Inspiration | Mystery Writing is Murder

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Inspiration

Every year I’m amazed and inspired by the productivity and creativity surrounding National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo.) If you’re not familiar with it, the goal of NaNoWriMo is to write a novel in a month. You can log your progress online, participate in forums for different genres, and receive motivation, support, and encouragement from other writers.

Unfortunately, I never seem able to participate because I’m in the middle of a manuscript (to technically follow the rules, you’re supposed to start a new project), but I feed off of the creativity and excitement of the participants and lurk in the forums pretty frequently, too.

Interested in participating in NaNoWriMo next month? Here are some posts that have run recently to help you get prepared:

9 Ways to Prepare for the National Novel Writing Month NaNoWriMo starts right here, right now Planning for a Writing Push NaNoWriMo (main site)

Actually, I find inspiration in a lot of other ways too:

Bad books as inspiration. (Because I don’t want to write that poorly.)

Good books as inspiration. (I’m amazed at the author’s skill.)

Watching plays or going to a concert for inspiration.

Music as inspiration.

Housework for inspiration. (I don’t want to do it and I’ll have to start vacuuming if I stop writing.) :)

Taking a walk for inspiration.

Virtual interaction with other writers for inspiration.

In-person interaction with other writers for inspiration.

How do you find inspiration? And are you interested in participating in NaNoWriMo?

Quilt Trip--Dec. 2013--Quilting Mystery #3--Penguin/Signet

Quilt Trip--Dec. 2013--Quilting Mystery #3--Penguin/Signet

Muriel Starnes, an elderly eccentric, has organized a meeting of quilters to pick someone to administer a quilting scholarship. But once the quilters arrive at the mansion, it seems they may never leave. An ice storm sends an old tree crashing across the driveway, leaving them stranded for the night. And by the next morning, they are one fewer—for Muriel has been sent to meet her maker. With everyone in the house a suspect, it’s up to Beatrice and the Village Quilters to figure out who has a guilty conscience before someone else gets tied up in knots

Rubbed Out--Memphis BBQ #4--July 2013

Rubbed Out--Memphis BBQ #4--July 2013

Reuben Shaw rubs a lot of people the wrong way—including Lulu’s best friend, Cherry, who has the misfortune of being in the booth next to his at the festival. The pigheaded pit master thinks he’s a shoo-in to win the barbeque competition, but he spends more time stirring up trouble than seasoning his spare ribs. Hours after she gets into a quarrel with him, Cherry finds Shaw dead with a butcher knife in his chest. Now it’s her turn to get grilled—by the police. Lulu sets out to clear her friend’s name and finds Shaw had more secrets than his BBQ recipe. She’ll need to act fast, because the real killer will spare no one…including Lulu.

"Knot What it Seams"--Feb. 5, 2013

"Quilt or Innocence"--June 5 2012

"Quilt or Innocence"--June 5 2012

Southern Quilting Mysteries: As the newest member of the Village Quilters Guild, Beatrice has a lot of gossip to catch up on—especially with the Patchwork Cottage quilt shop about to close. It seems that Judith, the landlord everyone loves to hate, wants to raise the rent, despite being a quilter herself… But when Judith is found dead, the harmless gossip becomes an intricate patchwork of mischievous motives. And it’s up to Beatrice’s expert eye to decipher the pattern and catch the killer, before her life gets sewn up for good.

Hickory Smoked Homicide

Hickory Smoked Homicide

Memphis BBQ Mysteries: Since she runs the hottest BBQ joint in town, Lulu knows just about everyone in Memphis. But one person she'd rather not know is Tristan Pembroke, a snooty pageant coach with a mean streak longer than the line outside Lulu's restaurant. When she finds Tristan's dead body stuffed in a closet at a party, the police are suspicious--especially since Lulu's developed a taste for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Caught in a situation stickier than molasses, Lulu must clear her name--or risk getting fried...

"A Body in the Backyard"--a Myrtle Clover Mystery. Nov. 2012

"A Body in the Backyard"--a Myrtle Clover Mystery. Nov. 2012

It’s just an ordinary day for octogenarian sleuth Myrtle Clover—until her yardman discovers a dead body planted in her backyard. This death isn’t cut and dried—the victim was bashed in the head with one of Myrtle’s garden gnomes.Myrtle’s friend Miles recognizes the body and identifies him as Charles Clayborne… reluctantly admitting he’s a cousin. Charles wasn’t the sort of relative you bragged about—he was a garden variety sleaze, which is very likely why he ended up murdered. As Myrtle starts digging up dirt to nip the killings in the bud, someone’s focused on scaring her off the case. Myrtle vows to find the murderer…before she’s pushing up daisies, herself.

Pretty is as Pretty Dies

Pretty is as Pretty Dies

A Myrtle Clover Mystery: An August 1, 2009 release by Midnight Ink. The Publishers Weekly review: "The amusing first in a new cozy series from Craig...Myrtle's wacky personality is a delight." Mystery Scene magazine: "Craig’s skill at evoking a small town and its idiosyncratic inhabitants renders this mystery a pleasure to read. I’m looking forward to the further exploits of Myrtle Clover.” ForeWord Magazine: "The treat here is Myrtle’s eccentricity, brought to life with rich humor and executed for the most part with breezy skill." Mystery News: "Wonderful cozy mystery: solidly written, well-plotted and funny." Midwest Book Review: "I loved this book. The story is typical of a lot of small towns anywhere in the US, but Elizabeth Spann Craig added a new dimension with Myrtle and her elderly friends."