close riding trails which would mean loading the horses into a trailer for every single ride. Had to accept it wasn't meant to be. Perhaps for the best given the long winters here. Maybe some day.<br />
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We had a great reunion dinner and dancing to that old time rock and roll.<br />
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One final big party this afternoon at my dear friends the Popkeys at their place on the bay. I realize that "the bay" is mentioned in almost every sentence. The bay is Green Bay. I could call it Lake Michigan but the Sturgeon Bay Peninsula separates us from the lake proper.<br />
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The end of my stay is nearing and I will miss being here. This is about the prettiest place in the world. But I'm sure that one of the reasons I love it is the fact that it is home - the place I was born and raised.<br />
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Posting a few of my less bad pictures that don't do it justice.delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-38286791864929520842016-08-13T08:59:00.001-07:002016-08-13T08:59:23.168-07:00GALLULP NEW MEXICO AUGUST 13, 2016Just after breakfast, we arrived in Gallup New Mexico.<br />
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I intended to post pics of various stops but made the mistake of taking pics of Fullerton CA station with my phone and now cannot post those.<br />
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Lovely trip so far but nothing of interest to report other than that my internet connection is SLOWWWW.<br />
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Oh, and there are still people on the train who do not get the No Smoking Anywhere rule. Last trip, a woman was put off the train at the next stop after repeated warnings. She was really screaming about how unfair it was.<br />
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This trip, we have had one cigar smoker so far. He was warned.<br />
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AMTRAK is serious about this no smoking stuff.<br />
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Very busy writing so will keep these posts to a minimum since this one is so boring it put me to sleep<br />
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delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-21455417244681641432016-08-13T06:29:00.000-07:002016-08-13T06:29:02.489-07:00L.A. to Chicago on the Southwest Chief Right This MinuteWow - I have not blogged since June. I am so bad. But I have been busy working on a new book titled Mandolin Wind - a real departure from my usual stories - it begins when a young soldier is lost behind enemy lines in Normandy in 1943. And that's all you get for now.<br />
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At present, I am on the Southwest Chief. Left L.A. at 6:10 last night and right now we are sitting in the desert between Winslow AZ and Gallup NM waiting for a freight to go by. Freights take precedence.<br />
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The train is great as always - new people to visit with in the diner - a cozy roomette - lying awake and watching a million stars go by in the sky out my window.<br />
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Up early for a hot shower and now off to breakfast.<br />
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More to come including pictures.<br />
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Stay tuned.<br />
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Work on the new book continues - Part One was written at home in L.A. - Part Two was started there but will develop on the train and while I am in Michigan.<br />
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Promise almost daily posts.<br />
<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-85400464665548920102016-06-23T10:31:00.003-07:002016-06-23T10:31:57.705-07:00Comments From A Reader Always Make My Day<div class="p1">
I'm guessing that most writers out there write for two reasons. </div>
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The first is that we cannot not write. Stories just keep filling up our heads and we have to get them down on paper or go crazy.</div>
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But the real reason that I write and that I imagine other writers do, is you, the reader. It's all done for you - and as an indie author I can tell you it's not the money - it's the thrill of talking to someone who's read one of your books or getting comments from a reader like the e mail I received today from Patty Bowman. Patty is an excellent writer in her own right (sorry I could not resist). She authored Valley Village Vampires - a marvelously inventive and original take on the genre of the Undead.</div>
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"Just wanted to let you know I finished "The Disappearance of Dulce and Bonita" and loved it! I'm really liking Charlie Parker as a character and also Maria, an excellent addition and love interest for him. I thought their shared experience of loss was a touching bond for them to share, and I actually like Charlie better with Maria than I did with Annaliese. Totally enjoyed the mystery of the missing girls and I was particularly impressed with the resolution of it. Didn't see that coming and I LOVED the provocative conflict. Good stuff! Glad Charlie's hanging out his P.I. sign and hoping there will be future Charlie stories to come.</div>
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<span class="s1">Also love the picture on the cover, assume it was taken in Echo Park. Your forward explaining your attachment to Echo Park and history with it floored me. I got choked up reading it. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Thanks again for another wonderful book!"</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Thank you Patty.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Of course, there are the occasional bad reviews - even famous authors get them. I cringed when I read a review of one of my early books that said and I quote "</span>I bought this to get a feel of the Delta and it did that but it is so badly written I couldn't finish it. It really is very earnest but lame."</div>
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I consoled myself with the fact that the reviewer had titled his review <b>Amature.</b></div>
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Maybe it was a deliberate misspelling to make a point?</div>
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I include that review because it is the worst review I ever got and it hurt. Still it was one of my first books and I may have gotten better over the years - more polished etc. However, when I go back and read In The Delta which is the first volume in The Delta Mysteries, I still think it's a pretty good story and introduction to characters that a lot of people seem to like.</div>
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So I just keep putting out books - for better or worse. Not everyone will like them. Some people will love them or at least tell me they do. </div>
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Whichever it is - I'd love to hear from you.</div>
delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-52460868497168870972016-06-03T14:37:00.003-07:002016-06-03T14:37:56.490-07:00FAMILY HISTORIES AND OLD PICTURESWhenever there is a natural disaster, and the news crews show people evacuating their homes, what are they carrying with them - aside from children and pets, of course?<br />
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Pictures - boxes and boxes of pictures. Nowadays it's all digital, easy to store thousands of memories and carry them around on your laptop. But the old photos are a different story.<br />
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In addition to the thousands of pictures stored on our computer, we have an entire closet devoted to photo albums that predate the age of computers and digital photography. Someday, I often say, I will scan the photos that mean the most to me and preserve them the new and modern way.<br />
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But I will never destroy those old photographs. It is an amazing thing to hold in my hands an ancient picture of some ancestor of mine whom I never met - some long lost great grandparent.<br />
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It is even more overwhelming to take out the pictures that show my mother as a beautiful young woman, long before my time, and my handsome young father, looking a little uncharacteristically ill-tempered at having been awakened for a photo when he was trying to get some sleep before his night shift at the paper mill in the days before he took up his life long profession as a bartender (which is the way I always saw him - dapper and charming in a white shirt and tie, serving drinks and charm in equal measure at Goodfellows or The Red Brick).<br />
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Fast forward through my youth - awkward pictures from grade school and Junior High - followed by those beautifully dated high school pictures - that make me ache with nostalgia for those wonderful, lost times.<br />
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Then suddenly - here I am as a mom with my breathtakingly beautiful baby girl and the photos that show the years racing by until she is out of high school, off to college, on to her own life.<br />
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And now I am looking back over 37 years spent with the love of my life - my husband Ingolf - here are the photos of us as friends, then lovers, on the bluff in Santa Monica, on a beach, on family holidays with my daughter and our parents.<br />
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Here we are on a houseboat in The California Delta - sometimes just us - sometimes accompanied by our parents. And always , somewhere in the pictures are our dogs - those who passed over the Rainbow Bridge long ago.<br />
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Looking at pictures takes me back to the days when, every summer, we would pack up our car and drive cross-country, again accompanied by a changing parade of dogs, to Wisconsin where we would settle in at my mom and her husband's wonderful home on the shore of the Peshtigo River - sleeping on the porch, driving in to Marinette to eat those incredible Mickey-Lu burgers - Friday night fish fries at a variety of places like The Pines - long gone - and Shaffer Park Supper Club - another place that no longer exists - except in our pictures.<br />
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My father who raised me and who was everything a father should be, my mother, her husbands, my husband's father - all gone now - except for their faces in those fading photographs.<br />
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Here we all are - sitting around a table on a houseboat - laughing together. It's easy to forget the little spats and disagreements. Or remembering, we laugh about those things - they fade into insignificance.<br />
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Here's to non digital photos and family albums - sit down with the ones you love who are still with you and share some memories.<br />
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For anyone who's interested - and I don't know who would be outside of the family - here's a little album from The Delta.<br />
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Downtown Stockton Yacht Harbor before all the changes<br />
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Walking to Al the Wop's the back way from Walnut Grove Marina<br />
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Boon-Dox in Walnut Grove<br />
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Lost Isle with the parents<br />
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More Lost Isle with the parents<br />
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Herman and Helen's - another place that is gone<br />
<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-79225162645731666672016-05-18T15:22:00.003-07:002016-05-18T15:22:41.548-07:00The Disappearance of Dulce and Bonita - A Charlie Parker Mystery<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Former DEA agent Charlie Parker is back in this sequel to The Two Way Shake. <br />
<br />
On a downward spiral since the loss of Annaliese, Charlie is drinking too much and not doing much of anything else. The only thing that keeps him going is his last link to Annalise - the Thoroughbred Jackie Black.<br />
<br />
When his landlady Blanca asks him to find two girls gone missing from the neighborhood, Charlie reluctantly agrees.<br />
<br />
The quest leads him through a twisted maze of lost and abused children which ends in a rumor - There is a man, or so the story goes, with a ranch in the mountains - a man who rescues girls from the streets and takes them to a safe place.<br />
<br />
Does the man exist? And if he does, is he a kindly rescuer or a madman who lures girls with stories of a magical place?<br />
<br />
As Charlie searches for the truth , he meets Maria Arroyo, a woman with her own secret past.<br />
<br />
Together, they set out to solve the mystery of the disappearance of Dulce and Bonita. What they find is an unexpected revelation.<br />
<br />
Just a taste - Currently doing the final proof and anticipate publishing within the next month. delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-13153303219902728102016-05-09T11:19:00.001-07:002016-05-09T11:19:29.215-07:00Sweet Water Ranch Agua Dulce CA - Polo Pony RescueThis is an open invitation to any horse lovers in the L.A. area who are interested in volunteering at or donating to Polo Pony Rescue located at the historic Sweet Water Ranch in Agua Dulce, CA.<br />
<br />
This is a worthy cause which is giving many horses a second chance at life.<br />
<br />
Check out the Facebook page for further information.<br />
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<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-64687119234939825422016-05-04T13:46:00.002-07:002016-05-04T13:52:14.035-07:00NOT EXCITING ENOUGH - NOT ENOUGH ACTION - NOT ENOUGH ABOUT HORSE RACING!!!What I Write:<br />
<br />
I write fiction. I have to pick a genre for my books although I find they don't really fit any of the categories. So I choose Mystery. That is not entirely inaccurate. Most of my books do contain a mystery of one kind or another. Most, alright all, do contain some element of romance although I hate to use that word because none of my books are romance novels. So let's settle for some element of love.<br />
<br />
I currently have three separate and unrelated series of books -<br />
<br />
The Delta Mysteries<br />
<br />
The L.A. Mysteries - originally subtitled The Rick Sandler/Katie O'Hara Mysteries - but that is no longer accurate for reasons which would necessitate a Spoiler Alert.<br />
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The Charlie Parker Mysteries - There is currently only one of those so it is not yet a series but is about to become one with the publication of the second book in the near future.<br />
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Several readers commented that they enjoyed the Delta Mysteries although they usually like a little more action. I am guilty as charged. If you want action, you should probably read the Jack Reacher Series written by Lee Childs. Lee Childs packs more action into one chapter than I can muster the energy to pack into one whole book.<br />
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One reader of The Two Way Shake - the first book in the Charlie Parker Series - was disappointed that the story didn't focus more on horse racing. The cover did feature the legendary mare Zenyatta, but although a few scenes are set at Santa Anita Racetrack and one of the main characters is a racing fan and owner of an off the track Thoroughbred, the book is not a book about racing. I leave that to Steeplechase Jockey and very successful writer Dick Francis.<br />
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The title is a reference to a term in Thoroughbred racing defined as follows:<br />
<div class="p1">
Claiming races constitute the majority of Thoroughbred races. Each horse entered in such a race is subject to sale, or claim, at the value stated in the conditions of the race. </div>
<div class="p1">
If more than one person wishes to claim the same horse, a random selection system is used to decide the new owner. The system is commonly referred to as a shake. </div>
If two people wish to claim the same horse, it is a Two Way Shake.<br />
I liked it and used it as a title because it rather perfectly describes the interplay between the two main characters, both of them want something but only one of them is going to get what he or she wants.<br />
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I am a little concerned that the slower pace of my books could put off some readers in the go-go world of today. James Patterson commented recently that he recommends that authors write shorter books since readers today don't have the attention span to deal with lengthier stories. <br />
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<b></b><br />
In one of Jerry Seinfeld's opening monologues, he says the following in reference to TV shows -<br />
<b></b><br />
"It's horrible when you sense the "to be continued" coming. You know, you're watching the show. You're into the story. There's like five minutes left and suddenly you realize, "Hey, they can't make it. Timmy's still stuck in the cave. There's no way they wrap this up in five minutes". I mean the whole reason you watch a TV show is because it ends. If I want a long boring story with no point to it, I have my life." Maybe that's how some people feel about long books.<br />
<br />
But a story is a story - it has a beginning and an end but mostly its a middle - it's a journey. As a writer, it is my hope that once a reader starts one of my stories, he or she wants to know what happens next - whether the journey takes two hours or two days.<br />
<br />
If someone asked me to describe my writing, I would say it is almost entirely character driven. In the case of The Delta Mysteries, it's Nick and Jessie and the entire Red Cloud family. Somewhere in my own past (so I'm told) my mother's French Canadian family included Native Americans. I am really proud of that. And I am proud and happy to have created characters who are three dimensional, diverse, believable Native American people.<br />
<br />
In the L.A. mysteries, the characters are mostly cops. My background is such that my relationship with the police was always a positive. That's not to say that there aren't some bad cops nor does it excuse good cops closing ranks around bad cops. My writing focuses on both the personal and the professional lives of police officers and on the job they do - a job which most of us wouldn't want - a job where, on any given day, you can't be sure you'll be coming home that night. I hope that in some small way I can illuminate what it's like to live that life.<br />
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Finally, for me, it's all about the story - not car chases and explosions. I was a fan of Patricia Cornwall's Kay Scarpetta until, for me, the plots went over the top.<br />
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I do a lot of research, am merciless when it comes to plot holes, and try to always keep it plausible, always believable - even if some people find that too much like boring real life.<br />
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That's pretty much how I write and why. Thank you for reading.<br />
<br />
<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-78853849869205706942016-04-19T11:28:00.000-07:002016-04-19T11:28:16.443-07:00TELEMARKETERS - WHY DON'T YOU GET IT?Do a Google search for telemarketers and you will find a picture of a lovely young woman with a big smile. She looks harmless enough. But she and her kind are driving me insane and maybe you're on the bus to the asylum with me.<br />
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<br /></div>
<div>
Do Telemarketers ever manage to sell anything to anyone other than the people who are addicted to the Home Shopping Network and appear to use it to fill the emptiness in their lives?<br />
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<br /></div>
<div>
My particular favorites are the pre-recorded messages. They don't even use a real person to harass me in my own home. The latest is The Department of Solar Energy Efficiency or some such bullshit pseudo governmental sounding title designed to make people think they are being contacted by a real official government agency.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
The caller tries to hook you by telling you that there is going to be a rate hike for electricity but if you press one now to talk to a live person (thank god, I thought I might have to talk to a dead person) you can help stop the rate increase. If you aren't interested and wish to be removed from the call list, you are told to press three now. Want to guess how many times I've pressed three? But they're still calling. They're calling multiple times a day and night. I've finally decided I'm going to have to press one and speak to that live person. Perhaps if my language is bad enough, they will stop calling.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Then there is that sweet real estate salesperson who tells me she just sold a house in my neighborhood. "Congratulations" I say. "Why are you telling me about it?" She would love to help me sell my house. But I'm not interested in selling my house. She's still calling.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
And once you attend any kind of play, opera or ballet, you can bet someone will call multiple times to try to sell you a subscription. Sorry, but being bothered in my home is not going to increase my attendance.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Like all or most people, we have Caller I.D. It doesn't just come up on our phones, it flashes on our TV screen - announcing loudly that the call is from Unavailable. Guess what? We're unavailable.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
People that think they are going to get a new customer by constantly interrupting something we are trying to enjoy uninterrupted will never get our business.</div>
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The worst, of course, are those who call at night. When the phone rings late, my first thought, being a pessimist by nature, is that someone I know and love has died. When I'm finished with my response to them, they'll wish they had died.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Someone posted a wonderful suggestion for the unwanted caller - simply answer without identifying yourself and say "It's done but there's blood everywhere." A friend of mine actually started using it. She gets fewer uninvited calls than she used to.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Another favorite - the guy who tells me he's not selling anything but I may have won a trip to Acapulco. Yeah, right. Probably the place selling Mexican food over on Pacific downtown.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Some of it is more serious and amounts to illegal attempts to scam people out of money - like the guy who has been calling around hoping to encounter someone gullible enough to believe that he represents the IRS and, unless Mr. or Mrs. Gullible pays money, he or she is going to jail. Someone should be going straight to f...ing jail and it isn't Mr. or Mrs. Gullible.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
I'm not too happy with the door to door people either. I do not need someone to help me get into heaven, or to deliver food to my door (I'm not a shut-in yet). If I want someone to buy my junk car, clean my house or mow my lawn, I'm capable of finding them on my own. It is a pretty simple matter to buy a No Solicitation sign and install it on your gate. Some people will ignore it but you can always remind them that they've just broken the law by doing so.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Now if it was only possible to hang a No Solicitation sign on my phone, life would be a lot simpler.</div>
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delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-12840536991257819712016-04-15T11:32:00.000-07:002016-04-15T11:32:36.383-07:00Masa of Echo Park - And A Sneak Peek at the new Charlie Parker Mystery<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">The
Disappearance of Dulce and Bonita is the second volume in a new series
featuring former DEA agent Charlie Parker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Charlie made his first appearance in The Two Way Shake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of that story, Charlie was adrift
and damaged by the loss of the woman he loved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His only remaining tie to that lost love is Jackie Black, an off the
track Thoroughbred who is all that keeps him going.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Charlie
is sidetracked from his path of self-destruction by his landlady Blanca who insists
that Charlie is the right person to search for two young girls gone missing
from the neighborhood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Charlie’s
investigation into the disappearance of Dulce and Bonita leads to the discovery
that they are only two in a series of disappearances – downplayed by the
authorities as typical teenage runaways.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">His
search will lead him through the backstreets of L.A. and into a heartbreaking
w</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">orld of lost, damaged and forgotten children preyed upon by people who Charlie
believes don’t deserve to live.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Ultimately,
the truth that Charlie uncovers is completely unexpected.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">There
is a very personal reason that a lot of this story is set in one of my favorite
L.A. neighborhoods – Echo Park.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Many
years ago, when I first came to L.A. with my friend Georgie, we lived with my
beloved Auntie Eva in Echo Park.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her
apartment was on the second floor above a branch of the Bank of America, just a
couple of doors from the intersection of Sunset and Alvarado.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The apartment was big.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It even had a formal dining room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All across the back was a room resembling an
enclosed porch with louvered windows all across the outside wall. Georgie and I
used to sit on the back steps overlooking a weed strewn empty lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was not the most scenic of views but there
was an undeniable charm to the area.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">I
left L.A. for awhile but ultimately I returned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When we drove into town, I insisted that we get off the freeway and
drive to the corner of Sunset and Alvarado.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I wanted to get out of the car and kiss the ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn’t born here but L.A. is home and Echo
Park is my special neighborhood.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">The
building that housed my Auntie’s apartment is long gone and sad to say,
developers are taking over Echo Park.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Every
time we drive down Glendale Boulevard on our way to The Pantry, there is a new
multi-unit building which seems to have appeared overnight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No matter how steep the hillside or how tiny
the lot, builders are managing to cram some charmless building that is totally
out of harmony with the character of the neighborhood.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">People
call it gentrification.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s a polite
term for pricing out people whose families have lived there for
generations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">The
area’s proximity to downtown and the jewel at its center – Echo Park itself and
its beautiful lake – plus the steep hillsides with their breathtaking views of
the downtown skyline are all drawing people who a few years ago would not have
considered calling it home based upon a reputation for gang activity and
crime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Interestingly enough, according
to the L.A. Times, the most recent figures place the crime rate as lower than
nearby Silver Lake.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">There
are plenty of people out there who believe that the remaking of Echo Park into
a neat middle class community of overpriced fancy boxes is a good thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am not one of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I miss every little old frame or stucco home,
every unique apartment building.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
enough to make you long for graffiti or at least, artistic street murals.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">You
will continue to see my Echo Park in this and future books in which I will
single handedly attempt to celebrate and preserve the character of one of
L.A.’s most picturesque neighborhoods.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">A
special reason to celebrate the neighborhood is Masa of Echo Park 1800 West
Sunset Boulevard L.A. CA.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Masa is a
delightful restaurant with a large and eclectic menu. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted to try everything but settled for
what brought me there – the Chicago Deep Dish Pizza.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is simply the best deep dish pizza I’ve
ever eaten and that includes the original that I enjoyed in Chicago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most deep dish pizza that I’ve tried in L.A. has
a thick, doughy crust.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trust me, that is
not what deep dish is supposed to mean.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">At
Masa, the cornmeal crust is thin and crisp on the bottom and sides but with a
beautiful crunchy roll of crust all along its edges.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Order
as soon as you sit down because this true Chicago Deep Dish takes at least 40
minutes to bake. While we waited, we enjoyed a Guinness Stout.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With the pizza, we switched to Blonde Ale.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">We
were really satiated after the pie, but had to try the signature dessert - The
Warm Croissant Bread Pudding made from chocolate and almond croissants in a
vanilla cream custard drizzled with caramel sauce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My review -<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>it’s even better than it sounds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">As
if all of this isn’t enough, the staff is warm and welcoming, the place is pet
friendly with outdoor tables.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
delightful to see staff rush out with a bowl of water, a big biscuit and a rug
for each doggy guest.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Wait,
there’s more – this is a restaurant which is vegetarian and vegan friendly as
well – with lots of choices for non- meat-eaters.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">This
kind of research is one of my favorite parts of writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Masa of Echo Park makes its first appearance
in this book but I’m pretty sure Charlie is going to be spending a lot of time
there in the future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Check
out the website masaofechopark.com for all details.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p> And watch for updates on The Disappearance of Dulce and Bonita</o:p></span></div>
delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-29548113611037683162016-03-31T21:23:00.001-07:002016-03-31T21:23:08.496-07:00The Hollywood Blues<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The Hollywood Blues - the 6th volume in the L. A. Mysteries series was published today and is available in both soft cover and Kindle Editions -</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The deaths of five young women, all of whom frequent the same dance club in Hollywood, are attributed to accidental overdoses of heroin until D.A. Althea Knight gets a tip from a confidential informant. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Althea's investigation convinces her that a serial killer is responsible. Against the odds and with little backing from her superiors, Althea puts together a team to go undercover at The 80's, the club that is the hunting ground for a killer. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">How best to catch that killer? Create a temptation that he cannot resist. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The Law of Attraction is best stated as "Like attracts like" but, in this case, Althea gambles that lightness draws darkness like a moth to the flame. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The enticement is a woman that Althea feels is synonymous with light - Katie O'Hara. After all, Katie was the lure for Sam Spencer - The Movie Murderer. Perhaps she can bewitch another killer into a trap. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Katie joins forces with Augie, a self-described "cholo from East L.A." who's been working undercover too long; her fellow San Pedro Blue John "Travolta" Travers and Sheriff's Deputy Vicky Darling to undertake a mission with a deadline. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Althea's skeptical bosses have reluctantly granted her one week to find a man that they don't believe exists although Althea and her team are sure that,in an ironic twist of fate, the killer has accelerated his timetable to coincide exactly with the night that their mission will be terminated.</span></div>
delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-41400701164388561372016-03-22T14:02:00.001-07:002016-03-22T14:02:03.591-07:00WRITERS OF BLACK SAILS - I HATE YOU!!!!I love this show and I am not alone. <br />
<br />
When I first heard that Starz planned to air a new show about Pirates created by Michael Bay, I think I may have laughed out loud. Pirates?<br />
<br />
But I watched and by the end of Season One - I had a favorite character - Charles Vane - played to perfection by Zach McGowan. How does a native of Brooklyn convince us so completely that he is a pirate? He had it all - swashbuckling good looks, a voice to die for, sex appeal to the nth degree.<br />
<br />
When it appeared as though he may have died at the end of the season, I was heartbroken. But he returned in Season Two and throughout that season, I crossed my fingers that he would live to see Season Three.<br />
<br />
Things looked so dicey in Season Three, that I did some research on the real Charles Vane and learned that he died by hanging - in Jamaica - years after the events portrayed in the show.<br />
<br />
What a relief - I thought. By now, Vane was the character I longed to see in every episode. <br />
<br />
Don't get me wrong - this show is worth watching for a variety of reasons. It is amazingly original, all of the characters are true originals - Silver, Anne Bonny, Max, Billy, Jack Rackham. You may notice that I did not include Flint. For me, he is the least interesting character on the show. They could have killed him and I wouldn't have missed him for a minute.<br />
<br />
But they didn't. They killed Vane. I ranted. I raved. I was inconsolable. I started to hate Billy for not rescuing him. I don't care if it was a good dramatic choice to move the story forward. I want Eleanor to die a horrible death for her part in the whole thing.<br />
<br />
I can't remember the last time I was so upset by the death of a character. I even google searched for fan reaction but didn't find much. Am I alone????<br />
<br />
I hate the writers. I hate whoever came up with this idea.<br />
<br />
I hate it to the point where I feel like never watching the show again.<br />
<br />
I will, of course, because it is that good.<br />
<br />
But it will never be the same for me.<br />
<br />
<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-7230747798508287752016-02-10T12:55:00.001-08:002016-02-10T12:55:58.758-08:00The Two Way Shake - begins a new series with a new lead character<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFJ61tAgdotxK8E6EWq9BNxB8zfgqXwn_n8hhKadNOy8D5zeIQvbmjTGk_ZFKrCIChCHvkuIKiWBv4GeiZCIaB2e4K7MWCGUnn9UG-nFAVf9L9LIlAqtjEkCzbYINUyQmMrRWUgiLGCxI/s1600/BookCoverImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFJ61tAgdotxK8E6EWq9BNxB8zfgqXwn_n8hhKadNOy8D5zeIQvbmjTGk_ZFKrCIChCHvkuIKiWBv4GeiZCIaB2e4K7MWCGUnn9UG-nFAVf9L9LIlAqtjEkCzbYINUyQmMrRWUgiLGCxI/s320/BookCoverImage.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
The Two Way Shake is the first book in a new series featuring Charlie "Bird" Parker.<br />
<br />
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">DEA Special Investigator Charlie Parker aka Bird, a native of warm places, is bleeding all over the floor of a log cabin in the coldest place he has ever been. How did he get there? </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">It begins with a low level drug dealer who trades information for a new identity, information that leads to Marty Mathison, an attorney with a talent for making and moving money for a select group of investors. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The way to Marty is through his wife Annaliese and who better to get to her than Charlie with his solid gold reputation for never getting involved with the target of an investigation. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">But things change in a hurry when Charlie meets Annaliese. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Before long, Charlie is running a Long Con on her, using her passion for horses and thoroughbred racing as his way in. But he will soon find out that Annaliese has an agenda all her own. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Look for the sequel - The Disappearance of Dulce and Bonita coming in Fall 2016.</span></div>
delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-53847306810429469712016-02-10T10:56:00.001-08:002016-02-10T13:04:55.313-08:00The L A MysteriesUpdating the synopsis of the L.A. Mysteries in response to a reader who asked for the order of the books:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD5tvXcSHaJ4i20mrEXXtflT78mTWazOGqNkaB27wrEeWGPcLIn7z9eGuFRzvPASZfVCbGbYBWg2lSbh6VoWcnpCdTSe_Q6snlPwUZvLB0xGp_y5V9y3-L9Hj2ZMzeeYJJET8BZRR47sM/s1600/movie+murderer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD5tvXcSHaJ4i20mrEXXtflT78mTWazOGqNkaB27wrEeWGPcLIn7z9eGuFRzvPASZfVCbGbYBWg2lSbh6VoWcnpCdTSe_Q6snlPwUZvLB0xGp_y5V9y3-L9Hj2ZMzeeYJJET8BZRR47sM/s320/movie+murderer.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Book 1 - The Movie Murderer<br />
<br />
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The newspapers called him “The Movie Murderer”. Like “The Hillside Strangler” or “The Night Stalker”. You know what I mean. In L.A., every psycho gets a stage name. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">In this case, it started with a very smart detective who was, among other things, a film buff, like a lot of Angelenos. He saw something that no one else saw but his theory was not taken seriously. Because of that, one of his colleagues mentioned it to a reporter from The Times, late one night after a few too many drinks in a downtown bar in a neighborhood teetering between gentrification and homelessness. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Until then, there were just a series of killings of girls no one would miss. But once the reporter wrapped his imagination around the concept, it became news. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Somewhere in the hills of Hollywood, the killer opened his morning copy of the L.A. Times and smiled. He had begun for his own amusement, sure no one would get the joke. He had despaired of finding a worthy adversary, or any adversary at all. But he had underestimated. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">And so the game began. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The pawn in the game is sexy, sassy Katie O'Hara. Caught up in a passionate affair with LAPD Detective Rick Sandler, Katie unwittingly becomes the object of a killer's desire.</span><br />
<span class="s1"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Book 2 - Acts of Contrition</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">LAPD Homicide Detective Rick Sandler and Katie O'Hara are back in this sequel to The Movie Murderer. Someone is leaving a trail of working girls strangled in motels along Sepulveda Boulevard, his signature a dark blue scarf. As Rick and John search for the killer in the Gentlemen's Clubs of the San Fernando Valley, they encounter a panoply of night people, a Russian who loves Bullwinkle the Moose, a duo of pole dancers whose act features their impersonation of The Jersey Shore's Snooki and Luscious Lily whose resemblance to Katie captivates John. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Meanwhile, with the help of her friends, the Bravo brothers, Katie is investigating a series of suspicious suicides, tied together by a Catholic parish led by a pair of very different priests, the charismatic Father Jonas, who Katie privately believes is too attractive to be celibate, and Father Mark, an old testament cleric who believes in an eye for an eye.</span><br />
<span class="s1"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq-J1393wtWvdDJ58buTjg5GI4NgZXyuAKXRbRyCzxNl8rzDPsrEu2Zh2Fk9w-9OtxqDzE5y9W6XEh0RD0ZsxOgl4c_Ugg2fMi4EuTPeFwNoEvQGF9R09vZao30jcqrnTS4-MbefnXOZg/s1600/Darknesspg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq-J1393wtWvdDJ58buTjg5GI4NgZXyuAKXRbRyCzxNl8rzDPsrEu2Zh2Fk9w-9OtxqDzE5y9W6XEh0RD0ZsxOgl4c_Ugg2fMi4EuTPeFwNoEvQGF9R09vZao30jcqrnTS4-MbefnXOZg/s320/Darknesspg.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">
</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p2">
Book 3 - Darkness</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">On Manhattan's Upper East Side, a desperate woman flees certain death, on a journey back to the only man she believes can save her. Close behind is the man dispatched to make sure she doesn't reach him. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">In L.A., Detectives Rick Sandler & John Cameron search for the serial killer stalking the massage parlors of East Hollywood, while restless and unhappy Katie O'Hara plans a houseboat getaway, seeking to recreate the passion of her early days with Rick. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p2">
</div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">In The Delta, Sheriff's Deputies Jessie Red Cloud and Bodie McDonald welcome Rick and Katie to The Delta, unaware that they are about to become players in a drama scripted by the man called The Tracker.</span><br />
<span class="s1"><br /></span>
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<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Book 4 - A Blood Red Sky</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The sun is just rising, painting the sky blood red in the East. It is a promise of things to come, intense heat, brush fires and death. A young husband, setting out for his morning run with his baby daughter in her three wheeled stroller, doesn’t notice. As he reaches the corner, he turns. His wife is watching them from the open doorway. She is smiling, a sleepy smile. She is beautiful in her gauzy nightgown. The next time he sees her, she will be dead, the gauzy nightgown </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">soaked in her blood. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Her's is the first in a series of unspeakably brutal killings. The man dubbed The Movie Murderer has returned to Los Angeles - his true motivation - to possess Katie O'Hara. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">And so, the game between Sam Spencer and Detective Rick Sandler begins again. But this time, it is Katie who will be Sam Spencer's nemesis.</span><br />
<span class="s1"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0vzYj0TCSyfy0_bYKe_LuJwyv6Df3c6XrOkUgt0AFGbOTnZp-CuZFKFy719L8Cl8QG7NAdY6Tau_xy8GbDTacoRYb0swhNGZRPF-Ymr1RkFeZOOhD4YTUN5RmXT609LQ6f4MC9MqelXM/s1600/San+Pedro+Blues.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0vzYj0TCSyfy0_bYKe_LuJwyv6Df3c6XrOkUgt0AFGbOTnZp-CuZFKFy719L8Cl8QG7NAdY6Tau_xy8GbDTacoRYb0swhNGZRPF-Ymr1RkFeZOOhD4YTUN5RmXT609LQ6f4MC9MqelXM/s320/San+Pedro+Blues.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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Book 5 - The San Pedro Blues</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Thirteen young women from Ukraine are smuggled into Port of Los Angeles inside a cargo container, victims of human trafficking, destined for a life of sexual slavery. Twelve of them will die at the hands of a machete wielding murderer. Only one will survive. Anichka Markovich who burns with a fierce hatred and desire for revenge. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Rick Sandler and John Cameron, detectives in LAPD's elite Robbery-Homicide division are assigned to the case. Working with U.S. Attorney Ray Manzarek and Vice Officers Angel Estrada and Roy Cooper, they search the streets of San Pedro and North Hollywood determined to find the people behind the trafficking operation, in hopes it will lead them to the killer. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">On the personal side, Katie O'Hara is now a graduate of the police academy, working as a patrol officer under the tutelage of her training officer. When she discovers that Rick has used his influence to gain her a relatively safe assignment, she puts in for a transfer and finds herself in San Pedro, a move that will irrevocably change her life. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Katie soon falls in love with San Pedro, a very different beach town than Marina del Rey, a working class community that is home to Port of Los Angeles. After an act of heroism, she is accepted into The San Pedro Blues - a unique group of police officers - who take pride in their town and their way of policing it. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">In this case, The Blues has a deeper meaning. In referencing music, B B King says The Blues is rage and anger. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Idiomatically, when someone experiences intense emotions, feelings of hopelessness and uncertainty, we say that person has 'The Blues'. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p2">
</div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">In this story, almost all of the major characters, have 'The Blues' hence the title.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Coming Soon - Book 6 - The Hollywood Blues</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="s1">The San Pedro Blues are back - some of them, at least.</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Katie goes undercover in a Hollywood club to find the man responsible for the deaths of five women.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-66001552378136605282016-02-10T08:48:00.002-08:002016-02-10T08:48:56.243-08:00Margaritas!!!
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I will say right up front that this did not originate with me. I am not the author - do not know who is and will be happy to give full credit to the author if he or she comes forward - submitted for your entertainment"</div>
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<span class="s1"><b>Subject:</b> Important! Please read</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> </span>Important women's health issue</div>
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Do you have feelings of inadequacy?<span class="s1"></span></div>
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Do you suffer from shyness?<span class="s1"></span></div>
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<span class="s1">Do you sometimes wish you were more assertive?</span></div>
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<span class="s1">If you answered yes to any of these questions, ask your doctor or pharmacist about Margaritas.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
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Margaritas are the safe, natural way to feel better and more confident about yourself and your actions.<span class="s1"></span></div>
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<span class="s1">Margaritas can help ease you out of your shyness and let you tell the world that you're ready and willing to do just about anything.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
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You will notice the benefits of Margaritas almost immediately and with a regimen of regular doses you can overcome any obstacles that prevent you from living the life you want to live.<span class="s1"></span></div>
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<span class="s1">Shyness and awkwardness will be a thing of the past and you will discover many talents you never knew you had. Stop hiding and start living, with Margaritas.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
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Margaritas may not be right for everyone. Women who are pregnant or nursing should not use Margaritas. However, women who wouldn't mind nursing or becoming pregnant are encouraged to try it.<span class="s1"></span></div>
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<span class="s1">Side effects may include:</span></div>
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Dizziness, nausea, vomiting, incarceration<span class="s1"></span></div>
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<span class="s1">Erotic lustfulness</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Loss of motor control</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Loss of clothing</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Loss of money</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Loss of virginity</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Attraction to the same sex</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Table dancing</span></div>
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Headache<span class="s1"></span></div>
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<span class="s1">Dehydration</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Dry mouth</span></div>
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<span class="s1">And a desire to sing Karaoke</span></div>
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<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
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<span class="s1">WARNING:</span></div>
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<span class="s1">The consumption of Margaritas may make you think you are whispering when you are not.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">WARNING:</span></div>
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<span class="s1">The consumption of Margaritas may cause you to tell your friends; over and over again that you love them.</span></div>
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WARNING:<span class="s1"></span></div>
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<span class="s1">The consumption of Margaritas may cause you to think you can Sing.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">WARNING:</span></div>
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<span class="s1">The consumption of Margaritas may make you think you can logically converse with members of the opposite sex without spitting.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="s1">If you laughed your ass off, have a margarita. I understand they are the cure for everything.</span></div>
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delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-60566553101940740192016-01-22T12:56:00.002-08:002016-01-22T12:56:48.570-08:00IT'S THE PICTURES THAT GOT SMALL - Norma Desmond in Sunset BoulevardAh yes - truer words were never spoken. <br />
<br />
What happened to movies? <br />
<br />
Best picture nominees used to be Casablanca, Rebecca, Sunset Boulevard, All About Eve, The Godfather, Apocalypse Now, Gone With the Wind, Citizen Kane, Double Indemnity, Mash, The French Connection, The Last Picture Show, Chinatown, The Conversation, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Network, Taxi Driver, Annie Hall, The Deerhunter, Coming Home, Raging Bull, Gandhi, Tootsie, Terms of Endearment, The Killing Fields, Moonstruck, Mississippi Burning, Dances With Wolves, Unforgiven, Schindler's List, Fargo, L.A. Confidential, American Beauty, Traffic, Moulin Rouge, Million Dollar Baby, Crash, No Country for Old Men, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, <br />
<br />
It's a long list but it's the tip of the proverbial iceberg. Movies used to really be "Best Pictures" - worthy of being nominated for any number of reasons, chief among them being that they would be remembered and re-watched.<br />
<br />
No More.<br />
<br />
2015 was another year of forcing myself to watch films seeking to be nominated, many of which were good, some of which were dull, and a few of which made me wonder why or how they got made to begin with.<br />
<br />
It has been awhile since any film in that category was one that I would seek out to watch a second time.<br />
<br />
As for last year's winner Birdman - I barely got through it the first time. <br />
<br />
My most controversial opinion will probably be this one - I really enjoyed Argo. I thought it was an entertaining, well made, well acted movie. But BEST PICTURE???? Once was enough. It used to be that movies like Argo got made every year - quite a few of them, in fact. And very few of them even got a nomination. <br />
<br />
So here we go again. Another year of major disappointments. <br />
<br />
It used to be that Oscar Night was so special, I told people do not call us. We will not answer the phone. We will stay up no matter how long the show runs. We were excited. We had our favorites. <br />
They did not always win but we could see why the movie that got the award deserved it.<br />
<br />
Now I can barely garner enough enthusiasm to turn on the show. I will read while I wait to see who won what - although I find I don't really care anymore.<br />
<br />
All I can say is Thank You Netflix - Showtime - HBO -Starz for giving us the entertainment of a lifetime. There is so much great product that we don't have time to watch it all. Too bad we can't nominate your shows for an Oscar. Keep up the good work.delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-34710113645347429932016-01-22T12:32:00.001-08:002016-01-22T12:32:13.906-08:00<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">At last - finished The San Pedro Blues and published - available in soft cover or Kindle edition on Amazon - here's a taste:</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnbfwREaIZw314TKM1Vtypon0B7Z94Vd2EpHGbLWfBXwPWBpnV2jQ8kkE2lFHLFBcX1lXsTRRcHDxgt4vPn4PuxABAP6pbIynzdWJGBnZ6xG13HIo_o6s0MA3IfMaW8pjW_orZQg7EG4w/s1600/BookCoverImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnbfwREaIZw314TKM1Vtypon0B7Z94Vd2EpHGbLWfBXwPWBpnV2jQ8kkE2lFHLFBcX1lXsTRRcHDxgt4vPn4PuxABAP6pbIynzdWJGBnZ6xG13HIo_o6s0MA3IfMaW8pjW_orZQg7EG4w/s320/BookCoverImage.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Thirteen young women from Ukraine are smuggled into Port of Los Angeles inside a cargo container, victims of human trafficking, destined for a life of sexual slavery. Twelve of them will die at the hands of a machete wielding murderer. Only one will survive. Anichka Markovich who burns with a fierce hatred and desire for revenge. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Rick Sandler and John Cameron, detectives in LAPD's elite Robbery-Homicide division are assigned to the case. Working with U.S. Attorney Ray Manzarek and Vice Officers Angel Estrada and Roy Cooper, they search the streets of San Pedro and North Hollywood determined to find the people behind the trafficking operation, in hopes it will lead them to the killer. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">On the personal side, Katie O'Hara is now a graduate of the police academy, working as a patrol officer under the tutelage of her training officer. When she discovers that Rick has used his influence to gain her a relatively safe assignment, she puts in for a transfer and finds herself in San Pedro, a move that will irrevocably change her life. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Katie soon falls in love with San Pedro, a very different beach town than Marina del Rey, a working class community that is home to Port of Los Angeles. After an act of heroism, she is accepted into The San Pedro Blues - a unique group of police officers - who take pride in their town and their way of policing it. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">In this case, The Blues has a deeper meaning. In referencing music, B B King says The Blues is rage and anger. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Idiomatically, when someone experiences intense emotions, feelings of hopelessness and uncertainty, we say that person has 'The Blues'. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">In this story, almost all of the major characters, have 'The Blues' hence the title.</span></div>
delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-59918194352374133762015-11-13T12:54:00.000-08:002015-11-13T12:54:55.182-08:00This post's picture was taken at Point Fermin in San Pedro, the setting for The San Pedro Blues - the latest installment in the Rick Sandler/Katie O'Hara L.A. Mysteries. The title of this series is about to change to simply The L.A. Mysteries as in this, the fifth book in the series, Katie and Rick are about to go their separate ways.<br />
<br />
Some people have expressed dismay at this turn of events, but one of my friends and riding partners, Lisa Lessa, agreed with me totally. That relationship has run its course. She likes Rick and Katie individually but not as a couple. <br />
<br />
I realized it was time for a major shift in the story line when I discovered I could not write anything remotely exciting about the two of them. Perhaps they settled too easily into domesticity - which is comfortable for the people in the relationship but not particularly interesting for the reader. It occurred to me that Katie is too young to be this settled down. What to do?<br />
<br />
The answer, of course, is a new man - one with dark tousled hair and a cheeky, killer grin.<br />
<br />
Don't worry about Rick, however. He is about to enter a relationship with a woman far better suited to him, one who has appeared in the earlier books and is interesting enough in her own right to merit more attention.<br />
<br />
The real reason for this blog however, is to give a little background into the title.<br />
<br />
The San Pedro Blues is the name of a group of police officers whose beat, and in most cases, whose home, is the working class beach town San Pedro, home to Port of Los Angeles. They are, in the words of one character, a tribe of sorts - close to each other and ready to close ranks against outsiders.<br />
<br />
But the title reaches further than that. The Blues is a music genre - one that reflects hard times, hard choices and a certain amount of despair, and yet, one that rises above that, to celebrate life no matter how hopeless it seems at times.<br />
<br />
It's why we refer to people singing the blues - Idiomatically, when someone experiences intense emotions, feelings of hopelessness and uncertainty, we say that person has 'The Blues'. <br />
<br />
In this story almost all of the major characters have 'The Blues' hence the title.<br />
<br />
Synopsis - Thirteen young women from Ukraine are smuggled into Port of Los Angeles inside a cargo container, victims of human trafficking, destined for a life of sexual slavery. Twelve of them will die at the hands of a machete wielding murderer. Only one will survive. Anichka Markovich who burns with a fierce hatred and desire for revenge.<br />
<br />
Rick Sandler and John Cameron, detectives in LAPD's elite Robbery-Homicide division are assigned to the case. Working with U.S. Attorney Ray Manzarek and Vice Officers Angel Estrada and Roy Cooper, they search the streets of San Pedro and North Hollywood determined to find the people behind the trafficking operation, in hopes it will lead them to the killer.<br />
<br />
On the personal side, Katie O'Hara is now a graduate of the police academy, working as a patrol officer under the tutelage of her training officer. When she discovers that Rick has used his influence to gain her a relatively safe assignment, she puts in for a transfer and finds herself in San Pedro, a move that will irrevocably change her life.<br />
<br />
Katie soon falls in love with San Pedro and, after an act of heroism, she is accepted into The San Pedro Blues - a unique group of police officers - who take pride in their town and their way of policing it.<br />
<br />
Hoping to publish before the end of 2015.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-9870852751820488572015-10-24T10:55:00.000-07:002015-10-24T13:13:17.546-07:00Good Intentions Undone or Why I have not done my promised weekly posts.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOQ4G6iqhhRKvwnqf8doRV3N25hj_oYPiKRti9ve1Ean5DzpFz71sYn0MySn3wBy21L0uJNxiYSmje3A-CRT6o74fZMfzav0QLY7bv-zwr6XWN12TtFx7ErRZz2e3S5SjQzC4zViGpKWI/s1600/IMG_0082.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOQ4G6iqhhRKvwnqf8doRV3N25hj_oYPiKRti9ve1Ean5DzpFz71sYn0MySn3wBy21L0uJNxiYSmje3A-CRT6o74fZMfzav0QLY7bv-zwr6XWN12TtFx7ErRZz2e3S5SjQzC4zViGpKWI/s400/IMG_0082.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I love San Pedro. It's not a typical southern California beach town and maybe that's part of its charm. </div>
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It's a working class town, home to Port of Los Angeles, and you can't get any closer to Catalina Island without getting your feet wet. </div>
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<br /></div>
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It's a place to eat fish on the wharf with the tourists at Ports O Call Village, a place for pizza (it has the largest Italian population in L.A. County), home to wind surfers and hang gliders, bikers and beach goers. It is the setting for my newest book - The San Pedro Blues.</div>
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<br /></div>
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The book is finished but the thankless task of editing is still ahead. Here's a taste:</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="p1" style="text-align: center;">
Prologue</div>
<div class="p1" style="text-align: justify;">
There are no good places to die a violent death, but in the scheme of things, a cargo container is probably one of the worst.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="p1" style="text-align: justify;">
Within a day of being crowded into the airless metal box, Anichka has to force herself not to gag at the stench of unwashed bodies including her own, the reeking chemical toilet, the puddles of vomit from girls unable to withstand the pitch and roll of the freighter. Anichka knows that, unlike cruise ships, there are no stabilizers on freighters.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="p1" style="text-align: justify;">
There is bottled water but no refrigerator, so the water is warm and tastes of plastic.</div>
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The man who lured them onto this voyage through hell with stories of the paradise awaiting them provides food twice a day. It is mostly edible. Anichka doubts that this is due to the goodness of his heart. He simply does not want them to arrive too emaciated to appeal to the men who are waiting for new young bodies to ravish.</div>
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<br /></div>
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‘Imagine if you can’ she wants to tell this man who pretends to be their savior ‘how truly terrible my life is if I am willing to leave it to be a whore.’</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="p1" style="text-align: justify;">
Unlike her fellow travelers, Anichka never for a minute believes that they are intended to be anything but whores once they reach paradise. There have been promises of freedom once they work off the cost of their passage but it is more likely that, by the time that happens, they will be too used up for anything but the streets. Once they realize what they’ve signed up for, some of them will choose</div>
<div class="p1" style="text-align: justify;">
suicide. The ones that survive will turn to drugs to soften the sharp edges of their reality.</div>
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But she is smarter than the others. She will not be a whore for very long. She has a plan. And if she finds a way to cut the throat of this man before she gets away, well, that will make her escape all the sweeter.</div>
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It is sometime in the early hours before dawn when their voyage ends. The man unlocks their prison and steps inside. He explains that they will be there for some time because certain paperwork must be completed. Anichka figures that what he really means is that bribes must be paid. In the meantime, he warns them that they must be very, very quiet. If they attract attention, officials may open the container for inspection and they will be arrested and sent back to Odessa.</div>
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Once everything is in order, the container will be lifted onto the back of a truck. The truck will drive out of the port to a place nearby. When they get to this place, he will be waiting and will take them to the lovely apartments where they will be living.</div>
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Anichka finds it difficult not to laugh out loud at the hopeful expressions on the faces of her fellow passengers. So naïve, so foolish.</div>
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After he leaves, they whisper to each other about how good it will be to walk on land again, to bathe, to sleep in a bed. There will be beds alright but Anichka knows none of them will be doing too much sleeping in those beds.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Only muffled sounds penetrate the container’s walls. Time passes, impossible to know how much time, but at last there are a series of loud noises and then the container is moving, swaying.</div>
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<br /></div>
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A few of the girls giggle nervously, others look frightened. Anichka comes from a seaport so she has seen cargo containers lifted by monster cranes from the decks of freighters and set down on flatbed trucks.</div>
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The truck begins to move, but soon stops. Anichka knows they are passing through a security checkpoint. There is a remote possibility that the container will be opened for inspection before it is allowed to leave the port. If that happens, she counts on the panic reaction of the other girls to provide enough of a distraction to allow her to make a run for it. Her chances of actually getting away are slim to none, but she’d be a fool not to try.</div>
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<br /></div>
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But there is no inspection. The truck begins to move. Anichka is nothing if not flexible. If one plan does not work, another will. The important thing is to have a backup strategy.</div>
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<br /></div>
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When the truck stops again, she knows they have reached the place where they will be transferred to vehicles that will take them to their final destination. It is another chance, most likely her last, to get away.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="p1" style="text-align: justify;">
The container is lifted into the air once again. It swings wildly and hits the ground with enough force to cause the girls who are standing to fall. They rise quickly and gather near the door.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Anichka keeps to the shadowy back wall of the container. She sits on the floor pressing her back against the cold metal while the rest of them crowd forward, anxious to breathe fresh air, as though it will be only minutes before they are released.</div>
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<br /></div>
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But it is not minutes. It seems that hours pass. It is hot, hellishly hot. Anichka can sense panic setting in as the girls begin to believe that they have been forgotten, left to suffocate or starve.</div>
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<br /></div>
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When panic reaches its peak, they will begin to scream. Anichka wonders if anyone will hear them.</div>
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Then there is a sound, the sound of the container door being unlocked. The idiots, of course, crowd around the opening, ready to welcome their redeemer.</div>
<div class="p1" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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A man is silhouetted in the opening. All she knows of him is that he is not the man who brought them here. This man is much bigger. He is carrying something. He raises his arm and the first girl crumples.</div>
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The rest of them fall back, but they are all tangled together, trying to scramble out of his reach, tumbling over each other like rag dolls. The only light is provided by a pair of battery operated</div>
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lanterns that fail to illuminate the far corners of the interior. It may be one of the reasons why Anichka is the only survivor of the slaughter.</div>
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<br /></div>
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But she knows that the real reason is not the poor light. Rather, it is how quickly she is able to burrow under the bodies of the girls who have fallen near her. Their blood runs over her, warm and viscous. Some of it enters her mouth. She swallows it to avoid choking. She holds her breath and pretends to be as dead as the rest of them.</div>
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She remains there for hours, waiting, sure that the man will return for her.</div>
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At last, the door opens and a voice says, “Holy Mother of God.”</div>
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delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-76002909823204570362015-10-08T12:38:00.000-07:002015-10-09T14:23:41.520-07:00Music and Fiction Writing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCi6HcYiR81_E1yZaIEGOdh4JH_CTJEckWZhzcxF5BrGHLXLiwUDfpuZjT3K8FrGq5omETo3-dx_TUyvv0noI93Nb98iPWQAUfaHvsByeUCirBQm_oGRZEkhxP-hdkIkhQlJ2dwDD7rI/s1600/al%2527s+exterior.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCi6HcYiR81_E1yZaIEGOdh4JH_CTJEckWZhzcxF5BrGHLXLiwUDfpuZjT3K8FrGq5omETo3-dx_TUyvv0noI93Nb98iPWQAUfaHvsByeUCirBQm_oGRZEkhxP-hdkIkhQlJ2dwDD7rI/s1600/al%2527s+exterior.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
Main Street in Locke California with a nice view of the exterior of Al the Wop's<br />
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What does Al the Wop's have to do with how music influences a writer? Absolutely nothing.<br />
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However, every time I think of Al the Wop's, I hear George Michael singing Father Figure. If you read In The Delta, you'll know why.<br />
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Because I see a movie playing in my head, scene by scene, as I write, there is usually a soundtrack playing. <br />
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Sometimes, a particular song will inspire a scene. Other times, I will write a scene and reference an actual song as I did with Father Figure.<br />
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When Nick is walking along Lost Slough after fishing, I hear Born on the Bayou by Creedence Clearwater.<br />
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When Nick and Jessie marry in On Sutter Island, Los Lobos' Kiko and the Lavender Moon is the song they dance to at their reception.<br />
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In the Meadows, there are references to Dylan and to The Grateful Dead - a nod to Nick's parents who were college student protesters. And so, Jessie sings Althea to her babies as a lullaby and Grace tries to teach Jessie the words to Subterranean Homesick Blues.<br />
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Moving along to the L.A. Mysteries - there are plenty of references to Katie's love for 80's dance music particularly Fine Young Cannibals Good Thing, Dead or Alive's You Spin Me Right Round, Wang Chung's Lullaby and the music of one of my favorite bands - Depeche Mode.<br />
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The music of Leonard Cohen makes several appearances. His song Darkness inspired the title and There For You caused me to completely rewrite the portion of Darkness dealing with the characters Bobby Lento and Jordan Lilly.<br />
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Tom Waits Virginia Avenue was the inspiration for what I hope is a memorable strip tease featuring Katie in A Blood Red Sky.<br />
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Since Maggie Ryan spans decades - the music changes with the times - early on, it's all fifties greats like Till I Kissed You by The Everly Brothers and Don't by Elvis.<br />
When Maggie returns to school, there is Hendrix, The Grateful Dead, Crosby Stills and Nash and one of my all time guilty favorites In A Gadda Da Vida.<br />
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When Maggie visits Jamaica, I place her dancing in the crew bar of a cruise ship to Johnny B Goode - but not the Chuck Berry version - although she references it - but the version by the incomparable Peter Tosh.<br />
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Neil Diamond's classic songs are the background for Maggie and Joseph's love for each other - Holly Holy for the scene in which Joseph teaches Maggie to canter her horse, Play Me for the night that Maggie first comes to Joseph's bed, Stones for the years that Maggie is separated from him.<br />
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I can't forget Gordon Lightfoot - I see The Wreck of the Edmond Fitzgerald as the title music. But to this day, I cannot listen to The Last Time I Saw Her - it's beautiful but reminds me that there was a time when I intended to write a death scene for Joseph. (Couldn't do it)<br />
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There's not a lot of music in 17 Days but Cherish by The Association figures in one scene along the river and a whole medley of Elvis by an Elvis impersonator at the Avi Casino. I Saw the Light plays through the final night and morning between Kimmy and Matthew.<br />
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The first book in a new series - The Two Way Shake - has, as far as I can recall, only one musical interlude - a dance in a seedy bar - set to the tune of Tom Waits' Walkin' Spanish but the entire story was inspired by music from Mark Knopfler's new CD Tracker in particular Long Cool Girl, Lights o f Taormina and Mighty Man.<br />
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Finally - we come to the book I am currently writing - The San Pedro Blues - not much musical inspiration so far - although Allison Krause's I Believe in You is behind the relationship of Katie and Nicco - don't ask, read the book. <br />
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If you are a writer, and music inspires you, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the topic. Write me at joanklengler@gmail.com. Till next time, thank you for reading.<br />
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<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-17986386403146666352015-09-23T15:06:00.000-07:002015-09-23T15:08:17.415-07:00The New Golden Age of TelevisionBefore I begin - just a word about this week's cover picture - it has nothing to do with movies or TV but it is one of my favorite places in The Delta - Al the Wop's. Picture yourself on a barstool, enjoying a cold one before walking back to your boat for the night.<br />
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In the fifties, there was concern that movies would die out thanks to the widespread influence of television. To keep people coming to theatres, movie makers introduced 3D (not even close to what you see today), Cinemascope, even Smell-O-Vision. That last one was a short lived idiotic idea, if ever there was one.<br />
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Today, movies are bigger, but not better than ever. <br />
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3D is back and yes, it is incredible. Even the glasses are new and improved - not those little cardboard multi colored ones that kept slipping off your nose.<br />
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IMAX is phenomenal for some films - Nature movies (not really my thing - the first time an animal dies, I am out of there) and concert films like The Stones Shine A Light (I know, it was a long time ago but it still stands out for me).<br />
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This week we saw Everest in IMAX 3D. This kind of film plays well on the giant IMAX screen. But the preview for The Jungle Book makes far better use of 3D.<br />
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But, for me, Everest is the exception. We are inundated with a plethora (I knew I'd find a use for that word) of films that attempt to astound us with visuals while giving storylines and characters short shrift. They look so interchangeable that it is difficult to tell them apart. But apparently, someone is going to see them, because they keep making them.<br />
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There are still small, independent films rich in character and story telling. But they play well on a small screen. I'm guessing a lot of people just decide to stay home and watch those on TV. After all, we now have giant flat screens, surround sound, even 3D TV. And it is awesome.<br />
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In bygone days, television was the place where actors went when they couldn't get decent parts in movies. It was a kind of kiss of death to appear on television. Not so, nowadays.<br />
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A listers are working in television - something that seems to have always been the case in England, if all of those great British series in my Netflix queue are any indication.<br />
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Speaking of Netflix, this is the go to place for a wide variety of movies, including independent and foreign films, as well as series that other networks have given up on - such as Longmire and The Killing. <br />
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We are Showtime subscribers and love it. (Less so, HBO, which is why we are willing to wait until HBO series go to Netflix although Banshee on Cinemax could almost convince me to subscribe). <br />
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As far as Showtime is concerned, the best of the best - Ray Donovan - outstanding writing, acting (Jon Voigt - why no Emmy or Golden Globe?), outstanding everything - but not one mention at The Emmys?<br />
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Less enthralling - particularly in a weak second season is Masters of Sex.<br />
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But then there is Homeland - still taut powered by the performances of Claire Danes, Rupert Friend and Mandy Patinkin.<br />
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The Affair returns soon - can't wait to find out what happens next.<br />
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Starz Magic City, if you can find it, had two of the best seasons on TV and then disappeared.<br />
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Let's hope the same thing doesn't happen to Black Sails - I know Pirates - who would have thought?<br />
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Netflix' own series such as House of Cards and Orange is the New Black have been a refreshing addition to the world of home entertainment as has Bloodline - looking forward to the second season but SPOILER ALERT hoping Ben Mendelsohn will at least be back in flashbacks.<br />
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We still can't get with the networks - they don't seem to trust their viewers enough to give us a continuing storyline. Fox' short lived Gang Related is one reason we gave up. Give us a show we love and cancel it - leaving dozens of plot points dangling. Maybe Netflix will pick it up.<br />
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Even Basic Cable is at the top of its game - FX gave us Sons of Anarachy, The Americans, Justified, Fargo and The Bridge.<br />
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AMC gave us Hell on Wheels, Breaking Bad, Fargo and Better Call Saul which started slow but we shall see.<br />
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Is it any wonder I can't get my housework done?<br />
<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5882524943837600701.post-19531263748310294792015-09-11T13:11:00.001-07:002015-09-11T13:11:52.019-07:00A New Month - A New Image and Some Thoughts Unrelated to Writing The beautiful image that tops the blog this week is a photograph taken by Michael Pieretti. Michael gave me permission to use this image as a book cover but I never got around to it. Perhaps for the next Delta Mystery.<br />
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Michael was a true artist. He lived on Sutter Island and loved The Delta. His photographs are among the most beautiful I've ever seen and truly bring the area to life. I was fortunate to meet him on my last trip there.<br />
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I am sad to say that Michael Pieretti passed away on March 13, 2013. However it is still possible to view his work online and I recommend that you search for it if you would like to see the places that are the setting for The Delta Mysteries.<br />
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As noted above, this week's post is not related to writing. Or perhaps, in some way, it is. Because I have a few thoughts on the current state of movies and that certainly involves writing.<br />
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In the past three weeks, my husband and I have seen three movies - all at Laemmle Theatres - the home of independent and foreign films in an age devoted almost exclusively to less than thrilling action thrillers, 3D and tired remakes of movies that weren't that good the first time around.<br />
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The first was Phoenix - a German film directed by Christian Petzold starring the incomparable Nina Hoss (if you don't see foreign films, you may have seen her in Homeland) as a concentration camp survivor searching for her husband, who may have betrayed her to the Nazis, in post war Berlin. <br />
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The second was Meru - a documentary about three men who attempt to climb Meru - a mountain less high than Everest but one that has never been successfully scaled. When one sets out to climb Meru, one does it without Sherpas - dragging one's own gear and pitting oneself against nature at its most dangerous. I have never understood climbers but then I am a confirmed coward - especially where heights are concerned. This movie came as close as anything could to making me understand why they do it.<br />
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The third was a film we almost passed on based on the description - a middle aged woman (the always wonderful Patricia Clarkson) whose husband has left her, takes driving lessons and learns to control her own life while teaching her driving instructor, a Sikh, played by Ben Kingsley, how to adjust to an arranged marriage. I know - sounds boring, right? Thank goodness, Laemmle will show you the trailer on line. Once we saw it, we wanted to see the movie. And we were not disappointed. It is a film filled with rich performances and genuine emotions.<br />
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It is no accident that these are the only three movies we've seen at the theatre all summer. Well, that's not entirely true - we did see Woody Allen's newest An Irrational Man - good cast - Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone and Parkey Posey. Not only did it lack suspense and humor, I found the dialogue forced and artificial and the acting amateurish - embarrassingly so - given the caliber of the acting talent.<br />
It was like watching a movie made by someone trying to imitate Woody Allen at the top of his game. Based on this, I'd say it's time he retired. But then I remember Match Point, one of his best. And Midnight In Paris - which suffered somewhat from that artificial dialogue but was saved by its sheer inventiveness.<br />
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The problem with movies these days is not that some of our best directors seem mired in the past, but that audiences apparently crave:<br />
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A bottomless pit of bad remakes of movies that were bad to begin with<br />
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Movies in which Tom Cruise dangles from a helicopter<br />
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Movies in which cars hurtle through mid air and buildings explode<br />
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Or the world is facing an apocalypse due to an invasion of zombies (Hasn't anyone figured out that you don't even have to be able to run to escape from them? You just have to walk fast.)<br />
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And for this, they expect us to pay $10 for a bargain matinee and $11.50 for popcorn and a drink. When I see a family lined up at the concession stand, I have to believe our economy must be a lot stronger than I've been led to believe.<br />
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My last thought on this subject is this - someone is remaking Point Break. Now a lot of people think that was a bad movie. On this one, I disagree. This is one of Kathryn Bigelow's best. It meets the Joan Klengler test for an entertaining movie - if you're channel surfing and you come across a movie, and you start watching, even if it's been cut for TV and is interrupted by commercials and you own it, but you still watch it - it's a good movie. It's a classic, albeit a cult classic. Don't remake it. Watch the original.<br />
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Next time - the rich golden age of Television. Thank you Netflix.<br />
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<br />delta mystery writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15708601724066696126noreply@blogger.com0