A while back I talked about the show Cold Justice and one of the two awesome women who hunt for the truth and try to find justice - Yolanda McClary. I didn't forget the other half of that amazing duo. I was just saving her for today - when the season resumes on TNT.
So, let's give it up for Kelly Siegler!
Like I said in my previous post about Yolanda, Kelly is the prosecutorial side of the duo. She's been practicing law since 1987 - kicking ass and taking names ever since.
On the show, she's the one most likely to hug and the one who more often sheds a few tears during the course of the investigation. Don't be fooled, though. This lady is tough and gritty. Of the twenty death-penalty cases she tried as a prosecutor, she won 19. She's the one I'd want going after the bad guys, taking them on in a courtroom, and making them pay.
And the show restarts tonight, which is all SQUEE for me.
Friday, April 10, 2015
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
Wicked Wednesday - Too Much Wicked
Right now, I don't have a specific case to offer you all. Look at the news and there's plenty to choose from, though. Wicked cases all throughout history - wicked cases all over the news now. So much to choose from it makes me sick.
Recently in a little town not far from here a man was lit on fire. In another little town in the other direction, a man murdered his own children because of a custody battle. Let's not even get into what's going on in the St. Louis area. (And why I'm glad we picked the opposite end of the state from that rat's nest of crime.)
Not that Springfield is any better. I think they're in a race with Flint, MI to see who can have a higher murder rate for 2015. Just watching the local news can give me more fodder for my writing than I really need.
I'd stop watching the news altogether, but I do like to stay informed. Forewarned is forearmed and all that. Of course, they say ignorance is bliss, but then again, getting blindsided because you weren't paying attention sucks hard.
Is it me or does the nation seem to have a particularly squishy, crime-filled center lately?
How's the crime where you're at?
Recently in a little town not far from here a man was lit on fire. In another little town in the other direction, a man murdered his own children because of a custody battle. Let's not even get into what's going on in the St. Louis area. (And why I'm glad we picked the opposite end of the state from that rat's nest of crime.)
Not that Springfield is any better. I think they're in a race with Flint, MI to see who can have a higher murder rate for 2015. Just watching the local news can give me more fodder for my writing than I really need.
I'd stop watching the news altogether, but I do like to stay informed. Forewarned is forearmed and all that. Of course, they say ignorance is bliss, but then again, getting blindsided because you weren't paying attention sucks hard.
Is it me or does the nation seem to have a particularly squishy, crime-filled center lately?
How's the crime where you're at?
Monday, April 6, 2015
Monday Stuff and a Series Recommendation
Hey all!
It's Monday and I'm guessing since I didn't put a line in here about who won the contest, I haven't had enough coffee to think properly yet. I'll draw a name shortly and post it at the bottom of this post as an ETA (Edited To Add). Thanks to all y'all who signed up for my newsletter. I expect to have a maiden flight around the first of May - when I'll have a better idea of a release date for Accidental Death. You'll hear it there first, so sign up now.
Speaking of Accidental Death, I'm in edit mode. In fact, I'm taking a break from the laborious, but oh-so necessary task of finding every instance of the word 'just', determining whether it is necessary where it is, and replacing it or deleting it when it isn't. I should've done that before I sent it to the editor, but I forgot. Derp.
Of course, being in edit mode means I'm out of interesting things to say about me, so you get to hear about another series I think deserves some attention.
Way back when, and don't ask me to go look it up now, I won a contest for the first four books in Debra Webb's Faces of Evil series. She sent them to me signed and I loved every one of them. That was about the time that her publisher decided they'd published enough of those, thank you very much, and Ms. Webb was on her own to finish out the series. Well, she did it. And I bought every single one of the rest of the series in paperback. They do look so lovely on my shelves all cuddled up next to each other.
They're about this disgraced FBI profiler who goes back to her hometown and gets embroiled in a serial murder. Meanwhile, the serial killer who made her look like shit with the FBI is still stalking her, and he has evil minions willing to kill for him, and... OMG, the tension over the course of the series is delicious. Add in the fact that her old boyfriend is the chief of police and he still loves her, but there's all this tension, and yes, folks, we have a winner!
Now, I don't know why the publisher decided to stop publishing this series. It irritated the crap out of me as a reader because I wanted... no, I NEEDED to know what happened, dammit. Thank goodness, Ms. Webb decided to help her readers out and find a way to publish the rest. Hallelujah! Now the series is finished and I got the HEA I was after, plus the justice I desire, and some good old-fashioned suspense along the way. Totally yummy.
So, if you're looking for a series with a few ongoing plot lines and story ARCs - like one big long book, only not as heavy - check out The Faces of Evil. I had to wait for each book to come out, but lucky you, they're all out now, so no waiting. (I hate waiting, but this series was worth it.)
ETA: Okay, I'm up and even if the coffee isn't quite enough yet this morning, I drew a name. The winner is Deb Salisbury! Shoot me an email, Deb, and let me know how you want it signed (to you, to someone else, etc.), and give me your address. I'll get that out in the mail sometime this week. Congratulations!
It's Monday and I'm guessing since I didn't put a line in here about who won the contest, I haven't had enough coffee to think properly yet. I'll draw a name shortly and post it at the bottom of this post as an ETA (Edited To Add). Thanks to all y'all who signed up for my newsletter. I expect to have a maiden flight around the first of May - when I'll have a better idea of a release date for Accidental Death. You'll hear it there first, so sign up now.
Speaking of Accidental Death, I'm in edit mode. In fact, I'm taking a break from the laborious, but oh-so necessary task of finding every instance of the word 'just', determining whether it is necessary where it is, and replacing it or deleting it when it isn't. I should've done that before I sent it to the editor, but I forgot. Derp.
Of course, being in edit mode means I'm out of interesting things to say about me, so you get to hear about another series I think deserves some attention.
Way back when, and don't ask me to go look it up now, I won a contest for the first four books in Debra Webb's Faces of Evil series. She sent them to me signed and I loved every one of them. That was about the time that her publisher decided they'd published enough of those, thank you very much, and Ms. Webb was on her own to finish out the series. Well, she did it. And I bought every single one of the rest of the series in paperback. They do look so lovely on my shelves all cuddled up next to each other.
They're about this disgraced FBI profiler who goes back to her hometown and gets embroiled in a serial murder. Meanwhile, the serial killer who made her look like shit with the FBI is still stalking her, and he has evil minions willing to kill for him, and... OMG, the tension over the course of the series is delicious. Add in the fact that her old boyfriend is the chief of police and he still loves her, but there's all this tension, and yes, folks, we have a winner!
Now, I don't know why the publisher decided to stop publishing this series. It irritated the crap out of me as a reader because I wanted... no, I NEEDED to know what happened, dammit. Thank goodness, Ms. Webb decided to help her readers out and find a way to publish the rest. Hallelujah! Now the series is finished and I got the HEA I was after, plus the justice I desire, and some good old-fashioned suspense along the way. Totally yummy.
So, if you're looking for a series with a few ongoing plot lines and story ARCs - like one big long book, only not as heavy - check out The Faces of Evil. I had to wait for each book to come out, but lucky you, they're all out now, so no waiting. (I hate waiting, but this series was worth it.)
ETA: Okay, I'm up and even if the coffee isn't quite enough yet this morning, I drew a name. The winner is Deb Salisbury! Shoot me an email, Deb, and let me know how you want it signed (to you, to someone else, etc.), and give me your address. I'll get that out in the mail sometime this week. Congratulations!
Friday, April 3, 2015
Easter Weekend Contest
Hey all! Well, today is the official start of Easter weekend, and I thought I'd run a contest. Everyone who is signed up for my newsletter by Monday when I wake up and check my mail will be entered, and one lucky winner will get a paperback copy of Dying Embers for their very own. I'll even sign it and throw in a signed postcard and signed bookmark.
You can sign up for the newsletter by going to the tab on this blog that says Newsletter Sign Up Form. Easy peasy. I won't spam you. I won't even bother you that much. I'll just send out newsletters when I have a publication date to announce or a cover to reveal or a contest I'd like to run just for newsletter readers. So, figure no more than once a month or every other month. And you get exclusive news and junk.
So, if you're interested, go up there, fill out the form and I'll pick a name Monday morning. I'll announce the winner here, on my FB page, and Twitter (since the page feeds to Twitter anyway). Then you get a book. (Which I'll probably send Priority Mail because it's not that much more and it's way less hassle.)
Sorry, this contest has to be open to US residents only. Due to a control-freak issue at the USPS, the last book I sent to Canada was a pain (seriously, dude, you couldn't tell from the city, state, zip what the freakin' countries were?), and the overseas charges would break this little struggling artist's bank account. It's not that I don't love my readers from abroad, but I'm working on a shoestring budget. Maybe someday when I'm rich and famous, I can have international contests with hardcopy books, too.
Tell you what... I'll do another contest for international readers down the road a piece where you can win an ecopy of the book and I'll mail you a signed postcard or a bookmark. How's that sound?
Anyway, like I said, sign up using the link up there and good luck to you all!
-B.E. Sanderson
You can sign up for the newsletter by going to the tab on this blog that says Newsletter Sign Up Form. Easy peasy. I won't spam you. I won't even bother you that much. I'll just send out newsletters when I have a publication date to announce or a cover to reveal or a contest I'd like to run just for newsletter readers. So, figure no more than once a month or every other month. And you get exclusive news and junk.
So, if you're interested, go up there, fill out the form and I'll pick a name Monday morning. I'll announce the winner here, on my FB page, and Twitter (since the page feeds to Twitter anyway). Then you get a book. (Which I'll probably send Priority Mail because it's not that much more and it's way less hassle.)
Sorry, this contest has to be open to US residents only. Due to a control-freak issue at the USPS, the last book I sent to Canada was a pain (seriously, dude, you couldn't tell from the city, state, zip what the freakin' countries were?), and the overseas charges would break this little struggling artist's bank account. It's not that I don't love my readers from abroad, but I'm working on a shoestring budget. Maybe someday when I'm rich and famous, I can have international contests with hardcopy books, too.
Tell you what... I'll do another contest for international readers down the road a piece where you can win an ecopy of the book and I'll mail you a signed postcard or a bookmark. How's that sound?
Anyway, like I said, sign up using the link up there and good luck to you all!
-B.E. Sanderson
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Wicked Wednesday - Fred & Rosemary West
The Gloucester House of Horrors...
Once upon a time in England, there was a warped family called the Wests. Little Fred was the second in the line of children, but from the sounds of it, he wasn't the only twisted one. His father and mother sound pretty sick, too. (Then again, maybe Fred made it all up.) Whatever the circumstances of his youth, though, Fred West became a serial killer and eventually found himself the perfect bride to participate in his madness.
They say the killings started in 1967 - I mean, if you don't count the little boy Fred ran over with an ice cream truck in 1965. I tried to follow along in the path of killings, but the bastard's proclivity for violence and his inability to keep it in his pants led me to a great deal of confusion. Let's just say he spent a lot of time raping and murdering, even before he met his wife.
Now, Rosemary (Rose) wasn't one of those women who marry a serial killer and then are all like "I had no idea". Not only did she know, she participated. In fact, she murdered Fred's step-daughter while he was away in jail for another crime. I won't go into great detail about their demented relationship. Suffice it to say, Rose enjoyed a steady income from her prostitution, and Fred enjoyed watching.
When they were finally caught, it was because the police were looking into accusations Fred had raped one of his daughters. That's when the authorities noticed one of his other daughters was missing. According to reports, the other children had been told on numerous occasions that they'd better behave or they'd end up under the patio like Heather. This prompted them to dig up the patio area. Expecting to find only Heather, they discovered several other bodies as well.
After they'd excavated that home and a previous dwelling the family had called home, they had 11 bodies total. Later, they found one more and added that to Fred's charge. Rose was charged with 10 murders.
Fred, the bastard that he was, hung himself while he was awaiting trial. Rose stood alone and was convicted of those ten murders.
The authorities aren't really sure, though, if those are the only ones. They say the Wests committed murder from 1967-1987, but since they weren't apprehended until 1994, I'm betting there are other bodies the police don't know about or that haven't been attributed to this sick couple.
Once upon a time in England, there was a warped family called the Wests. Little Fred was the second in the line of children, but from the sounds of it, he wasn't the only twisted one. His father and mother sound pretty sick, too. (Then again, maybe Fred made it all up.) Whatever the circumstances of his youth, though, Fred West became a serial killer and eventually found himself the perfect bride to participate in his madness.
They say the killings started in 1967 - I mean, if you don't count the little boy Fred ran over with an ice cream truck in 1965. I tried to follow along in the path of killings, but the bastard's proclivity for violence and his inability to keep it in his pants led me to a great deal of confusion. Let's just say he spent a lot of time raping and murdering, even before he met his wife.
Now, Rosemary (Rose) wasn't one of those women who marry a serial killer and then are all like "I had no idea". Not only did she know, she participated. In fact, she murdered Fred's step-daughter while he was away in jail for another crime. I won't go into great detail about their demented relationship. Suffice it to say, Rose enjoyed a steady income from her prostitution, and Fred enjoyed watching.
When they were finally caught, it was because the police were looking into accusations Fred had raped one of his daughters. That's when the authorities noticed one of his other daughters was missing. According to reports, the other children had been told on numerous occasions that they'd better behave or they'd end up under the patio like Heather. This prompted them to dig up the patio area. Expecting to find only Heather, they discovered several other bodies as well.
After they'd excavated that home and a previous dwelling the family had called home, they had 11 bodies total. Later, they found one more and added that to Fred's charge. Rose was charged with 10 murders.
Fred, the bastard that he was, hung himself while he was awaiting trial. Rose stood alone and was convicted of those ten murders.
The authorities aren't really sure, though, if those are the only ones. They say the Wests committed murder from 1967-1987, but since they weren't apprehended until 1994, I'm betting there are other bodies the police don't know about or that haven't been attributed to this sick couple.
Monday, March 30, 2015
Trying New Things
In the interest of mixing things up a bit and trying new things, I'd like to devote a post each week to another writer or a book or a series of books I enjoy that maybe might be overlooked or underrated or whatever. I know the following here isn't huge. I'd like to rectify that, but I can only do what I can do. Having said that, though, maybe my little blog will do someone some good someday.
To that end, I'd like to take a moment and plug a series that really hasn't been getting the attention it should be getting. You may all know my friend, JB Lynn, and her awesome Neurotic Hitwoman series, but did you know she also writes a Matchmaker Mystery series. She spun it off the Neurotic Hitwoman universe, but only the character, Armani, is a fixture in the Matchmaker Mystery series, too.
Anyway, her third book in this new series is coming out shortly, and I think you all should give the series a try. It's fun and quirky with romance and mystery and pets! I love the characters and the writing and they're just good books to lose myself in from time to time.
The first book is The Mutt and the Matchmaker. The second is A Match Made in Mystery. And the soon-to-be-published book is Catnapped! Good stuff all the way through.
So, if you're in the market for a fun read, give JB's Matchmaker series a try.
Oh, and before I forget, speaking of new things, if you scroll back up to the top there, you'll see a new tab. Click it and it takes you to the sign-up form for my newsletter. I promise not to mailbomb you or be annoying. Just news and updates and contests and junk.
To that end, I'd like to take a moment and plug a series that really hasn't been getting the attention it should be getting. You may all know my friend, JB Lynn, and her awesome Neurotic Hitwoman series, but did you know she also writes a Matchmaker Mystery series. She spun it off the Neurotic Hitwoman universe, but only the character, Armani, is a fixture in the Matchmaker Mystery series, too.
Anyway, her third book in this new series is coming out shortly, and I think you all should give the series a try. It's fun and quirky with romance and mystery and pets! I love the characters and the writing and they're just good books to lose myself in from time to time.
The first book is The Mutt and the Matchmaker. The second is A Match Made in Mystery. And the soon-to-be-published book is Catnapped! Good stuff all the way through.
So, if you're in the market for a fun read, give JB's Matchmaker series a try.
Oh, and before I forget, speaking of new things, if you scroll back up to the top there, you'll see a new tab. Click it and it takes you to the sign-up form for my newsletter. I promise not to mailbomb you or be annoying. Just news and updates and contests and junk.
Friday, March 27, 2015
Making a Few Things Clear
I got into an interesting discussion with a reader the other day that showed I should probably make a few things clear for the reading public.
1) Dying Embers is entirely a work of fiction. I made all this shit up in my head and while I may have borrowed a few minor character traits from people I've met in my life-travels, they're scattered throughout and no one character has any resemblance as a whole to anyone I've ever met.
2) I have never been cheated on. I've only been married once, and my husband is so totally faithful that even when some ass started a rumor, I laughed my ass off. The only cheating I ever encountered was that one dude in college who slept with a chick at a party when he was supposed to be my boyfriend. I dropped him like the sack of dirt he was, but I never cared enough about him to even wish him dead.
3) I have never killed anyone. Not that I haven't thought about it, and my imagination does run wild, but I do know right from wrong, and no matter how much some people may deserve a little payback, I would never follow through. Hell, people, I swerve to avoid running over frogs. The only thing I kill with any amount of glee are brown recluse spiders. Those suckers deserve to die. And venomous snakes.
4) Neither Jace nor Emma is modeled after me, or anyone else I know.
If the story you read makes it seem like I've been there, then thank you. That means I've done my job as a writer. And yes, while the common mantra in the writing community is 'Write what you know', it isn't the case here. I make shit up and write it down.
I hope you all enjoy the shit I've made up. I'm having a blast letting my imagination run wild and then sharing the stories with you.
Oh, and I almost totally forgot! Deb Salisbury and DL Hammons need to email me (besanderson at gmail dot com) your snail mail addresses so I can send you both bookmarks - just cuz. =o)
1) Dying Embers is entirely a work of fiction. I made all this shit up in my head and while I may have borrowed a few minor character traits from people I've met in my life-travels, they're scattered throughout and no one character has any resemblance as a whole to anyone I've ever met.
2) I have never been cheated on. I've only been married once, and my husband is so totally faithful that even when some ass started a rumor, I laughed my ass off. The only cheating I ever encountered was that one dude in college who slept with a chick at a party when he was supposed to be my boyfriend. I dropped him like the sack of dirt he was, but I never cared enough about him to even wish him dead.
3) I have never killed anyone. Not that I haven't thought about it, and my imagination does run wild, but I do know right from wrong, and no matter how much some people may deserve a little payback, I would never follow through. Hell, people, I swerve to avoid running over frogs. The only thing I kill with any amount of glee are brown recluse spiders. Those suckers deserve to die. And venomous snakes.
4) Neither Jace nor Emma is modeled after me, or anyone else I know.
If the story you read makes it seem like I've been there, then thank you. That means I've done my job as a writer. And yes, while the common mantra in the writing community is 'Write what you know', it isn't the case here. I make shit up and write it down.
I hope you all enjoy the shit I've made up. I'm having a blast letting my imagination run wild and then sharing the stories with you.
Oh, and I almost totally forgot! Deb Salisbury and DL Hammons need to email me (besanderson at gmail dot com) your snail mail addresses so I can send you both bookmarks - just cuz. =o)
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