#BookReviews

Veronica's #WritersDiary: A #Writer's Dilemma; Mixing Tales of Mystery with the Holidays

Veronica Cline Barton

Jun 22, 2022
6 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary: A #Writer's Dilemma; Mixing Tales of Mystery with the Holidays

“Ah, but you must have a Christmas uncomplicated by murder.” ― Agatha Christie Less than two weeks to go 'til Christmas in July! Who's ready to get their summer #HoHoHo on? Let's not forget the scary tale countdown to Halloween--pumpkins will be flying soon, offering loads of marketing tricks & treats! I've focused on Halloween and Christmas because these are probably the two most popular holidays depicted in mystery stories. As a writer, the dilemma becomes how to tell a tal

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Veronica's #WritersDiary; The Muse has Spoken, It's Back to the #Writing Zone!

Veronica Cline Barton

Sep 22, 2021
4 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary; The Muse has Spoken, It's Back to the #Writing Zone!

“Use that fluff of yours you call a brain.” ― Agatha Christie Well, it looks like NaNoWriMo season is coming early for moi this year. Gemma has a story she wants to tell and has let me know she wants the writing to commence! One mustn't upset the muse, so I'm starting the seventh book in the My American Almost Royal Cousin Series. This time, we're back at Cherrywood Hall where the Maidenford village fete will be held (although we may have to include a London trip to Hillcrest

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Veronica's #WritersDiary; Oh, Those Southern Nights; a Chat with #Author Cathleen Maza!

Veronica Cline Barton

Sep 15, 2021
6 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary; Oh, Those Southern Nights; a Chat with #Author Cathleen Maza!

"Savannah is a lovely, gentle, sad old city. You can walk through the shadowy, cobbled streets of the town on a tranquil Sunday morning and feel the atmosphere heavy with the burden of lost greatness and relaxed by quiet decay..." Mills Lane This week I'm honored to have as my guest, #author Cathleen Maza. She's a multi-genre writer who certainly knows her way around a scary tale! Her #NewRelease, Savannah at Midnight, is an atmospheric collection of stories that whisks you a

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Veronica's #WritersDiary, A #Writing Celebration with #Author Lali Love!

Veronica Cline Barton

Jul 7, 2021
9 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary, A #Writing Celebration with #Author Lali Love!

What better way to celebrate #SummerReading season than an enchanting chat with a talented #writer who just happens to have a new #book releasing today (Blade of Truth)! Canadian author Lali Love's books #inspire and #entertain---without further adieu, let's chat with Lali: Q1. Lali, I have enjoyed reading your gorgeous, poetry/meditation book, The Joy of IT so much! I have it handy on my coffee table to open up and be inspired each day. The collection is awesome and the draw

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Veronica's #WritersDiary, Summer #Refresh, #Writer Resources You'll Want to Check Out!

Veronica Cline Barton

Jun 16, 2021
5 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary, Summer #Refresh, #Writer Resources You'll Want to Check Out!

"Writing is an exploration. You start from nothing and learn as you go..." E.L. Doctorow Words so true! I thought for this post I'd try to give a boost to my #writer friends and share a few #writing resources I (and others) have recently found useful to explore and utilize. I've seen quite a bit of frustration and gloom in tweets this past week on Twitter, ranging from the #Goodreads sudden deletion of #bookreviews (luckily it looks like most reviews have been restored) to pe

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Veronica's #WritersDiary, #Wave Watch at Half Moon Bay

Veronica Cline Barton

May 5, 2021
3 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary, #Wave Watch at Half Moon Bay

Happy May! From wine country to the northern California shore--part deux of our escape from the family room road trip took us to Half Moon Bay. We stayed at the fabulous Ritz Carlton that sits regally on the cliffs of this NorCal paradise. I have to say this was one of the most beautiful places on our journey. We were blessed with sunshine during the day and magnificent sunsets in the evening. The Ritz is surrounded with breathtaking views, including a stunning golf course an

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Veronica's #WritersDiary, The #Grape Escape!

Veronica Cline Barton

Apr 21, 2021
5 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary, The #Grape Escape!

"Wine and friends are a great blend." Ernest Hemingway Once again we ventured away from the confines of the family room and traveled to central California to the charming town of Paso Robles. Located in central California, Paso has become a hub for wine lovers and has multiple vineyards in the area---a perfect place for a wine tasting afternoon! For this trip, we stayed at the fabulous Allegretto Vineyard Resort just off Hwy 46 (yes, the infamous highway where James Dean met

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Veronica's #WritersDiary, It's an #IndieApril Exclusive with Scottish, #Author/#Poet, Derek R. King!

Veronica Cline Barton

Apr 7, 2021
6 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary, It's an #IndieApril Exclusive with Scottish, #Author/#Poet, Derek R. King!

What better way to start off the new month of #IndieApril than an interview with a writer whose works I've come to greatly admire! In today's post you'll meet the multi-talented, author/poet/musician/singer, Derek King. His poetry soothes the soul, his short stories evoke scary chills, and non-fiction works inspire us all. Ladies and Gents, Mr. Derek King: Do you remember the first poem you wrote? Ha! Yes, I do remember it. I was thirteen. I wrote it sitting on the grassy slo

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Veronica's #WritersDiary, A New Season of #Inspiration...

Veronica Cline Barton

Sep 23, 2020
5 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary, A New Season of #Inspiration...

Happy Fall y'all, bring on the cool temps! Being back in the #writing zone for book 6 has had its ups and downs this past week. The good news is that I have loads of inspiring photographs to whisk me mentally to the streets and locales of London, the primary setting for my latest cozy mystery tale (BTW, does the scaffolding still surround Big Ben or are the repairs completed? Anyone, anyone?). I've been able to virtually traverse the locations with just enough detail as Gemma

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Veronica's #WritersDiary, The #Twins Are In the City!

Veronica Cline Barton

Sep 16, 2020
5 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary, The #Twins Are In the City!

It's that time of year once again--I'm back in the #writing zone with book 6 in the series: Twins in the City: Playtime at Castlewood Manor! We're hitting the shores of Bermuda and then heading to London, where Gemma and Kyle are on the hunt for a city abode. The feature pic this week is from Kensington Palace Gardens (surrounded by beautiful doorways--love the colors and architectural details!), one of the most exclusive streets in London, right behind Kensington Palace, and

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Veronica's #WritersDiary, Hearth Fires, Countdown to Awesome!

Veronica Cline Barton

Sep 2, 2020
4 min

Veronica's #WritersDiary, Hearth Fires, Countdown to Awesome!

Happy September! It’s almost that time of year–crisp autumn air (wishful thinking but a girl can dream, LOL), apple cider and pumpkin spice everything (my sister sent me an ad for pumpkin spice face masks, truth!), and let’s not forget a few scary tales to get those Halloween vibes churning (and no, I’m not talking about the upcoming November election stories!). Bibiana and I are so excited for the upcoming release of Hearth Fires, The Haunted #1 on September 7th, we can’t wa

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