It Almost Didn’t Happen

 I wanted to write a second Ned McNeil Moonlight mystery, following Moonlight Can Be Murder. I had the title already, By the Fright of the Silvery Moon. It sounded suitably chilling. That was the starting point–I wanted to write it. But, it wasn’t all that easy. I wrote the opening scene and read it to […]

From a Cat’s Way of Looking At It

As you know, in By the Fright of the Silvery Moon, Ned acquires a new pet–a dog. But, she already has a cat named Penny. Penny came in Moonlight Can Be Murder. Do the dog and cat get along? Amazingly well. But, what does Penny actually think about Ned’s ability to get into trouble? I […]

What Would You Do If

What Would You Do If

  What would you do if, out of the clear blue, someone gave you a Victorian house that was more than a hundred years old? The house came with a lot of warm memories and, although you wouldn’t know it at the time you inherited it, a lot of mysteries too? Would you accept the […]

When Real Life Is Mysterious

When Real Life Is Mysterious

  Real-life mysteries exist all around us-life experiences, questions without answers. These are just begging to be put into a cozy mystery, and I am happy to oblige. Take houses, for example. Old houses have a history of their own. My parents moved a few times during my childhood, so I lived in several different […]

Talking to Someone Who Isn’t There

Talking to Someone Who Isn’t There

  I saw a cartoon on Facebook something to the effect of authors talking to the characters in their books. Of course we do! I just hope nobody hears me sitting at my computer holding a conversation with an invisible person who speaks with a voice that is inaudible to everyone but me. Me: Ned, I don’t believe […]