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New Passion – Identity Affirming and Acceptance Fiction – Young Adults

To say I’ve always wanted to be a writer is an understatement. I’ve always had a strong passion for writing stories. From the early age 11, maybe 12, plots would come to me (awake or sleep) and then I’d experience a burning desire to put them on paper. On weekends, I would babysit to purchase my creative equipment, which at that time was thick spiral notebooks and blue Bic ink pens.

However, this talent did not sit well with my hard-working parents, who assured me that I would become homeless and starve to death if I pursued this path.  But still, I wrote and babysat for supplies.

After a while, I realized I had another special talent: teaching. The many, many students that I’ve taught are all special to me. What is truly amazing is, I’ve instructed children from kindergarten to middle school, and most of them contact me from time to time. My teaching career was magical; I loved every minute. But still, I wrote stories that came to me.

At my retirement party, a friend placed a suggestion in my bucket list container, WRITE THAT BOOK. A bell went off in my head. Yes, I can do this and not be homeless or starve to death. I’ve already babysat (teaching for income) to buy modern writing equipment (computer, printer, and paper).

Starting this journey took me to Barnes and Noble, where I met Elaine Munsch, and she invited me to join the local chapter of Sisters in Crime, Derby Rotten Scoundrels.  Although my illness has kept me from participating as much as I like, I’ve enjoyed being a part of this group.

My first book, Double Triangles is the thrill of my life. Just seeing my words in a book formation – with my name on it – made my heart leap with joy. I could hardly contain myself when I got feedback on both books (my first and second) through text, social media, book talks, and round-table discussions. The characters from the books came alive for many readers. Although I wrote it without knowing some of the things I’ve learned by being a part of Derby Rotten Scoundrels, it is a dream come true for me. I’ve sold many copies of this book and most people insisted that I write a sequel. Desperate Angles is the second book in this series. Many readers are hooked on the characters and Louisville, Kentucky setting in both books.

Moving forward, a burning passion for writing has come to me in a different genre – Identity Affirming and Acceptance Fiction. Once again, the stories are coming to me and I feel the raw passion of my youth to write them down. I got hurt recently and couldn’t sit at the computer, but my old friends, spiral notebook, and blue Bic ink pen came to my rescue.  Writing life is good!

Sue Spalding, Private Investigator

Sue Spalding, local private investigator, was our guest speaker for our March meeting.

She has been an investigator for seventeen years. Originally she studied Child Psychology but took a criminology course and fell in love with it.

A friend of hers hooked her up with an investigator who was looking for a female operative. He was doing surveillance at a picnic and needed a female presence so he didn’t stand out as an adult male watching children.

When Sue started in this field, the requirements were 90-130 hours of driving surveillance with an affiliated company. Now, in Kentucky, there is an exam a prospective investigator must pass to get a license. Another requirement is to have  a million dollars’ worth of insurance before you start practicing.

Sue does mainly workman’s compensation fraud and child custody cases. In the first instance, she (or her operative) watches the subject to see if they do anything that, according to their claim, they shouldn’t be able to do.

In the child custody cases, most have to do with whether the non-custodial parent is really visiting with the child or are they passing the child off to another person to care for them during these visits.

Both scenarios involve long hours of sitting and watching or tailing the subject, mostly in the car. In order to avoid the police cruising up to her car as she watches, Sue makes it a point to alert the local police of her presence. That way, when a nosy neighbor calls to report a suspicious vehicle, the police can say they are aware of the situation.

When asked what she looks for in a person she might hire to be an operative, she says good, detailed reporting and an investigator license.

Sue is also licensed to practice in Tennessee and Missouri. Other areas of her work include insurance fraud, locating people, process server, infidelity and background checks.

Member News – March

 

Lynn Slaughter

Lynn reports that she is an M & M Finalist for the Chanticleer International Book Awards in the mystery category.

Also, she is a finalist in the Book Excellence Awards in mystery for DEADLY SETUP.

Lynn will be joining the board of Louisville Literary Arts.

Congratulations Lynn!

 

Elaine Munsch and Susan Bell

Elaine and Susan would like you to join us at the Jeffersonville Library, Saturday, April 1st, from 1:30 until 3 p.m.

The library is located at 211 E. Court St., Jeffersonville, IN, 812-285-5630

We will be discussing:
Haunting Front CoverA HAUNTING AT MARIANWOOD
By E. M. Munsch
Marianwood, located in central Kentucky, is the motherhouse for the Sisters of the Blessed Mother of God. When the president of the order experiences odd happenings, she calls on her cousin Dashiell Hammond, retired Army colonel, to sort out the events. Is there really a ghost or more sinister beings at work?
This is the sixth book in the Dash Hammond series.
MYSTERY WITH A SPLASH OF BOURBON
by Derby Rotten Scoundrels authors
From historical adventure, gritty realism, and madcap humor, the crime stories in MYSTERY WITH A SPLASH OF BOURBON are fermented in the history and culture of Kentucky bourbon and distilled through the imagination of the writers. Murder, Mayhem and Bourbon –What’s more Kentucky than that?
We hope you can come out and see us!

Leanne Edelen

Leanne has a short story, Playing Possum, which will be published in an anthology called Strangely Funny X (publisher: Mystery and Horror, INC).  The anthology is due to be released in May of this year.

She is also submitting a short story to a fellow Sisters in Crime chapter, Speed City (Indianapolis). The story is titled The Perfect Match, and our fingers are crossed that her story is accepted for the anthology, Amber Waves of Graves.

Several other members are also planning to submit to this anthology, but I won’t put them on the spot unless they ask. Good luck to anyone and everyone who submits! For more information on this anthology, click the link (submission deadline is March 24, 2023):  https://www.speedcitysistersincrime.org/amber-waves-of-graves.html

 

That’s all for now, folks!

 

Comma Long With Me

Few elements of punctuation are as daunting as the comma. When do I use it? Where do I put it? There are rules, and sometimes controversy (Oxford commas come to mind).

Reference this article on  8 basic uses of commas:  Commas (Eight Basic Uses)

This month, we will focus on independent clauses.

An independent clause is also called the main clause. It expresses a complete thought, and it can stand alone as a sentence. Its counterpart is a dependent clause, which cannot stand alone. Dependent and independent clauses can combine to make different types of sentences.

A clause is a phrase that contains a subject and a verb or verb phrase

Every complete sentence has an independent clause, but not every sentence contains a dependent clause.

reference: Independent Clause: What It Is Explained with Examples

 

Independent Clause plus a Dependent Clause:

Boomer, a cat who started life in the park, enjoys playing in my backyard.

The independent clause in this sentence is:

Boomer enjoys playing in my backyard.

This is a complete thought, with a subject (Boomer), a verb (enjoys), and an object phrase (in my backyard). As an independent clause, the above statement does not require a comma.

The following clause is dependent, because it cannot stand alone:

a cat who started life in the park

The dependent clause is almost a parenthetical description, used to provide a little ‘background’ info on Boomer, but not essential to the main clause. When you add the two clauses togther, you need to separate them with a comma (in this case, two commas, because the dependent clause is dropped into the middle of the independent clause:

Boomer, a cat who started life in the park, enjoys playing in my backyard.

Two Independent Clauses in one Sentence:

We can connect two independent clauses in a few different ways. The first method is to use a coordinating conjunction.

There are seven coordinating conjunctions in English: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. You can remember these with the acronym FANBOYS.

Example:

The following two clauses are independent because they can each stand alone as a complete thought:

My dog is an Australian shepherd.

I don’t have any sheep for him to herd.

When combined, they need a comma and a conjunction (but) to connect them.

My dog is an Australian shepherd, but I don’t have any sheep for him to herd.

 

You don’t have to use a coordinating conjunction to connect independent clauses. You can also use certain punctuation marks. These are semicolons, em dashes, and colons.

When you use a semicolon, you do not include a coordinating conjunction. You can use a transitional word or phrase after the semicolon, like “however” or “as a result.” These are called independent markers.

Examples:

I used to live in Montreal; however, I am not fluent in French.

We discovered the thief—it was my next-door neighbor!

You don’t usually see colons separating independent clauses. The independent clauses must be closely related to use a colon. The emphasis should also be on the second clause.

  • The results of the study surprised us: the animals responded positively to the visual stimuli.

reference: Independent Clause: What It Is Explained with Examples

I hope you have enjoyed my TED talk!

President’s Corner – Holiday Greetings from Derby Rotten Scoundrels!

It’s hard for me to believe that this is my last monthly “Notes from the President’s Corner.” It’s been an honor to serve as president of DRS for the past two years, and as the new board begins their work, I know the chapter will be in terrific hands.

One of my favorite annual events is our chapter’s holiday luncheon.

This year, eleven of us gathered on December 3rd to celebrate our special community, talk about our writing goals for the coming year, present Elaine Munsch with a richly deserved Volunteer of the Year Award, and officially elect our new board:

President- Elaine Munsch

Vice-President/Publicist- Carol Preflatish

 Secretary- Leanne Edelen

Treasurer- Patience Martin

Programs- Miki-Reilly Howe

Website/Membership- Susan Bell

 

 

 

 

Elaine Munsch – Volunteer of the Year!

 

Book Signing – Barnes and Noble

Prior to our luncheon, we had a delightful chapter book signing event at the Hurstbourne Barnes and Noble. The turnout was super, and we had such a good time talking with readers and signing our books! We’re grateful to Barnes and Noble for hosting this makeup event, which was originally scheduled to happen prior to the pandemic.

Writing News

Carol Preflatish reports that she enjoyed a very successful year of selling books, having attended eight events in 2022.

Her next Nathan Perry book, MURDER IN MYSTIC HOLLOW, comes out in 2023.

 

 

 

 

Lynda Rees’ books, HEART OF THE MATTER and MAGNOLIA BLOSSOMS, Reggie Chronicles 2 and 3, launched this month in audiobooks and are available at audiobook retailers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lynn Slaughter will appear with Ellen Birkett Morris, award-winning author of LOST GIRLS, to discuss their work and sign books at Lexington’s Joseph Beth Booksellers on Saturday, January 28th, at 2 PM.

All for now. We wish you a beautiful holiday season and lots of great writing and reading in the New Year!