Peg Herring, Mystery Author

Here's the G-rated version: "Opinions are like noses. Everybody has one." America is a country that has long valued the right of each individual to have an opinion, and that's good. The problem comes when opinions are all a person has. Here's my take on the subject. *A person's opinions should be based on evidence, and that evidence must be real. It's difficult--sometimes really difficult--to look at the evidence, read or listen across a range of information, and make a conscious decision as to what you think about a subject. It's often easier to take the word of someone you think is smart or knowledgeable or well-read on the topic. The problem is that his/her opinion might be just as misinformed or slanted as anyone else's. If all it took to be right is brains or education, there wouldn't be so much disagreement in the highest levels of government. As a debater in high school and college, I learned that it's essential to look at both sid

Name the artist associated with the titles of songs that mention songs. 1. "Silly Love Songs" 2. "Song Sung Blue" 3. "Never-ending Love for You" 4. "With a Song in My Heart" 5. "I've Got a Name" Answers: 1. Paul McCartney & Wings   www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_9QooYDYtU 2. Neil Diamond www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1t9zOwmWok 3. Various, but this one is George Jones & Tammy Wynette https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3Vgsv-T2gg 4. Again, various, but this one's Doris Day https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPs0H4cydGU 5. Jim Croce https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcqauC49Xmc

Songs that mention water or bodies of same. 1. "____ River" Suicide spot? 2. "How High's the Water, ___?" Family discussion 3. "____Lake" The place to be for summer sun 4. "Moonlight ___" Voices singing about sticking around 5. "A Sleepy ___" Night on a tropical island Answers: 1. Moody www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLMbAq9r8Wk 2. Momma   www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLMbAq9r8Wk 3. Indian www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qw7ubMgByYQ 4. Bay https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebuS01qjOas 5. Lagoon https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmcWaIbLUMk

Newcomers to writing often comment on how nice everyone is. Writers give each other advice. We share successes and failures. We explain the piece we're presently working on (sometimes in too much detail) with little thought that someone will "steal" our ideas. (You can try, but it will still be a ton of work for you.) In a field where every new book adds to the dizzying amount of competing works, one might think that writers would hide their secrets, keep the means of success to themselves when (if) they stumble on it, and perhaps even mislead naive newbies in order to send them in the wrong direction. That doesn't happen. Maybe because of how difficult it is to get published, most writers feel an empathy with others that causes them to ignore the prospective competition and give advice that's as helpful as possible. Have a question for an author? Just ask. It's likely she will share what she knows (unless she has a deadline looming). Why are we so nice? Wh

Fill in the titles to songs that ask the burning question: WHY? 1. "Why __  __ __ __ Love?" Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers 2. "Why __ __ __ __ You?" Reba 3. "Why __ __ __ You?" Showboat 4. "Why __ __ __...?" My Fair Lady 5. "Why __ __ __ __?" War Answers: 1. "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?" www.youtube.com/watch?v=q96ylFiQK_I 2. "Why Haven't I Heard from You?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-d7vAbKTmus 3. "Why Do I Love You?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFhAzZv-Dsg 4. "Why Can't the English...?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAYUuspQ6BY 5. "Why Can't We Be Friends?" www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DmYLrxR0Y8

I've been slogging through edits of the second Maggie Pill Sleuth Sisters book, which for me means listening to one computer read the book aloud while I make corrections on a second computer. (It's complicated.) I was doing pretty well (halfway) when I opened my e-mail and found the copy-edited MS for the fourth Simon & Elizabeth book, Her Majesty's Mischief , with a deadline for its return. Deadlines make me nervous, and I'm tempted to drop my current task and work on the new one. I can do this. Hanging over my head somewhere is the third Dead Detective book, Dead for the Show . The publisher told me they'd like to get it out before the end of 2014 or at the very latest, early 2015. That means the copy-edits for that book should be showing up soon, too. I really can do this. Copy-edits aren't that bad. The big changes have already been made, so I just have to look at little mistakes they found and okay changes. For example, I had a character placing hi

1. An Irishman with a short temper "...left the barber shop with tonic on his hair..." 2. A chick in a black bikini who "must be a magic genie." 3. A sound effect in a novelty song about a mysterious item nobody wants around. 4. About a girl whose "shoes paddy-whack in the front and the back..." 5. "Hallelujah--the question is peculiar..." Answers: 1. "Clancy Lowered the Boom" www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tm3kGJgj6C0 2. "Chick-A-Boom" www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPStw1SzcQc     3. "The Thing" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lcj16EGYYrs 4. "Chicka-Boom" http://www.allmusic.com/song/chicka-boom-mt0011981794 5. "Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor on the Bedpost Overnight?" www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6bFTVi0hHs