Cathie Dunn writes...

Joe Murray , of Sanford 3rd Age Club fame, is visiting today, so I took the chance to quiz him before he starts pestering the locals for information about missing chocolate eggs. Joe? Joe!! Ahh, there you are... 1)  It’s Easter. You’re in Weston-super-Mare. Whatever happens on the Great Egg Hunt? I don’t wanna say too much, but I get my feet wet. That’s because it’s raining. It rained all the way from Sanford to Weston-super-Mare and when we got there, it rained even harder. And I think you’ll be surprised by what I did turn up on the Great Egg Hunt. It wasn’t just Easter eggs, although to be truly honest, it wasn’t my discovery. It was Sheila’s. 2)  You’re quite a way from home. How do the locals take to a stranger investigating a murder? The police were okay… eventually. As usual, they called our Gemma in Sanford, and she put them right. It’s handy having a niece who’s also a Detective Sergeant. The locals were a bit more iffy. I think it’s a language difficulty...

Wishing all my friends and readers a Merry Christmas! I love this season! The lights, the decorations, the scent of fresh baking, home cooking, and steaming mulled wine – it all adds to the atmosphere. Yes, even the grumpy faces of the stressed shoppers in the supermarkets (they make me feel like shouting, "It's Christmas!!") and the heavy rain & gales, though not the flooding that has been affecting parts of the country in recent days. That is awfully sad, and my heart goes out to those whose homes have been destroyed at a time where they should – and would – be celebrating. Anyway, I wanted to send personal Season's Greetings to some special writing buddies. They are authors who have worked hard and achieved so much, and who have helped and inspired me over the years. You'll find many of them featured in this blog over the last two years, so the folks below are just a small drop in an ocean full of inspiration. Please visit their blogs and check o...

It's a mystery... Yes, it's again time for murder. If you haven't yet checked out my Murderous Christmas Treat #1 , you should do so before you read on. Don't miss the chance to meet the amateur sleuths and discover A Murder for Christmas . Just don't forget to come back here! As promised, here's the second of this week's teasers from the murderous seasonal English mystery novels by cosy crime author, David W Robinson . Enjoy! This second excerpt comes from the fifth STAC Mystery, Murder at the Murder Mystery Weekend , which is set in Lincoln over the New Year. In the extract, Joe is in the bar and is talking with the lading actor in the murder mystery production, Gerry Carlin, fresh from playing one of the victims. “Always been an actor, old son.” Carlin’s pride glowed through his words. “Nothing big. Rep, mainly. I’ve had a couple of speaking parts on TV, too. Ever see Inspector Hucknall?” Joe shook his head. “I don’t watch much TV.”...

Love English murder mysteries? Then meet the STAC team! The indomitable amateur sleuths investigate crimes and usually manage to expose the culprits. And not just one, but two treats are in store for you this week as we post snippets from two releases, A Murder for Christmas (today) and Murder at the Murder Mystery Weekend (Friday). So, I'm handing over to the man who created the team, murder mystery author, David W Robinson , to reveal the characters behind the Sanford 3rd Age Club (STAC) team. Here goes... When reviewing The Filey Connection, the first STAC Mystery, one reader wrote, ‘The characters all seem like people you've met at some time’, and I feel that is part of the success of the series. The natural interplay between characters is one of the driving forces behind the tales, particularly the antics of the three central characters; Joe Murray and two of his staff, coincidentally, his two closest friends, Sheila Riley and Brenda Jump. The three have...

Wow! Cosy crime (and fellow Crooked Cat Publishing) author,  David W Robinson , is attempting a gruelling challenge:  Write a novel in a week! When I asked him about it, this is what he had to say: Here’s a stupid idea. I’m going to write a novel in week. So when you’ve all stopped laughing and questioning my sanity, you’ll ask why. The answer is… because I’m bored. It’s not a bet and it’s not for charity, it’s just to see whether or not I can do it. I begin next Monday morning, July 9th 2012, and work through to Sunday 15th , and at the end of that seven days, I expect to have 60,000-70,000 words written. Not a publishable novel, just a good first draft. And if I get there, what happens to the finished project? At some stage I’ll bring it up to spec and Crooked Cat will get first refusal. If they don’t want it, I’ll probably self-publish. Would you like to follow my progress? Aside from writing over 10,000 words a day , I’ll also be bloggin...

Today, my alter ego, Steph, is hosting renowned columnist and writing tutor,  Lorraine Mace aka  Frances di Plino ,  author of the gripping thriller, Bad Moon Rising ,  on her Critiques, Reviews & Writing blog. Lorraine/Frances talks about using back-story wisely, not burying (pardon the pun) your poor reader under a mountain of unnecessary information. Join us!   http://critiquesandmore.wordpress.com/2012/06/28/cut-back-on-back-story/ ~~~~~ All the while, over at Crooked Cat Publishing, another Sanford 3rd Age Club mystery makes an appearance: The I-Spy Murders by David W Robinson . Check it out: http://crookedcatpublishing.com/archives/1342

This first Sunday in March sees not only winter returned after weeks of mild temperatures, but we also discover a new holiday destination (for a slightly warmer season): Filey in Yorkshire, England. The seaside town of Filey is the location for author David W Robinson 's cosy English murder mystery, The Filey Connection, now available from Amazon & Smashwords. Let's head over to the seaside with David... My name is David Robinson, and I’m the author of the Sanford 3rd Age Club Mysteries. I have a long and varied track record as a writer, turning out everything from short works of non-fiction to hardline psychological thrillers, sci-fi and horror, and all of them have an element of mystery The Sanford 3rd Age Club Mysteries were a departure for me. I’ve never written traditional British cosy crimes before, but I’m a great aficionado of the whodunit. From Sherlock Holmes to Poirot and Miss Marple, I love a good mystery, and from a writer’s point of view, I enjoy the in...