Recent reading: "The Labors of Hercules" (Intro and Stories 1, 2 and 3)

The Labors of Hercules

by Agatha Christie 

 

I'm way behind on #ReadChristie2026. I'm currently still working on May's assignment, The Labors of Hercules, a series of short stories where Hercule Poirot accepts cases based on the Greek legend. Here are the introduction and first three cases: 

 

Introduction:

 

Dr. Burton expresses surprise that Hercule Poirot has not spent time studying classic literature and the discussion prompts Poirot to dive into Greek mythology. He isn't impressed, but it does give him the idea to devote the rest of his career to cases that correspond symbolically to the actual Labours of Hercules. 

 

1. "The Nemean Lion"

 

Hercules: Tasked with and succeeded in slaying a lion in spite of it having fur that was impervious to arrows.

 

Poirot: Sir Joseph Hoggin asks Poirot to look into the case of his wife's stolen Pekingese (Pekinese in the story) dog. The dog has been returned safely after a two hundred pound ransom had been paid, but Hoggin is angry at the fact that his wife paid it without consulting him and he wants his money back. Poirot discovers that this dog isn't the only stolen and ransomed Pekinese.

 

This is one of the cleverest short stories I've ever read. There's actually two cases at the end and the way Christie sprinkled clues and red herrings throughout was so not obvious, but when Poirot solves the case everything falls into place perfectly. It's a master class on how to do that. There's a reason she's referred to as the queen of mystery. There was an extra twist at the end that was just brilliant. This story was a great start to the series.

 

Symbolic relationship: One of the characters refers to the breed's origin myth, "...according to the legend, Pekinese were lions once. And they still have the hearts of lions!" Apparently during Christie's time period the Peke was a favorite of rich women, which makes them potential targets for ransom.

 

2. "The Lernean Hydra" (Lernaean in the myth)

 

Hercules: Tasked with slaying the multi-headed Hydra, a task complicated by the fact that every time he cuts off a head, two new heads grow back. 

 

Poirot: A year earlier and after some years as an invalid, Dr. Charles Oldfield's wife passed away, since then he has been beset by local gossip that he poisoned his wife. He feels helpless to refute the rumors due to the sheer volume and being outnumbered. He also doesn't think the police can't help him and so approaches Poirot as a last resort.

 

Poirot believes a jealous woman is involved and Dr. Oldfield finally admits that his relationship with his demanding invalid wife had been strained, and also to being romantically involved with his much younger pharmaceutical dispenser, Jean Moncrieffe. And while the guilty party was telegraphed a little more than usual for Christie, it was still, as always, fascinating to see how Poirot finally identified the murderer, and how he exploited the very town gossips that plagued Dr. Oldfield to solve the case. 

 

Symbolic relationship: As Poirot describes it, "Rumour is indeed the nine-headed Hydra of Lernea which cannot be exterminated because as fast as one head is chopped off, two grow in its place." Poirot solved the dilemma by explaining, "...my task, like that of my namesake Hercules, was to reach the first - the original head." In other words, "Who had started the rumour?" 

 

3. "The Arcadian Deer" (Ceryneian Hind in the myth)

 

Hercules: Tasked with capturing the Ceryneian Hind, a stag-like creature sporting golden horns that is so swift of foot it can outrun arrows shot at it. Hercules captures it alive by throwing a net over it as it sleeps. After he presents it to King Eurystheus (who gave him with the task in the hopes it would cause him to run afould of the goddess Artemis), Hercules thwarts the king by returning the beast to Artemis rather than letting him keep it for himself, angering the king and pacifying the goddess.

 

Poirot: Hercules Poirot's car breaks down in a small country village, where the handsome young mechanic who is repairing the car requests the great detective's help in finding the lady's maid of a Russian ballerina who was visiting a local estate, but who mysteriously disappeared seemingly without a trace.

 

The young mechanic, Ted Williamson, is described as, "...one of the handsomest specimens of humanity he (Poirot) had ever seen, a simple young man with the outward semblance of a Greek god." And this sweet, simple young man is desperately in love with the young lady's maid, in spite of only meeting her a couple of times. He doesn't even know her last name, just her first: Nita. Poirot takes pity on Ted and goes above and beyond the call of duty to track down the missing girl. When he does, we learn that Nita was no lady's maid, but someone putting on a performance.

 

Symbolic relationship: The obvious tie of Ted being described as a Greek god. Poirot having once seen the ballerina dance the role of a hunted hind. Nita's golden hair being described as flipping up on each side of her face "like wings" (the Hind's golden horns). At the end there is also the hope that "Nita" might return to Ted as the Ceryneian Hind was returned to Artemis, with Poirot suggesting, "And why should you not be the wife of a garage hand in a country village? And have children as beautiful as gods, and with feet, perhaps, that will dance as you once danced."

 

I have to say that although (at least so far) these stories have been pretty short, quick reads, Christie packs an amazing amount of information and red herrings in them. This is really the first time I've read her short stories and in addition to her amazing novels, she was also a gifted short story author. The woman really could do it all. Looking forward to the next batch of Poirot's labors.

 

Recent reading: EQMM and AHMM

The new publisher is still behind (I don't have the Jan/Feb issues yet) but I'm also behind on reading, so I guess that makes us even.

 

 Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine (September/October 2025)

 

Favorites from this issue:

• "The Corpse Collector" by David Morrell: A dental assistant moonlights as a pickup driver for a funeral director for extra money and uses her day job skills to determine that the seemingly accidental death of an old man was actually murder.
• "Where the Good Dogs Go" by Kai Lovelace: A dog's sickness pits his owners against each other - Rose, who wants to sink money they don't have into his treatment, and Brad, the husband she feels increasingly distant from and who she suspects of having the dog euthanized. Rose gets a rude surprise when she decides to take revenge on Brad. Great twist ending.
• "The Book of Dead Cats" by Sue Parman: A mysterious death of a professor at a prep school, eccentric characters, family drama, and cats.  

 

Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine (November/December 2025)

 

Favorites from this issue:

• "Doctor Morbilius" by Gary Phillips: Set in the 1960's, this story sees a Los Angeles PI and his estranged father caught up in a scam perpetrated by a charismatic conman.
• "Fursona Non Grata" by Richard Helms: A fun story about a supposedly psychic eccentric who assists a detective in solving a murder of a furry (a guy in a dog costume). 
• "Halloween Party" by David Dean: A young woman wants to get to know her new neighbors and neighborhood, only to get more information than she bargained for in this tale of infidelity, scandal, and murder. 

Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine (November/December 2025)

 

Favorites from this issue:

• "Circumstantial Evidence" by Eric B. Ruark: A bicyclist discovers a murder victim in a small town and is pressed to stick around because he's a potential suspect. When local troublemakers are arrested for the crime, the cyclist is free to leave...only to reveal that he's a contract killer and the murder was, in fact, his doing. Terrific use of an unreliable narrator. I did not see that ending coming AT ALL.
• "Take Me for a Ride" by Michael Mallory: Set in post-WWII Los Angeles, this is the story of a private eye who takes on the case of a valuable stolen car for an old war buddy, only to have it turn into an increasingly complicated murder case.
• "The Other Side of the Window" by Adrian McKinty: One of my favorite stories of the year. It's Hitchcock's Rear Window from the POV of Lars Thorwald, the killer played by Raymond Burr in the film. We learn how he reached the point of killing his wife (accidentally) after meeting another woman, who wants them to run off to California, and who enthusiastically helps Thorwald dispose of the wife's body and establish his alibi. An interesting aspect is how much the characters of Jefferies (James Stewart) and Lisa Fremont (Grace Kelly) were minimalized. The character of Helen, Thorwald's paramour, doesn't appear in the film and is a device created to explain how and why Thorwald's wife ended up dead. Just a really great alternative take on a classic.
• "A New Life" by LaToya Jovena: A man seeks sole ownership of his late mother's twenty acre property with plans to turn it into a multi-million dollar development scheme, but his estranged daughter has other ideas. Great double-cross at the end.  

Recent reading: Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

AHMM and Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine have been running late, and so have I in reading them.

Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine 

(September/October 2025)

 

Favorites from this issue: 

• "High in That Ivory Tower" by Joseph S. Walker: A jaded English professor tries to blackmail a filthy rich student, with unexpected results when the young man's father shows up to confront him. Bonus points for the shoutout to "The Cask of Amontillado" during the shock ending.
• "The Promise" by Ken Brosky: A PI looking for a missing crime witness has to drag his teenage daughter along for the job and is pleasantly surprised when she shows unexpected aptitude and enthusiasm.
• "Julius Katz Draws a Straight Flush" by Dave Zeltserman: Imaginative story about a PI and his AI assistant, who not only assists but authors tales of their legendary exploits, and how they brilliantly solve the seemingly innocuous case of a dead waiter. 4/30/26: This just won the Edgar Award for Best Short Story of 2025.
• "Tell Me a Story, Grampa" by Loren D. Estleman: The story Grampa tells young Randy is about an old, unsolved bank robbery that has become legend in their small town, with a very unexpected twist at the end that reveals the robber that everyone thought got away.
• "Murder in F-Sharp" by Stephen Ross: A teenage music student discovers the identity of the murderer of a teacher at his school, then uses this knowledge to ruthlessly manipulate two adults in his life - his father and his piano teacher. Another great, unexpected twist at the end.
• "The Selwyn Arms" by Marcelle Dube: A formerly homeless young woman investigates the murder of a kind neighbor after realizing local police are going to write it off as an accidental overdose or suicide. Probably my favorite of all the stories and I would love to see more of unlikely heroine Ethel Brownlee, especially with the unexpected news she receives at the end of the story. Plus, I'm a sucker for vintage buildings like the Selwyn.

 Next up, EQMM.

Horror mashup of the gods

When two masters of the macabre collide:

 

Toasting Charles Addams and Edgar Allan Poe on this fine autumn evening.

 

Recent Reading: "The End of the World As We Know It"

The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King's The Stand

Edited by Christopher Golden and Brian Keene

Editors Golden and Keene assembled a large, talented group of writers to create stories set in the universe of Stephen King's classic plague novel The Stand. Some of the stories take place as the superflu is emerging and decimating the world's population, some as dream and nightmare-plagued characters are compelled to head to where they've been called by either good (Mother Abagail in Nebraska) or evil (Randall Flagg in Las Vegas). There are also a few stories set well into the post-Captain Trips future.

 

The good news: the authors did a uniformly great job of creating well-developed characters who come to life vividly and who mesh seamlessly into the world of Captain Trips. In fact, I'd say the book's strongest suit is how well the authors were able to recreate the world and the feel of The Stand.

The bad news was neatly explained by a YouTube video review of this book that I stumbled upon early in my reading. Unfortunately, I didn't bookmark it and I can't remember the account name so I can't link to it, but the YouTuber's overall assessment was that while a lot of the stories in this book are good,  none are really great, and that was exactly my experience. Maybe it's the sheer number of stories, but while some were interesting, there isn't one that is haunting me the way the source material did. I'm hard-pressed to remember more than the most recent ones as I write this. 

 

This is a massive book - 765 pages, 34 stories, forwards by Golden and King, and an afterword by Keene, plus an About the Authors section. I started it in late August and finally finished it last night. 

 

Fun factoid: With the exception of Randall Flagg and Mother Abagail (who appear repeatedly) of all the original characters in The Stand it was Larry Underwood - and his apparently immortal song "Baby Can You Dig Your Man" - who is name-checked the most in this collection. Wasn't expecting that, but Larry and his lone hit record pop up a lot.

NOTE: I bought this book prior to King's comment on X/Twitter about Charlie Kirk following his murder - an accusation that was false, acknowledged as incorrect, deleted, and apologized for. I had already started the book and since King already got my money, I wanted to finish it partly because I was curious as to how the authors responded to the assignment, and also because as a published short story author I was intrigued by the thought of what kind of story I would have come up with had I been a participating author.

 

Recent reading: Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

 

Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine (July/August 2025)

 

My favorite stories in this issue:

• "The Violent Season" by  Jessica Van Dessel: Set in the 1950's when cause was needed for divorce, a man allows himself to be set up for "adultery" photos, but is drawn into a murder. His wife is the unlikely hero in this story.
• "Slow Burn" by Mark Thielman: A man poisons his wife, but she still gets her post-mortem revenge.
•  "Penalty for Early Withdrawal" by Michael Bracken: A broke, unemployed aspiring actress gets caught up in a bank robbery and attempts to use her acting skills to help herself to the loot. 
• "Heartsick" by Marcelle Dube: A young woman has poisoned her husband, but the case isn't that cut and dried.
• "Horseshoe Pies and Hand Grenade Hushpuppies" by Roger Johns: A former grifter attempts to atone for past sins by helping a former mark who has been victimized again, this time by a small-town gigolo.
• "Double Take" by T.M. Bradshaw: A New York detective works the murder of a man who is part of a group of golden-age Hollywood look-alikes, including a Lauren Bacall who steals, then breaks his heart. This story was published as the winner of the Black Orchid Novella Award. 

 

Recent reading: Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine

Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine (July/August 2025)

 

My favorite stories in this issue:

• "Advantage: Lily" by Sara Paretsky: According to the introduction and author's notes this story introduces a new series character whose first novel is in-progress. Lily Arima is a seventy-something retired CIA agent, and here she uses her professional skills to straighten out an insurance company that is rejecting massive medical bills incurred by a neighbor who suffered a stroke. Based on this reading, Lily's further adventures are something to look forward to.
• "How It Happened" by Billie Kay Fern: A beautifully told tale of justice served on abusive and cheating spouses, as told by a sweet but knowing young farmgirl. Really fantastic job on the girl's voice. 4/30/26: This story just won the Robert L. Fish Memorial Award for best first mystery short story by an American author at the Edgars last night.
• "Me and Extra and Those Piercing Green Eyes" by Peter Turnbull: Its cumbersome title notwithstanding (Extra is a dog and the green eyes belong to a detective) this is a terrific story told by a serial killer as to how he's gotten away with it for so long, and how he's finally tripped up by a crooked cop and the cop's equally vicious wife.
•  "The Tower at Coffin Rock" by Dennis McFadden: A sheriff investigates the suspicious death of a young woman who had accused his estranged brother of rape. A nice twist at the end indicating that the victim may not have been the victimized.
• "Cold" by Robin Castle: Another fun twist ending for the story of a young woman who discovers the body of a murder victim while jogging on the beach. 
• "Cur Non" by Shelly Eisenhautchen: A ruthless, ambitious literary agent hires a young woman who seems to be the perfect assistant, not realizing the new hire has a tie to a writer the agent once publicly humiliated.

 

Recent reading: Alfred Hitchcock's and Ellery Queen Mystery Magazines

Trying to catch up on my short story reading. Not doing very well - I'm still a couple issues behind. Add in the fact that I'm working my way through the new short story anthology inspired by Stephen King's The Stand and I'll probably fall even further behind on the magazines. Me and my first world problems.

   

 Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine (March/April 2025)

Favorites from this issue: 

• "Bent, Bent & Duckworth" by Alexis Stefanovich-Thomson: A well-plotted story with a put-upon PI protagonist whose mother and step-father attempt to take over his business.
  
• "I Ain't Got No Home" by Steve Liskow: A missing homeless man prompts an investigation that leads to the exposure of human trafficking and political corruption.
• "Admissions" by Ken Linn: High-level academic shenanigans. 
• "Quick Turnaround" by Gabriela Stiteler: A professional downsizer gets involved in a local mystery that doesn't concern him.
  
• "Boogie Shoes" by Jeff Marks: A locked-room mystery set in a mall shoe store circa late 1970's - bonus points for the Waldenbooks shoutout.
  

 

 Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine (May/June 2025)

 

Favorites from this issue (one of the best overall I've seen in recent memory):

• "The Portrait of Adrian Whyte" by David Dead: My favorite short story so far this year,  an imaginative tale that suggests the inspiration for Oscar Wilde's novel The Picture of Dorian Gray might have involved a real-life murder.
  
•  "The Witch's Ball" by Elizabeth Elwood: A lively story of a celebrity murder during Halloween festivities at a witch museum in Salem.
• "Tarzan Must Die!" by Loren D. Estleman: A UCLA film archivist gets mixed up in the murder of an actor whose career has seen better days.
• "Nighthawks" by James Hazelton: A terrific flash fiction story inspired by Edward Hopper's famous painting, in which the author gives his take on the patrons at the counter. Spoiler alert - no one is innocent. You'll see this painting a whole different way after reading this story.
  

• "Blues in the Night" by Persia Walker: In 1940's New Orleans, a young nightclub singer takes on corruption in the police force and local politics to clear her name in the murder of her boyfriend. This read like something that could be expanded into a novel. The fact that I should have been in NOLA for Bouchercon this week just added to the reading experience.
  
• "Shamus and Buster" by Paul Ryan O'Connor: A P.I. is murdered and the investigation is told from the point of view of his aged cat.
  
• "A Short Madness" by Josh Pachter: The story of how a psychologist solves a "locked-cell" murder mystery set in an 1850's era mental institution, as told years later by his assistant.
  

 

Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine (May/June 2025)

 

Favorites from this issue:

• "The Twenty-Fourth Canterbury" by Richard Helms: A successful author wants to end his hit series but is being pressured for just one more installment of his legendary sleuth.
• "Shane on the Scene" by James A. Hearn: A fun story about a young mystery fan who gets to help his detective uncle solve a case and thwart his mother's marriage to a crook at the same time.
  
• "Buds" by Kevin Egan: A play on words title and a fun story about a trial between a star and her former manager, and how a trio of court guards are drawn into the case.
• "Nobody Cares" by Michael A. Black: A dead homeless guy who is more than he seems leads a pair of detectives into local politics and corruption.
• "The Tell-Tale Hearts" by S. Frederic Liss: Detective Poe relates to the mysterious case of how he channeled Sherlock Holmes to solve the case of involuntary heart donors/murder victims.

 

Launched at Vroman's

We had our official launch event for Angel City Beat at Vroman's in Pasadena Monday and we had a blast. I'm already struggling to stay current with my three classes this semester in only the second week, so I'm just getting around to posting this. Local author and all-around rock star Naomi Hirahara did an amazing job of moderating and we got a pretty good crowd. Fun was had by all. Pics by The Brother.

 

Cover reveal!

We have an official cover reveal for Angel City Beat, the upcoming Sisters in Crime Los Angeles anthology that includes my story "Unbeatable", which involves an undefeated racehorse, a dead jockey, and a pet psychic.

 

 

 

We still don't have an exact release date, but it looks like officially it will be sometime in December.

Writer stuff

Almost every time, although I have gotten a couple of stories out of really vivid dreams.

 

 

This also works for "Idea in My Head" versus "Idea When I Write It Out".

The curse of procrastination: A writer's lament

I am a world-class procrastinator. If there was an Olympics for procrastination, I would be showered in gold medals. I would be on the cover of Wheaties boxes. I am an expert on wasting time on frivolous crap like social media and online games like Scrabble and Solitaire when I should be writing.

I'm not saying any of this to brag. I'm not proud of it, in fact I hate it. I hate that's how my mind works.

 

I don't want to be a world-class procrastinator, but hey, we can't always have what we want.

To explain what brought on this rant:

A couple months ago I decided I wanted to submit a story for next year's Bouchercon anthology. Getting into a Bouchercon anthology has been on my short story bucket list for years. The 2025 conference is in New Orleans and not only am I eager to return to the French Quarter, I'd love to be in that particular collection. And since the deadline wasn't until November 1, I had plenty of time.

The theme for Bouchercon anthologies (besides crime) is usually tied to that year's location, and of course, the theme for Blood on the Bayou: Case Closed is NOLA based or inspired crime stories.

 

 

Because I am very much a Southern Californian and not a Southern Lousianian (is that the word?) and I've only been to NOLA once (for the 2016 Bouchercon) I decided I would approach the story from a tourist aspect. What tourist think they know about NOLA and its culture, as opposed to what little they actually know and/or understand. And eventually I settled on voodoo and a gift shop.

One of the things I read for research is New Orleans Voodoo: A Cultural History, and from page one it's a real eye-opener about the reality of New Orleans voodoo and how the practice is portrayed in film and television. It's so much different than I realized, so I decided to work that into the story. I also read the 2016 Bouchercon anthology Blood on the Bayou to see what kind of stories they published. It was a terrific read, highly recommended, and I really hope to be part of the next one.

But first, I had to write an actual story.

By mid-September I had a pretty good idea of the kind of story I wanted to write. It was inspired by my personal experiences involving a greedy, problematic family member in the aftermath of my Dad's death in 2011 (there was money involved and that almost always causes trouble) and familial betrayal in general. And that's what I've been mulling over for weeks now.

 

Part of the problem was that I couldn't figure out the actual story. An idea is one thing. For me that's the easy part. Taking the idea and turning it into a full-fledged story is where the work comes in. 

 

But as September and then October went by, I couldn't figure out what to do with my idea.

The deadline for this anthology finally arrived yesterday. At the beginning of the week the story was still nothing but bits and pieces and notes. I planned on dedicating the week to finishing the it because I really, really wanted to submit to this anthology, my lack of progress notwithstanding. And for the first few days of the week, nothing was happening.

Then, for some reason, I woke up Thursday morning and the story was there. I don't know how or why, it just was, in fact so much so that a large portion of it was written by noon. I finished and polished it on Friday and sent it in around 5:30pm. And I was thrilled - mission accomplished! I even finally figured out how to do em dashes!

Usually two days isn't enough to get a story polished to the point of submission, but this one was shorter than usual, plus the whole story takes place in one location and in real time so I didn't have to worry about moving the action around. And I'm genuinely happy with it. I really, really hope it gets selected but if it doesn't, I've got a great little story for future submissions.

That brings us back to procrastination. My usual MO is at first I take the approach that I have plenty of time before the deadline. Until I don't and that's when things get ugly, and frequently the result is that I don't finish the story in time to submit it, or it's so badly written that it doesn't get accepted, or I don't have a story at all. Again, I don't know why my mind works that way and it drives me nuts, but I guess there's something in my creative subconscious that just doesn't kick into gear until the deadline is looming.

 

Hopefully, at least in this case, the journey goes from the frustration of procrastination to laissez les bons temps rouler! And for good luck, here's some lovely pictures from when I was in New Orleans for Bouchercon in 2016. Amazing city.

Cafe du Monde. Beignets = Yummers.

Typical (and gorgeous) French Quarter architecture.

Mule-drawn carriages in the French Quarter.

Voodoo Blues.

Morning skies in NOLA from my hotel room.

Greetings from Bourbon Street!!!

From these people! I have no idea who they are, but apparently they're visiting New Orleans, found the EarthCam on Bourbon Street, and hilarity ensued.

 

Next year's Bouchercon (and yes, I will be attending) is back in The Big Easy and that's reignited my love for all things French Quarter. Bouchercon 2016 was in NOLA, the first time I'd ever been there, and I fell in love with the place. Registering for next year brought the feels flooding back and I'm in NOLA-mania mode again. And among other things, that meant reacquainting myself with the live cams on Bourbon Street. 

 

I've already seen multiple mule carriages, but I just caught these people waving at the cam and it was hilarious. The way they were checking their phones, I think they had someone at home watching them and sending them pictures of themselves. They seemed to get a real kick out of it and it was impossible not to get caught up in the fun. So whoever you people are, thanks for bringing a little sunshine into my day and enjoy the rest of your vacation!

 

Laissez les bons temps rouler, my friends!

 

Speaking of Bouchercon, I'm working on a story to submit for their anthology. Getting into a Bouchercon anthology has been on my bucket list for a while and it would be great to get into this one. Wish me luck.

Going to press

Very happy to announce that I received an acceptance email today for the short story I submitted to this year's Sisters in Crime Los Angeles anthology, Angel City Beat.

 

 

My story is called "Unbeatable" and involves an undefeated racehorse, a dead jockey, and a pet psychic. It takes place at Santa Anita Racetrack in Arcadia.

 

It's been a while since I got an acceptance email, and I was thrilled to see it. I'm usually confident when I submit that the story is solid and meets the theme, and therefore I'm usually surprised when my story isn't chosen. In this case, I doubled up on the theme (Angel City Beat...hoofbeats and an unbeaten racehorse) but I wasn't sure if the story would be thrilling, or read like a giant mess. I felt like what I was trying to write wasn't coming across on the page and that's always frustrating. In addition, since we only have one editor this time around (we usually have three, but the chapter scored genre legend Barb Goffman to edit this baby) we were capped at 12 stories as part of Barb's participation (we usually have 15-17 stories in our anthologies), so acceptance was even tougher. And yet...

And yet I got in. I'm so thrilled. I'm thrilled to be published again, to be in yet another anthology from SinC LA, and to work with Barb Goffman. And I hope everyone who reads my crazy story about a genuine pet psychic, a crooked jockey, and a big rugged horse who may or may not be a four-legged mindless himbo loves it as much as I do, and apparently as much as our judges/readers did.

I'm very grateful and can't wait to publicize the heck out of this anthology. SinC LA usually releases their anthologies in spring of odd-numbered years, but in order to make this available for Christmas and also eligible for awards next year, is fast-tracking this publication for December 2024. 

Recent reading: "Deliberate Cruelty"

Deliberate Cruelty: Truman Capote, The Millionaire's Wife, and the Murder of the Century 

by Roseanne Montillo

I decided to read this after finishing Feud: Capote versus the Swans, and I'm glad I did. Between Feud and its inspiration (Capote's Women) this was my favorite covering the topic of Truman Capote and his "swans".

The book begins with the infamous exchange between Truman Capote and Ann Woodward at a restaurant in Saint Moritz in which Ann dismissed the writer as "a little fag" and he responded by addressing her as "Mrs. Bang Bang". Ann had shot her wealthy husband a few years earlier (accidentally or intentionally depended on who you asked) and as a result was exiled from the elite class that she hoped her advantageous marriage would make her a part of. Ironically (given his dismissive attitude toward Ann) Capote himself would be exiled from the same world years later when he betrayed his high-society swans by exposing secrets they had told him in confidence while thinly veiling them in a story called "Le Cote Basque 1965", published in Esquire Magazine in 1975. In addition to devastating his supposedly beloved swans, the story featured a murderous widow so clearly based on Ann Woodward that it drove her to suicide, while the other swans settled for ostracizing Capote from their ranks.

 

The book bounces back and forth between the small towns and unstable home lives that both Ann and Truman experienced growing up, and the drive for better lives that brought them both to New York City. Ann and Truman had more in common than he probably wanted to admit. They both grew up disadvantaged, small towners who aspired to big city life. Ann, like Truman's mother, tried desperately to join the elite ranks of old money New York. What Ann, Truman, and his mother attained in that pursuit would eventually lead to their respective downfalls. 

Ann Woodward was born into abject poverty in the Midwest and although her mother fought hard to improve their situation, things never seemed to work out the way she hoped. As Ann grew, she became obsessed with the idea of becoming a famous Hollywood actress and in early adulthood that ambition and her beauty led her to New York City, where she modeled, auditioned, and ended up as a showgirl at a popular nightclub. It was the showgirl job where she met a wealthy older man, William Woodward, and apparently became his mistress for a time.

Woodward was the president of a bank and a successful breeder of thoroughbred race horses. However, he was also married with a family, and eventually broke with Ann. In order to keep her close, he suggested that she date his son, William Jr., known as Billy. Woodward had other reasons for encouraging the experienced Ann to get involved with his only son - Billy was showing little interest in women, concerning to his socially prominent family, who wanted him to marry an "appropriate" society girl.

Woodward Senior's plan worked a little too well. Ann not only stimulated Billy's interest in her and her worldliness, but with a newly discovered appetite to rebel against his staid family, he decided to marry the colorful Ann. Neither of his parents approved, but the couple married anyway. It would not be a happy marriage. Over the years, the couple fought (often physically) and as Ann tried to remake herself into an upper class wife, Billy lost interest in her and began having affairs. By the time of the ill-fated night when Ann shot Billy, supposedly mistaking him for a prowler, the couple was on the verge of what promised to be a messy divorce.

Two decades later Ann committed suicide as word of "Le Cote Basque" began to leak. She had never been able or allowed to move beyond the "murder of the century" and although she'd drifted through life since the shooting, the story was apparently the final straw for her.

 

Very little time is spent on the other swans, although CZ Guest was at the party for the Duchess of Windsor that the Woodwards attended hours before Ann shot Billy, and apparently Capote picked her brain about that night. Guest was one of the few Swans who stuck with Capote after "Le Cote Basque" was published. There's also a minimum of Capote's gossipy bitchiness, which became an annoying part of his personality, at least in Feud. The focus is more on him as a writer. More attention is paid to the background that helped make him who he became, along with his ascension in the literary world than to his sometimes difficult personality. It also details his deterioration after he'd stabbed his swans in the back with his poison pen.

 

The title of the book is taken from a line written by Capote himself, in his story "The Thanksgiving Visitor": "There is only one unpardonable sin - deliberate cruelty." Too bad Capote didn't take his own advice.

 

From the book:

As the days counted down before the magazine went on sale, Ann Woodward grew more and more frenzied. She took medications, read the papers, sought out information from the few people who had remained in her life, but overall, she dreaded waking in the morning. One day in late October, she donned her favorite dress, painted her face in a thick layer of base, mascara, and lipstick, ingested a fistful of pills, and climbed into bed. The pills Ann Woodward swallowed were Seconal, the same drug that had killed Truman Capote's mother. 

Say hello to the nicest rejection email I've ever received

Not gonna say what the publication is (other than it's an annual one that I've yet to be published in) but I just couldn't be mad about this rejection (removed name of story and publication):

Dear Melinda,

Thank you for submitting "Name of Story" to Name of Publication (2024 Anthology). Alas, close but not quite on this one. (One editor commented that it was very well plotted, though.) Sorry -- competition was very tough.

Please try again with the next volume?

 

I'll definitely try again with the next volume! 

My non-Bouchercon

The last five days couldn't have been worse.

 

A while back I announced the awesomeness that was being put on a panel at Bouchercon, the mother of all annual mystery/crime reader/writer conventions. It had the added bonus of being the first time I would get to attend Bouchercon in person since 2019. Four freaking years since I went to crime writers Disneyland. I was really looking forward to it.

 

Let's just say the whole Bouchercon thing didn't really happen for me this year.

A little background: Sophie (my darling but aging cat) is about to turn eighteen, and given some of her medical issues in the past year or so, I didn't even know if she was still going to be around by the time Bouchercon came. That she is still alive and kicking and doing well is a blessing I am hugely grateful for. In the past when I went to conferences, I either had neighbors who I felt comfortable being in my apartment look after her, or I took her to The Brother's house. Unfortunately, the neighbors that I could lean on in the past have moved on, as did I for a few years when I moved to Arcadia, then back to Marina del Rey.

 

The good news about this year's Bouchercon was that it was in San Diego, close enough that I could drive to it. I hate flying and saving on airfare was an added bonus. Plus, a hotel on the water! Heavenly! The Brother also decided to go because he likes San Diego and hadn't been in years. 

This created the problem of what to do about Sophie. I didn't want to board her because I was concerned it would be too stressful for her, especially given her age. This was non-negotiable. She's been doing so well lately that I didn't want to do anything to her that would negatively affect her.

At first I thought I'd come up with a brilliant solution - The Brother and I could do a nearby AirBnB that was pet friendly instead of the hotel. We would have amenities the hotel rooms wouldn't have and have our darling Sophie with us to boot. But that idea went over like a lead balloon, so I let it go.

 

I then considered staying in San Diego every other night and coming home on the other nights. I figured Sophie would be okay with me being gone one night at a time, but as the event got closer, I realized it wasn't just her being left overnight. It would be the entire day before and the entire day after as well. She would be left alone for a period of about 36 hours straight. Even if I left tons of catfood out, it just seemed stressful for her, and not particularly the action of a loving and responsible pet owner.

With about a week to go before the convention, I had to make a decision. I had been put on a panel Friday afternoon and didn't want to flake out on it. I'd finally made a Bouchercon panel, the least I could do was show up for it. I looked at some more AirBnB's near the event but I got caught up in wondering how Sophie would fare on the drive to San Diego. It would be the longest amount of time she'd been in the carrier in one shot. I had visions of her yowling during most of the drive, splitting headache material, plus she wouldn't have access to her catbox during the drive, so that could get messy, although in retrospect I wish I'd pulled the trigger on the AirBnB. Sophie tends to bounce back quickly after being in the carrier, even when I've moved and she's in a strange place. I really wish I'd done the AirBnB. I'd be kicking back in it right now blogging about all the awesome panels and writers instead of raging over the wreckage that was my Bouchercon non-experience this year. I wish even more I could have been in the hotel on the water.

I had to make a decision in time to cancel the hotel room without being charged for it, so I finally came up with a plan to just go back and forth from home to San Diego and be there most of the days. Not ideal, but better than nothing. Wednesday is mainly check in and they had some afternoon panels and I thought I'd go to those, but I also had to meet up with The Brother, who was staying at the hotel, and he ran late and I had to leave the first panel early. I finally got one panel in later that afternoon, then headed back to L.A.

The drive to the hotel had gone pretty easily - two hours. Getting home not quite as well - two and a half hours. It sucked, but Bouchercon's worth it and I wasn't neglecting my elderly cat.

I took Thursday off as planned, then headed back Friday morning. I left a little later than planned and traffic was heavier. By the time I got there I missed the first morning panels, but went to the next one. Then there was a lunch break and then we headed down to my panel. I was a little intimidated because I'd looked up the other authors and they had all been published way more than I had, in both anthologies and all the big magazines in our genre. One author alone had published over 100 times, and they were all winners and nominees of all the major awards in the genre, including the Edgar. And then there was me, who has been published five times in themed anthologies that are restricted to members and needless to say, has yet to be nominated for anything, and it was painfully obvious that one of these things was not like the others. I don't know how they assign panels, but my presence on this one was a big misfire. It's kind of weird, because I don't remember ever seeing a panel where one of the panelists was so clearly out of place. Just my bad luck. You'd think I'd be used to it by now.

 

I will say this  - the other authors on the panel, as well as the moderator, were incredibly nice to me in spite of the fact that I was clearly out of place. After the panel, one of them gave me some advice about submitting to magazines. It went by pretty fast, thank God. I spent the next half hour in the signing room because I didn't want to look like I was flaking out after my disastrous performance. It also made me want to get out of the there to absorb the shock, so instead of afternoon panels we went over to Seaport Village, did a little shopping, and had a late lunch since I hadn't wanted to eat right before my panel and was starving. And by then it was late afternoon, so I left. That drive home - two hours and forty-five minutes, gave me plenty of time to wallow in the crapfest that was my first ever Bouchercon panel, as well as the fact that the conference was more than half over and I'd gotten to a grand total of two panels.

I had already mentioned to The Brother I didn't know if I'd make it back to San Diego on Saturday as planned, when I had a full day of panels I wanted to attend. When I woke up Saturday morning, I was tired, still embarrassed by my panel, and very upset and disappointed about the whole thing. I should have gone out there again, but the idea of spending yet another five hours on the road was daunting, and I stayed home. I didn't go today because it 's only a half day of programming, although there were some really good-looking panels scheduled for Sunday morning that I would have gone to if I had stayed in San Diego for the whole event, which is what I should have done.

So instead of blogging about all the great panels and writers I got to see as I usually would, I'm upset, disappointed, and feeling deprived of the Bouchercon experience I wanted and should have had. In addition, I'm also feeling like a bit of a fraud writer-wise. I'm now leery of asking to be put on panels and right now am just feeling rather jaded about the whole conference thing. I shouldn't, because I've been to tons of them and have never been disappointed like this. But this was a total waste. I spent more time in my fucking car over the past few days than I did at the event. I missed tons of panels I would normally have gone to. I got less out of it than if I hadn't gone at all, and that's going to leave a mark. I am not going to get over this anytime soon.

I don't know what I'm going to do next. I'm flustered about the writing thing and angry about the Bouchercon thing. The location for the next four Bouchercons are set and none of them anywhere near driving distance (Nashville, New Orleans, Calgary, and Washington DC). I feel like I should reconsider the whole writing thing and how I approach it. Who am I fooling?

What I do know for sure is that this shouldn't have been my Bouchercon experience. I've been going to these things for years and have never been this disappointed, frustrated, and angry. Bouchercon is like Disneyland for people like me, and I rightfully expected five straight, glorious days at Disneyland as has been my experience in the past, but what I got this week was a day and a half of crap and two and a half days of nothing. And that is a massive disappointment. 

But hey, I did get to listen to an awesome audiobook! (see previous post). At least someone's a legit author! (hint: not me)

I, Panelist

Hey, I got on a panel at Bouchercon!!! That's one I can check off the writing career bucket list!

 

Click to get a readable-sized version.

Looking forward to a great, fun panel. The complete lineup can be found here.

 

I wondered where this came from...

So this turned up in my email yesterday:

I didn't know who "AIscreenplaycompetition.com" was or how they got my email address, but I found out this morning: it's good old Scriptapalooza. And boy oh boy, was the blowback quick: Artificial Intelligence Screenplay Competition Opens & Quickly Closes. They've also already taken their website down.

That didn't take long.

With the WGA embroiled in a lengthy strike where one of the key issues is AI, I'm kind of surprised anyone thought this was a good idea. I've already seen a couple of calls for submissions in the short story market where the rules include "NO AI", including one where they mentioned that not only can they spot a story written in AI, but if you submit one they will never consider another submission from you again, ever. So yeah, AI is a sore subject among writers, so again, not sure why this was even considered. 

I haven't played around with AI, ChatGPT, or anything like this (in fact, I'd completely forgotten about this and I wrote a blog post about it), but from a writer's POV it doesn't seem like this is something we want to embrace. Time will tell, but if nothing else, this was really bad timing given the WGA strike. I still think highly of Scriptapalooza - they've been around forever and I've never heard anything negative about them before this debacle - but they really bungled this. That black eye may take some time to heal.

Update 7/8/23: Got this in the email, this time clearly from Scriptapalooza, not AIscreenplaycompetition.com:

Recent reading: "Entertainment to Die For"

Entertainment to Die For

Edited by Gay Toltl Kinman, Meredith Taylor, Susan Rowland

Entertainment to Die For is the latest anthology from the Sisters in Crime Los Angeles. It includes my short story "As Seen on Television".

We weren't expecting it for a couple more months, but right before Christmas we were informed that it would be released on January 1. And here it is! Also, I love that cover art. The red is really striking. 

It's always fun to see how differently the theme is interpreted by different writers. My story involves an actor willing to murder for the leading role on a crappy sitcom. Other involve live theater in the park, long-simmering resentments dating back to the early days of television, life and death struggles for power, position, and onscreen credits, period stories, revenge being wreaked, and murder on location.

Taking my own story out of the mix because I can't really be objective about it (but I do love my story), my personal favorites out of this collection were "Murder in Xanadu" (how can you not love a story that starts with, "When I was murdered, it didn't hurt at all," and "Careful What You Wish For" (the aforementioned early days of TV story). 

From my story:

Joey had become a celebrity on some inane reality show, then parlayed that into the lead on an equally inane sitcom called Life with Newbie. Joey starred as a big-city guy newly arrived at a small-town college, and in each episode helped enlighten his hick peers, professors, and anyone else who crossed his path, dispersing meaningful lessons about diversity, inclusion, tolerance, and other socially relevant issues. These were all delivered with the condescending subtlety of a sledge-hammer on steroids...

Pick up a copy and enjoy!