Ready for Research

I love doing research for mywriting. Especially the kind where you get to travel to a new city or country to explore its streets and absorb the atmosphere. It’s even better when there’s a person to person connection and you’reable to speak with someone first hand to share their thoughts and experiences. I could talk to these folks for hours and have on many occassions. Their generosity in sharing is only exceeded by my desire to know everything they know.

So far, I’ve used our trips to Italy and visits to Pennsylvania and Las Vegas in my writing. I’ve wandered through Florence’s Uffiizi and the Tuscan hillside, explored Dowlestown, PA and its shops and restaurants and hit the tables in those glittery Vegas casinos. And, of course, Manhattan, where I live is fair game. I’ve also intreviewed a number of detectives, several FBI agents, an upscale art gallery expert and a few folks who know a thing or two about illegal internet gambling. Next, I’d like to travle to South Africa and speak with an expert on International diamond trading and maybe take home a sample or two. Well, that’s probably not going to happen.

Of course, with Google Earth you can gain geographic knowledge with just a click or two for a lot less money and without leaving home. And Wikipedia and other online sources have loads of information on thousands of topics, which I use all the time, as well.

What about you? How do you approach your reasearch? Do you really get into it, or merely tolerate the process? And do you, like me, sometimes use it as a stalling tactic to postpone your actual writing?

Let us know.


Visit me at www.cathistoler.com to read an excerpt of my novel, TELLING LIES and check in on my latest news and events.

Tuesday Twosome

I just returned from my Thanksgiving trip late last night. I was able to visit with all my children, which meant I spent a lot of time with my four grandchildren. I was so-o-o-o very thankful! It also meant I did not read so I'm depending on your input for our Tuesday Twosome today. Got something you'd like to share? Let us hear from you and we'll try to wake up from our Thanksgiving stupor and say something intelligent and creative about your selection.

MTM: Branson, Missouri

Nearly 8 million visitors travel to Branson, Missouri each year, and I was one of them, this past spring.

My family and I enjoyed the 2,200-acre Dogwood Canyon Nature Park in Lampe, just south of Branson. A self-guided tour is available, but we chose the guided tram tour, which makes several stops along the way for great photo ops.

Halfway through the tour, at the top of a hill that crosses into Arkansas, we saw a buffalo named Elvis (isn't he cute?). At the end of our tour, we stopped at the gift and souvenir shop, which is next to an outdoor cafe.

Also available is trout fishing and horseback riding.

This winter (December 4-February 26), the park will close for major improvements, but will be ready to open again on February 26. Normal operating hours are 8:30 am ~ 4 p.m.

Branson has more theatre seats than the Broadway district of New York City.

We saw the Osmond Brothers (Wayne, Merrill, Jay, and Jimmy) on opening night at the Caravelle Theater. As a Tiger Beat-reading teeny bopper, I had seen the Osmonds perform at Nassau Coliseum in 1972 and Madison Square Garden in 1973. It was surreal to watch my teen idols on stage, with my teenagers sitting next to me!

I couldn't pass up the opportunity to visit the Titanic Museum, where hundreds of artifacts are on display. Each visitor is given a boarding pass with the name of a passenger on Titanic, and his/her fate is revealed at the end of the tour on a memorial wall. Next April marks the 100th anniversary of the sinking of Titanic.

Branson is beautiful!

Stop by My Town Monday for more posts.

Come follow me on Twitter @katcop13.

UPDATE: Evil J Winter's got twenty years (and counting) in Cincinnati, OH. Jennette Marie Powell shares how a denied bank loan resulted in a doorway to daily domination in Dayton, OH.

Take Your Child to a Bookstore Day

Mark your calendars! The Second Annual Take Your Child to a Bookstore Day is Saturday, December 3, 2011.

Nearly 150 bookstores will join in the celebration. Many thanks to Jenny Milchman for starting this tradition last year. Every day's a great day to bring your child to a bookstore ~ but this a marvelous opportunity if you've been putting off such a trip.

Sadly, 399 Borders bookstores closed this year. Sales of e-readers are predicted to triple by 2016. Check out this infographic, created by RetailMeNot, on how e-readers are changing the publishing landscape.

The bookstore, a wonderland for readers of all ages, has become a precious commodity. Help celebrate "Take Your Child to a Bookstore Day," and demonstrate your support!

Come follow me on Twitter @katcop13.

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

Today I give thanks that Dorothy Parker lived and gave us such wonderful, appropriate lines as these:

Drink and dance and laugh and lie,
  Love, the reeling midnight through,
For tomorrow we shall die!
  (But, alas, we never do.)

Or, as I am apt to say, "eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we diet!"

Gobble, gobble, everyone!

Former Twain House Employee Sentenced

The employee who embezzled more than $1 million from the Mark Twain House and Museum in Hartford, Connecticut, has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison. Donna Gregor, age 58, of East Hartford, must pay restitution and face three years of supervised release after serving her term.

Gregor was facing up to 23 years for wire fraud and filing a false income tax return when she pleaded guilty in August.

Mark Twain built the house in 1874. Among the works he wrote during the 17 years he lived there include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Due to debt, Twain was forced to sell the home in 1903. In 1927, it was saved from demolition. Today it remains one of Connecticut's prime tourist attractions.

Gregor's attorney said the former employee was supporting several troubled family members, including her cancer-stricken mother.

The Mark Twain House and Museum website released a statement concerning the sentencing and their current status.

With Black Friday coming, you can even shop for apparel and accessories at the Mark Twain House and Museum online.

(Photo from MarkTwainHouse.org)

Come follow me on Twitter @katcop13.

Tuesday Twosome

Recently I wrote a Fresh Meat post on Criminal Element about a charming cozy called Miss Dimple Rallies to the Cause by Mignon C. Ballard. The entire story takes place in 1943 in small town USA. Besides engaging the reader in the ensuing mystery, Ballard also teaches us what civilian life was like during World War Two. Here is the one sentence that surprised me the most:

"It had been less than a year, she recalled, when President Roosevelt had the salute to the flag changed from holding the right hand out toward the banner to placing it over one’s heart because the former resembled the heinous tribute to Adolph Hitler."

Old as I am, I never heard anyone mention the change from outward salute to hand over heart that altered our national behavior just a few short years before I was born.

As for me, this week I wrote:

"The noise distracted Aidan as he struggled with his bow tie, lamenting that he hadn't gotten a snap-on when he rented his tux. He turned to the side mirror and was making a large loop of the black fabric when, in the outer corner of the mirror, a large red stain spreading outward from the middle cubicle caught his eye."

What about you? What have you read? What have you written? Let us know and I'll update this post when I get a chance!

Terrie

When a Student is Ready the Teacher Will Appear

About five years ago, I submitted the first fifty pages of my manuscript to MWA’s mentor program. Triss Stein, who’s since become a NY/SinC friend, sent a thoughtful critique that included this question: What is the emotional heart of the scene? This was my first attempt at writing a novel, and my characters spent much of their time stumbling through the pages looking for the plot. Emotional heart? So that’s what I was supposed to be doing. It was as if someone had turned on a light in a very dark room. If you read Triss’s beautifully written and very moving story, “The Greenmarket Violinist,” in Murder New York Style: Fresh Slices, you’ll see exactly what she means by “emotional heart.”

In 2007, when Lee Child was the Guest of Honor at Crime Bake, he said this about achieving suspense: Ask a question, and then don’t answer it. That should have been obvious, you say? Well, it wasn’t to me at that point in my writing life. In my first manuscript, I was so eager to exonerate the innocent that by chapter five I was left with only one suspect—the killer. Lesson learned.

Last May I blogged about an NPR interview in which Stewart O’Nan said this about his writing process: “You grow closer and closer to [your characters] and hold them close to you.” These words appeared like a life raft recently when I struggled with a big action scene in my WIP. Why, I wondered, was this thing dead on the page when I’d spent so much time viewing similar events on YouTube? Ah, yes. The dangers of research. I’d packed the scene with so many details that my poor protag was lost in the crowd.

So, thank you Triss Stein, Lee Child, and Stewart O’Nan.

(The headline on this post, by the way, is a Buddhist proverb that might enlighten the test-them-till-they drop movement. But that's a topic for another time.)

Any writing advice you've received that you’d like to share?

Penguin's Book Country Self-Publishing Tools?

The big six are watching the success of a number of indie authors, including many who have breathed new life into their back lists by publishing digitally. So it's not such a big surprise Penguin - via Book Country - is stirring the self-publishing waters in a rather unique way.

Please let it be known that I love Penguin Books. In my own house, my Penguins reside on shelves instead of in bedroom-floor stacks. In many cases they're absolute favorites, and besides, those little fellows on the spines look like they're marching when the books are lined up. (It's a truly brilliant logo.)

But here's the scoop. Last spring, Penguin launched a subsidiary called Book Country. It's an authors' social network that provides some beneficial information for a community of writers and readers of genre fiction. This past week Book Country went into the self-publishing business. And a lot of writers are sitting up straighter, believing that by paying up front they can sorta somehow get published by Penguin. Maybe their title was rejected by the house, and now they're subtly offered the subsidiary for a small fee? Read about the hoopla here.

You can argue that Book Country is offering one more service for writers. But the way they're going about it is maybe, well, . . . it just doesn't sit well. (Full disclosure: As a provider of eBook and POD services - dba Winged Books - I have something of my own interest at stake here.) 

I read digital-publishing guru Joe Konrath (who also has an interest at stake) and respect his take on the indie publishing business. He, along with a growing number of voices, complain that Book Country's digital publishing prices are too high.

In truth, there are services that charge a lot more - many of them are so-called vanity presses - but Book Country does demand a hefty rate to format your eBook and print book, then upload it to e-tailers. Or, alternatively a hefty-ish rate to let you do the formatting yourself and then hand it off so they can upload it to e-tailers.

Hear ye, hear ye: If you haven't tried it yet, note that the important e-tailers charge $0.00 when you upload your own.

Says Konrath, “Why would you pay Penguin to upload your titles? That's the easiest part of the self-publishing process . . . .  But wait, there's more. Penguin also keeps 30% of your royalties. So not only do you pay them, you also keep paying them . . . .  I’ve sold 500,000 e-books. If I’d published with Book Country, they would have taken $290,000 in royalties from me. . . . "

I would add . . . what's more, they've got a stable of unpublished writers. But maybe that's just good old-fashioned business sense.

There are many routes to formatting and distribution, many of them far less expensive than Book Country. And that Penguin logo? It won't appear on your book's spine.

Friday is for Fans

Yesterday, I posted a fan letter on Criminal Element. I've spoken here before about how much I liked John Connolly, but after a while I started thinking that mentioning here and there wasn't quite the same thing as sitting down and figuring out what it is you like, why you like it, and going public with your appreciation.

I must admit, I was inspired a bit by our own Cathi's story of her fan letter to Jim Kirkwood. She mailed hers, and the result was great. (You can read her story here.)

But back to my own letter. Goodness knows, I've made no secret of my fandom.  But then it occurred to me that perhaps a true fan actually tries to spread the love.  (Not that I don't. I've bought copies of JC books for friends and family, but as anyone who knows me can tell you, I don't really know--or like--people very much, so there are only so many people I can spread the word to among my own circle.)

So I posted my fan letter online rather than posting it through the postal service in the hopes that a few more people might see it, might be inspired to pick up a Connolly book and give it a shot.

Have you ever written a fan letter? Would you?

Learning to read

Reading is not something I take for granted. As a person who’s always had access to books, reading was a huge part of my life. In fact, my love of reading from an early age was most likely the catalyst for me becoming a writer. It was a way to learn, to explore and to stretch my imagination.

Unfortunately, many children today don’t have the same access to books that I did. Whether it’s budget cuts in school programs, economic circumstance at home, or a even a reluctance to pick up a book, reading skills are suffering which is where Donors Choose comes in.

This terrific program was created to help classroom teachers get the necessary funding for a wide range of school programs that would be impossible to support without the help of outside donors. Geared to schools in high poverty areas, the programs encompass everything from providing supplies like pencils and paper, to science projects, to a rug to sit on for meetings, to books that help boost reading levels.

Over the last few years, I’ve joined with other donors and contributed to several reading projects that would not have been funded without outside help. I’ve received letters from the students and the teachers telling us what a difference these contributions have made. And who knows, maybe one of these students will become a life-long reader who decides that writing is a perfect career choice for him or her.

To learn more about Donors Choose, or be part of a project, visit their website.

Visit me at www.cathistoler.com to read an excerpt of my novel, TELLING LIES and check in on my latest news and events.

Um, Pizza + Thongs = Crime Stories?

We've been talking about the Fresh Slices anthology here, but did you know there's accompanying merchandise with all those little pizzas?  In addition to getting trucker hats, beer steins, infant wear, water bottles, hoodies, teddy bears, dog shirts, PJs, and every size and shape of tote-able, you can also get thong underwear to hold your 22 slices of New York attitude.

A little scared?  Me, too.

Tuesday Twosome

I've been reading a book by Frank M. Ahearn (written with Eileen C. Horan) called How to Disappear. I am amazed at the details he discusses is finding ways to "vanish without a trace." It's also difficult for me to imagine needing to do this. I can't see myself ever wanting to completely disappear from my family and friends. I don't think my life would be worth living without them. But that's just me.

Like I said, Ahearn gives you intricate details on how to clear out the many areas of your life. Take, for instance, the kitchen. Do you ever think about how your kitchen could help others find you?

There are probably lots of warranties on the items in here--on your refrigerator, your microwave, your stove--but the food you're cooking inside these appliances could get you, too. Where do you buy your food? Are you in some kind of price club or food co-op? Almost all of these stores offer "affinity" cards that you have to scan to get the sale price on weekly specials. These stores have your address and phone number on file, and some even have your checking account information. And of course they know what you buy, where you buy it, and when. Why did you give these people this information?

I don't know about you, but that paragraph gave me cold chills. I have a key ring filled with the little cards from grocery stores so I can have access to all the specials, but I never thought about it in this manner.

Have you ever thought about just walking out on your life? Leaving behind everything familiar and comforting to you? I know there are people who have to do this, but I hope it never happens to me. I like who I am and where I am and what I do. But boy, oh boy, do I have some real ideas now for stories and books after reading this material.

Here are some parting words from Frank's book:

Just remember: If two men in trench coats are at your door, it's the FBI. If it's just one man in a trench coat, it's the IRS. Either way, you probably shouldn't open the door.

Have you read something lately that really affected you or gave you some good ideas? Share a quote with us.

Liberty's Vigil: The Occupy Anthology

It is no secret that I strongly support the Occupy movement. But I don't like political discussions here on Women of Mystery. (Although I probably will do a My Town Monday post on Occupy Fort Myers eventually, since the encampment is right on my beloved Caloosahatchie River.) However, when there is a call for submissions involved, politics--step aside.

Foothills Publishing has issued a call for 99 poems representing the 99%. and since 9 is a recurring theme, the call was issued on November 12th and submissions close nine days later on November 21st.

You can find all the details here.

So get rhyming. November 21st is nearly here.

Terrie

SleuthSayers Talk Twin Peaks

Leigh Lundin at the new(ish) blog SleuthSayers, which boasts a bunch of other Criminal Briefers as well, is talking Twin Peaks today.  He uses as his leaping-off point a cool article about the series' unique portrayals of grief from Criminal Element, written by Richard Z. Santos, and then goes on to mention our sweet selves here.  What else could this fan of Dale Cooper, pie, and log divination do, but share some of his thoughts?

David Lynch is, well, a flawed genius, which I think is way cooler than ordinary genius. His works are never dull (although Eraserhead takes more wine and corn chips than most folks can consume). . .

I agree with him about Eraserhead.  Unforgettable, but almost intolerable.  Leigh goes on to examine various aspects of Twin Peaks with what he loves, hates, and what ought to be taught in writing class.  It's good work, I figure, when it still gives you that much to enjoy and that's worth arguing about.

Veterans Day

Please take a moment today to thank the veterans in your life for their sevice to our country. And as I've told you repeatedly the organization Homes for Our Troops builds adaptive housing for veterans who have been severely wounded since 9/11.

All of the proceeds of Murder to Mil-Spec , an anthology of military mysteries goes to Homes for Our Troops. so why not buy a copy today to help the veterans in need and to honor the veterans you love. All stories and publishing costs have been donated, so every cent goes directly to Homes for Our Troops.

Terrie

99 cents, or Pay with a Tweet?

Build a platform, they tell us. Use social networking to create a buzz about your book. But when does it go too far? We don't want to bombard people with constant links to our author websites, but we do want to spread the news, and what better way than with Twitter or Facebook?

Personally, I don't find pay-with-a-tweet tweets all that offensive, but even if I secretly think they're kind of a nifty idea for generating buzz, I am concerned about the possibility of turning off the very folks I hope to interest.

So I'm curious; what do you think about offering the download of a book sample or story or eBook in exchange for a tweet or facebook post? Is it advertising? Is it commerce? Is it spam? Or is it simply a way to let the world in on your exciting new title?  

It's interesting to consider: if Emily Dickinson - 19th century poet recluse - could have used pay-with-a-tweet for every one of the nearly 2,000 poems she wrote, might she have sold more than the dozen that were published in her lifetime?

and lest we forget . . . thank you to all the Veterans out there!

Hanging out with Ed Gorman

Recently, I received an invitation that all must envy.

The much esteemed author Ed Gorman ( I recently wrote about his latest novel Bad Moon Rising here) invited me to write a piece about about Murder New York Style: Fresh Slices on his blog, New Improved Gorman, and so I did. You can read it here.

So that is one more thing I can cross off my Bucket List. I got to hang with Ed Gorman. His millions of fans are soooooooo jealous! Too bad.

Terrie

Want to emulate Lizbeth Salander? H&M thinks so.

In as weird a tie-in as I've heard, H&M is making a Lisbeth Salander line of clothing with "with leather jackets and trousers, torn jeans and slouchy hoodies. (NYPost) This is predicated upon the holiday release of the English-speaking version of the film The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, starring Rooney Mara. (I put up the picture of Noomi Rapace from the original Swedish movie, because she was excellent, and Rooney's going to have to measure up for me. )

Okay, there's a group of people who will buy anything, H&M is a Swedish company, and I'm sure there are people who view Lisbeth's as mainly a girl power story.  But if you're asking me whether my aspiration is to mimic someone as relentlessly unhappy, haunted, and cruelly mistreated, the effects of which help turn Lisbeth into the person capable of what she is, the answer is, um, no, thanks.  Then again, a leather jacket's been a cool thing since the flyboys of WWII, so maybe the store just needs an excuse to make it feel fresh.  With hoodies and pants.  How daring, novel, whatever.  We'll see how many spiked dog collars show up.  Just trust me on this.  They're inconvenient to wear and will get caught on your car's safety belt.

Create a trend for wearing Hannibal Lecter masks, and that will be groundbreaking fashion.

Tuesday Twosome

I read The Next Always by Nora Roberts this week. It's the first book in the Inn Boonsboro Trilogy and it hits the mark. Nora is a wonderful romance writer. I think it's because she can make feel the romance. She so adept at describing emotions that you know exactly what the character is experiencing.

In this section, the main male character, Beckett Montgomery, is seeing the woman he's had feelings for since they were in high school. She has returned to their hometown as a widow, and he finds those feelings haven't changed much:

With the conversation, the noise of the machine, he didn't hear her, but sensed her. He looked over as she came down the curve of the steps, one hand trailing the banister.

"Hi, Beck. I thought I heard you down here."

She smiled, and his heart stopped jumping to fall flat.

Yep, she got it right with that one. You know he's fallen and he has fallen hard. Here's my attempt to express the same kind of emotion and I'm pretty sure I didn't do as well.

Maybe it was the clothes, maybe it was the mascara and red lipstick, but Mike’s eyes had definitely lit up when I answered the door. I had beamed in return, because he looked nothing short of delicious in black jeans, a cable knit sweater and a bomber jacket. He was sexy, confident and tough. I liked that combination, especially in a real, live, breathing man instead of an image on the screen.

How about sharing your favorite romantic description or some of your work. We'd love to hear from you.

Here Come the Supremes

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear a case tomorrow regarding the police use of GPS devices for tracking suspects. The case interests me because of the privacy issue it raises, and also because as a writer of crime fiction I’ve used a GPS as a plot device.

The case in question involves a nightclub owner in D.C. who was convicted of drug dealing based on evidence collected over a twenty-eight day period when police placed a tracking device on his car. While the police had gotten a warrant for the device, they only placed it after the warrant expired. According to an editorial in yesterday’s NYT, the Federal Court of Appeals threw out the conviction, claiming that because there was no warrant, the suspect’s right to privacy was violated. In seeking to overturn the reversal, the government is claiming that use of a GPS is the same as physically tailing a suspect, which doesn’t require a warrant.

I’ll hold off on my two cents here for a bit, and give you all a chance to weigh in on this. Do you agree that a physical tail is comparable to a GPS in terms of the kind of information it might collect? Do you think police should be allowed to place a tracking device without a judge signing off on a warrant?

Whether or not we agree, it's clear that the Supreme Court ruling will affect police procedure, and that’s something we as writers need to keep it in mind .

Adolphe Sax Born This Day in 1814

I love learning something new every day, don't you? I just discovered that Adolphe Sax, a Belgian-born French maker of musical instruments, invented the saxophone in 1840. Mr. Sax was born on this date, November 6, in 1814, and died on February 7, 1894.

A quartet of saxophones created by Adolphe Sax in the 1850s appear in an image from the Cutler Gallery on the site of the National Music Museum. The condition of these instruments is amazing.

While on the subject of saxophones, I can't help but think about the loss of The Big Man, Clarence Clemons, this past June. For the "younger generation" who many not be familiar with his extraordinary talent, they are listening to his genius whenever they hear Lady Gaga's "Edge of Glory."

Clarence penned a memoir, Big Man: Real Life and Tall Tales, which was released in 2009.

I've seen Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band perform many times; the presence of Clarence Clemons on stage was always electric. I hope to see Springsteen perform again in the future, but I can't imagine the void onstage, where the Big Man and the Boss appeared together for nearly 40 years.

Thank you, Adolphe Sax for inventing the saxophone; and thanks, Clarence, for doing justice for so long on such a beautiful instrument. Your magic lives on!

Come follow me on Twitter @katcop13.

SQUEE!

Both Clare and I are huge John Sandford fans.  We're also Mark Harmon fans. So when I told her that Mark Harmon would be starring in John Sandford's Certain Prey on USA, of course we had to do a writeup on Criminal Element.

And then there was the trailer, which looked like a lot of fun, so we posted that on Criminal Element.

And then, oh, readers, and then we got an invitation from USA to do a phone interview with Mark Harmon about the Certain Prey movie.  So after we finished dancing around and congratulating ourselves, we accepted.

And we interviewed. And you can read it--and hear it on audio!--right here. You know I'll be watching the movie Sunday night. Will you?

Miscellany of Murder: We Have a Winner!

And the winner is . . . Liz V.! Liz wins her very own copy of Miscellany of Murder signed by the members of The Monday Murder Club. If Liz will contact me at lneely8169@gmail.com, I'll get the info so she can get her free, autographed book! Thanks to everyone who participated and commented on the post.

Lend a Hand to the Sunnier Side of the Street

Many of you in the crime community know Kevin Tipple whose family has been having tough times lately.  You can read all about it at Kevin's Corner, where perhaps you happen to see something you like in wife Sandi's online store, can donate, make an Amazon purchase through his link, or buy stuff from Barry Ergang who's donating from his proceeds to the Tipple family fund.  Anything helps if it works for you.  It's all optional, and many of you and yours may also be having tough times.  Know that we here wish you all the best, and look forward to all of us crossing over to sunnier sides together!

The High Line Has Plenty to Celebrate

So by now many of you may have read the e-book or the paperback of the recently released anthology written by members of NY/TriState Chapter of Sisters in Crime. Murder New York Style: Fresh Slices is crammed with all kinds of mystery stories, which take you to some impressive places in New York City. It doesn’t get better than a visit to the High Line Park, which is the scene for much of the forceful yet elegant story, “Taking the High Line,” written by Fran Bannigan Cox.

For decades a freight train line ran from the old west side meatpacking district to mid town, but there were so many accidents between the trains and regular street traffic, that in 1929 the City of New York began construction on an elevated train track known as the high Line, which rose thirty feet in the air, thus bypassing one hundred five crossings. By the 1950’s the increase of interstate trucking reduced the need for fright trains and by 1980, the last train rode along the High Line. After two decades of wrangling between the property owners, city officials and advocates for the use of the High Line as an open public space, the issue is settled in favor of making much of the High Line a public park. Fran’s story takes place in the part of the park that has been beautifully renovated and opened for use in June 2009, Gansevoort Street to West 20th Street. A second section opened in June 2011.

And now we New Yorkers are especially grateful to the Diller – von Furstenberg Family Foundation which has made a $20 million commitment to the High Line, which will be used to help transform the final, undeveloped section of the High Line at the West Side Rail Yards and help build an endowment for the park’s long-term maintenance and operation. You can read all about the donation in The New York Times.

To Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg, we say thank you for your generosity. And thank you Fran Bannigan Cox for bringing the High Line to life for mystery readers everywhere.

The picture of the High Line is from the New York Daily News.

*****SPECIAL TREAT***** Here is the link to Clare Toohey's story, "A Morbid Case of Identity Theft" as published in the anthology, Murder New York Style: Fresh Slices.

Terrie