The Speed City Indiana Chapter of Sisters in Crime anthology, Racing Can Be Murder, has been published by Blue River Press, with an official launch date of Sunday, October 7, 2007.Copies will be available to members during the month of September – and will be available to general public beginning in October.
The book launch party will be from 2:00-5:00pm at The Mystery Company in Carmel, Indiana. We hope you will all bring your friends and relatives to support the chapter.
On the back cover Kit Ehrman (author of Triple Cross) writes: “Buckle up for this winning field of devilish plots, mayhem galore, and fast-paced fun.Like a finely tuned engine, this collection of racing stories is a flag-to-flag winner.”
Wouldn’t it be great if this first anthology of “nineteen stories of mayhem, murder, and mischief at the Indy 500” makes the Indianapolis Best Seller List?
What a great encouragement this would be for our SCISinC authors!
(Kit Ehrman fleshes out plot before writing novels)
Sara Amato, Indiana Daily Student, 8/2/2007
Indiana writer Kit Ehrman’s fourth mystery book "TRIPLE CROSS" won the Best Book of Indiana Award in 2007 doesn’t mean she’s solved all the mysteries of writing. "I’m struggling with a bit of writer’s block right now," she said. "For me, it only happens when I allow myself to be pressured by expectations." But that doesn’t mean she’s giving up any time soon. "When you’re writing, it’s time to put aside the editor and agent and reviewers and concentrate on the story," Ehrman said. "I try to work out all the kinks in the plotting phase so that once I begin to write, I can fly."
Ehrman’s passion for writing was fueled by her love for reading mystery stories. Although Sherlock Holmes is her favorite detective, contemporary author Dick Francis is her biggest influence. She said she was so caught up in the horse world that Francis portrayed in his novels that she was compelled to quit her job and start work in the horse industry, where she worked for more than 25 years.
On July 22, 1996, Ehrman attempted to write her first novel. She said that although she didn’t start writing seriously until she ended her career in the horse industry, she remembers that date because of a journal she kept. In 2002, she said she was reading a novel about horses and was disappointed with the ending. She said she made the "ultimate mistake" by thinking she could write the novel better. "Needless to say, I discovered that writing an exciting, suspenseful ending and keeping your hero smart is difficult to pull off," she said. "But I fell in love with the writing process."
Ehrman’s first book "At Risk," released in 2002, is about a 21-year-old protagonist Steve Cline, a barn manager, who is kidnapped and nearly murdered after thieves attempt to steal horses from the barn where he works. Cline tracks down the thieves himself and in the process accidentally becomes an amateur detective. She said she thought of the idea for Steve Cline and the story line while working as a barn manager at a hunter-jumper facility in Maryland. "Dealing with a large number of animals meant that I’d occasionally walk into a disaster of some sort," she said. "An injured or dead horse, or on a lighter note, 25 school horses running loose, and I was the only person around to keep them from getting on the road." Ehrman said she asked herself, what would have happened if she walked into a disaster generated by someone up to no good? From there, Ehrman created her main character. She said she wanted a male hero because she knew it would be more fun to write a male protagonist.
After she developed a plot and main character, Ehrman began writing her first novel.
Ehrman said one of her best experiences as an author was winning the Best Book of Indiana Award in 2007. The award was sponsored by the Indiana Library Federation, which made it even more special to her. "That kind of recognition is great, but it’s also wonderful to receive an enthusiastic letter from a reader who got what I was trying to do with a particular scene or book," she said.
Mystery author Beverle Myers said she met Ehrman four years ago through Sister in Crime, an international support and networking organization for female mystery writers. She said they have also had book signings and other promotional events together. Myers said Ehrman’s books are so well-written that when she reads them she is immediately drawn into the world of horses, a topic she knows nothing about. "Her love and respect for the animals is also very evident," Myers said. "Though the protagonist of her novels is a young man, Steve Cline, I see a lot of Kit in Steve."
Susan Whittaker, owner of Viewpoint Books in Columbus, Ind., has known Ehrman for nearly five years. Whittaker said it is important for authors to have small, local writers such as Ehrman display their works in independent bookstores. Independent bookstores generally are more willing to stock and feature books by local authors than the chain stores, she said. "Every year our best-selling titles are from local authors," Whittaker said. "When you get a local author who writes at the high level that Kit does, it works for both of us."
Although Ehrman is a stay-at-home mom, she said being a writer changes after being published. She said the promotion side of the job takes up approximately 50 percent of her time, which puts more pressure on the writing aspect of her career. Even though getting published is difficult and time-consuming, Ehrman said if you’re willing to become a writer, you have to go back to the basics of writing. "Have faith in yourself. Write for yourself, not for a trend. By the time you get someone to look at your work, the trend will have changed, anyway," she said. "When you write from the heart, it shows."
Flash #3
Author Holiday Event
Authors: Tom Cochrun, Marlis Day, Brandt Dodson, Phil Dunlap, Kit Ehrman, Terence Faherty, Sara Frommer, Michael Koryta, Monette Michaels, Tony Perona, Brenda Stewart, Larry Sweazy, Ian Wollen and more...
The Mystery Company is pleased to announce that they will be hosting their 4th Annual Holiday Party, featuring Indiana's mystery writers. Come meet and mingle with Indiana's premier authors! Stock up for the holiday gift giving season. Authors will sign copies of their books which make GREAT presents...for others or for yourself! Come join in the fun as we salute our very own mystery writers!
Contact Jim at The Mystery Company, 317-705-9711 for more info.
Jaci Muzamel
The Mystery Company
Flash #4
Dan T. Hall's CentralState docu/drama, in which Wanda Lou Willis has a small part, will be premiering October 21st (7:00pm) at the IMAX theater - Indianapolis.
It will also be shown October 25th at the Cinema Grill and again-TBA-at the Bechman Theater.
Here also is a link to the Central State website flash page, to see more of the story behind this docu/drama:http://www.central-state.com/
Warning: May be disturbing to some viewers
Flash #5
October 2, 2006
Dear Members,
Want to share a letter that Carol Sissom received from David Dellinger, Sales Manager for Borders - Greenwood.
Congratulations, Carol!!
****
September 29, 2006
PO Box 17247
Indianapolis, IN46217
Dear Carol:
I wanted take this opportunity to congratulate you on the success of your first book The LaSalle Street Murders.Since its release back in June you sold a total of 159 books in our store alone, making you one of the best-selling local authors we have ever had.In fact, in July you were our number one selling book with 83 copies sold!
Carol, we at Borders are extremely proud of the success you’ve had and are grateful to be a part of this wonderful collaboration. You have definitely set the bar!We look forward to having you in our store October 14th for your next signing.I’m sure you will have tremendous success.
Attention: The Indiana Authors Showcase presented by Cardinal Publishers Group and Indianabooksupply.com is currently underway at the Indiana State Fair, August 9-20. Over two dozen authors from Indiana (including several who are members of the Speed City Indiana Sisters in Crime), or those whose works relate to Indiana, will appear to help promote the written arts in the state.
This is a great opportunity to meet these authors as well as support our members.
Here is the link to the Indianapolis/Marion County Public Library announcement – which includes a link to the full listing of authors and schedule (pdf file): Click right here!J
Flash #7
March 28, 2006
ForeWord Magazine Book-of-the-Year Finalist!
Kit Ehrman's COLD BURN is a ForeWord magazine Book-of-the-Year Finalist for 2005. The winner will be announced at BookExpo America in May.
*Congratulations Kit! -- from the Speed City Indiana Sisters in Crime.
Flash #8
March 24, 2006
Dear Members,
Please visit our Members web-page as we now have photos, bios, and publishing credits posted for 10 of our SCISinC members; Sheila Boneham, Sherita Saffer Campbell, Kit Ehrman, Jim Huang, Lisa McDavid, Jaci Muzamel, Tony Perona, Pat Robertson, Andrea Smith, and Brenda Stewart.
I'm looking foward to posting this information for more of you.
I have some exciting news! Both of my paranormal suspenses have finalled in the EPPIEs for 2006 --
The Case of the Virtuous Vampire written under my Monette Michaels pen name and Treading the Labyrinth written under my Rae Morgan pen name are both finalists in the paranormal/fantasy romance category.
The winners will be announced in San Antonio in mid-March. I have previously won the EPPIE for my medical-legal thriller Blind-Sided (2005) and was a finalist in the thriller category in 2003 for Death Benefits.
Moni Draper
*Congratulations Moni! -- from the Speed City Indiana Sisters in Crime.
Description of Group: Mystery Us Indiana is for mystery writers and readers who live in Indiana (or are otherwise connected to the state by their writing or reading) and who want to network on line. "Mystery" is broadly defined to include all types of mysteries, thrillers, and non-fiction crime writing.
