jeff markowitz, mystery writer - my blog

... to a virtual Murder Mystery Party, on my blog, http://doahsdeer.xanga.com tonight (Thursday) at 6:30 eastern time.

At 6:30, I'll open the party with a bit of introductory information and I'll lay out the premise for the case we need to solve.  If you've ever been to a Murder Mystery Party, you'll be familiar with what we're trying to do, only we're going to do it virtually.  But mostly, whether or not we break the case, our primary intention is to have fun. 

The mystery concerns the untimely death of an author at a library reception in his honor.  Nine xangans have agreed to play a part in the mystery and all nine are therefore suspects in the crime.  (I will be playing the part of the dearly departed).  Each of these nine  will have certain secrets and clues.  What information they choose to share and what they withhold, what they exaggerate and what they fabricate, will determine how the case is solved.  Although it is this group of nine who will be "playing the game" everyone is welcome to join in the fun.  Because we need people to help us drink the virtual wine and eat the virtual hors d'ouevres.  We need people, according to my friend thinlizzy, to gossip, speculate, and throw other people off the track of the real killer.  And mostly, we need people to help create the virtual fun.  So I hope you'll join us.  Here's your official list of suspects -

Youandwhosearmy – Youandwhosearmy is a landscape engineer with the contract for maintaining the library’s landscaping.  He would love to get the library’s waste disposal business as well, but we all know who controls the waste disposal business.  An aspiring poet, in his tight jeans and t-shirts, youandwhosearmy is a favorite of the library staff.

Saintvi – Saintvi is never without her hoodie and her bandanna.  She is a petty criminal, looking for an opportunity to curry favor with the local crime syndicate.

GoodGuyTheBoss – GoodGuyTheBoss likes to keep a low profile.  She runs organized crime in a three county area.  She is a doting grandmother and dangerous godfather.

JVRCisMe – JVRCisMe plays the library director.  She thinks the library is just about perfect, if only she could figure out how to keep out the riffraff.

I once was – I once was is the riffraff.  He is a homeless man, a regular at the library, where he uses the public restroom for his daily toilette.  He spends many hours at the library, reading everything from Tolstoy to Tolkein from Shopenauer to Chabon.  His head is crammed with esoteric facts and keen observations.  He could be useful, if only you could understand him.

Repressedwriter – Repressedwriter is an out-of-work nanny.  She once worked for doahsdeer’s mistress, caring for doahsdeer’s love child.  She lost her job when doahsdeer stopped making payments and has been unable to find work ever since.

Shahrazad1973 – Shahrazad is doahsdeer’s love child.

And I love – And I love plays the part of the President of the Friends of the Library.  She will host the library reception for doahsdeer.  And she wonders why the library can't attract a famous author for the event.

Bricker59 – Bricker59 is the Adult Reference Librarian.  When the library director offends people, it’s his job to smooth over the bad feelings.

I hope to see you tonight.

If you’ve read either of my first two mysteries, you know that Cassie O’Malley works for a barely reputable tabloid magazine where she covers “everything out of the ordinary” in the New Jersey Pine Barrens.  She has reported on space aliens and sea monsters, on psychic spies and Siamese triplets.  But now she has writer’s block.  She needs your help identifying weird people, places, legends and myths to write about.  And she’s willing to venture beyond NJ’s borders to find them....

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I have known for a couple of months that I wanted to "kick off" the promotion of my new book at Book Expo America.    BEA is "the premier event for the North American publishing industry" with more than 500 authors, 1500 exhibitors and thousands of individuals from every facet of the book publishing world.    It's common for authors and publishers at BEA to give away Advance Reading Copies in an effort to generate some buzz prior to the book's official release.  This year, BEA is at the Javit...
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Write one sentence by May 28th.  Just one sentence.  One very good sentence.  And be published by the Perseus Book Group by May 30th.

Okay, now that I have your attention. 

The Perseus Group has announced plans for BOOK: The Sequel, to be published in conjunction with Book Expo America next week.  Here's the idea, BOOK: The Sequel will consist of first sentences, and first sentences only, from sequels you wish the author had written.  That's right.  Pick your favorite book.  Then come up w...

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That's right.  From his teenage years, up until the time he died, Beat writer, Jack Kerouac had an obsession with fantasy baseball.  This was, of course, long before fantasy baseball as we know it today.  But Kerouac created a fantasy league, the teams and players, and he played the game obsessively, keeping stats, refining the game over many years, writing newsletters about the teams, even reporting on fictional business deals and contract disputes.  He kept his obsession a secret, even from...
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When her second book of poetry was being prepared for release, Saadia Ali Aschemann was kind enough to ask me for a quote she might use.  As I recall, I said something about her "extraordinary poetic voice” and her “unerring ear for poetry.”  So I am very pleased to interview her today for National Poetry Month.



Jeff:  Who first got you interested in writing poetry?

Saadia:  I don’t remember any one person who was responsible for my interest in poetry. I began to write poetry as a so...
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Sometimes, even a finder of dead bodies needs a day off.  I spent the week-end in DC, and I'm sure there were dead bodies there for the finding, but it was someone else's job to find them.  We spent Friday night at one of our favorite jazz clubs, Blues Alley, for crabcakes and the Cyrus Chestnut Trio.  And Saturday, we spent the afternoon at the US Botanical Gardens, with a quick stop at the National Gallery of Art (the Calder room and the Matisse cut-outs in the West Gallery) before an Ethio...
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I love books.  New books, like a brand-new automobile before the first ding, pristine, with that new car smell and that shiny new body, practically begging you to take it out for a spin.  And old books, especially old books, worn and tattered like a favorite pair of blue jeans.  My house overflows with books.  And I wonder sometimes, this attachment to books.  Because it's not really about the book is it, it's about the story, it's about the author's words, the author's voice.

I remind myself ...
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Each year, for the last 30 years, The Bookseller has awarded the Diagram Prize for the oddest book title of the year.  You may recall that last year's winner was If You Want Closure in Your Relationship, Start with Your Legs.  Somehow, I failed to remember this year's contest in time to alert you all to vote for your favorite title.  The nominees this year included:

Curbside Consultation of the Colon
Baboon Metaphysics
The 2009-2114 World Outlook for 60-miligram Containers of Fromage Frais
Strip ...
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Two years ago, sensing a renewed interest in roller derby, I considered putting Cassie O'Malley on skates.  Although I continue to believe that ladies flat track roller derby offers a wonderful setting for a quirky murder mystery, I have no plans to develop the idea.  But I'm not sure I ever shared with you the photos from my research at the East Coast Derby Extravaganza in March 2007.

   

I still think roller derby offers a unique setting for some wonderful stories.  Just because...

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