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  • When Culinary Traditions Become Literary Gold

    Thank you for the opportunity to spend some time here on Booklover’s Bench! I’m here today to talk about what happened when I combined my love of Virgin Islands cuisine and my passion for writing mysteries. Trust me, we all have one—a culinary tradition that instantly comes to mind whenever the topic of home comes up. Maybe it’s a dish from the region where you were born. Maybe it’s an annual food-related festival centered in the town where you went to college, or where you lived and worked for a while. Maybe it’s a cooking technique or culinary habit that’s prevalent in the area where you live now. No matter what “home” means to you, chances are… […]

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Let's Talk with Maggie Toussaint

“Whoooo are you, Maggie Toussaint"

Whoooooo are you? I ask myself that question at various times because I’ve worn different hats in my lifetime. Growing up in the 1960s in a shrimping community of mostly relatives was an idyllic experience and the end of the Baby Boomer spike in population growth. So, it is always poignant looking back to those golden days of glorious freedom, exploration, and innocence. I am often asked if there was any one thing that shaped me into a multi-award-winning author, currently…

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Win Two Free Books – July 2026

Contest Run: July 1-22, 2026
Win Two Free Books - July 2026

  • Enter to win two free books in this month’s giveaway:

    Maggie Toussaint – Flamed Out, print (US only) or e-book
    Cheryl Hollon – Death a Sketch, print (US only) or e-book

     

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On The Bench

Characters on the Bench

This week our amateur sleuths share what’s important to them. Can you guess what they all have in common? We think you’ll love hearing their answers!

Read the complete "On The Bench"!

Latest News

  • Terry Ambrose

    says that life has decided to play dodgeball with Terry—only Terry’s the target. Between bouncing from the breezy coast to the hotter-than-a-griddle desert and managing family plot twists worthy of a novel, his actual novel writing is currently on pause.

  • Nancy J. Cohen

    was a guest author on the Flamingo Files Podcast by MWA Florida Chapter.

    If you missed her book tour celebrating the release of DREIDELS AND DEAD ENDS, visit her Tour Stops now.

    And if you want to get caught up on her books, they’re all discounted this month at Smashwords.

  • Debra H. Goldstein

    says that despite being slowed while recovering from surgery, she has managed to sign contracts for two new short stories that will appear in 2026 and 2027 and one reprint story. She also is working on a long writing project.

  • Cheryl Hollon

    is keeping cool at her keyboard while Florida’s summer sizzles outside. She’s embracing the delightful challenge of short fiction with stories to submit to five anthology projects.

  • Maggie Toussaint

    is busy editing her fall release of a new cozy paranormal mystery series.

  • Lois Winston

    is continuing to make progress on the 16th book in her Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series and is preparing for the Killer Nashville conference in August where she’ll present a workshop on Goal, Motivation, and Conflict: the Three Building Blocks of Every Novel, Synopsis, Pitch, and Back Cover Copy.