tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post2204093753272136069..comments2024-03-29T11:16:37.695-04:00Comments on SleuthSayers: Why Writing a Cozy Murder May Kill MeLeigh Lundinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-59158182917096202522020-03-30T09:31:31.306-04:002020-03-30T09:31:31.306-04:00I'm actually doing that in my WIP, Sylvia! It...I'm actually doing that in my WIP, Sylvia! It's odd though, how our agents tell us that American readers prefer American characters and settings. I had that from the highest source (Helen Heller.) Thanks for commenting!Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-375543690628123542020-03-30T09:28:24.826-04:002020-03-30T09:28:24.826-04:00Anne, I've experienced the same as you! When ...Anne, I've experienced the same as you! When people buy the Goddaughter series, expecting a cozy (because they've been told they are humorous) I get angry reviews. And your books are certainly NOT cozies! I smile at the very thought of it!!Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-63429711944571099262020-03-29T17:59:35.281-04:002020-03-29T17:59:35.281-04:00Your goddaughter series with all the humour make f...Your goddaughter series with all the humour make for very cozy reads, if not cozy murder mysteries by strict format. Why don't you introduce a Canadian character in an American setting--similar to Paul Gross in Due South.Sylvia McNicollhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12274272188838997088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-86893924440417331452020-03-29T14:13:10.310-04:002020-03-29T14:13:10.310-04:00Really cool during January! (heh heh) But yeah, wh...Really cool during January! (heh heh) But yeah, why the geographism? (© LL 2020) Maybe set novels in the Rockies, without specifying which. Who's to know?Leigh Lundinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-39839297483300608442020-03-29T11:25:14.907-04:002020-03-29T11:25:14.907-04:00You didn't know that, eh, Leigh? (note the eh...You didn't know that, eh, Leigh? (note the eh) We also aren't allowed to use Canadian settings - yes, you heard that right. American publishers don't want books set in Canada. Our agents (and I have a New York agent) say they can't sell them. Sad, because we are really cool (sic) people up here.Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-24537977812343262202020-03-28T23:56:41.711-04:002020-03-28T23:56:41.711-04:00Funny, Melodie. I'm a bit surprised to learn t...Funny, Melodie. I'm a bit surprised to learn thoroughly US cosies are 'de-Britishfied,' but what do I know? I still read Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie…Leigh Lundinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-42864627181879574072020-03-28T22:32:07.763-04:002020-03-28T22:32:07.763-04:00This is why i'm fighting my publisher's ur...This is why i'm fighting my publisher's urge to put cartoons on the covers of my mysteries. Yes, they're funny. But they aren't true cozies. People use real language and fall into bed with each other. Some of them are sex workers. Some are drag queens. There's no way the readers of the current style of cozies will enjoy my books. When they buy them by mistake, they write furious reviews about how characters take the Lord's name in vain. And oh, my they're offended by "bloody" and "sod off." So you've got your work cut out for you. I don't understand why you can't write mysteries that have some comedy and also a little dose of reality. Sigh. Anne R. Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02420000168356370825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-38920156880327248172020-03-28T22:24:41.773-04:002020-03-28T22:24:41.773-04:00Debra, for me it's more the sex and violence (...Debra, for me it's more the sex and violence (whoops, did I say that? smile) The thing I find hard is having to use American expressions when I'm not American and it doesn't come naturally. I have to work at it. Thanks for commenting!Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-24447458014282131692020-03-28T22:22:40.629-04:002020-03-28T22:22:40.629-04:00Good points, Ginger! I think you should make a lis...Good points, Ginger! I think you should make a list of salty alternatives. I'd love to read it!Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-54427189155268072062020-03-28T22:21:32.467-04:002020-03-28T22:21:32.467-04:00Alison, I can't wait to read that book! I wil...Alison, I can't wait to read that book! I will feel right at home.Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-11804413241534269652020-03-28T18:32:54.934-04:002020-03-28T18:32:54.934-04:00This is exactly why I don't see myself ever wr...This is exactly why I don't see myself ever writing a cozy. I like the genre and read a fiar bit of it, but I miss the expletives. It's not that I go all out with the f bombs or anything in my amateur sleuth mysteries, but to eliminate them completely? Just...no...not for me.Debra Purdy Konghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11865013713502659203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-21244215508389696382020-03-28T16:47:26.511-04:002020-03-28T16:47:26.511-04:00Here's the way I look at it:
We seldom write ...Here's the way I look at it:<br /><br />We seldom write dialogue exactly as it would be spoken. We leave out most or all of the ums and uhs (or ehs.) We leave out some of the niceties like the nearly meaningless greetings people utter by rote, you know, like: "Hello, how are you?" and "Fine, thanks, how are you?" Snore.<br /><br />If you're writing for readers who crave the gritty realism of profanity, you can sprinkle it in or toss it in by whole handfuls. <br /><br />But if, like cozy authors, you're writing for readers who don't enjoy being distracted by word-bombs, you can simply leave them out. Like the ums, uhs, and ehs, no one misses them. <br /><br />I have been known to write around them by describing picturesque or salty language in creative ways. A lot of profanity is, um, not particularly creative, and when we write, we have more fun when we're creative, don't we?Ginger Boltonhttps://gingerbolton.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-56226477903607329622020-03-28T16:33:19.705-04:002020-03-28T16:33:19.705-04:00I found my solution to the problem. I can now use ...I found my solution to the problem. I can now use the language I learned at my mother's knee. My next book is set in WWII Britain. I can have all the "bloody hell"s and "damn and blast"s I want.<br /><br />Great post!<br />Alison E. Brucehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16449544045685213466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-77473954203383510362020-03-28T16:30:41.429-04:002020-03-28T16:30:41.429-04:00Thank you Jan! You should see what they do to my ...Thank you Jan! You should see what they do to my British spelling - grin.Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-90676864316774188982020-03-28T16:08:37.078-04:002020-03-28T16:08:37.078-04:00Loved and laughed at your post, Melodie. I could f...Loved and laughed at your post, Melodie. I could feel you pulling your hair out trying to satisfy you editor. I'm sure you'll figure it all out with good cheer and humor. Keep on keeping on.Jan Christensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02027877440748580764noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-27924292931802719442020-03-28T14:08:57.334-04:002020-03-28T14:08:57.334-04:00Thanks John! I do know what you mean about tailor...Thanks John! I do know what you mean about tailored writing, or even writing for hire. I don't do well at that. For me, writing something longer than a short story is work, and I have to be really motivated by my own characters and story to do it. Thanks for commenting!Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-63109775717700623302020-03-28T14:05:54.157-04:002020-03-28T14:05:54.157-04:00Melanie, keep doing what you're doing, the way...Melanie, keep doing what you're doing, the way you're doing it. I've done some "tailored" writing, and it's never as much fun.<br /><br />As for humor, I just ordered a couple of novels I'd missed, of Christopher Buckley's. And I love Carl Hiaasen and Janet Evanovich and Kinky Friedman and just about anyone who can write great humor. And there are a handful of writers who can do gritty novels and still make them humorous in places--we all know who they are--and that's a good thing also. Yes, humor's hard to write, but when it's done well, it's worth the trouble.<br /><br />I always love your columns!John Floydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04001712728130488485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-90040307277099728812020-03-28T11:51:59.848-04:002020-03-28T11:51:59.848-04:00Apparently, I'm not one of them either, Steve!...Apparently, I'm not one of them either, Steve! I've found when one writes comedy, publishers try to put you in the box that sells the best. I don't fit in boxes well, apparently. Thanks for commenting!Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-61685003208923471642020-03-28T11:48:41.762-04:002020-03-28T11:48:41.762-04:00Friggin' great.
Trying to clean stuff up alwa...Friggin' great.<br /><br />Trying to clean stuff up always sounds weird to me. I still remember when a character in A Streetcar Named Desire refers to his wife/girlfriend as a "rutting hunk," and all the people in the audience looked at each other incredulously. Williams managed to recapture the right sounds, but...please.<br /><br />I find as I get older and more cynical that my writing is turning darker and I have less patience with people who want me to clean my s*&%t up. I've written a few short stories in the last year that I've even tried cleaning up for other markets and they just don't work. Profanity and violence are part of the rhythm and mindset, and cozy is a whole different world. I admire people who can do it, but I'm not one of them.<br />Steve Liskowhttp://www.steveliskow.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-9335654839849154952020-03-28T11:06:18.951-04:002020-03-28T11:06:18.951-04:00OH, my mind is bent, RT! grin. Thanks for commen...OH, my mind is bent, RT! grin. Thanks for commenting!Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-52750727918147166862020-03-28T10:49:37.466-04:002020-03-28T10:49:37.466-04:00Thanks for the laugh. I enjoyed your article this ...Thanks for the laugh. I enjoyed your article this morning. Humor can be a difficult thing to write, but it helps when your mind is already bent that direction and you see the world in a different light.R.T. Lawtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15523486296396710227noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-78143344553786228842020-03-28T09:50:53.704-04:002020-03-28T09:50:53.704-04:00Yes, you do, Melanie! And keep doing it!Yes, you do, Melanie! And keep doing it!Eve Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03015761600962360110noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-78870875951246634632020-03-28T09:11:55.710-04:002020-03-28T09:11:55.710-04:00Eve, if only my publisher wasn't insisting on ...Eve, if only my publisher wasn't insisting on my sounding American! It seems to be a kind of naughty secret to be Canadian selling in an American market. (Mind you, I do naughty pretty well...)Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-84383867429315667032020-03-28T09:08:23.594-04:002020-03-28T09:08:23.594-04:00Thanks Paul! I just can't seem to do the cozy...Thanks Paul! I just can't seem to do the cozy thing. Every time I try, the mob takes over, and the dame goes sultry, and the sax starts playing...Melodie Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07870938103759179132noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-27399218336394193372020-03-28T08:43:28.081-04:002020-03-28T08:43:28.081-04:00Oh, the trouble of choosing the right word that wi...Oh, the trouble of choosing the right word that will replace the "F-bomb!" Make your protagonist Australian or lower-class British and use "bloody" a lot. (I've done that a couple of times.) Make your protagonist Irish and use "feckin'" a lot. (Done that too, and some surprisingly straight people found it "cute".) (Also, the Irish use eejit a lot.) And there's freakin' (American version of feckin'.) It's a problem, because some times - especially these times - are what profanity was invented for!Eve Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03015761600962360110noreply@blogger.com