A Conversation with Clay Stafford

We’re excited about the discussion and Q&A on Clay’s creative journey, productivity, and getting the most out of Killer Nashville, the premier forum for all genres incorporating mystery, thriller, suspense, action, or romance elements.

Clay Stafford has had an eclectic career as an author, filmmaker, story and creative consultant, actor, composer, educator, public speaker, and business leader. He has sold nearly four million copies of his works in over sixteen languages. He is founder and CEO of the annual Killer Nashville International Writers’ Conference and a contributor to Writer’s Digest magazine with his monthly online column, “Killer Writer”. In addition, Clay is the founder of Killer Nashville University, a creative learning platform for writers. For more information, visit ClayStafford.com.

John Dedakis

Lynn Slaughter – Writing the Romantic Mystery

Catherine Luttinger – The Fine Art of Editing and Finding a Literary Agent

As the child of a family of writers, it’s no wonder Catherine Luttinger has worked in and around publishing for over twenty-five years. Editing wasn’t something she learned; it was a skill delivered by osmosis throughout her childhood.

Catherine spent the last twenty years at The Darhansoff & Verrill Literary Agency, as both a literary agent and an in-house editor. During that time, she had the opportunity to work with a spectrum of talented writers. She’s also worked as an editor at Scribner.

Today, Catherine works as a freelance editor, working with an authors in an intuitive, personal and deeply empathetic process. Her sharp ear for dialogue and character development, combined with her publishing savvy and ability to provide clear, actionable feedback make for a potent partnership. Thrillers, Mysteries, Fantasy and Memoir are her areas of expertise. Though she finds that her favorite books are the ones she’s currently working on.

Lisa Haneberg – Are You a Methodical Writer, Mystery Maverick, or Both?

Agatha Christie often broke the “rules” of mystery writing. And yet, one could argue her reliable storytelling kept readers coming back book after book. With juicy twists and surprises, of course. What can we learn from Christie’s measured, deliberate, but irreverent approach to bring new dimension to our stories? 

Lisa Haneberg loves to explore Galveston Island’s gritty back streets, stellar seafood joints, magnificent natural areas, and all points in between. In addition to the Spy Shop Mysteries she’s authored over a dozen nonfiction books. Lisa is a founding board member of the Lexington Writer’s Room, a nonprofit coworking space for active writers. She earned an MFA degree from Goddard College. She lives with her husband and dog in Lexington, Kentucky.

Kathy Stearman – It’s Not About the Gun

Former FBI Special Agent Kathy Stearman recounts the global experiences that shaped her life—and the mixed feelings she now holds about the sacrifices she had to make to survive in a man’s world.

Andrew Welsh-Huggins – AP Reporter / Mystery Author

Andrew is an Associated Press reporter and author of seven mystery novels featuring a former Ohio State and Cleveland Browns quarterback turned private investigator, including his new book, An Empty Grave.

His short mystery fiction has appeared in “Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine,” “Mystery Weekly” and “Mystery Tribune,” and he edited the 2020 anthology Columbus Noir. He’s also the author of two nonfiction books, No Winners Here Tonight, the definitive history of the death penalty in Ohio, and Hatred At Home, about one of the country’s first post-9/11 domestic terrorism investigations. When he’s not writing or reporting, Andrew enjoys running, reading, cooking, spending time with family, and trying to remember why having both cats and parakeets seemed like a good idea at the time.

Shay McAlister – Investigative Reporter for WHAS: Working with LMPD Cold Case Squad

Shay McAlister, investigative reporter with WHAS news, talks about her career and the ongoing interest in cold cases.

Shay McAlister is an anchor and investigative journalist at WHAS11 in Louisville, KY. She joined the team in July of 2015, fresh out of the University of Missouri and eager to learn. Through years reporting in Kentuckiana, she found a passion for shining a light on areas that would probably prefer to be dark.

You can contact Shay McAlister at smcalister@whas11.com and follow her on Facebook.

Libby Fischer Hellman – Building Suspense

January 9, 2021

Award-winning thriller writer Libby Fischer Hellmann speaks to us about “Building Suspense.” Regardless of what genre we write in, we all want to keep readers turning the pages, and suspense is an essential element. In her interactive workshop below, Hellmann illustrates techniques we writers can apply to our own work immediately.

Mystery and Horror, LLC – Gwen Mayo and Sarah E. Glenn Discuss Small Press Publishing

Gwen Mayo and Sarah E. Glenn Discuss Small Press Publishing

Read more about Gwen and Sarah here: Speaker Series

Speed City Indiana Chapter of Sisters in Crime – A Conversation

Lynn Slaughter – Writing Realistic Young Adult Fiction: Some Dos and Don’ts

April 10, 2021

Have a hankering to pen a young adult novel? The teenage years are rife with drama, conflict, angst, and plenty of humor—all great ingredients for fiction. But keep in mind the world in which young people are coming of age is dramatically different from the one we grew up in. And the fiction today’s teens are reading is a far cry from the novels of our youth where characters were almost always white, middle class, and heterosexual, and the biggest problem of the day was finding a date for prom.

We’ll talk about dos and don’ts for writing realistic fiction for teens, as well as ways to get started on your own young adult novel.

Lynn Slaughter joined Sisters in Crime and our local chapter, Derby Rotten Scoundrels, shortly after completing her MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University in 2016. She turned to writing coming of age romantic mysteries following a long career as a professional dancer and dance educator. She’s the author of It Should Have Been You, a Silver Falchion finalist; While I Danced, an EPIC finalist; and Leisha’s Song (forthcoming from Fire and Ice, 2021). Her short story, “Missed Cue,” appears in Malice Domestic’s 2020 anthology, Murder Most Theatrical. The mother of two grown sons and besotted grandmother of five, she lives in Louisville, Kentucky where she is at work on her next young adult novel, Deadly Setup.

Elaine Munsch – The History of Women Crime Writers

March 13, 2021

To celebrate Women’s History Month, author Elaine Munsch walks us through the historical pages of crime fiction finding the women who came before the modern writers.  From Metta Victor and Anna Katherine Greene to Sue Grafton, meet the women who have changed crime/mystery fiction from its beginning to today.

Elaine Munsch grew up on the shores of Lake Erie, but has made Louisville, KY her home for several decades. An avid reader, bookselling seemed to be the ideal profession, which she has practiced for over forty years.

She is the author of the Dash Hammond series:

The Price of Being Neighborly, The Cost of Kindness and The Expense of Family.  All her books are available on Amazon.

M.J. Downing, Author of Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Undead Client

February 13, 2021

M.J. Downing is the author of two books: Sherlock Holmes The Case of the UnDead Client and Sherlock Holmes The Werewolves of Edinburgh. In this presentation, Downing explains how he immersed himself in the Victorian era and how he explored the interior conflicts of the good Doctor John Watson: warrior, healer, scribe, and friend to the genius Holmes. Adding another challenge to the duo, Downing puts them in harm’s way with new enemies: zombies and other denizens of the occult.