Jumpstarting the Stalled Plot

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Like most authors, I spend a lot of time and energy on the opening chapters. That’s where we hook the reader with a mix of plot, character, setting, and tone. The opening presents the greatest writing challenge. It’s also offers the most fun. A lot of books founder after that sterling opening. For me, the trickiest part of a manuscript often comes when my protagonist, former CIA covert operative Phoenix Smith, starts gathering information and identifying suspects. She’s learning about the case, and research can slow the pace. If pages contain lots of dialogue and little action, the mystery reader … Continue reading →

My School Wardrobe

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With school opening in about three weeks, the newspapers are full of ads of school clothing. In the mid-20th century, school kids had far fewer clothes, but we country kids started planning our wardrobes in the spring.  We had to. That’s when we began collecting the colorful cotton feedsacks that we would turn into blouses, skirts, dresses, and shirts. The process began with the arrival of cartoon-cute baby chickens. The chicks lived in a sweltering brooder house, and you had to check the heat, water, and feed frequently. When you bought the feed, you picked out the prettiest sacks and … Continue reading →

“Show Me” Books Win Awards

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The Missouri Writers’ Guild presented the Walter Williams Major Work Award to me April 12 for Show Me the Murder. The presentation took place during the Guild’s 99th annual conference. The Guild president noted that a nonfiction book usually receives this award. The award goes to a publication or production judged “to be worthy of special recognition because of the research or high literary quality involved in its creation.” The award held special significance for me because Williams founded not only the Guild but also the University of Missouri School of Journalism, my alma mater. Show Me the Deadly Deer, … Continue reading →

Reviews of Show Me the Deadly Deer

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Below are excerpts of reviews of Show Me the Deadly Deer with links to the full reviews.  Kirkus Reviews, November 15, 2013 “Small-town Missouri again proves almost as dangerous to a former CIA agent as European back alleys. Mulford’s second provides plenty of excitement as readers wend their ways through a slew of suspects.” https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/carolyn-mulford/show-me-deadly-deer/   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 21, 2013 “Mulford’s depiction of north-central Missouri will surely displease many people who live there. … raising the rural region’s murder rate close to that of St. Louis. Still, the local color can be colorful indeed.”  —Harry Levins http://www.stltoday.com/entertainment/books-and-literature/reviews/show-me-roundup-seven-books-with-missouri-ties/article_43e015e4-16c3-5232-b6c1-7a02749ce519.html   … Continue reading →

April Is the Busiest Month

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  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 … Continue reading →

Launching My New Mystery—Finally

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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. … Continue reading →

Judy Hogan Interviews Me on When, Why, How

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To mark the publication of Show Me the Deadly Deer, novelist/poet/memoirist Judy Hogan interviewed me for her blog, Postmenopausal Zest. She asked such questions as when I started writing mysteries, why my series features a former spy going after murderers in rural Missouri, and how being a published mystery writer changed my work life. Like many readers, Judy took special interest in the duality in my protagonist’s character. Question 13: I’m interested in the psychic mixture in Phoenix Smith, your sleuth.  At times she’s extremely tough to go with an image of a sharp shooter, which she is, but other … Continue reading →

Guest Blog Introduces Show Me Series

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Author Judy Alter invited me to introduce my Show Me mystery series to readers on her blog, Judy’s Stew, on Wednesday, January 8. After acknowledging that I became addicted to travel while a Peace Corps Volunteer, I explained the origins of my characters, three women who grew up together in a small town, led wildly different lives for thirty-five years, and come together again as each faces a major crisis. “I select the main characters for my books as carefully as I choose companions for a long trip. They must share some of my interests but differ enough to surprise, … Continue reading →

A Writer’s New Year’s Resolutions

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Every year brings the unexpected, but here’s what I intend to do. Reorganize my files, both paper and computer, and discard at least some of the interim drafts and research notes of published books. Take my laptop to the furniture store and find a recliner comfortable for writing. Complete the fourth book of my Show Me mystery series, decide whether to write a fifth, and promote the first three. Read the manuscript of my beloved MG/YA historical novel again with an objective eye, revise as needed, and find a publisher or publish it myself. Pick up my clutter, give away … Continue reading →

What This Writer Did in 2013

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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. … Continue reading →

Show Me the Deadly Deer Released

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  The second book in the Show Me mystery series has been released in Kindle and hardcover editions. I’ve already received a reader’s comment on the Kindle edition (my cousin loved it), but the hardcover won’t reach stores and libraries for a few days. Show Me the Deadly Deer features the main characters introduced in Show Me the Murder. Former CIA covert operative Phoenix Smith tells the story, which begins when Acting Sheriff Annalynn Carr Keyser enlists Phoenix’s help in looking for a missing farmer. You can read a teaser summary and the first chapter on the Show Me the … Continue reading →

Interview: Judy Hogan Shares Her Writing Techniques

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Judy Hogan has led the writing life for fifty years. In October 2013 one publisher released her second mystery, Farm Fresh and Fatal, and another her fifth book of poetry, Beaver Soul. She also has written two nonfiction books, founded and served as editor of Carolina Wren Press (1976-1991), and continues to teach courses in writing fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction (e.g., diary/memoir).Her mystery series reflects her deep roots in social activism and in North Carolina. The first book, Killer Frost (Mainly Murder Press, 2012), involves educational and financial fraud on a historically black college campus, a setting she knows … Continue reading →