Peg Herring, Mystery Author

My first successful series was the Simon & Elizabeth Mysteries with Five Star Publishing. Going on the "write what you know" advice new writers get, I focused on Elizabeth I of England, one of my favorite historical characters. She had so much going against her as she grew up--I mean, how many girls can say their father had their mother beheaded? In the last decade or so, some authors have (very successfully) attacked Anne Boleyn's character, making her seem like Satan's First Date. I'm afraid that's more drama than historical accuracy, but we all interpret history to suit our own thinking...and some knowingly twist it to make a salacious story. I won't argue the right and wrong of that, since Shakespeare did a lot of the same things to make his stories work. It's just sad to me that those who read only fiction might believe it. Anyway, my series focuses on Anne's daughter Elizabeth, and she's a very sympathetic character. In Her Maje

Amazon is great for authors. Their print book division, CreateSpace, has been very helpful for me in publishing books on my own, either from Day One or when the rights revert to me from a publishing contract. Recently the news came out that CreateSpace will be going away, and KDP, Amazon's ebook division, will take on both print and ebooks in the future. I decided to convert my books to KDP now rather than later. It's pretty easy if the book is already in CS, though one needs to pay attention to the details. In the process, I did some updating, including altered covers and even new covers for some of my books. Above is Shakespeare's Blood , the old version on the left and the new one on the right. I'm going to do a print version, which I hadn't done before, and that one will have the cover on the right as well. I like having Mercedes featured and like it lighter, both in mood and actual light. I still might make some changes in placement, depending on how the

As a kid I was known as a picky eater. Basically, if my mother didn't make it, I was suspicious, and my aunts learned to keep a jar of peanut butter around. That I'd always eat. Today, I'm less picky about food, but as a consumer of entertainment, I'm still picky. I know that sometimes that comes off as sour grapes or the I-could-do-it-better attitude. That might be true. I need some sort of logic in my comedy. Anything billed as "zany" or "madcap" is liable to go unread/watched. There are ways to do zany well--Mel Brooks comes to mind--but most of the time I get tired of silliness portrayed as comedic genius. I don't like those people. They need to grow up. I need plot authenticity in my dramas too. A few nights ago we watched a movie (It was too hot to do anything else!) and though I kept my comments to myself, here are a few logical flaws I noticed. *The millionaire bad guy had dozens of minions willing to obey his every command. So...he

NOT DEAD YET...is a book that's hard to categorize. If I tell you it's a mystery I won't be lying, but what kind of mystery is it? Well, a different kind. There's no detective who drinks more than he/she should and struggles against the system. There's no recently-divorced woman who just opened a business and has a crazy best friend who forces her to investigate local crime. There's no serial killer whose methods make you want to hurl. What is it then? A mystery within a mystery, for one thing. Four curiously talented yet oddly shy squatters must solve a murder, but they have their own secret to hide. And when you get it, you'll be gobsmacked. NOT DEAD YET...is free this week for Kindle readers, so there's no risk. If you like it, I'd appreciate a review (as I always do!) It's also available in print ( Amazon , bookstores) and audio ( Amazon Audible). In mid-July it will be released on other e-book distributors as well (B&N, Kobo

Research shows that the word free is one of the most compelling in the English language. Everyone wants something for free, even if they don't need it. And we know that nothing is really free, right? Still, if you're a mystery reader, you can get a free e-book right now using the link below. I joined with a group of mystery writers who offer their book free for a very limited time in order to get attention and interest. The "free" books will usually  require you to submit your email address, which means you'll get a newsletter from the author at some point. I don't think that's a huge price to pay, because you can always unsubscribe if you don't want more of them. I chose KIDNAP(.)org as my giveaway, and I put up 500 copies. They're already half gone, so I think it's going well. I'm at work on the second book of the series (of at least 3), so if you enjoy the free book, it won't be long before you can read further adventures of this

As a reader, you feel a point where you're inside the story, at least if you and the story are sympatico . When you get a good book that happens almost immediately. I recently read MERCY DOGS by Tyler Dilts, which was recommended by a friend, and I fell into the story right away. I liked the protagonist. I empathized with his situation and his father's. I was interested in the mysterious disappearance of his renter. I wanted to know how they were all going to end up. I love it when that happens. For me, writing a book has that same moment. Intellectually I know I'm going to write a story that comes floating into my head, but emotionally, it often doesn't click until I'm in the middle of actually writing it down. I'm at work on the sequel to KIDNAP.org, which got nice attention from people in the book industry as well as readers. I knew I wanted it to be a three-story arc, and with my editor's suggestion, I figured out what the 2nd and 3rd books would de

I was a debater back in the day. Our high school team was very successful, thanks in large part to a coach who knew argumentation and demanded we learn to do it correctly. I went on to college debate and more coaches who taught me how logical argument must go. In its most basic form a point of debate should: 1. State your position clearly 2. Explain your position 3. Support your position with evidence 4. Restate your position in a brief, easily remembered form That's why Facebook makes me crazy. Today's social media allows for arguments so weak they'd be laughable if our society weren't in peril because of them. These arguments are tossed into the public forum from the highest levels of our government down to the lowest levels of education, people who can't even spell the word argue . Not only are pathetically weak arguments presented, but when someone responds, that weak argument usually descends into name calling and insults. Here are a few examples o