Blending Genres by Terry Odell As readers, most of us have favorite genres. Some like romance, some like mysteries, some like science fiction or fantasy. Of course, some like more than one. But within each genre are many sub-genres. Romances can be sweet, hot, suspenseful. Mysteries can be cozies, police procedurals, suspense. And so on. […]
Having a Second Home by Nancy J. Cohen Having a second home can be a burden or a joy. You’re responsible for taxes, insurance, and homeowners’ association fees along with utilities and other expenses. We bought a condo in Orlando after years of visiting our kids in school there and afterward when they’d graduated and […]
Try, Try Again By Karla Brandenburg Sometimes, I’m like a bull in a china shop, although I make the attempt not to do permanent damage and knock things over. I have a tendency to rush into things, to be in a hurry. This has come to my attention again recently as I 1) started to […]
The Eclipse By Tina Whittle On August 21, 2017, the world will end when the giant cosmic snake of darkness eats the sun and the universe goes dark. Unless of course the evil is thwarted and the sun vanquishes the shadow and returns to its right and good fullness in the sky. Spoiler alert—I’m betting […]
Energy Vamps By Maggie Toussaint There’s a new critter in my latest Dreamwalker Mystery, Dadgummit. I stumbled upon the idea of an energy vampire in the oddest way, through a conversation with a friend. Somehow our chat drifted to the topic of people who are exhausting. Some people exhaust me because they seem to be […]
A Short Story to You From Me by Terry Odell When we founded Booklover’s Bench, we wanted a place to talk to—and listen to—readers. June and July have been very busy months for me, and the stress level has been high. For me, reading has always been an escape, and I thought that I’d share […]
To Nap or Not to Nap by James M Jackson … that is a question I used to struggle with. Now, I am a confirmed napper. My preferred nap lasts 20-30 minutes. If I sleep longer than that, I wake up a grogamuffin—what scientists call sleep inertia—and I waste a bunch of time trying to […]
A Taste of the Past by Nancy J. Cohen Recently I’ve begun sifting through my cookbook collection to see which ones I can donate to our local library. My days of cooking elaborate meals are over. Ironically enough, just before I headed down to the Mystery Fest Key West, I came across this Key West […]
My Life is a Musical by Karla Brandenburg When I tell someone about the “Song Affliction” illness in my family, I’m amazed at how many other people suffer from this same sickness. You know, that feeling when someone says something and the first thing that comes to mind is a song snippet and you break […]
The Path of the Unexpected By Tina Whittle One of the hardest lessons I’ve had to learn about being creative is that to fire up the creative juice, you have to put yourself into the path of the unexpected, the unfamiliar, and the radical. You have to afflict your sense of well-being and make yourself […]
