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Carolyn Mulford

Carolyn Mulford

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Monthly Archives: April 2015

My Personal Research Library

Carolyn Mulford Posted on April 27, 2015 by CarolynApril 27, 2015

Most writers build up a personal library for their major projects. Three other mystery writers—Laura Bradford/Elizabeth Lynn Casey, Laura Lebow, and

Sujata Massey—and I will share what we keep at hand during a panel on research at Malice Domestic, a national annual conference for mystery readers and writers.

Here are some titles on my shelves.

Crime and Investigation

Two books I’ve used for years are Forensics and Fiction: Clever, Intriguing, and Downright Odd Questions From Crime Writers and Murder and Mayhem by D. P. Lyle, M.D. The cardiologist and author answers mystery writers’ medical and post-death questions, providing essential details and ideas for ways to kill characters. He also takes questions at http://www.dplylemd.com.

One of my favorite books on police work is Police Procedure & Investigation: A Guide for Writers, by Lee Lofland, a former police officer. He shows and tells the basics writers need to know even if writing about amateur sleuths. See http://www.leelofland.com.

Other books I open from time to time are Complete Idiot’s Guide to Criminal Investigation, by Alan Axelrod and Guy Antinozzi; Crime Scene, by Cyril H. Wecht, M.D.: Criminalistics: An Introduction to Forensic Science, by Richard Saferstein;

Scene of the Crime: A Writer’s Guide to Crime-Scene Investigations, by Anne Wingate; and The Writer’s Complete Crime Reference Book, by Martin Roth.

While writing Show Me the Ashes (coming December 2015), I relied heavily on Practical Fire and Arson Investigation, by John J. O’Connor.

Useful References

I have numerous books that don’t concern crime but help me in creating setting. With almost every mystery I study the illustrations in American Shelter, by Lester Walker, to create the layout and exterior of homes.

Two other books that receive frequent use are Know Your Antiques, by Ralph and Terry Kovel, and Reader’s Digest’s Nature in America: Your A-to-Z Guide to Our Country’s Animals, Plants, Landforms and Other Natural Features. 

Among the other books I dip into occasionally are those on cooking, history, art, and foreign languages.

Tip: Buy references books at library book sales and from used book stores.

The CIA

In developing the character of former CIA covert operative Phoenix Smith, I read a number of books on the CIA, including these autobiographies: Blowing My Cover: My Life as a CIA Spy, by Lindsay Moran; Denial and Deception: An Insiders View of the CIA from Iran-Contra to 9/11, by Melissa Boyle Mahle; and Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House, by Valerie Plame Wilson.

Other Resources

I own a large collection of books on writing and editing in general and a small collection of how-to books on writing mysteries. For a short list that I posted a couple of years ago, go to Show Me the Mysteries, Writing Tips and Resources.

You can’t find everything on the Net, and some books you want to reach out and pick up whenever a question arises.

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in Resources

Show Me the Gold Wins Award

Carolyn Mulford Posted on April 19, 2015 by CarolynApril 19, 2015

The Missouri Writers’ Guild gave Show Me the Gold the “Show Me” Best Book Award April 11 during the Guild’s leadership conference in Columbia. Fiction, nonfiction, poetry collections, and scripts were eligible for the award.

Published in December 2014, Gold is the third book in my mystery series, and my third book to receive the Guild’s recognition. Last year Show Me the Murder won the Walter Williams Major Work Award.

The conference marked the hundredth anniversary of the Guild’s founding during Journalism Week at the University of Missouri.  An internationally known journalist and educator, Williams founded the world’s first school of journalism in 1908 and led the way in establishing the Guild in 1915.

In 2015, conferees broke into small groups to discuss the issues the 17 chapters’ representatives deemed most critical as the Guild begins its second century. The conference ended with work on action plans.

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in News, News releases, Show Me Series

Latest Postings


I Am a River

Carolyn Mulford Posted on April 19, 2025 by CarolynApril 19, 2025

Each week I lunch with a group of friends and discuss a topic. Last time the coordinator posed this question: What is the shape of your life? The answers included a rectangle, a vase, a cloud, and an octagon. Usually I wing it, but this time I wrote my response. The Shape of My Life I am a river, Birthed in a puddle, Nourished by rain, Pushed to overflow And grow broader And deeper.   Springs and creeks fed my flow. Widening waters gathered force, Thrusting me against unyielding barriers And cascading me over rocky falls.   Other streams joined … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized

Where to Find My Books

Carolyn Mulford Posted on April 1, 2025 by CarolynApril 1, 2025

While only one of my books, Show Me the Sinister Snowman, continues to be published in print and electronic editions, several of my novels are available from online sellers. Most of the copies are used, but columbiabooksonline.com, my supportive local bookstore, has a small stock of new Show Me hardbacks and paperbacks. I also have a few copies of all my novels except The Feedsack Dress, my historical children’s book, and Show Me the Murder, the first in my mystery series featuring a former spy returning   home and solving crimes with old friends. Fortunately e-editions still exist. Barnes and Noble … Continue reading →

Posted in Mysteries, The Feedsack Dress, Uncategorized

Looking Forward 60 Years Ago

Carolyn Mulford Posted on February 28, 2025 by CarolynFebruary 28, 2025

Reminders of my attempts to start my writing career arrived last Christmas. A friend, Joyce Campbell, sent me letters I had written to her while we were serving as Peace Corps Volunteers (teaching English) in Ethiopia from September 1962 to July 1964 and in the months after we returned home (Chattanooga, Tennessee, for her and Kirksville, Missouri, for me) after traveling through Europe. On December 21, 1964, I wrote, “Has anything turned up for you yet? People don’t seem terribly impressed with Peace Corps experience for job qualifications it seems to me. I’m going down to the University Placement Bureau … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing

Mid-Continent Earthquakes, Past and Future

Carolyn Mulford Posted on December 16, 2024 by CarolynDecember 16, 2024

About 2:30 a.m. December 16, 1811, an earthquake threw people in New Madrid, Missouri Territory, out of bed and crumbled brick houses and cabin chimneys, forced the Mississippi River to run backward and change course, disturbed sleep along most of the East Coast, and toppled dishes from shelves in the White House. That marked the beginning of some of the most powerful, prolonged quakes the United States has experienced. These weren’t the first in the New Madrid Seismic Zone, which is centered near where Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky come together. Geologists and other scientists have found indications that powerful … Continue reading →

Posted in Historicals, News, Thunder Beneath My Feet

The Turkey That Bullied Me

Carolyn Mulford Posted on November 26, 2024 by CarolynNovember 26, 2024

I grew up with animals as friends, the first being our dog Roamer. He and I wandered around the yard, the barnyard, and the garden. Roamer barked at squirrels and chased rabbits from our vegetables. He made me ponder one of life’s great puzzles: Is it okay to sympathize with Peter Rabbit in the story but condemn him when your own carrots are at risk? Roamer knew not to chase our chickens or cows or pigs, and he joined me in playing with an orphaned lamb and the kittens whose parents kept the barn free of mice. What he didn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized

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