Sharon Lynn asks, Does your character think like you?

Sharon Lynn is the author of Death Takes a Bath. You can find out more about her on her website www.sharonlwrites.com, or by clicking here, see her last post here, and buy her books here. An important question every author should consider is ‘Does your character think like you?’ It’s okay if they do, it’s okay if they don’t. What’s not okay, is if they think like you but are of a different gender. Hear me out. Male brains are wired differently than female ones. The changes go back to when our society consisted of hunters and gatherers. Men needed…

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Sharon Lynn Asks How Do You Kill Your Darlings?

Sharon Lynn's short stories have appeared in multiple anthologies. Her Cotswold Crime series will debut in December 2022 with Death Takes a Bath. You can find out more about her on her website, or by clicking here, see her stories here, and read her last post here. Kill Your Darlings is a phrase used in both writing and filmmaking. It refers to those scenes that you labored over, that you lovingly crafted, that you tell your editor are deal breakers.  When making a movie, it is often the scene that the director spent the most money on, used the most…

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Sharon Lynn Asks Do You Prefer Whisky or Whiskey?

Sharon Lynn is the author of multiple short stories. You can find out more about her here, see the anthologies featuring her work here, and read her last post here. Wine gets a lot of attention, both in fiction and life. Who doesn’t like a nice glass of Chardonnay while staring at the fire?  But have you considered whisky lately? I’m thinking of starting a cozy series in the world of my short story Carne Diem. The characters would focus on cocktails instead of wine, and the Main Character would be an expert on whisky. So, naturally, I’ve been doing…

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Sharon Lynn Asks What Distracts You?

Sharon Lynn's short stories have been featured in multiple anthologies, the most recent being the Malice Domestic Anthology, Murder Most Theatrical. You can find out more about her here, see her books here, and read her last post here. As anyone who has seen my social media the last couple of months will know, I was gifted with a puppy this year! A half border collie/half mini-Aussie bundle of inexhaustible energy. And with him comes new things I say. The number one phrase I never thought I would utter: “Get the puppy outof the dishwasher.” The phrase I never thought…

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Sharon Lynn asks: Do you have an untended tradition?

Sharon Lynn writes short stories which have appeared in numberous anthologies, including her most recent, Final Curtain, which is in the 2020 Malice Domestic anthology, Mystery Most Theatrical. Click here for her latest post. Her books are here, and you can find out more about her here. One year my husband decided to spend two days making bagels to surprisemy daughter and me. It was a Valentine’s Day morning, and we awoke tofresh, heart-shaped bagels in our favorite flavors: salt for ourdaughter, jalapeño for me. Needless to say, the whole endeavor was ahuge hit! So much so, that the poor…

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Sharon Lynn Asks What’s Your Fave Halloween Movie?

And here are some books to add to your reading list, compiled by Sharon Lynn. You can find out more about her here. First and foremost, mysteries by Blackbird Writers that take place in the Fall or are Autumn or Halloween themed. Add these to your reading list! After you get your reading in place, it’s time to chat about movies. Halloween Themed: Death Overdue by Allison Brook Circle of Nine: 3 book series by Valerie Biel Fall Themed: Five-Alarm Fudge (Fudge Shop Mystery Series) by Christine DeSmet When the Dead People Brought a Dish-to-Pass (Mischief in Moonstone Series) by Christine DeSmet…

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Why Do You Read Mysteries?

By Sharon Lynn "Give them pleasure. The same pleasure they have when they wake up from a nightmare.” -Alfred Hitchcock I trace my fear of total darkness to growing up in Flagstaff, Arizona, anInternational Dark City. When the sun goes down, it is so dark you can see the Milky Way. Beautiful, but also scary when walking home at night. Catharsis The ancient Greeks knew that watching tragic drama released tension and stress in the audience. The cathartic reaction is where we experience intense emotions and then cast them off because nothing terrible actually happened to us. Modern Mystery and…

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