Carolyn Mulford

New Madrid Earthquakes Remain a Mystery No one knows what caused a series of major earthquakes centered near New Madrid, Missouri, and felt in much of the eastern United States 200 years ago, according to geologists at the “It’s Your Fault” conference, University of Missouri, February 18, 2012. I attended to hear whether any new information would affect my Thunder Beneath My Feet manuscript (nothing did) and when to expect the next big ones (no one knows). Experts can tell big earthquakes occurred in the state’s southeast corner about 1450 and 900 and at similar intervals for 5,000 or so … Continue reading →

Near the lake that cools the Summer Palace in Beijing, a tall man with a wet mop wrote something in large Chinese characters. This mystery writer’s first thought: “What a clever way to write a message that would disappear before authorities could gather evidence.” I scrambled to take out my camera and get a shot. My second thought: “Can’t be anything subversive. Too risky in such a public place.” I asked our tour guide what the man had written. She glanced at the characters and said, “Something about tourists and peace.” I could tell she was lying, but since I … Continue reading →

Submit a perfect manuscript, advised a panel of agents and editors at Killer Nashville, a mystery writers’ conference held August 25-28, 2011. The turmoil in the publishing world has made it even harder to persuade anyone to represent or publish your book. Agents and editors who find imperfections on the first page often dismiss the whole manuscript. What makes them stop reading? Lots of things, according to agents Jill Marr of Sandra Dijkstra and Jeff Kleinman of Folio and editors Deni Dietz of Five Star and Martin Shepard of Permanent Press. A volunteer read aloud eight first pages submitted by … Continue reading →