Personal Archives - Laurie R. King

The making of HRF Keating

September 17, 2020 by Laurie King 4 Comments

What makes a writer? How do skill, circumstances, and determination come together in a lifetime of shaping stories?

I’ve met a lot of fine writers, during my 27 years as a published author. One I am most grateful to have called a friend was H. R. F. Keating.

I met Harry and his wife Sheila in 1995, at a Scottsdale conference put together by our mutual friend Barbara Peters. AZ Goes Classic (there was a book of the papers we presented, currently out of print, alas) was an amazing get together, where I met Mike Connelly, Harry Keating, Val McDermid—people I love and have worked with ever since.

Harry died nine years ago. I wrote a post about missing him, and about his amazing influence in both fiction and nonfiction, and about how I hate that he was never named Grand Master by MWA (the post, with a very brief reading list, is here). If you’ve never met his creations—Inspector Ghote, perhaps, or “Hard Detective” Harriet Martens, or perhaps his analyses of Golden Age Crime—please look out for him. As I say in that post:

His work, as his person, is characterized by a gentle eccentricity and humor with an enduring interest in the mystery as morality story. However, as with the best English crime fiction, his willingness to face the stark realities of the murders he writes about means that even his more “cosy” books (and could a title such as Mrs. Craggs: Crimes Cleaned Up be seen as anything but cosy?) often contain grim touches. The Detective series go further, into the frankly gritty, and he has ventured into the realm of the thriller (The Dog It Was That Died) and the macabre (a number of his short stories.)

Now his wife, whom I equally adore, has written a biography of Harry.

Some of you know Sheila Mitchell from various conferences, or from her audio books, or from performances you’ve seen (she toured a one-woman play about Dorothy L. Sayers that played at several conferences) but here, she offers a unique insider’s view of one of the most influential writers of the late 20^th century. It’s charming, it’s comprehensive, and it’s clear-eyed when it comes to the state of publishing in the 21^st century.

I highly recommend that you order a copy from your local Indie, for a look through a partner-wife’s eyes at the making of a great writer and an even greater human being: here.

Russell’s life onscreen

September 9, 2020 by Laurie King 68 Comments

The other day, a charming appointment popped up on my e-calendar:

This was to remind me of a video conference with the English team working to bring Russell to the screen. And despite smoke in the air, the occasional rolling blackout, and the inevitable problems of getting Microsoft to talk to Apple, we managed to meet up.

Once we’d linked up, I started the discussion by saying that I had a really important question for them.

They did look slightly alarmed—since this was a first meet with one and only the second for the other. Good lord, you could see them think: do we have one of those writers on our hands? The kind who starts out pushy and gets worse?

But no, I hope I’m not one of those writers. Instead, my question was: “So, are you two having fun yet?”

And the answer I got was, oh yes indeed, they were—all kinds of fun.

Now, I have no way of knowing whether Russell & Holmes will show up in your living rooms. I do feel very positive about the project, and these people certainly have the experience and resources to see it through. But to have people who clearly adore Mary Russell, who want to bring me in as a consultant on basic decisions, and whose enthusiasm was palpable—well, all I can say is, Mary Russell is in good hands.

Fired up, thanks.

August 21, 2020 by Laurie King 9 Comments

You may have heard that we have a fire going on here in Santa Cruz.

Flames coming at us…

Fires are, unfortunately, not unusual in California—generally in October, when the dry season is dragging on. But fires are now an annual, close, pressing presence, all over the state. For a quarter of the year, every year, our lives have become dominated by fear. Fear and smoke.

This year, nothing is usual. Why should fires be? Or rather, fire fighting.

Because this one, they’re not actually fighting. Thousands of homes are in the line of the fire, and yes, so far most of the people have gotten out, but a fire that would normally have 3000 or more firefighters on it, has had 600.

Normally, within twenty minutes of the first whiff of smoke, you hear the spotter planes. Then the water-bearing helicopters and the retardant-spraying planes arrive, to crush the fire before it could build and take off—

Over my house, two years ago. No messing around.

But for two days, our skies have been empty.

In part, it’s a problem with the terrain, and the difficulty of dumping water on the tops of redwood trees, attempting to get it to the ground. And in part, it’s the way the wind is riding the front of the fire line, obscuring the target ground.

Charred leaf, drifted down onto my deck.

And the bigger problem? Our inability to get the Covid response under control.

Summer fires in California depend on the inmates of prisons and youth facilities, who train, get paid, and have a highly employable skill when they get out. But in 2020, the prisons have either locked their inmates down or given them early release.

This morning, I wrote a note on Facebook with a picture of the air we’re trying to breathe—

No filters on the photograph, though an N95 on the photographer.

—and a comment that decisions made in DC have rippled across the country.

Now, I did not mean that DC has anything to do with where our Conservation Corps prisoners are sent. I meant that the incredible catastrophe that is this government’s Covid response has now resulted in a situation where my neighbors’ houses are burning, their livestock and the wild creatures that live here are dying, and a quarter of my county has loaded up their cars and fled to safety.

Other countries have problems, absolutely. No argument there. And yes, global heating means that the hills are tinder dry and the sun is hotter than ever and you can’t blame the people in DC for all of that, since much was inherited. But once the fire is burning? Locking down our firefighters has thrown kerosene on the flames.

The camera couldn’t deal with the intense glowing red eye of the sun. Use your imagination…

The countries that acknowledged the problem early, that frankly ordered people to retreat until the numbers were down, that required their people to wear masks and keep apart and be both responsible and sensible—those countries might be watching their hills burn, but it isn’t because firefighters who want to work are kept from the fire lines.

This is a stupid way to live. What can be more basic than wearing a bloody mask and not going to large gatherings? Why is this country not only unable to bring the response under control, but unable to even agree that there are things that can be done, now? Why can we not just grow up?

My fire has nothing to do with your life, I know. Of course, if my house burns down, it means that you won’t have a book or two from me while I’m trying to put my life back together. And if you insist on not wearing a mask when you go out, and pretending that hanging out in a crowded bar or venue doesn’t matter, and yes, if you vote for people who treat it like a joke, then thanks, but I’m not sure that we’re ever going to crawl out from under this thing. Which would be too bad, to never be able to hang out and chat about the new one.

Ripples spread. And the Covid-denier one is currently crashing on my coastline.

The Case of Laurie and the Monegasque Prince

July 31, 2020 by Laurie King 39 Comments

The Case of Laurie and the Monegasque Prince

One morning, the following email greeted my insufficiently caffeinated eyes, arriving as a message through my web site:

On Jul 11, 2020, at 6:48 AM, {Name (First):1.3} {Name (Last):1.6} <noreply@authorbyteshosting.com> wrote:

Name
	Stefano Casiraghi
Email
	24hoursred2@gmail.com
Message
	I am Stefano Casiraghi Jr, and I reside in the principality of Monaco. I have taken the privilege to write to you today, because my fiance is a huge admirer of your work. The reason I am writing to you is because I would like to quietly invite you to our wedding, which is coming up on the 29th of August, 2020, as her surprise guest of honour. I assume that you are engaged in your busy schedules and it’s a bit impromptu however, your 20mins cameo will be a splendid experience and will mean the world to her. Hence, permit me to extend my hospitality by offering you a token for your preparation, so that I can make the necessary arrangement for a private to and fro flight for you and a few family members or friends. If this cannot be made possible, please autograph one of your piece and address it to her, while I humbly ask you to accept the token that I have offered as a support from my family for your good work. Kindly be informed that your acceptance to honour this request will mark the beginning of a new journey for all of us, while I hope that this communication will remain as discreet as possible, as to ensure that the expected excitement is achieved. Yours Sincerely, Stefano Casiraghi Jr.

Well, I thinks to myself, that’s a change from Nigerian princes. But still, there are odd people out there, and some of them have more money than they should, and so long as the fellow doesn’t ask me to click on a link or send him my bank routing number, I’ll play along.

On Sat, Jul 11, 2020 at 7:19 PM info king <info@laurierking.com> wrote:

Dear Stefano, what a most amusing way to begin my weekend, with a dream of flying off to Monaco for a royal wedding… (Although I cannot see that the world will be free of Covid in six weeks’ time.)

I am not sure what you mean by a “token” offered?

I am, naturally, happy to sign any book your fiancé might wish to purchase from my local Bookshop Santa Cruz, who, although they do not generally send things internationally, might be convinced to do so in this case.

As for any participation, I regret that my agent and accountant would require me to submit an invoice for however many days of travel spent (and hence writing lost), which currently begins at $3000 per day (for libraries) plus expenses. If you wish to mail a check to the PO Box given on my web site “contact” page, my agent would be pleased to open a dialogue with you.

Thank you for your interest, and Miss Russell, Mr Holmes and I wish you and your intended the very happiest of celebrations.

Laurie R. King

On Jul 13, 2020, at 6:41 AM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

Flying to Monaco from the United States and back, in this covid-19 moment is not a problem to arrange, provided you have a US International Passport. However, I do not wish to pressure you.

So, I will suggest you offer her the piece you believe is your best work so far, with inscription. I think that will be great and enough for her. Her name is Emilia and she is 25yrs.

As per the token as stated, that is strictly for you. But then, you put me through to your agent. Perhaps, I will have one of my associates make contact.

So sorry that I am currently operating within a very tight schedule. But will contact you at my earliest convenient time, let’s say; a week before the wedding.

Thank you.

Stefano.

On Jul 15, 2020, at 8:26 AM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

Lou is my associate, and I have advised him to contact you.

He will provide the necessary assistance in regards to where the signed book will be mailed to.

Also, he will direct some funds to you as a token from me. Please accept it as my humble support to your work.

Sorry I have a lot on my schedule right now.

I hope Emilia would love to contact you, hopefully after the wedding.

All the best in your endeavors.

Stefano Casiraghi Jr.

July 16 On Jul 16, 2020, at 7:04 AM, Lou William <louwie20@aol.com> wrote:

Hi Laurie R. King,

My name is Lou and I have been instructed by Mr. Stefano Casiraghi Jr. to arrange a payment of $150,000.00 in your favor.

The funds can cover your travelling preparation, if you can make the wedding. Otherwise consider it as a sign of his appreciation of your work, being that he intends to have you write his biography after the covid-19 pandemic. You may also support your favorite charity with part of it.

If you cannot make the wedding, he wishes that you inscribe your heart felt message in any of your personal book of choice that you wish to give to the wife; Emilia.

Either ways, I will need the beneficiary name for a cashier’s check to be issued, and the address it will be mailed to.

I will also issue you the tracking number of the mail, to monitor the delivery.

And do mail the inscribed book to the below information.

Lou William

2980 Fairview Park Drive

Falls Church

VA 22042-Virginia

Lou.

(276) 708-7213

July 16: sidebar

(I text with my daughter, speculating what they’re after—clearly it’s not just a book, since sending to that address—the Northrup Grumman defense contractor’s building—would promptly get it returned to me stamped Addressee Unknown…)

It’ll come out soon. Meanwhile, it’s very entertaining. And I’m trying to decide if my next step should be A) telling him I’ll go ahead and mail the book now, and that I need Emilia’s last name, and I’ll put tracking on it (so when it arrives there and there’s nobody by that name and they send it back…) or B) say that I’m so touched by this offer I want to put Emilia in the next book but I need her last name and photo and some details about her life, so the character really reflects her, or C) tell him my good friend Lee Child is flying in his own private jet to Monaco next week and why don’t I come too and we can meet?

From: info king <info@laurierking.com>
To: Lou William <louwie20@aol.com>
Sent: Thu, Jul 16, 2020 4:51 pm
Subject: Re: From Lou.

Dear Lou, this is amazingly generous. A check can reach me at my PO box, #4063, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060.

And I have a copy of the new book, set in Monaco, that I will send when I’ve received the check.

Have a lovely day, and keep safe,

Laurie R. King

On Jul 16, 2020, at 11:54 AM, Lou William <louwie20@aol.com> wrote:

Sorry, but I will need a physical mailing address to ascertain that the mail is received.

From: info king <info@laurierking.com>
To: Lou William <louwie20@aol.com>
Sent: Fri, Jul 17, 2020 2:18 am

Hi Lou, I do understand—my own address has a mailbox that is far from secure, being on a road half a mile away, and my agent is working from home at present, but I’ll send you a secure physical address tomorrow.

July 17 , Lou William <louwie20@aol.com> wrote:

I will be expecting the information.

July 20: , Lou William <louwie20@aol.com> wrote:

Please find below; the Fedex tracking number.
[# deleted]
Thank you
Lou.

On Jul 20, 2020, at 8:11 AM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

Dear Laurie,
I have just been informed by Lou that you have received the cheque.
Kindly confirm if you have received the funds and how much was made out to you, please.
Stefano.

On Tue, Jul 21, 2020 at 4:56 AM info king <info@laurierking.com> wrote:

Hello, sirs—the check arrived at my accountant, but it has her name on it, and since she and I do not have a bank account in common, she will need to send it back to you for re-issuing in the name of Laurie R. King.

Shall I have them send it to this address?

Lou William

2980 Fairview Park Drive

Falls Church

VA 22042-Virginia

On Jul 20, 2020, at 12:29 PM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

Kindly inform Mr. Louis William that there was an error as made on the cheque and that it should be re-issued.

Please emphasize the error was your side.

It is very important you do this.

Thank you.

Stefano.

On Tue, Jul 21, 2020 at 6:21 AM info king <info@laurierking.com> wrote:

No problem, but you said you wanted the mistaken check sent to you in Monaco?

Laurie

On Jul 21, 2020, at 5:39 AM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

Yes, you can send it to;

Julianna

6, Bd des Moulins, bureau 3, 1st floor, 98000, Monte Carlo

From: info king <info@laurierking.com>
To: Lou William <louwie20@aol.com>
Sent: Tue, Jul 21, 2020 6:21 am
Subject: Re: Tracking number

Hi Lou, as I emailed earlier, the check will need to be re-issued in the name of Laurie R. King, but sent to my accountant, [name deleted]. I probably was not clear enough on this, I’m sorry for the error.

How would you like us to return the existing check?

Laurie King

On Jul 20, 2020, at 3:01 PM, Lou William <louwie20@aol.com> wrote:

Hi Laurie,

Thank you for your email.

Please re-confirm if the check should be issued to the name and mailed to the address as stated

Thank you.

Lou.

———

Laurie R. King

[her address sent]

On Tue, Jul 21, 2020 at 8:16 AM info king <info@laurierking.com> wrote: [to Stefano]

I shall have someone send the check to this address, thanks. Does it matter to you how it’s sent? Is the Post Office okay?

And I think I need to write your fiancée a story about all this, as her wedding present…

Laurie

And at last, here it is:

On Jul 21, 2020, at 6:54 PM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

Yes you may send it by Post.

Before the next cheque is issued, let me add that Emilia’s father has a medical condition, and this has brought some negative energy in the family lately. Such is not needed at this time as you can see.

Considering the above, there is a charity that she is affiliated with.I wish to ask you to make a donation to this charity using part of the $150,000. Also, inscribe in your message to her that you are aware of her support to the charity, therefore have made a donation to them.

All I want is abundant joy in her at this moment, and I know such will mean the world to her, and for me as well.

Please confirm if this can be arranged.

Stefano.

On Jul 21, 2020, at 12:03 PM, info king <info@laurierking.com> wrote:

Oh, Stefano, I am sorry to hear that, such a cloud hanging over your upcoming wedding.

Do feel free to give as much of that money to the charity as you think appropriate, with my best wishes.

And I shall include your fiancé’s family in my prayers.

Yours,

Laurie

On Jul 21, 2020, at 12:55 PM, [my accountant] wrote:

This is so interesting! The way this often works is you send the “donation” after you deposit the check, so that money is definitely gone. But it can take a bank months to determine that the original deposit was fraudulent, and then the bank just debits your account. These people are spending a fortune in FedX fees to defraud us! I’m sending you a picture of the check from my Iphone.

With merriment,

(To M, July 21)

Note: the Better Business Bureau has “First Financial Bank” on their list of imposters.

https://www.bbb.org/us/oh/cincinnati/profile/loans/first-financial-bank-impostor-0292-90013561

And when I dialed the number listed for them, I first got the question if anyone in my house was over 50, and then (when I said no) the exciting offer of $100 worth of shopping credit for JUST $1.95, so get out my credit card NOW… Thanks, no.

From: Laurie King <lrking@cruzio.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 21, 2020 1:18 PM
To: M
Subject: Re: Fraud is fun

And is that return address on Happy Lane?

Oh, this is such fun.

On Jul 21, 2020, at 2:07 PM, [my accountant]> wrote:

In Sacramento. It’s a warehouse.

On Jul 22, 2020, at 1:54 AM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

Thank you for your email.

Kindly confirm your understanding of my email of yesterday in regards to her charity.

Once this is clear, I will instruct for the re-issuing of the cheque.

And please confirm if the first cheque has been sent out.

Stefano.

On Wed, Jul 22, 2020 at 5:23 PM info king <info@laurierking.com> wrote:

Hi Stefano, sorry I haven’t been out of the house in a week (I’m about to turn 68 so I tend to shelter in place) but I do need to go out in the next few days, and will pick up the check from my accountant. And I’m mailing it to you at your Monaco address, right?

Laurie

On Jul 22, 2020, at 8:28 AM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

I do not intend to stress you, please.

You can send the cheque together with the book after the second cheque arrives.

But before it is sent, do confirm that my explanation on the charity is clear.

Thank you.

Stefano.

On Jul 22, 2020, at 9:08 AM, Laurie King <lrking@cruzio.com> wrote [to Fed Ex]:

I have been in ongoing communication with a would-be scammer, and the matter is about to come to a head, in that he is asking me to mail him a check. This is a very sophisticated scammer, who has done a lot of homework into his target.

If anyone is interested in actually catching him in the act, the opportunity is rapidly approaching, when he will need to surface in order to receive his check.

His fraudulent check was sent through Fed Ex, the Ranco Cordova branch. on July 18. I can send the tracking information if you wish.

The cashier’s check was from “First Financial Bank” which is on the BBB’s list of impostors. (and is itself a scam, asking callers for credit card numbers.)

The FTC web site says that they do not investigate individual cases, only accumulate data, but if you know f someone who would enjoy making an arrest, that chance is coming soon.

Yours,

Laurie R. King

On Wed, Jul 22, 2020 at 10:08 PM info king <info@laurierking.com> wrote:

Certainly, I do understand—you’re sending me a replacement check (or rather, Lou is) and then I will send the book and my charity check to you in your Monaco address.

Though I’ll need to know how you want me to dedicate the book, and what the name of the charity is. Also, how much you think would be right?

(And I apologize if I sometimes don’t answer you right away, I don’t usually look at email while I’m working.)

Best wishes,

Laurie

On Jul 22, 2020, at 1:37 PM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

I don’t know if my English was as correct as I thought. But what I meant was that you will receive a check of $150,000 from Lou shortly.

Once you receive it and have it cleared, I will advise you where you will pay part of the funds to, and that will be the charity’s bank account.

Then you keep the balance as my support to your work as well.

The cheque that was sent previously, you enclose it alongside the inscribed book and send it to Monaco.

I hope that this is clear.

Stefano.

On Jul 27, 2020, at 10:43 AM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

[deleted]

The above is the tracking number of the sent cheque.

Stefano.

On Jul 28, 2020, at 5:19 AM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

Kindly find the assigned Fedex tracking number for your shipment.

[deleted]

Stefano

On Jul 28, 2020, at 12:27 PM, Stefano Casiraghi Jr. <24hoursred2@gmail.com> wrote:

From my side, I can understand the shipment is delivered.

Can you confirm to me when the donation can be made?

I will need to provide you with the details, when you are set.

Stefano.

July 30:

I picked up the above from my accountant.

I’ve been trying for the past week to interest some law enforcement in this. FTC, my bank, the sheriff’s office, Fed Ex. Because if I’m sending this chappie a check, that means someone will have to stick their head up to fetch it.

But nope.

And then tonight, I see this on Instagram:

William Kent Krueger got exactly the same scammer letter.

And here I thought I was special, Stefano.

Yes: Black Lives Matter (5)

June 26, 2020 by Laurie King 6 Comments

What do I do?

I began this week of Black Lives Matter thoughts by saying that the music industry’s #TheShowMustBePaused mission had prompted my (as their statement had requested) honest, reflective and productive inner conversation—with myself, on my own responsibilities when it came to the Black lives in my country. Race in this country is not a Black problem. It is not even an exclusively American problem. It is mine, and here are a few things that I need to remember.

I need to speak up. Keeping silent is the same thing as voicing agreement. I need to bear witness to inequity.

Use my privilege. If events of recent weeks have taught white people one thing, it’s that Black skin is a target where paler skin may not be. There’s often not even a need for the white bystander to be confrontational, merely to be there, and present, and visible, and polite, with persistent and courteous questions such as: Pardon me, sir, but isn’t that sort of racist? How is it not racism? Is there something I can help with? Isn’t there a fairer way we could do this? And so on…

Give. I need to donate money, but also time. To the NAACP for their decades of brave work and National Bail Out for those who can’t pay their bail, and the ACLU for all manner of human rights, and the Southern Poverty Law Center for voter registration. Maybe I should consult the Time Magazine list of things to do? I And if I need a book, perhaps from a Black-owned bookshop?

Vote. This November will be incredibly important when it comes to the future of race relations in our country—when it comes to the future of pretty much everything in our country, for that matter. November is key. I will donate, and I will pry loose some hours to do my part in shifting matters.

I will be aware. It’s time to expand my boundaries. I’ll start by checking out the books by Crime Writers of Color, signing up for their newsletter, and following them on Facebook.

This week started with #TheShowMustBePaused urging the country to “take a beat for an honest, reflective and productive conversation about what actions we need to collectively take to support the Black community.” So in the comments, how do you see us going forward as a nation, and what are you doing as a person?

Yes: Black Lives Matter (3)

June 24, 2020 by Laurie King Leave a Comment

#SayTheirNames

Black lives lost are swept up in the busy-ness of life: a sad shake of the head, a purse of the lips (“He should have known better than to pull out his phone/ run at night/ hit a cop/ drive there/ live…”) before the name fades. But the entire planet now knows the name George Floyd, whose “counterfeit $20 bill” death beneath a white knee may have triggered, at last, the world’s revulsion against that knee. Then mere days later Rayshard Brooks, instead of being told to walk home and sober up, ended up shot. As Breonna Taylor, instead of being handed a search warrant, was invaded and shot. As Ahmaud Arbery was shot for being out for a jog. As Freddie Gray was slammed to death five years ago, in a police van. As Walter Scott was shot in a park over a broken tail light, also in 2015. As Eric Garner was choked to death for selling individual cigarettes in 2014. As Trayvon Martin was shot for being a teenager in a hoodie in 2012. As in 1955, Emmett Till, another teenager, was brutally lynched for speaking to a white girl. As in 1895, Emmett Divers was taken from his jail cell—

In 1619, “Antonio” and “Isabella” “Tucker” arrived in what would become the United States. Their actual names, those they were given at birth in what is now Angola, are lost in time. Antonio and Isabella may have been kidnapped and enslaved, or their presence may have been more voluntary—their status as “indentured servants” during that era makes the distinction less than clear. Certainly their son, William, was born a free man, and not every Black person in those early days was enslaved—some were landowners, and even owned slaves themselves, as plantations grew and intensive labor was needed.

The “Tuckers” were not lynched or shot: that response to perceived Black transgressions grew up after their time, when laws and institutions reinforced the cruelty of the slave economy—when the sugar/rum/slave trading triangle became a direct back-and-forth between Africa and the New World.

This is an animated history of the slave trade. Every dot represents an entire shipload of men and women ripped from their homes. That endless stream of dots into the Caribbean bears testimony to the short lives of those working on sugar plantations. The dots hitting America’s coastline carried men and women from whom George and Breonna, Freddie and Eric, Trayvon and Emmett and all the other victims, named and nameless, descended.

And as I say the names Antonio, Isabella, and William, I have to wonder how early this country might have chosen a different path to walk down.

Yes: Black Lives Matter (2)

June 23, 2020 by Laurie King 10 Comments

“The actions we need to collectively take

to support the Black community.”

I live in the publishing community. My publisher is the biggest gorilla on the street, and I am actively involved in Mystery Writers of America, both of whom have come out with public statement on the #BLM movement (here and here.) And though we all know that the larger the organization, the more glacial the institutional racism can be, many of us are pledged to making sure real change does happen.

But on a more personal level, which Black writers do I recommend?

I thought you’d never ask.

Black Writers matter

There are a lot of Black mystery writers, and I imagine that we all (especially if we don’t have a hardback with an author photo) already read Black writers without realizing it. There are good places to begin with long and enticing lists that lead into the world of Black Mystery fiction. But let’s start with five authors I particularly enjoy. (Each has a link to Indiebound, to take you to your local bookshop, but you can get them anywhere.)

Barbara Neely (or BarbaraNeely) is this year’s MWA Grand Master, based on four delicious books about a Black cleaning woman ironically named Blanche White. They’re funny and moving and deal with all the issues you’d expect a working-class woman of color to encounter. Just too terribly sad that Barbara died before she held the plaque in her hand. Meet Ms. White in Blanche on the Lam.

Paula Woods also had a four-novel career, starting in 1999 with Inner City Blues. The name of her cop protagonist is Charlotte Justice, and I do not know why she stopped writing because they are good, solid crime fiction with a distinctive and compelling voice.

(Although: hmm. Two women, both Black, both fine writers, both with four-novel careers. So how much did their race—and particularly, the race of their characters—affect their publishing success?)

More recently, my friend Rachel Howzell Hall. She has a great series with police detective Lou Norton, starting with Land of Shadows, and a nice, creepy, alt-Agatha Christie thriller They All Fall Down. (Rachel has four in her series, but also the same number of standalones, so she’s well past the four-novel career curse.)

Attica Locke won the Edgar Award a couple years back for Bluebird, Bluebird, a thought-provoking tale of Black Texas life and the pulls when a Black man is also in law enforcement. I don’t know much about Texas, but Locke makes it sing.

The other writer I can’t recommend highly enough is sci-fi writer N. K. Jemison, the only author to have won the Hugo award three years running, for all three books in her Broken Earth trilogy. But her new one, The City We Became, is absolutely stunning. If you know China Mièville’s work, it’s a little like some of his, but if you don’t, I can’t think how to describe it except in superlatives. Rich, sharp, complicated. Amazing, fantastic, enthralling. Utterly unexpected and original. And so incredibly present, it might have been written last week.

Yes: Black Lives Matter (1)

June 22, 2020 by Laurie King 14 Comments

Black Lives: a marker of progress for white lives?

I haven’t said much about the state of our world since the May 25 death of George Floyd (other than the introductory remarks in my last newsletter, here.) In part, I felt that #BlackoutTuesday and its basis, #TheShowMustBePaused, were meant to focus the world’s attention on Black voices, to encourage everyone to “take a beat for an honest, reflective and productive conversation about what actions we need to collectively take to support the Black community.” On top of that, I could see that the very last thing any of my exhausted Black friends needed was another plaintive and heartfelt apology for the incredible abuses inflicted on them by people who look like me.

So while the world was blowing up, I did my job, launched my book, watched the news, listened to people. I wept and raged and shook my head in disbelief-that-is-no-longer-disbelieving. I watched in awe as people like the angry and eloquent Kimberly Jones spoke her heart:

She’s way more generous than I am. If I’d been around during the French Revolution, I’d have swept through Versailles with a torch.

For the past four weeks I’ve watched, and listened, and tried for that honest and productive reflection. Because, as Jelani Cobb writes in his New Yorker article about Juneteenth:

There’s a paradox inherent in the fact that emancipation is celebrated primarily among African-Americans, and that the celebration is rooted in a perception of slavery as something that happened to black people, rather than something that the country committed. The paradox rests on the presumption that the arrival of freedom should be greeted with gratitude, instead of with self-reflection about what allowed it to be deprived in the first place. Emancipation is a marker of progress for white Americans, not black ones.

The problem is not with Black America, but with the side of the street I live on. In going forward, some of the actions I have decided on are behind the scenes, and will remain there. Seems to me that a person who needs credit for acts of decency is part of the problem.

Other things I decided on are longer term, and you’ll hear about them when they come around. Change only works if it lives past the present.

And then there’s the more immediate act—namely this week of posts here on Mutterings. (And no: if you’re tired of Black Lives Matter, if your head will explode with one more thing to feel guilty about, if life is already making your eyes weep and your ulcer flare, you don’t have to read me this week.)

I write fiction. My audience is incredibly mixed, in age and ethnic heritage and political beliefs. As a storyteller, this is how things work. It always astonishes me to come across a reader who holds vastly different beliefs from mine, but it is absolutely not my job to vet my listeners. The story is the story, and any subversive messaging I sneak in has to be low-key enough to overlook at first glance—not because I’m ashamed of it or want to lose a sale, but because nothing kills fiction faster than the smell of the soap-box. If you’re preaching, it’s not a story, it’s a sermon.

(Though I have a strong, knee-jerk reaction to being told what to do. People who email me saying they won’t buy my book because of something I said or didn’t say, or that I really mustn’t write that kind of book again, always get my second reply—the polite one, after I’ve deleted the first one. If my politics offend you that much, no one is making you buy my book.)

Laura: I’m dead chuffed that Yorkshire Tea hasn’t supported BLM.

Yorkshire Tea: Please don’t buy our tea again.

All of which means that on the one hand, I am a writer of fiction whose political and sociological opinions should be of less concern to the general world than my choice of dishwashing soap. On the other hand, I do have strong opinions, and I am a citizen of the world.

So the time has come to say, yes: Black lives matter.

White and blue and brown lives matter, too, of course they do—but in this country, Black lives have long carried an extraordinary burden, and at this moment, we might—we just might, if we all respond, have a chance to take that burden off the backs of our Black friends and neighbors. Or off their necks. And maybe redeem ourselves a little in the eyes of the future.

Black lives matter.

That’s the theme over the next five days here on Mutterings. I’ll be talking about Black writers, about saying the names of victims, about the idea of “defunding” the police, and some thoughts on where I’m going.

And I’m leaving the comments open, although anyone who loses the thread of rational conversation will be blocked.

Russell’s Nurse Friend

April 4, 2020 by Laurie King 3 Comments

One of the people I follow on Facebook is a long-time admirer of the Mary Russell stories who came into the fold when she was younger than Russell is in Beekeeper. She did some of the illustrations we’ve used in various projects, like this one of Baskerville Hall:

(She was one of the few artists who actually drew Russell with glasses. Glasses are hard.) Marisa is now a nurse. In New Orleans. Where the Covid death rate is twice that of New York.

So, yeah.

She’s also a farmer and an artist and an all-round amazing person. When I read her recent comment about having to re-use her mask five days running, I got in touch and mailed her some of the N95 masks I bought last year against the smoke of California’s wildfires. I also asked her if she’d like to do some illustrations for a fundraiser project we’re in the middle of putting together. (More on that soon.)

I thought you, as fellow members of the Russell community, might like to know what she had to say:

Wednesday, April 1:

Hi Laurie,

Thank you so much for the masks. They have given renewed hope and have helped reduce fear in my hospital among the staff (and myself)! Thank you for protecting us ❤️

It’s been a weird weekend for me, I spiked a temp, but was fortunately able to get tested rapidly and found out I DO NOT have Covid-19 at this point. Received my ok to return to work today. Quarantine has been odd. I have a feeling this might happen multiple times…

I anticipate returning to work if not tomorrow then later this week and will then be able to see with my own eyes if we now have equipment or not. We have been receiving emails from higher-ups that we do, but I am waiting to see that with my own eyes. Many hospitals are having staff re-use their protective equipment still but that picture is changing rapidly. My heart goes out to NYC and other places in the country that have been so tragically hit by this pandemic. I know that every time I go into work recently I have to somehow be ok with the fact that I might die. Going in for a shift at the hospital feels like jumping out of a plane right now, and leaving feels just the same because I am so afraid I am going to bring something home to my husband.

These are, as they say, strange times.

I stay hopeful and motivated in the fact that people do get through this and I need to have faith that I will be one of them. At the very least I can make the most of the situation and help as many as I can until I am stopped. I do not work in the ED or ICU but I have seen the fatigue and fear in the eyes of my colleagues and have heard their stories. My patients are frightened, alone, and even more vulnerable than ever before. I have felt the pressure myself as an inpatient ICU-step down nurse on an Oncology floor and this is just the beginning of it.

But I will persist 👍

I have found in difficult times throughout my life, when life puts pressures on you like this you absolutely must embrace every shred of happiness that you can. I would therefore be honored to contribute to your project. It may be just the thing to keep things in perspective!

Thank you and stay safe out there,

Marisa

Thursday, April 2:

I hope not to frighten people, but at the same time I think everyone needs to know what is going on and that it is critical that healthcare providers receive the public’s help.

I received word today that the first nurse has died down here from COVID and that there are possibly one or two more. And this is happening across the country. I think that people don’t realize how powerful their actions can be by simply staying at home – such a simple thing WILL save lives.

On a lighter note, I will start working on your pictures tonight with a goal of getting them completed within the next 3-4 days if that is suitable. I am deeply touched that you would include me in your project and if there’s anything you want changed with the images I send you let me know – I’m very easy to work with and open to modifications. I love the idea of your project.

Thank you Laurie for your support, friendship and excellent books. Stay safe out there.

***

This, I think you will agree, is a young woman Ms. Russell would be very proud of calling a friend.

And I got the first of her illustrations, and it makes me so happy, I can’t wait to share them with you all.

I don’t want to post her email address here, but if you have a message for Marisa, you can email it to me at info@LaurieRKing.com, and I’ll forward it. Or you can post it on my personal Facebook page, which she visits: https://www.facebook.com/laurie.king

Keep safe, keep happy, keep it together, everyone.