Sherlock Holmes; The Role of a Lifetime

Maybe it’s cliché for actors to aspire to play Hamlet. But it also seems especially aspirational when it comes to playing Sherlock Holmes. Numerous reboots sprout up in media these days, whether in plays, TV shows, and films. It seems there will always be more opportunities than ever to play the Man from Baker Street, … Read more

Authenticity vs Accuracy

I remember being on a panel in one of my first Bouchercons with authors Sharon Newman and Laurie King, and since we all wrote historical mysteries, the discussion naturally rolled over to “authenticity vs accuracy.” When you write historically, history is king. You never change the history to serve the plot, it’s always the other … Read more

Two Series, Moving to Indie Publishing

An embarrassment of riches, I suppose it could be called. Having two series going at once. That’s where I am now. My publisher “paused” both these series, and says they want to publish more. Eventually. But I decided that dealing with publishers right now was pretty much over. Nice people, they mean well, but have … Read more

A Mummy Unwrapping Party

A uniquely Victorian pastime for the very rich; First, get yourself a several thousand-year-old dead guy, invite all your friends over to watch you unwrap him from his bindings, then grind him into a powder and everyone gets to go home with a powdered mummy souvenir. Fun times! Unwrapping a mummy. Well, that was the … Read more

Why A Sherlockian Pastiche?

Sherlock Holmes. Why did I choose to write about such a well-defined, well-loved, well-recognized character whom I didn’t create? A pastiche, if you will, but what is a pastiche after all but fan fiction? And I’m a fan. Well, that’s why I chose to write a Sherlock adjacent series. My series, An Irregular Detective Mystery, … Read more

Making Original Figures for Giveaways: 3D Printing

I thought it would be easy. But is anything really easy? I started out creating with good ole Sculpey a little Sherlockian figurine of a cute animal in the deerstalker and Ulster coat. At first I made a mouse, but there were too many comparisons to The Great Mouse Detective, so I thought to maybe … Read more