In this week’s Corks & Conversation with Sheila Lowe episode, we learned about handwriting analysis, book writing, and publishing! Have a listen …

Sheila Lowe is the author of six non-fiction and ten fiction books, so she knows some tricks for productivity and what works for her:

“I’m a plotter, I’ve tried pantsing it before on my third book Dead Write and I wrote about five chapters and then months went by and I said ‘Oh… I better write an outline’” 

And her tip for reaching the creative side of our brains:

“I found that writing that part by hand, rather than on the computer, it’s a much more creative process. As a handwriting analyst, I know there are brain reasons why that’s true. It’s a really good thing to do- write with your hand” 

In her latest book of her award-winning Claudia Rose suspense series, Dead Letters, Sheila brings us to the unique and fascinating setting of Egypt. 

Get your copy and prepare to be transported! (indie bookshop.org or Amazon.com)  

Sheila also discussed her publishing journey and the need for marketing professionals.

“Writing is hard, selling your books to a publisher is harder, but the hardest thing of all is marketing and getting them known- and it’s kind of a science, I’ve found”

Here are some highlights from the episode:

2:22 It’s been a while since we had a White Zinfandel
4:32 How a trip to Germany lead to a mystery set in Egypt
6:15 Was she a scribe in a previous life?
6:40 Write what you know!
7:55 Documentation authentication is stressful work!
11:55 A story about a Madam lead to her first book!
15:55 A handwriting analysis of Shonda Rhimes!

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel.

And please subscribe right here to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!

Our holiday plans and holiday gift ideas were the topic for this week’s funny Black Friday episode! Have a listen …

We enjoyed a glass of Pinot Noir while we discussed our holiday plans and traditions. Join us and find out how we say “Thanksgiving” differently in Florida and South Dakota. Who knew?

We also talked about the gifts we have on our lists! These are great ideas for those of you who want to avoid the crowds at the stores! We have pictures and links to order them right here on our website! 

You can also watch us on Youtube to see us demonstrate a few of the gift ideas!

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel. 

And please subscribe right here to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!

We enjoyed this week’s Corks & Conversation with Ashley Winstead episode so much! She was a delight and full of fun and insightful information! Have a listen …

The minutes just flew by during this great talk with Ashley Winstead, debut author of In My Dreams I Hold A Knife. We all sipped La Crema Pinot Noir as we discussed her series of disappointments while trying to become a published author. After many years of perfecting her craft, her breakthrough novel came to her so deeply that she found herself writing at a feverish pace.

“When I think back to the process of writing, it’s almost a body memory of feeling of being hunched over my laptop almost breathless, like I could not get the words on the page fast enough.”

The result was a debut novel that has opened to rave reviews!

“Beautiful writing, juicy secrets, complex female characters, and drumbeat suspense—what more could you want from a debut thriller?”—Andrea Bartz, author of Reese’s Book Club pick We Were Never Here

Get your copy of  In My Dreams I Hold A Knife and prepare to be hooked! (indie bookshop.org or Amazon.com)

We touched on so many interesting and informative subjects during our conversation. Ashley inspired us with her story of her dark night of the soul. She encouraged us with her experiences with Pitch Wars. And she gave us writing tips and her resources when it comes to character study.

“I am devoted to Lisa Cron’s Story Genius– it’s so good- and I fully believe in Lisa’s thesis in this book: plot is great and everything, but what readers are really coming to stories for is to immerse themselves in someone else’s mind. … I’ve used the Story Genius for every book I’ve written so far.” 

In case you want to get yourself a copy of Lisa Cron’s book, here are the links: indie bookshop.org or Amazon.com     

Ashley shared so much about writing and life that we wished we had hours to talk and drink red wine with her! 

Here are some highlights from the episode:
5:30 Unlikeable women –
5:45 Her failure book
6:30 Pitch Wars wasn’t what she expected
7:27 Public Failings
8:47 A dark night of the soul led to her debut
13:00 A 42 page outline!
18:46 A weekend in Tuscany
20:10 Pitch Wars comes full circle

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel. 

And please subscribe right here  to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!

In this week’s Corks & Conversation with Raquel V. Reyes, we had a fun and enlightening time. Have a listen …

We are finally together again, at Cathi’s beautiful home in South Dakota, and thrilled to be meeting with Raquel V. Reyes, the debut author of Mango, Mambo, and Murder. We know Raquel from way back, as she is co-chair of Sleuthfest, where we both met. She is such an inspiration for us! And we love her cozy mystery featuring a Cuban-American cooking show star and amateur sleuth, Miriam Quinones-Smith. We suggest you get a copy of this novel for a fun read or even a gift for the mystery and foodie lovers in your family! (indie bookshop.org or Amazon.com) 

On top of that her novel was given a good review by the New York Times … 

“Raquel V. Reyes’s series debut, MANGO, MAMBO, AND MURDER, furthers my belief that the cozy mystery has become one of the most diverse, and most vibrant, in contemporary crime fiction…it executes its mission — mixing standard tropes, memorable characters, the importance of family and murder in unexpected quarters — with panache.”

We shared a glass of Albarino, a Spanish white wine, while we asked Raquel about her inspiration for this novel. Turns out the first scene came to her and she built the story from that.

“The first that came to me was the scene, which I wrote as the opening scene, where the first body drops. She’s sitting next to somebody and her face flops into the chicken salad. The image was there, the sound was there, the wilty little green lettuce, I mean I just had it all there.”

Another aspect of this novel that had us salivating was all the good Caribbean cooking that was “Abuela approved.” Raquel had inspiration for this since she grew up in Miami around Cuban grandparents and all the authentic Caribbean cooking.

“There would always be stuff cooking. There was always, on the back of the stove, a pot of either orange peels or grapefruit peels, and she was making marmalade… and then she would also make the little meringue bites, the little meringue kisses”

This novel is the start of, hopefully, a long-running cozy series, so we asked Raquel about her writing routine with deadlines. She explained,

“I don’t think everybody has to write everyday. You know, the people who can lock themselves in a room and come out with 60k words, they don’t need to write everyday. But there are some of who do need to write everyday, and that consistency really works for me”

You are sure to enjoy this episode where Raquel gives us a lot of laughs and insight!

Some highlights from the Episode:
5:55 Miriam, her protagonist is a food anthropologist and home cook
9:25 The book’s dedication story
10:10 Anyone else scared of pressure cookers?
11:05 Why we love cozy mysteries and humor
17:47 She planted Easter eggs for the Miami crowd
18:30 Raquel’s NYT Book Review story
24:44 The great thing about cozies? There’s something for everyone!

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel. 

And please subscribe right here to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!

In this week’s Corks & Conversation with Samantha Downing, we talked with the best-selling author of My Lovely Wife about her latest novel, For Your Own Good. Have a listen …

Samantha Downing is a bestselling author who joined us from New Orleans! We had to postpone our recording from earlier this season because of Hurricane Ida. Thankfully, Samantha’s home survived the storm and after a few weeks without power and internet, things are back to normal. As normal as things are these days! 

We shared a wine that seemed appropriate for the experience, a red wine called Rough Day. This theme also spills over to her diabolical characters, which is a good thing for dark and twisty thrillers! Her latest book, For Your Own Good, takes place in an elite private school. Not much wine drinking but the coffee can kill you! And it’s a perfect setting for a thriller, because as Samantha puts it,

“It’s the great thing about setting a book in high school: we’ve all been in it, and we’ve all, even if you didn’t go to a private high school, had a high school experience and you may have kids who are now in high school”

For Your Own Good is another of her “stay up all night” reading books! We aren’t the only ones who think so. It has been optioned by Robert Downey, Jr and Greg Berlanti for HBO Max! Get a copy of this page-turner book (indie bookshop.org or Amazon.com) and enjoy!  When we asked about how much she plans her plots, she said not at all! She describes her process,

“I start with a character; like in this one I knew it was going to be a bad teacher. That’s all I knew. I didn’t know anything else. And then I just go. The first chapter is really when the first decisions are made. And the more chapters you write the more decisions that are made and it just goes from there”

While this process has worked to produce some great novels, she admits that the plot doesn’t always come together.

“At the 20,000 word mark, I know whether I have a story that can carry on for another 65,000 words or whether the story just isn’t big enough. Sometimes it’s just not there, it’s just a smaller story. And sometimes I just get bored at the 20,000 word mark- I’m not into it, I personally am not into it- and I’ll throw it out. So I throw out that stuff all the time”

Samantha loves to write and she edits along the way. Because, for her, the creating part is more fun than the rewriting. However she does it, we look forward to her next novel!

Some highlights from the Episode:

3:55 When Hurricane Ida hit
5:15 It all started with the idea of bad teacher
8:30 You’ll never think about coffee pods the same way
10:54 The effects adults have on children is a theme that shows up in all her books
15:22 Why The Shining and The Exorcist are just too scary
18:08 Why the Domestic Thriller is her perfect genre

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel.  

And please subscribe right here to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!

In this week’s Corks & Conversation with Lisa Renee Jones, we had all the fun and inspiration we could hope for! Have a listen …

Lisa Renee Jones  is a bestselling author who has written more than 100 books! Amazing, right? We wanted to know how she does it. It comes down to her strong work ethic formed by owning her own business.

“You’re writing to deadlines, so it’s a job. You have to look at it like that. And if you think ‘it’s so great you get to write books for a living,’ and it is, don’t get me wrong, but it is a job. If you are sick, if you have something personal going on, you still have to write the book.”

Lisa writes both romance and thrillers. In her latest standalone thriller, The Poet, profiler Samantha Jazz goes after a serial killer who leaves poems with his victims. This novel follows Samantha through a harrowing cat and mouse game with the killer. A great read! Get a copy of the book (indie bookshop.org or Amazon.com) and enjoy this page-turner with a glass of Meiomi Pinot Noir, like we did. 

We shared lots of laughs about life and even our early music crushes. Along the way Lisa gave us some good advice on how to be a success as an author.

“Write the book, and then also remember that one book does not make a career. You don’t have to write a hundred books to be successful, but one book is not a career. I see these authors that will get obsessed about this one book- “this is the book of my life”- but no one book is the book of your life. Does Dan Brown have one book? They want authors who can produce and can continue to make money”

Because at the end of the day, if we want to have a career in writing, we have to put on a business hat some of the time. As Lisa says,

“The other thing that people don’t understand is: it’s a business, it’s about making money. So you have to make money, because if you don’t, the publishers won’t make money”

Some highlights from the Episode:

:57 We’re finally together!
6:38 All of her works, including romance, have thriller aspects!
7:06 Her relationship with Storage Wars
9:19 The inspiration behind the detectives in her thrillers
16:00 Rick Springfield or Andy Gibb??
26:54 Lisa’s advice to other writers

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel. 

And please subscribe right here to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!

In this week’s Corks & Conversation II with M.E. Browning, we had a fun talk that covered so many topics you will want to listen more than once … 

Award winning author, Micki Browning,   returns to our podcast this season to introduce our listeners to her new book Mercy Creek and to fill us in on what has happened over the past year. Mercy Creek is the second in her Jo Wyatt Mystery series about a Colorado Detective. As a retired police captain, Micki knows her stuff! Her books keep you guessing right to the end and her protagonist, Jo, is as tough as they come. Amazon compares her gritty crime fiction to the likes of Tana French and John Grisham! You can order your copy of the book here: indie bookshop.org or Amazon.    And as a bonus this month, you can get the first book in the series, Shadow Ridge, on kindle for only $1.99! 

When asked about how writing during the pandemic went, Micki said she was glad she had a deadline to keep her on track.

“I didn’t have a lot of creative energy during the pandemic at first, and you get so overwhelmed- I know there were some people who thought ‘oh, I’m home, I’ve got all this time, I’m going to really buckle down and this’ll be the time that I write the great American novel’- I didn’t have that. It was really tough for a while”

She also credits the support of her critique partner of eleven years, Mandy Mikulencak, for helping her stay on track.

“Really good partnership because we catch different things”

We covered so many interesting topics. For instance, we really liked what Micki had to say about book reviews.

“I heard one author say that if you have all great reviews, you haven’t reached enough of an audience. You’ve got this niche audience but once you start getting ‘you know, it was okay’, now you’ve started to reach beyond who you wrote it for and some of them are going to really like it and some are going to be ‘eh, meh.’”

This was such a fun and informative chat over a glass of cabernet sauvignon, appropriately named 1000 Stories! 

Some highlights from the episode:

6:10 writing during the pandemic, creative energy or the lack thereof
7:45 the twist at the ending
9:02 “Serendipity came into play”
12:33 investigating missing children
15:35 small town dynamics – “In small towns, everyone has their secrets”
18:30 doom scrolling
25:00 Good company on Amazon

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel. 

And please subscribe right here to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!

In this week’s Corks & Conversation II with Elizabeth Breck, we talked with this California PI turned author one year after her debut novel came out! Have a listen …

Elizabeth Breck  returns to our podcast this season to introduce our listeners to her new book Double Take and to fill us in on what has happened over the past year. Double Take is the second in her Madison Kelly Mystery series about a California PI. We love Madison, her surfing lifestyle in San Diego, and, of course, following her harrowing investigations. You’re sure to enjoy it too! You can order your copy of the book here: indie bookshop.org or Amazon.    And as a bonus this month, you can get her first book, Anonymous, on kindle for only $1.99! 

If you are wondering what type of mysteries these are, here’s what Elizabeth has to say …

“I write, in my opinion, classic mysteries with thriller elements, so I call them thrilling mysteries” 

The protagonist, Madison Kelly, is characterized as a tough cookie, but in this book we also see her vulnerable side as she deals with medical and relationship issues. We really get to know her and are glad that there will be more to come in the series! As Elizabeth puts it …

“It’s the thing I like as a reader, when you pick up the next book in a series and the same cast of characters are there.”

Some of you may remember from her episode last season, Corks & Conversation with Elizabeth Breck, that she is a meticulous organizer and planner in her approach to writing. Her excel spreadsheets even go as far as predicting chapter word count. Cathi loves this and Christie can’t even imagine! But for Elizabeth it has paid off! The pacing and suspense is excellent.

Another important aspect of a novel is to have a great opening, which Elizabeth realized a long time ago. As she says …

“When we used to have bookstores – No, we do, we have bookstores!  Go to the bookstore! –  I would go in, and my favorite thing was to go to the mystery aisle and pick up a book and read the first page and if it got me, I bought the book.”

This was such a fun and informative chat over a glass of pinot grigio! 

Some highlights from the Episode:

7:30 Elizabeth’s methodical method of writing
11:44 Madison Kelly is the female version of Jack Reacher
14:55 The trip to the Cancer Center was based on Elizabeth’s real life
28:54 There’s more Madison Kelly and her cast of characters coming
29:39 Writing about the pandemic

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel.

And please subscribe right here  to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!

In this week’s Corks & Conversation with Clare Whitfield, we reached across the ocean to England for a funny and inspiring chat over a glass of Sancerre. Have a listen …

This episode was a real winner, with laughs about life and writing! British Author Clare Whitfield has been a dancer, copywriter, amateur fire breather, buyer and mediocre weight lifter. And now a very entertaining guest on our podcast!

We couldn’t wait to talk to Clare Whitfield  about her debut book, People of Abandoned Character! We really enjoyed this historical mystery set during the time of Jack the Ripper, and it seems we are not alone. Just after recording, her novel won the prestigious 2021 Glass Bell Award, given by Goldsboro Books in London.  Maybe our toast to winning the award might have had something to do with it? Actually, Clare gets all the credit! Congratulations! You can order your copy of the book here: indie bookshop.org or Amazon.      

We asked Clare about her choice to write a historical mystery. Here’s what she said…

“I’m definitely a history nerd, I love a bit of history, but no, it was a really odd sort of project if I’m honest. I love reading about history but the thought of taking on anything historical fiction was really really intimidating to me. So if you’d have told me I intended to write my first novel about Jack the Ripper, and also, you know historical, no I wouldn’t have the guts to do that.” 

When asked about researching historical accuracy, Clare said:

“I really enjoyed researching, I enjoy research. I’m quite a sad hermit-type creature and I really love geeking out on the detail” 

And after a few more sips of wine, we got into the gaslighting by the husband of the protagonist, Susannah. Here’s Clare’s hypothesis on why it was probably prevalent during this time … 

“I don’t want to get on a soapbox, but I will because, you know, the Sancerre [wine]. Women are taught a lot to consider other people’s feelings and consider other people’s opinions and that makes them ripe pickings, as you say, for gaslighting. You’re constantly chained to “Oh you’re probably wrong, what about them” whereas you’ve got one half of the population [men], especially in Victorian times, who weren’t being taught to consider anyone else.” 

Some highlights from the Episode:

9:20 The pressure of writing historical fiction
10:55 Why Jack the Ripper?
23:17 Clare’s goal was 120 rejections
12:15 The relevance of Victorian times
16:10 The complex relationships in the story
18:50 Clare’s most unique talent
28:54 A great Dumb and Dumber reference
30:00 The Gone and Forgotten is coming next June!
31:40 She’s a bit of a banshee when she’s writing

You can play the episodes from our website, wherever you listen to podcasts or watch them on our YouTube Channel.

And please subscribe right here  to get an email with each new episode released. You’ll get a monthly newsletter jam-packed with cool information, contests, and our new GOB Recs where we give our current recommendations on what we are listening to, reading, and watching!

You can find all our episodes and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube, or right here on our website!