Another day, another recipe

Writing Life

As most of you already realize, there was a delay in the release of The Dead Man's View, the sequel to The Vital Principle, featuring Prudence Barnard and Knighton Gaunt. This time, it's not Pru is not searching to exonerate herself, she's trying to exonerate her dead cousin. She's convinced he did not kill himself and doesn't deserve to have his body beheaded and buried at the crossroads as a suicide. So she calls on her dear friend, Knighton Gaunt, to help her expose the murderer.

While the book's release is late (now set at the first week of October), I
hope it will be well worth the wait.

On to Yummy Stuff
Are any of you trying to reduce carbs? I know I am, simply because as I age, it is getting harder and harder for me to eat them without getting an upset stomach. Since I also have problems with legumes like soy and beans, it can sometimes be a challenge.

But, I've developed a relatively quick breakfast which gives me energy to tackle the morning and is filling enough to get me through to dinnertime with perhaps just a bit of smoked trout to make it past 2:00PM when I start to feel hungry.

I keep a bag of mixed veggies in the freezer and all I do is:
Microwave a cup of mixed veggies for about 4 minutes while I chop up about 1/4 c. of onion.
Saute the onion in olive oil until the veggies are "nuked" and then dump the veggies into the pan.

Take an egg (or two if you're really hungry, but there will probably be enough to share...) and scramble it and then add it to the pan. When it's done, turn off the heat and add about 1/2 c. of shredded cheddar cheese. Mix until the cheese is melted and then dump it out on your plate.

I love topping it with a few spoonfuls of salsa, too. Where's the picture, you ask? Well...it's not the most beautiful concoction on earth so you'll have to use your imagination. :)

Of course, you can really vary this. If I have brown rice or quinoa left over, I add that to the veggies in the pan and don't use any cheese and then sprinkle in some soy sauce. It makes a "quickie" fried rice that is delicious for breakfast.

However, that's really not the recipe I wanted to share today. We've pretty much given up beef (except for the occasional hamburger) and replaced it with venison. I find it more digestible and much more delicate in flavor with a lot less fat. The lack of fat, however, does mean it can be tough if you don't know how to cook it.

Here is a terrific recipe for venison, and if you prefer beef, I bet it would work for that, too! In fact, I think it would work for a lot of different meats and particularly those that are tough.

Roast Venison
 Clean up a venison roast to remove any silver skin or fat. Rub it with a bit of pepper. (I don't use salt, but if you do, you can also add about 1/4 tsp of salt and rub that in.)

Wrap the roast in bacon strips, making sure that all the meat is covered. (You'll remove the bacon to serve.)

Slip the bacon-wrapped roast into an oven bag and place in a shallow backing pan.

Pour red wine (we like Burgundy, but Bordeaux is good, too) into the bag so that it covers the meat until it is about 1/2 to 3/4 covered.

Add 2 bay leaves, 5 cloves (whole cloves), 4-6 black pepper corns, and 4-5 juniper berries.

Close the bag with the tie and cut 2 or 3 tiny holes into the bag on top to let it vent a bit.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 3 hours (or until the meat is very tender).

When the meat done...

Melt 3 TBSP butter in a pan. Add one minced onion and cook until the onion is golden. Add cleaned, cut up mushrooms (I use about 1 - 2 cups) and saute until the mushrooms are almost cooked (about 10 minutes).

Remove the meat from the oven and pour the contents of the bag through a strainer into the pan with the onions and mushrooms. Cook for 5 minutes. Mix a few tsp. of cornstarch into about 1/2 c. of red wine and add that to thicken the onion/mushroom sauce. It will take about 2 - 3 minutes over med/med-high heat.

Serve the meat with mashed potatoes and the sauce. A side salad goes very well with this to make a very easy and yet elegant dinner!

Bon appetite!

Gardening and Writing

Gardening

Oops, someone forgot to pick the veggies for a while. Sigh. But I did manage to harvest almost 2 quarts of garlic (2 qts of cleaned garlic cloves, to be exact) and a whole BUNCH of zucchini. As you can see in the background, I ended up using a lot of it for pickles. Then I took some more and made flour-less zucchini muffins.

I'm very pleased with the pickles. We are trying to cut out sugar and this particular recipe has no sugar at all in it. It's a spicy pickle with hot pepper flakes and garlic and we've already eaten one jar. What makes it even better is that you don't have to go through that long hot water bath canning process. You clean the jars (fill with boiling water until ready to use), prepare the zucchini and while you're doing that, boil the vinegar with the spices for 5 minutes. Then fill the jars and pour in the boiling vinegar. Of course you have to store them in the refrigerator, but that's okay with us. I got the recipe from Eatsy at this link.

 For the zucchinis I did not use for pickles (I made 12 pints of pickles) I made zucchini bread with almond flour. Okay, actually, I turned this into zucchini muffins because we like them for breakfast.

I got the recipe for that from comfybelly.com at this link. Of course, I modified it just a wee bit to add a little more spice because we really like our spices, but the basic recipe was from comfybelly.

So, if you are overrun with zucchini or squash, you might look into making either pickles or bread. My sister likes to make zucchini cake, but as I mentioned, we are trying to cut down on sugar and gluten, so we're not doing the cake thing. However, if you make those muffins, they are like mini carrot cakes and are absolutely wonderful for breakfast with a dollop of cream cheese. In fact, I almost prefer them to most cakes at this point.

Writing

I've been working extra hard on my writing lately and for those who are interested, I'm still taking my net proceeds from The Vital Principle and donating them to the Red Cross for the tornado victims. I haven't earned as much as I would like (I'd at least like to give $500) but every little bit helps.

For my fans, the second Prudence Barnard/Knighton Gaunt mystery, The Dead Man's View, is in the final stages and should be out in August. Pru and Knighton were first introduced to readers in The Vital Principle, and I hope folks will enjoy their continuing adventures. In The Dead Man's View, Pru discovers she has a second cousin and goes to visit him, only to have him die within a week of her arrival. The coroner believes her cousin committed suicide, but Pru finds clues that lead her to believe otherwise and she writes to Knighton to gain his assistance in proving her cousin was murdered. 

The wonderful cover artist, Amber Shah, is working on the cover for The Dead Man's View and has even done a new one for The Vital Principle to give it a "make over." Here is a "proof" of the newly redesigned cover for The Vital Principle. It is not final yet, but it will give you an idea and show her wonderful work.

I'm torn at the moment between two of her designs for The Dead Man's View, but hopefully I'll have a new cover to show folks soon!

Next year, I hope there will be a third Pru and Knighton mystery as they are going to go on a trip to Europe and once more, they are going to stumble upon a dead body during their travels...

In the meantime, the Second Sons Inquiry Agency is getting a new detective and I'm writing chapter five even as we speak. It's tentatively called: The Illusion of Desire and like The Vital Principle, it deals with some difficult topics but there are dashes of black humor that I hope readers will enjoy.

For readers of my contemporary mystery, Whacked!, I'm editing a second manuscript (I don't have a title yet) in preparation to sending it to my editor at Five Star. The new one is also set in the small town of Peyton, NC, and features Kelly Harmony. Kelly is suspected of killing her roommate and then torching the apartment to cover up the crime and it doesn't help matters when she finds a stranger's dead body in her new home. This is the first of what will be several mysteries featuring the Harmony family in Peyton, so cross your fingers that my editor likes it.

On the novella front, I wrote a sweet Regency novella last spring and submitted it to my editor at Highland Press, as well as my first sweet Western romance novella. I hope she likes at least one of them and decides to include it in one of the upcoming Highland Press anthologies.

Finally, my paranormal romance, A Fall of Silver, is on sale for one more week at $.99 so if you are interested, you might want to jump on it now before it goes back to its normal price.

That's all the news and I hope to write another blog soon on the craft of writing, as well as keeping up better on my progress with the art of writing.

Enjoy the summer!

Gardening and Enjoying Nelson Bay

This year might be a good year for gardening, after all :). I checked the veggie garden after returning from an all-too-short vacation at Nelson Bay and everything is looking good.

We've got green tomatoes on most of the tomato plants and with luck, they will start to ripen in June and we can get our first fresh tomatoes of the season.

The squash and cucumbers are also doing very, very well and I picked our first zucchini today. We'll have it sauteed in olive oil and onions tonight and I can't wait. It looks like we're going to have quite a few varieties of squash and when the basil gets a little taller, I'll make one of my favorite dishes: Mac-and-Cheese and Squash.

It's really simple to make: Saute the squash (yellow or zucchini or a mixture of the two) with mushrooms. While they are cooking, make macaroni and cheese with your favorite box or homemade variety. When they are done to your taste (I like them a little underdone so they are not mushy), add a handful of fresh, chopped basil. Then mix the veggies in with the mac-and-cheese and serve!

My mom used to make this and it was one of the last things I ate at her house before she passed away, so every time I make it, I think of her. It's a memory and recipe I really treasure.

 One of the things that is really helping out in the garden this year is a tangled ball of Venetian blind cord. One of our neighbors got rid of some old Venetian blinds and salvaged the cord. He decided he didn't have any use for it and gave it to us.

I discovered that it is just about perfect for tying up tomato plants and giving your cucumbers something to twine their tendrils around. It seems fairly weather resistant and so far isn't causing abrasions on my plants.

As you can see, we are sort of pack rats here and try not to let anything go to waste. My garden is full of odds and ends of PVC pipes that work as tomato and veggie supports as well as the Venetian blind cords to hold them up.

 As they say--it's all good!

And I just have to add a few pictures from our mini-vacation on Nelson Bay. We had a wonderful time and took the dogs out in our boat. Daisy, the Jack Russell terrier, is still a puppy so it was the first time she'd ever been out in a boat and she seemed to love it. She pals around with our Chesapeake Bay retriever, Molly, and the two of them stayed busy swimming and chasing the small mullets that hugged the shore.

We saw hermit crabs, as well, and our martin house is fully occupied with nesting martins, which means 12 pairs of birds.

On our boat ride, we saw several Osprey nests on channel markers and they seemed to be doing well. We also saw a Spotted Sandpiper on Salter's Creek, as well as dozens of Red-Winged Blackbirds, Laughing Gulls, and pelicans. We even have a pair of Barn Swallows nesting under our pier!

The Killdeer have already hatched one brood and there are chicks running around in the large, grassy areas and they are cute as can be.

This is such a great time of year and I really hope everyone has a chance to relax and enjoy the beautiful weather, their friends and most of all, time with their families.

On a last note, I hope everyone will consider donating to the Red Cross to assist in the relief efforts for the tornado victims in OK. I am donating all my proceeds from my historical mystery, The Vital Principle, for both May and June (I decided to extend it to June) to the Red Cross to assist in this effort. I may extend it again for July--I will see how it goes. The families are in desperate need there and even the smallest donations will help. I hope you will consider giving to this or to your favorite charity.

Help for OK Tornado Victims

After watching the news and seeing the heart-wrenching tragedy in Oklahoma from the recent tornado, I've decided to donate the net earnings from my book, The Vital Principle, to the Red Cross to help survivors. Glued to the TV, I could not help but be touched, horrified and yet inspired by those brave folks working to rescue victims and try to recover.

I was appalled the first day and could not help but worry about people who had lost everything. I kept worrying about:

• Where will they sleep tonight and future nights when their homes have been reduced to rubble?
• What will they wear for clothing?
• Do they have food and water?
• Where are their family members and pets?
• What about all of their precious things like photos, books and all the myriad belongings we all take for granted as being within an arm's reach?

And the problems aren't just for one night or a week--they are for months in the future. Homes, schools, stores, and entire communities will have to be rebuilt. People will have to essentially start from scratch to rebuild their lives and their neighborhoods.

Given that, at least for the months of May and June, I will be donating anything I earn from The Vital Principle to the areas hit by the tornado. It won't be much, but I feel it is important to help these folks recover and if all goes well, I'll continue to donate in the future. As I said, it may well be a year or more before Moore and other devastated communities are back on their feet.

I hope everyone will consider helping.

And folks in Oklahoma, please know that our hearts and thoughts are with you. We pray that more survivors will be found and families reunited.

Shooting Craps

Publishing is really a crap shoot - you just never know what will catch reader's attention and what will just slip away into oblivion.

This weekend has been one of my best, ever, with the exception of three months in 2011 when my books were literally flying off the shelves. About two weeks ago, The Unwanted Heiress, a sweet Regency romance was released, or rather re-released as it had previously come out as I Bid One American. The cover for The Unwanted Heiress was redone by a professional cover artist, Amber Shah, based on a photograph by Jenn LeBlanc, and the results were terrific.

The book had always done well and attracted the interest of two agents, so when I got the rights back, I re-edited it and got it re-released.

The results have been everything I could have hoped for. Back in 2011, several of my Regency mysteries did very, very well (The Vital Principle and the Regency romantic mystery, A Rose Before Dying) but I had never been able to crack that "2,000 in all Kindle books" bestseller barrier. This time, I did. On Saturday, March 23, I got a ranking of 1,995 in all Kindle books!

How did I finally break the barrier? Beats me. In fact, I've done absolutely nothing other than mentioning the book on my author page on Facebook a few times and tweeting about it a few times. Like many others, I read Konrath's blog about publishing and he's pretty well clueless, too, about what suddenly attracts readers to a book (and hopefully, an author), except for a few basics:

• A great cover - this is what catches the attention, first
• A great blurb
• A great title

The funny thing is, this reminds me of my first research into publishing when I began seriously writing (for the second time, after college) back in the late 90's. What I kept hearing, especially from unpublished authors, was that publishers kept telling them they wanted, "Something that is the same, only different." What the heck does that mean?

It means a book that fits comfortably into a genre that readers know and love, and yet is somehow different while it remains within the bounds of that genre. Now some writers can break through and establish entirely new genres, e.g. Georgette Heyer or Stephen King, but for the most part, if you want to sell, you need to write a book that readers can "place." That means, that readers know/understand what to expect. Oh, not that they know what to expect in every detail, but in general terms, like knowing there will be a happy ending.

Writing a book that fits within a genre, of course, doesn't guarantee sales, but it will generate more sales than writing a mishmash, e.g. a Frankenstein-meets-Gone-with-the-Wind-in-Space. If readers can't wrap their heads around a concept, it's going to be hard to find readers unless, of course, you're the next Stephen King. And while most writers think they are not only the next best thing to King, but actually better, I'm afraid the reality is: probably not.

So I'm grateful that readers are discovering The Unwanted Heiress and I hope they enjoy the sweet Regency romance. It fits nicely in the Regency genre, but as so many editors requested, it is the same, only a little different.

Happy Reading!

Need a Freebie for Yourself?

Need a little mystery, a few chills, a little hint of romance?

The holidays are undoubtedly a lot of fun and excitement, but everyone needs a few minutes to relax every once in a while and in the spirit of giving, The Vital Principle is free until Tuesday, November 20!

The Vital Principle is the first book in my mystery series featuring the Second Sons Inquiry Agency. The mysteries are set in England in the first half of the 19th century and this particular novel features the Agency's founder, Knighton Gaunt, a man who gave up social status in favor of discovering the truth. Miss Prudence Barnard is an impoverished gentlewoman trying to survive by acting as a spiritualist until she is accused of murdering her host.

Here is a small scene from the beginning of The Vital Principle where accusations of murder focus more tightly on Prudence. Mr. Gretton, the constable, would like nothing better than to arrest Prudence on the spot, but Gaunt is beginning to have doubts....

Prudence shrugged and stared at the gleaming surface of the table, feeling trapped. “Why do you think it was placed in his brandy? Why not during the meal? Or at some other point in the evening? Surely it couldn’t have escaped your notice that we had aperitifs before supper. In fact, I handed Lord Crowley his glass. I even refilled it.” She sighed elaborately. “Two missed opportunities.”

“It were in the brandy. His glass smells of bitter almonds,” Mr. Gretton replied.

“Is that characteristic of this Prussic acid you mentioned?” she asked, aiming the question at Mr. Gaunt.

“Yes.”

“What form does this poison take? Couldn’t it have been in his glass when he poured the brandy?” she asked.

Mr. Gaunt shook his head and eyed Mr. Gretton. “Unlikely. How could she be sure which glass he would take?”

“She?” Pru repeated.

“Poison be a woman’s weapon. I doubt there's any could argue the fact.” Mr. Gretton stared hard at her.

“There are no male poisoners? How remarkable. One wonders if the one hundred and fifty poor souls in Rome would agree after Exili gave them his most careful attentions in the seventeenth century.”

The coroner, Dr. Winters, grunted. “You see where educating women leads?”

Mouth twisting cynically, Mr. Gaunt murmured in a soft tone obviously not meant to be heard, “Clearly, a woman should not be able to defend herself. We must at all costs preserve our right to do it for her.”

Surprised, Pru caught his gaze. He flicked a half-smile at her, shrugged, and grew very interested in the carpeting at his feet.

Oblivious to Mr. Gaunt’s remark, the doctor continued, “There may have been a few men who have used poison. However, it remains largely the province of females to do away with others through such cowardly means.” He rubbed his hands. “I believe I’m done here, Mr. Gretton. I’ll leave you to finish the questioning and make the apprehension. If possible.”

While Dr. Winters and the constable exchanged a few words, Pru watched Mr. Gaunt. His remark puzzled her with its overtones of sympathy. She hadn’t expected anyone, other than Mr. Denham perhaps, to defend her.

As if aware of her scrutiny, Mr. Gaunt edged closer. He spoke in low tones no one else could hear. “You’re very composed, Miss Barnard.”

“For a murderess? Would tears avail me? Or convince anyone of my innocence?”

“They might. A woman’s tears are often most efficacious.”

“Except when the decision has already been made. A trial seems almost superfluous, doesn’t it?” Her voice was low and biting with anger. A deep feeling of ill-use made it difficult for her to remain calm.

“No one has accused you,” Mr. Gaunt replied. “And if you had a hand in this, you’ll get a fair hearing.”

“Then you do think I murdered Lord Crowley? What possible motive could I have had?”

Hope you enjoyed this small glimpse and will take advantage of the opportunity to get a copy for yourself, FREE!

Happy Holidays!

The Coroner's Role

So What Happens Next: The Coroner


As most of you know, I write mysteries set in the early years of the 19th century, the Regency period. As I mentioned in my previous blog about law enforcement during that period, I’m fascinated by the processes at play in the process of catching a murderer. I mean, I’d better be, since I write mysteries, right?

So here’s a bit more detail about what happens when a murder is committed before the days of CSI or even a regular police force, Scotland Yard, and all those wonderful detectives.

Make a Hue and Cry

If James Everyman witnesses a murder or finds a dead body, the first thing he has to do is make “hue and cry,” the equivalent of calling 9-1-1 (emergency services) today. Hue and cry is actually required by law, first instituted in 1285 by the Statute of Winchester. The purpose was to alert folks to the crime and catch the criminal (theoretically fleeing). Anyone who witnessed a crime was required to make hue and cry, not just constables, and the alarm would spread through the countryside in an effort to alert folks and catch the bad guy.

The interesting part to modern folks who are used to calling 9-1-1 and then leaving matters in the hands of law enforcement officials, is that historically, all able-bodied men who heard the hue and cry (it included, literally, shouting to notify folks to the crime and the fleeing criminal) were required to help in the pursuit. Just like a posse in a western.

By the Regency, there was actually a police magazine, Police Gazette, often called The Hue and Cry which gave details about folks wanted for crimes. The magazine was started in 1772 by John Fielding (chief magistrate of the Bow Street Court at that time) and initially called The Quarterly Pursuit. It went through several names to eventually settle on Police Gazette or Hue and Cry by 1828. The magazine included information about rewards offered for information or the capture of criminals, notices about criminals, and requests for information.

It’s still published today through Scotland Yard.

Coroner’s Jury – The Inquest

So what does John Everyman do, now? Well, we’re going to assume there’s no murderer standing over the body clutching a bloody knife and babbling his confession. So John Everyman has discovered a body and made hue and cry. The constable and the coroner respond to the hue and cry and round up a dozen or so men to view the body in situ (if possible). Between twelve and twenty-four men will make up this coroner’s jury and they are required to examine the body in any case of suspicious death. The dead person can’t be buried until this is done, therefore the law stipulates that it must be done within a few days of finding the body.

And this may seem odd to us today, but the jury examines the corpse, and I do mean literally examines, for signs of violence or clues that could assist in coming to the right verdict. Since there was no refrigeration in the 19th century, the inquest had to be held as quickly as possible, usually within a day or so of the death. The jury could also ask questions of witnesses during the inquest—they are active participants in the proceedings. Remember, this is the coroner’s jury and inquest and their only mission is to categorize the death as one of the following: murder (or manslaughter); suicide (self-murder); accidental death; or natural causes. They aren’t concerned with identifying the murderer, if it was murder, although if that comes out in the inquest, the responsible party would be bound over for trial.

In fact, the purpose of the inquest was very specific. They are only intended to establish the following facts:

• The identity of the deceased;

• How, when and where the death occurred; and

• Draw attention to anything that might lead to further deaths.

When the inquest is concluded, the findings are recorded in a formal document called the inquisition and include an attestation signed by the coroner and the jury. The inquisition must contain: the name of the deceased; the injury/disease causing the death; the date, time, place & circumstances of the death; and the conclusion (or verdict). Naturally, if the condition of the body precludes identification, that shall be duly noted.

We'll continue with this look at law enforcement, forensics and other fun facts about catching murderers in the 19th century in the next few blogs. Stay tuned!

And note, on Feb 1 and 2, 2012, The Vital Principle will be free on Amazon! So be sure to mark your calendars and grab a copy if you've been dying to read book 1 in the Second Sons Inquiry Agency series of Regency mysteries.

The Vital Principle
A cold draft, a candle extinguished, darkness…and yet…nothing except a suggestion, a touch of the unknown. Did they truly contact the spirit world or is it all an illusion? Perhaps it’s simply a clever fraud perpetrated by spiritualist, Prudence Barnard. Their host, Lord Crowley, certainly suspects her. He hired an inquiry agent to prove it and yet the agent has proved nothing.


The truth remains as illusive as the fading smoke from the candle.

With shaking hands the small group of guests relight the candles and turn to each other in relief. All returns to normal until Lord Crowley suddenly dies, poisoned by an unseen killer. Who would do such a thing? Someone, or some thing, in the shadowy room? Everyone present is well-known, a longtime friend, except Prudence and the inquiry agent.

It must be the spiritualist. She is guilty, she’s the stranger in the room, the unknown entity.

And all eyes turn to inquiry agent, Knighton Gaunt, to uncover the truth.

But is Prudence really a murderess, or an innocent bystander? Knighton isn’t sure. She might be a charlatan, but his instincts warn him that there are other forces at play at Rosecrest, forces that remain hidden beneath a jovial façade. He takes a chance on Prudence to set a trap for the murderer.

But will the murderer take the bait or will someone else at Rosecrest die before Knighton can work his way through the maze of deceit and lies woven by the innocent-seeming guests?

“The Vital Principle” is the first in the Second Son’s Inquiry Agency series of mysteries, featuring the agency’s coolly intellectual founder, Knighton Gaunt. Other books include a variety of inquiry agents associated with Second Sons, or the illustrious founder. The series is set in England’s fascinating Regency period in the early years of the 19th century, when King George III was deemed unfit to rule and the Prince Regent, the eventual George IV, ruled in his stead.

Each volume stands alone as a mystery touched with romance.
'
Enjoy!

Law Enforcement in Historical Mysteries

Law Enforcement in Historical Mysteries...What to do?

I’ve been doing a blog tour (and I’m giving away one $25 Amazon gift certificate for Jan, Feb and Mar, 2012, so be sure to check it out, the list of blogs is on my News page) and one of the question that a lot of folks ask me in my interviews is why I chose to write during the first half of the 19th century. This period in England is often called the Regency period, although technically that only lasted from 1811 through 1820 when the Prince of Wales ruled as Prince Regent when his father, King George III, was considered unfit to do so.

The sort answer to the question of "Why the Regency?" is that it was a pretty darn interesting period. The roots of policing, forensics, medicine, and most branches of science as we know them started to develop along modern lines. What I’d like to do is reveal a bit about these developments through blogs to describe some interesting background information for my Regency mysteries. While the Second Sons Inquiry Agency in many of my books is entirely fictional, it is an organization that could have existed. At that period, law enforcement was largely funded privately. Odd as it might seem today, private individuals (most often the victim) were responsible for investigating and prosecuting criminals.

It’s a fascinating subject, and for this blog, I’d like to talk about law enforcement, although it will be in sort of generalized terms to avoid the high eye-glaze coefficient that this topic can engender. Law enforcement hasn’t always been as formalized as it is today.

It wasn’t until 1829, that Sir Robert (Bobby) Peel’s leadership established the modern British police force through an Act of English Parliament. It even specified the use of the word “police.” For those who have heard the term “peelers” or “bobbies” for British police, this is also the origin for those terms. The Bow Street runners were charged with keeping the King’s (or Queen’s) peace, just like bobbies do today.

At first, this mostly consisted of The Bow Street Patrols (Bow Street runners); Police Office constables under the control of the Magistrates; and the Marine police (river police). These groups were later melded into the Metropolitan Police Force in 1839 for the City of London.

But if the police force didn’t exist before 1829, how were laws enforced and criminals caught?

Initially, sheriffs, reeves and groups of men acting as juries provided law enforcement. Most of us have heard of sheriffs from Robin Hood movies. They basically kept order and maintained the King’s interests locally. From 1500 onward, private watchmen, thief-takers, etc. performed law enforcement activities. Watchmen were often funded by private individuals or organization and rewarded for catching criminals.

By the 17th and 18th centuries, there were parish constables and the Justice of the Peace. The constable was appointed to serve for a period of one year. He wasn’t paid and he worked in co-operation with the Justice of the peace to maintain order. In larger towns, there were guilds that became known as The Watch who were paid to patrol the streets at night. By 1663 in London, the night watchmen became the first paid law enforcement officers.

A gradual shift to government control over law enforcement really got underway in 1737. King George II initiated a scheme to pay London and Middlesex watchmen, using taxes as funding. Then in 1749, Henry Fielding’s famous Bow Street Runners were organized. They were essentially professional constables and by 1828 were the largest privately financed police force covering 45 parishes within a ten-mile radius of London.

In the early years of the 19th century, if a person wanted a constable to help him or her apprehend the perpetrator of a crime he had to pay the expenses of the investigation. Any English citizen could prosecute a crime and the prosecutor was often the victim of the crime. He had to file charges with the magistrate, present evidence to the grand jury and provide evidence. In the 18th century, rewards for the conviction of criminals ensured that citizens had incentive to prosecute, but they also led to abuses where people were accused of crimes they didn’t commit simply to collect the reward.

There was a particularly famous case of a thief-taker in 1720 who epitomized the corruption that led to Sir Robert Peel’s reforms. In London in 1720, Jonathan Wild had a gang of thieves under his control. When they stole, he’d often arrange to return the property and hand over someone, sometimes even a member of his gang who displeased him, and collect the reward. His shenanigans came to an end though when his perfidy was discovered and he was hung in 1725.

But thief-takers remained tainted with corruption. In 1754, there was another scandal similar to Wild’s where Stephen MacDaniel was caught prosecuting innocent men in order to collect the rewards. Again, this was another incentive to eliminate the system of rewards from victims hoping to regain their stolen property or gain justice. A salaried police force, i.e. Sir Robert Peel’s bobbies, seemed like the answer to cut the dependence upon rewards and their corrupting effect.

So there you have a few glimpses into the early history of law enforcement. I hope you found it interesting, as bits and pieces of my research have found their way into my historical mysteries, include The Vital Principle and A Rose Before Dying. I'll be talking more about law enforcement, forensics, and other such fascinating topics in future blogs (assuming I don't get a lot of comments like: "What the HECK are you THINKING?")

Professionalism and Jon Cryer

I don’t know Jon Cryer and know nothing about his personal life, and I generally avoid all the “scandal rags,” celebrity gossip, etc, like the plague. But during the meltdown of Charlie Sheen and its impact on “Two and a Half Men,” you couldn’t really avoid hearing about it, even on the radio.

As a society, we’ve come to accept and even expect immature behavior. Tantrums pass for “speaking your mind,” and whining and back-biting is the norm. It’s always made me very, very sad that our desire to be young forever has led us to embrace the childish, rather than adult and professional behaviors. In fact, I often wonder if anyone knows what it means to “be a professional” and act thoughtfully and rationally, anymore. To my delight, however, it appears that some folks still value the traits we used to associate with being an adult.

Now, most of the time, when someone in the Hollywood gang breaks down, you get one of two reactions from his/her associates: nothing (as in “No comment”); or a scathing retort wrapped in a whine. Perhaps even hysteria accompanied with a good bout of crying. But not with Cryer.

I’ve always thought Cryer was a good actor. To a large degree, he quietly carried “Two and a Half Men.” But he never really came to my attention as a true professional until this Sheen drama unfolded. Two things really stood out. He didn’t do the “no comment” thing, but he also didn’t whine or speak badly about Sheen.

He behaved with quiet, amused dignity. I wish some of our politicians would behave as well as Cryer in the face of a public scandal or disaster. In fact, Cryer behaved exactly the way I wanted my character, Prudence Barnard, to behave in “The Vital Principle”. She didn’t go to pieces, weep or lash out when she was accused of murder. She behaved with dignity and met the challenge to prove her innocence. I wanted her to have the traits I’ve always admired most in adults: a sense of humor, kindness towards others, and a sense of professionalism. She’s not perfect, but she’s not a childish mess, either.

Cryer’s professionalism first “hit me over the head” when a morning radio program played a snippet from an interview with him. I don’t have the specifics and my memory is so bad I’ll probably get most of it wrong, but it does show how a professional handles a frankly terrible situation.

“He called you a troll, how do you feel about that?” the interviewer asked, obviously trying to spark a ratings-booster outburst of some sort from Cryer.

Cryer said, “Well, I haven’t wanted to admit this…” (And I thought, NO! Don’t sink to his level! Don’t do it…) “But I am a troll.”

He then went on to do an incredibly funny bit about how he’d tried to hide the fact that he was a troll for years, etc. It was one of the funniest things I’d ever heard and an absolutely brilliant way to handle this. Instead of talking trash about Sheen or treating us to a fit of hysterical tears or anger, he simply made a joke. And the joke was not at Sheen’s expense. Now that’s the way it should be done. Professional. Gracious. Adult.

Honestly, at that moment, I thought Cryer could easily walk on water and cure all the ills of mankind. He’s what I want to be when I grow up.

Then not content to rest on his laurels, Cryer continued to respond with well wishes for Sheen. He moved forward. He cooperated to keep the show going. He was a man about the whole thing.

When they reconstituted “Two and a Half Men” and I caught the first episode, my respect for Cryer as an actor went up yet another notch (if that’s possible). He literally carried the weight of the show. There was an undercurrent of awkwardness as the other actors and actresses tried to pull it together and regenerate the smooth feel of an ensemble that is running well. But you could see the jagged edges where things didn’t quite mesh.

Of all of them, he seemed the most relaxed and the most determined. It was like watching one of those local theater shows where they’ve managed to get one major actor to be in the play. That actor knows his lines and knows how to act and he’s literally dragging the performances out of the others to make them shine, as well. I got the definite feel that Cryer was the glue holding the show together, the one who knew what had to be done and was doing it. The others, frankly, still looked a little shell-shocked. I expect that will change over time and the cast will mesh, but in that show, he really stood out.

Anyway, I just wanted to say, “Bravo, Cryer! Well done.”

It’s nice to find someone who still knows what it means to be a professional, and someone I can use as a model for my characters like Pru. I’ve got another book for Prudence Barnard and Knighton Gaunt brewing, so now, whenever I get stuck, I’ll just think, “How would Cryer respond to that?”

With humor and dignity. That’s how.

Sample Sunday: The Vital Principle

It's a lovely Sunday morning here in North Carolina and I'm offering a small sample from my latest book, a historical mystery called The Vital Principle. Just a small bit to enjoy with your Sunday coffee and muffin.

The Vital Principle is a historical mystery featuring The Second Sons Inquiry Agency. It's been released at a special introductory price of $.99.

The Vital Principle

Backcover
In 1815, an inquiry agent, Mr. Knighton Gaunt, is asked by Lord Crowley to attend a séance with the express purpose of revealing the spiritualist as a fraud. When the séance ends abruptly, Lord Crowley is poisoned during the turmoil by an unseen killer.

Gaunt is now left to investigate not only fraud, but murder. Suspicion turns first to the spiritualist, Miss Prudence Barnard, but as Gaunt digs deeper into the twisted history of the guests at Rosecrest, he discovers more deadly secrets. Inevitably, long-time friends turn against one another as the tension mounts, and Gaunt is challenged to separate fact from fiction before another death at Rosecrest.

The Vital Principle is the first mystery in the Second Sons Inquiry Agency series and features coolly intellectual Mr. Knighton Gaunt, the agency’s founder. This witty, historical whodunit in the tradition of Bruce Alexander’s Blind Justice, will keep you guessing until the unexpected end.

“Murder, mystery, and a dash of romance combined with witty dialogue and unforgettable characters make The Vital Principle a book that will definitely go on my keeper shelf!” —Lilly Gayle, author of Into the Darkness and Slightly Tarnished.

Excerpt
In this excerpt, Miss Barnard is questioned about her possible role in the murder of her host. She's an outsider in a close group of friends and finds herself in the unfortunate position of being the easiest target.

As if aware of her scrutiny, Mr. Gaunt edged closer. He spoke in low tones no one else could hear. “You’re very composed, Miss Barnard.”

“For a murderess? Would tears avail me? Or convince anyone of my innocence?”

“They might. A woman’s tears are often most efficacious.”

“Except when the decision has already been made. A trial seems almost superfluous, doesn’t it?” Her voice was low and biting with anger. A deep feeling of ill-use made it difficult for her to remain calm.

“No one has accused you,” Mr. Gaunt replied. “And if you had a hand in this, you’ll get a fair hearing.”

“Then you do think I murdered Lord Crowley? What possible motive could I have had?”
“For one thing, you didn’t seem pleased when he requested my attendance tonight.”
“I didn’t arrange this entertainment, the dowager did. And it appears to me, the mystery should be why I murdered Lord Crowley instead of simply doing away with you. If you believe I was so upset by your presence.” Frustration and fear compressed her stomach into a cold lump.
“You knew why he asked me here,” he stated flatly.
“Really? Why? Pray enlighten me. I’m all agog to hear.”
“To prove you’re a fraud taking advantage of an elderly widow.”

“Taking advantage? By reassuring the poor dear that whatever silly misdemeanor she believes she committed before her husband died is unimportant? How is that taking advantage of her?”

“You’re better qualified to answer that particular question than I. But I’m sure it’s profitable.”
“Profitable?” She laughed bitterly. When the other men glanced at her, she put her hand over her mouth and turned her inappropriate laughter into a cough. “If you call a frusty little room and a few meals profitable. I’m a guest here, nothing more.” Then she added with a coldly sweet smile, “Guests aren’t paid. Or weren’t you aware of that?”
“So kindness was your only motivation?” His black eyes bored into hers. “How can we trust what you say when you conduct these ridiculous entertainments and pretend to speak to the dead?”
She arched a mocking eyebrow. “What makes you think I can’t?”
“Come now. You can’t expect me to believe you’re capable of communicating with the spirit world. Or that you even believe such a thing is possible.”
“I believe there are many things we don’t understand. I refuse to close my mind to the possibility simply because it’s difficult to prove,” she temporized, knowing only too well the dangers of trying to argue about spirit communications.
If there wasn’t a spirit world, then she’d be forced to acknowledge that she was a complete fraud. And even though she hadn't, yet, reached that unseen world and had used a number of tricks to suggest that she had, she always hoped that one day some apparition might answer her call. There was always the possibility.
Mr. Gaunt smiled and his expression grew even more sardonic. “Then let’s be more specific and examine what we can prove. Did you speak to the dowager’s previous husband?”
“Perhaps not this evening. However, I’m sure the words I wrote were what he would have relayed, if he could have done so.”

“So you lied—”

“No, I merely—”
“It was not the truth!” His lips thinned and anger ignited a slow burning fire in his eyes. “Her husband did not speak through you. Admit it.”

She tilted her head to one side, examining him. “Do you believe her husband did not love her?”

“I have no idea. That’s not the point.”
“Then you don’t know if it was the truth or not.” She offered, instinctively knowing the men would tear her apart like a pack of hungry dogs if she reacted emotionally. Her mind raced ahead, abnormally clear, encased in the fragile ice of logic that could shatter at any moment and leave her raging at their accusations. “And it eased the dowager’s mind. So I fail to see I did anything wrong.”
Mr. Gaunt said, “You mislead—”
“No. I told a desperately lonely woman what she needed to hear. That’s the sum of it. There are many truths. You have yours. I have mine.”
“There is only one truth.”
“Nonsense.” She folded her hands at her waist and turned partially away, unable to bear the intense scrutiny of his hard eyes. Her fingers felt stiff and icy with fear. “I refuse to discuss this any further. It’s futile. You’ll believe what you wish. If you chose not to trust me, then so be it. But regardless of what you think, I did not kill Lord Crowley.”

-------

Thank you,

Amy
http://www.amycorwin.com/

More Statistics on ePublishing

For those who follow the trends in publishing, you may have seen the latest statistics on the trends from our last holiday season (Dec 2010/Jan 2011) in Publishers Weekly ( http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/financial-reporting/article/46510-january-e-book-sales-soar-top-hardcover-mass-market-paperback.html ).

To summarize the article: predictions about ebook sales taking off were well-founded. Sales of e-readers during the holidays exploded, resulting in equally high sales of ebooks. Some estimates from the Association of American Publishers show that ebook sales went up almost 116% ($69.9 million in January). (Of course $1 million of that went to Amanda Hocking, but that’s another story. LOL)

Sales of mass market paperbacks, on the other hand, slipped nearly 31% lower. In fact, mass market paperbacks sold $30 million LESS than ebook sales. Sales of other “physical” books also fell.

Over the last few weeks, I know a lot of authors have seen similar information because there has been an explosion of “indie,” i.e. independent authors, publishing their backlists on the Kindle and in other epublishing arenas. For an established author, the question isn’t “should I accept the stigma of being an indie author?” but how “fast can I get my backlist shaped up and available?”.

If you’re not a NY-published (i.e. traditionally published) author, then there’s still something to consider. If you’ve been published by small press and have been unhappy with lackluster sales, and you think you might be suffering from a poor cover, uneven editing, or just a slightly too high price, you might want to consider getting your rights back and republishing the book on your own.

Are you insane?

No. I don’t think so. But then again…crazy people are the last ones to know that they’re crazy.

But the thing is this: you can re-edit your book, create (or buy) a better cover, and control the price. Looking at Konrath’s experiences with changing prices and going from $.99 to $2.99 and then back up to $.99, and the differences the various prices have on sales, well… I suggest that you may want to seriously consider this.

Small press are caught in a bit of a pickle at the moment. They have to charge more than the $2.99 price because they have to pay cover artists, editors, and generally pay for their publishing operation. An indie author doesn’t have this overhead and therefore can set whatever price their little heart desires. Astute authors will note I’m completely disregarding the fact that indie authors do have costs, i.e. overhead, in the form of computers, software, Internet connection costs, marketing, and any artistic (cover art) and editorial (hiring an editor) assistance they need. But they may have more leeway in deciding the price they wish to set because they may be paying for these things out of other pots of money.

My own experience with The Vital Principle seems to be supporting this theory. I elected to independently publish this historical mystery and while it hasn’t broken into any of the “top 100” lists yet, it is doing much better than all of my small press books. There are consistent sales. Right now, I have it priced at $.99, and we’ll see how well it continues to sell at that price.

I’d love to hear from readers and authors on their experiences and thoughts about this “brave new world” of epublishing.

The publishing industry continues to ravage itself. Borders is closing 200 stores and considering whether to close 75 more. For those who travel a lot, the good news is that so far, they say they are trying to keep their airport stores open.


With more and more bookstores closing, it seems like the game is changing in favor of mass market outlets like Wal-Mart, Target, and other discount stores. Category romance books from industry giants like Harlequin will therefore continue to have strong sales as they’ve always maintained a strong shelf presence in those spaces. Likewise, bestseller authors with traditional companies should continue to do well as they’ve always received shelf-space in those stores.

If you’re a mid-list author (or lower, non-existent/small-publisher-list like me) you can pretty well forget about sales except through Internet store-fronts like B&N and Amazon.

But it’s not all gloom and doom out there. Just a lot of turmoil. A lot of authors are finding success with the rise of ebooks. Most people are familiar with the mega-success of Amanda Hocking and J.A. Konrath, who have been talking about the glories of epublishing for a couple of years now. Even Bob Mayer in his recent blog http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/2011/03/11/i-was-wrong-konrath-was-right  has turned the corner on accepting epublishing as a viable route for new and mid-list authors.

As Mayer points out, mid-list authors get virtually no marketing/promotional assistance from their publishers, anyway, so it’s up to the author to market his/her work.

However, unlike Konrath, I’m not as sanguine that new authors won’t get lost in the huge tidal wave of backlist books by established authors with well-developed fan bases. Literally hundreds, if not thousands, of excellent, well-edited books coming out as folks upload them into various ebook outlets such as Amazon.com.

I’m hoping, however, that there will still be room for small press and independent authors. It will be a challenge to find an audience when you’re one tiny voice amidst thousands, but I feel sure at least some will make a success of it, like Amanda Hocking.

There are some lessons learned, however, that are particularly relevant here.

• Amanda’s success grew gradually, over the course of 8 books. That’s right, it was her 8th book in combination with 30 or so reviews that tipped the scales toward success. The lesson here is two-fold: a) the chance of having a hit on your first, indie ebook are very, very slim; and b) you’re going to have to work like the devil to socialize your books to garner enough reviews and attention to attract sales.

• Editing, cover art, and pricing are critical. Most indie sales occur at the $.99 price. But now that everyone has learned that lesson and is offering their books at $.99, you’re going to have to have an even better product and work even harder to socialize it to beat out well-known authors like Konrath. That means, your cover art and editing have to be top-notch. Some recommend buying professional editing and art work.

• This isn’t a competition…or is it? There are only 100 books in the top 100 list for any genre. Amazon doesn’t list all books for every genre when it offers suggestions. Like it or not, you’ve got competition for the reader’s dollar.

There are reasons for optimism, even heavily tempered with the harsh realities of the marketplace. Much as we might like, we can’t all be Amanda Hocking, J.A. Konrath, or Bob Mayer, but at least if we work really, really hard and then harder still, and are willing to edit the heck out of our books, we can get them in front of readers.

In my case, I’m ecstatic that The Vital Principle, a historical mystery has sold well over 100 copies in the first two weeks. It’s a start and a good one.

The Vital Principle
In 1815, an inquiry agent, Mr. Knighton Gaunt, is asked by Lord Crowley to attend a séance with the express purpose of revealing the spiritualist as a fraud. The séance ends abruptly, however, and during the turmoil, Lord Crowley dies. Gaunt is left to investigate not only fraud, but murder. Suspicion turns first to the spiritualist, Miss Prudence Barnard, but as Gaunt digs deeper into the twisted history of the guests at Rosecrest, he discovers more deadly secrets.  Inevitably, long-time friends turn against one another as the tension mounts and Gaunt is challenged to separate fact from fiction.

The Changing Face of Publishing

Lots of good news and plenty to watch in the world of publishing. With Borders and other bookstores struggling, we may be seeing a shift away from the brick-and-mortar stores to streams of electrons rather like the music revolution where record stores all but disappeared in favor of downloading MP3s. At least that’s the speculation, but how true is it? Really?

It’s not entirely true for music, so I doubt it’s entirely true that within five years or so, paperback books will be a thing of the past.

Here’s the thing: there are still CDs being produced and sold. There’s an entire aisle of them in my local Wal-Mart, for example. Not everyone who is interested in music has a computer and access to the Internet. Wow. Did you realize that a significant portion of the people in the United States don’t have computers or access to the Internet? I’m not making this up. It’s true. Yes, some of them go into places like libraries to use the computers there, but still…

Music CDs still exist, although many folks seem to forget this.

And while the music stores are mostly gone, CDs are sold through other outlets. And I have every confidence that books, following the same trends, will move along similar lines. We may see the demise of the dedicated bookstore, I seriously doubt all printed books will disappear within the next five years (or so). I have every confidence that paperbacks, like CDs, will continue to be sold in outlets like Wal-Mart and Target. There will be significant portions of the population who don’t have e-readers or any kind and chose not to read books on their smartphone. They may not have computers, either.

 

Not every person who reads owns a computer or wishes to read a book in electronic form, just like enough people prefer to buy CDs and play them on their CD player.


So while I read Konrath’s blog about e-publishing, I have a difference in opinion in some of the details. For example, I think he’s downright crazy to tell a fellow author to decline a 200K traditional book contract in favor of self-publishing. That’s just crazy. You never, ever turn down a 200K “sure thing” that includes a substantial advance. It’s always better to get a large chunk of money in one lump sum than drips and drabs spread out over time, because of interest. Even if you earn 1%, you’ll have more at the end of one year with a large chunk + interest, than you will getting a small trickle.


And after all, he forgets that Mr. Big Author who gets the 200K traditional contract can then be published, get the name/acclaim, and eventually get his rights back if he wishes and self-publish that same work, in essence, double-dipping.

So I don’t think self-publishing is the only answer from here on out. And since this is a topic which interests me, I’ll be writing a few more blogs about the publishing industry and self-publishing.

Now…for my news.

The Vital Principle – a historical mystery that takes place in the early years of the 19th century is out! An inquiry agent is hired to expose a spiritualist as a fraud, only to be enmeshed in his employer’s murder. I’ve already gotten one terrific review, and it’s sold more in its first week than some of my other small press books have sold in several months. That’s always encouraging.

Right now, it’s only sale for $.99 as a “special introductory price”. Like Konrath, I’m exploring what prices are appropriate for novels. We’ll see how it all turns out over the next few months.


Wacked! – This cozy mystery has gone through the first series of edits with my wonderful editor at Five Star/Gale and now I’m eagerly awaiting news about the cover. I’m dying to see what they come up with. The heroine is an overworked computer specialist (like me) who stumbles into a murder investigation. Thanks to this contract, I was able to join Mystery Writers of America! I’m thrilled and it’s just in time for the Malice Domestic conference. I’m hoping to attend this yearly conference on a regular basis as it lets me visit the area where I grew up.


A Fall of Silver – The Wild Rose Press accepted my second paranormal romance! I love my editor, so I’m very, very happy about this. For those who read my first paranormal, Vampire Protector, you may remember a secondary character named Quicksilver. This book is her story. It is much darker, edgier and sexier than any of my other books, so I’m a little nervous about it. But sometimes, my dark side just demands to be heard.


Next on my roster is another mystery set in the 19th century. I’m working on the second round of edits. I’m calling it A Rose Before Dying, at least for now. We’ll see if that turns out to be the final title or not.


That’s it for now!