Guest Post on Hopelessly Devoted Bibliophile: The Character in the Flaw

by Murder MysteryWriting

I was invited to be a guest poster on Hopelessly Devoted Bibliophile’s site, talking on the topic of building characters in fiction: how to make them interesting, without resorting to giving them, say, an eye patch.*

Excerpt: “Asked to read a first draft, a beta reader informed me: ‘It’s okay, but your main character doesn’t have enough flaws.’ A second reader said of the same draft replied, ‘She has too many flaws!’ This led me to ask the question: When is your lead character sufficiently flawed enough to be interesting, but not too much that it alienates the reader? In the case of Sherlock Holmes, the character does heroin for a little while, either for undercover work or for fun/addiction, but only enough to make him dark and edgy. Watson, the reader’s guide, dries him out. You can make you character an alcoholic, but at some point the character has to remain vertical long enough to solve a crime…”

You can read the rest of the post on Hopelessly Devoted Bibliophile’s site here!

(*Disclaimer – I love eye patches!)

Another solution might be to give your character an adorable companion… like say a puppy… or forty-four meerkats.

Shameless Plug: Meerkat Murders by R. J. Corgan is coming in Summer 2019!!

Guest Post on What Cathy Read Next: ‘Putting Science in Fiction’

by Murder MysteryWriting

Last week it was a pleasure to be featured as a guest poster on What Cathy Read Next, discussing the topic of ‘Putting Science in Fiction.’

Here’s an excerpt:

“Scientists leading expeditions in the remotest regions of the world are often doing a mad balancing act. Putting aside the fact that they have to acquire funding, manage the logistics for travel, food, and equipment for all of their team members, they also have to ensure the safety of every member under hazardous conditions. They do this while simultaneously mentoring and educating students, managing course loads, and addressing concerns, and enlisting the help, of local populations…

“I wrote Cold Flood as a tribute to these researchers. They labor to publish their findings in peer-reviewed journals, ones most of us will never read. I hope that by telling their story, the reader will get a glimpse of some amazing places and spend some time getting to know some truly amazing people – and maybe be inspired to join an expedition themselves.”

You can read the full review on Cathy’s blog here! 

New review of Cold Flood posted on A-Thrill-A-Week!

by Murder Mystery

New review of Cold Flood posted on A-Thrill-A-Week, a blog that ‘Reviews Thriller Book Series from a Scientific Viewpoint’

Not only is it a great review, the blog provides additional scientific insight!

Also from the blogger’s page (which I love):

Signs you’ve become a mad scientist:

– When you stop calling the people who staff your laboratory “grad students” and start calling them “minions” instead.

– When doing your hair in the morning requires 1000 volts but no conditioner.

– When the number of burn marks or bloodstains on your white coat exceeds the number of coffee stains.

– When your inventions are labelled with any of the prefixes super-, mega-, death-, psychic-, or, with the obvious exceptions, space-.

– When your laboratory is located in any of the following: a cave, a castle, a dungeon, a zeppelin, or a geodesic dome.

– When any part of your equipment requires being struck by lightning to function.