It's Kitty o'Clock somewhere!

"You know how felines are – the way they’ll rush around madly, only to suddenly plop down for an hours-long nap. Their insistence that they are starving and must be fed immediately, only to be sated a few licks, finishing up a split second later – or distracted by a passing shadow.

Book time is like that. It starts with an adrenaline spurt – that first geyser of inspiration – as the ideas, the characters, and the bits of dialogue burst forth. That’s the time when I’m prone to rush out of the shower to my computer – or stop in the middle of a workout to scribble down something I’ll have trouble deciphering later. (Dulcie misunderstands when Esmé says “Gryzsb!” or worse, “the CAPTION!”) Musetta, my own feline muse, knows to get out of my way when I’m in this mode, lest I barrel over her on my way to the desktop computer where most of my writing gets done...."

Today I guest blog over at The Conscious Cat. You can read more here.

"If you feel a shiver..."

"[I]f you do feel a shiver over the prospect of poring over obscure documents, if part of you salivates over all the things you could learn if only you had time for grad school, and if you can’t imagine learning anything without a wise feline as your guide…then you should dive in to the Dulcie Schwartz series...." This new review of my new (out this week!) Into the Grey says it all, pretty much! Thank you! (Read it all here.)

Thank you, Publishers Weekly!

INTO THE GREY doesn't pub in the U.S. until Sept. 1, but the early reviews are beginning to roll in. Publishers Weekly calls it "well plotted," adding that Dulcie "have to do a lot of searching in the stacks before she can clear her name. When the humans in Dulcie’s life let her down, she can turn to her late cat, Mr. Grey, who provides comfort and advice (“Only kittens rush about so heedlessly, Dulcie”) without playing any active role in the crime solving. Series fans will enjoy the latest developments in Dulcie’s saga..." I am thrilled!

"I want to be like common people..." (or at least my sleuth does!)

Wow, this year's Bouchercon is going to be great! In addition to being on a panel (and getting to hear literally hundreds of other authors speak, schmooze, joke, improvise, etc.), I get to moderate a panel called "Common People" about amateur sleuths - and I'll have the honor of overseeing Tim O'Mara, Susan Oleksiw, Marcia Talley, Con Lehane, and Suzanne Trauth on it. Kind of like herding cats, but you know we'll have fun. Hope to see you there!

Which side are you on, girl? Which side are you on?

The brilliant panel team of Jon Jordan and Judy Bobolik have put me on a Bouchercon panel called "Leather & Lace: Cozy vs. Hardcore." Now, as many of you know, I have written more than 20 cozies in the Theda Krakow, Dulcie Schwartz, and Pru Marlowe series. But I've started going darker with the Blackie and Care series ("Ninth Life") so I could go either way. Which do you think I should argue for? (And can't we all get along?)

Will you be at BOUCHERCON? I will!

So you know about Bouchercon, right? The largest annual mystery/crime fiction convention in the country (the world?) travels around each year, and this year, it will be in New Orleans. Mysteries and New Orleans... what's not to love, right? I'll be there, of course, and I just found out that I have the great honor to be on two panels! I'll be speaking on a panel called "Leather & Lace: Cozies vs. Hardcore" (all the panels are named for songs) on Friday, Sept. 16, at 11, and I'll be moderating "Common People: Amateur Sleuth" that afternoon at 3:30. The rest of the time, I'll be at one of the dozens of other panels or simply schmoozing. Did I mention that there will be more than 700 other authors there? What are you waiting for? Sign up NOW!