(Revamping the blog. Please excuse the odd headings. Working on it!)

Writing History & Mysteries

When I'm not delving into historical research, I'm planning a character's demise.

The blog of Cindy Amrhein

Historian - Author - Abstractor

Silver Lake, NY at Sunset

Photo by Zach Amrhein

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Sunday, November 02, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 43

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors. This is a view of Silver Lake, one of the settings in The Milk Carton Murders
SETUP:We are still in the county sheriff's office where Dave is looking at files and photos pulled from his attic kept from when his mother and father were foster parents to several children. Last week Inv. Pepper Black and Dave come across two group photos of the missing girls taken during a Friends of Foster Families picnic at a local farm, from when Dave was a kid. Dave is pointing some people out in the photographs to Pepper.


AND NOW THE SNIPPET: (Pepper speaks first)

“Now why, I wonder, is Lisa or Rachael even in this photograph?”

“I’m not following you.” Dave said.

“Rachael McKenzie would have been four in 1987, but she was abducted from Cuba, NY in 1986. Same thing for Lisa – why is she in this photograph? She would have been three in this photo, but she went missing from Albany, no where near here. Did you look up anything on microfilm for Samantha or Lisa?”

“I tried. I didn’t find anything,” Dave answered. 



***

The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!

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Saturday, October 25, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 42


 Weekend Writing Warriors Snippet time!

SETUP:We are still in the county sheriff's office where Dave is looking at files and photos pulled from his attic kept from when his mother and father were foster parents to several children. Last week Pepper and Dave come across two group photos of the missing girls taken during a Friends of Foster Families picnic at a local farm, from when Dave was a kid. Pepper leaves the room to make a photocopy of the group shots.


AND NOW THE SNIPPET:

Dave continued  his rummage through the box. He was almost done, and still no baby pictures of himself. He pulled out more from over the years that he could match up with the photos from the foster files, a few of Samantha--but none of Lisa and Rachael except for in the two candid group photos from the picnic of 1987.

Pepper came back in the room. “Okay, a copy for you and a copy for me. Now let’s see what we can figure out.” She sat down next to him and put both of the photographs in front of them on the desk above their photocopies.
 

“I recognize Samantha," Dave said, "she’s the girl on the cow."


***

The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!

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Saturday, October 18, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 41


It's Weekend Writing Warriors time! When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.(Photo from collection of the Wyoming County Historian)

SETUP:We are still in the county sheriff's office where Dave is looking at files and photos pulled from his attic kept from when his mother and father were foster parents to several children. Last week Pepper and Dave come across a group photo of the girls from when Dave's was a kid.


AND NOW THE SNIPPET:
Pepper picked it up and studied it for a moment. “Shit, all three of the girls  are in this one. Where was this taken?”
   
“It was one of the foster family picnics," said Dave. James Donley’s grandfather, Patrick Donley, was very supportive of the Friend’s of Foster Families group. He donated a lot of money to it in fact. That’s why he jumped on board when the missing children’s milk carton program started. His son Albert was pissed about it—thought it was a waste of space that should have been used for advertising.”





The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!

 AND MY BIG NEWS OF THE WEEK....
If you're connected with me on Facebook or Twitter you already know. :) I signed a contract with The History Press to publish my non-fiction book on Indian land title in New York State. Due out sometime after May in 2015 (based on my deadlines. I'll know when as it gets closer.) Their focus is regional history, so a good choice for this particular book.
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Friday, October 17, 2014

Dystopian Thriller Gene Cards

Congrats to my friend Elena Giorgi on the release of her new thriller Gene Cards!


 To celebrate the release you can purchase Gene Cards on Amazon for 99¢ for a limited time. Quick! October 21st is your last day!

Gene Cards is a dystopian, near-future thriller set in the fictional city of Liasis: When the cure for some means death for others, how far will you go to save your own?


Yulia Szymanski is a murderer and one of the best hackers of the century. Her mission: break her brother out of a high security jail before he dies of a rare genetic condition. On her trail is Biothreat Agent Skyler Donohue, a decorated Muay Thai fighter with a strange fascination for corpses. The obstacle to overcome: an invisible, deadly disease that strikes at random and has the city of Liasis locked in a bioterrorism siege.

When the latest to fall ill is Skyler's best friend's daughter, Skyler wants to drop the Szymanski case to chase the baffling pathogen that nobody is able to isolate. What she doesn't know is that finding Yulia is the only way to stop the epidemic and save the child's life.

In a world where identities are based on gene cards, and privacy no longer exists, survival is only granted to the rich, the healthy, and those who've learned to become invisible to the system.

 ***
You can't ask for more in a thriller about genetics than one written by a DNA scientist like Elena. I beta read this story and I have to say, the way it was woven together, it kept me guessing who the real bad guy was in an imperfect world. To tell you who I ultimately routed for would spoil the story. Action packed, yes, but the whole genetics thing really makes one wonder what is possible, it makes for some scary realistic sci-fi.

You can find Elena and her other great stories over at her blog CHIMERAS
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Saturday, October 04, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 40

Another Weekend Writing Warriors. This photo is one of my inspirations for my Milk Carton Murders World-Silver Lake
SETUP: We are still in the county sheriff's office where Dave is looking at files and photos pulled from his attic kept from when his mother and father were foster parents to several children. Last week Dave answered the voice in his head out loud, and Pepper heard him. The voice pointed out it was weird there were no baby pictures of "Davy," as the voice calls him. What can't Dave remember?


 

AND NOW THE SNIPPET:

She heard him. He focused back on the collection of dog-eared prints then stopped at a pile of familiar faces.

“Yes,” Dave said, "it's weird." Agreeing was the easiest way out of his latest faux pas.  He paused a moment and took a closer look at a group photo. “Pepper, can you put the Center for Missing Children's photos of Samantha, Lisa, and Rachael on the table?”
   
Pepper pulled them out from one of her files and laid them out in a row above where Dave had placed several old photographs.“I see we have some matches here, Dave.”


 
 


The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!

*** 
BLURB:
When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.

Dave is stunned to find that one of the girls is Sally―a foster child his parents had cared for through the Friends of Foster Families (FFF) program. Cold case files reveal the girls disappeared over 20 years ago. Knowing his house was the last place he saw Sally alive, he can’t help but suspect his dad.

How can he write the biggest story of his career if his father turns out to be the killer? If the voice in his head would shut up and let him remember, he might figure it out before he loses his mind and his dad is charged with murder.

Full blurb and snippet recap here.


 ***
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Sunday, September 28, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 39

Time for Weekend Writing Warriors! This photo is my lake from my Milk Carton Murders World.
In my book it's called Spirit Lake, in reality it is Silver Lake by my house.
SETUP: We are leaving the scene where Investigator Pepper Black tells Dave about the clue found inside the stuffed dog that was in the coffin with six-year-old Samantha.We are back in the county sheriff's office where Dave is looking at files and photos pulled from Dave's attic from when his mother and father were foster parents to Samantha and other children. As always, italics is the "other voice" in Dave's head.


AND NOW THE SNIPPET:

This box of photographs held more promise, they were in the right time frame—even a few of himself as a kid.

What? No baby pictures of you, Davy? That’s weird, don’t you think? 


“It’s not weird,” Dave said, out loud. Dammit—now he really was talking to himself. The first thing on the list when this case was over was to see that shrink.

“I’m sorry, did you say that’s weird?” asked Pepper.


***
The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!

*** 
BLURB:
When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.

Dave is stunned to find that one of the girls is Sally―a foster child his parents had cared for through the Friends of Foster Families (FFF) program. Cold case files reveal the girls disappeared over 20 years ago. Knowing his house was the last place he saw Sally alive, he can’t help but suspect his dad.

How can he write the biggest story of his career if his father turns out to be the killer? If the voice in his head would shut up and let him remember, he might figure it out before he loses his mind and his dad is charged with murder.

Full blurb and snippet recap here.


 ***
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Thursday, September 11, 2014

Discrete Divas 1000 likes giveaway

Presenting Discrete Divas 1000 likes Rafflecopter!! 
Tons of prizes!!!!! 
 Feel free to enter and share! 
In only a matter of a few days their 1000 likes have grown to 1600+!

Four Divas who love to promote their favorite authors and share the books they love. To give their followers a little lovin' and rewards they created this rafflecopter event. Enter to win!

You can find them on: 

Keep them in mind when your planning your next book release or promo. 
Now go enter to win!
 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Monday, July 28, 2014

Meet My Character Blog Tour


I was tagged by Teresa Cypher in the MEET MY CHARACTER BLOG TOUR. I know Teresa from the Weekend Writing Warriors blog hop. She is a talented writer and I look forward to reading her book when it releases in spring of 2015. If you want to see what her book is about and how she answered her questions, hop on over to Dreamers,Lovers, & Star Voyagers blog.

As for me, here are the seven questions and my answers:

1) What is the name of your character? Is he/she fictional or a historic person? 

My character is fictional, and purposely a very uninteresting name of Dave Robertson, a local reporter for the Lamont Weekly Times, a newspaper in a small rural town in western New York. But Dave is far from ordinary.

 

2) When and where is the story set?

Although Lamont is a real hamlet in the county where I live, my fictional place is a very active historic rural village. 

 

3) What should we know about him/her? 

Something happened to Dave when he was a child, events that he can’t remember which triggered a “voice” in his head. Dave grew to manhood thinking this was normal, “Doesn’t everyone talk to themselves once in a while?” It is not until three child size coffins slide out from the bank of Wiscoy Creek, revealing the 20+ year old murders of three girls that trigger his memory, and the voice becomes stronger.

 

4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life? 

One of the murdered girls had lived at his house as a foster child. As bits of his memory returns, Dave suspects his dad. Investigator Pepper Black is keeping Dave close sensing he knows something about the murders. Dave struggles with everything coming to a head at once.

 

5) What is the personal goal of the character? 

His goal is to remember what happened 20 years ago, to rid the voice in his head and clear his father’s name--if he can.

 

6) Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it? 

The novel is called The Milk Carton Murders. You can read 8 sentence excerpts every Sunday right her on my blog as part of the Weekend Writing Warriors. I also have a recap page of snippets that you can check out here.

 

7) When can we expect the book to be published? 

I’m aiming for the summer of 2015.

Here is the blurb:

 When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.

Dave is stunned to find that one of the girls is Sally―a foster child his parents had cared for through the Friends of Foster Families (FFF) program. Cold case files reveal the girls disappeared over 20 years ago. Knowing his house was the last place he saw Sally alive, he can’t help but suspect his dad.

How can he write the biggest story of his career if his father turns out to be the killer? If the voice in his head would shut up and let him remember, he might figure it out before he loses his mind and his dad is charged with murder.

Full blurb and snippet recap here.

Now onto meeting the great authors who accepted my invitation to join along. Stop by and visit them when they post on August 4th!

Sharon Buchbinder - Obsession - Crime cartels with seething romance!
E. E. Giorgi - Chimeras - A hard-boiled mystery with a genetic twist.And a sneak peak at her new book!
ELR Jones - Contemporary, Interracial & Paranormal Romance.  (She also has a blog of author news.)
F. C. Etier -  Meet Claudia, the coolest female assassin ever.
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Saturday, July 26, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 38

Wiscoy Creek (Yes, it's a real place near where I live.)
SETUP: The three girls whose twenty plus-year-old coffins washed out of the bank of the Wiscoy Creek have been identified as Lisa Appleton, Rachel McKenzie and Samantha Briggs. Samantha was a foster child at Dave's house when he was a kid who he knew as Sally, and it was the last place Dave seen her alive. Last time Pepper tells Dave of the stuffed dog found in the coffin with Samantha. Turns out Dave had given it to her before she disappeared. Pepper explained last week a piece of Balsa wood was found inside the toy with a carved message from the girl. (I'm leaving out part of the convo as it has clues and to keep it to 8 sentences.) Dave is trying to keep the "other voice" he hears in his head at bay, as asks what Samantha wrote. Pepper leads us off...

AND NOW THE SNIPPET:

“On one side it said, ‘Sammy Briggs August 22, 1987’ and underneath it, ‘Remember me, September 28, 1987.’ ”

“The August date had to be the week of the fair,” Dave surmised, "but the September date is after she left us—way after.”

Pepper agreed. “I'm sure she guessed something was going to happen, but what she carved on the other side was even more unsettling."

Dave squelched the other voice in his head from coming to the forefront of his mind. “I almost don’t want to know, but go ahead.”

Pepper looked up at him. “It said—the milk man is evil.”

***
The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!

*** 
BLURB:
When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.

Dave is stunned to find that one of the girls is Sally―a foster child his parents had cared for through the Friends of Foster Families (FFF) program. Cold case files reveal the girls disappeared over 20 years ago. Knowing his house was the last place he saw Sally alive, he can’t help but suspect his dad.

How can he write the biggest story of his career if his father turns out to be the killer? If the voice in his head would shut up and let him remember, he might figure it out before he loses his mind and his dad is charged with murder.

Full blurb and snippet recap here.


 ***

My blog may look different again when you stop next week. Some things with this one don't work right, like the side show. :(
It is canning and freezing time so I may not get to all of you on Sunday. I must take advantage of hubby being home to help. I shall be visiting blogs all week though. :)
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Sunday, July 20, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 37

My vision of Lamont, the town of The Milk Carton Murders
(Photo is really Bastrop, TX, although my book is set in western NY State.)



SETUP: The three girls whose twenty plus-year-old remains washed up in coffins at Wiscoy Creek have been identified as Lisa Appleton, Rachel McKenzie and Samantha Briggs. Samantha was a foster child at Dave's house when he was a kid who he knew as Sally, and it was the last place Dave seen her alive. Last time Pepper tells Dave of the stuffed dog found in the coffin with Samantha. Turns out Dave had given it to her before she disappeared. We pick up a little bit ahead in the same scene. Pepper speaks first.

And now the snippet:

“Samantha put something inside the stuffed dog at some point, between the back stitches—a piece of balsa wood. We figure it survived because it was surrounded by fiber fill, basically encased in plastic.”

“Balsa wood? That’s what my pine wood derby car was made out of.”

“And when did you make that?”

“It was pretty soon after she came to us—May or June, but why do that?"

Pepper looked him straight in the eye, “Because it was a soft wood to carve into I imagine. She wanted to leave us a message, Dave; for the person she hoped someday would find her.”

###

I wonder what it said? Don't you hate that?

***
The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!
*** 
BLURB:
When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.

Dave is stunned to find that one of the girls is Sally―a foster child his parents had cared for through the Friends of Foster Families (FFF) program. Cold case files reveal the girls disappeared over 20 years ago. Knowing his house was the last place he saw Sally alive, he can’t help but suspect his dad.

How can he write the biggest story of his career if his father turns out to be the killer? If the voice in his head would shut up and let him remember, he might figure it out before he loses his mind and his dad is charged with murder.

Full blurb and snippet recap here.
 

***   
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Wednesday, July 02, 2014

Freedom To Read

Three winners will be chosen to receive an ebook 
(your choice of format MOBI or EPUB) of
Bread & Butter 
The Murders of Polly Frisch

A 19th century true crime by Cindy Amrhein (me) and Ellen Bachorski


In 1856, in the rural town of Alabama, NY one woman's family suffered from multiple unexplained deaths. The town folk grew suspicious of the now remarried Polly Frisch. An investigation commenced, bodies were exhumed, an affair—exposed. Polly would be arrested for the murders of her first husband and daughters. Her fourteen-year-old son would testify against her. If found guilty, the punishment for such a crime was the gallows. Would Polly be the first woman in Genesee County history to be hanged for murder? Bread & Butter is the true story of Polly Frisch who poisoned her family with arsenic and the five trials it took to convict her.


All you have to do is leave a comment below, the rest is optional for extra entries. Good luck!
Don't forget to hop around to he other blogs below to  enter other giveaways.



a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Sunday, June 29, 2014

Inspirational writing tools.

Now tell me, what writer doesn't still like a classic now and then?

So last week at a flee market I spotted a vintage 1930s (my guess) typewriter for $55. So this week we went back to get it. They also had a six speed Greco swing for $10. I bargained and got both for $60. Can't believe the manual was underneath the typewriter, copyright 1934-38, and it has a key. I can lock it like my iPad! HA ! I know yuz writers is jealous!

It is a small portable in beautiful condition. It still has the typewriter brush with it too. No bent keys as the, "Quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog," has proved. The ribbon even had a little life in it, but I shall have to check around for ribbons, which won't be hard. This is one gadget that has stood the test of time. I'm going to take it to my favorite spot at Silver Lake and write. I think I may have to cut my fingernails ...


Speaking of new gadgets, I'm trying to get the Amazon carousel thing to book to display books. I can see it when on my laptop but not on my iPad? Think it's an Apple not wanting to display Amazon things issue? I'm going to try it below and see if it works in a post. If you don't see it, I guess it will answer that question.


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Sunday, June 22, 2014

Blogsite Malfunction

Before you say it, yes I backed up my template as well as all my posts. In my attempt to try and find a new template and not finding one right away, my old template for some reason, would not re-upload. I like the new one BUT none of my posts are showing soooo, 8 sentence snippet for me today.

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Sunday, June 15, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 36

Time for another snippet from:

SETUP: The three girls whose twenty plus-year-old remains washed up in coffins at Wiscoy Creek have been identified as Lisa Appleton, Rachel McKenzie and Samantha Briggs. Samantha was a foster child at Dave's house when he was a kid who he knew as Sally, and it was the last place Dave seen her alive. This week Pepper needs to ask our reporter, Dave, some questions. She is sharing a bit of what the forensic's team found inside one of the coffins with him to see what he says. 

As always the words in italics is the "other" voice in Dave's head.

And now the snippet (Pepper speaks first):

Well your Sally, a.k.a. our victim Samantha Briggs, had a stuffed dog, more teddy bear style construction made of polyester, a man made fabric that’s plastic based, which is why it survived.”

 “Was it yellow?”

“Yes, extremely dirty, but it was yellow. And you knew this how?”

Dave slumped against the jeep; please, he thought, no more headaches—focus. “Because I gave it to her—I think I won it at the county fair.”

You think? Oh come on Davy, quit being a chicken shit, you can remember—or do I have to tell you?    
***
The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!
*** 
BLURB:
When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.

Dave is stunned to find that one of the girls is Sally―a foster child his parents had cared for through the Friends of Foster Families (FFF) program. Cold case files reveal the girls disappeared over 20 years ago. Knowing his house was the last place he saw Sally alive, he can’t help but suspect his dad.

How can he write the biggest story of his career if his father turns out to be the killer? If the voice in his head would shut up and let him remember, he might figure it out before he loses his mind and his dad is charged with murder.

Full blurb and snippet recap here.
 

***   

 ***
  If you're curious what Polly Frisch is doing, you can find her on Amazon in paperback and for Kindle, Smashwords, and for Nook, and on iTunes. She did good in the Goodreads giveaway with 940 entries.

 You can download a free excerpt (about 3 chapters) on NoiseTrade Books in mobi , ePub or PDF formats.  NoiseTrade has been for music since 2008 and just stepped into the literary side. Lots of things to read for free in exchange for an email addy and zip code. A great way for authors to inform their readers of what they're up too, or if they're in their area for a signing.


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Sunday, June 08, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 35

Time for another snippet from:

SETUP: The three girls whose twenty plus-year-old remains washed up in coffins at Wiscoy Creek have been identified as Lisa Appleton, Rachel McKenzie and Samantha Briggs. Samantha was a foster child at Dave's house when he was a kid, and it was the last place Dave seen her alive. His dad Hal is one of the suspects. Dave and Investigator Pepper Black are at the police station going through boxes Dave pulled from their attic. One is a box of old foster family files (that Dave's dad believes will help clear him) and a couple boxes of old photographs from the right time period and before. Pepper and Dave come across two, group shots form a "Farm Days" event for foster kids that have the three victims in them.

Now the snippet:
"All the kids were taken on a tour," said Dave. "They got to pet and feed the cows. The Donley’s even had an old cow that was pretty people friendly, meaning it wouldn’t start crapping all over the place when it was around screaming kids.  Cows tend to do that when they sense you’re nervous, then it makes them nervous and they shit all over.”

“So this photograph is obviously 1987,” Pepper said making mental notes, “between July and September. I’m going to make a photocopy of it; then I want you to write on the copy and tell who’s who, as much as you can remember anyway.”

***
The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!
*** 
BLURB:
When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.

Dave is stunned to find that one of the girls is Sally―a foster child his parents had cared for through the Friends of Foster Families (FFF) program. Cold case files reveal the girls disappeared over 20 years ago. Knowing his house was the last place he saw Sally alive, he can’t help but suspect his dad.

How can he write the biggest story of his career if his father turns out to be the killer? If the voice in his head would shut up and let him remember, he might figure it out before he loses his mind and his dad is charged with murder.

Full blurb and snippet recap here.
 

***  
You still have time to enter and win one of five autographed copies of 

Bread & Butter the Murders of Polly Frisch

By Cindy Amrhein & Ellen Lea Bachorski

SETUP: The three girls whose twenty plus-year-old remains washed up in coffins at Wiscoy Creek have been identified as Lisa Appleton, Rachel McKenzie and Samantha Briggs. Samantha was a foster child at Dave's house when he was a kid, and it was the last place Dave seen her alive. His dad Hal is one of the suspects. Dave and Investigator Pepper Black are at the police station going through boxes Dave pulled from their attic. One is a box of old foster family files (that Dave's dad believes will help clear him) and a couple boxes of old photographs from the right time period and before. Dave's dad, Hal, also worked in the print shop at the dairy. - See more at: http://historysleuth.blogspot.com/#sthash.2Bl90jT4.dpuf


Goodreads Book Giveaway

Bread & Butter The Murders of Polly Frisch by Cindy Amrhein & Ellen Lea Bachorski
Enter to win
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Wednesday, June 04, 2014

IWSG Post - Juggling Life

Oh for pitty sake! It's the first Wednesday of the month! 

Time for...

***
Bread and Butter The Murders of Polly Frisch is now available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions.
The list to the other IWSG bloggers is here.
If your user name in comments doesn't lead to your IWSG blog, leave the URL so I can find you!
 
Here's how to do a clickable link to your blog in comments:
< a href="http://historysleuth.blogspot.com/">History Sleuth's Writings</a >
Just replace my stuff with yours and take the space out between the < a and a >
(Had to put a space in or you would see a link instead of code. :)
Keep it in a note on your desktop so you can copy & keep hitting paste at every blog instead of retyping.
- See more at: http://historysleuth.blogspot.com/2014/05/iswg-post-tweaking-of-ebooks.html#sthash.5OEaGFH4.dpuf
Today I came home from work and I thought, Lord, my house looks like a bomb went off in it. Well, maybe not that bad, but bad enough. How do all of you juggle life with writing? It seems like life gets in the way of LIFE

Maybe I need a Stepford wife.

Ok, maybe not her...
....but one that does all those mundane tasks so I have time to sit down and write, edit whatever. Spend time with hubby, my kids, my grand kids. Feel fulfilled as a mom/grandma/wife AND a writer. Oh, yes and go to work. 

Maybe something like...


I wonder if I can find one on eBay?
Actually I bet Craigslist has them. All the weird shit is on Craigslist.

In the meantime, Bread & Butter the Murders of Polly Frisch is doing pretty good out there in cyberspace. I have more to publish as soon as I find time to compile and format it. Well it's off to clean the kitchen.... I think it's the kitchen. I remember there being a room if I turn left through the one archway, ya, I think it's that way...

The list to the other IWSG bloggers is here.
If your user name in comments doesn't lead to your IWSG blog, leave the URL so I can find you!
 
Here's how to do a clickable link to your blog in comments:
< a href="http://historysleuth.blogspot.com/">History Sleuth's Writings</a >
Just replace my stuff with yours and take the space out between the < a and a >
(Had to put a space in or you would see a link instead of code. :)
Keep it in a note on your desktop so you can copy & keep hitting paste at every blog instead of retyping.


***
Bread and Butter The Murders of Polly Frisch is now available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions.
The list to the other IWSG bloggers is here.
If your user name in comments doesn't lead to your IWSG blog, leave the URL so I can find you!
 
Here's how to do a clickable link to your blog in comments:
< a href="http://historysleuth.blogspot.com/">History Sleuth's Writings</a >
Just replace my stuff with yours and take the space out between the < a and a >
(Had to put a space in or you would see a link instead of code. :)
Keep it in a note on your desktop so you can copy & keep hitting paste at every blog instead of retyping.
- See more at: http://historysleuth.blogspot.com/2014/05/iswg-post-tweaking-of-ebooks.html#sthash.5OEaGFH4.dpuf
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Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Paying it Forward

I was recently tagged by Chip Etier, a writer of some awesome political thrillers, to participate in a Paying it Forward blog hop. Thanks Chip for thinking of me and my other tagged fellow writers, Teresa Cypher and Jess Schira. Chip blogs often for Venture Galleries, a site that connects readers, writers and books. What author could resit the opportunity? So thanks to them too.

We have to answer four questions. About what you wonder? Well writing of course. For people who are used to using our words in a thousand different descriptive ways, I think we sometimes have trouble talking about ourselves. It's a great exercise in looking at ourselves and why we do what we do despite the never ending challenge of it. So here we go ......

1. What am I working on? 

I'm doing three different things at once, all in different stages of production. I think a lot of writers do that. The first full length piece I ever wrote was a book with my friend Ellen Bachorski called Bread & Butter the Murders of Polly Frisch. That was back in 2000, when self-publishing was nothing like it is today. We've sold the 1st edition right along. Recently we brought Polly into the new world of self-publishing. It is a fascinating story about a woman in the 1850s who poisoned her husband and two of her children with arsenic, and the five trials it took to convict her. It was a challenge to teach myself how to make ebooks.

 The second thing is a book on Indian land title in New York State. This at the moment is with an editor of a commercial publisher. I wrote for 2 1/2 years for a Native American newspaper called the Akwesasne Phoenix Sundays. My column was on history and land rights issues. I expanded upon it and put it in book form.

The third, a mystery. I love murder mysteries so I thought I'd try it. I write historical true crime often so I thought, how much fun it would be to do my own murder? I find it a breath of fresh air from doing non-fiction. This one is called The Milk Carton Murders, set in a rural area like my own. It is in the editing phase. I'm also writing a NA adventure with elements of history in it now that Polly is out of the creation phase.

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre? 

My work is probably different because the subjects are. All do stem from history in one form or another even the non-fiction.  I have no problem hoping from Native American history, which in my case involves a lot of research in the clerks office looking at deeds; then picking up true crime from a hundred years ago, or setting that down to play in the fiction world of my characters in The Milk Carton Murders.

3. Why do I write what I write?

Being a historian, I can't help it. We do a quarterly at the county historian's office where I work. I love researching and writing about true crimes more than any other topic. It's not the crime itself but the mindset of the killer that fascinates me. I try to incorporate that in my mysteries as well. As for the Native American land issues? Having researched deeds, treaties, etc for so long it disturbs me that the Nations were so cheated out of their land in half ass deals they had no way of fairly defending themselves over. I have discovered new information and ways to look at it through my research and I look forward to sharing that.

4. How does my writing process work?

Even in fiction, a lot of research first. I like things to be accurate and believable---historians like facts. In non-fiction, after I have collected enough information where I feel I have enough I start writing. I'm a pantster, so for fiction, no outline. For true crime, or other history, I then usually put all the events in chronological order, right down to the hour and minute sometimes, especially with crimes. With a real crime there is usually pieces I'm missing that I need to look for to fill in the holes, so then I go through again and fill in the blanks during re-write. Lots of edits and beta readers too of course. Sometimes, especially with non-fiction, it's hard to say, "It's done." New records are uncovered all the time. At some point you have to write -The End-.

And now to pick three other writers. :)
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Sunday, May 18, 2014

Milk Carton Murders 34

Since Polly Frish is finally off committing murder in the digital world, I thought I would relax with some fiction. Time to get back to....

SETUP: The three girls whose twenty plus-year-old remains washed up in coffins at Wiscoy Creek have been identified as Lisa Appleton, Rachel McKenzie and Samantha Briggs. Samantha was a foster child at Dave's house when he was a kid, and it was the last place Dave seen her alive. His dad Hal is one of the suspects. Dave and Investigator Pepper Black are at the police station going through boxes Dave pulled from their attic. One is a box of old foster family files (that Dave's dad believes will help clear him) and a couple boxes of old photographs from the right time period and before. Dave's dad, Hal, also worked in the print shop at the dairy.

AND NOW THE SNIPPET: 

Pepper picked one up and studied it for a moment. “Shit, all three of the girls are in this one. Where was this taken?”
   
“It was one of the foster family picnics," said Dave. "James Donley’s grandfather, Patrick Donley, was very supportive of the Friends of Foster Families group—donated a lot of money to it in fact—that’s why he jumped on board when the missing children’s milk carton program started. His son Albert was pissed about it—thought it was a waste of space that should have been used for advertising.”

“So how often did these picnics take place?”

“Every year, right at the dairy; all the kids were taken on a tour."


***
The link to the other Weekend Writing Warriors is here. You're bound to find something to pique your interest.

The Sunday Snippet writer's on Facebook are here. Between the two there is something for everyone. Thank you for any comments you leave me. Much appreciated!

*** 
BLURB:
When three small coffins are unearthed near the Wiscoy Creek during a routine dredging operation, it’s the last thing DAVE ROBERTSON, of the Lamont Weekly Times, expected. Pinned to the skeleton’s clothing are pictures from milk cartons of missing girls.

Dave is stunned to find that one of the girls is Sally―a foster child his parents had cared for through the Friends of Foster Families (FFF) program. Cold case files reveal the girls disappeared over 20 years ago. Knowing his house was the last place he saw Sally alive, he can’t help but suspect his dad.

How can he write the biggest story of his career if his father turns out to be the killer? If the voice in his head would shut up and let him remember, he might figure it out before he loses his mind and his dad is charged with murder.

Full blurb and snippet recap here.


 ***
  If you're curious what Polly Frisch is doing, you can find her on Amazon in paperback and for Kindle, Smashwords, and for Nook

 You can download a free excerpt (about 3 chapters) on NoiseTrade Books in mobi , ePub or PDF formats.  NoiseTrade has been for music since 2008 and just stepped into the literary side. Lots of things to read for free in exchange for an email addy and zip code. A great way for authors to inform their readers of what the're up too, or if they're in their area for a signing.


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Available in paperback and eBook formats

Available in paperback and eBook formats

Now Available At:

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Carried by over 40 college/university libraries across the county, according to daily updates by worldcat.org, including Columbia University, Oklahoma State, Texas A & M, and Yale University Law Library.

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Bread & Butter the Murders of Polly Frisch

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