In a Nutshell

Have you ever asked someone the time and she tells you how to build a clock? Sometimes a simple answer is better than a long one. This morning, I’ve listed my eight cozy mysteries and described each one with only three words. Do you agree? How would you describe each of them, using only three […]

A Look at Hope

  Every morn is a fresh beginning; every day is the world made new. You who are weary of sorrow and sinning, here is a wonderful hope for you, a hope for me and a hope for you. — Susan Coolidge This old year is near to closing out. It’s been a year of sameness, […]

Boon or Bane

Boon or Bane

Boon or bane–the “what if” game. A writer spins a story around that small phrase, “what if”. It sounds like the fall from a cliff was an accident, but what if he was pushed? In her will, she left everything to her niece, but what if there was a later will?  All these suppositions could […]

A Little of Old, a Little of New

Do you know how scary it is to take responsibility for publishing your own book? Well, let me tell you, for a first-timer, it’s pretty scary. I’m determined, though. So, one day soon, maybe Ned McNeil’s brand-new fourth mystery will be on Amazon. I hope. As I’m feeling sort of antsy, I’ve turned this morning […]

Hats Off to Galveston

Hats Off to Galveston

Yesterday was the anniversary of the 1900 hurricane that wiped out a good portion of the island of Galveston, Texas. I couldn’t let that date go by without mentioning it. If you haven’t read much about it in history, let me tell you that it is an amazing, true story of devastation and horror and […]

An Inner Core of Firm Resolve or The Lesson From the Avocado

An Inner Core of Firm Resolve or The Lesson From the Avocado

We’ve all heard, “Growing old is not for sissies.” Let me enlarge on that: “Writing is not for sissies.” Or, just about anything we want with our whole heart and have to work hard to get is not for the faint-hearted. We must have an inner core of firm resolve. Sort of like the avocado. […]