↓
 

Carolyn Mulford

Carolyn Mulford

  • Home
  • About
  • Show Me Mysteries
    • Series Overview
    • Show Me The Murder
      • Show Me the Murder Chapter One
      • Discussion Topics for Show Me The Murder
      • Ordering Information
      • Excerpts from Reviews
    • Show Me the Deadly Deer
      • Show Me the Deadly Deer: Chapter One
      • Discussion Topics for Show Me The Deadly Deer
      • Ordering Information
      • Excerpts from Reviews
    • Show Me the Gold
      • Show Me the Gold Chapter One
      • Show Me the Gold Discussion Questions
      • Ordering Information
      • Reviews
    • Show Me the Ashes
      • Show Me the Ashes: Chapter One
      • Show Me the Ashes: Discussion Topics
      • Show Me the Ashes: Ordering Information
    • Show Me the Sinister Snowman
      • Show Me the Sinister Snowman – Chapter One
      • Show Me the Sinister Snowman: Discussion Questions
      • Show Me the Sinister Snowman: Order Information
    • Talks and Workshops
    • Blog: Writing Mysteries
    • Writing Tips & Resources
  • The Feedsack Dress
    • The Feedsack Dress
    • Ordering Information
    • Historical Background
    • Chapter 1: The Feedsack Dress
    • Discussion Topics for Students
    • Discussion Topics for Book Groups
    • The Feedsack Dress Blog
  • Thunder Beneath My Feet
    • Thunder Beneath My Feet
    • Ordering Information
    • Historical Background
    • Chapter One: Thunder Beneath My Feet
    • Suggestions for Students
    • Discussion Topics for Book Groups
    • Blog: Historicals
  • Other Writings
    • Short Stories
      • “An Aura of Death”
      • “Crossing the Bridge”
      • “Leftovers”
    • Works in Progress
  • News
    • Latest Postings
    • Events
    • Reviews of Carolyn’s Books
    • Media Materials – Images
    • Media Materials – News releases
  • Contact

Category Archives: Events

Post navigation

Newer posts →

April Is the Busiest Month

Carolyn Mulford Posted on April 3, 2014 by CarolynApril 3, 2014

 

Writers welcome the spring with conferences, and readers delight in going to programs and signings without worrying about snow and ice.

During April 2014, I’ll be speaking, reading, and signing at the following events. In most of these the main topic will be Show Me the Deadly Deer, the second book in my Show Me mystery series.

9:30-11 a.m., Friday, April 4: I Could Write a Book, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, 1905 Hillcrest, Columbia, MO

2 p.m., Sunday, April 6: Book Talk on Steps in Traditional Publishing, Columbia Chapter of Missouri Writers’ Guild, Unity Center, 1600 West Broadway, Columbia, MO

Friday and Saturday, April 11-12: Missouri Writers’ Guild Conference, Ramada Plaza Hotel, St. Louis, MO

10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday, April 19: Panel discussion at 10 a.m., signing at 2 p.m., Local Authors’ Day, Daniel Boone Regional Library, 100 West Broadway, Columbia, MO

2-4 p.m., Saturday, April 26: Signing and chatting, Hastings, 1800 North Baltimore, Kirksville, MO

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in Events, News, Show Me Series

Launching My New Mystery—Finally

Carolyn Mulford Posted on January 20, 2014 by CarolynJanuary 20, 2014

From idea to publication takes years in traditional publishing. That’s why I’m inviting readers to celebrate the launch of Show Me the Deadly Deer at Columbia Books, 1907 Gordon Street, Columbia, MO, at 2 p.m. January 25.

The book launch won’t be fancy: a short reading and Q&A, light refreshments, a lot of chatting and browsing through the store’s inviting inventory of new, used, and antiquarian books.

I began work on Deadly Deer about the time I moved back to Missouri, summer 2007. With The Feedsack Dress coming out and the move, I didn’t get much done for a while. Researching Deadly Deer helped me reacquaint myself with farming in my home state.

By late 2009 I had a solid draft. But I had to sell the first book in the series, Show Me the Murder, before I could sell the second book. That didn’t happen until late 2011, and Murder didn’t reach bookstores until February 2013.

In summer 2012 I submitted the final draft of Deadly Deer. Five Star/Gale, Cengage, which publishes four mysteries a month, put it on the schedule at the earliest available date, December 18, 2013, too late for Christmas sales. The Kindle edition became available December 18. Most stores and libraries didn’t receive the hardcover until early January.

Winter ranks low on my preferred time for a book release. Cold, snow, and ice combine to keep people off the streets locally and to discourage travel by road and air to other places.

The snow date for the book launch is February 1.

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in Events, News

What This Writer Did in 2013

Carolyn Mulford Posted on December 29, 2013 by CarolynDecember 29, 2013

Making notes for my annual letter, I realized almost everything I did in 2013 involved my Show Me mystery series. The series—with four books in different stages—took over the year.

In January I submitted the third book, Show Me the Gold, to the publisher. A day or two later the content editor emailed her comments on the second book, Show Me the Deadly Deer. Only minor points, but they took time and care. In warm weather that manuscript came back to me two more times, for a check of the copyediting and for proofing before it went to the printer.

The first book, Show Me the Murder, came out in hardcover February 15. (The Kindle edition was released in August.) In early February came the year’s biggest thrill for me: reading the first review. It appeared in Kirkus Reviews. Just the fact that Kirkus bothered to review my book was positive, and so was the review.  Then came good reviews in Library Journal and other publications. Happy times.

After struggling to find a publisher for years, I was relieved and gratified by the reviewers’ comments. I put snippets of those on the invitations to my book launch in March.

From then on I spent a lot of time promoting Show Me the Murder. One bonus for those efforts: I introduced The Feedsack Dress to new readers. While promoting challenged and rewarded me, the process bores anyone else. I’ll just say that I sent out review copies to Missouri publications (the publisher sends to national ones), gave talks at libraries and other places, served on panels at three mystery conferences, taught three writing workshops, and did signings with and without readings. I’m used to public speaking and always prepare well, so these events were no big deal.

Only one appearance worried me, a regional Young Authors’ Day in Warrensburg. The organizer sent me 10 second graders’ winning stories, essays, and poems to comment on both in writing and orally after each child read his or her piece before peers and parents. Plus I had to invent a writing exercise for them. I really dreaded opening the envelope containing their work and coming up with helpful, positive comments.

To my relief, they wrote much better than I expected. I was able to write genuine editorial comments. I consulted with friends who had taught elementary school. They warned me some kids would be afraid to read in front of strangers. No one suggested a great writing exercise. I really wanted to back out.

It went great, though one little girl faced me rather than the audience and read so softly that only I who could hear her. And none of the kids knew what I was talking about when I mentioned a teeter-totter in an analogy. Apparently it has been banned from playgrounds.

Through the winter and spring I stewed over the next book until a plot and theme held my interest. I made notes, did some research, named characters, and, in May, started to write Show Me the Ashes. I’m still writing.

In November, Kirkus gave Deadly Deer, its first review, a good one. I was happy but not overjoyed. Nothing equals that first time.

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in Events, Mysteries, News, Show Me Series

Workshop: Writing Your Past Into Fiction

Carolyn Mulford Posted on December 3, 2013 by CarolynDecember 3, 2013

Our lives are part of the long continuum of human history, but how do you use your tiny fragment in a novel?

At 10:30 a.m., Saturday, December 7, I’ll answer that question during a workshop in the Columbia (MO) Public Library. I’ll talk about how I drew on memory, others’ memories, library research, and imagination in writing The Feedsack Dress, an MG/YA novel set in northeast Missouri in 1949. Using short readings, I’ll illustrate such points as incorporating real life into your plot and c haracterizations.

We draw on our experience no matter what we write. I’ll touch on how I’ve done that in writing my Show Me mystery series.

To register, call 573-443-3161.

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in Events, News, The Feedsack Dress

Kindle Edition of Show Me the Murder Released

Carolyn Mulford Posted on September 13, 2013 by CarolynSeptember 13, 2013

In February, Five Star released Show Me the Murder in hardback ($25.95). In September, the publisher released the Kindle edition ($3.19).

Buyers save $22.76 on the electronic version! Plus part of a tree. The difference in price amazes me.  I’m tempted to buy the e-book myself.

I prefer to read newspapers, magazines, and (especially) books on paper. When I went to China, I took a Kindle with a small library on it. The Kindle provided entertainment (and language training) on the endless airplane flights. At home I reach for paper first. I hope I’m never desperate enough for reading material to read a novel on my iPhone.

Publishers used to put out the high-priced, sturdy hardback first. A year later they would release a low-priced paperback. Now many skip the paperback in favor of the e-book.

I don’t care which edition people read. I just want them to read my story.

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in Events, News, News releases, Show Me Series

Schedule of Events: August-September 2013

Carolyn Mulford Posted on August 13, 2013 by CarolynAugust 15, 2013

Putting Our Past into Fiction: Memory Is Not Enough
10 a.m., Friday, August 2
Columbia Senior Activity Center, 1121 Business Loop 70, Columbia
Open to all

Be Your Own Editor: Make Your Book the Best It Can Be
panel; 2:10 p.m., Friday, August 23
Killer Nashville, Hutton House Hotel, Nashville Open to conference registrants

Using Sidekicks and a Supporting Cast to Drive Plot and Reveal Character
panel; 11:20 a.m., Sunday, August 25
Killer Nashville, Hutton House Hotel, Nashville Open to conference registrants

Discussion of Show Me the Murder
3 p.m., Saturday, September 7
AAUW Book Group, West Broadway Hy-Vee, Columbia Open to all

Reading for Life
9 a.m., Sunday, September 15
Forum, Unitarian Universalist Church, 2615 Shepherd Boulevard, Columbia Open to all

 

Posted in Events

Part 3: Three Writers’ Conferences: Marshall Writers’ Guild

Carolyn Mulford Posted on May 31, 2013 by CarolynMay 31, 2013

The Marshall (M0) Writers’ Guild holds an unusual form of annual meeting, one that features a guest writer. Other small local groups may want to consider MWG’s model.

I learned this by serving as the guest writer at the 2013 meeting. I presented a two-hour morning workshop on turning an idea into a book, fiction or nonfiction. Before beginning, I surveyed the twenty or so writers to find out what they’re working on. A surprising number are writing memoirs or history, so I drew most of my examples from my nonfiction work. Participants commented and asked questions as we went along.

Such informal workshops work well at meetings where offering sessions on multiple topics simply isn’t feasible.

After a booksigning and a potluck lunch, this guest writer met individually with several writers to discuss their works in progress. That’s an unusual item on the schedule, but a major reason to meet is to have the opportunity to talk about your lonely occupation with objective peers.

Meanwhile the other writers listened as the brave ones read aloud portions of their manuscripts.

We vacated the hall by 2 p.m., but we’d had a full day. I enjoyed it.

—Carolyn Mulford

 

Posted in Events, News

Part 2: Three Writers’ Conferences: Malice Domestic

Carolyn Mulford Posted on May 22, 2013 by CarolynMay 22, 2013

The one conference I go to every year is Malice Domestic, a national celebration of the traditional mystery that meets in the DC area in late April or early May. A spinoff of Sisters in Crime, Malice is heavily skewed toward women crime writers and their predominantly female audience (http://malicedomestic.org).

Although a fan conference, I estimate a third of the attendees are published writers and another third want to be. The readers, many of whom return each year, include librarians, reviewers, teachers, and a mix of other people devoted to mysteries. Malice introduces numerous debut and established writers’ mysteries to this influential readership.

I attended my first Malice some 20 years ago as a mystery reader. I loved listening to authors talk about their books on panels and rubbing shoulders with them between panels. They were much wittier than the nonfiction writers on how-to panels that were my usual conference fare. I didn’t learn a lot about writing mysteries, but I had a great time going to sessions and chatting with people. That enjoyment kept me coming back and encouraged me to begin writing mysteries.

This year I went to Malice as the author of a debut mystery, Show Me the Murder. That meant business trumped pleasure. I went armed with bookmarks and a resolve to promote my new series in sessions and informally.

I’d won one of 42 slots in the lottery to give a two-minute pitch in Friday’s opening event, the Malice-Go-Round. The catch was that I had to give the pitch 20 times at 20 different eight- to ten-person tables in a noisy room. I teamed up with Susan Froetschel, author of Fear of Beauty, a mystery about an illiterate Afghani woman who secretly learns to read in hopes of discovering who killed her son. Our pairing worked out well because our books and pitches were so different that no one confused our books.

The Round tested our voices and challenged us to beat the clock without giving a boring rote pitch. I was surprised how attentive readers were and how many took notes. In that hour and a half, I introduced my book to more people than in all the rest of the conference.

Later I realized that by pitching rather than listening, I had missed Malice’s best opportunity to learn who’s writing and who’s publishing what. Oh, well. You have to sacrifice something.

The rest of the day featured interviews and panels with big-name authors, including Peter Robinson, Laurie King, Laura Lippman, Aaron Elkins, Carolyn Hart, and the Agatha nominees for best novel. Entertaining and thought-provoking.

That afternoon my panel—Kate Carlisle, Peril in Paperback; Judy Hogan, Killer Frost; Maddy Hunter, Bonnie of Evidence—met with super-prepared moderator Patti Ruocco to get acquained before our Sunday session and discuss any uncertainly about our topic, Loveable Sidekicks. Our books and sidekicks vary greatly, so we offered different perspectives. Judy and I are seniors in life experience and juniors in mystery credits, but we functioned as equals on the panel. No one tried to dominate or hog time.

Malice applauds cooperation rather than competition. Most authors don’t need reminders of that, but program czar Barb Goffman reminds moderators to enforce it.

Five panels run concurrently most of Saturday and Sunday morning, often forcing participants to agonize over what to attend. Whatever the topics, the most popular writers draw the biggest crowds.

Malice’s major common events are the new authors’ breakfast (a must), interviews with the stars (always good), the Saturday-night banquet (most exciting for Agatha nominees), and the Sunday afternoon tea (a treat).

Good as the panels and special events are, people come back to Malice year after year to catch up with old friends, meet online friends (notably the Guppies) face to face, and chat with strangers/friends who love mysteries.

No matter how much business you do, attending Malice is a pleasure.

—Carolyn Mulford

 

 

Posted in Events, Mysteries

Back to My Roots in Kirksville

Carolyn Mulford Posted on April 8, 2013 by CarolynApril 8, 2013

Can you go home again?

I’m going back to my hometown Saturday, April 13, to talk about the origins of my new mystery, Show Me the Murder, and visit from 2-4 p.m. with old and new friends at the Hastings, 1800 North Baltimore, 2-4 p.m.

More to the point: Can a writer ever really leave home?

Wherever I go, I carry my past with me. An unreliable memory may alter and even delete parts of it, but the essence of life experiences remains. No period affects us as much as our early years when we see things for the first time. That’s one reason the protagonist in my mystery series comes back to her hometown after living most of her adult life in Vienna.

Laycock and Vandiver County don’t appear on any Missouri map, but many people who live in Kirksville will find the setting, and the people, familiar.

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in Events, Show Me Series

Book Launch at Columbia Books 2 p.m., March 17

Carolyn Mulford Posted on March 4, 2013 by CarolynMarch 4, 2013

“Made it.”

Those words open Show Me the Murder. The protagonist, a former CIA covert operative, expresses her relief at reaching the sanctuary of her hometown in northern Missouri after surviving a shooting in the Istanbul spice bazaar.

Those words also express my relief that the book, my first published mystery novel, finally is coming to library and store shelves. People will read it for entertainment rather than evaluation.

I invite anyone interested to come celebrate with me at my book launch party at 2 p.m., Sunday, March 17, Columbia Books, 1907 Gordon Street, Columbia, Missouri (off Old 63 North just behind the Westlake’s).

Here’s a little reminder of what some reviewers have said.

Kirkus: “amusing and touching”

Library Journal: “a tightly woven tale”

Gumshoe Review: “appealing characters” and “compelling story”

Myshelf.com: “One of the best books I have read in a long time.”

—Carolyn Mulford

Posted in Events, News releases

Schedule of Events: March-June 2013

Carolyn Mulford Posted on March 4, 2013 by CarolynMarch 28, 2013

Book Launch Party: 2 p.m., Sunday, March 17
Columbia Books, 1907 Gordon Street, Columbia, Missouri
Reading and discussion
Open to all

Young Authors’ Day: 9:30 a.m., Saturday, April 20
University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg
Comments on second graders’ prize-winning work and a writing exercise
The writers and their families

Missouri Writers’ Guild Conference: Friday-Saturday, April 26-27
Sheraton Westport Hotel Lakeside Chalet, St. Louis
Book signing, 4 p.m. Friday, 11:45 a.m., Saturday
Annual regional writers’ conference

Malice Domestic: Friday-Sunday, May 3-5
Bethesda, Maryland
Malice-Go-Round, 10 a.m., Friday
Panel discussion on loveable sidekicks, 9:45 a.m., Sunday
Signing, 10:45 a.m., Sunday
National conference of mystery fans and writers

Marshall Writers’ Guild Annual Meeting: 9:30 a.m., Saturday, May 11
Marshall, Missouri
Guest Writer’s Workshop: Turning Your Idea into a Book

Summer Reading Kickoff, 2:30 p.m., Saturday, May 11
Marshall (MO) Public Library
Talk and signing: Reading for Life
Open to all

Talk and signing: Developing Your Novel Idea, Thursday, June 27
Missouri River Regional Library, Jefferson City, Missouri

 

Posted in Events

Post navigation

Newer posts →

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

Follow Me

Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on TwitterFollow Us on GoodreadsFollow Us on RSS

Archives

  • April 2025
  • February 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • July 2022
  • January 2022
  • March 2021
  • December 2020
  • July 2019
  • April 2019
  • October 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • July 2014
  • April 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • February 2012
  • September 2011
  • July 2011
©2025 - Carolyn Mulford

Site design by Karen McCullough
Contact Webmaster

Site Admin
↑